In less than a week, "No One Survived" made paper expensive in London.
On the streets, in alleys, and in bars, people are basically talking about that nursery rhyme and the fate of the characters in the book.
If this continues, the Sherlock Holmes series may lose its status.
After all, Doyle couldn't sit still.
As soon as his train arrived in London, he drove non-stop through the night to Strand Street by carriage without rest.
His wife Hawkins muttered: "Are you too hasty?"
Doyle glared at her angrily, opened the carriage curtain,
The chatter outside spread into the carriage.
"I'd die if I didn't watch "There Are No Survivors." Oops, there's only two more days until Wednesday."
"Have you subscribed to The Scotsman too?"
"of course."
"Who do you think this mysterious author Lu is? Could he be a Scotsman? Hiss... I think it's really possible. You should all know that Dr. Doyle was born in Edinburgh."
…
With a sound of brushing, Doyle closed the car curtain.
Being compared with Lu Shi gave him an indescribable feeling, like swallowing a fly, but the fly was fine and kept buzzing in his mouth.
He shrugged angrily,
"Did you hear that?"
Hawkins didn't know about the quarrel between her husband and Lu Shi, so he could only try to comfort him: "Don't think too much about it. Don't forget that Britain is Holmes' territory."
This sentence is actually quite awkward.
Doyle would rather have heard that "Britain is Arthur Conan Doyle's domain."
He sighed helplessly and closed his eyes to rest.
Hawkins didn't realize that he was flattering him, and he couldn't say anything else when he saw his husband resting.
The carriage fell silent.
The carriage sped toward Strand Street.
Strand Street appeared in "The Scarlet Study" and was the place where Watson and Holmes lived before they shared a flat.
It is located on the banks of the Thames in central London, next to Charing Cross Road, with Buckingham Palace on the southwest corner.
By analogy, Strand Street is equivalent to the core street in the first ring of the capital. It is no wonder that Watson in the book cannot bear the rent and seeks a roommate.
Not long after, the carriage stopped in front of a magazine.
The English of the front door of the magazine——
Strand Magazine,
In fact, it should be translated as "Strand Magazine", but strand means riverside, so many countries translated it as "Seaside Magazine", so that many translators in later generations made the mistake.
It's a proper noun anyway, so it doesn't matter.
Doyle jumped out of the car, gave the coachman a tip and asked him to help look after the luggage, and then knocked directly on the door of the magazine.
"Herbert, I know you haven't left yet."
Herbert Greenhofer Smith is the editor of Seaside Magazine.
After a while, the door opened.
A tall, strong white man stood at the door, holding his fingers against the frame of his glasses. His eyes widened and he looked Doyle up and down, as if he was taking an X-ray for Doyle.
He said, "Oh my God! Look who's here!"
While talking, the two couldn't help but give into a bear hug.
Smith patted Doyle on the shoulder and said, "Aren't you going to live in Edinburgh for a while? Why are you back so early?"
His eyes fell on Hawkins and he nodded in a gentlemanly manner: "This journey has not been easy, has it? I heard that some factories in Paris have begun to manufacture cars that do not require hand cranks. We will be able to use them in a few years. It’s definitely more comfortable than a carriage.”
The coachman muttered, "The Oldsmobile can't run as fast as my horse."
Smith didn't feel dissatisfied and laughed.
Doyle was helpless,
"Let's stop talking nonsense. I came to you for business."
Smith also became serious and ushered the two into the door.
The layout inside the magazine is very simple, with only two editorial rooms and a core office area in the middle. Tables, chairs, and narrow aisles are filled with manuscript papers and magazines.
Smith moved the chair casually,
"sit."
Doyle sat down and then took out a stack of manuscript paper from his briefcase.
Above is printed small print:
Chapter 1, Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
This is obviously a chapter title from a novel.
Smith said in surprise: "Arthur, didn't you... didn't you... didn't you seal the pen?"
He stuttered and couldn't speak.
