I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 195 The New Fashion and Temperament of Alexandre Dumas
Whether Mikhail's second novel, serialized in Le Havre, was popular or not could be determined with a simple morning stroll through Paris. Mikhail and his companions walked around, and whenever newsboys were hawking Le Havre, they quickly sold most of their copies. Those who read quickly were already discussing it.
"That unknown sea monster was actually a submarine that could hide in the ocean? That's unbelievable! Will such a thing really exist in the future?"

"Compared to the previous novel, this serialized novel is significantly bolder!"

"This is exactly what I want to read! This author always brings a lot of novel reading experiences, and it's more or less close to reality. What were those novels of this type that were popular in the newspapers recently? They were all vulgar old clichés, with no imagination at all! This author's writing is much more interesting. I've had a lot of dealings with the ocean, but I've never imagined life underwater!"

"Yeah, what were all those novels from a while back! Someone even came up with a pen name that was exactly the same as the first half of this gentleman's name, and I actually thought it was him!"

"But I must say, the underground version is really good. It gave me a lot of thoughts after watching it."

"What underground version? Oh right. Shh! Come here and whisper it to me."

Mikhail, who seemed to have heard something extraordinary, asked, "?"

Now that we've come this far, it's quite clear what the novel currently being serialized in Paris is: another science fiction classic, "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea."

Of course, Mikhail still made considerable changes to this novel. Although the novel is more fantasy in a strict sense, the scientific elements were undoubtedly greatly increased in Mikhail's writing.

Although Mikhail didn't know much about real submarines, if his writings were to come across a genius scientist, a bit of inspiration might actually lead to the creation of that thing a little earlier.

As for the history of submarines, it is said that Leonardo da Vinci first proposed the idea of ​​underwater navigation. The first submarine used in war was during the American Revolutionary War in 1776, when a young man named Bushnell built a wooden submarine called the "Turtle" that was entirely manually operated. Then came the four-man submarine "Nautilus" built by the American Fulton in 1801.

It is said that the Nautilus in Jules Verne's novel was a tribute to this first submarine, and many years later, the first nuclear submarine in history also paid homage to the famous "Nautilus" in the novel.

It is also worth mentioning that Verne originally intended to create a Polish hero who opposed the tyranny of the Tsar in this work, but his publisher strongly opposed this in order to gain access to the Russian market. It was not until the end that the author and the publisher gradually compromised with each other, making Nemo's true motives ambiguous, but roughly positioning him as a champion of freedom and an avenger against oppression.

To be fair, although Mikhail basically continued this characterization, without actually going so far as to go all out against the Tsar, the idea of ​​him being a "defender of freedom and avenger against oppression" probably still wouldn't resonate with the Russian audience these days.

Of course, we won't change that; it's already quite good that they don't use their ultimate skill directly at face-to-face.
Just as Mikhail was pondering these things, the two of them finally arrived at the editorial office of the "Century" newspaper. Since it was Mikhail's first time there, he was somewhat surprised to see so many people coming and going. He said to Turgenev:
"Are the editorial offices of Parisian newspapers always this lively? Or do they have other business to do?"

Turgenev, who had seen this kind of scene before, simply smiled and said to Mikhail's astonishment, "Mikhail, listen to it again."

Just then, as Mikhail and Turgenev were about to go inside, they suddenly heard someone shout, seemingly angrily, "Where's that writer from Russia?! Didn't your newspaper say he'd be coming to France soon? If I find out it's a hoax, I'll make you pay!"

Mikhail: “???”

Does France have this tradition too?
And what do you want from this Russian writer? Do you perhaps want to give him millions of francs and a few houses?
Although it's possible to imagine it that way, Mikhail ultimately went in rather discreetly.

Just as Mikhail quietly slipped inside, in one of the offices, the owner of the Century newspaper, who had already received advance notice, was solemnly awaiting the arrival of a promising guest.

As mentioned before, their newspaper's sales had already dropped significantly before Mikhail's new novel arrived. However, after the Russian writer sent two letters and his new work, The Century not only reversed its previous decline but also began to see a resurgence in subscribers and sales.

It must be said that although Les Centenaries is already one of the top-selling newspapers in France, a sufficiently attractive novel still seems to have an impact on the newspaper's sales. In the French literary world, only Dumas, Balzac, and a few other great writers have been able to do this. Now, a young writer from Russia has actually achieved this as well.
Has France regressed or Russia progressed?
However, from a purely commercial perspective, such a young writer deserves the serious attention of a major publisher like him. Therefore, the owner of Le Soir is dressed exceptionally formally today, even though he truly despises the respectable clothes that are fashionable in Paris these days.

The reason is quite simple: the clothes need to be tightly fitted around the waist, and his stomach is a little bit big, so it's naturally very uncomfortable.

That's why, when Dietak, the owner of The Century, actually met the Russian writer he had only communicated with through letters, he couldn't quite control his facial expression.

If you were to ask him what impression the other person left on him when they first met, the first thing he would say is their youth—an astonishing youth.

Although he had already heard from rumors that the young man might have been a college student, Mikhail did not look old, so when Ditak saw Mikhail's face, he was still full of questions. How come he looks younger than my son?
Had he already achieved great success in Russia at such a young age and then come to France to make money?!

