I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 229 Detective Mikhail and the Poor House

Dense fog is a common occurrence in London, especially in winter, and no one pays special attention to it, but it still gradually enveloped the awakened city as the sun rose.

As the thick, foul-smelling steam rising from the Thames mingled with the soot billowing from thousands of chimneys, a distinctive yellowish-gray fog with a sulfurous odor formed. The gradually brightening sunlight struggled to penetrate this veil, casting a hazy hue over everything. Beneath this hue, the damp streets, mixed with last night's dew, mud, and horse manure, became a black, muddy mess.

As time continued to move forward, the earliest horse-drawn wagons began to rumble through the streets, their hooves clattering. This was followed by the shrill cries of newsboys, and countless men, women, and children eagerly hawked shoelaces, oranges, biscuits, and all sorts of small items. The distant whistles of barges could also be faintly heard.

And it was in this unsettling fog that a slender, tall figure emerged as if the fog had melted away. He wore a peculiar yet perfectly fitting cloak and a deerstalker hat that seemed out of place in the city.

At the same time, he seemed to shake his head slightly, and then began to grumble to himself:

"London's criminals are really terrible. Look, a figure appears and disappears into the thick fog. In this kind of weather, thieves and murderers can roam freely in London, like tigers in the jungle, unseen until they pounce. In the end, only the victim can see their face."

After saying this, he took out a pipe from his pocket, seemingly wanting to take a couple of puffs to calm himself down, but in the end, after examining the pipe for a moment, he put it back in his pocket.

Unfortunately, Mikhail didn't like smoking, and besides, smoking was a real hassle these days, so he was too lazy to take that last step.

But regardless, Mikhail, who had just thoroughly enjoyed himself and was about to take a deep breath of fresh air, was almost vomited by the air mixed with various unpleasant smells.

As a massive, highly industrialized city with a huge population that doesn't know how to govern itself, Mikhail can only say that London is really something else.
Frustrated, Mikhail continued walking forward with his cane, subconsciously observing the crowds coming and going along the way.

To be fair, Mikhail's physique is quite similar to the official Sherlock Holmes description. In addition, with Mikhail's current memory, as long as he is willing to learn, any kind of knowledge can probably appear accurately in his mind.

Theoretically speaking, Mikhail can also master the knowledge that Holmes can master, and even the skills that Mikhail does not yet know, he may be able to learn given time.

Moreover, in order to acquire as much knowledge as possible for the adaptation of the novel, Mikhail had already seen corpses in the mortuary, a typical public institution unique to France.

It is worth mentioning that Dickens had a hobby of visiting morgues to see corpses. About a year later, Dickens would go to Paris with his family, and he especially liked to go to the Paris morgue alone. This place would display the recently found unidentified corpses every day for Parisians to identify.

In his later years, Dickens even described this spectacular scene with terrifying strokes:

"A gruesome corpse bed, bloated clothes soaked in water, water droplets dripping all day long, and a pile of wet and bloated objects in the corner, like a pile of overripe figs crushed."

Mikhail could only say that Dickens' description was quite vivid; in fact, during his time observing in France, he frequently felt a chill run down his spine.
However, to be honest, death was extremely common in the 19th century. People living in that era had all sorts of opportunities to witness death and even more terrifying scenes. It was only in the second half of the 20th century that death perhaps truly became more common and less frequent in some countries and regions.

Since he lives in this era, Mikhail cannot ignore many things.

During his time in London, to ensure the accuracy of his adaptation, Mikhail has been exploring the streets and alleys of London during this period, wearing this classic outfit. Many Londoners have probably already seen this strangely dressed man.

At the same time, thanks to his powerful memory and deliberate reading, all sorts of strange and unusual knowledge entered Mikhail's mind, including nearly a century of ghost stories and some botanical knowledge.
Of course, Mikhail admitted that his brain wasn't very good; it was full of dead muscle, and even though he knew a lot, he didn't seem to be very flexible in applying it.

Even so, it would be more than enough for him to play the role of Sherlock Holmes in a light-hearted way.
To be honest, Mikhail really does have an urge to try his hand at real combat right now.
Cough cough, never mind, if I act like I'm pulling up my pants pocket, I'm doomed.

It's also worth mentioning that while Mikhail's suit is classic, it wasn't Holmes's original attire. Rather, it evolved over time and was influenced by films and television series, eventually becoming the outfit most familiar to the public.

Meanwhile, the cloak Mikhail was wearing would only become popular in Britain in the 1870s. It was both beautiful and practical, and Edward VII, George V, and George VI all wore it, showcasing the British monarchs' outdoor fashion sense.

The coat worn by Mikhail was also designed in 1866. Because it was both warm and lightweight, it was very popular as soon as it was introduced and loved by everyone from nobles to ordinary coachmen.

In other words, aside from being pretentious, this outfit is top-notch in terms of both practicality and aesthetics, and it could be popularized in the UK given the right opportunity.

Mikhail had even come up with the tagline for the subsequent promotion: "Do you want to be Sherlock Holmes? Then try this outfit on!"

It is no exaggeration to say that if Mikhail had actually accomplished this, he would have become an indelible cultural icon of Victorian England.

Also, could this be considered the earliest instance of selling literary merchandise?

In this way, Mikhail was really planning to set up a factory in England to produce this kind of clothing, and then try to get some people out of the workhouses of this period.

