I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 138 The secret police poured in.

Generally speaking, in the 19s, the revolutionary forces and the timing of revolution in Russia were far from ripe, and there was still a long way to go. However, the outbreak of revolution is never something that happens overnight, but rather it is driven by generation after generation until a suitable time arrives, at which point history can turn a new page.

So here's the question: in Russia, since the Decembrists were the first generation of rebels, did a second generation of rebels emerge in the following thirty years?
Some brothers, yes.

Belinsky was actually one of the representatives of the second generation. As early as 1832, he was expelled from school on a pretext for organizing the progressive group "Literary Society No. 11" and writing the anti-serfdom drama "Dmitri Kalinin".

Even today, Belinsky continues to work on the front lines of political discourse, using "The Contemporary" as a solid platform for his continued output.

At the same time, Belinsky's experience in 1832 could have easily led him to complain to his father: "Father! Your noble title back then wasn't strong enough, nor was it ruthless enough!"

The reason for saying this is, of course, because of the stark contrast with Herzen.

Like other early Russian revolutionaries, Herzen came from a noble family, whose noble titles were so prestigious that they were held back to the time of Grand Duke Vasily III of Moscow.

Back when Russia was still in a state of tribal conflict, the Byzantine Empire collapsed, and Sofia Paleologie, the niece of the last emperor Constantine XI, fled to Russia and married Ivan III, the Grand Duke of Moscow. Their son succeeded to the throne as Vasily III, who from then on called himself the "Third Rome".

Vasily III's son was Ivan IV, the first Tsar of the Russian Empire.

Herzen's ancestors believed that "solo play is a form of wisdom," so they used all their territory to support Vasily III's unification of Russia.

This all-in bet successfully made him one of the top players at the start of the game.

The opportunity to become a player at the start of the game was extremely rare, and fortunately, Herzen's ancestors did seize the opportunity.

However, although such an opportunity is extremely rare, if Mikhail lives long enough and continues to pursue his cause, it wouldn't be too difficult for him to gain the titles of several launch players.
In short, given their powerful ancestors, Herzen's father, Yakovlev, naturally fared quite well. It is said that after Napoleon invaded Moscow, he contacted Alexander I through Herzen's father, hoping to persuade Russia to surrender directly.

Herzen's father, while holding a high and prestigious noble title, was also a staunch advocate of pure love. During his travels abroad, he met the daughter of a low-ranking official, fell in love with her, and brought her back to Moscow, making her the mistress of the house.

Unfortunately, due to their vastly different social statuses, they never married, so Herzen was technically an illegitimate child and did not inherit his father's name.

However, because Herzen's father loved him very much, he was naturally the rightful heir to the family. Thus, Herzen received a good education, and one of his private tutors was none other than the Jacobin who had turned Louis XVI into a brainless fool.

At the same time, one of Herzen's uncles happened to be a member of the Russian Decembrists.

In this way, Herzen gradually became a progressive young man and entered Moscow University to continue his studies.

So, back to the story: Belinsky wrote a play with dangerous tendencies and was immediately kicked out of Moscow University, while Herzen, despite being imprisoned in the Moscow University prison for leading a riot and driving out teachers, did eat and sleep well, and his father got him out of prison not long after.

Not only was he allowed to graduate smoothly, but he was also given the opportunity to start as a ninth-rank civil official immediately after graduation.

However, this matter was ultimately fraught with hidden dangers. As the saying goes, the taller the tree, the more the wind blows. Herzen and his friends' actions were not secretive at all, and could even be described as completely undisguised. As a result, he gradually came under the watchful eye of the Tsar's secret police.

As the saying goes, once suspicion arises, the crime has already been established.

The secret police had been monitoring Herzen and his friends for a long time, but they didn't have enough patience, so they chose to shoot the arrows first and then draw the target.

First, they found a pretext to arrest all of them. Then, despite the lack of sufficient evidence, this did not stump the Tsar and the secret police. Finally, the committee read out the Tsar's edict, noting that the criminals were young and naive, and decreed that the court should be exempted from trial.

According to the law, the criminals should have been executed, or at least exiled to perform hard labor. However, the Emperor, being magnanimous and compassionate, decided not to pursue the majority of the criminals, allowing them to remain in their original locations under police supervision. Those with more serious crimes were sent indefinitely to remote provinces to take up clerical positions and be disciplined by local officials.

In short, they found a pretext to exile Herzen, but in the form of sending him to a remote province to take up a clerical job. Later, Herzen finally returned, but because a letter he wrote to his father contained some gossip, and this letter was intercepted by the secret police, Tsar Nicholas I, considering Herzen's suspicious past, exiled him again.

Thus, Herzen's exile ended in 1842, but one thing was certain: he still faced close surveillance by the secret police. Although the situation had improved considerably by 1845, Mikhail's eyes still unconsciously glanced outside when he shook hands with Herzen.

Although meeting another famous historical figure was a cause for celebration, Mikhail was still terrified that the Tsar's secret police would flood in at any moment.
Fortunately, this did not happen. Mikhail calmed down and greeted the future father of Russian SHism. At the same time, he couldn't help but take a look at the man in front of him. His head was quite broad and full, and his thick, curly hair was like a lion's mane. His eyes looked quite cold, but seemed to be ready to turn into another kind of flame at any moment.