As for the second impression, it was naturally the young man's impressive appearance and his exceptionally well-fitting clothes.

His appearance made Dietak subconsciously think, "Damn! With looks like that and literary talent, he could find many wealthy ladies as his lovers even in high society! He could easily achieve what Mr. Balzac has longed for for so long!" As for his somewhat familiar yet strangely novel outfit, Dietak was most envious when he invited the other man to sit down.

After all, while his stomach was groaning in pain, the young man sat down quite smoothly, and the clothes looked both presentable and comfortable on him.

Although it lacks a series of complex styles and decorations that could highlight its noble status, its advantages are just as obvious. So much so that after exchanging pleasantries with Mikhail for a while, Ditak couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Mikhail, may I ask what kind of clothes you are wearing? I don't think I've ever seen this style before."

You mean this outfit?

The young man, fluent in French and sounding exactly like a Parisian, smiled and said, "As you can see, this outfit is a modified version of what's popular in Paris today. Admittedly, it has removed many of the embellishments that indicate status, but it is undoubtedly more suitable for everyday life and some business activities."

Ditak: "?"

You mean that a Russian, upon arriving in Paris, changed the conventional Parisian dress code, and did a pretty good job of it?
What a bold move! Could it be that this writer is not as approachable as he appears?
And you're so young, you not only understand literature but also have a bit of fashion sense?
Although he understood what the other person was saying, Ditak was still greatly shocked. Despite feeling that the other person was somewhat reckless, daring to challenge Parisian fashion trends as soon as they arrived, Ditak had to admit to himself that there was some truth to what the other person said.
Since the other party could indeed bring a lot of profit to the magazine, Ditak did not comment too much on the matter, but quickly changed the subject, the most important of which was, of course, the issue of the other party's novel serialization.

Although the other person's youth made Ditak subconsciously think that he was an easily fooled new writer, as the conversation progressed, Ditak quickly realized that the other person was also the owner of a magazine. Moreover, as Ditak listened to the other person's philosophy on running the magazine and some small design ideas, this old hand actually felt a little tempted.

Because the conversation was going so well, Ditak had intended to wait until the young man had pledged his loyalty before saying certain things. But since they had already gone this far, Ditak quickly and kindly reminded him:

"Although I don't know what your plans are for coming to Paris, one thing is certain: your presence has undoubtedly created competition with the writers in Paris. If you are just here to write novels and make some money, then you can follow my arrangements. This would be beneficial for both of us. I will also find many people to continue to refute those articles attacking you in the newspapers."

However, if you want to earn a place for yourself in the Parisian literary scene and gain greater fame, then, with all due respect, you are still young and an outsider to the Parisian literary world. If you frequently appear in various occasions, you will most likely be attacked by the masses.

Believe me, far too many people already harbor resentment or even hatred towards you.

This statement is certainly true. After all, rivals have always been enemies, and writers are even more prone to belittling each other. Unless this young man adopts a completely gentle attitude towards everyone in the Parisian literary world, any rebuttal he makes may provoke hostility from the Parisian writers.

After all, relations between the two countries were not good to begin with. The incident of the Russians entering Paris decades ago was still fresh in everyone's mind. How could it be possible to let the barbaric Russians run rampant in the literary world of Paris?

Faced with Ditak's kind reminder, Mikhail naturally nodded first, but before he could say anything more, suddenly, there was a knock on the door. After Ditak said "Come in" with a slightly angry tone, a burly man quickly walked in.

His skin was quite dark, but his style of dress was unusually extravagant and gorgeous: a scarlet velvet coat, an embroidered vest, a wide-brimmed hat, and a cape with gold tassels. At this moment, his exceptionally bright eyes seemed to be searching for something in the room. After a while, he finally fixed his gaze on Mikhail with some uncertainty.

Looking at the face so similar to the portrait and the nascent belly, Mikhail quickly stepped forward with a hint of excitement, then solemnly extended his hand and said:
"Hello, Mr. Dumas, although we have corresponded before, I would like to introduce myself here. I am Mikhail Romanovich Raskolnikov, and I am also a loyal reader of your 'The Count of Monte Cristo' and other works."

"Oh? It really is you? I can hardly believe it, you're so young!"

Shocked, Dumas undoubtedly heard the latter part of Mikhail's words, and he quickly burst into laughter, revealing a set of snow-white teeth. His laughter was so infectious that it seemed to make the whole room tremble.

At the same time, Dumas warmly shook Mikhail's hand and said, "I'm so curious about you! I received the news, and since I had some things to do, I came to take a look, and I didn't expect to actually run into you."

As I said in my letter, your novel has given me a lot of inspiration, so there's nothing more to say. Even if you rejected me in your letter, I believe it's just the shyness unique to young people!
So, are you done talking? If you are, come with me now, and I'll take you to the best place in Paris to have some fun! You can stay there as long as you want!

Mikhail, who was initially a little excited, was left speechless.

Is this something about plums?

That's so passionate!
Truly worthy of being the great Alexandre Dumas who could share his lover with his son, Alexandre Dumas fils.
Of course, speaking of Alexandre Dumas fils, something Mikhail was about to do was indeed closely related to him in some way.

(End of this chapter)