I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 267 The General's Letter and the Villain with a Foreshadowing of Death
"My dear Mikhail, I am delighted with your achievements in France and England. I bet that in Russia today, apart from His Majesty the Tsar and the Imperial Family, few people enjoy such fame in England and France. You are the pride of Russia, a jewel in the crown of His Majesty the Tsar."

Mikhail: “?”

I'd much rather have the Tsar's necklace.
"But you have been gone from me for so long that I often see you in my dreams."

Mikhail: “???”

Isn't this right? !
Is this the title of General Nadya?

“I understand your difficulties. Maintaining a lasting influence in two countries simultaneously requires a considerable amount of time. Fortunately, I have some diplomatic business to attend to in France, and I also need to visit some old friends and relatives here. I expect to stay in France for quite some time.”

Stop talking about yourself, General Danilevsky! Why don't you mention your family?
How could you be so selfish?!
"My family will be with me, taking this opportunity to spend the winter here. St. Petersburg winters are still too cold, and without you, the winter seems even colder."

Mikhail: “???”

General, how come you have such a set of clever phrases?
Could it be that you actually have a talent for literature?
But in the end
"it is good!"

Upon seeing this part, Mikhail even excitedly waved the letter in front of Elliott and Sanders, leaving them stunned.

Who could possibly excite this usually nonchalant writer so much?
If there were people in other countries who could excite him so much, would he not have settled in Britain as the newspapers said?
For Elliott and Sanders, who desperately wanted Mikhail to thrive in London, it felt like the sky was falling.
You should stay in England, rather than go to a place like Russia!

Regardless of what the two of them thought, Mikhail quickly read to the end of the letter:
"We should arrive in Paris in mid-November. I wonder how you plan your itinerary then. This is our address in Paris. If you're there, please come visit me."

There's only one month left!
Perhaps it was because the general had not seen Mikhail for a long time, but in any case, the letter was quite emotional. While Mikhail was somewhat moved, he was probably more looking forward to meeting Nadya.

Although Mikhail was eager to head to Paris to make preparations, his business in England was clearly still at a critical juncture. So, after walking back and forth for a long time, Mikhail, having regained his composure, finally sat down again and began to discuss business with Elliott and Sanders.

Eliot mainly mentioned to Mikhail the sales of his three books, Wuthering Heights, Agnes Grey, and Jane Eyre, and asked Mikhail if he had any plans to publish a book next.

What Sanders is referring to is, of course, the situation faced when the latest Sherlock Holmes story was released:

"As far as I know, a lot of people will be paying attention to your new story, and two of the most popular detective novels in London will also be serializing new chapters tomorrow, so your new story will likely be compared to them."

"Let them come as they please, it won't affect us at all."

Upon hearing Mikhail's words, and seeing that Mikhail seemed quite excited, Sanders, who had been thinking about something else, couldn't help but ask, "Judging from your expression, you might be leaving London again. I can handle things here then, but when will you be back?"

Maybe he'll never come back, or maybe he'll come back 'tomorrow'!
Although he wanted to make a joke, in order to hope for his own well-being and to protect Elliott and Sanders' hearts, Mikhail said, "I'll stay in Paris for a while, and after that, I'll temporarily return to London to handle some matters. As for further afield, perhaps I really will have to go back to St. Petersburg."

"Can't we stay?"

Sanders couldn't resist grabbing Mikhail's arm.

Mikhail: “?”

Why are you all doing this today?
"I've been away from Russia for far too long, I have to go back no matter what."

Mikhail brushed Sanders' hand away and continued, "But I will still come to England again, and you are welcome to come to St. Petersburg to see me then."

"I will!"

After a sigh, Elliott and Sanders finally had to accept the fact.

Following their visit to Mikhail, over the next two days, many in London's cultural circles sensed a resurgence in the city's magazine industry, first noticeable in a series of prominent newspaper advertisements:
"A brand new Sherlock Holmes story, 'The Dancing Little Man,' will soon be serialized in 'Fiction Weekly'!"
Strange, unsettling symbols appeared on the wall in the dead of night: tiny figures? Letters? Or a harbinger of death?
The victims had nowhere to turn for help, and the police were at a loss. Only one person could decipher their words: Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

With calm reasoning and unsolvable logic, following a strange diagram, we uncover the bloody truth.

