I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 210 You Are the Last Rose and the Newspaper That Changed Face (6k, bonus chapter for Alliance Leader Tuo Xiao Wei Cheng Gan)
"La Dame aux Camélias" achieved tremendous success. Whether a woman was supported by others or a woman burdened with sin, after reading it, everyone felt sorry for themselves and lamented their own tragic fate.

—From *The Biography of the Three Dumas*

The answer to whether Europe has a tradition of seating arrangements is definitely yes, and it certainly has a long history.

In China, during the pre-Qin period, the general concept was that left was auspicious and right was inauspicious. That is, in normal social and political life, left was considered superior and honorable, while right was considered inferior and lowly; however, in funerals, military events, and other so-called inauspicious activities, right was considered superior and honorable, while left was considered inferior and lowly.

The reason for this is that the ancients held the concept that the Way of Heaven favors the left and the Way of Earth favors the right in the realm of celestial cosmology.

In Europe, during the ancient Greek and Roman periods, the position closest to the right of the master was considered the most prestigious. The reason for this was rather simple: most people at the time held their weapons in their right hand, and the right side was often seen as the "protector."

Placing guests in this position is a sign of trust and honor.

In the Middle Ages, this was further enriched with a religious dimension. According to the Bible, Jesus sat at the right hand of God, and therefore the right side in Christian culture symbolized higher honor and status.

The same rule applied to Madame de Girard's cultural salon in Paris in 1845: the powerful, wealthy, and famous sat closest to the hostess, while an ordinary young man like Lucas had a hard time even getting in, let alone entering the inner circle.

As for his peers who had entered the inner circle, Lucas would have been insanely jealous in the past, but today, Lucas, standing on the periphery, just looked at the young people in the inner circle with a gloating expression, trying his best to suppress the upward curve of his lips.

To be able to enter the inner circle of Madame Girard's salon at such a young age, those young people are undoubtedly the most dazzling new stars in the Parisian cultural scene today, but so what?

What are they compared to that young Russian man who is standing in the center of the salon reading his script right now? Don't they still have to put on a seemingly respectable smile, just like I did before, while secretly wishing they could drag that young man down and stand on top of him themselves?

They have to taste what I experienced before!

While Lucas felt a surge of satisfaction, his gaze toward the Russian youth was filled with nothing but envy, with hardly any trace of jealousy.

If he could be a little jealous of those rising French stars, was there any reason for him to be jealous of this young man from Russia?

On the one hand, even though the other person was a few years younger than him, he was already the owner of Russia's best magazine. On the other hand, could an ordinary person have written those two poems?!
Especially the second song, you just listen to the theme and sway a couple of steps?! Is this even human?
In short, Lucas couldn't even imagine himself becoming such a genius, so how could he be jealous?
At this moment, perhaps because he was on the periphery, he had a clearer view of some things happening on the field.

Undoubtedly, the script presented by the young man named Mikhail was still very moving. In short, it was a love story, but due to the special identities of the male and female protagonists, the ingenious arrangement of the plot, the beautiful atmosphere created by the two love poems, and Mikhail's rather touching recitation, the script was exceptionally moving.

In short, Lucas clearly saw one lady after another shedding tears for this story. Even those worldly-wise ladies who were not easily moved were now frequently wiping away tears with handkerchiefs, occasionally accompanied by a few sighs.

Besides the ladies who were completely absorbed in the experience, Lucas also saw some Parisian youths driven mad with jealousy, journalists writing furiously, several critics seriously appreciating the work and lost in thought, and of course, everyone frequently glancing at the Russian youth, creating a peculiar atmosphere that mixed lust, jealousy, and amazement.
Seeing this, Lucas naturally understood that the young Russian man had achieved great success at the salon, and there was a high probability that his script would take a new turn. But to be honest, the other party hadn't used any particularly sophisticated methods; he had simply stood up at a certain moment according to the salon's procedures, and then he succeeded.

It sounds simple, but is it really possible to learn this?
Because his thoughts were quite complicated, Lucas wasn't really paying attention to the script. Besides thinking about the things mentioned above, Mikhail's two poems were also constantly echoing in his mind. After pondering them repeatedly, he had undoubtedly memorized the two short poems.

