I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 169 The New Struggle and Shostakovich's Second Waltz
When Turgenev first took Mikhail's novel to Paris, he did not expect it to cause such a stir. Coupled with financial problems, he left in a hurry and failed to bring back any evidence. As a result, he spent a period of time being doubted by people about whether what he said was true or false.

However, this time, Turgenev's financial situation was relatively good, and he was becoming increasingly successful in Parisian literary circles. Therefore, compared to the last time, Turgenev was taking his time and was well-prepared for how to prove himself after returning home.

However, such preparations will certainly take some time. After all, Mikhail's "Around the World in Eighty Days" has not yet reached its most exciting part, while Turgenev plans to wait until the novel is finished being serialized and published as a standalone book.

As time goes by, the number of readers of "Around the World in Eighty Days" is undoubtedly increasing. Apart from the "science fiction" element that is extremely rare these days, the novel itself is a very exciting adventure novel.

For Parisians accustomed to serialized novels, adventure stories are nothing new, but an adventure story unfolding globally like this is undoubtedly a first in this day and age. Besides the Mediterranean, Red Sea, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and the customs and cultures of places like India that leave Parisians in awe, the protagonist Fogg's composure and precise grasp of time have undoubtedly left a deep impression on readers.

So much so that during the discussion, some native Parisians even said things like:

"My God, although this Englishman is as boring as a machine, there are some things I actually like about him."

Compared to other places, serialized novels in Paris have a very obvious advantage: you can see something new every day. Just as more and more people joined the ranks of readers, somewhere in Paris, a young man with a thick beard felt both curious and a little regretful after reading the latest installment of the newspaper.

The novelty of this serialized novel did indeed show him some new possibilities, but unfortunately, just a few days ago, the Paris police broke into his and his family's home and issued an eviction order against him.

Just a few days ago, the family was about to leave Paris and be forced to relocate to Brussels, Belgium.

Although he had prepared himself mentally for such a thing from the beginning, when it actually happened, it was undoubtedly so chaotic and overwhelming.

The only fortunate thing is that, precisely at such a difficult time, his family received a donation from an unknown source. This donation came so suddenly that at first, he thought it was sent by one of his relatives or friends.

But when he saw the letter signed "Mikhail," he knew things weren't as he thought. The problem was that Mikhail was such a common Russian name in Russia that, based solely on the signature, he couldn't immediately recall when he had met such a comrade.

The amount of aid was indeed substantial, and in a sense, it relieved his immediate crisis. However, given his current situation, he couldn't afford to investigate further. So, he could only keep the letter for now and think about it more carefully once things had settled down.

But the moment he put down the newspaper, looking at the long list of names in the author's name column, he suddenly and inexplicably connected the two people who should have been different. After all, in this novel, there were subtle criticisms of Britain and other countries that would occasionally surface, and some of these criticisms were exactly what he agreed with.

After marveling at the idea for a while, he stood up again. Thinking about what was about to happen, his relaxed expression became serious again. After closing the newspaper, the 27-year-old with a broad forehead and a gradually thickening beard walked toward his next destination.

For him, a new struggle has undoubtedly begun.

While the revolutionary heartland of Paris continues its usual tumultuous activity, Mikhail, in St. Petersburg, has been busy these days with some new skills, in short, learning to play the piano, in addition to his regular school and life.

For Russian nobles of that era, the piano, like the French language, was often an important part of their aristocratic education, and the ability to play the piano was a significant symbol of "civilization" and belonging to high society. Owning a fine imported piano was itself a symbol of wealth and social status.

In everyday terms, a family music party is a small, private event that aristocratic families would host, inviting relatives and friends. On such occasions, family members, especially daughters, would play the piano together with music lovers among the guests.

In larger, more formal aristocratic or artistic salons, music was also an important element. In addition to performances by professional composers, talented aristocratic amateurs, both men and women, would be invited to play, showcasing their refinement and skill.

However, Mikhail, a true commoner, obviously did not have this skill, but for some practical reasons, he did have the idea of ​​learning it after he had some free time.

After all, if he wants to make his reputation as prominent as possible during his upcoming European tour, then he should perform as well as he can. Playing the piano is one aspect of that; he may not necessarily need to use it, but it's certainly something he can prepare for.

However, since he had already spent a lot of money, buying another piano would be too much of a hassle. So Mikhail simply asked his old friend Panayev for help, and would go to his house to practice whenever he had time. As for where to find a teacher, Mikhail only mentioned it briefly, and Panayev, who had always praised Mikhail's character, took the initiative to take on the task, preparing to teach Mikhail some basic things first.

It is worth mentioning that while Russian nobles generally had a good level of piano skills in those days, most were only highly skilled amateurs. Noblewomen, on the other hand, generally had a higher level of skill, and some could even achieve a high level of artistic accomplishment.

