Lionel ultimately did not meet Gu Hongming, who was then still called Tomson Ku, frankly at "Chabanais."
He simply could not trust the disinfection measures of brothels and the health examinations of prostitutes in that era.
One must know that syphilis was so rampant in 18th and 19th-century Europe that the entire cultural system had to accept it as part of daily life and even creative inspiration.
Nietzsche, Van Gogh, Beethoven, Schubert, Mahler, Maupassant... the list could go on and on.
Flaubert once defined it in his "Dictionary of Received Ideas" as a disease almost as common as a cold:
"Everyone has been infected by it more or less... Half of syphilis sufferers transmit the disease to people aged fourteen to twenty;
Among the middle class, one in ten contracts syphilis while still at school...
University students start frequenting brothels as soon as they enter school.
On holidays and Thursday afternoons, brothels are packed with students."
Flaubert contracted syphilis from visiting prostitutes in Egypt when he was young, which tormented him for 30 years, and only ended with his death.
Lionel would certainly not treat syphilis as a common cold; he would not frequent any brothel, no matter how high-end – he didn't want his skull to be full of holes like a honeycomb when he died; or to spend his life daily applying mercury iodide to pustules on his lower body, staining his buttocks and thighs blue-grey.
So, under Albert's disappointed gaze, the two agreed to have dinner at "Le Café Anglais" restaurant, located at 13 Boulevard des Italiens, around the corner from Rue Marivaux.
This restaurant, which opened in 1802, became one of the most sought-after high-end restaurants in France and even all of Europe after French celebrity chef Adolphe Dugléré took over the kitchen in 1866.
The most famous banquet in the history of "Le Café Anglais" took place in 1867, when Paris was hosting the sixth World's Fair.
On the evening of June 7th, it simultaneously hosted Russian Tsar Alexander II and his crown prince, Prussian King Wilhelm I, and Prussian Prime Minister Bismarck.
Because three reigning or future emperors attended, this banquet was later known as the "Dinner of the Three Emperors."
Gu Hongming showed his generous style, directly requesting the same menu as the "Dinner of the Three Emperors" — but since there were only two of them, it was somewhat simplified.
Nevertheless, even so, this meal included fresh pea puree and sorrel beef appetizer soup, truffle chicken vol-au-vent, sole fillet with Venetian sauce, roast lamb chops with broad bean puree and Brittany sauce, Portuguese roast stuffed chicken, Parisian lobster cold platter, Rouen pressed duck, roasted ortolan, creamed asparagus and potatoes, and over a dozen other dishes.
In addition, there were also desserts like dome-shaped ice cream and fruit.
The accompanying wines were estate wines of different vintages, including champagne, sherry, and various red wines.
A waiter would come to change the wine almost every two courses.
The cost per person exceeded 150 francs, meaning one meal consumed a month's income for a middle-class Parisian family.
This was Lionel's first time eating such a lavish meal.
The dazzling array of dishes on the table, the exquisite porcelain tableware, and the sterling silver or gilded cutlery were all eye-opening.
The waiters in the restaurant did not show any discriminatory expressions because of Gu Hongming's Chinese appearance, but instead provided the same service as for all other customers.
"See, Parisian restaurants are more polite than the professors and students at the Sorbonne – I'm not talking about you, of course, Lionel,"
Gu Hongming said indignantly after taking a big gulp of wine.
At this point, the two men's meal was nearing its end.
Outside the windows of "Le Café Anglais," gas streetlights had come on.
From time to time, poor children begging nearby would press their faces against the window panes, enviously gazing at the palace-like splendid decorations inside.
Usually, waiters would quickly come to drive them away, but they would gather again shortly after.
They would stretch out their dirty little hands to every rich person leaving the restaurant, hoping to get a few sous, or even a franc if they were lucky.
Lionel had only eaten half of the food in front of him and was already too full.
He picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth:
"That's because you spent 300 francs here!
This kind of respect is cheap and not worth your emotional investment."
Gu Hongming looked deeply at Lionel.