Frankly, if he had written these two poems, the ladies of Paris would be in deep trouble.
But even if he didn't write them, is it possible that he could have taken advantage of the time difference and read them to some noblewomen before the two poems became widely known?
Even if I didn't write them, the power of these two poems might just make some noblewomen lose their heads.
Thinking of this, he unconsciously arrived at the door, even though he knew that this matter was still quite risky and that he could easily be targeted later. In that instant, Lucas's eldest and second eldest brothers engaged in a fierce fight, and in the end, Lucas resolutely left the salon.

As it turned out, Lucas's fate was a mix of good and bad luck. His good luck lay in the fact that he had indeed charmed a supposedly wealthy lady at some event that evening; his bad luck was that this lady's waistline was almost twice the size of Lucas's.
As Lucas faced a life-or-death decision, Mikhail finally finished reading the script. After he finished, he gave the ladies, who were completely immersed in the story, some time to calm down. Once the atmosphere had improved a bit, discussions began to emerge.

One of the key reasons why "La Dame aux Camélias" achieved such great success in France during this period was that it had a large potential audience.

In short, the image of a woman who is forced to be supported yet still pursues love is a true reflection of how many women in Paris today? Or rather, it is difficult for women to rise above their circumstances on their own these days; even those noblewomen with inheritance rights are, in a sense, in a position of being supported.

As the discussion in the room increased, many people were surprised to find that the ladies who were supposed to be dignified and elegant were the ones who spoke the most and had the strongest desire to speak. Mikhail responded to everyone's praise, comments and questions.

After the heated discussion subsided, a man who appeared to be a reporter asked, "Mr. Mikhail, I'd like to write a news report about your performance today. Would you agree? I'd also like to write an article about your play, but I'm suddenly unsure how to summarize it. Could you offer some suggestions?"

"I agree. As for how to summarize it, perhaps a short poem would suffice."

Mikhail smiled and nodded, then paused slightly before speaking in a gentle yet remarkably vibrant tone:

"I am a desperate person, a word that has no echo."

Losing everything, yet possessing everything.

The last rope, my last wish sings for you.
In this barren land of mine, you are the last rose.

The crowd on the field: "!"

Come again? !
Are you perhaps made of poetry?!

This short poem is equally beautiful and moving. At the same time, it seems to symbolize both the love of the heroine Marguerite and the boundless regret and sorrow of the hero Armand after learning the truth.

Just as the reporter was still savoring the moment, another commotion broke out in the area where the noblewomen were. After a while, a cry of alarm came from the crowd: "Madame Dubarry has fainted! Quickly, take her to the rest area!"

Mikhail: “?”

Although Mikhail was initially taken aback, he soon realized that such things were indeed quite common in France during this period.

Firstly, the Romantic literature and drama of this period idealized the female image of "pale, weak, sensual, and prone to fainting," to the point that fainting sometimes became a symbol of refinement and sensuality.

A more realistic reason is that noblewomen of this period generally wore corsets that severely compressed their ribs, internal organs, and diaphragm on formal occasions. In addition, environments like salons were sometimes crowded and stuffy, so fainting was not uncommon in Parisian high society.

Of course, it must also be related to emotional excitement.

Although Mikhail didn't find it particularly strange after he figured it out, when he looked back at the reporter who had asked him the question, he found the reporter's eyes shining as he scribbled furiously in a small notebook.

It was clear that he was brimming with inspiration at that moment, but Mikhail genuinely hoped that the other party wouldn't write anything too outrageous.
Since Mikhail's poems and plays did indeed take up a lot of the salon's time, the salon was coming to an end after this interlude.

Although some of the ladies were giving Mikhail strange looks, they clearly wouldn't do anything to him today out of consideration for their social image and personal dignity.

Although Mikhail felt a chill run down his spine from their stares, after considering the theatrical situation, he ultimately mustered his courage and spoke briefly with the ladies.

As for whether he could achieve his goal, Mikhail, sensing the look in their eyes, felt there shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Once it was all over, Mikhail didn't even bother to eat anything in the salon; instead, he grabbed Turgenev and ran away.

