Volume 1: A sound on Wall Street, Xinxiang City is busy copying books Chapter 191 Good Opportunity
This chapter's subtitle: If Russia doesn't have a good life, then neither should we.
"There is no need for me to elaborate on the historical status and literary value of Mr. Hongjian's "Wives and Concubines". This work describes the tragic fate of Songlian, a female student who "received a new era education", who voluntarily married into the orderly feudal family Chen Mansion with high walls and deep courtyards, and eventually suffered a mental breakdown in the open and secret struggles of "wives and concubines". It artistically reproduces the horrible scene of Chinese feudal ethics devouring human nature. The author attempts to analyze "Wives and Concubines" from a psychological perspective in this article..."
"Chen Zuoqian in the book is a typical man in the feudal society of China. As a man, he has money, power andHe fulfilled all his desires for sex, women, and children..."
"As long as you know Mr. Hongjian's life, you will understand that this character is clearly an artistic reproduction of his father. Mr. Yuan not only has multiple wives and concubines and six children, but also, like Chen Zuoqian, he took in a fourth concubine when he was less than fifty years old..."
"We can find that among the intellectuals of the Republic of China, many people had a bad relationship with their fathers and were closer to their mothers. For example, (sensitive word here), and (sensitive word here). And Mr. Yuan Yanshu was one of them ..."
"For intellectuals like them who despise the old era and embrace the new era, facing their father, a symbol of the old era, they naturally develop an Oedipus complex. The actions of these people from the old era deepened the psychological shadow of new intellectuals like Mr. Yuan, so he was able to write works like "Wives and Concubines"..."
"Mr. Chen in this novel is not dead, but he becomes an absolute oppressor in Mr. Yuan's writing, and he causes the tragedy of the women in the book. In this sense, the father as the head of the family is dead without dying..."
"'Wives and Concubines' was written at the end of 1920, just before and after Mr. Yuan's father took a concubine. When it was published in the magazine 'New Youth' in February 1921, Mr. Yuan was so angry that he almost published an announcement in the newspaper to sever his father-son relationship with him..."
——Excerpt from "The Oedipus Complex in a Family of Wives and Concubines"
Our Master Yuan was so angry about the two letters that he couldn't sleep all night. Of course, it wasn't because of the patricide complex, but because of the long-term lack of sexual desire. He counted the days with his fingers, and it was almost a month. No wonder he felt chest tightness, shortness of breath, and irritability. It turned out that his menstrual period had arrived.
But now he has a physique of 18 points, so he can sleep without going to bed, or go to bed without sleeping. So after a short rest, he started to receive customers in high spirits early the next morning.
"Miss Pulitzer, and Louis, you are here. Please come in, come in. What gifts do you bring? You are very polite."
"Helen, John. You came at the right time. Louis and his friends are just in need of a partner."
"Gentlemen, you are here. Xiangzi, I leave these to you. You must teach them until they are mastered."
"Ladies, feel free to treat this place as your home. Let me introduce you, this is Mr. Lu, he is your Mahjong teacher."
"Xiao Yang, you also want to be a teacher? Why would I joke with you? There are only three tables now, so you just have to work hard as a waiter for a while."
Speaking of this mahjong parlor... well, the "Literary Salon" is actually not very big. Master Yuan simply had the billiard table and other miscellaneous furniture in the game room moved out, and then placed four mahjong tables inside.
Being the gentleman that he was, he also had soundproofing material put on the walls of the room and a thick carpet laid on the floor so as not to disturb his neighbors.
He also hired a chef and a waiter to provide food and drinks. Of course, they were not good food and drinks. For Mahjong players, it was enough to have food to fill their stomachs. And they didn't necessarily have to get drunk to play cards. Some soft drinks and coffee and strong tea were enough.
The guests he invited today are basically all NYU students. After all, one has to eat one bite at a time, walk one step at a time, and promote mahjong one table at a time.
Yuan Yan suddenly saw that most people had arrived. Naturally, she had to go up and make a speech on such an occasion to promote the 3,000-year-old quintessence of Seres.
He walked to the center of the room in high spirits and said confidently, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am very happy today..."
"GANG...HU! Mr. Luo, this is a big hand, right?"
"Oh my, Mr. Baldwin. A single hang plus a gong. You really have a big hand!"
"Hahaha, give me money, give me money!"
"John, they dialed the wrong number. It's not from JIU WAN, it's from JIU TONG."