When talking about workhouses, one must mention the New Poor Act of 1834 in Britain. In short, this act was a "relief" institution designed to deter the poor. Some of the people who drafted and passed this plan believed that poverty was often caused by laziness and depravity, and in order to make the poor realize their mistakes, it adopted the principle of "inferiority complex".

Simply put, although people in workhouses also had to do some heavy and meaningless work, their treatment was worse than that of the poorest independent workers. They were not only provided with the most basic and nutritionally deficient food, but their personal freedom was also strictly restricted. They were not allowed to go out without permission, and their movements were monitored.

At the same time, they lived in large-scale dormitories with strict separation between men and women. Even couples and parents and children were often forcibly separated. People in the workhouse also had to wear the same workhouse uniform, which was also a symbol of shame.

To summarize, if you're poor, it's because you don't work hard. You think you can get relief just by going to a workhouse? No way! Not only do you have to do the same heavy work, but you also have to enjoy the lowest possible pay. Discrimination and oppression are commonplace.

What would happen if we didn't go in?
During this period, they would most likely starve or freeze to death outside.

Even if you desperately want to be a beggar, do you think the police of my Great British Empire are pushovers? Arrest them on the spot!

During this period, the British labor market not only had the attitude of "if you don't do it, there are plenty of others who will," but also added the clause: "if you don't do it, you'll have to continue working for free!"

As Dickens wrote in Oliver Twist: "From then on he was a parishioner, an orphan in a poor labor camp, a lowly laborer who was neither full nor starving, destined to be punched and slapped in the world, to suffer discrimination from everyone and to receive no one’s pity."

Although Mikhail had only been in London for a few days, he had already witnessed the power of this policy, which had virtually no bottom line, in some places. It was for this reason that he would indeed add this plot to his next Christmas novel.

It should be noted that Mikhail's Christmas book is more like a beautifully crafted booklet than a book, as it mainly consists of two short stories, one extremely concise and the other, which has been adapted to be longer but whose basic content remains largely unchanged.

It contains about one-third less content than Dickens' 1843 edition of "A Christmas Carol".

With that in mind, Mikhail observed the streets and alleys of London and the pedestrians on the road as he walked toward the publisher he was working with in London.

Along the way, Mikhail would occasionally recall the details he had observed and try to make simple deductions.

Without a doubt, Mikhail was already preparing to serialize Sherlock Holmes, and he would be choosing a suitable publication in London around Christmas time.

While pondering these things, Mikhail unknowingly arrived at his destination.

When publisher Elliott discovered Mikhail, even though he had seen Mikhail several times before, he couldn't help but look at Mikhail's rather strange clothes.

To be fair, publisher Eliot felt that the outfit did have a particularly special quality on the young, already famous writer. Of course, it was also because the young man was quite handsome; no wonder he'd heard that he'd already been involved with half of Paris's aristocratic women.
As publisher Elliott observed Mikhail and drifted into thought, Mikhail glanced at the publisher a few times before abruptly asking, "Did you walk here today?"

"Oh?"

Elliott was slightly taken aback when he heard Mikhail say that.

If this level of detail wasn't significant enough, then Mikhail's next words sent a chill down the publisher's spine.

"You came from Ventland Street? I'm sure."

Elliot: “.”

Some things are obvious: he doesn't often walk here, and it's even rarer for him to walk from Ventland Street.

At this thought, Elliott felt that those eyes, slightly obscured by the deerstalker hat, seemed to possess some kind of magic, and being stared at by those eyes made him feel a chill down his spine.

Does this young man perhaps have a strange habit of stalking people?

Just as Elliott was thinking this, Mikhail had already given a remarkably simple answer: "Your shoes are really not very clean. They shouldn't be like this if you're traveling by carriage. As for Ventland Street, it's even worse."

Upon hearing Mikhail's unusually brief reply, Elliott was speechless.

Although it sounds simple, it actually feels quite complicated at all.
After standing there stunned for a while, although Eliot still couldn't describe his strange feelings or Mikhail's seemingly miraculous behavior at that moment, he had important business to attend to. Eliot could only pull himself out of his shock and then excitedly began discussing the novel Mikhail had sent him a couple of days earlier:
“Mr. Mikhail, your first short story is so exquisite! Although it is short, it is perhaps more powerful than some lengthy novels. I believe the citizens of London will enjoy such a Christmas story; it is perfect for reading to family members by the fireplace.”

Furthermore, how could a Russian really be able to switch between several languages ​​and write such exquisite English novels?!
Could it be that he actually has British ancestry? And that he received a good English education from a young age?
While Eliot pondered this matter in silence, he also praised Mikhail's first novel for a long time. However, when it came to the second novel, Eliot somewhat awkwardly reminded him:

"However, Mr. Mikhail, aren't the scenes about the workhouse in your second novel somewhat sensitive? I'm worried that this might cause some negative reactions."

"Oh?"

Mikhail countered, "Why? Am I not writing about what is happening in England? Or is my writing not truthful enough?"

Elliot: “.”

I mean, why do you write such realistic things for no reason?
And why would a writer from out of town like yourself discuss such topics so soon after arriving in London?!
This young man is incredibly audacious; I wonder what he'd be like in Russia.
Although he still felt somewhat uneasy, Elliott ultimately agreed to it in the face of Mikhail's insistence.
(End of this chapter)