Chapter 57: The Three Classmates Who Loved to Fantasize

When Mikhail and Belinsky set off for the publisher Kraevsky at the offices of The Fatherland Notes, Nekrasov followed along.

He did not need to go collect his royalties, but regarding the collection The Petersburg Anthology, he still needed to discuss it further with Mikhail and Belinsky.

Speaking of which, among the many great writers of the same era, Nekrasov was the one truly possessing a commercial mind; the others were either nobles or gamblers, or else classic paupers.

And apart from being very hardworking these past few years, Nekrasov had long ago tried publishing several small collections and earned quite a bit of extra money; after tasting the sweetness, Nekrasov prepared to make a big move, and had mentioned this to Belinsky more than once.

When Belinsky learned of Nekrasov's idea, he immediately and enthusiastically participated in this publishing work.

Using his own influence, he began writing letters to various famous writers, poets, and other artists he knew, requesting manuscripts or other works from them.

And in this process, Belinsky also fully carried forward the Russian literary circle's tradition of robbing the rich to help the poor; he believed that writers possessing assets should not accept Nekrasov's money; in his promotion, he said that helping a poor colleague escape their predicament, enabling them to breathe freely and do their beloved work, was every writer's duty.

It sounded perhaps a bit too idealistic, but in these times indeed many people responded one after another; among them, Turgenev contributed his poems and short stories, and Herzen, later called the "Father of Russian Socialism," submitted his political essays and novels under the pseudonym Iskander.

Currently, this grumpy old brother is in Moscow; Mikhail likely needs to wait some time before he can meet him, and while his story certainly deserves to be called magnificent, let us put that aside for later discussion.

Then the great translator Kronenberg submitted an article on translation methodology, Count Sollogub submitted a play and a novel, Prince Odoevsky submitted a novella and a philosophical essay, and besides these, many poets and writers also freely submitted their manuscripts.

And if poets and writers acted this way, Russian artists certainly could not lose face; thus, the great painter Akin designed illustrations for the entire magazine for free, and the great sculptor carved plates for them for free...

So after Belinsky made so many efforts, used so many personal connections, and cheerfully wrote a preface for this collection, what did he get?

Eh! I, Brother Bel, got not a single kopeck, not a penny!

And since Belinsky had such connections and influence, why not publish his own collection and make a fortune?

In his own words: "Do I have the ability to accomplish this matter? This requires skill; if one cannot buy on credit, without printing presses and paper, the matter cannot even begin, and one must also deal with all sorts of people and conduct business.

My fate is probably to be a lifelong hired hand in the literary world, working for masters so they can become rich and then mock me—look at this big fool, he roasts the chestnuts, and we take them away from him, leaving him only the shells!"

This was certainly a self-deprecating remark, but Belinsky indeed did exactly this.

And besides that, Belinsky indeed lacked the ability to deal with all sorts of people, which is also a common ailment among many artists.

As for Nekrasov, it was largely because he had struggled and rolled around in Saint Petersburg for several years; he dared to think and act, and was not afraid of debt; just like the publication of The Petersburg Anthology, apart from him having a little money himself, most of the remaining expenses were either borrowed by him or bought on credit.

The key is that everything got done, which makes one have to say one is impressed.

And Belinsky, a bachelor who only just married a wife in his thirties, naturally dared not easily take this risk.

But now, for some unknown reason, Belinsky inexplicably took Mikhail's remark, which sounded like a joke, as a vague yet unconsciously somewhat hopeful wish.

That remark naturally referred to buying the publishing rights to a magazine, and also offering him an extremely high salary.

Returning to the present, after the three gathered together, they first seriously discussed the progress of The Petersburg Anthology; due to Mikhail's participation and the strong confidence he displayed, the encouraged and inspired Nekrasov accelerated his work; the manuscripts Belinsky had solicited also arrived one after another; and besides providing manuscripts and boosting morale, Mikhail also prepared to borrow some rubles to expedite this matter.

After seriously talking with the two, Mikhail roughly calculated in his mind: if the progress continues at this rate, the publication time of The Petersburg Anthology will probably be several months earlier than in history; then the question arises: can Old Dostoevsky hand over his Poor Folk a bit earlier...

Appear, Poor Folk, my most proud Old Dostoevsky!

Just as Mikhail was thinking about this matter, the three had almost finished discussing the progress, and Belinsky could not help but sigh: "I feel the day of the collection's publication is not far off; I hope it sells well then, so that Nikolai you can get rid of your debts and focus on writing poetry. Mikhail, your days might also become a bit more comfortable."

"Rest assured, dear Vissarion," Mikhail, coming to his senses, said affirmatively: "It will definitely sell out! Rather, we can think about what we should do after we earn enough money from this collection. First, we certainly try to start a magazine..."

"Look at you, Mikhail, you are joking again!" Upon hearing Mikhail's words, Belinsky laughed out loud on the spot, and Nekrasov also smiled and shook his head.

Although they did not seem to believe on the surface that it would go so smoothly, these two impoverished men nevertheless unconsciously began their own fantasies...

Belinsky fantasized:

"I will become a great tycoon!... Ah, by then, I can live a year of plenty, and no longer allow people to mistreat me; I will state my conditions: —Unwilling? Forget it! —Oh heavens, could such a happy moment truly appear in my life, enabling me to break free from the shackles of a hired hand?!"

Nekrasov also fantasized:

"Oh heavens! If it were truly so, could I not straighten my back in front of her? Why would I still need to hide from her? I have my own career! I can stand confidently in the center of the crowd like Mikhail! Not only that! By then, even Mikhail will have to come to me to collect his royalties!"

Watching these two men lost in fantasy, Mikhail also unconsciously fantasized:

"God, now I can finally pay off the debt to the landlady Pavlovna, right? Then she cannot use this debt as a reason to demand I meet her daughter anymore! I can also send a large sum of money to Mother and Sister; Sister's dowry will probably be secured too! In the current Russia, how can one have a decent marriage without a good dowry?

With this money, even if I am forced to flee abroad, I will have money to survive!"

The three men who suddenly began to fantasize walked forward while fantasizing...

(End of this chapter)