Doyle did not answer the question and said: "5,000 pounds, the price we agreed on before, you can't bargain on the ground."
Smith frowned,
It is impossible for Doyle to be short of money. He could not spend all the previous royalties. Moreover, Doyle's job is still an ophthalmologist, and his income is not low.
Smith was curious,
"what is going on?"
Doyle was a little annoyed by this sentence, and whispered to him: "Don't you look at my manuscript?"
This attitude is strange.
Smith couldn't help but be a little alert and picked up the manuscript cautiously.
It was a novella called "The Hound of the Baskervilles,"
After reading roughly ten lines at a glance, Smith feels that the writing style is still Doyle's original style. There is not much difference in the wording and sentence construction, but there are some changes in the way of structuring the story.
He pondered for a moment and said, "It's very interesting, but the concept always makes me feel familiar."
This is actually a first-hand test.
Unexpectedly, Doyle admitted directly and generously: "This "The Hound of the Baskervilles" was influenced and inspired by "Legend of the West", and it is natural that you will feel familiar with it."
In fact, "The Hound of the Baskervilles" was considered by many to be a plagiarism by Doyle. What's more, some speculated that he hired Fraser Robinson, the editor of the "Daily Weekly", to write it.
And Fraser Robinson is the author of "Legends of the West".
I can only say that there are similarities between the two books.
Smith was silent for a moment and asked: "Have you figured out the author of "Legend of the Western Regions"?"
Doyle's expression remained unchanged;
"As I said just now, it's 'influence and inspiration', not plagiarism. What does the author do?"
This is very artistic.
Smith Quan thought Doyle had it figured out;
For editors, the development of the magazine should be the top priority, and the truth is completely irrelevant.
However, Doyle's eagerness to deliver the manuscript still puzzled him.
He lowered his head and thought,
Suddenly, a novel flashed through my mind——
"No Survivors".
Smith figured out the joints in an instant, and looked at Doyle with a clear mind.
But there is no need to get to the bottom of the communication between British gentlemen.
He smiled half-heartedly and brought the topic back to the content of the novel: "It would be a good choice to bring Sherlock Holmes back in the form of memoirs. If sales are still booming, we might as well officially resurrect him."
In fact, that's what Doyle did,
"The Hound of the Baskervilles" began serialization in August 1901.
The first article of "Return", "The Empty House", was first published in January 1903.
But he didn't expect that Lu Shi was like a butterfly flapping its wings, using "No Survival" to force Holmes to climb up from the Reichenbach Falls earlier.
Smith suddenly clapped his hands,
"Okay, as agreed before, 5,000 pounds."
Publishing is finalized.
Doyle couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief and became confident.
Lu Shi is a Chinese and his English writing ability is not strong. It is impossible for "No One Survived" to maintain a high standard.
Moreover, "The Scotsman" and "Manchester Guardian" just want to use Lu Shi's identity. As long as there is something wrong with the novel, he will be abandoned like a clown.
The Times and the Daily Telegraph, which support the Conservative Party, will also add insult to injury: "Look, these are the Chinese! Monkeys picked up pens to imitate human writing, but in the end they can only pretend to be monkeys, just showing off. .”
Since the Chinese are monkeys, then the war to colonize China is just.
How could it be unjust to bring civilization to barbarians?
Similarly,
The Anglo-Boer War was just;
The Anglo-Afghan War was just;
The Anglo-Mysore War was just,
…
Doyle said: "I will be doing an interview with The Times tomorrow to preview Sherlock Holmes' return."
Obviously, this is to compete with "No Survival" and the mysterious author Lu.
Smith is happy to see the success;
It can boost sales, so why object?
He crossed his legs leisurely and said, "I'm looking forward to it."
Doyle didn't catch the narrowness in the other person's tone and said to himself: "Don't worry, I'm very good at handling interviews."
He is only thinking about one thing at the moment:
As long as Holmes attacks, everything will be fine.
