Over the next few days,

Sales of "The Moon and Sixpence" began to climb, catching up with "Lord of the Flies".

It's all Lu's work, and there is a feeling that "you" is chasing me.

Unsurprisingly, Lu Shi received many university invitations from students who wanted him to give talks and answers on several recent works.

Lu Shi was already familiar with things like speeches, and decided to accept them gladly.

In the end, Cambridge was chosen.

In mid-June,

Take the train to Cambridge city when you land,

It was still his old friend Montague James who greeted him at the station.

When he saw Lu, he couldn't help laughing,

"Sir Lu, I've heard it all."

As he spoke, he showed an expression of "I understand~" and winked mysteriously at Lu Shi.

Land Hours: ???

"What did you hear?"

James lowered his voice and said, "The Nobel Prize." ”

Only then did Lu Shi react,

His nomination form was sent by Cambridge, and after that, Columbia, the University of Paris, and the University of London Alliance also echoed each other and cheered for him.

These universities must have received a telegram of receipt from the Swedish Academy.

Lu Shi said: "I hope I can live up to my name." ”

James dumbfounded,

Thought

Professor Lu has really changed a lot.

In the past, he was humble and low-key, but now he has the domineering spirit of giving up his own people.

But neither the former nor the latter is offensive,

Modesty and domineering outwards are the prerogatives of powerful people.

James whispered, "Actually, we thought about it. Your qualifications may be shallow, but your status is high! Not to mention the identity of KBE, which has nothing to do with literature, the foreign corresponding member of the French Academy of Letters alone is more than the Swedish Academy of Letters...... Ahem...... I didn't mean to belittle them, don't get me wrong. ”

No misunderstanding,

This is to belittle the Swedish Academy.

Lu Shi tried to keep his face from laughing.

The two of them got into a carriage and went to the campus together.

James continued the topic just now,

"If the Swedish Academy still thinks you're not qualified, I'll give you my chair and gag them."

The British's words also came as soon as they opened their mouths.

Lu Shiquan should listen to jokes.

The two chatted a few more words, and James changed his serious expression and said: "In the final analysis, the Nobel Prize in Literature should still speak with works." ”

He looked out the window, a little reluctant to speak.

Lu Shi said: "Lao Zhan, if you have something to say, just say it directly." ”

James pondered slightly,

After a long time, he proposed: "Lu, there is a saying that has been widely circulated among students recently. I think London should have that too. ”

Lu Shi said "um" shallowly,

"I know. There is a small number of people...... Let me make it clear that it is those students in the Faculty of Arts who feel that the creative motives of "The Moon and Sixpence" are not pure enough, and there are too many entanglements of interests. ”

James breathed a sigh of relief,

"Sure enough, you know."

He was relieved,

With Lu Shi's intelligence and wit, since he knows where the problem is, he will definitely be able to solve it well.

"So, how are you going to respond?" he asked. ”

Lu Shi spreads his hands,

"What to deal with? What's there to deal with? ”

James was stunned, then laughed, patted Lu Shi on the shoulder, and said approvingly: "Well said! There is really no need to respond to those gossips! What does that poem say? That's the motto you wrote to the Noc. ”

Lu Shi said:

“

'Ercao's body and name are destroyed, and the rivers and rivers will not be wasted. ’

”

He first chanted in Chinese,

After that, it was explained again in English.

James listened with great admiration and praised: "China's cultural heritage is indeed profound, which makes people admire. ”

The two stopped discussing and turned the conversation back to the Nobel Prize and literature.

And just like that, the carriage swayed to King's College.

In mid-June, the campus was bathed in warm sunlight, presenting a vibrant scene.

On the green lawn, the students sat or lay down, enjoying a comfortable time.

The two passed,

Someone immediately recognized Lu Shi and came over with the book to ask Lu Shi to sign it.

After signing two simply, James stood up at the right time and told these enthusiastic students that Lu Shi still had to go to the auditorium to give a lecture and could not delay too much time.

When the students heard about it, they followed it spontaneously.

As a result, when Lu Shi and James arrived in the auditorium, they were followed by a large number of people.

And the auditorium is even more lively,

As far as the eye can see, it is crowded and full.

Almost everyone was trying to squeeze forward, trying to find a position closer to the podium.

