Chapter 96: A Young Man Arrives in the Russian Literary Circle (Part 2-in-1)

All in all, although the offices of The Contemporary did suffer some impact, fortunately, the editorial team of The Contemporary magazine included some quick-witted individuals who, before any greater shock could occur, immediately assured the visitors one by one:

"Yes, yes, the magazine is already considering expanding the space allocated to serialized novels; the next issue will very likely feature far more space than currently available!"

"That's right, we have already placed the matter of expanding the serialized novel section on our agenda! We are currently discussing it urgently, and by the time it happens, there will certainly be a result that satisfies the readers!"

Of course, while it seemed like a guarantee, in reality, not a single definite promise had been made.

However, in the view of these editors, as long as the respected Mr. Mikhail still had manuscripts to submit, expanding the space for serialized novels was almost a certainty; after all, respected Mr. Mikhail, you wouldn't want our magazine to transform into something else due to your negligence, would you?

Yet, those who came directly to the magazine to inquire about news were actually in the minority; the majority of The Contemporary's subscribers expressed their opinions through letters, and apart from the relatively common demand to "must expand the length of The Insulted and the Injured," many subscribers also strenuously inquired about the past and present of their favorite author, asking which social class he was born into, what kind of people he associated with, and so on.

The profession of writer had not yet depreciated so severely in those days; otherwise, given Mikhail's commoner status, it would have been impossible for him to be invited by many nobles to attend their banquets.

Such things had already occurred when Mikhail was still publishing novels in Notes of the Fatherland; after reading those works, many readers very much wanted to understand what kind of person this writer Mikhail actually was.

In the past, Mikhail felt that one should remain as low-profile as possible, but now, seeing that his fame and reputation were constantly rising, keeping a low profile had become nearly impossible; since that was the case, he might as well accept it openly.

Thus, information regarding his identity and circumstances gradually spread; while ordinary readers certainly knew relatively little, most people within the St. Petersburg Cultural Circle had slowly come to know.

However, some people's sources of information were inevitably faster than others; for instance, Kraevsky, the publisher of Notes of the Fatherland, had long known Mikhail's specific situation, but he had not spread this news outward.

After all, a genius university student in very dire financial straits sounded extremely easy to manipulate; with just a slight bestowal of favor, one could make him work like an ox or a horse.

But now it seemed that, far from making him work like an ox or a horse, he was about to ride right over their heads!

Merely thinking about the news he had gathered and the sales figures of this issue of Notes of the Fatherland made Kraevsky's face turn iron-green with rage.

Leaving everything else aside for the moment, merely in terms of subscriber numbers, due to the departure of Belinsky and his friends, they had lost a full five hundred subscribers at once.

Not to mention the losses in other aspects.

And according to the news he had gathered, The Contemporary, this newly revamped magazine, had started with a roaring success; apart from its serialized novel being received with great enthusiasm, the other works within it had also achieved very favorable reviews.

In short, if they could maintain this level of quality going forward, the growth in subscribers for The Contemporary was almost a foregone conclusion.

Even if the other works began to falter, the mere existence of that serialized novel was enough to keep this newborn magazine bustling for quite some time!

Before The Contemporary was launched, Kraevsky had anticipated that this magazine might enjoy a brief period of popularity for one or two issues due to the short stories of that university student who had suspended his studies, but who could have guessed that this seemingly upright and magnanimous university student would secretly write a full-length novel?

And moreover, it happened to coincide precisely with the launch of the new magazine.

In short, not thinking about it was one thing, but once he did, Kraevsky was truly startled; from his perspective, this university student first achieved fame through his magazine, then leveraged the accumulated reputation to co-publish a collection of works with others, and immediately after securing startup capital, he impatiently poached several very important figures from their magazine office.

And then it became the situation it was today.

Could it be that this was his plan from the very beginning?

He was exactly like the prince in his writings, a thoroughgoing, hypocritical, and sinister capitalist.

