Tokyo: The life of a literary giant begins with home self-defense!

Chapter 348 General Manager's Cream Cake 5
As soon as Takeda Maki left, someone walked up to Ryukawa Toru.

The lights in the Guinness Bar were quiet, and all kinds of people were chatting with each other.

There are not many people who are alone, and Longchuan Che and John Banville in front of him are one of them.

"Can I sit here?"

The man has a high nose bridge and white skin, and his Northern Irish features are obvious.

"If the lady doesn't mind."

Ryukawa Toru shrugged. Before leaving, Takeda Maki had reminded him that if anyone came to talk, they could get to know each other.

Women treat literary salons as social venues.

"Thank you."

Longchuan Tetsu's not refusing was the same as agreeing. The small wine table was not big, round and could accommodate three seats. On the table was a pint of dark beer and a small half glass of whiskey left by Takeda Maki.

“Jameson is not as good as Guinness.”

John Banville sat down and stared at the wine glass on the table in front of him without saying a word. After holding it in for a long time, he uttered these words.

"Oh, yes."

Longchuan Che had no idea what the author in front of him, who was most likely to win the Frank Novel Prize, had come for. When he heard that the other party had nothing to say, Longchuan Che just casually responded.

"Of course." John Banville really used his poor talkativeness to the extreme. He didn't even introduce himself and just started introducing Irish specialties to Longchuan Che.

"Jameson whiskey is also a well-known Irish drink, but it's not as good as Guinness stout."

Guinness Stout is the one that created the Guinness World Records Award. Ryukawa Che heard that the original intention of creating this award was to make Guinness Stout more popular.

Use interesting stories to help boost your mood when drinking.

It probably means this.

"Oh, yes."

Longchuan Che just responded indifferently, and then listened to John Banville talk about the freshness of the dark beer here, the aroma of barley, the smoothness of the foam, the aftertaste, etc.

"I'm sorry, but you don't like hearing this?"

Longchuan Che has been showing little interest, John Banville said somewhat awkwardly.

"Banville, do you want to come over here?"

Unlike Longchuan Che, who was a marginal figure, someone would occasionally come to invite John Banville, but this middle-aged man would just shake his head indifferently and sit opposite Longchuan Che, getting ignored.

"is acceptable."

There were no conflicts, no slaps in the face, and even though the other party didn't seem to be very good at dealing with people, they kept chatting seriously.

Longchuan Che ordered a glass of Guinness stout, which he liked.

"Thank you."

John Banville looked at Longchuan Che with some gratitude, took a big sip of fresh dark beer and said:
"I know you."

"Uh-huh!"

Longchuan Che was a little surprised and said to John Banville.

“Are you a fan of my books?”

“Can you write a book?”

The two men looked at each other with some confusion. Long Chuan Che was confused because he only had the public identity of an author, while John Banville had never heard of the author Long Chuan Che.

"You are a little too presumptuous."

Long Chuan Che's expression was a little strange. John Banville could no longer be described as having low emotional intelligence.

He didn't understand basic interpersonal etiquette, and when Ryukawa Toru said he was the author, he looked at him as if he had seen a ghost.

"Sorry, sorry."

From a distance, he looked like a master who disdained dealing with ordinary people. When we talked, he seemed a bit socially anxious and silly. Longchuan Che saw John Banville and thought for a moment before saying:

"I've seen you before, at the academic exchange meeting at Trinity College."

Ryukawa Che has been to Ireland, and it can even be said that he has stayed here for some time.

Academic exchange at Princeton, where he wrote a speech entitled "The Meaning of Pain and the Beauty Contained in Pain", which was a speech on Irish literature.

"Is there any?"

Long Chuan Che frowned. There were a lot of people at the academic exchange meeting, but he didn't pay attention to who they were.

"There was a little girl with you at the time, a very pretty one."

John Banville gestured up and down, and from the words the other party said, such as beautiful but not tall, Longchuan Che guessed that she was the eldest daughter.

"What a coincidence."

Longchuan Che picked up the cup and raised it to the other party. He welcomed him as long as he was not trying to cause trouble.

Eastern authors are not welcome here and are sometimes even excluded.

"Are you also participating in the Frank Novel Award?"

Among the people who came here were writers and organizers, but Longchuan Che was not surprised that the other party asked this.

"Of course, and I think I have a good chance of winning."

Teacher Longchuan has been talking a lot lately. Seeing that the other party is not good at speaking, he just talks about the topic of literary awards.

Why should we write about loneliness in every short story like Dubliners? Why does he have the best interpretation of nothingness and despair?

The more John Banville listened, the more he sounded odd, because he was widely recognized as the favorite to win the Frank Short Story Prize.

He once wrote an article called "The Ocean", which was said to have the shadow of Joyce.

"The book Dubliners is a model of short stories from the last century. You also set the theme of your writing as loneliness?"

Although it felt strange, John Banville did not interrupt Longchuan Che. He listened to him politely, then shook his head and said, "It's difficult."

"Dubliners" has a high status in the field of short stories, or it can be said that the eternal theme of loneliness has a high status in the literary circle.

"Dubliners" gives a good interpretation of loneliness in the work. Some loneliness leads to relief, while others lead to nothingness and despair. James Joyce's works are said to take readers into the dark area between life and death, where everything related to loneliness is mixed.

"What did you write?"

The other party told the truth, but Longchuan Che did not get angry. While sipping beer, he asked about the opponent's information.

“Like Dubliners, it’s a stream-of-consciousness piece.”

In addition to being famous for his short stories, James Joyce is also known as the founder of stream-of-consciousness novels. He pioneered the Western stream-of-consciousness writing style, and his "Ulysses" is also known as the most obscure literary masterpiece.

"Ignore him, Banville."

Longchuan Che was chatting enthusiastically with John Banville when suddenly a discordant voice sounded in his ears.

It was the unknown person who had just come over to invite John Banville.

This man in his thirties sat next to Banville in a very familiar manner, and then looked at Longchuan Che with contempt.

"I know this guy. He hasn't even completed his portfolio. He's just trying to get a book published."

Everyone in the bar seemed to know him, and Longchuan Che felt like he was somewhat famous.

"You don't look like my book friend at all. How do you know my situation?"

It seemed that the only person with good intentions present was John Banville. Longchuan Che looked at the Irishman in front of him.

He was wearing a smart suit and his name was Colm on his name tag.

He seems to be a literary critic and also seems to be a judge of this literary award.

Ryuukawa Toru saw that the other party was about to taste the half glass of whiskey left by Takeda Maki, and kicked him.

(End of this chapter)