Le Jing already had an idea of what to write for his first work: he planned to write a mystery novel. This was inspired by the "Cheating and Dismemberment Case" serialized in "Fengtian Miscellaneous News".

When he first saw the word "dismemberment", he thought it was some kind of detective novel, which really piqued his curiosity. So even though the serialized part of the novel in his hand looked more like pornographic fiction, he still asked the servant to help him collect previous issues of "Fengtian Miscellaneous News", intending to find the plot in the pornographic fiction and study the level of detective novels in the Republic of China period.

Coincidentally, the boy's roommate was a loyal reader of "Fengtian Miscellaneous News", so the boy quickly brought him a large stack of newspapers.

Then, despite the strange look from the servant, Le Jing calmly began to read the newspaper.

Although the newspaper issues were incomplete, he still pieced together the main content of "The Affair and Dismemberment Case", and then he was stunned by the ancients' "fun".

Although the name of "The Case of Dismemberment during an Affair" contains the thrilling word "dismemberment", it has nothing to do with criminal investigation and reasoning. It is an out-and-out erotic novel.

Yes, this kind of pornographic writing which would only be censored in later generations was not hidden during the conservative Republic of China period. Instead, it was openly published in newspapers and sold quite well. This is really a great black humor.

The article mainly talks about a young man named Chen Wanpeng, who is a playboy by nature, gifted with extraordinary talents and handsome appearance. Because he is so handsome, all the young girls and wives throw themselves at him, so he sleeps with every one he meets.

Without going into the various erotic descriptions, let's just say that one time he hooked up with a pair of sisters-in-law, and the three of them had a great time making love.

However, the good times did not last long. The affair between the three was exposed. In order to protect the reputation of the women in the family, the man strangled Chen Wanpeng to death. In order to destroy the evidence, he also cut up the body and buried it in the wild. Then the author used Chen Wanpeng's tragic experience to warn readers: Those who rape other people's wives and daughters will not have a good end!

After reading this story, Le Jing felt both amused and helpless. From then on, he gained a profound understanding of the shameless extent of tabloids in the Republic of China.

As expected, scholars are also extraordinary when they act like hooligans. No wonder the boy looked at him in such a strange way. That's right, he is a heavy smoker, and his body hasn't recovered from drug addiction yet, but he is eager to read pornographic novels. Such lust is really despised.

Although the content of this book is difficult to describe in a few words, it also inspired him.

Detective novels developed in Europe and America in the 1920s and 1930s, and became popular in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. The name of detective novel was also given by the Japanese. Detective novels in China developed very late, and in terms of scale, they are not as large as those in Europe, America and Japan.

Le Jing came from the modern society of information explosion. Since Edgar Allan Poe published the world's first detective novel, the criminal methods in detective novels have been constantly innovated over the past 100 years, and in the era in which Le Jing lived, a wide variety of mature genres had been formed.

Any of these schools of thought is the result of absorbing the wisdom of countless predecessors, and in this era they are new things that are unheard of by the Chinese people.

Tabloids like "Fengtian Miscellaneous News" are like many modern new media public accounts. They have always relied on curiosity to attract attention. The bizarre twists and turns of detective novels themselves are in line with the style of this type of tabloids, making them more likely to be selected for publication.

After thinking for a while, Le Jing held the pen and wrote eight big words neatly on the white letter paper: Fengtian secret room murder case.

Because of my weak body, these eight characters were written with weak power, like the handwriting of a child. If I send this manuscript, it will probably be regarded as a prank and thrown down.

Le Jing sighed and could only take his time.

※

As night fell, Li Tingfang came back from school. He took off his coat with the help of the maid and asked the housekeeper who was standing respectfully beside him, "How is Jingran today?"

The housekeeper replied: "I heard that he can already come down and walk a few steps."

Li Tingfang smiled and said, "Oh? After all, you are young, so your body recovers quickly."

The housekeeper glanced at his master's displeased look, hesitated for a moment, and then answered carefully: "Master Jingran, have someone collect old newspapers for him to read in the morning."

The servant serving Li Jingran is his son, so of course Li Jingran's every move could not be hidden from him.

Although he didn't know how this famous dandy won the favor of his master, he knew how much pressure the master had to bear in taking in the two siblings.

