I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 176 is circulated and reads "Mikhail Conquers Paris"!
By the time Turgenev finally returned to St. Petersburg from Paris, the Russian winter was essentially over.

Generally, by the end of March and the beginning of April, the rivers in central Russia are mostly thawed, and farmers will begin spring planting in mid-to-late April. In more distant regions like Siberia, agricultural activities are often delayed until May due to the thawing of permafrost.

Normally, summer begins in the central region at the end of May, just as Turgenev often used the phrase "the nightingales begin to sing in the woods at the end of May" to symbolize the arrival of summer in the central region in his later works.

As agreed by Turgenev and Mikhail, around May or June, the two went to Turgenev's family estate in the countryside to hunt, play, and write for a while.

Thinking of this, Turgenev was eager to try. After all, according to Mikhail, he had hardly ever handled a gun, and knew nothing about hunting. Under these circumstances, Turgenev felt it was necessary to demonstrate to Mikhail what it meant to be a crack shot and Russia's number one marksman.

But before that, when Turgenev finished his work and looked at the quiet St. Petersburg, he couldn't help but smile. Let's get St. Petersburg a little more active first!
After all, for the first time in history, the works of a Russian writer had conquered the people of Paris, the cultural center of Europe. From this perspective, Mikhail was practically the holy king of Russian culture, Alexander I!
To avoid missing out on crucial information about Mikhail again, Turgenev checked recent St. Petersburg magazines and newspapers before going to Panayev's house. To his astonishment, he found a barrage of attacks and insults against Mikhail in the magazines and newspapers, seemingly due to the latest content of "The Insulted and Hurt."

What lowly serfs dared to attack noble gentlemen through their writings, openly challenging and subverting the class order—the most vile slander and accusation in the history of Russian literature.
In short, Mikhail depicted the ugliness of the nobility in his novel, just as Gogol had done a few years earlier in his Dead Souls.

Prior to this, although Mikhail's novels were undoubtedly critical, they seemed to rarely criticize any important figures or noble groups. Even in the opening of "The Insulted and the Wounded," he only touched on the subject briefly. In fact, many readers, after seeing the scene in the novel where the duke agrees to the marriage, felt that the duke was actually a noble gentleman who was just pretending to be wicked.

But now that Mikhail has revealed the truth, people have discovered that this duke is utterly wicked, devoid of religious faith, and extremely cold-blooded and selfish. As a result, it is quite normal that attacks against Mikhail have suddenly increased.

After all, how many works of Russian literature during this period directly depicted the ugliness of the aristocratic class?
Gogol did write it, but then he was overwhelmed by the overwhelming voices, so he had to travel abroad to relax and escape the annoying and even frightening voices in his homeland.

At this moment, looking at these vicious accusations in the newspapers, and with someone openly threatening to report the matter to the Third Bureau or even the Tsar, Turgenev put himself in Mikhail's shoes and felt that if he were Mikhail, he might be filled with anxiety and even become depressed, starting to doubt his own work.

Out of concern for Mikhail, Turgenev quickly glanced through the magazines and newspapers before heading straight to Mikhail's house.

Because he was delayed a bit when he left and stayed a few more days, not many people knew that Turgenev was returning today.

After a worried Turgenev hurriedly knocked on Mikhail's door, it opened quickly, and Mira, Mikhail's young maid, poked her head out. Recognizing Turgenev, the girl lowered her voice and said:
“Dear Mr. Turgenev, Mr. Mikhail is still taking a nap. Is there anything urgent that you need me to do? I will go and wake him up right now.”

Turgenev glanced at the already darkened St. Petersburg and asked, "?"

You call this taking a nap?
What did I do here? Is it still nighttime?

"It's so late, isn't he going to get up for dinner?"

After a moment of hesitation, Turgenev suddenly asked this question.

“Mr. Mikhail has been practicing the piano a lot lately, so he had a big lunch and shouldn’t be hungry yet.”

"So what exactly did he eat?"

Turgenev couldn't help but press for an answer.

"this one"

Despite her slight embarrassment, after considering Turgenev's relationship with Mikhail, the young girl finally replied, "I remember eating some beef, some sausage, a few pickles, a little fruit, and a small amount of honey biscuits for dessert."

Turgenev: “???”

It seems that Mikhail would indeed have a lot in common with the great French writers Alexandre Dumas and Honoré de Balzac.
As for the point about practicing the piano, Turgenev didn't overlook it either, and couldn't help but ask further, only to receive the following answer:
What? Mikhail not only wants to play the piano, but also wants to try composing music?
Looking once more at the gloomy sky over St. Petersburg, Turgenev, though somewhat unsure if he had truly returned to Russia, still had things to do. So, after handing some letters he had brought back from France to the maid Mira, Turgenev, without waking Mikhail, headed off elsewhere.

After all, it turns out that Mikhail was not depressed or upset by those comments at all.
Meanwhile, St. Petersburg's nights are never short of gatherings of intellectuals, and because several major events have indeed occurred in St. Petersburg's cultural circles recently, the owners of "Chronicle of the Fatherland" and some other St. Petersburg magazines are gathered together for a joyous dinner tonight.

As they talked, they inevitably began to discuss their biggest rival, *Modern People* magazine:
"Haha, they've been having a tough time lately! I've heard that since the latest issue of 'Modern People' magazine went on sale, they've lost a lot of subscribers, and quite a few people are demanding refunds!"

"Not only that! I heard that the censorship authorities have already asked them to revise this issue! If they don't revise it, this issue of the magazine will not be allowed to be published, and the subsequent publication of the magazine may also be affected."