This young Frenchman was one year younger than him, but possessed a maturity and calmness far beyond his own.
Especially his egalitarian mindset, which surpassed that of any young talents he had met from China, France, or England.
Lionel asked,
"Tomson, what do you plan to do next?"
Gu Hongming paused for a moment, then replied:
"I will pursue law at the Sorbonne Law School, then go to Italy, and after that, Germany..."
Lionel shook his head:
"I wasn't asking about that – are you planning to stay in Europe indefinitely, or return to Penang (now part of Malaysia, a British colony in the 19th century)... or perhaps go to, hmm, China?"
Gu Hongming fell silent upon hearing this.
After a long while, he slowly spoke:
"Probably back to Penang, my home is there."
Lionel smiled:
"That's good.
With your qualifications, whether in Europe or Penang, you can find a respectable good job and live the life of an elite."
Gu Hongming was a very intelligent man; he immediately sensed a certain meaning in Lionel's words and pressed him:
"What about China, then?
You left out China – what would happen if I went to China?"
Lionel still smiled:
"China... you can still find a respectable good job and live the life of an elite there."
Gu Hongming thought for a long while before saying:
"Since it's all about respectable good jobs and living the life of an elite, but it would be distinctly different in China, right?"
Lionel's subsequent words were profound:
"If you consider yourself British or European, then a respectable job and the life of an elite would be the same, whether in Europe, Penang, or China.
But this morning at the Sorbonne, you said you were Chinese, which makes things a bit complicated...
A good job, of course, you'd still have, but as for being an elite... hehe."
Gu Hongming was born in Penang.
At age 10, he followed his adoptive father, the British merchant and rubber plantation owner Brown, to Scotland.
He subsequently studied in Germany and England, and was now in Paris studying law, having never actually been to China.
His current feelings for China stemmed more from a natural identification with his skin color and appearance, and the cultural imprints left by his biological father in his childhood.
Therefore, he couldn't yet grasp what Lionel meant by "complicated," or where the "complication" lay.
Lionel also had no intention of explaining further.
He waved a waiter over, and under Gu Hongming's surprised gaze, had the complete portions of food he had kept for himself packed in a paper bag.
At the restaurant entrance, Lionel politely declined Gu Hongming's invitation to send him home by carriage.
Instead, he leisurely walked home, carrying the packed bag.
Watching Gu Hongming's beautiful, exquisite two-person carriage gradually disappear into the distance, everything that happened today seemed like an unexpected interlude, stirring a small ripple in his otherwise calm life, and then settling back into a mirror-like stillness.
From the perspective of later generations, one can certainly see the various limitations of the elites of this era, but once immersed in it, one discovers that they, too, each had their own helplessness.
——————
"What? Did Louis-Alphonse really say Lionel was a 'commodity'?"
Dean Henri Patin could hardly believe it when he heard what had happened at the Chinese man's lecture yesterday.
The "Poetry Recital," as the Sorbonne Faculty of Arts' most important annual fundraising event, directly impacted his prestige as dean.
Lionel Sorel's attendance at the "Poetry Recital" was not only at the request of Madame Rothschild but also to satisfy the curiosity of many noblewomen.
After all, "Poor Lionel" had become a legend in salon circles, and with a masterpiece like "The Old Guard" to his name, he could be described as "both talented and handsome."
Even if Lionel "performed for art, not for sale," but as long as he showed a little of his skill at the "Poetry Recital," the college's research funds for this year would likely be quite ample.
Now, suddenly hearing that Lionel refused to participate in the "Poetry Recital" was like stabbing Henri Patin in the heart.
He stared at Dean Duun in front of him and said word by word:
"No matter what method you use, you must make sure he appears by the bonfire this Saturday night!"
The Sorbonne's "Poetry Recital" emulated a legendary ancient Greek custom.
When held, a bonfire would be lit in the college square, and students and guests would attend the event dressed in ancient Greek style robes and wearing laurel wreaths.
Dean Henri Patin dared not imagine how many complaints the "Poetry Recital" would receive without Lionel.
(End of Chapter)
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