British writer

Berlin, Germany,

University of Berlin.

This is a campus with a unique style, and buildings from various periods have been preserved, giving it a strong sense of history.

The sun pours down,

Through the leaves, patches are left on the ground.

A kitten curled up to bask in the sun, occasionally lazily saying "meow~".

Several students walked over quickly and discussed in low voices.

"Have you read the waist of the book? "Chao Wen Dao" has been banned in Russia."

"Huh? The whole book?"

"Of course it's the whole book~ Should I just take out "Animal Farm" and delete it? Wouldn't that be self-inflicted?"

"It's not like you're asking for trouble now!"

"You're right. Before, I thought that book was satirizing His Majesty William~"

…

Several people passed by chatting.

The cat raised its head,

"Meow~"

It wagged its tail at passing students.

This is a dog’s survival skill,

But when you live under the influence of others, you will inevitably have to learn from others. Otherwise, human beings will not be able to feed themselves.

Its tail-wagging attack really worked,

Some students came running over,

"Here you go~"

It was a big meaty bone, leftover from eating German-style roasted pork knuckle.

The kitten licked it and thought it tasted good.

"Meow~"

It barked again and looked directly at the oil paper bag in the student's arms.

The student scratched his head,

"No, you can't give this to you~ Besides, there's nothing edible in it."

The kitten seemed to understand. It wagged its tail again, dragged the big stick bone away, and ate it carefully.

One student said: "I really envy it. I don't have to worry about it."

Another companion broke the story: "You are not a cat, how do you know the cat is not worried?"

"Ah this..."

The person who spoke first was stopped.

Apparently, German students have not been exposed to the debate on "The Joy of Fishes" in "Zhuangzi".

But they do have worries because the next errand is not going to be easy.

Several people discussed and walked to a single-family dormitory.

Dong dong dong——

Knock on the door.

Not long after, an old voice came from inside: "Here we come."

The person who opened the door was an old man in his seventies.

He was almost bald, but his beard was thick and messy, but it could not hide the double chin that was protruding due to obesity.

He asked: "What's the matter?"

Immediately a student said: "Sir Heise..."

The old man’s name——

Paul Johann Ludwig von Hesse.

He waved his hand,

"I am not a knight. Besides, I have resigned from the position of judging the Maximilian (also known as 'Maximilian') prize for more than 20 years."

From 1854 to 1863, Hesse served as the imperial scholar of Maximilian II.

During this period, he also founded a crocodile club. The members of the club were protected by the king and lived a very leisurely life.

But at the same time, their creations will also be labeled as "semi-official".

Heise felt that this could not be done.

His pursuit of literature led him to give up his salary from the Prussian government.

The student had no choice but to change his address and said: "Mr. Hesse, we just passed by the cafeteria and saw your mail, so we took it over."

Heisei was surprised,

"mail?"

He took the oil paper bag from the other party's hand.

There is no sender or sender on it,

It looks very unreliable.

Heise frowned and said, "Is this really an email?"

Although I asked this question, I had already reached a negative conclusion in my heart.

The student said "Uh..." for a while, seeming a little embarrassed.

"Well...Mr. Hesse, it's actually just a book inside. There's nothing dangerous about it."

Hesse was stunned for a long time.

Later, his attitude turned cold,

"Did Mommsen ask you to send it to me? How many times have I said that his "History of Rome" is very good, but I am very disgusted with the kind of writing that is biased toward novels. It is neither literary nor historical. ...Hmph! The adaptation is not made up, and the drama is not nonsense."

Several students were very helpless.

Hesse was obviously a poet and novelist, but he resented historians writing history in a joking way.

It can only be said that famous writers have their own aesthetics.

One student explained: "That's not "History of Rome"."

Heise raised his eyebrows.

"It seems that it was really sent by Monson."

students:"……"

The more you talk, the more wrong you become, so just shut up.

Hesse glanced at them,

Thought,

He and Monson had some disagreements, but why bother the students?

Besides, it’s just a conflict of creative ideas. This is a dispute between gentlemen and should not be trivial.

He waved his hand,

"Okay, you can keep the book."

