I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 270 The Gift Code and Departure
His (Prince Albert's) identity was so intertwined with hers that they had become one, and because he was passionate about his work while she abhorred it, it was clear that, despite her title, he was the one truly exercising the functions of monarch. He was the de facto king.

—Charles Greville, December 16, 1845

While the so-called Ten Commandments of Knox and even the Van Dine Laws are certainly not infallible rules, these principles have largely distinguished detective novels from other types of stories in the development of detective fiction.

Their function is similar to that of crutches; they can be used when walking is difficult, but once the legs are healed, they have to be discarded. However, their value cannot be completely denied even after the legs have healed.

In today's world, when Mikhail made this suggestion, it primarily inspired and prompted reflection among the many writers present.
"Suggestions that supernatural powers should be avoided seem to emphasize rules like science, suggesting that detective novels shouldn't rely on too many coincidences but should instead focus on logic and evidence?"

"It sounds like an interesting intellectual game, where not only does the author know the whole story, but the reader can also use their own wits to participate? Is that the charm of detective novels?"

"The fun of solving the mystery? I think I understand something. But it should be much more than just solving the mystery. The character of Sherlock Holmes himself has a charm that transcends the story itself."

"This certainly sounds like a completely new literary genre! It seems our initial thoughts differed considerably from Mr. Mikhail's."

After a brief silence, the writers in the room quickly began a lively discussion. At the same time, because Mikhail appeared quite approachable, many people began to ask him questions.

As Mikhail calmly answered the questions from the writers present, Sanders was also very pleased to see himself being the center of attention.

As a publisher, Sanders understands the importance of social circles. Even if the writers in the circle are not necessarily closely connected, as long as there are enough people gathered together, and these people all have certain inclinations, then they can undoubtedly make a big impact.

This would greatly benefit both Mikhail's subsequent development in the UK and Sanders' publisher.

In short, Mr. Mikhail and my team in London have grown even stronger!
With such a bright future ahead, why would Mr. Mikhail be so foolish as to insist on returning to that wretched place in Russia?
Thinking of this, Sanders, who had been very happy, suddenly became melancholy.

In the end, the banquet did indeed achieve the effect Sanders desired. Many writers left with a passion for reflection and creation, and quite a few volunteered to speak up in the newspapers in defense of Mikhail in light of the recent controversies surrounding him.
"Now it seems that some people were indeed wrong; they simply didn't understand what detective novels were!"

"While they are still simply retelling old stories in the same way, Mr. Mikhail has already made a formal breakthrough!"

Of course, in Sanders' view, these people's motives were not pure; they probably wanted to get Mikhail's strong recommendation, just like those three new writers.

As it turns out, those three new writers really seem to be on the verge of success with this recommendation!
Especially the author of "Jane Eyre," whose work is one of the top bestsellers in London recently!
If nothing unexpected happens, this new author may indeed become famous overnight with this one work.
Mr. Mikhail actually has such literary insight?
In fact, Mikhail knew perfectly well which works would succeed and which would not in the decades that followed.
After the banquet ended, as time passed, Mikhail's suggestions were seen as something akin to a manifesto and began to spread rapidly within literary circles.

Although everyone holds different attitudes, some are prepared to try writing a few novels within the framework of these suggestions, while others simply go against the grain and are prepared to write about characters with supernatural powers and special abilities.

But in any case, as these suggestions spread and are applied, it might really become a small literary movement in a while!
Faced with this rather huge reaction, Sanders immediately went to Mikhail's residence to convey the news. To his surprise, Mikhail seemed to have completely forgotten about it. After listening to his account, Mikhail quickly started asking Sanders a few questions, somewhat ramblingly:
"What are some unique and suitable gifts from the UK? And what would be a good gift for a single woman?"
A silk scarf? A brooch? A pendant?

How many gifts should I give? How should I give them to ensure they are in accordance with proper etiquette?

Could you recommend some suitable gifts for me? I plan to carefully select one in the next couple of days.
Oh, and by the way, could you recommend some gifts for elders?

Sanders looked at Mikhail, who was unusually acting like a normal, somewhat immature young man: "?"

Oh no, I really feel like I can't keep it now.
Although Sanders wanted to come up with some quirky ideas for Mikhail, such as giving the girl some British delicacies or the elder a cane, in the end, Sanders honestly offered Mikhail advice and inquired about relevant information from many people he knew.