Although Mikhail's actions might have distressed many young people in Paris, Turgenev seemed completely absorbed in his own thoughts and paid no attention to the matter.

When he finally came to his senses, he called out to Mikhail with considerable regret, “Mikhail! I counted the number of steps you took before reciting the poem! Twenty steps! A full twenty steps! Why couldn’t you have taken fewer steps? Seven steps would have been perfect!”

Mikhail: “?”

What, you actually know the story of Cao Zhi?

"Have you forgotten? Seven is a very sacred number in Eastern Orthodox Christianity! God created the world on the seventh day, created mankind on the seventh day, and created Eve from Adam's seventh rib. Mankind has seven sins and seven punishments, and heaven has seven layers."

At this point, Turgenev slapped his thigh again: "How perfect it would be if you took exactly seven steps! I guarantee this story would quickly become popular throughout Europe! Not to mention Russia!" Mikhail: "."

I must say it's a good thing it wasn't seven steps, otherwise what kind of image would I have in the churches in Europe?
The number seven is indeed very interesting and has had a profound impact on European culture. Sometimes, out of obsessive-compulsive disorder, some people have actually come up with names like the seven continents, the seven oceans, and the seven-colored rainbow in order to make up the number seven, but that's not actually the case.

While Mikhail was talking to Turgenev and looking for a place to eat something, on the other side, Madame Dusattel, the wife of the Minister of the Interior, had already returned home with a flushed face.

Coincidentally, her husband was also at home at that moment, and when he saw his radiant wife who looked as if she had suddenly become ten years younger, his brows immediately furrowed.

Although they maintained a certain tacit understanding of not interfering with each other to some extent, he still felt uneasy seeing Madame Tussatt's radiant state.

However, his wife soon appeared before him with a rather solemn expression. Just as he was wondering what serious matter had occurred, he heard her say, "It seems that someone in your department has a very serious misunderstanding about a very excellent play, I think..."

That's it?

After such a magical night, many things are happening, and many things have changed, but due to various limiting factors, most people have not felt these changes immediately.

Even though it was slow, by the morning of the third day, some things had begun to emerge.

The first person to notice this change was Bernard, a middle-aged Parisian businessman who was quite well-off and loved reading newspapers.

As a true Parisian, Bernard possessed both considerable wealth and the pride of a Parisian. To him, even if some people seemed to be from the same country as him, how could someone from such a remote and impoverished place be worthy of being called French with him?

It was with this mindset that Bernard recently made the difficult decision to abandon the newspaper he once loved, The Century. If asked why, the answer is, as he complained to others:

"When did 'The Century' become such a despicable newspaper that it can only survive by praising those damned Russians?! It's one thing to print novels written by those damned Russians every day, but it also publishes articles praising them all the time."

Good heavens! Has the owner of Le Château de la Cité been possessed by the devil? His actions are a disgrace to Parisians!

After abandoning that newspaper, Bernard naturally subscribed to several other newspapers according to his own tastes. These newspapers published news that suited his preferences, praising France's achievements, emphasizing the sacred status of Paris, and featuring a lot of gossip and some business news.

Of course, there's also the literary review section that Bernard has been quite fond of reading lately.

Normally, Bernard wouldn't read this kind of stuff, but since these newspapers have been relentlessly mocking and even vilifying that damned Russian writer in this section lately, Bernard has no choice but to give it a try.

That's how it should be!

How could a city as elegant and magnificent as Paris allow a damned Russian to dominate the headlines and then enjoy the Parisians' praise?
Is he worthy? !

So, Bernard had thoroughly enjoyed reading the previous articles, such as "Vulgar Scripts and Vulgar Writers" and "Sacred Paris Cannot Tolerate Such Blasphemy." Today, Bernard was even more excited, since the previous issue of the newspaper had left a hint: "In the next issue, we'll reveal to you exactly how he cheats and begs in Paris!"

Isn't such foreshadowing enough to make him look forward to it for a day or two?
So at that very moment, Bernard opened the newspaper in his hand, and happily found the page he wanted to read. Sure enough, he saw the following article in the most prominent area:
Paris is sick! They can't even tolerate such a brilliant script!

