I am a literary giant in Europe

Chapter 763 Italo Calvino

Liu Jin didn't know much about Italian literature.

The most familiar one is probably Dante's "Divine Comedy".

In the 20th century, Italy produced many outstanding authors.

Gabriel D'Annunzio's "The Rose Trilogy" pioneered the genre of Italian aesthetic literature.

Dario Fo, a famous Italian playwright of the 20th century, won the 1997 Nobel Prize for his play "Accidental Death of an Anarchist".

Carlo Collodi, author of *The Adventures of Pinocchio*.

That's the author who created Pinocchio, the character whose nose grows longer when he lies.

When Liu Jin was a child, he watched an animation adapted from this story and had a deep memory of it.

There's also Alberto Moravia, renowned worldwide for "The Roman Woman" and "Contempt," and nominated for the Nobel Prize fifteen times.

He was called the 'Lu Xun of Italy'.

But the Italian writer who left the deepest impression on Liu Jin after he grew up was Italo Calvino.

Liu Jin got to know Calvino through Calvino's 1972 novel, "Invisible Cities".

After that, he read the "Our Ancestors" trilogy, which uses allegory to discuss humanity and freedom.

……

However, Liu Jin did not find Calvino's name when reading "A History of 20th Century Italian Literature".

This book, "A History of 20th Century Italian Literature," is a comprehensive history of literature jointly compiled by the Italian Writers' Union and the Italian Research Center, two authoritative literary institutions in Italy. It mainly introduces writers of the 20th century, the style of their works, and their influence on later literary creation, etc., and is considered a very authoritative work.

Liu Jin had already seen it once when he was in Toulouse.

At the time, I felt like something was missing.

After arriving in Italy, I bought another book in Italian...

Something still doesn't feel right!

Yesterday, when he was seeing Alizee off, he suddenly remembered.

Neither of the two "Histories of Literature" contains any information about Calvino.

That is to say...

Last night, he searched online but found no information about Calvino; it was as if the man had vanished into thin air.

It's worth noting that Italo Calvino was on par with Borges Márquez in the original timeline, and was hailed as the 'writer's writer'.

The work blends fantasy, scientific philosophy, and narrative experimentation, defining new possibilities for 20th-century literature.

But how come such a person doesn't exist in this time and space?
So, will the Neapolitan Quartet ever be made?

Elena Ferrante, author of the Neapolitan Novels, which is the best-selling Italian novel series since 2010, is said to be deeply influenced by Italo Calvino, and her writing style is also very similar.

Elena Ferrante is an established Italian writer from Naples.

In the original timeline, she lived in Naples for many years.

However, in this timeline, after completing her debut novel, "Hateful Love," she went to Milan and settled there.

To be honest, Liu Jin saw no resemblance to her "Neapolitan Novels" in her subsequent works.

So, because Calvino disappeared, a bestselling novel series with total sales of 30 million copies will also disappear?
Liu Jin stated that this was unacceptable!
……

The assistant is a dropout from the Department of Literature and Philosophy at the University of Catania.

She dropped out of school purely because she was lured by fame and fortune. Theoretically speaking, the junior assistant could also be considered a high achiever.

If she's never heard of Calvino, then Calvino might not actually exist.

So, Calvino's works...

The era he lived in was very close to the present.

The original timeline ended in 1985 due to a cerebral hemorrhage, and his influence was known as that of the 'uncrowned king'.

His works include the "Our Ancestors" trilogy, "Invisible Cities", and "If on a Winter's Night, a Traveler".

As luck would have it, Liu Jin had read all of these books.

However, Liu Jin was still not quite sure.

Since Calvino was born in Cuba, will he be classified as a South American writer?

After all, Borges and Márquez, who were his contemporaries in the original timeline, were both South American writers and were known as the "Three Masters of South America".

Liu Jin decided to go to the library to check after class.

It is highly unlikely that it exists.

Because if such a person truly existed, given the influence of his works, even if he were a South American writer, his assistant would surely know about him.

Liu Jin was a little anxious during this class.

After class, he didn't even have time to say goodbye to Professor Barbara before running straight to the library.

"Mia, what's wrong with him?"

Professor Barbara and Bella were both puzzled, so they stopped the assistant to ask her questions.

"I don't know, they suddenly asked me in class if I knew someone."

I said I didn't know him, and he fell silent, then stared blankly into space, muttering to himself, I don't know what he was thinking.

Bella wholeheartedly agreed.

But Professor Barbara laughed.

"Perhaps I've been inspired."

"What inspiration?"

“I don’t know, but I heard from his doctoral advisor, Professor Michel, that this guy often starts daydreaming while talking, and then inspiration strikes… It’s said that many of his works, such as ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’ and ‘Night at the Museum,’ were created under these circumstances. That’s probably what genius thinking is like, different from ours.”