Although Mikhail was practically eating and taking things home at Panayev's house and had to trouble Panayeva, Panayev still welcomed Mikhail's visit very much. After all, as a man with a very broad mind who could accept his good friend Nekrasov's affair with his wife, Mikhail's little matter was nothing.

We are all brothers!
Besides that, there was another thing that Panaev found extremely interesting.

That is, watching that seemingly omnipotent genius learn the piano in such an awkward way is truly a great pleasure.

Although many of them had long accepted the fact that Mikhail was an absolute genius, they couldn't help but feel a sense of envy as they watched him amaze everyone on various occasions.

Seeing such a genius working hard in their field of expertise is undoubtedly a very good feeling.

Of course, most of Mikhail's friends meant no harm and were mostly just teasing him, but as time went on, the scene undoubtedly became a bit too lively.

In the beginning, it was just a few people. Panaeva was teaching seriously, while Panaev and Nekrasov looked at Mikhail with surprise again and again, and then jokingly gave Mikhail a few pointers:
"Hahaha, Mikhail, look at you, you should put your hands here."

"Do you need me to demonstrate for you?" However, as this surprising news spread, many of Mikhail's friends came to join in the fun. Up to this point, things were still relatively normal. But as the enemies Mikhail had inexplicably attracted learned about this, it became a target for attacking him to some extent.

But such attacks were nothing more than a tickle to Mikhail, especially since they targeted his civilian status. Mikhail had heard similar messages so many times that he was practically sick of them.

Even though some people clamored that they would wait for Mikhail to appear at a salon he was familiar with, then publicly invite him to play the piano and embarrass him, Mikhail merely gave the person a somewhat strange look and said:

"Then I won't go, right? Besides, I rarely go out, so I usually wouldn't attend the salons you attend."

For Mikhail, it was just an ordinary statement, since he really had no connection with this person. But for some reason, the story spread and became: "What level are you at? Do you attend the same salons as me?"

It is said that this incident later made the gentleman, who had strong class consciousness, quite embarrassed.

Mikhail: “?”

Never mind, that's fine.

In short, that's roughly how things are. Although Mikhail was a little helpless, he continued to study, but he didn't really have high hopes. After all, at his age, even if he studied hard, he probably wouldn't reach a high level. He could just use it to deal with some occasions so he wouldn't be completely clueless.

In other words, Mikhail was definitely still interested in playing the piano.

He didn't have much time before, but he had learned a little about the piano. Now, although it's basically like learning it all over again, he has remembered quite a lot of things.

Therefore, Panaeva was quite surprised by Mikhail's learning speed.

First of all, Mikhail seems to have a real talent for this, and his fingers are in great shape. Then there's his excellent memory; he basically never forgets what he's been told. Even though he's a bit clumsy, he can always put his fingers in the right position.

Therefore, Mikhail's progress over these days has actually been quite rapid.

Of course, he is still far inferior to those nobles who have practiced for many years, but he is gradually moving towards becoming a beginner.

As for Mikhail's friends, they couldn't hear the progress at all. However, as time went on, they found it interesting and began to admire Mikhail for trying things he had never done before at his age.

So today, Mikhail came to Panayev's house as usual. Perhaps it was a coincidence that Panayev's house was visited by several composers and painters, whom Mikhail had met before, but who were not very familiar with.

After sitting down, Mikhail ate something and chatted with everyone. When it was almost time, Mikhail received this reply from Panayev: "It's alright, Mikhail, it won't bother us."

Therefore, Mikhail decided not to stand on ceremony and prepared to practice for a while first.

Once he has more cash on hand, he'll definitely buy one for his home.

Now that Mikhail has overcome the initial hurdle, he still needs to practice more. His friends have long heard about this and are used to it. However, out of curiosity, one or two composers still listened to Mikhail's performance.

After hearing this, they nodded slightly, since, in terms of actual performance, the piece they were currently playing was quite smooth.

After listening, seeing that his friends were all ready to hear his comments, the composer prepared to say a few words of praise for Mikhail:
"I think Mr. Mikhail has progressed from a beginner."

Just as he was talking about beginners, before the composer could continue, he suddenly heard another piano melody. At first, he didn't pay much attention, but after listening for a while, the unfamiliar yet exceptionally catchy piece stunned him.

Before he could even savor it, the music suddenly stopped.
Ok?
Is that all?!

This is just the beginning, isn't it?!
How come I don't think I've ever heard this piece before?
He quickly recalled the melody of the piece in his mind, then compared it to everything he had ever learned. Finding no matching melody, he hurriedly approached Mikhail amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd and hastily asked:

"Mr. Mikhail, why did you stop playing? What happened next?"

The composer had expected to get an answer from Mikhail, but after waiting for a while, he only saw hesitation on Mikhail's face.

Before he could think any further, Mikhail simply shrugged and said, "There's definitely no follow-up for now."

The composer: "?"

What do you mean?
Could it be that.
(End of this chapter)