[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia":3,"chapter-my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-chapter-14":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","My Life as a Literary Giant in Russia",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2317189,4531,"Chapter 14: I Shed Blood for Russia! (Tuesday, Please Follow!)","my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-chapter-14",14,"\u003Cp>Regarding Nekrasov’s already somewhat fanatical attitude toward himself, Mikhail had initially been unaccustomed to it, but after careful thought about the spirit of the times, he could somewhat understand it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, strictly speaking, the eighteenth and first half of the nineteenth centuries were the age of Romanticism, and what were the defining features of Romanticism?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the pursuit of the sublime and transcendence, and the worship of genius and heroic individuals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To discuss this, one must briefly trace back history: for a long time, Russian culture had been deeply influenced by French culture; a typical example was that Russian upper-class nobles absolutely had to speak fluent French. What? You don’t speak French? Then you’re probably just a country bumpkin or an outsider—come to our St. Petersburg noble circle begging for handouts!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, in many Russian literary works, such as Tolstoy’s later War and Peace, one finds noble characters occasionally slipping in French phrases.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But after Napoleon’s invasion war, Russian nobles had seen the world and began reassessing France; meanwhile, under the deliberate or inadvertent shift by the Tsar and the upper noble circles, Russia gradually turned its cultural center of gravity toward England.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So who were the typical representatives of Britain during that period? Naturally, the well-known great poet, revolutionary, and old Petersburg cannon—George Gordon Byron.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Byron’s personality and the “Byronic hero” figures he created—rebellious, lonely, passionate, and melancholic—profoundly influenced Russian youth and, in a sense, contributed to the outbreak of the Russian Decembrist uprising.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This also greatly impacted Russian literature; for instance, the great Pushkin, before Russia’s cultural worship shifted, wrote everything with a French flavor; after the shift toward England, his poetry from this period was nearly a replica of Byron’s Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage and Oriental Tales.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, the great Pushkin also smoothly became the old Petersburg cannon. Hmm, here’s another piece of evidence that the great Pushkin was like a cannon…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cough, cough, just a joke. Fortunately, the great Pushkin eventually forged his own path, and only then did Russian literature truly emerge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Pushkin, Russian literature was essentially a pseudo-concept—mostly imitations of Western Europe, entirely overshadowed by it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, the literary circles of this era held genius and heroic individuals in especially high esteem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t just literature; many educated youths later often felt this way: in today’s Russia, who doesn’t consider themselves Napoleon?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For now, let’s return to the matter at hand. After verbally reaching an agreement, the two also discussed specific details.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, most of the talking was done by Nekrasov, while Mikhail listened; after all, professional matters should be left to professionals—Mikhail knew nothing about being a publisher and had neither the time nor energy to learn it anytime soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So basically, as long as he understood what he needed to do next, and signed a simple contract, that would suffice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the contract, Mikhail carefully reviewed it and found no issues; the profit split was indeed generous—in short, fifteen percent of the anthology’s profits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, aside from submitting manuscripts and overseeing reviews, Mikhail would also need to invest a small sum of money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mikhail could accept this; otherwise, taking such a large share would truly weigh on his conscience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for where the money would come from, one source was Mikhail’s upcoming royalties; another was whether he should ask his classmate Dmitri for a loan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hmm, let Dmitri suffer a little longer—I’ll bear the blame!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After settling these matters, Mikhail was utterly exhausted; meeting someone like Belinsky had kept his mind in constant high gear, and when he finally relaxed, he felt a sharp headache and dizziness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So Mikhail forced himself back to his apartment, and barely had he lain down on the sofa when he fell asleep in the cramped, suffocating space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, far away in Chernigov Province, Mikhail’s letter—after several days of travel—finally reached his current family’s hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, a young girl with furrowed brows stared intently at the letter. She was in the prime of her life; though somewhat thin and with dull, yellowing hair, she still left a strikingly beautiful impression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she read the letter’s contents, her furrowed brows instantly relaxed, and her face lit up—but as she continued reading, her expression turned to disbelief and uncertainty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, Mikhail’s mother, Pulheriya, hurried over, anxious and trembling, asking: “Dunya! What did Misha write in his letter? Will this good news make him feel better? How is his situation now? Oh my God, I must send him money right away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pulheriya was an elderly woman who looked utterly worn down; years and hardship had etched deep marks on her face, yet now, speaking of Mikhail’s letter, a radiant glow suddenly shone upon her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite all the joking earlier—yet! To be a university student in Russia today, especially as someone nearly of commoner status—was that a joke?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During this period, noble children held absolute priority in education: they could enter noble secondary schools via preparatory academies without competition, but commoner children had to clear multiple major hurdles—during preparatory education, they had to study Latin, Greek, philosophy, mathematics, natural sciences, and only the top performers could apply to university.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for institutions like St. Petersburg University, filled entirely with genuine noble lords, the difficulty was unimaginable; admission required not only various languages but also history, geography, a foreign language, and sometimes even chemistry or physics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Undoubtedly, this was a wall deliberately erected for commoner children.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that was normal—even in later eras, invisible barriers like educational resources, private schools, school districts, competitions, and special admissions were everywhere; how much more so in this era? Our genuine, authentic St. Petersburg lords—what’s wrong with having privileges?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Think back to our ancestors—they marched with Peter the Great into the heartland, endured every hardship, shed every drop of sweat and blood!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, under these conditions, Mikhail had been a genius since childhood: speaking at two, reciting at three, composing poetry at five, mastering Latin and Greek by ten, thirteen…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, this was also the typical path of most famous intellectuals of the time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Belinsky, Herzen, Chernyshevsky—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Plainly put, without sufficient intelligence, one couldn’t become an intellectual or engage in political discourse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Political discourse in this era wasn’t child’s play; countless intellectuals genuinely acted under the guidance of certain ideologies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So much so that later, the assassination of Alexander II occurred—a feat so extreme, anyone who heard of it had to admit: impressive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back to the point: under these conditions, Pulheriya, who had watched Mikhail’s journey from childhood, felt profound pride in her son and constant guilt that their impoverished home had stifled his extraordinary talent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Otherwise, none of what was happening now would have occurred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you to the operations brother, and especially to Xiaoshiguang for the recommendation—it’s truly surprising. This morning I was wondering why my favorites suddenly spiked so much; I thought I’d taken off, but turns out I just rode on the big guy’s wind (dog head).\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hope I can take off on my own from now on, hhh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you again to all the lords for your support—truly grateful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also thank you to the big guy “npc1801” for the reward—heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This book is planned to be very long, because the nineteenth century was truly a constellation of stars; beyond Russia’s well-known masters, Europe’s living figures shone like countless stars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dumas père, Dumas fils, Hugo, Balzac, Flaubert, Maupassant, Dickens, Zola, Hardy, Twain, Whitman, Heine, Ibsen—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This book is primarily a literary novel, but also a historical one, weaving in interesting details and reflecting on how a century ago differed from today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After reviewing many sources, I truly realized how similar that era is to ours—youth of different times share the same confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This long journey still needs your support, dear big guys—please follow and read on; at the very least, don’t forget this book on Tuesday (sobbing).\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you all again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1318,"2026-06-20T14:41:53.633Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","2dc40369510995c34844ad7ec61aadc6671f923bce806a03bf11b99376201895","my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-chapter-15","my-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-chapter-13",105,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-life-as-a-literary-giant-in-russia-cover.jpg"]