PS:
I saw some people saying that setting the background of "Country Teacher" in China in the early 20th century would affect its credibility.
This is true,
I know it myself, otherwise Nantes would not be mentioned.
Just think of it as my selfishness when I write this.
…
Lu Shi looked at the old man in front of him,
Oscar-Claude Monet, a French painter, is known as the "leader of Impressionism" and is one of the representatives and founders of Impressionism.
It is truly a magical experience to be able to come into contact with such a person.
On the other side, Monet was also observing Lu Shi,
"You are chinese?"
The tone was full of surprise.
As a result, before Lu Shi could answer, Verne spoke up and said, "Mr. Monet, Professor Lu is the distinguished guest invited by our French Academy. He is the founder of modern history and the best-selling author in England." .”
Monet looked at Lu Shi again, his eyes full of surprise.
After a while, he said, "Okay, I'll just watch that one."
Saying that, he stood up,
"Let's go to a nearby cafe."
Because of the World Expo held last year, there were many international tourists in Paris.
As a famous scenic spot, Montmartre attracts many visitors and is surrounded by a large number of shopping spots and leisure areas.
Monet took them to the cafe they usually went to,
On the way, he said: "Recently, I am planning to live in Burtanu or go to Madrid to continue the creation of "Water Lilies". By the way, Mr. Verne, do you still remember the transportation machinery on display at the World Expo? "
Verne knew a lot about industrial products;
"You mean the car?"
Monet nodded,
"I don't know if cars are really as convenient as those Americans advertise. If it is true, I would also like to buy one so that I can travel and create at the same time."
Historically, Monet purchased the car in 1904.
In October of the same year, he and his wife took a self-driving trip to Madrid, where they admired Velasquez’s works at the Prado Museum.
His subsequent works "Water Lilies" were greatly influenced by this.
As the saying goes, "Listen to the words, listen to the sound of gongs and drums." Verne could hear the implication of Monet's words, and said with a smile: "Mr. Monet, it seems that you don't really want to take up the illustration job."
Monet was noncommittal;
Some words don’t need to be explained too clearly.
At this moment, he had devoted his whole body and mind to the pond and water lilies, and he had decided not to leave this theme for the rest of his life.
After walking for a while, they arrived at the cafe.
Monet pushed open the door and entered.
The owner of the cafe raised his head and said hello: "Mr. Monet, it's still the same today... Are there any guests?"
Monet waved,
"Como, prepare a private room for us."
Boss Como immediately ushered them into a private room with a window and then served them coffee.
Several people took their seats.
Monet gently stroked his beard, took a sip of coffee, and then said: "Okay, show me that book..."Country Teacher", is this title sure it is science fiction?"
The name doesn't sound like it.
Verne smiled and said: "I thought the name was very unscientific at first."
He handed the manuscript to Monet.
Monet held the edge of the manuscript with his fingers, roughly estimated the thickness, and then said: "So thin? It does seem to be more than 20,000 words."
He looked at the title,
"But, this is English..."
Monet lived in many countries and could communicate in many languages, and English was certainly one of them.
However, after all, he is not a litterateur or linguist. If he wants to read in depth and understand the central idea of the article, he still needs the support of his first language.
That is, he needs French.
Verne was depressed, wondering why he had forgotten such an important thing.
He looked at Lu Shi aside,
"Professor Lu, I..."
His eyes were full of apologies.
Unexpectedly, Lu Shi shook his head indifferently, then opened the door of the private room and said to the boss outside: "Mr. Comeau, do you have any paper and pen?"
Como replied: "Are you also a painter?"
As he spoke, he took out the manuscript paper and pencil for drawing.
Lu Shi was easy to talk to and could use drawing paper.
After thanking the other party, he returned to the private room and said to Monet: "Mr. Monet, do you mind the illegible handwriting?"
Monet:? ? ?
I didn't understand what Lu Shi meant.
Bernard Shaw on the side was familiar with Lu Shi and could vaguely guess what Lu Shi wanted to do.
But thinking about it doesn't mean that I'm not shocked.
He was confused,
"Lu, do you want to..."
Lu Shi smiled and wrote in French on the drawing paper with a pencil:
"
He knew that this last lesson had to be taught in advance.
Another sharp pain shot through his lungs, almost causing him to faint.
"
It was quiet in the private room,
"..."
"..."
"..."
Only the pencil rubs against the paper, making a very subtle "swishing" sound.
Everyone stared at Lu Shi as if they were looking at a monster.