Although Sanders was doing his best to help Mikhail, his heart ached with every effort he made.

Can anyone understand the feeling of gradually letting go of someone you care about?
Just as Mikhail was completely absorbed in these matters, time quietly slipped by, and the latest issue of "Fiction Weekly" was about to be published.

As the date drew nearer, the air in many parts of London seemed to grow increasingly tense.

In the most prominent places of several pubs in London, there are those strange little figures that have appeared in novels, and almost everyone who enters or leaves the pub will subconsciously look at these little figures, and also glance at the line of large words next to them:
"Holmes has the same information as everyone else! The one who solves the case first will receive a thousand pounds!"

In the past two weeks, countless people in London have been staring blankly at these patterns, even engaging in heated discussions, dreaming of getting rich under their gaze. However, as time goes by, more and more people are abandoning this unrealistic idea, turning it into a topic of casual conversation or simply a complaint.
“I must admit that this Mr. Holmes is a bit smarter than me; he can do things that I cannot.”

"How's it going? Any new information? Has anyone figured out the answer yet? The bounty is about to close."

"No! Could it be that Sherlock Holmes is smarter than all the gentlemen in London?"

"I gave up long ago! This must be that Russian's trap, one that's impossible to break! Now I'm just waiting for the latest novel to be released so I can expose this scam!"

"Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes! Now everyone in London should remember this name!"

While the vast majority of readers may simply be paying attention to and discussing the matter without offering many solutions, the self-proclaimed experts and those with ample free time are now more inclined to question it:
"I'm increasingly suspicious that this is a scam. I've been researching for so many days, and I can't find a single clue!"

"If the explanations in the next issue don't satisfy me, I'm even considering suing this author! This is completely deceiving the readers!"

"I hope I can see a reasonable explanation, otherwise I will never look at this gentleman's work again."

As these voices grew louder and louder, the latest issue of "Fiction Weekly" finally went on sale. This time, despite Sanders's thorough preparations for the release and the temporary hiring of many helpers, he was still overwhelmed by the frenzied buying frenzy from all walks of life. Sweating profusely, Sanders was still struggling to keep up.

As fierce winds began to sweep across London, in the heart of this empire, in Buckingham Palace—a place once freely accessible but now far more strictly controlled—before a desk piled high with documents, under the glow of a green desk lamp, a diligent and meticulous German was handling some important matters. Fate is indeed wondrous, leading a prince from a small principality within the German Confederation step by step to the center of an empire's power stage.

His name was Francis Albert Emmanuel, but he was more commonly known as Prince Albert.

His cousin, who is also his wife, is Alexandra Victoria, the current Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Strictly speaking, it seems that due to some childhood experiences, Queen Victoria was to some extent an "attachment type." When faced with men she trusted, she would unconsciously become dependent on them, to the point that sometimes she lost power.

Of course, at the same time, there was also a ruthless, cold and resilient side to her personality, but at least during this period, the person she trusted was Prince Albert, and she increasingly entrusted Prince Albert with the full management of royal affairs.

As an ambitious German eager to make a name for himself, Albert usually spends most of his time working and rarely participates in any recreational activities. However, recently, a young writer whose reputation in London has been growing has caught his attention.

First and foremost was his reputation in the cultural field. Prince Albert had heard similar rumors before, but what he really didn't expect was that the other party would switch to a different language and start over in England, and had already achieved great success.

As a politician with a keen interest in the cultural sphere, Prince Albert is currently considering whether to formally invite the writer to his home, just as he had previously invited and warmly received Hans Christian Andersen.

Secondly, a game designed by the other party seems to be becoming increasingly popular in aristocratic circles. Although many men find the game too bland and not as exciting or interesting as gambling, its unique mechanism has attracted a lot of people, especially women and children, and the reaction it has caused is beyond many people's imagination.

How could a writer possess such talent?
Finally, there were his novels. Because he was busy with many things every day, Prince Albert didn't have much time to waste on novels. Moreover, the feeling that novels gave him was far less than the sense of accomplishment that reality brought him.

But for some reason, in a chance encounter, the meticulous and scientifically-minded Prince Albert read Sherlock Holmes, and then an indescribable feeling began to rise within him.
In particular, Prince Albert immediately tried to unravel the mystery of the latest "Dancing Little Men" after reading it, and even consulted many people for help. However, perhaps due to time constraints, he still hasn't been able to find anything in these strange patterns to this day.