There are no geniuses, just prodigal sons.

Professor, you have no idea, last week…

The assistant started to complain non-stop.

Bella listened with great interest.

Professor Barbara, however, looked at the assistant and suddenly revealed a strange smile.

"Professor, what are you laughing at?" "Mia, you've fallen in love with him, haven't you?"

"what?"

The assistant's face flushed red instantly.

"No, I would never fall in love with such a womanizer."

"But I have to tell you, when you constantly remind yourself that you won't fall in love with someone, you are actually..."

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

The assistant's face turned bright red.

But she was very firm in her statement and refused to admit that she had fallen in love with Liu Jin.

"However, regardless of whether you fall in love with him or not, I have a piece of advice for you."

Don't try to control him or change him... If you have that thought, your ending will be very tragic. Just like he wrote in "Gone with the Wind," Scarlett's final fate was actually due to her desire to change Rhett Butler.

There are some people you can't change.

When he truly changes, you'll find that he becomes a complete stranger to you.

The assistant lowered his head and remained silent.

Does she have this thought?

there must be!
Even before today, she thought she was beautiful, young, and full of energy.

If she spends enough time with Liu Jin, she will definitely be able to change him.

but……

The assistant fell into deep thought.

……

Liu Jin couldn't find any information about Calvino in the library either.

That person truly no longer exists!
In the afternoon, since Professor Barbara didn't have any classes, Liu Jin simply had his assistant drive him to the old town of Salerno.

There is a car dealership in the old town that is owned by the Marco family.

It looks quite ordinary.

This car dealership can provide cars from all Italian brands... well, including smuggled cars from abroad!

The car dealership looks much worse than the luxury car dealerships in Milan and Rome.

Several ordinary cars were parked on the display stand, but the most eye-catching was a four-seater Maserati GT.

"Boss, what are you doing here? Buying a car again?"

"We have two cars at home."

"They're all sports cars. You have a Mini Cooper when you go out, but what about Jerome?"
"I'll definitely need more than one bodyguard at home in the future, so I'll need at least two cars... Hey, how much is this Maserati GT?"

"Yes, Dr. Amos?"

The shop assistant hesitated for a moment, then asked softly.

"Yes, you know me?"

"No, that's not it. It's just that there aren't many Asians in Salerno, and as far as I know, you're the only Asian with such a beautiful lady by your side. Mr. Marco instructed that you can enjoy a 30% discount at our store."

Oh, is there really such a good thing?

It's a fool not to take advantage of a good deal, especially since I'm planning to write a history of the Marco family's rise to power and sing their praises.

A 30% discount isn't much!

"How much does this Maserati GT and those two Lancia Thesis cost in total?"

The shop assistant was a little confused.

The same goes for the junior assistant.

No, do you buy cars in wholesale?
Is this how you buy a car?

Before the shop assistant could speak, the assistant shoved Liu Jin aside.

"My boss wants so many cars, shouldn't there be a discount?"
Also, you just mentioned Mr. Marco saying 30% off. Was that 30% off the discounted price, or 30% off the original price?

Hmm, is this someone trying to bargain?

Liu Jin immediately lost interest, letting his assistant and the shop assistant negotiate. He strolled over to the sofa, sat down, and picked up a picture book from the coffee table.

"Ok?"

The brochure shows the car models that the dealership can sell.

The cover features a seven-seater executive car, but Liu Jin doesn't recognize the logo.

"what car is this?"

he asked curiously.

The previous shop assistant was pulled along by the assistant to haggle over the price.

The store manager rushed over, glanced at the car in the brochure, and said hurriedly, "Mr. Amos, this is a Lorinser Gulfstream."

Gulfstream?

All I know is that the Gulfstream has airplanes.

When did cars become available?
"Lorinser? Is that an Italian car company? I've never heard of it?"

"Dr. Amos, Lorinser is not an Italian car brand. To be precise, it is a modified car with German heritage. Along with AMG/BRABUS, it is one of the three major in-house tuning companies for Mercedes-Benz worldwide, focusing on high-end custom modifications."

This Lorinser Gulfstream is a custom MPV, available in both seven-seater and four-seater versions...

The seven-seater features a wingsuit aesthetic, an obsidian black body, and an imperial purple color option. It's complemented by a chrome cloud-patterned grille and turbine-style forged wheels, combining sportiness with distinctive design.

Eagle-eye headlights, carbon fiber wing-shaped grille, lightweight hollowed-out rear wing...

The interior features a 2+2+3 layout, with independent airline-style seats and a three-seater bench in the back.

A starry sky ceiling, flowing welcome lights, an intelligent aromatherapy system, plus a 50-inch giant screen TV and zero-gravity seats, Dolby Atmos sound system…

Liu Jin couldn't help but swallow.

My heart is excited!
How to do?
……

(End of this chapter)