"Okay, Helen, change one. I don't like it anymore."
"JIU TONG..."
"Wait, I'm HU!"
"John, look at how bad Louis is..."
Our Master Yuan then realized that Mahjong's charm was much higher than his pitiful 15 points. Even no one listened to his speeches as a great orator.
Just then, another guest came to visit, so he went out dejectedly to receive the guest.
"Uncle Luo, why are you here? You didn't even inform me so that I could come out and greet you."
"Hongjian, you are too polite. What's the big deal? We are family. I heard from Zhenren that you set up a mahjong salon to promote the quintessence of Chinese culture. As a foreign affairs officer of the Republic of China, of course I have to visit it. Of course, I have some things to discuss with you."
“Is that so…”
Hearing this, Yuan Yan's heart suddenly moved, and he understood why the other party came. He first took the first secretary of the New York Consulate to walk around the card room. The diplomat sat down and played a round of cards with great interest, and then the two came to the living room to talk about "business".
"Hongjian, what do you think you should let your uncle say about you?" Luo Jiaxiang, who was sitting on the sofa, lit a cigarette, with a helpless and slightly ridiculous expression on his face, and said, "Although your uncle is ten years older than you, I can understand young men and women falling in love. But you..."
He didn't know how to express it, so he sighed and said, "Hey, Minister Gu and Minister Shi both asked me about you. Now, even the Xiangshan and Xinhui officials in China have sent me telegrams!"
I actually alarmed so many big shots just because of my free love affair. I am truly worthy of being a master of neoclassical liberalism.
The diplomat leaned closer and whispered, "You may not know yet, but the second son of Lord Xiangshan, Miss Tang's fiancé, has arrived in London and will come to New York to see you soon."
The master of free love smiled bitterly and asked, "Why did he come to me? To duel?"
"Hahaha, Hongjian, you really love to joke." Uncle Luo said with a smile, "He came to you because he hopes you can go to France to renew your relationship with Miss Tang! He would rather break up the engagement than let Miss Tang really become a nun."
Damn it, other people who are forced to marry are all mothers, but I was forced to marry by a weird stranger... and he was a very emotional person.
"This..." Yuan Yanshu really felt a little embarrassed this time.
He is not afraid of marriage. If he really finds the right person, he will get married . It is good for two people to be in love, but it is also true that they can live a simple life.
But things like feelings are indeed very subtle. Ms. Tang was not very pleasing to him in the first place, and now that this happened, he felt weird in his heart, as if he was being forced into a desperate situation.
For the same thing, there is a huge difference between voluntary and forced.
Compared to Ms. Tang, he prefers Miss Enyuka. But Xiaolongnu is involved with the First International and the Third International. Master Yuan came here to cheer for American imperialism, not to fight for anarchism, nor to fight for communism. So he really doesn't have the courage to be engaged to an anarchist or communist female fighter for life.
Just when he was in a dilemma, he heard Luo Jiaxiang say with a smile: "Hongjian, your chance has come. Now it depends on whether you can grasp it and turn the chance into a marriage."
Is my chance here? Or is it some kind of fate? How did it come about?
He asked suspiciously, "Uncle, what do you mean?"
"Hongjian, this is what happened..."
Ms. Tang, the youngest daughter of a former prime minister, actually went to a monastery to become a nun. This incident made two great diplomats, Shi Zhaoji and Gu Weijun, so worried that they couldn't eat or sleep well.
But even so, Minister Gu's wedding still had to be held. His new wife Huang Huilan really lived up to her name. After learning about this, the kind-hearted daughter of a wealthy man immediately came up with a good idea when she saw a relative next to her. If her arrangement could succeed, it would definitely be the best of both worlds. So even Gu Weijun and Shi Zhaoji thought it was a good idea, so they sent a telegram to New York to arrange it.
The idea is...
"Wait, Uncle. Minister Gu wants to introduce me to which of his relatives?"
"His aunt-in-law, Miss Wei Mingzhu. Oh, aunt-in-law is his old Taishui's sister."
"I understand. But, but, but..."
"Don't get me wrong, Hongjian. Miss Wei is only 23 years old. You are not familiar with Nanyang so you don't know. You know that Minister Gu's old Thai lady Wei Mingniang was known as "the most beautiful woman in Java" back then. Then her sister is naturally beautiful too, and is a famous beauty in Nanyang."