There was a lot of noise,

“Shiit！ You're not from the Faculty of Letters, why are you here? ”

"Public speeches? Of course we can listen! On the contrary, you naïve ghosts of the Faculty of Letters, I'm afraid you're here to smash the field! ”

"Who do you say is childish?"

"You! You, you, you, you, you! ”

……

Before Lu Shi came to power, the scene was very hot.

James has a head and two big,

He confessed to Lu Shi, and then squeezed through the crowd to the front row.

After a while, the headmaster, Cavendish got up,

"It's all quiet!"

The quarrel suddenly stopped.

Lu Shi also walked to the first row,

Cavendish shook hands with him tightly and whispered, "Professor Lu, I'm sorry to let you see the joke." ”

Lu Shi shook his head,

"It doesn't matter. I've seen this kind of thing a lot. ”

Cavendish laughed,

"I almost forgot, Professor Lu, you have also seen a big scene."

Afterwards, he did not go to the podium and directly faced the students, saying: "Professor Lu often comes to Cambridge for academic exchanges, so I won't talk nonsense!" Everyone's applause welcome! ”

The scene immediately burst into warm applause.

Lu Shi took the stage and said: "Today we are going to talk about secular cognition and literary creation...... Forehead ......"

He had to stop,

Because the audience "hula-la" raised Lin Li's arms.

The interesting thing is that this kind of thing is also divided into camps.

The students sitting by the window on the right side of the auditorium are raising their hands, while the students on the left are looking at them with a joke-like expression.

The two sides are clearly divided.

Lu Shi looked at the side of the raised hand,

"Who are you?"

The students make eye contact with each other,

Suddenly, a man with glasses stood up and said, "Professor Lu, did you write "The Moon and Sixpence" just to make money? ”

One stone stirs up a thousand waves!

There was an instant noise below,

"Hey, hey, hey! Are you criticizing reality for reading too much and reading your brain stupidly? Isn't it right to make money? ”

"You! Literature must be pure! ”

"Childish! How old are you to still say such inexplicable things?! ”

……

Boom –

Both sides stood up.

The two sides pointed their noses and sprayed each other, and the arms of the people at the front of the "battle line" were even intertwined.

However, they still adhered to the etiquette of British gentlemen, and no matter how fiercely they scolded, they could not fight.

Lu Shi sighed,

"Alas......"

Originally, I wanted to see the blood flowing, but now that I look at it, I'm afraid there is no chance.

He waved his hand,

"Everyone, be quiet."

Cavendish and James and others also began to maintain order.

Finally, both sides sat back down.

Lu Shi looked at the area on the right and asked, "You are all from the Faculty of Letters?" ”

One kind of student nodded.

He turned to the other hand,

As a result, before he could ask a question, he began to answer consciously,

"Law School."

"Historiography!"

"I studied drama ......"

……

Before the words fell, the drama student was severely complained of becoming a traitor to the Faculty of Letters.

The scene became noisy again.

Lu Shi pressed down with both hands,

"Alright, let's pause the speech and ask free questions first."

Actually, he didn't want to explain anything, as he had just told James.

But you can't let these students spray down there.

The bespectacled student just now stood up again, raised his voice and said, "Professor Lu, my question remains the same, 'Did you write 'The Moon and Sixpence' just to make money?'" ’”

Lu Shi was curious,

"I listen to your statement, it seems that I think it's shameful to make money?"

"Ah......h

The bespectacled student was asked,

Then, he reacted,

"Professor Lu, you're confusing the public! There is never a shame in making money. But if writing does not have the slightest pursuit, and is purely for the sake of fame and fortune, the writer will inevitably have to cater to it, and naturally, literary expression will be affected. ”

Lu Shi said: "This is roughly true. ”

There was silence below,

Then came the whispering,

"He confessed?"

"I don't understand."

"No, I don't think it's an admit, because I said 'roughly'."

……

Lu Shixiao asked, "Have you read Tuo's "The Gambler"? ”

Fyodor Dostoevsky,

A character that can never be avoided in the study of literature.

At the scene, almost everyone nodded silently, indicating that they had read it.