As Mikhail looked at the man, Herzen was also sizing up the young man before him. After a short while, he couldn't help but nod and continue:

“You are almost exactly as I imagined, and there seems to be more talk about you in St. Petersburg than I expected. I just sat in a café today and heard a lot of people talking about you and the novel you are serializing in the magazine.”

"You just happened to be there on the day the latest issue of the magazine was released."

Mikhail smiled and shook his head, saying, "I don't usually receive this kind of treatment." "You're too modest."

Thinking about the stories he had recently heard about Mikhail, and looking at the seemingly indifferent expression on the young man standing before him, Herzen couldn't help but look at him with even greater respect.

It seems Belinsky was right, Herzen continued, thinking that sometimes the praise was so exaggerated that it was almost impossible to distinguish between fantasy and reality.

Just as the three of them sat down in the living room, Herzen, as if struck by a sudden thought, couldn't help but make a small joke: "Do you know what your readers want to say to you the most?"

Mikhail: “.”

I know this without even having to guess, okay?

After a brief joke, the three of them quickly moved on to other topics.

Strictly speaking, this was not the first time Herzen had contacted Mikhail. As early as the Petersburg Collection, Herzen had already contributed a political essay to the collection under a pseudonym. Later, when it came to The Contemporary, thanks to Belinsky's vigorous encouragement, he provided several more articles for the magazine.

Despite this connection, Herzen had never met Mikhail before due to some problems in his life. Even so, Herzen felt that there must be some common ground between them on a spiritual level.

Herzen's main purpose in coming here was to express his views on the other party's work.

After all, although he had read every one of Mikhail's novels before, and had many thoughts each time he read them, he had never been able to find a suitable opportunity to communicate with the author himself, which was really a pity.

Now, although a suitable opportunity has finally been found, Herzen naturally needs to frankly explain his current situation before the formal exchange:

"There are some things you may not know, but I was exiled twice before for some absurd reasons. Although it's all over now, but..."

Normally, at this point in the conversation, most writers, even if they don't show great alarm, would certainly be somewhat surprised, and it would be quite normal for them to refuse to continue meeting and chatting with him simply out of caution and self-preservation.

But surprisingly, after Herzen finished speaking, Mikhail showed no change in expression, as if the fearsome secret police and the punishment of exile meant nothing to him. The dark-eyed youth simply let out an understanding sigh, and then took the initiative to ask some questions.

Mikhail's reaction surprised Herzen, yet at the same time seemed to make perfect sense.

Belinsky, standing to the side, wasn't particularly surprised by Mikhail's reaction. After all, since they met, he had rarely seen Mikhail panic over anything, as if he had been prepared for everything.

Of course, they could think what they wanted, but if you asked Mikhail himself, it was probably because he thought about things a lot in his daily life that he actually heard words like exile and secret police from other people's mouths, and it really felt a bit unreal.
But whether it's true or not, asking Herzen about the details of the exile is not a bad idea; I just don't know if it will ever be useful.
After chatting for a while, Herzen, who had initially been somewhat hesitant, completely relaxed.

Yes, how could someone who can write such works and dare to publish them be easily intimidated by the reputation of certain things?

After confirming this matter, Herzen talked about his views on Mikhail's works.

"The Superfluous Man" is one of the articles he discussed most extensively, and regarding this article, in his own words:
"I've actually always shared similar views with you, but in my mind, these views are often fragmented. Your thinking on this matter is much clearer and more profound than mine. This is definitely the best commentary I've seen in recent years. It's hard to imagine that you could write such a commentary on your first attempt. You should write more commentaries like this."

During the discussion, Herzen would occasionally glance at the young man, whose every move exuded elegance yet also a certain strength. Undoubtedly, his words were mostly praise, and the other man's work certainly deserved such praise. However, the young man did not act in any particular way because of these compliments.

On the contrary, he often asked questions, and sometimes when it came to social realities, Herzen would unconsciously say a little more.

In fact, Herzen's original understanding of some things was not deep enough, but due to his two periods of exile, he undoubtedly felt the dirty reality of the Russian government, the depravity, corruption, ignorance of power, and the absurd injustice.

In handling related matters, he undoubtedly saw more clearly the absurdity and tyranny of Russian society and law:
"Throughout my exile, in the positions I held, I always witnessed these scenes: the systematic and abusive torture of maids by mistresses; entire villages being terrified by drunken, semi-mad provincial versions of Paul I."

Although I did my best to enforce the few laws protecting farmers, and successfully confiscated the property of a notorious serf owner in the province, what did it all amount to under the pressure of the entire system?

The serf owners could do whatever they wanted, and the administration would turn a blind eye. In fact, there was no law or justice in Russia, only the arbitrary exercise of barbaric power, and regulation solely through bribery.

When discussing these matters, Herzen did not hide his hatred for these phenomena. As he spoke, he inevitably returned to Mikhail's novels: "Your novels not only depict reality with amazing strokes, but also pierce people's hearts with superb artistic expression. I believe that your novels will have a greater impact sooner or later."

I didn't really grasp the significance of these things before, since the reality in Moscow didn't seem so bad compared to the remote provinces. Now, I've changed quite a bit in many ways, and in a sense, perhaps I should be grateful for these two experiences.

Mikhail looked at Herzen, who seemed to be mocking himself, and said, "."

Is this the kind of enlightenment that Russian writers exclusively experience in Longchang?
(End of this chapter)