"I told you long ago, if they kept publishing those dark and absurd articles, they'd get into big trouble sooner or later! See, aren't my words coming true?"

"As expected of Mr. Krajevsky, he had such insightful views so early on!"

"Let that brat keep causing trouble! 'Modern People' magazine will be ruined by him sooner or later!"

“We must hurry and make sure the readers in St. Petersburg realize the reactionary true nature of the magazine ‘The Contemporary’! Before long, not many people will subscribe to it anymore.” Undoubtedly, similar offensives have been common, but this time it was truly the most effective so far, simply because that despicable novel had indeed hurt the feelings of some noble gentlemen, making it impossible for them to remain silent.

Because he had made such a loud noise, Krajewsky accidentally drank a little too much during the joyful dinner party, and even became slightly tipsy. In this wonderful state, he suddenly noticed a familiar face in the dinner party.

Because this man had previously made quite a splash, Krajevsky quickly called out his name: "Mr. Turgenev, what are you doing here? Do you want to join us?"

They had heard some things about Turgenev's trip abroad, and even some things about the reaction Mikhail's novels had caused in France.

However, due to their inner emotions and their firm belief that Russian novels could not possibly become popular in France, since there had never been such a precedent before, they regarded some of the news as rumors, or rather, the news that Mikhail's novels had failed miserably in Paris was what they truly remembered.

Besides, if we're really going to talk about it, how can short stories and serialized novels be compared?!
The difficulty levels are on completely different levels!

As for the relationship between Turgenev and Mikhail, Krajevsky and the others present were undoubtedly well aware of it. So, could it be that this friend of Mikhail came at such a moment because he wanted to abandon the darkness and join the people who were truly the ones to turn to?
Before the slightly tipsy Krajevsky could take any further action, he saw Turgenev politely greet them and then start talking to the others with a smile. When the atmosphere was just right, Krajevsky saw Turgenev take out some newspapers and hand them to everyone.

The first person to read it couldn't help but burst out laughing on the spot. As it was passed around, the atmosphere became increasingly lively, and the laughter grew louder and louder. When a French newspaper finally reached Krajewsky's hands, he read it and also let out a joyful laugh.

This was because the newspaper's main page had a very eye-catching headline: "A Russian beggar is hoping to get a meal from Paris."

Look, look, look!

They're practically begging to be slapped in the face!

Is there any behavior more despicable than this?
He's not just embarrassing himself, he's embarrassing all Russians!
In just a short while, Krajewsky had already decided what to publish in the newspaper the next day.

Strike while the iron is hot and deliver a fatal blow so that he can never recover!
However, it's a bit strange that such a foolish young man would be given such a large space.
Before Krajevsky could figure it out, the next newspaper arrived, still on the front page: "The noble Parisians are willing to give the Russians a chance."

Look at that! The gentlemen of Paris are so kind-hearted! But the more opportunities they are given, the more their wishful thinking and folly are exposed!
However, when another newspaper arrived, Krajevsky couldn't help but frown slightly: "Only a madman would offer such a price! The Russian is suspected of having an unclear relationship with the publisher and editor."

mean!

To use such despicable means to get one's novel seen by the French is a disgrace to Russia!

Fortunately, after the next title, "Around the World in Eighty Days? The Author Should Be Sent to a Mental Hospital," Krajewsky's expression relaxed again.

Unfortunately, when another title appeared, "A New Type of Serialized Novel Attracts Some Attention," Krajewsky suddenly had a bad feeling, and the originally cheerful atmosphere at the banquet was becoming increasingly heavy for some reason.

Suspecting he might have drunk too much, Krajevsky temporarily stopped reading, sat up straight, shook his head, and then drank some other stimulant. Once he felt a little better, he didn't have time to notice the unpleasant expressions on the faces of the other gentlemen in the room. Instead, he quickly looked at the remaining two newspapers, where the two prominent headlines read:

"Boiling Paris! Was Mr. Fogg's Round-the-World Trip a Success or a Failure?"

The most ingenious ending ever! All of Paris is eagerly awaiting Mr. Mikhail's next novel!

Krajevsky: "."

Bullshit!

This is utter nonsense!

Could these two newspapers have been printed by Mikhail himself? If so, of course he can write whatever he wants!
In that instant, Krajewsky, who had been smiling, suddenly looked as if a funeral had taken place in his family. His face turned ashen, as if he had eaten shit. As someone who considered himself to have been deceived and exploited by Mikhail, Krajewsky was undoubtedly the one who most wanted "The Contemporary" and Mikhail to go down in the end.

Now that we finally have such a golden opportunity, why did such terrible news come from Paris?!

Before Krajevsky could even question Turgenev about Mikhail's motives for forging French newspapers, Turgenev, amidst the unpleasant looks of the other gentlemen, decisively slipped away and headed off to a new place.

As a sociable person, Turgenev had acquaintances in almost any large circle. So after running around all night, although many magazine and newspaper owners in St. Petersburg were reluctant to believe it, there were always some people who would give up other things for sales and attention.

So, not long after, a few newspapers, disregarding the blockade and warnings from some gentlemen in the magazine industry, chose to put the articles they had already rushed into their newspapers, and so, not long after...
The residents of St. Petersburg, upon seeing the headline in the newspaper, were bewildered.

The works of Russian writer Mikhail conquered all of Paris.
Where did this outrageous anecdote come from? How could it be so wildly unfounded?
That's Paris! Paris, the cultural center of Europe!
(End of this chapter)