"The Gambler" is based on Dostoevsky's experience,

He is good at analyzing people, because he lost money in gambling in a foreign country, he feels that he has no face to see his wife, and he is inevitably ashamed, so he analyzes himself with a ruthless heart.

But profiling is just profiling,

Dissecting oneself does not mean that it can be corrected, whether it should be gambled or gambled.

Lu Shi said: "I believe that you should know that the original motivation for many of Tuo's creations was manuscript fees. ”

There was silence at the scene,

Suddenly, someone said, "Professor Lu, this statement may be true." But looking deeper, especially after reading Crime and Punishment, it is not difficult to see that Toshi is sensitive to stimuli, in other words, he is addicted to stimuli. Gambling is the kind of thing that can bring him psychological stimulation. These stimuli gave him the strength to live. ”

The implication of these words is obvious:

If we continue to dig deeper, Dostoevsky's motivation for creation is not money, but to make money and gamble, so as to experience the excitement.

Lu Shixiao,

"You can't be wrong. But digging so deep, it will inevitably become endless. ”

The students nodded.

Land time continues,

"So, if it's only from the point of view of making money, is Toshi pandering?"

The crowd had nothing more to say.

Dostoevsky's level is too high, and what is written is the trend itself,

So, he doesn't need to cater to the reader, but the reader caters to him.

The example of such a great writer illustrates that some people can balance literary expression and fame and fortune and earn money while standing.

Lu Shi continued: "The profession of a writer does have special characteristics, but we can't stop some people from simply using writing as a tool to make a living. This type of writer will cater and write works that are not profound but are easy to read. ”

Simply using writing as a tool to make ends meet?

This is a bit out of line,

Even James below was a little anxious when he heard this.

After all, Lu Shi is going to win the Nobel Prize this year, and it is necessary to pay attention to the impact.

The students of the Faculty of Arts looked at each other,

As everyone knows, there are two kinds of works:

The first category, thought-provoking and evocative,

It's like Toh's Crime and Punishment;

the second category, to provide the reader with emotions when reading,

Most of the leisure is on the list.

Both of these are necessary, but what Lu Shi said......

A student asked, "Professor Lu, wouldn't it be too utilitarian to simply use writing as a tool to make a living?" ”

Lu Shi spreads his hands,

"Will you marry a wife who only reasoned with you?"

The student reacted quickly and realized that Lu Shi compared the first category to "a wife who only reasoned with you",

He immediately retorted: "Then will you marry a wife who only knows how to slap horses?" ”

The young man must have never been in love,

That's called a whisker slap?

It should clearly be "providing emotional value"!

Lu Shi cleared his throat,

Unexpectedly, before he could answer, a student below said: "I won't marry a wife like that, but I will find a lover like that!" ”

In an instant, the scene fell silent,

A few seconds later, a tsunami-like whisper swept through the auditorium.

Someone else whistled.

The student next to him shouted at the man who made the shocking remarks: "You must be from France!" Admit it! You're not British! ”

Lu Shi was quite speechless,

Compared to the students, I am still too serious.

He pressed his hands down and motioned for everyone to be quiet,

waited for the atmosphere at the scene to calm down before he continued the topic,

"The talk of the wife and lover just now is not rough. A book is at its best to be both readable and profound, but if you have to consider extreme situations, you will choose one of the two, and you will definitely choose to read it. After all, it is enough for textbooks to look at in class. ”

The students could not refute it,

It is not only a writer's problem for a writer to write a work that caters to make money, but also a choice made by readers by contributing sales.

Lu Shi said: "Writers with aspirations are great, but they cannot stand on the commanding heights to criticize those who only regard writing as a profession. Make money, don't be cold. ”

This caused the students to whisper,

"I'll just say those people from the Faculty of Arts are naïve, right?"

"What about the Faculty of Letters~ "Hunting" is really read in vain."

"Hahaha! That's right, Hunting! ”

……

The students of the Faculty of Arts suddenly felt their faces glazed.

Someone said, "Professor Lu, you're right, of course it's okay to make money." But it can't be too ugly, right? ”

This immediately drew a lot of approval,

Again someone got up,

"Professor Lu, your museum has a collection of one of Mr. Gauguin's paintings, and then you wrote "The Moon and Sixpence" based on him, and the character of the protagonist is really ...... I don't make judgments. ”

This is a hint that Lu Shi collects money to do things.

