London, Westminster, on the streets of Winpo Street.

The carriage swayed leisurely, and in the carriage, Arthur lit a cigar and quietly flipped through the manuscript that Mrs. Shelley had given him.

It is a translation of Homer's epic poems in the style of Pope, and it is also the debut novel of the girl named Elizabeth.

Mrs. Shelley folded her hands on her knees, and she seemed to be nervous from her slightly wrinkled white gloves.

Although the manuscript was not her work, she was still worried about Elizabeth.

Perhaps the layman will feel that the literary circle is always full of harmony, and everyone is always polite when speaking.

But an expert like Mrs. Shelley knows how many nasty people there are in this business, and it is extremely difficult for one writer to appreciate another.

And for those rookies in the literary world, what awaits them is usually countless attacks and sarcasm from the old-timers. Women writers are also far more attacked than male writers in this regard.

Although after Jane Austen became famous, there were many people in the middle class who accepted the existence of female writers.

But those old-school gentlemen still don't think that writing is what women should do, and even if they do, they can only write romance stories. If they get their hands on a work like Homer's epic, they usually get a reprimand.

Coleridge, Wordsworth, and Saussey, three of the great poets of the Lakeside School, were strong opponents of women's entry into the literary world, and their main source of this view was Blackwood, the authoritative magazine of British classical literature.

And the reason why Mrs. Shelley found Arthur was precisely because of the incompatible relationship between "Englishman" and "Blackwood".

These two literary magazines, with comparable circulations, perfectly represent the two opposing voices in the current British literary scene.

"Blackwood" scolded "The British" for having low taste, vulgar language, money worship, and leading a bad atmosphere in society.

"British" sprays "Blackwood" with outdated ideas, stubbornness, sourness, and a medieval zombie combination.

Although the current mainstream public opinion is in favor of "Blackwood", as far as Mrs. Shelley knows, although gentlemen and ladies will use "Blackwood" in public to decorate their elegant taste, many people still watch "British" more in private.

As for the reason, it's also quite simple, because the stories on "The British" do read more interesting than the flashy poetry and literary criticism of "Blackwood."

Moreover, there are some ladies who dare to express their opinions and are not afraid to express their love for "British" in public, and the ladies of the Blue Sox Society are one of the famous representatives.

These rebellious female pedants were fond of the reasoning and chemistry used in Arthur's detectives, and were also very interested in Darwin's monkey diary in South America, and the works of Dickens, Alexandre Dumas, and Disraeli were suitable for all ages.

And "British" is not like "Blackwood" said, all works of low literary literacy, Heine's poetry directly raised their literary taste to a higher level. Moreover, the young poet named Tennyson can occasionally come up with very good poetry sketches.

Perhaps the literary depth of "Blackwood" makes "British" difficult to match, but similarly, the breadth of "British" in electromagnetism, chemistry, naturalism, etc., is also something that "Blackwood" must look up to.

As the magazine's motto on the title page of every issue of The Brit says, "The British" welcomes everyone with literary dreams to join us, regardless of gender, age, or even cross-species.

Although this statement is quite tongue-in-cheek, Mrs. Shelley is convinced of the inclusive review attitude of "The British". These warm-hearted gentlemen reached out to her in her most difficult times, and "Blackwood" did not have such kindness.

Arthur flipped the manuscript to the last page, then leaned back, leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh.

Mrs. Shelley looked at the young man's face and smiled kindly, "What do you think?" ”

Arthur nodded slightly, "It's better than I expected, although it is not as majestic as Pope's translation, but her writing is very delicate, and it also contains a sacred, religious atmosphere." ”

Mrs. Shelley raised her hand in surprise and covered her mouth: "I can't hide anything from you, she is indeed interested in religion, and she is a non-Anglican like you." ”

"Non-Anglicans? You mean, she's also a Catholic? ”

"No, she's a Protestant Wesleyan. As far as I know, she would go to the Wesleyan chapel near her home almost every week for as long as her health permitted. You should also be aware of the teachings of Wesleyan Christians, who advocate careful study of the Bible, strict religious life, and moral standards.