Gu Weijun actually admired Yuan Yanshu because of his articles. Moreover, Yuan Yanshu, who was known as "Wang, Zhou, Jiang, Zhang, and Mei, were not as good as Xiao Yuan from Jiangdong," was indeed good-looking and a student studying in the United States. Although he could not be said to have a promising future, he was an outstanding young man after all.
Speaking of Yuan's family background, it certainly cannot compare to former Prime Minister Tang Shaoyi and "My Friend Xu Zhimo", but it really cannot be said to be bad, it is definitely the "1%" of the Republic of China. In fact, Gu Weijun's background is not as good as his, and Gu Weijun has been married twice and married the daughter of the richest man in Southeast Asia, let alone him?
To be honest, no matter from which aspect, our Master Yuan is indeed a contemporary diamond...well, a krypton gold bachelor.
Then Luo Jiaxiang continued, "Hongjian, they are willing to come to New York to meet you because they see that you have a clean family background, good character, and extraordinary talent , and you are a doctoral student at NYU. You must seize the opportunity."
It was a coincidence. Gu Weijun's mother-in-law, "the most beautiful woman in Java", married Huang Zhonghan when she was 15 years old. But Wei Mingniang was ashamed that she only gave birth to two daughters for her husband: Conglan and Huilan. Since Huang Zhonghan took a concubine, Wei Mingniang's relationship with him became increasingly distant, and she was devoted to Buddhist affairs.
This time her daughter was getting married in London, so she took the opportunity to go to London with Huang Huilan and left Huang Zhonghan forever..
When she came out, she brought her younger sister, Miss Wei Mingzhu.
So if Miss Wei and Master Yuan can get along well, Miss Tang's ridiculous idea will naturally be dispelled. Wouldn't this be the best of both worlds?
It is true that if we are destined to meet, we will meet even if we are thousands of miles apart, but if we are not destined to meet, we will never meet even if we shake hands on WeChat.
If I seize this opportunity, wouldn't I become Gu Weijun's uncle-in-law, and the brother-in-law of the Nanyang's richest man, "Sugar King" Huang Zhonghan... Then I must turn the opportunity into a marriage!
He said with a look of surprise and joy: "This is really... I don't know what to say."
Luo Jiaxiang laughed and said, "Hahaha, then don't say anything. If this matter can be resolved, my nephew should thank the two ministers Gu and Shi."
Yuan Yan nodded repeatedly and said, "It's my duty, it's my duty. Then I should also thank you, Uncle Luo."
The first-class secretary waved his hand and said, "I am just running errands and delivering a message. What is there to thank you for? By the way, Hongjian. At that time, I promised to hold a dance party for you to celebrate after you recovered."
Master Yuan immediately thanked him and said, "This is too much. I don't deserve it."
"Why shouldn't I be unworthy? Hongjian, you are wrongfully imprisoned, and as a diplomat of the Republic of China, I have the honor of standing up for you!" Luo Jiaxiang pondered for a moment and said, "The Chinese community in New York is going to hold a fundraising dinner. And Minister Gu's family will also arrive in New York next month, so this will naturally be a grand occasion. I think it would be better to do these three things at the same time, right?"
"Hongjian, what do you think?"
Yuan Yan suddenly shook his head and said, "This is a national affair. How can a junior have any say in it?"
"Hongjian, with your qualifications and talents, it would only take a word for you to become a diplomat, right?" Luo Shishu clapped his hands and said, "Okay, then I will report to London."
After discussing this "serious matter", the two took a few sips of coffee and started talking about another serious matter.
Master Yuan put down his coffee cup and asked, "Uncle, what do you think of this salon run by me?"
People wouldn't slap him in the face and say that this is just a free mahjong parlor, so they nodded and praised him, "Very good, very good, promoting the essence of Chinese culture to foreign countries is a noble and righteous act. Hongjian, you are thoughtful."
Yuan Yan suddenly perked up when he heard this, and said, "Uncle, if that's the case, shouldn't the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China also support this 'righteous act' of the younger generation?"
Luo Jiaxiang seemed to understand something and said, "Hongjian, what you mean is..."
Our Master Yuan said calmly: "Uncle, we can use this to apply for some funding from above. Of course... you know."
The first secretary of the Consulate General in New York laughed out loud, "Hahaha, Hongjian, ah Hongjian, you are really a... wonderful person!"