Lu Shi sighed,

In fact, such rumors are also circulating in London.

Not only Gauguin's paintings, but also Picasso's behavior of sweeping away "The Whispers of an Art Apprentice" and "Before and After" is like a stock speculator who has gotten inside information, which inevitably makes people think about it.

And the relationship between Picasso and Lu Shi is well known.

In addition, the protagonist is indeed a scumbag, and most people can't figure out why they would write this kind of protagonist.

The combination of multiple parties will inevitably lead to doubts about the motive of creation.

Lu Shi thought for a while and said, "I suddenly thought of a question. If someone gives me a worthless fake artifact, that is, a handicraft. Then, he told me that there was a collector in a certain place who was willing to recycle it at a high price, but I didn't sell it, did I accept the property? ”

The inspiration for this question actually came from a work -

Celadon Color.

(PS: There are both, and there are TV series.) ）

The students understood,

The value of Gauguin's paintings, depending on the subjective judgment of collectors, is equivalent to what Lu Shi called "worthless fake cultural relics".

And Lu Shiyong is used to return, which is also a "worthless fake cultural relic".

Therefore, the two are actually literati and scholars.

The value geometry depends on the subjectivity.

The students were talking,

"I feel like I've accepted money, right?"

"From a legal point of view, it shouldn't count. Because it is a worthless thing, if you sue you, how to calculate the value of the case? ”

"You who study law are just talking on paper!"

"Faculty of Letters, childish ghost!"

……

Both sides started again.

Lu Shi waved his hand with a headache,

"Alright, it's all quiet."

The students are not chattering.

Lu Shi sighed,

"I didn't want to explain, but you guys were so noisy and you didn't fight so much that you couldn't continue the speech, so I said that. In fact, Mr. Gauguin exchanged his paintings for Mr. Picasso's paintings, which belonged to artistic exchanges. It's just that the painting is temporarily stored in the museum. ”

Seeing that there was no refuge, he added: "And "The Moon and Sixpence" is indeed the result of my experience in the light of Mr. Gauguin's experience. It's about making money, but it's not what you think. ”

This is said very sincerely,

The students of the Faculty of Arts were finally convinced.

As a result, it was another group of people who were still interested in the question session.

A law student asked, "Professor Lu, did you think of that example of cultural relics just now?" ”

Lu Shi waved his hand,

"What's the use of temporary thinking? This method is very common and not advanced at all. In ancient China, there were often high-ranking officials who made ink paintings, and those who wanted to cast their doors would throw stones to ask for directions, and spend silver to buy their ink paintings as a name. There is also a proper term for this kind of behavior, which is called 'elegant bribery'. ”

The students were amazed.

James was also shocked to hear it below,

The sentence "Er Cao's body and name are destroyed, and the rivers and rivers will not be wasted", let him see the depth of Chinese culture.

What I didn't expect was that Chinese culture was far ahead of even the sophistication of human feelings.

Europeans play what is leftover.

The student continued, "I think we can discuss the question further." Professor Lu, if you run to recycle the artifacts and find that the other party only gives you 100 pounds, you don't think it's worth it and choose not to trade. Does this count as a criminal suspension? ”

Land Hours: ???

"You wait! How did I sin? Why did it abort again? ”

The student touched the back of his head,

"For example, don't put yourself in the picture."

Lu Shi was somewhat embarrassed,

I didn't expect to casually give an example, and the law students really studied it seriously.

He said, "I don't understand that either." But if I were an investigating police officer, I would give you three phrases: clear the problem, be deliberate, and resist the investigation. ”

This belongs to the gag,

The scene immediately erupted in cheerful laughter.

Cavendish was also very satisfied, and said to James: "It seems that Professor Lu has also been asked about it." ”

James chuckled,

"We Cambridge students are open-minded."

He couldn't help but think of Lu Shi's "Yes! Prime Minister", and the sentence "Britain has always been inappropriate in terms of being inappropriate", laughed in his heart,

On the "sophistication of human feelings", Great Britain is not far behind.

It seems that all cultural backgrounds are similar.

Lu Shi on the stage waved his hand,

"Okay, do you guys still have questions? If not, then we continued. ”

(End of chapter)