The girl read not only the New Testament, but also the Old Testament. In order to understand the Old Testament, she even taught herself Hebrew. Moreover, she is not satisfied with these, Milton's "Paradise Lost", Dante's "Divine Comedy", all books related to religion she will read, and she has to read the original version.

To do this, she learned Latin and Greek, and it was in the process that she became fascinated by the books of Homer, Pindarus, and Aristophanes. In addition, she was fond of the writings of Voltaire, Rousseau, and Wollstonecraft. ”

Arthur took a puff of his cigarette, and the nicotine injection sent his brain to a rapid pace.

"This young lady has a wide range of interests, and is a religious fanatic, but she also loves Voltaire...... Well...... Let me guess, is she also a deist? She believes that God created the world and humanity, but also that God did not continue to intervene after that, but let the world run according to its own laws? ”

Mrs. Shelley smiled and replied, "You are indeed a brilliant detective. So guess which of her favorite works is yours? ”

"Which work?" Arthur frowned and asked, "Madam, I only have one work, and that is the "Hastings Detective Collection". ”

"That's not it." Mrs. Shelley replied with a smile: "There is also a "The Flag of St. George Rises as Usual". ”

Arthur waved his hand and said, "No, ma'am, you may have misunderstood, it is Mr. Dickens's work. ”

Mrs. Shelley smiled a little slyly, "But Mr. Dickens says that you have all drawn up the ideas and plots of this work. Elizabeth wrote to the editorial office, and Mr. Dickens personally informed her of the ins and outs of the story, and he was the one who wrote it, and you were the one who wrote the book. ”

"Charles, this kid, always does things that add to the problem......"

Arthur stroked his hair: "Well, so Elizabeth likes dolphins...... Uh, no, sharks, yes? ”

Mrs. Shelley covered her mouth and smiled, "This is not a shark's business, your work brought tears to her eyes, and she felt that her heart was inspired by Elder Carter's spirit of striving for progress and not giving in to fate." Seeing Carter's struggle, she seemed to see herself struggling with fate. ”

When Arthur heard this, he was stunned for a long time without speaking, until the cigar head burned in his hand, and he was burned and shivered, and he completely came back to his senses.

Looking at Mrs. Shelley's sincere and warm smile, Arthur felt so complicated that he only felt that whatever he said at this moment seemed to be blasphemy.

The Red Devil put his arm on Arthur's shoulder and smiled comfortingly, "On the bright side, a good thing has been done, and Elder can use his tragic experience to inspire a paralyzed girl in pain, and he can be regarded as accumulating merit, even if it is not intentional for him." ”

Arthur was clearly thinking in a different direction than the Red Devils, and he suddenly felt that he had made a mistake by choosing to go to the fan's house with Mrs. Shelley today.

If Miss Elizabeth suddenly asked about the prototype of the story, how would Arthur explain such a thing to her?

"The Flag of St. George Rises as Usual" is a lie that I can't tell?

Is this actually a love affair that transcends species?

Just as Arthur was trying to find an excuse to take the door away, the wheels of the carriage came to a leisurely stop.

Mrs. Shelley glanced out the window at the white-painted apartment, nodded at Arthur and said, "Mr. Hastings, here we are." ”

The groom opened the car door, and Arthur's riding boots stepped on the brick road with water, and he felt like he was forced to go up Liangshan.

However, before he could say no, a familiar, pleasant, and surprising voice rang in his ears.

"Mr. Hastings?"

Arthur turned his head to see that it was a noble lady traveling with a manservant.

She lifted her beige wide-brimmed hat slightly, and her mischievous smile could be seen through the lace-brimmed brim.

"Miss Byron?"

Ida Byron was about to go up and talk to Arthur, but as soon as she took a step, she saw Mrs. Shelley, who was getting out of Arthur's car.

This frightened her hurriedly put back the grimace she had just made, and she bowed her head slightly and saluted, "Mrs. Shelley." ”

"Ada?" Mrs. Shelley was also surprised by the girl's appearance: "Didn't your mother travel with you today?" ”

Ada shook her head and said, "I'm an adult, and I can go to the social ball." So my mother naturally doesn't need to be by my side every day. ”

Mrs. Shelley seemed a little displeased when she heard this.