Bernard: "???"

Did I order the wrong newspaper?

Did I accidentally subscribe to that damned "Century" newspaper again?

After confirming several times that he hadn't ordered the wrong newspaper, and to ensure this wasn't a new satirical tactic or a misunderstanding in the headline, Bernard patiently read the article:
"Ladies and gentlemen, when I read those criticisms of that script some time ago, I had to put down my coffee and let out a long sigh: Paris is sick! So sick!"
Those critics use the most ornate language to package the most outdated ideas, and display the narrowest of minds with the most elegant posture.

Is this irony?

Bernard continued reading while speculating, and soon he reached the end of the article: "As for those narrow-minded people, please continue your criticism! Your criticism only reveals your vulgarity and ignorance. One day, Paris will wake up, and some of you will surely be ashamed of your outdatedness!"

Bernard, after watching the ending again, was left with a blank stare: "???"

Damn it! What a plot twist?!

And why is the attitude your newspaper is now displaying ten times more shameless than that of the previous "Century News"?!

After realizing he had been tricked, Bernard's face flushed red, and in a fit of anger, he tore the newspaper in his hand to shreds. Only after calming down slightly did he finally pick up another newspaper, his face still red.
The most beautiful love story, the best script!

Get out of here!
Bernard, not even wanting to read the contents, crumpled the newspaper into a ball. But when he picked up another newspaper, the headline was even more outrageous: "It will be a loss for all of Paris if Monsieur Mikhail's play cannot be performed!"

Bernard: "?"

By this point, Bernard was almost in despair, but when he glanced at the last newspaper, a glimmer of hope rekindled in his heart. If the other newspapers had been somewhat restrained before, then the attitude of this last newspaper was the worst, with the wording of the comments almost bordering on abuse.

Previously, Bernard had thought the newspaper was too rude and indecent, but today, when he picked it up tremblingly, it was almost with a reverent heart. And in the end, Bernard saw this headline:
In matters of theater, Mr. Mikhail's direction is the direction of our newspaper!

Bernard: "."

Just as Bernard's vision blurred, on the other side, Gabriel, an inspector who was simply preparing to start his ordinary day, suddenly received a summons from his superior. As soon as Gabriel arrived, his superior sternly said:
“Gabriel, do you know how big of a mistake you’ve made?! It’s unbelievable that your work could have such a huge flaw! Come on, take a look at this script you’ve treated so carelessly.”

Gabriel, upon seeing a familiar script: "?"

Upon seeing this script, Gabriel couldn't help but retort, "Sir, I assure you, everything I've done is legal and compliant."

Even if some things are not legal or compliant, that has nothing to do with the script!

Before Gabriel could finish his explanation, his superior interrupted him: "Shut up! Are you saying that it wasn't your mistake, but the mistake made by those above you?"

Upon hearing this, Gabriel broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing this, he quickly admitted his mistake and acknowledged his error at work.

Seeing that he was willing to take the blame, his superior's expression softened, and he instructed him, "Even if you feel there are problems, you shouldn't jump to conclusions. You should communicate properly with the author."

Gabriel: "."

In my position, it's already quite good that I don't accept bribes, let alone communicate with the author.
However, if you were to ask Gabriel whether he received any bribes when he reviewed the script, the answer would definitely be yes.
Upon realizing this, Gabriel panicked again.

Just as his brain began to race, in a rather luxurious house in Paris, Lucas, who looked much more haggard, couldn't help but reveal a somewhat complicated smile after seeing the news in the newspaper.

Looking at that familiar name on the newspaper, Lucas remained silent for a moment, then finally muttered to himself with a mournful face, "Dear Mr. Mikhail, I must thank you!"

As Lucas was immersed in some complex emotions, a sound from not far away startled him so much that he shuddered:
"Where are you? What are you doing? Come here! The time you spend sitting there daydreaming doesn't count as time!"

Lucas: “.”

As Lucas once again charged against fate, Mikhail was preparing to leave, but before he could even check his belongings, there was a knock at the door.
(End of this chapter)