What the hell is this! ?
Live translation! ?
Verne subconsciously took a sip of coffee and let it simmer in his mouth for a while. He tasted that there was no alcohol in it to make sure that he was not drunk.
Beside him, Roland couldn't help but swallowed:
"Gu..."
Everyone had a confused expression on their faces.
Only Lu Shiyun was calm and gentle. While writing the translation, he apologized to Monet: "It is inevitable that it is sloppy. Please bear with it."
Monet, who was still in shock, came to his senses.
He couldn't help but mutter: "You are the real Impressionist."
Everyone was stunned,
Afterwards, Poincaré laughed loudly and said, "Professor Lu is quite impressed."
Monet shook his head and began to read Lu Shi's translation.
I thought that the writing would be bad if it was hastily translated, but I didn’t expect that it was just a scrawled handwriting. There were no grammatical errors in the content, and the wording was cautious and elegant. It was no less impressive than the romantic Victor Hugo. .
Monet squinted his eyes and carefully observed Lu Shi's handwriting, becoming even more curious.
Scribbling is scrawling, but it has a different kind of beauty.
He couldn't help but ask: "Professor Lu, who did you learn your French writing from?"
Because Lu Shi was trying his best to translate, he didn't pay attention at all and said "Huh?" in confusion.
Monet shook his head,
"That's all, it's okay."
He suppressed his curiosity about Lu Shi and turned his attention to it.
Unexpectedly, there was not much to see.
Background in China,
The content of the story is also very old-fashioned, and the local flavor is overwhelming.
For a Frenchman like Monet, it is very difficult to find a point that can be stimulated.
There is no other reason. French literature in the 19th century was an era of "stars shining". Balzac, Hugo, Musset, Flaubert, Maupassant, Alexandre Dumas, and Alexandre Dumas, which one is not a familiar name?
Realism, symbolism, romanticism...
All major schools bloom and complement each other.
In Monet's opinion, the beginning of "The Country Teacher" is really too ordinary. Just like the title of his book, it is very "Country Teacher".
The only thing that aroused his interest in reading was the Chinese background.
As a sojourning painter, after Monet devoted all his energy to "Water Lilies", he has been eager to paint water sources all over the world, from the Thames River to the Japanese Bridge, from garden ponds to church fountains.
Monet also considered visiting India and China and trying to create.
For a moment, my thoughts drifted away.
He could no longer focus on that boring article. Instead, he looked out the window, thinking about his pond and water lilies.
After a while, he pulled away from his imagination, picked up the coffee on the table and took a sip.
When drinking coffee, I make a "gurgling" sound.
result,
"Quiet!"
Roland actually yelled.
Monet was caught off guard and almost spit out the coffee in his mouth.
He looked at the other people in the private room,
I saw Roland, Poincaré, and Verne all concentrating on Lu Shi's French version of "The Village Teacher", with entranced expressions on their faces, unwilling to miss any detail of Lu Shi's on-site translation.
And Bernard Shaw, an Englishman who was not good at French, frowned and concentrated on chewing Lu Shi's article.
Monet was completely confused.
He asked in a low voice: "You...haven't you all read it?"
Everyone was quite annoyed when their reading was suddenly interrupted.
Verne raised his head,
"Mr. Monet, I did read "The Country Teacher" before, but it was in English. Do you know what an honor it is to see the original author, Professor Lu, translate it into French live?"
Poincaré echoed from the side: "Yes, we are witnessing the history of the development of science fiction. Today, it will definitely become a legend."
Roland chuckled,
"Isn't it a legend? This is a live translation!"
Monet:"……"
It was completely unexpected that the three of them spoke so highly of Lu Shi.
"Huh~"
He took a deep breath and focused on "Country Teacher".
Frankly speaking, he felt that the quality of the first few chapters was very good, but the content was still very general. However, because of his understanding of Verne and others, he patiently read on.
Finally, it’s chapter five,
The opening sentence:
"
Fifty thousand light-years away from the Earth, in the center of the Milky Way, an interstellar war that has lasted for 20,000 years is coming to an end.
"
This sentence alone piqued Monet's interest in reading.
I didn't expect this to be such a big deal.
Even science fiction masters like Verne rooted their creations in the earth. Lu Shi, a Chinese, actually directly extended the breadth of human imagination to the Milky Way.
Monet continues reading,
As a result, it was naturally out of control.
His whole heart fluctuated with the fate of the earth. Until the moment when the children used the three laws of classical mechanics to save the earth, he suddenly felt a sense of exhaustion.