In terms of the discipline of her children, perhaps because she was hurt by the poet, she was similar to Ada's mother, Mrs. Millbank.

Just as Byron and Shelley were close friends, the wives of the two poets have become close in recent years.

For Ada, the little girl, Mrs. Shelley treated her almost as if she were her own daughter.

Mrs. Shelley spoke, "You should listen to your mother's opinion, there are many terrible fellows in this society, and you stupid girls like you can easily be deceived by them if you are not careful." ”

When Ida heard this, she instantly had a prank mind, and she pretended to be innocent and asked, "Is this ...... You're right, there are indeed a lot of bad guys in this society. For example, the guy next to you, I read that the newspapers seem to be attacking him these days, and both the Times and the Guardian say that he is a heinous villain. Come to me, I'm afraid he'll attack you later. ”

Mrs. Shelley's face instantly darkened when she heard this: "Ada, you can't listen to what is in the newspaper, you have to feel for yourself what a person's quality is, and sometimes it is not credible just by feeling, it still has to be seen over time." All in all, a person's good or bad is not judged from the evaluation of other people's mouths. Mr. Hastings is a very good police officer, and a gentleman of integrity, and you must apologize to him for what you have just said. ”

"Okay......"

Ida hung her head, her drooping eyes still secretly observing Arthur's reaction.

This level of small movements naturally could not escape Arthur's eyes, but he did not have the slightest intention of interceding for the other party, but still looked at the young lady's chest with interest.

Ida noticed Arthur's hot gaze, her face turned red, and she hurriedly took a step back: "Mr. Hastings, what are you looking at?" ”

"The ......," Arthur asked, pointing to the book she was holding to her chest, "What's that?" ”

"Which one?"

Ida looked down and felt that her face was hot, as if a fire was burning: "This is the data that Mr. de Morgan handed me, and I will take it back for statistics." ”

"Mr. de Morgan? Data? ”

Arthur suddenly tapped his head, and he remembered something: "I almost forgot that Mr. de Morgan used to be your governess. So, the document you have in your arms should be the one assigned by the Central Health Commission to the University of London for the statistics of cholera cases, right? Are you assisting the government? ”

"Hmm...... It's just a little hobby, and I am happy to be able to put what I have learned into practice in mathematics. ”

Ada's eyes wandered, "Of course, Mr. de Morgan's permission to sit in on his class at the University of London is also an important reason. So, when he said that the Central Health Board and Mr. Arthur Hastings of Scotland Yard had commissioned the University of London to keep a daily count of cholera cases, I didn't think much of saying yes. ”

When Mrs. Shelley heard this, she couldn't help but glance at Arthur beside her, and then glared at Ada with disgusted eyes, and then said, "Ada, you girl is really naughty. ”

Ada's face flushed: "You are too eager to teach me a lesson." ”

Arthur took off his hat and bowed slightly, "Miss Byron, thank you very much for your help in the work of the government. Cholera statistics is a complex task, and your participation will certainly make the job a lot easier. ”

Ida blinked and asked questioningly, "Is that all there is to it?" ”

Arthur thought for a moment, then added with a smile: "I'm also grateful that you didn't hate me, there are enough people in London who hate me now, and I'm glad I haven't lost another beautiful supporter." If the next time I have the opportunity to invite you to dance, I hope you don't turn me down. ”

When Ida heard this, she nodded contentedly: "I have no reason to refuse a gentleman. ”

Seeing this, Mrs. Shelley turned her head and smiled at Arthur and said, "The misunderstanding has been cleared up, and we should now go and meet another of your supporters." ”

She was about to ring the doorbell, but Ida suddenly followed, she looked at the suspicious apartment in front of her, then at Mrs. Shelley and Arthur, and asked suspiciously, "May I take the liberty of asking, do you and Mr. Hastings have any special arrangements for today?" ”

(End of chapter)