I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 278 I have no other wish than to love you (4k, bonus chapter for Alliance Leader's "Turning Red Lotus")

The little deer I miss so much, and now I'm finally leaving the monastery!

—Two Newlyweds

The noble lady changed her clothes in front of her servants as if nothing were amiss, for to her the servants were like cattle.

—Honoré de Balzac, *On the Refined Life*

In 19th-century French literature, the element of "convent boarding schools" played an exceptionally important role.

This was because in the first half of the 19th century, it was common in French high society that people spent more time socializing than modern working women did at work, and because they were too busy, they had no time to raise children.

Mothers would hire wet nurses and never breastfeed themselves. All matters concerning raising children were entrusted to maids specifically responsible for their upbringing, while education was handled by British governesses. In addition, daughters were often sent to boarding schools in convents.

During the eight years from age nine to sixteen or seventeen, it was not uncommon for aristocratic parents to not visit their children at all or only write a few letters. Therefore, for girls, leaving the convent boarding school at the age of sixteen or seventeen was almost the beginning of their second life, and no one knew whether the future would be good or bad.

In his works, Balzac faithfully recorded the fates of these noblewomen.

Over time, the practice of sending daughters to convent boarding schools gradually spread from the nobility to the middle class and wealthy farmers.

Although the children of the lower classes still receive no education and work like little adults from a young age, in some wealthy peasant families, many people consider "giving their daughters an education" as part of their dowry, and therefore send their daughters away to receive an education.

Of course, the education in monasteries is not the same as education in later generations. It is almost entirely religious education, and the academic part remains at a very superficial level.

In this extremely closed boarding environment, the girls' secrets spread silently, and they were filled with fantasies about the outside world and even love. The orthodox romantic novels that the old woman who worked as a maid at the convent every day secretly brought in further fueled these fantasies. When the girls were finally able to start a new life, the noble girls had their own misfortunes, and the rich peasants' daughters had their own misfortunes.

As a product of a period of social transformation, the daughters of wealthy farmers eventually coalesced into an immortal figure in the history of French literature—Madame Bovary, Emma Bovary.

As for the noble girls, after leaving the convent, they still had a period of happiness and pain, which was entering the social world and attending balls.

The most prominent feature of the costumes required for attending the ball was the corset. If one disliked this torture, one had no choice but to give up the marriage and return to the convent.

The more slender a woman's body was, the more beautiful she was considered. As a result, many women, like the Marquise of Belberf, had several ribs removed in order to make their bodies even thinner.

This form of torture gradually came to an end in 1910.

Although Nadya didn't find wearing such clothes particularly difficult, she disliked them from the bottom of her heart. She even discussed this issue with Mikhail in a letter she wrote to him.

In addition, as Nadya learned about the rules of the Paris Ball, she also experienced more of the differences between Paris and Russia.

Just like in Paris, people are quite tolerant of women exposing their upper bodies. In particular, the shoulders and chest are often heavily exposed due to the popularity of corsets and low-cut, off-the-shoulder outfits, sometimes even to the point of being almost naked. These are all based on the norms required by fashion trends.

In Russia, it would obviously be much less extreme. Russia is much more conservative in this regard, partly due to strict religious and conservative social customs, and partly because of Russia's climate. If it were to completely follow the Parisian trend, the number of women in Russia's upper class might be reduced by half.

Besides, while Paris doesn't mind women exposing their upper bodies, showing their feet to men is absolutely taboo. In such situations, men's attention is more focused on the hidden feet than on the exposed chest of a low-cut, off-the-shoulder outfit. If, for some reason, a glimpse of feet and shoes is caught, that moment is when men experience the greatest sexual satisfaction.
However, this was not the case in Russia, where women's feet were covered as a symbol of etiquette and dignity, not a sexual innuendo.

But since she was in Paris, Nadya had to be careful in choosing her shoes.

It is worth mentioning that gloves, in a sense, have the same status as shoes. This is because, during the Renaissance, after leather gloves became popular, women's hands were given a strong sexual significance. In this context, gloves had to be something that made hands look small and fingers look long and slender.

As a young woman from strict and conservative Russia who would inevitably return to Russia, Nadya's attire naturally couldn't follow all the rules of Paris. In this situation, Nadya actually had a certain degree of freedom in her fashion choices.

As time went by, Nadya and the general's family gradually prepared to attend the ball.

Meanwhile, news had already spread that the family had arrived in Paris.

As Russian nobles were not commonly seen in Europe, other nobles in Paris, whether out of interest in the Russian nobles' power and wealth or out of their own curiosity, gradually extended invitations to this family.

Once it was confirmed that the family would be attending a grand ball, some of the men in Paris began to talk about politics, the relationship between Russia and France, and the general's purpose and plans in coming to Paris.

For the ladies and young women, their focus was more on socializing and the ball. As they prepared their corsets, shoes, gowns, and various pieces of jewelry, they inevitably discussed the ball and these rare guests when they gathered together:

"I heard that this ball is being hosted by Princess Clementine? There should be many important people and outstanding young people in attendance. We should bring our children to see it for ourselves."

"Yes, I heard that one or two dukes will be there, as well as sons of members of parliament and bankers, several rather famous playboys, and Mr. Hugo and Mr. Dumas. Oh, and that young Russian poet is also said to be there!"

“Really? I’ve hardly ever seen this young man at any ball. I’m starting to doubt that the rumors about his appearance and demeanor are false! Otherwise, why wouldn’t he dare to show himself to others so easily?” “I share the same doubt as you. But his poetry is so beautiful that it has left a wonderful impression on me.”

