Back to 80: My literary life.

Chapter 824 London trip

Of course, take a plane from Yanjing.

There are no direct flights from Yanjing to Edinburgh, so you need to go to London first.

Fang Minghua took Cathay Pacific Airways, which took off at 20: p.m., transferred in Hong Kong, stopped for more than an hour and then continued flying. After a long journey of hours, it arrived at London Heathrow Airport at a.m. local time.

Fang Minghua was not in a hurry to travel, but took the airport bus to London and stayed at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel which she had booked.

This is a five-star hotel located in Hyde Park. Surrounded by famous buildings such as Trafalgar Square, the British Museum, the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, the hotel garden is just one street away from the Royal Patrol Horse Guards’ must-go route. Every morning at breakfast time, British knights march past in formation.

Fang Minghua simply washed up and went to the Amber Restaurant on the first floor of the hotel. She ordered an English breakfast including bacon, fried eggs, sausages, and a cup of English black tea to slowly savor.

Sure enough, I saw a team of soldiers wearing classical British costumes and riding tall horses slowly approaching the window, and there were people holding cameras on both sides of the street taking pictures.

In fact, it’s just a guard of honor, but it’s made so mysterious.

After finishing the meal, Fang Minghua went for a walk alone with his luggage on his back. It must be said that the geographical location of this hotel is quite good. Many famous attractions in Lunda are concentrated nearby, and you can basically see them all in one day.

In the afternoon, Fang Minghua stayed in the British Museum for a while longer. The museum is very large and it is estimated that it will take more than one afternoon to see everything. The Chinese Exhibition Hall (China Pavilion) alone occupies several halls. Looking at these familiar things, Fang Minghua couldn't help but complain in his heart.

This guy is so shameless that he displays the cultural relics stolen and robbed from China here so openly.

Fang Minghua suddenly thought of the tens of thousands of calligraphy and paintings in his private collection. Although their artistic value could not be compared with these cultural relics, according to the latest prices of Christie's auction house in Hong Kong, they are probably worth more than ten billion, right?

Since the 829s, the prices of celebrity paintings and calligraphy and other artworks have been rising in Hong Kong. I heard that last year Christie's sold a four-screen painting of "Lotus" by Zhang Daqian for million Hong Kong dollars!
In history, it seems that these tens of thousands of calligraphy and paintings were bought by some overseas Chinese and taken abroad for auction, and then scattered around the world.

Fortunately, I intercepted it.

In fact, these calligraphy and paintings are not for sale. No matter how much their market value is, I am not short of money. In a few years, I can set up a private museum like Ma Weidu did, but without charging admission, it will be free for everyone to visit.

Fang Minghua stayed in London for a day and headed to Edinburgh the next morning, naturally by train.

As long as there is no emergency, Fang Minghua likes to take the train.

Unlike Americans, the British love to take the train. The east coast line from London to Edinburgh is known as the most beautiful.

The starting point of the East Coast Line is King's Cross Station in London and the end point is Waverley Station in Edinburgh. This route connects London with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland, and is the main transportation artery in the east of the British Isles.

Fang Minghua got on the train and found her seat, but unexpectedly it was occupied by a British girl who looked like a middle school student. She was surrounded by girls of her age who were chattering.

After communicating, they found out that they were all in the same group, preparing to go to Edinburgh to attend the Book Art Festival. They wanted to sit together and hoped that Fang Minghua could change seats. The girl who occupied her seat pointed to a seat in a row behind her, a little shyly.

This can be done.

Fang Minghua agreed readily.

To him, it doesn't matter where he sits.

"Thank you." The girl thanked him quickly.

"You're welcome." Fang Minghua glanced at the girl. She was not very pretty, with two pigtails and some freckles on her nose.

But it still looks quite pleasing to the eye.

Girls of this age are comfortable to look at as long as they are not too ugly. Youth is a kind of beauty.

Fang Minghua came to his seat, put down his travel bag and began to look at the scenery outside.

Once you leave the city of London, you can see golden rapeseed flowers everywhere you look, which looks similar to the Tianhan area and is pleasing to the eye.

It’s just that there are more villages in Tianhan than here.

It took nearly five hours, almost noon, to arrive in Edinburgh, and we finally stayed at the Royal Mile Hotel.

In fact, whether in London or Edinburgh, the hotels where Fang Minghua stayed were all arranged by Li Li. Now that the Internet in China has just started, the specific information of these hotels cannot be found on the Internet.

Li Li has been to these places, and it is much easier to learn about British hotels in the United States than in mainland China.

After Fang Minghua checked in, she felt that the hotel was indeed nice, located on the historic Royal Mile.

The room feels cozy with vibrantly colored furniture, fluffy rugs and velvet curtains.

Standing by the window, you can see the castles in Edinburgh.

During lunch, a young woman in her thirties named Lucy came and introduced herself as a staff member in the marketing operations department of Heinemann Publishing House, who was specifically responsible for Fang Minghua's trip to Edinburgh.

Different from the passionate American women, Lucy also has fiery red lips and wears a black suit, with a faint smile that carries a hint of dignity.

After a brief self-introduction, she took out a document from her bag and handed it to Fang Minghua. The document contained the arrangements for her participation in the Edinburgh Book Festival.

In fact, Fang Minghua had seen all these things in the emails, but this time it was specific to a certain time.

However, the schedule contained one more item than what was in the email: dinner with the famous British writer James Coleman.

Seeing Fang Minghua's slightly surprised look, Lucy explained: "James Kou is a famous writer in our country. He heard that you were coming to Edinburgh and wanted to meet you. He said that you two were good friends."

"Yes, we are friends." Fang Minghua said with a smile.

I first met James Cole in 94 when I attended the Trega Literary Prize in Neverto, Italy. At that time, James Cole was shortlisted for his work "Too Late", which had just won the British Booker Prize, but ultimately lost to Fang Minghua's "Skywalker".

The two have known each other since then. In 95, "Too Late" was shortlisted for the nd World Chinese Literature Award. James Cole went to Xijing and Fang Minghua was specially responsible for receiving him.

So the two are friends.

In that case, it’s all up to you.

Lunch was eaten in the hotel. Lucy accompanied Fang Minghua to taste typical Scottish dishes: Cullen haddock soup and haggis, known as the national dish of Scotland. It is made from sheep offal, oats, onions and spices, and served with mashed potatoes and radishes, and is full of fragrance.

No matter how Fang Minghua eats it, it feels like Northeastern hotpot.

After dinner, Lucy wanted to accompany Fang Minghua to visit Edinburgh, but he declined.

If he knows English, he can just take a local map. He likes to be free and travel by himself with a backpack.

(End of this chapter)