I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 196 The Lady of the Camellias: Marie du Plessy
The spirit of republicanism runs in our blood, just as syphilis runs in our bones. We are democratic, and we are syphilitic.

— Charles Pierre Baudelaire
To put it simply, in the late 19th century, syphilis expert Alfred Fournier estimated that about 15% of the population in Paris was infected with syphilis.

If we trace the origins simply, this disease is said to have been brought back from the Americas by the great explorer and despicable tyrant Christopher Columbus. They took everything from the Americas and rightfully deserved to suffer the revenge from the Americas, namely a disease called syphilis.

Syphilis often mimics many symptoms after it develops and causes patients a very long period of suffering. It often recurs. Leaving aside the initial symptoms, in the late stage, many patients will experience mental confusion and paralysis. Before that, they often experience brief periods of unrestrained and unusual behavior, which are the signs of madness.

It is said that before patients go mad, syphilis often "rewards" them, during which they often experience creative excitement, feel energetic, and are highly enthusiastic. So much so that in the late 19th century, it was widely believed that syphilis could produce geniuses, although cases were rare.

Of course, judging from this rate of infection, it seems that it's not that you have to get it to become a genius, but rather that dissolute geniuses are more likely to get it.

But if we have to name one, Maupassant is an example. It is said that he was unremarkable before the end of his syphilis, but as he approached the end, his thoughts flowed like a spring, and he became famous in the French literary world.

It's worth mentioning that Maupassant was initially a very shy young man, but later he loved to boast about his love life, which made him, like Flaubert, a laughingstock in his circle. Maupassant claimed that he could have sex twenty times in a row, and on one occasion, in front of witnesses, he had sex with six prostitutes in one hour.

Unfortunately, Maupassant's biographer, Robert Sherrard, believes that these stories were all fabricated by Maupassant in his youth as a boastful and chaotic figure.

Maupassant's teacher, Flaubert, also suffered from this disease. The more abstract aspect of Flaubert is that he not only frequented brothels, but also visited male prostitutes during his travels in Egypt, and even wrote about these experiences in his travelogue.

In short, from any perspective, Mikhail had no intention of having fun with Professor Dumas. However, at the beginning, Professor Dumas genuinely thought that Mikhail was simply embarrassed to be treated, so he reached out his strong hand and grabbed Mikhail's arm to leave.

It must be said that Alexandre Dumas, the French prison magistrate, was indeed very strong. Mikhail was so helpless that he simply stretched out one hand and grabbed the door frame next to him.

Mikhail: “.”

How could something like this happen so soon after arriving in Paris?
Fortunately, after some explanation, Professor Dumas finally gave up on that plan and instead prepared to take Mikhail to a nice restaurant for an authentic French meal. However, judging from his expression, he seemed to suspect that Mikhail had some unspeakable secret.

He even muttered to himself, "Strange, why did your friend Turgenev say that the ladies around you change every day, never repeating the same one? I thought you'd enjoy that kind of thing."

Mikhail: “?”

When Mikhail's gaze fell on Turgenev, Turgenev could only awkwardly laugh and explain, "You know Mikhail, the French love to hear stories like this! Without artistic embellishment, how could your fame have spread so quickly?"

Since it did seem to make some sense, Mikhail had no choice but to reluctantly accept it.

Since Alexandre Dumas had already extended an invitation, Mikhail chatted with the owner of Le Château for a while and made an appointment to have dinner together next time before heading to a restaurant with Dumas.

Even after Mikhail left, Ditak continued to ponder certain things.

Judging from Mr. Dumas's appearance, it seems that this young man has been able to make contact with those big names in the literary world as soon as he arrived in Paris.
That seems normal, after all, Mr. Turgenev made an indelible contribution to this.

However, at the same time, one thing that surprised Mikhail was that this young man didn't seem to intend to just write science fiction novels in Paris to make money, but really wanted to expound his own literary ideas in Paris.

A Russian in Paris, trying to articulate his literary ideas?

The mere thought of these three things together was utterly absurd to Ditak.

What is this young man thinking? Wouldn't it be better to make money in Paris? Besides, he doesn't seem like a radical person at all!

However, if he only elaborates on his ideas about "science fiction" novels, the risk would certainly be much smaller. After all, such ideas seem to only contribute a new novel genre to France, and many writers may make a fortune from this novel genre. In fact, if this young man stays in France for a few more years, it would not be difficult for him to gather some followers around him.

As long as there is something profitable for someone, they will always attract a group of people around them.

But if he were to offer any opinion on something as fundamental as Romanticism, he would likely face a response like, "You foreign bastards? You Russians have no right to talk about literature?"

Of course, the main reason for thinking about these things is that Dieter is genuinely worried that the series of events that might result could affect the sales of The Century.

However, after thinking about Mikhail's earlier suggestion to visit Mr. Hugo, Ditak ultimately smiled and shook his head.

Perhaps he just has the same inexplicable self-confidence as most young people, but no matter what, could he really spout nonsense in front of Mr. Hugo?

He gives off a rather gentle vibe.
While Dietak was pondering this matter, Mikhail and his party had already arrived at the restaurant. Although Dumas regretted not being able to take Mikhail out for some fun, choosing a suitable restaurant to serve his guests an authentic and delicious meal was also one of Dumas's specialties.

