I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 129 Old Ma and the Evil of Feudalism
As the end of the year approached, Turgenev, who had been abroad for quite some time, prepared to return home and first sent back good news by letter.

Undoubtedly, for the French literary circle, which is also not very large, the fact that Turgenev was able to get Mikhail to give his novel a big show in such a top-notch salon meant that it wouldn't be long before most of the writers in the French literary circle knew about it.

Especially in Turgenev's account, the Russian Mikhail is portrayed as almost like a prophet. Whatever he wanted to do, he would accomplish; whatever he didn't want to do, no one else could do. Did anyone oppose him? Yes, but very few, and even if they did, it was useless.

Regardless of whether it's true or not, the reputation has spread. Coupled with the gimmick of "a superb short story written in French by a Russian," few people who have heard the rumor would not want to read the story. And once they actually read it, even if Turgenev exaggerated it to some extent, they would believe it to some degree.

After all, for a Russian author to write a novel like this in French, he must be an extremely talented literary genius, so it's not impossible that he would also excel in other areas.

Besides the literary world being very interested in this matter, it is believed that once this news spreads, readers in Paris will also become curious about this novel.

Because many magazine owners in Paris thought the same way after hearing this rumor, Turgenev's subsequent submissions went very smoothly. In addition to the novel "The Necklace," other novels such as "The Chameleon" and "Vanka," which were translated into French, were also gradually accepted.

That's part of the charm of literary salons; otherwise, so many young literary enthusiasts wouldn't be scrambling to get in.

But no matter what, it still comes down to the quality of the work; if the quality of the work is poor, everything else is in vain.

Meanwhile, although all these novels came from Mikhail, Turgenev was, after all, playing the role of an intermediary. As a result, he enjoyed a period of fame in the French literary circle thanks to Mikhail's novels and his stories. For this reason, he even went to see the singer he admired and showed off his presence in front of her and her husband.

Regarding this, one can only say that the literary circles of France these days seem to love playing this game. It's one thing to boast about others, but they're not afraid of the other person's husband or lover finding out. Hugo was boasted about, Stendhal was boasted about, Balzac boasted about others, and Dumas is even more of a veteran in this regard. However, whether it's boasting about others or being boasted about, there's often one thing in common: everyone knows about it.

And sometimes it really is a heartwarming scene.
Getting back to the point, while Turgenev was making his presence felt, he was also sending information back to Mikhail, who then saw the following message: "Dear Mikhail, you can hardly imagine how much I have to go to get your novel into the top salons. The gentlemen in the French literary circles are all so mean, so snobbish, so full of jealousy and prejudice."

And I've already given far too much to please some of them.

Mikhail: “?”

Turgenev's Account of the French Ditch?
Just kidding. Actually, even without Turgenev saying much, Mikhail could understand the difficulties involved.

As someone who is familiar with the literary circles of major countries in this era, he knows quite a bit about the nature of writers in certain circles.

It's probably because the version previews are so impressive. Besides being a revolutionary base area, the old version is also top-notch in terms of some abstract representations.

Turgenev's talent in social skills was undeniable, which allowed him to make his way in the literary circles of old France.

If Mikhail were to do it himself, he might not be able to do it as well as Turgenev.

In his letter, Turgenev not only recounted his own hardships but also mentioned the reactions of the people in the salon after he read the novel aloud:

"The moment I finished reading, everyone looked at me as if I were God. Even Victor Hugo, the renowned figure in the French literary world, couldn't help but tremble as he said, 'How fortunate I am that you are Russian! Otherwise, where would I find a place in the French literary world?!'"

Mikhail: “???”

real or fake?

And I get the feeling you've gotten really into it, completely immersed in the writing process.
Upon seeing this, Mikhail thought about Victor Hugo's character and deeds, and then couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.

As I said before, almost no writer or artist, especially a great one, is not self-centered. It's fine to admire them, but getting along with them is not an easy thing at all.

In his early years, this great writer was, strictly speaking, a staunch supporter of the monarchy. His early works were based on praising royalism and religion. Later, as he came into contact with more and more things, his political attitude changed considerably.

By the time of the February Revolution in 1848, Hugo had gradually shifted towards a republican stance. In the presidential election, Hugo voted for Napoleon III. Unfortunately, in 1851, Louis Bonaparte betrayed the republic, staged a coup, declared himself emperor, and launched a massive crackdown on revolutionary forces. Hugo was thus forced into exile, where he remained for 19 years.

Even during his exile, Hugo never stopped creating literature, constantly producing works to fight against Napoleon's dictatorial regime.

It is simply referred to as "Run going abroad to do political work".

In those days and in the era that followed, it seemed that many famous revolutionaries would have to go through this process.

After reading Turgenev's letter, although Mikhail felt that Turgenev's statement was a bit exaggerated, things were undoubtedly going smoothly, and it would probably not be long before those novels were published in Parisian literary magazines.

If we consider the timeline, in early 1845, Marcel was in Paris working on the magazine "Forward," where he continued to use his traditional skills to sharply criticize German authoritarianism.

If Lao Ma had paid attention to literary magazines, he might have seen those articles.

After thinking about these things for a while, Mikhail pondered how he should behave if he could meet Old Ma, and made full mental preparations before heading to General Danilevsky's house.

Regarding the latter, it is roughly that although the general no longer wanted to serialize his novel due to space issues in "The Modern Man," he still wanted to discuss the outline of his novel with the genius writer Mikhail.

After all, this is one of his favorite little hobbies lately.