"In the dead of night, a line of strange little figures appeared beneath the window—they danced, moved, and twisted, as if conveying some terrible message. There were no footsteps, no sounds, yet they carried death."

Only one person understood: this was language, a threat, the prelude to murder.

Such advertisements have prompted much discussion among well-informed cultural figures who are accustomed to all kinds of advertising:
Why would a crime case be associated with small figures and symbols? Do such cases really exist? Or is it just a publicity stunt?

"Even if it's a gimmick, it's a great one. I was immediately drawn to it. This ad is excellent. I wonder which bookseller it's from? That Sanders guy?"

"I've inquired, and it wasn't him. This advertisement also seems to have been created by that Mr. Mikhail! He actually knows a little about this stuff."

"Is this really just a superficial understanding? I heard he was involved in and arranged the advertising and promotion for 'A Study in Scarlet.' But what exactly is this new story about? I wasn't originally interested in this genre, but now I can't help but want to check it out."

……

And among a wider readership, these advertisements immediately ignited their enthusiasm:
"Finally! I've read several so-called detective stories lately, but they're all just pretentious nonsense! The detectives in their stories don't seem to be using reason, but rather strange magic, suddenly discovering some so-called key evidence. What's the point of such stories?"

"Yes, we often solve cases based on intuition or premonition. We can stare at a suspect for a dozen seconds and know that the other person is the murderer, but we can never quite explain why!"

"The detectives they write about always seem a bit pretentious and superficial to me, and they lack sufficient intelligence. I can't see where they surpass Sherlock Holmes at all."

"I was also fooled by those advertisements. Sure enough, as people who imitate Sherlock Holmes, they are always far inferior no matter what."

"What exactly is the latest case? A dancing little figure/symbol can actually lead to a murder? What a peculiar method."

"I can't wait! I must be the first to see it!" As time went on, the enthusiasm of London readers grew higher and higher, and the latest issue of "Fiction Ten-Day Magazine" finally came to go.

As newsboys took to the streets to sell and deliver magazines to subscribers, and as groups of people gathered across London intently reading the magazines, Brooke, a well-known storyteller in London, also flipped through the latest Sherlock Holmes with a touch of annoyance.

As for why he was annoyed, it was because although his recently serialized detective novel had a good start, when he wrote about his characters using dreams to solve cases, many more readers suddenly became opposed to him. They not only wrote letters to express their dissatisfaction, but also told him to study Sherlock Holmes.

Drawing inspiration from dreams has always been a common practice in folk tales, legends, and literary works, so why has this deeply rooted tradition been subjected to so much criticism since the emergence of Sherlock Holmes?
Brooke even wrote an article in the magazine to refute this criticism, but this led to a decline in magazine sales, and the publisher strictly forbade him from making any more outrageous remarks.

Feeling rather frustrated, Brooke decided to read the latest issue of Sherlock Holmes and then anonymously write two articles criticizing Holmes under the pseudonym "A True Detective"—he'd rather not use his real name.
With this in mind, Brooke began to read the latest installment of Sherlock Holmes:

Holmes sat there silently for hours. He was hunched over, his thin frame hunched over, his eyes fixed on a chemical test tube in front of him.
Suddenly, Holmes looked up and said, "Are you not planning to invest in South Africa anymore?"
"How did you know?" I asked him.

He turned around from the stool, holding the steaming test tube in his hand. A slight smile could be seen in his deep-set eyes.

“Watson, are you admitting that I guessed what you were thinking?” he said.

"Okay!" I reluctantly agreed.

It's the same old formula again! Looks like this is all he knows how to write!
While longtime readers might find it somewhat surprising, Brooke saw it as proof that his talent had run dry, and what followed was nothing out of the ordinary:

"To put it simply, I looked at the web between the thumb and index finger of your left hand, and then, through a series of deductions, I deduced that you didn't intend to invest your small amount of capital in the gold mine."