"In that case, I'd like to go and see it. I think my daughter will also beg me to go to this ball."

"And what about the Russian nobleman who was present? It is said that he comes from a rather illustrious family, and he also has a daughter. Could it be that he has plans for a marriage alliance?"

After these discussions and gossips subsided, the ball that many had been eagerly anticipating finally began as night fell.

As was customary, Parisian ladies and young women would put on corsets, shoes, tighten their bodies, comb their hair, dresses, and makeup, then, with the mindset of duelists, board their own carriages and plunge into the bustling night.

As for Mikhail, after learning of the general's family's arrival, Mikhail, who usually didn't pay much attention to his appearance, specially hired someone to style him and even had to rent a rather expensive carriage.

This was because there was an unwritten rule in Parisian society that "one must travel by covered box carriage when going out at night." Other carriages would be looked down upon by servants, and if one came on foot, one would definitely be kicked out of the house, mostly based on whether the soles of one's shoes were muddy.

To be honest, Mikhail didn't like Parisian balls. Although they were lively and luxurious, he just didn't like the atmosphere. But this time, however, he entered the night with a feeling that was hard to describe.

However, compared to the speed of the general's family, Mikhail was ultimately a little late. While Mikhail was still on his way, the general's family, dressed in their finest attire, had already arrived at Princess Clementine's residence and shook hands with the host of the ball.

As they entered the venue, both the ladies in shimmering silk gowns, shawls, and jewels, and the men in black tailcoats, couldn't help but turn their gazes toward these three new guests of Parisian society.

Especially that dignified young girl, one glance tells you she is in the prime of her life, yet beneath her dignified and undeniable exterior lies a calmness that seems out of place for her age.

At this moment, she was wearing a beautiful pure white cotton and silk dress with British embroidery and a pure gold satin belt. Even though it didn't quite fit the Parisian fashion at first glance, it still attracted many people to look at her one after another, seemingly by accident.

Because she was not in a familiar place, Madame Danilevskaya, even though she was fluent in French and even better at Russian, was still a little nervous. After all, this was Paris, the ideal country in the eyes of many people, including many Russian nobles.

However, Nadya was not nervous at all. She was trying her best to suppress the urge to look around and run around, and could only use her peripheral vision to search the hall.

Of course, as a seasoned veteran, General Danilevsky was not nervous at all. Just as he was eagerly preparing to discuss politics and territorial matters with the nobles of Paris, a burly man who was strikingly dark-skinned in the general's eyes suddenly walked towards him.

Just as the general, caught in the middle, was somewhat bewildered, the gentleman greeted him. Upon hearing the name Alexandre Dumas, the general understood what was going on, smiled confidently, and then chatted with the gentleman with great interest:

“Mr. Dumas, I know your ‘The Three Musketeers,’ which is a very good work, but in my opinion, those three guys were so undisciplined that if I were their superior, I would have sent them to court-martial long ago.”

Alexandre Dumas, who was initially quite enthusiastic, was left speechless.

Could he be referring to the chaos and disorder of the world?

Just as Alexandre Dumas began to ponder the deeper meaning of the general's words, the white hall suddenly became somewhat noisy. At first, only a few people were surprised to hear the young man's name, but as the news was passed on to their companions one by one...

Before long, even the women who had already sat on the sofas and chairs raised their necks slightly and glanced at him casually, while the men couldn't help but look at him with a scrutinizing gaze and a cold smile.

When the general saw the young man he knew so well again, he did not go over immediately. Instead, he stood still and looked at the young man, who had not changed much, with the same scrutinizing gaze.

As he watched, he saw several people at the ball who were said to be very famous in the literary world walk towards him, he saw people from all walks of Parisian high society approaching him with curiosity and surprise, and he even saw some nobles and princesses he had heard of greet him with demure manners.
After watching for a while, the general, for some reason, felt a surge of emotion. At the same time, he strode towards Mikhail, and amidst the somewhat surprised gazes of others, he firmly grasped Mikhail's hand. However, under the watchful eyes of the others, the general, who actually had a lot to say, restrained himself and simply said:
“Dear Mikhail, you were already a very good young man in my eyes before, but seeing what you are like now and what you have achieved, I am truly proud of you.”

Looking at the general, who resembled a kind elder, Mikhail, who actually missed the general somewhat, was quite moved.

If you do not mind, I would like to become your father-in-law.
After successfully meeting the general, Mikhail had to accompany the general to greet some of the Parisian high society for a long time afterward, listening to the general boast, while also dealing with attention from all sides and people trying to strike up conversations with him.

But through Mikhail's deliberate and unintentional efforts, and with the tireless cooperation of his teacher, Alexandre Dumas, Mikhail eventually arrived at the place where the women were chatting and exchanging various things. Just then, Dumas casually asked:

"Mikhail, do you have any new works lately? Could you read one to me?"

Because Dumas's voice was quite loud, many people looked in his direction. Even though this was not a literary occasion, many people still curiously pricked up their ears, especially the women nearby.

Under the gaze of many eyes, and a pair of seemingly misty eyes, Mikhail has once again met a pair of misty eyes.

The world seemed to fall silent at that moment. Mikhail listened quietly to the faint sounds of a heart breaking and mending, then, in a voice that also seemed shrouded in mist, he recited directly:
I have no other wish than to love you.
A storm filled the valley
A fish filled the river
I made you as big as my loneliness.
The whole world is a place for us to hide.
Day and night, let us get to know each other better.
So that you no longer see anything else in your eyes
I only see my imagination of you

I only see the world in your image

And then there are the days and nights controlled by your eyelids.

(End of this chapter)