I am a literary giant in Russia

Chapter 74: Love and Resentment (Please Order First!)

As for Dostoevsky's debut at the Panaev family, Mikhail thought it was generally good.

Although at the beginning, Lao Tzu's small gray eyes were always moving from one object to another anxiously, and his pale lips were twitching nervously, but when he saw Mikhail, especially when he saw his smile full of encouragement and recognition, Lao Tzu finally calmed down and began to read aloud a passage from his novel in front of everyone.

Because the quality of Lao Tuo's works is indeed online, everyone present is of course very respectful to him. In addition to giving him warm applause, they are also very caring towards him, trying to eliminate his shyness and show him that he is a member of this circle.

So in the end, it can be said that both the host and the guests were very happy.

However, it is worth mentioning that in the original history, perhaps because his debut work caused a sensation in St. Petersburg, and because of his personality, the originally shy old man became more and more arrogant.

In short, he was carried away, started arguing with everyone, and showed too obviously his writer's ego and conceited attitude towards his writing ability.

So I became the pretentious classmate Dostoevsky.

But you have to know that fame means winning the favor and praise of many people, but it will also inevitably cause displeasure and hostility from some people. Even if they may not be involved in any interests, this does not prevent them from being hostile to a new writer who suddenly becomes famous.

And it was in this situation that Lao Tuo, in addition to being pretentious, was also emotionally unstable. Once provoked, he would get carried away, which led to him sometimes saying some ridiculous things when he was angry.

This is very likely to be remembered by some interested people and then spread out as a topic of conversation.

In this respect, Turgenev is a typical fun-loving person. Although his first meeting with Dostoevsky was quite pleasant, later on, it was not known whether it was because Dostoevsky was too pretentious, or because Turgenev's terminal boasting and fun-loving personality physique took effect.

In short, Turgenev often deliberately provoked Dostoevsky to argue with him, making him extremely excited, and then he would fanatically defend the opinions that he had said in his impatience. Some of the opinions were too absurd, and Turgenev would seize on these absurd opinions to make fun of them.

After making fun of him, he'd go out and brag to everyone: Hey, hey, do you know that Dostoyevsky who's been all the rage lately? He's nothing but a piece of shit! Let me tell you some of the ridiculous things he said...

To be honest, Lao Tu is a funny guy and he's tough. It was okay when he met Lao Tuo, but when he met Lao Tuo, a ruthless guy with a very hot temper, he almost dueled with Lao Tuo and got shot to death...

After all, Lao Tuo had been a soldier, fought in wars, seen dead bodies, and even caused many deaths himself. It was likely that he could easily deal with Lao Tu.

Well, speaking of the present, Lao Tuo has not started to show off yet, and has even been quite humble, looking at Mikhail from time to time.

The old butcher's serious illness had not yet begun to flare up. He treated Dostoevsky, the young man who had just joined the group, with his excellent artistic accomplishments and good moral character. He even praised Mikhail:
"Listen, Mikhail, he writes so well! At first, when I heard them say that a second Mikhail would appear, I thought they were joking, but now it seems to be true! Maybe he is even better than you. Look, I still haven't seen your novel..."

Mikhail: “…” You’d better keep this attitude, and don’t get seriously ill again!
It must be said that although these great writers are well-known in the history of literature, they are indeed vivid people, just a little too vivid. It would be better if they could brag less and pretentious less...

Mikhail didn't have any good solution for this. After all, Lao Tu and Lao Tu were at this age, and their basic personalities were definitely fixed, and it would be difficult for anyone to change them easily.

Mikhail could only say that he would try to mediate when the time comes. If I spoke up, they should give me some face, right?

But do I really have such a big face?
At the party, Mikhail thought about this question, and then touched his chin as Dostoevsky made vague observations.

Probably.
Mikhail thought so.

If all else fails, try to suppress Lao Tuo's enthusiasm. After all, no matter how talented Lao Tuo is, he probably can't catch up with Mikhail's current publication quality and speed.

Putting aside these distant things, the gathering ended in a peaceful atmosphere.

After witnessing Lao Tuo's debut at the party, Mikhail began to deal with the rubles that Nadya, the general's daughter, suddenly provided him.

If you insist, it seems acceptable. After all, during this period, it was common for wealthy female aristocrats to sponsor writers and artists.

The fundamental reason is that noble women at that time had the right of inheritance. Those with strong family backgrounds could often inherit a very large inheritance from their fathers. This was the case with Turgenev's mother, who inherited a large number of serfs and land from her uncle.

To say how big this inheritance was, let's put it this way: even if Turgenev shared it with his brother, he would still have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of his life.

Mikhail swore that if he was still not rich by that time, he would have to go to Tu Ge every day to beg for money.
These noble women who inherited large amounts of inheritance had no place to spend their money except on living expenses, so some wealthy ladies began to sponsor artists to realize their personal ideals or to enhance their cultural influence.

People like Voltaire, Rousseau, Joyce, and Gibran all lived off the wives of wealthy women.

Mikhail doesn't eat much now, firstly because this kind of eating habit is not popular enough in today's Russia, and secondly because he doesn't want to bend his waist after standing for a long time.

But then again, since the general's daughter Nadya insisted on giving it to him in another letter, Mikhail could only say that this soft rice seemed pretty good, and it smelled delicious and I loved it.
Of course, Mikhail did not take advantage of the girl for free after all. Instead, he promised her in the letter that he would write another poem to be included in this collection.

As for what kind of poem Mikhail is planning to write, let's talk about it later.
(End of this chapter)