The students hurriedly left as if they had received an amnesty.

Hesse closed the door, went back to the room, sat down, opened the oil paper bag,

Inside is a book——

"Chao Wen Dao".

He was very surprised,

"Hmm... 'If you hear the Tao in the morning, you will die in the evening'? Is this written by a Chinese? Or is the author a China expert?"

The reason why he knew this sentence was because he came into contact with an Orientalist at the Crocodile Club——

Buddenstadt.

The two have always had a very good relationship, so they often exchange views with each other.

Hesse continued to study the outer cover of the book,

The waistband of the book reads:

——

The first of the ten most banned books in Russia, a nail in the heart of Tsar Nicholas II that could never be removed.

The great writer Theodor Monson kindly translated and highly recommended it.

——

Heise: "..."

I couldn't help but start complaining.

What a “great writer”!

Monson gave this book to himself, wasn't it just to show off?

This method is so childish!

Heise shook his head with a smile, turned the book to the title page, and found that the author was Lu. He felt that the pen name was somewhat familiar, and fell into memories.

After a few seconds, he remembered,

It turned out to be the author of "Guns, Germs and Steel".

Even in Germany, Lu Shi's novels were published directly in English, so Hesse was not clear about his identity as a novelist.

On the contrary, it was an academic work, and he was somewhat impressed.

He looked at the author's introduction again,

"It turns out that he was originally a novelist and playwright..."

Hesse's interest was piqued,

You want to see for yourself how a person who is quite successful in academics writes novels.

Hesse took a sip of water and started reading,

The first story——

"Rural Teacher".

He soon read in.

At first, he thought it was just a Chinese "local" novel, in which the image of teachers portrayed was advanced and ignorant.

However, when the camera zooms into space, the height of the entire book instantly rises.

"This is……"

Heise was shocked,

Suddenly, he thought of the author's introduction, which mentioned that Lu Shi was the backbone of "science fiction".

"So, this is also science fiction?"

He couldn't help but think of "Frankenstein" and "The Time Machine\

,"Compared with "Country Teacher", those books are inferior in imagination and conception.

It exploded!

Hesse couldn't wait to read the next short story——

"Chao Wen Dao".

The collection of novels is named after this article,

It can be seen that this article should be the most exciting part of the whole book.

At this moment, there was a knock at the door.

"Paul."

The voice is deep and old.

Hesse knew who the other party was as soon as he heard it.

He went to open the door, and sure enough he saw Monson's iconic glasses, which were as thick as the bottom of a glass beer bottle.

Munson smiled.

"Paul, have you read the book I gave you?"

The other party called him so kindly, which really made Heise a little overwhelmed.

He opened the door,

"Come in and talk."

The smile on Monson's face grew wider, and he ducked into the room sideways.

Hesse looked around to make sure no one was there, then closed the door.

Monson said amusedly: "You are so mysterious. If you don't know, you would think we are having a tryst~"

Heise: "..."

I already have thoughts of cursing people.

But not reaching out to hit the smiling man, he could only fold his arms and ask defensively: "What on earth is going on?"

Munson spread his hands,

"You haven't answered the question I just asked."

He nodded to "Chao Wen Dao\

,""Have you read it?"

Heise replied: "I read the first one and it was very well written! I am about to read the second one. Since the novel collection is named after "Chao Wen Dao", I think the second one is the most exciting."

Monson couldn't help but think of what happened in Stockholm.

Those scientists who are fighting might agree with Hesse’s point of view.

But he felt...

"If you are an ideal literary person, you will definitely like the third article more."

Heise looked at the catalog,

"You mean, Animal Farm?"

As he spoke, he turned to the page indicated in the table of contents.

Munson advised:

"Read it. Skip the second part for now."

His solemn tone can't help but make people curious.

Hesse said, "Okay."

He buried his head in reading, and within a few seconds he was immersed in the novel.

As a result, those words began to hit his soul like waves, one wave after another, one after another, with continuous climaxes.

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

"The animals listened to Napoleon talking about his theory for a while, and listened to Snowball expressing his theory for a while. They couldn't decide who was right and wrong. They always felt who was right when they listened to whoever spoke."