"Really? I don't see it that way."

"Yes, indeed. If you don't believe me, I can tell you my reasoning right away. First, when you came back from the club last night, I found white powder on the web of your left hand; second, as far as I know, the origin of this white powder is related to your playing billiards. When you play billiards, you usually rub some white powder on the web of your hand to stabilize the cue stick;"
Third, you enjoy spending time with Thurston, playing pool together, and aren't interested in anyone else; fourth, I remember you told me four weeks ago that Thurston had a right to purchase a certain South African gold asset, but it expires in a month, and he wanted to share it with you; fifth, your checkbook has been locked in my drawer, and you haven't asked for the key in the past few days; sixth, therefore, I conclude that you don't intend to invest your money in South Africa.”

This is too simple!

Although Brooke initially found it somewhat novel and amazing, given his current mindset, he still mentally rejected this old trick. But for some reason, as if the author knew his thoughts, the following content quickly followed:
"This reasoning is too simple!" I exclaimed.

“Actually, it’s not that simple,” he said, somewhat displeased. “Every time I explain my reasoning to you, you say it’s very simple. But I still have a question I don’t understand. Could you help me explain it?” With that, he took out a slip of paper and placed it on the table.

I glanced at the note; it had some absurd symbols drawn on it, but nothing else.

"Hey, Holmes, this is just a child's drawing."

Are these the symbols mentioned in the advertisement? What do these symbols actually look like? And can they really be used to solve cases?

Brooke's confusion didn't last long. In the next part of the story, a man seeking help from Holmes knocked on the door. His wife, for some reason, was terrified by a scribbled note. It was at this moment that Brooke finally saw what the symbols looked like:
Brook: "?"

What is this thing? Can it really be related to the case?

What new tricks is that Russian writer researching now?

For a moment, Brooke felt as if almost all of her past creative experience had vanished.
After all, what can we deduce from these patterns?
Just as Brooke was feeling a little dizzy, in the following story, the man who came for help was from a prestigious family, and out of love, he married a woman of unknown origin. Just as they were tacitly avoiding mentioning the matter and living a happy life, these patterns appeared, and his wife was so frightened that she fainted on the spot.
Since there were too few clues, Holmes told the gentleman to go back and keep an eye out for any strangers in the vicinity.

After some time, the man with a sorrowful face arrived, which not only indicated that his wife was growing increasingly haggard, but also brought Holmes a new clue:

"Excellent!" said Holmes. "Excellent! Please continue!"

Holmes rubbed his hands together and laughed out loud with delight.

"The leads continue to emerge," he said.

Brook: "??"

What are all these things? Will they be of any help to the case?!
At this point, Brooke was almost completely confused, but Holmes in the novel kept praising it, and after the gentleman in his novel went on to describe his wife's fears and concerns, he drew a new picture:
Holmes' eyes lit up with excitement as he asked, "Is it right next to the original row, or completely separate?"

"Separately, on another door panel."

"Great! This is the most important clue so far, and it has ignited a ray of hope."

Brook: "???"

Where is it lit?!

Why can't I understand anything?

What exactly is he writing?
Are his detective novels the same as my detective novels?
Filled with questions, unease, and shock, even though he had some expectation, Brooke's face turned bright red when he saw the "to be continued" ending, and he almost shouted it out:
What is he writing?! Why doesn't he finish?!
Even more outrageous is that at the end of this issue, there was a sentence that read:

"Mr. Mikhail said that anyone who could solve the riddle would receive a reward of one thousand pounds."

One thousand pounds! That's several years' income for a decent person!
With such a high reward, isn't he really afraid that someone will guess the answer?
And if you're just writing a novel, why would you use such a tactic?

So despicable!

Although Brook hadn't previously thought Sherlock Holmes was particularly remarkable, in this issue, he not only witnessed Holmes's prowess firsthand, but also seemed to vaguely see the towering figure of a young writer emerging, making him feel somewhat overwhelmed.
Is this what real detective fiction and real genius are all about?

(End of this chapter)