“In St Petersburg the ice on the Neva would be breaking up with its thunderous, crackling roar, but Kolya had no time to think of St Petersburg. He found his studies unexpectedly fascinating, and his admiration for Ned Howard’s expertise grew. As they rode about the estate, overseeing drainage and ploughing and planting, dealing with tenants’ problems, he told Ned what be knew of farming in Russia. Serfs with nothing to gain from their labours were lazy and careless, and they strongly resisted any attempt to introduce modern methods. Kolya did not tell Ned that once he had planned to free his serfs as soon as he inherited the vast Volkov estates. That moment would never come. To reveal that his father was Prince Volkov, one of the wealthiest and most influential men in Russia, was worse than pointless: it might spoil his friendship with the Howards. Even thinking him merely a private gentleman, Ned was always deferential to his pupil, though he would have scorned to toad-eat. Polly, on... the other hand, had not a deferential bone in her body.MoreLessShow More Show Less
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