Just as Kraevsky was thinking deeper and deeper, finding the implications increasingly terrifying, at a gathering he was attending, several figures from the Cultural Circle seemed to have just learned the age of a certain young writer, and immediately exclaimed in surprise:

"That far-famed genius is actually still just a university student? University students these days are actually so capable? It truly feels unbelievable."

"That means he is currently just in his early twenties, yet all those working under him are people in their thirties and forties; one rarely sees such a thing."

"I have read the new magazine; it is indeed very different from other magazines, and I think it will sell very well."

"It seems they will soon be able to establish a firm foothold in the publishing industry; it is hard to imagine a new magazine developing so well."

At first, Kraevsky was still immersed in his own thoughts, unable to extricate himself, but the more he listened to others' conversations, the more familiar they sounded; just as he was about to speak up and refute a few points, upon recalling the news he had gathered about this new magazine, he immediately felt so stifled with anger that he could not speak.

At this point, it was better to think carefully about how to respond.

Just as Kraevsky began to ponder corresponding countermeasures, Mikhail was in his new home reading some reader letters as well as letters that Nadya had sent not long ago.

As mentioned earlier, with the help of the landlady Pavlovna, Mikhail had finally managed to find a rather decent house for himself.

It was a detached suite; although the area was not too large, Mikhail could jump and dance inside the room without hitting his head, and furthermore, it had a living room and two bedrooms, equipped with proper sofas and armchairs for receiving guests, as well as a fairly clean and comfortable large bed.

Only after bringing his meager belongings and officially moving in did Mikhail begin to feel a slight sense of reality regarding his identity as the boss of a magazine office.

After all, previously, where was there a boss who received various people outside like a godfather during the day, only to fall asleep on a hard sofa at night?

The rent was not low, amounting to nearly ten times the price of Mikhail's small apartment, but fortunately, he could now afford it; indeed, in the eyes of some people, the place where Mikhail lived was insufficient to match his status, but in such an environment, Mikhail could be said to be already fully content.

Moving house was not too troublesome; what was truly troublesome were some of the customs related to moving.

To speak truly, Russians were also mortgage slaves; there was a Russian proverb that said: "My home is my fortress."

Therefore, regarding the matter of moving, there were actually quite a few things to be particular about.

This included, but was not limited to, inviting a priest to perform a blessing ceremony for one's new residence; the priest would sprinkle some holy water, light a censer, place an icon, and then look at Mikhail, waiting for him to take some money out of his pocket to offer to God.

Then there was letting a cat enter the new house first; this seemed to be because many people believed cats could drive away unclean spirits, and one also had to bring salt and bread, symbolizing peace and wealth.

Mikhail wished to keep everything simple, but seeing him so careless, the landlady Pavlovna and the old maid Nastasya shook their heads repeatedly, scolding Mikhail a few times for his rashness while simultaneously helping Mikhail organize these matters.

"Mikhail, doing these things is necessary; the days of happiness in a person's life are already few, so how can one be negligent in such a major and joyous event as moving? God will bless you, but you cannot be so slack."

Truth be told, Mikhail always felt that this robust woman, Pavlovna, seemed somewhat gentler; perhaps her attitude toward other tenants was also no longer as harsh as it had been at the very beginning.

And after settling these matters, came the relatively joyful time of hosting a banquet.

Speaking of which, during the process of Mikhail's move, quite a few friends wanted to come help him; the minor landowner Tushenbach wanted to use his rich life experience to judge whether the feng shui of the place he moved to was good or bad, the specific method being to throw three large round loaves of bread out together; if they all landed crust-side up, it indicated an auspicious location, but if they landed otherwise, one should consider other places.

Although this method left Mikhail somewhat baffled, the result seemed quite good; at the time, after Tushenbach threw them, he immediately nodded with gratification and said: "Mikhail, for a kind person like you, the place where you live should also be auspicious."

The minor merchant Versilov sold Mikhail some cheap and very practical furniture, while the minor official Smirnov ran up and down, helping Mikhail handle some matters that required dealing with the government, and before leaving, he even patted his chest and assured Mikhail:

"Dear Mikhail, if you encounter any trouble in this area in the future, no matter how big the trouble is, as long as you come to me, I can solve it for you."