It was as if the big hand that was constantly tightening on the erect neck slowly loosened.
This feeling of being emotionally involved was something Monet had never experienced before.
After a while, Lu Shi completed the final translation.
Night falls,
There was only one light in the private room, and the dim yellow light seemed to have carved a hole in the dark blue paper.
Singing came from the nightclub under Montmartre,
The drunken men laughed wildly.
However, the silence in the private room was in sharp contrast;
Watching the French version of "Country Teacher", for a moment, no one spoke.
To be precise, I was speechless.
I do not know how long it has been,
Verne stood up and opened the window of the private room, letting the slightly damp evening breeze of early spring blow into the room.
Then, he picked up a tissue and wiped the corners of his eyes.
"I didn't expect...I didn't expect..."
He couldn't hold it back anymore and cried.
Poincaré on the side patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Watching "Country Teacher" again in my first language gave me a completely different feeling. I was just thinking, why is this 'Mr. Li' It’s a Chinese private school teacher, not a French one.”
Bernard Shaw opened his mouth,
He knew that Lu Shi originally wanted to set the background of the story in Nantes, France.
But Lu Shi shook his head imperceptibly at him,
Bernard Shaw understood and said nothing more.
Roland on the side sighed: "I have always thought of myself as a person with an internationalist spirit, but when I read, I still have the same thoughts as Mr. Poincaré."
Everyone laughed,
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"
After laughing, Verne looked at Monet and said, "Mr. Monet, what do you think?"
Monet is still in a certain mood,
He shook his head and finally got away from the shock, and then said: "Teacher... I can't imagine any other work that can portray the greatness of the teaching profession from a higher dimension so vividly."
Generally, they start from the deeds of teachers in order to infect and impress people.
"Village Teacher" is completely different.
It borrows from the Carbon-Based Alliance to tell readers from an almost divine perspective that the teaching profession is a unique miracle for mankind.
Perhaps, only science fiction can achieve this effect.
Verne said: "Mr. Monet, are you willing to take over the illustration job?"
Monet nodded slowly,
"willing."
He is well aware of the greatness of "Country Teacher",
As a painter with both fame and fortune, he does not want to use traffic, and there is no need to use it.
He just wanted to promote this short science fiction story.
Of course, it would also be good if it could leave a lasting name in history.
Verne smiled and said: "I knew it would be like this. Good literary works are always attractive, and people can't help but spontaneously cheer for them."
The others nodded in agreement.
Poincaré took a sip of coffee and then said: "Does this film need to be released bilingually?"
"I think so," said George Bernard Shaw.
When publishing in French territory, the French language must be the first priority.
But Lu Shi came to communicate as a visiting professor of London Political Science and Economics, and English was also indispensable.
Verne sighed,
"Bilingualism is good, but..."
He looked at Monet beside him.
Being bilingual means that the length of the book is ×2, and it also means that there are more illustrations, which Monet may not necessarily be willing to do.
Unexpectedly, Monet agreed immediately.
"No problem. After watching "Country Teacher", I have a lot of creative inspiration, and it is always very interesting to try to imagine alien civilizations. Don't worry, I won't charge you. But I have a request .”
Verne asked: "What request?"
Monet pointed to the original manuscript on the table and said: "The French translation must be handed over to me for collection."
Everyone looked at Lu Shi.
Lu Shi didn't expect it to be such a simple request and didn't know what to say.
Seeing his silence, Monet misunderstood and said anxiously: "Professor Lu, I know this request is a bit excessive. After all, the manuscript is like the writer's child, I understand. In exchange, I am willing to give you a painting "Water Lily", but you can only collect this "Water Lily" and cannot trade or donate it within a hundred years. Of course, I will not trade or donate your original manuscript."
Lu Shi:? ? ?
"Send me "Water Lilies"?"
Monet kept saying: "Don't look at "Water Lilies" as a series of paintings. There are many paintings, but I have devoted a lot of effort into each painting. So, look..."
Monet actually requested cautiously.
Lu Shi scratched his head,
"This...will I..."
Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by Monet: "No, no, it's a great honor for me to obtain your manuscript."
Verne on the side also nodded,
"Professor Lu, just accept it."
Lu Shi couldn't help but scratch his head.
As a result, Monet did not give him a chance to refuse, and continued: "Professor Lu, I have decided to draw an illustration of the winning 'Mr. Li' based on you. Do you have time next?"
(End of chapter)