Mikhail found this somewhat difficult to handle. He could easily dismiss others with perfunctory responses, but the general was, in a sense, Mikhail's benefactor, so it was indeed inappropriate for him to utter any nonsensical or dismissive remarks.

This is when the art of speaking really comes into play.
In any case, Mikhail accepted the general's invitation after some consideration.

When Mikhail arrived, he had just entered the general's house with the help of his servants when the general, who had been sitting and talking to someone next to him, immediately noticed him and jumped up from his chair and walked straight toward Mikhail.

After the general greeted Mikhail warmly, he personally led him to a seat. Although the general already knew Mikhail was a nobody from out of town, the young man's talent was simply astonishing; every time he appeared at their house, something new seemed to happen around him.

In other words, although it's not great, it has a bright future and deserves some attention.

Of course, the general also grew to appreciate Mikhail's works and his character more and more. His works were quite interesting, and he was humble and unassuming. Being around him was always like a breath of fresh air. The fact that he was remembered by so many noble ladies and young girls reminded the general of his younger self.

When they met again, the general didn't even bother to mention the outline of his story; he just chatted with Mikhail.

While exchanging pleasantries with the general, Mikhail also noticed the other guests at the general's house. There weren't many people, and several of them looked quite young. Two of them looked familiar, as if they were people from the cultural circles of St. Petersburg, and they had even met Mikhail before.

Seeing Mikhail here again, the two young men were genuinely excited. However, since the general was talking to Mikhail, it wasn't appropriate for them to come up and greet him right now.

Of course, Mikhail wasn't a ruble, so he wasn't universally loved. There were a few young noblemen dressed rather luxuriously who seemed to recognize Mikhail, but most of them showed a cold and indifferent attitude, occasionally giving him a slightly provocative look.

To be honest, Mikhail had seen this kind of look quite often, and he was too lazy to delve into the reasons behind it. So he simply ignored these people and turned to meet the eyes of Nadya, who was sitting quietly to the side.

The young woman, dressed casually and looking both energetic and dignified, was probably just there to greet guests. Her fair face wore a somewhat formulaic smile, but after making eye contact with Mikhail, her smile seemed to become much more lively, and she even winked at him.

Seeing this, Mikhail naturally couldn't ignore it, so he blinked rapidly several times. Perhaps because he blinked so fast, the general couldn't help but ask with some doubt, "Mikhail, are your eyes uncomfortable?"

"No, no, it's just a little dry."

Mikhail was startled by the general's question, but he remained calm on the surface, rubbing his eyes as he answered.

"It must be because of writing, right?"

The general showed a knowing expression, and then said with great empathy, "It is indeed a tough job!"

Upon hearing this, Mikhail could only offer an honest smile.

After exchanging ideas with Mikhail for quite some time about the difficulties of writing, the general finally couldn't help but bring up the outline of his novel:

“Mikhail, I believe you have already seen it. Please feel free to express your opinion. I will accept whatever your opinion is.”

Mikhail: “?”

I have a feeling that you wouldn't be too happy if I told you.

That being said, in order not to appear too perfunctory, Mikhail was still prepared to share some substantial information.

Although the general's outline could be considered feudal and heretical in those days, in a sense, it was also a righteous form of evil.

While it's difficult to extract much artistic merit from novels that depict the righteous turning evil, they can still be written in a reasonably engaging way if the writing techniques are applied properly.

Moreover, novels with this theme, as long as they happen to be set in this dynasty, will definitely have a large number of potential readers.

Of course, that's too far off. Mikhail first affirmed that the general was very insightful and creative, glossing over that part. Then, Mikhail began discussing the techniques used in novels. This part was a bit dry, but not too dry, and the general, listening attentively, was able to apply what he learned to other situations.
"Yes! Isn't that how it was written in your novel? Oh, I see."

By the end, the general, seemingly having gained much insight, couldn't help but grasp Mikhail's hand and say, "This is exactly the kind of opinion I need! Unlike that Krajevsky, does he really think I can't tell he's flattering me? I just didn't want to argue with him. If you ask me, under your leadership, 'Chronicles of the Fatherland' will never surpass 'The Modern Man'!"

"This is the result of everyone's joint efforts."

Mikhail made a few modest remarks. Although the general wanted to chat with Mikhail a little longer, a servant came by and then he had to leave for a while because of some business. After the general left, the atmosphere seemed to become much more lively.

The two young people from the literary world greeted Mikhail warmly, and Nadya, who didn't usually talk much to the guests, also started talking to Mikhail.

As for those aloof young nobles, although they appeared indifferent, they couldn't help but look towards Mikhail.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you."

Perhaps because there were other guests present, Nadya was very restrained, but even so, she still excitedly told Mikhail about what she had been doing recently.

Because there were other people present, she didn't talk about anything more private, but instead shared the poems she had recently read and her related insights.

It's worth mentioning that, whether it was to find common ground with Mikhail or because she was genuinely interested in literature, philosophy, and even politics, Nadya did ask Mikhail for a reading list and has been reading and studying it recently.

Nadya seemed to have truly experienced a lot while reading, so while enthusiastically discussing the good poems she had recently read, she couldn't help but exclaim, "How beautifully written! I wish I could write poems like that, Mikhail. Do you understand this feeling? Do you think it's possible?"

"Of course it's possible, you can definitely give it a try."

Upon hearing Mikhail's reply, before Nadya could say anything, a young nobleman sitting next to them seemed unable to resist. Whether he wanted to join their conversation or was absolutely certain of his own ideas, he adopted an expert-like demeanor and commented:

"No, you make that too easy a statement. Perhaps you haven't written enough."

(End of this chapter)