Mikhail: "?"

Really?

But after thinking about it and realizing Smirnov was only a Rank 14 civil servant, Mikhail couldn't help but ask: "Then what do you plan to do at that time?"

"I plan to tell them a joke!"

Smirnov, whose life was hard yet who still strove to support a large family, said cheerfully: "Once they hear it and become happy, they will surely let you go!"

Mikhail: "."

Go tell that to the Tsar!

Of course, this was just a small joke; although it was a bit cold, Mikhail still laughed for a while after hearing it.

Furthermore, Nekrasov also came to check on Mikhail's situation; having struggled in the lower echelons for several years, Nekrasov was indeed a master at bargaining, but alas, in front of Mikhail's landlady, he was ultimately still too green.

Thus, his wish to help Mikhail negotiate the price was not fulfilled, so he simply bought Mikhail a card table for playing cards along with the corresponding deck, and said, "Well, Mikhail, your landlord managed to rent such an apartment for this price; she must be an undiscovered good businesswoman.

Since that is the case, I will give you your favorite thing, but please do not tell Vissarion that I gave it to you."

Nekrasov did so, but one could not count on Turgenev; although he wrote saying he would return soon, given his personality, it was quite possible he would simply forget.

As for Belinsky, he personally came to the door and gave Mikhail some precious philosophical books explicitly banned from circulation by the current Russian government, along with some other books, then solemnly said:

"Mikhail, I think you should read these books well; I believe that if it were you, you would understand them more thoroughly than others and have your own ideas!"

Mikhail: "."

You overestimate me, old Bel; some of these books make me want to sleep just by reading them.

And as he was leaving, Belinsky suddenly spotted that very conspicuous card table. After staring blankly for a while, he asked with trembling voice, "Mikhail, did you buy this? Good heavens! How can a wise man, an obvious genius, keep spending his energy on meaningless card games!"

Mikhail: "?"

You play cards much more fiercely than I do.

"Dear Vissarion, I did not buy this."

Remembering Nekrasov's request, Mikhail cleared his throat and hurriedly explained, "This is a housewarming gift that Turgenev had someone send me. I originally did not want to accept it, but because it was him, sigh!"

So Belinsky left with a trembling body.

Since so many people have helped Mikhail greatly, Mikhail naturally should pick a good day to treat them to a banquet.

Mikhail was already purchasing food, drinks, and snacks; before these items arrived, Mikhail took the opportunity to read letters from readers.

With a relatively cheerful mood, Mikhail opened the first one:

"Hurry up and put all the remaining content into the next issue of the magazine, or I will take your life!"

Mikhail: "???"

A thunderclap at the opening, is it?

Where did this grumpy old brother come from?

Wiping away non-existent sweat from his forehead, Mikhail hurriedly opened the second one:

"Although there is a respectable duke in the book, please be sure to write him to death; otherwise, I will definitely find a way to come after you!"

Mikhail: "?"

Oh no, the duke really won't die.

With actual cold sweat now appearing on his forehead, Mikhail continued to open the third one:

"Could you please tell me the story that happens next? I promise you, I can even swear to God! I absolutely will not reveal a single word of the story you tell me!"

Mikhail: "."

To be honest, I think you are a heretic.

Reading these letters, Mikhail felt sweat pouring down his body more and more, so he simply opened the letter sent by Nadya:

"Most kind and most respectable Mikhail Romanovich, I want to ask you about your novel. Judging from the earlier parts, it seems you are preparing to write that the duke's son and the housekeeper's daughter had a romance; I wonder if my guess is correct.

Then, do you think there is a chance for the duke's son to marry the housekeeper's daughter? Or, in other words, if you swap their roles, do you think..."

Mikhail: "."

Oh no, you really guessed correctly, but their ending is not very good.

And what do you mean by swapping their roles?

Mikhail began to sweat again, but this time in a different form.

(End of this chapter)