I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 150 The General Gets MVP, Mikhail Is Just a Winner by Doing Nothing
Generally speaking, in Russia during this period, noblewomen followed a similar process: during their teenage years, they learned French, German, music, dance, and painting under the guidance of tutors, as well as Orthodox Christian doctrine, with the aim of shaping their moral values ​​and sense of family responsibility.

When she turned sixteen or seventeen, her family would hold a coming-of-age ball for her. Then, her mother would introduce her to the court and aristocratic salons, and she would officially enter the social circle. After that, she could go to more places, such as various balls and banquets, theaters and concerts. Aristocratic families often attended these events together, and the young girls could interact with men in the boxes or lounges.

Another activity was estate vacations, with nobles often escaping the summer heat at country estates. Young people from neighboring estates frequently visited each other, organizing picnics, horseback riding, and other activities, providing more opportunities for men and women to interact.

Of course, in order to avoid scandals, unmarried girls in aristocratic families were often accompanied by female elders or female companions when participating in social activities, and were forbidden from being alone with men. At the same time, their tutors or mothers would supervise their words and actions throughout.

This is why Mikhail and Nadya didn't meet offline very often. After all, in those days, the core purpose of social interactions for aristocratic young women was to arrange marriages. Interactions between men and women had to be in accordance with social class, and they had to avoid associating with men of lower social standing. Instead, they were usually arranged to meet men of equal social standing.

This is often addressed by the girl's tutor and mother.

Unfortunately, Mikhail was a typical low-class man.

However, it must be said that under these circumstances, Nadya was definitely the noble girl that Mikhail saw most often, but somewhat surprisingly, Mikhail was also the man that Nadya saw most often.

Aside from Nadya's own wishes, it was actually largely thanks to the general. Although Mikhail was a lower-class man, the general was someone who enjoyed associating with writers, and he treated Mikhail with even more enthusiasm and showed great respect for him.

In Russia at that time, having an unmarried daughter serve ceremonial services such as pouring tea and serving snacks to distinguished guests was a special etiquette for families to express their importance and respect. Old Tu also said that "serving tea by a young girl is the noblest etiquette in aristocratic salons."

Generally speaking, Mikhail would not have received such treatment, but the general would simply say, "Today, we have a distinguished guest in our home. Our salon has received Mikhail's approval," and then let the elegant and poised Nadya take the stage.

Even Nadya's mother and tutor sometimes felt it was a bit inappropriate. After all, although Mikhail would only talk to Nadya about safe topics such as literature and art in such monitored situations, they really felt it was inappropriate for them to chat so much during their meetings.

But when faced with such opinions, the general would often frown and say, "It is very beneficial to communicate with writers like Mikhail; you should listen to them more often."

At Nadya's house, the general's words naturally carried weight.

To this, Mikhail can only say that if things continue to develop in the future, then the general will definitely get the MVP award, and I, Mikhail, will just be a freeloader.
Of course, this is also related to Mikhail's increasing success. Now, no matter which noble salon he goes to in St. Petersburg, he will most likely become a guest of honor. Even if he doesn't, others should not ignore him.

However, on the other hand, Mikhail had met Nadya so many times that he was naturally quite familiar with her mother and tutor.

At first, Nadya's mother would always smile and nod when she saw Mikhail, but now, for some reason, she couldn't help but sigh as she looked at him. To this, Mikhail could only say, "There's nothing I can do. You'll have to talk to the general about it."
Incidentally, once a noblewoman officially enters the social circle, she usually chooses a marriage partner within one to three years. Then, the noble family will begin to negotiate the dowry and the terms of the political marriage, a process that often takes several months or even years.

If a woman is over 23 and still unmarried, she will be considered a "leftover woman" by society, and her marriage prospects will often decline sharply, often forcing her to lower her standards for choosing a partner or remain single.

From this perspective, it seems that Mikhail doesn't have much time left. In fact, if possible, Mikhail really hoped that some things could be discussed after he successfully got through the hurdle of 1848, but reality seems to not allow it. Mikhail can only say that he needs to continue to develop.

Today, after the general finished reading "Gooseberries" in "Modern Man," he couldn't help but discuss his thoughts on the story with his daughter, who also had an interest in literature.

To be honest, the general was quite surprised that his daughter was reading a magazine only a little later than him, since he knew very well how early he got up.

The fascinating story was in a magazine, so the general didn't think much of it. He was more interested in discussing this short story, which seemed to explore happiness, with his daughter. After a brief moment of thought, the general said:

"The novel explores happiness without mentioning its contribution to our great Tsar and our great nation? This is an undeniable flaw in the novel, and I would never have overlooked it if I were writing it."

After habitually confirming his point, the general seemed unsure about the novel's rather obvious view of happiness. In the end, it was Nadya, who was quite moved by the passages discussing happiness, who couldn't help but ask, "Dad, what do you think of the view of happiness expressed in the story?"

"That's not bad, but..."

The general, who had his own views on happiness and life, seemed to ponder for a while before saying quite realistically, "Few people actually think or act in this way. I think the author himself seemed to have anticipated this, since even in his stories, the listeners remained indifferent to the happiness he spoke of."

At this point, the general couldn't help but sigh, "Of course, it's always nice to be with a gentleman who has the desire to do good, which is one of the reasons I enjoy talking with Mikhail. And if one day he can regard serving His Majesty the Tsar and advancing in the officialdom as something greater and more meaningful, then we can have even more to talk about."

Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to realize how important this is to his future. If he had such a goal, coupled with his literary talent and reputation, I believe that one day he might please some important person because of this talent, and thus soar to great heights.