Since Alexandre Dumas was a regular at this rather luxurious restaurant and had a wide circle of friends, he was greeted by staff and acquaintances as soon as he entered. Even among the unfamiliar customers, many recognized him: "Look! It's Mr. Dumas!"

After greeting these people, Dumas quickly invited Mikhail to sit down under everyone's watchful eyes. He then ordered a large number of dishes with practiced ease, and Dumas soon began to chat with Mikhail with great interest.

Because of those legendary tales, some true and some false, Alexandre Dumas was indeed very interested in this young man, and sometimes even considered using him as a model to write a story that would shake Russia to its core! After all, the rumors surrounding him were quite legendary. Of course, Mikhail was equally interested in Dumas, so the two did talk quite a bit. Since Mikhail genuinely liked Dumas's *The Count of Monte Cristo* and other works, his words inevitably revealed a sense of admiration.

Dumas was overjoyed by this, after all, in every respect, this young Russian man from a commoner background could be called a genius, and if such a genius liked his work, wouldn't that greatly enhance the reputation of his work?
Overjoyed, Dumas also thought of Mikhail's recent release of a very popular work. Seeing that Mikhail's praise was genuine, and under the watchful eyes of many, Dumas, in a rather impulsive manner, slammed his hand on the table. When even more people looked over, Dumas pointed to himself and Mikhail, then laughed heartily and said:

"Excuse my bluntness, Mikhail, but today, in all of Paris, only your and my serialized novels can keep readers in Paris following along!"

Mikhail: “?”

A contest of heroes in a French restaurant?
Before Mikhail could react, many people in the restaurant turned to look at him because of the commotion, accompanied by a few whispered comments:
"Who is Mikhail? How can he be ranked alongside Mr. Dumas?"

"I think it's flattery, but why flatter a young man?"

"Could this Mikhail that Mr. Dumas mentioned be the Russian writer we've been reporting on so much lately? He's in Paris? If so, a perfect headline has been born! I'll write it down as soon as I get back!"

As for giving Mikhail a helping hand, Dumas didn't really think much of it. After all, he had been helping others and their works for quite some time now. As for making the news?

Many writers in Paris probably wish they could be in the news every day!
While Mikhail felt somewhat uncomfortable after overhearing some of the discussions, he knew he hadn't come to Paris to be a nobody. So, after adjusting his mindset, Mikhail chatted with Dumas for a while before quickly getting to the point:
"Mr. Dumas, have you ever met Marie du Plessy?"

“Mary Duplessie”.

Upon hearing the name, perhaps because something came to mind, Dumas's expression became somewhat more serious. He then gave Mikhail a rather strange look and said, "You mean Marie du Plessy, the Lady of the Camellias? You've heard of her? Mikhail, so it's not that you're unwilling to go, it's just that your standards are exceptionally high."

"You've really misunderstood me."

Seeing that Professor Dumas was still preoccupied with something, Mikhail, whose lips twitched involuntarily, could only quickly say, "I was just thinking about something related to the script."

"script?"

Upon hearing this, Dumas was even more surprised: "Could you be a playwright? How come I've never heard Turgenev mention this before? But then again, a genius writer can easily become a genius playwright; he often only needs to slightly adapt his novels."

But if I may be frank, kid, making a name for yourself in the theater world these days is far more difficult than in other fields.

I'm sure you've heard of the great Victor Hugo. Even his play *The Garrison Commander* was booed and failed when it premiered in 1843. Of course, it was a rather poor script, but it already shows how difficult this profession is. I advise you to think carefully about it.”

After offering his advice, Alexandre Dumas finally answered Mikhail's question: "Of course, I know her. My son had been in contact with her for a while recently, and we even met once."

The reason this extremely beautiful young woman asked my son to meet me was also related to theater. At that time, she wanted to become an actress in the theater; none of these women didn't dream of becoming actresses. However, she changed her mind after only a few days because being an actress requires a lot of hard work—studying scripts, rehearsing, performing on stage, and so on.
Now, all they need to do is get up at 2 p.m. every day, get ready, take a walk in the forest, and then spend the evening somewhere else, or go to someone else's house. This is much easier than being an actress.

So since then, I have never seen her or heard my son talk about her again.

“So that’s how it is”

After noting down what Dumas had said, Mikhail said nothing more. Seeing that Dumas wasn't very interested in the topic, Mikhail quickly changed the subject.

Just as the two resumed their cheerful conversation, Turgenev couldn't help but stare intently at Mikhail.

Turgenev didn't actually know whether Mikhail could write screenplays, but he had a feeling that if he asked Mikhail about it, Mikhail would most likely hold up his two damned fingers and say with a humble smile, "Just a little bit, really just a little bit."

Therefore, Turgenev decided it was best not to ask anything and just wait and see what Mikhail would do next.

While they were talking, the dishes were served one after another. Perhaps because of his generosity, Dumas ordered so many dishes that they almost filled the entire table.

Seeing that Turgenev's gaze was a little strange, Dumas laughed and explained, "A man must first have a good appetite in order to have more things. My appetite is quite good, so please rest assured."

After saying this, Dumas looked at the two men and asked, "How is your appetite?"

"good."

Turgenev replied.

Then he couldn't help but look at Mikhail, who then gestured with a slightly reserved air and said, "It's alright, I can eat a little bit."

Turgenev, watching Dumas laughing and shaking his head, remained silent.

(End of this chapter)