"No matter how angry you are, no matter how difficult the life is, as long as you think that your life is more decent now than before, everyone will feel that it is justified."

…

Every sentence is very vivid and profound.

Hesse read to the end in one breath,

Finally, as he expected, the pigs who stole the fruits of the revolution put on suits and began to imitate humans and walk on two hind hooves.

This ending undoubtedly sublimates the story.

Hesse couldn't help but look back at the first of the Seven Commandments:

Anyone who walks on two legs is an enemy.

Full of irony.

Hesse put down the book,

"It's so well written!"

Apart from this sentence, he really doesn't know how to evaluate "Animal Farm".

Is it a fairy tale?

There is a saying that the novel does tend to be a fairy tale or a fable.

Heise even felt that the author Lu did not want to make things too complicated when he was creating. It is even possible that Lu just wanted to minimize what was there and what was not.

But then again,

If it were really treated as a fairy tale or fable, would children be able to understand it?

On the contrary, only adults would shudder after watching it, right?

So, is it considered science fiction?

There are indeed a lot of descriptions of future technologies in the novel, such as "Soma", which can control the emotions of animals.

But these technologies are undoubtedly auxiliary,

The core is definitely not science fiction!

Hesse couldn't help but mutter: "This novel does have a unique temperament."

Monson nodded,

"Sure enough, you think so too."

Hesse couldn't help but fall silent,

He has been famous in German literary circles for a long time,

But as time passed, the situation changed.

The naturalism that emerged in the 1890s first directed its anti-traditional attacks against him, and made sharp accusations against him, believing that he was too Hellenistic and focused too much on formal beauty.

This made Heise very painful,

He had to be more careful in his creations, protecting the freedom of art from the erosion of one-sided aestheticism, and opposing the naive imitation of life by naturalism.

And the way "Animal Farm" was written...

Hesse shook his head firmly,

"At this time, there shouldn't be any sectarian opinions."

Monson nodded,

"Okay! This is what I've been waiting for!"

Heise couldn't help but be surprised,

"What? You're so excited, you scared me!"

Monson chuckled and said, "Have you read the waist of the book?"

Heise nodded angrily.

"I read it. You translated this "Chao Wen Dao", so you are very proud."

Munson laughed,

"Of course I'm proud~ But that's not the point. The point is the previous one, 'The first of the ten most banned books in Russia, a nail in the heart of Tsar Nicholas II that can never be removed.'"

This is nonsense.

There were not tens of thousands, but eight thousand books banned in Tsarist Russia.

There are many books with more violent rhetoric than "Animal Farm", and "top of the ten banned books" is absolutely unreasonable.

Heise complained: "Stop saying such exaggerated words, right?"

Thanks to the fact that there is no Advertising Law,

Otherwise, the publisher of this book will definitely be fined.

Munson waved his hand,

"Compared with other banned books, "Chao Wen Dao" has two major advantages. First, it is written in English and translated into multiple languages, and is widely spread in Europe; second, the author Lu is a well-known writer who is loved by everyone, including trustees. Weng."

Heise said "hmm\

,""Indeed, the book "Guns, Germs, and Steel" has a unique approach and profound views."

Munson sighed,

"Listening to what you said, I knew you didn't know Lu well. Forget it, let me tell you."

He spoke for a long time,

Finally, he concluded: "No matter how you look at it, Lu can compete for the title of 'the greatest writer of the early 20th century'."

Heise raised his eyebrows.

"As a student of history, do you have an objective evaluation of novelists?"

Monson immediately retorted: "No one who has read my "Roman History" will deny that I have the skills to write novels. My evaluation is still credible."

Hesse was almost so angry that his nose was filled with smoke.

He complained: "Writing history books in the same way as novels is considered literature? Why didn't you win the Nobel Prize for Literature?"

Meng Sengan was silenced with one sentence.

The most terrible thing is that Lu Shi was the one who messed up the Nobel Prize.

Just thinking about it gives me a headache.

In an instant, Monson seemed to have aged twenty years.

This old man was already old, twenty years old, and he looked as if he was going to be buried soon.