He's not that kind of person. After thinking it over carefully, Nadya ultimately didn't say those words aloud.

After all, strictly speaking, what his father said is what most people in society agree on.

But for some reason, Nadya's views on these matters unconsciously became closer to those of the young man.

Perhaps it's innate, or perhaps it's simply that after genuine reflection, one cannot deny that some things are indeed more correct.

While Nadya was pondering these things, the general temporarily abandoned his thoughts on happiness. After all, at least for now, his main concern was "I really want to improve myself." Therefore, as long as he could continue to improve, he felt that life wasn't so bad. So, he quickly and eagerly flipped to the section on the serialized novel. He had been waiting for this part for far too long, and had even been pestering Mikhail to reveal the novel's future developments.

Although it was the general's request, Mikhail ultimately kept the secret and did not reveal too much.

This only fueled the general's curiosity, because in the previous part, the duke whom the general had always despised had surprisingly uttered a string of flattering words and even pleaded with the girl to marry his son.

Although the general quickly made a judgment upon seeing this: "Just watch, I've heard this kind of nonsense far too many times. It's nothing more than the way this duke, who rose to power through deception and fraud, deals with this girl. I feel that he just wants to keep stalling for time, and then, without him having to do much effort, his indecisive son will do something stupid on his own."

God, when will I see this father and son severely punished?
I'm already impatient waiting in reality, and I'm actively trying to get this case heard. I'm sure I'll get a fair result then.

To be fair, aside from the punishment, the general's predictions about the rest of the story were pretty accurate. Mikhail could only say that the general was indeed immersed in the story and even wanted to use his influence in real life.

This part seems to be no exception; the general remains engrossed in reading.

The last episode, besides the Duke's dramatic transformation, featured the tragic experience of the poor little girl. When the protagonist witnessed the landlord abusing the girl, he couldn't help but rush forward to confront him, only to be kicked out in the end.

Just as he was thinking about how to rescue the young girl, he ran into his drunken old classmate, Masloboev, who was now working as a detective. With Masloboev's help, he finally managed to rescue the girl who seemed about to be forced into prostitution.
The story doesn't sound complicated, but perhaps because the author portrayed the drunkard and the little girl so well, Nadya saw her father laughing one moment and sighing the next, seemingly completely captivated by the eccentric and stubborn little girl.

As he watched, the general couldn't help but clench his fist and say, "It seems I have to do something else. Is this kind of phenomenon tolerable? It seems I have to do some good deeds for now, just like he wrote in his essay 'Gooseberries'."

For some nobles, they certainly wouldn't do anything that would be too disadvantageous, but they wouldn't feel too disadvantageous if it wasn't too troublesome and made them feel much better.

When Mikhail was working with Duke Odoevsky on some charitable projects, he encountered similar situations quite a few times. Generally speaking, after reading some of Mikhail's novels, some nobles would feel a certain amount of pity and even be willing to do something. It was always relatively easy to get some funds and assistance from these people.

This issue of the novel actually contains quite a bit of content. After all, Mikhail has basically prepared his next novel and intends to use it to solidify his position in the Russian literary world. So, in this issue, the content is increasing with each installment. However, when the general turned to the last page, the expression on his face finally froze.
Closing the magazine, the general couldn't help but stand up. He paced back and forth in his living room several times. As he walked, he seemed to suddenly remember something and said, "Perhaps I should invite Mikhail over for another chat. Although that cunning young man won't say anything, it wouldn't hurt to share my speculations and opinions with him."

In general, the general was indeed a very expressive person. Upon hearing his words, Nadya, who had been looking down at a magazine, suddenly raised her head. Just as she was about to agree with her father's opinion, she caught a glimpse of her mother, who had somehow entered the living room.

Nadya, who suddenly looked up, didn't say anything. She just turned her head slightly as she did so and rubbed her long, fair neck, as if she felt a little uncomfortable.

Nadya's mother, who had been secretly observing for a while, said: "."

Although she could see that her daughter's movements were somewhat unnatural, Nadya's mother could only scold her for not being dignified enough and tell her to pay more attention. After saying this, Nadya's mother looked at her husband, who was still pacing back and forth, and couldn't help but offer her opinion:
"I think we should forget about it. I remember we just invited him not long ago. Wouldn't it be a bit impolite to do it so frequently?"

"Given our current relationship, how could such an invitation be considered impolite?"

Seemingly dissatisfied that even this matter was being opposed, the general said with some dissatisfaction, "What is there to be hesitant about in this kind of interaction between men?"

"but."

"All right."

The general waved his hand firmly: "Invite him over. No one can stop me today. I said it."

Nadya's mother: "."

Although Nadya seemed to be looking down at the magazine the whole time, her ears were actually perked up the whole time. After hearing her father say that, Nadya's eyes, which were focused on the book, finally wavered for a moment.

At this moment, Nadya seemed to recall Mikhail's satirical novels and the somewhat daring but not straightforward jokes he made in his letters. She almost blurted out, "And what about His Majesty the Tsar?"

Of course, this is just a thought; even Mikhail would never dare to make such a joke. It's just unknown whether he actually thought of it.
Thinking of this, Nadya couldn't help but smile.

After deciding to invite Mikhail, the general thought that his various insights and interpretations of the story would once again leave Mikhail in disbelief and shock. Just imagining that scene, the general couldn't help but smile and nod.

Nadya's mother, witnessing this scene, was speechless.

All I can say is that the young man acted quite normally. If she hadn't noticed her daughter's unnatural expressions and movements, she might not have thought of that aspect at all.

However, her husband shouldn't be confused about such an important matter; he's just temporarily a bit disoriented.
(End of this chapter)