However, when the latest issue of "The Dancing Little People" arrived, Prince Albert hesitated for a moment, but ultimately put down his work and started reading this issue:

"As soon as Hilton Cupid's broad back disappeared through the door, my partner rushed to the table, laid out all the slips of paper in front of him, and began a meticulous and complex analysis. For two hours straight, I watched him flip through the slips of paper with drawings of little people and letters written on them, one after another."

He was completely absorbed in the work, forgetting I was there. When he was doing well, he would whistle or sing; sometimes he would get stuck, and then he would frown and stare blankly for a long time. Finally, he would shout with satisfaction, jump up from his chair, and pace around the room, constantly rubbing his hands together.

This is a problem that has stumped many people, yet it was solved in just one or two hours? Is it really that simple?
Before Prince Albert could ponder further, what happened next surprised him even more. After seemingly solving the mystery, Holmes suddenly became somewhat nervous and immediately rushed to the client's house. Upon their arrival, they received the following result:

“It’s terrible,” the stationmaster said. “Hilton Cupid and his wife were both shot. She shot her husband first, then herself, according to their servant. The man is dead, and the woman doesn’t have much hope.”

These dancing little figures actually led to a murder?!

Before Prince Albert could express his thoughts further, he saw Holmes, with the help of the local sheriff, survey the surroundings and then say:
“Just as I expected,” he said. “Sheriff Martin, I think our case is almost closed.”

What speed is this?

“I don’t want to be mysterious, but it’s impossible to start with lengthy and complicated explanations while we’re in the middle of an operation. I have all the clues. Even if the woman never regains consciousness, we can still reconstruct what happened last night and ensure the murderer is brought to justice. First, I want to know if there’s a small inn nearby called ‘Elrich’?”

After sending a letter to the inn with the same peculiar pattern, Holmes finally began to unravel the strange symbol that had baffled countless people:
"I am quite familiar with various forms of cryptic writing, and I have even written a rudimentary paper on this subject, analyzing 160 different codes. But this is the first time I've ever seen one like this. The person who devised this method clearly intended it to appear as a child's scribbles, making it impossible for others to discern the information conveyed by these symbols."

However, once it's clear that these symbols represent letters, and by applying the rules of cryptic writing, the answer isn't difficult to find. The sentence on the first slip of paper given to me was very short, and I could only make a slight assumption.

Represents e.

As you know, the letter 'e' is the most common letter in the English alphabet; it appears so frequently that it is the most common letter even in a short sentence.
However, now the most difficult problem arises. Because, apart from 'e', ​​the order in which the English letters appear is not entirely clear. This order is not always apparent in a typical printed page or a short sentence.

As Holmes explained step by step, the originally abstract and incomprehensible diagrams were now transformed into a few simple sentences:
"I've arrived, Abbey Slenney."

In Ellitz

"Elsie, prepare to meet God."

The messages gradually escalated into intimidation and threats, which is why Holmes rushed over in such a hurry.
Ultimately, based on the code deciphered by Holmes and the bait he used, the culprit was quickly captured and confessed the truth.
This part was not particularly surprising to Prince Albert, but the methods of cracking the code in the novel made him read it several more times until he had memorized it thoroughly and could crack the code independently.

Why does everything seem so reasonable and simple after the author's explanation?
Could it be that the password is really that easy to crack? If so, how should intelligence agencies deal with such a crack? Or has this cracking method already existed, but is it just appearing for the first time in a novel and being applied so perfectly?
In a short while, Prince Albert had thought of many things, but in the end, he still focused his attention on the author's name.

There is no doubt that this young man is a genius in the cultural field, and even has some talent in other fields. Judging from his recent moves, perhaps we can really invite this writer to settle directly in the UK.

What kind of impact will this have?
As Prince Albert began to contemplate certain issues as a politician, at the same time, in London's pubs and clubs, some felt bewildered, some felt enlightened, and others lamented in frustration:

"Is it really that simple? Then I've missed out on a huge amount of money!"

"It only becomes simple after the author explains it!"

"Is it really possible for someone to crack a code using these patterns? Although it doesn't seem like a big problem."

Regardless of the discussions, on this exceptionally lively day, Mikhail, carrying somewhat heavy luggage, excitedly stepped out of his house.
(End of this chapter)