Hesse was afraid that the other party was really bragging in his dormitory, so he quickly said: "Don't... don't get excited! I said the wrong thing! I shouldn't have talked about the Nobel Prize for Literature..."

Before he finished speaking, Mengsen's face became even more dejected.

Hesse:! ! !

"Don't say it! I won't say it anymore!"

He quickly changed the topic and said, "Let's continue talking about the ban of "Chao Wen Dao"!"

Munson then recovered,

"Generally, when a Russian writer's book is blocked, it will cause controversy in the country. However, "Chao Wen Dao" is different. As for the reason, I have just mentioned it."

Heise also recognized this,

It is written on the waist of the book that "a nail in the heart of Tsar Nicholas II can never be removed", which is not necessarily a lie.

He asked: "So?"

Monson suggested: "Paul, as a writer, shouldn't we be eager for justice and say a few words for "Chao Wen Tao"?"

Heise touched his chin, wrapped his fingers with his beard, and played with them unconsciously.

This is a sign that he is thinking.

After a while, he asked: "Is this what you think?"

Monson chuckled,

He pointed in the direction of central Berlin without giving a clear answer.

There, there is Unter den Linden, the Berlin City Palace, the Prince's Palace...

it is more than words.

Hesse understood,

"So that's it. It seems that His Majesty is preparing to switch from external propaganda to internal propaganda. He is publicizing the ban of "Chao Wen Dao". Even if Lu was not reflecting Russia when he wrote "Animal Farm", it must be Russia. When citizens see this, they will inevitably think..."

He looked at a line from "Animal Farm" and said,

There is a sentence there:

"No matter how angry you are, no matter how difficult the life is, as long as you think that your life is more decent now than before, everyone will feel that it is justified."

The middle part was changed to, "As long as I think about Germany living a more dignified life than Tsarist Russia,"

How can you not make people burst into tears?

Heise said: "I never expected that after thirty years, I would be a 'Queen of Scholars' again."

Monson said happily: "Do you agree?"

Heisei nodded lightly,

"As you said, it is really inappropriate for us, as writers, not to speak out for Chao Wen Dao. Moreover, there must be many people in various countries who have the same idea."

As he spoke, he looked at the other person,

"What I'm curious about is, why was I chosen?"

Munson spread his hands,

"Who else is there in Germany now besides you?"

This is a bit of a flattery,

But Heise is very useful.

He waved his hands repeatedly and said modestly: "What? Am I Goethe? Or Heine? Or Schiller?"

These three are all the most famous writers in Germany.

Speaking of which, Mengsen could only hold his nose and admit it.

"Compared to them, you are not bad at all."

"Hahaha……"

Heise laughed and said: "It's not that bad~ It's not that bad~"

Monson couldn't help but have black lines all over his head.

￣□￣｜｜

I made up my mind that after saying so many things against my will, I must rinse my mouth well when I go back.

On the other side, Heise has already picked up the pen,

He asked: "In what form?"

Monson thought for a while,

"Your Majesty didn't make it clear... ahem... I mean, it's up to you. But the most suitable one should be a book review, right?"

Hesse is really good at writing book reviews.

His thoughts went through the content of "Animal Farm".

After a while, he wrote:

《

There's nothing more gratifying than that boxers still have plenty

Nothing is sadder than that there are so many boxers

Nothing is more desperate than a boxer's everlasting lot

》

Boxer, Boxer,

It is a horse in "Animal Farm". It has a simple mind, well-developed limbs, and is hardworking and a loyal supporter of animalism.

As a result, the value is extracted and sold to horse slaughter dealers.

Hesse's title is a long parallel sentence, which is especially powerful when written in German.

Monson thought for a while,

"Change it, there's no need to start from a boxer's perspective."

Hesse shrugged.

"That starts with Napoleon?"

Monson thought it was okay;

"Can."

So Heise began to write vigorously.

Not just him,

In Europe, countless writers participated in this movement,

Some act spontaneously;

Some are imperial literati.

But in either case, they used extremely sharp words, negative satire, or positive criticism to attack Russia.

They call this "protecting literary freedom!"