There are rumors spreading in the streets now. The master's good reputation may be ruined because of this incident. How can he not be anxious? But as a servant, how can he interfere in the affairs of his master?

Now Li Jingran's health has not recovered yet. Not only has he started thinking about those obscene things, but he also asked people to collect those indecent sexual reports for him. He really wasted his master's hard work on him!

"Newspaper?" Li Tingfang raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "This kid is really studious. He wants to read newspapers before he recovers." He asked curiously, "If you want to read newspapers, why don't you read the new newspaper?"

The housekeeper lowered his head, not daring to look at his master's expression, and answered angrily: "Because the new newspaper doesn't suit his taste, he specially asked the servant to help him collect the previous issues of "Fengtian Miscellaneous News" to read."

As soon as the words "Fengtian Miscellaneous News" came out, Li Tingfang's expression became quite subtle. As a serious scholar, he certainly looked down on such a vulgar tabloid.

Li Jingran actually reads this kind of newspaper?

Thinking of the young hero who stood in front of him with neither arrogance nor servility and had a noble character that day, Li Tingfang's first reaction was disbelief.

"Are you serious?"

"Of course it's true." The butler paused and revealed another shocking piece of news: "Defu said that he specifically reads erotic novels!" Defu is his son, and now he is a servant serving Le Jing.

As soon as the housekeeper said this, Li Tingfang believed it. He frowned slowly, could it be that he really made a mistake?

"Let's go and take a look at Li Jingran."

…

When Li Tingfang arrived, Li Shuran was persuading Le Jing to rest.

Except for lunch time, Le Jing spent the rest of the time writing "The Fengtian Secret Room Murder Case".

Despite his hard work, he only wrote more than 2,000 words, because he was still too weak. After working at his desk for a long time, he felt dizzy and his hands trembled so much that he could hardly hold the pen.

His body would not be able to recover without resting for ten days or half a month, but time waits for no one, and there is no time for him to rest properly. So even though his body can't take it, he still tries his best to hold on.

This made Li Shuran feel distressed. She advised: "Brother, you are not well yet, you should rest first. It will be the same if you write these tomorrow."

Le Jing shook his head and explained to Li Shuran seriously: "The entire text of my novel is about 15,000 words. According to my speed today, it will take me at least a week to finish it. Then I have to submit it for submission, and I don't know how long it will take for the editor to review it. Although I know the possibility is very small, there is always a chance of something happening - if it is rejected, I will have to make new plans." He sighed: "I agreed with my uncle that I would leave in a month, so you see, time is very tight."

Li Shuran also understood the reason. She had never thought that her elder brother's submission would not be accepted - for some reason, she had special confidence in her elder brother. She felt that as long as her elder brother submitted, he would definitely be accepted. However, she also understood that her elder brother's worries were justified. After all, they could not stay in their uncle's house forever.

But in the end, her heartache for her brother prevailed, and she argued, "Brother, your health is so bad now. My uncle is a very reasonable person. As long as I go and beg him sincerely, he will give us a few more days..." The little girl's voice became lower and lower, and finally could not be heard, probably because she saw the expression on her brother's face.

The eldest brother was looking at him with a serious and solemn expression that she had never seen before. The faint disapproval in his eyes was like the harshest reprimand, leaving Li Shuran at a loss.

Le Jing was silent for a few seconds, then said in a deep voice: "Shu Ran, your brother has never disciplined you since you were a child. This is your brother's dereliction of duty. Now I will teach you a lesson."

Looking at the pale face of the little girl, Le Jing softened his tone, "That is to help in emergencies but not in poverty. Uncle can help us temporarily, but he can't help us forever. We have to solve the problems by ourselves. Li Shuran, you have to remember that uncle has no obligation to help us, but he helped us out of kindness, so we should remember this kindness and never rely on him for convenience because of his kindness. This is not what a gentleman does."

Li Shuran lowered her head in shame and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito: "I'm sorry, I know I was wrong, Shuran will never do this again."

Li Tingfang stood outside the window and heard the conversation between the brother and sister clearly. Every word of the boy's words went into his heart, causing waves in his heart. After a while, he chuckled. In addition to being relieved, he was more proud, for the boy's insight and for the fact that his Li family could have such a talented person.

He was right about the person.

The butler saw the master standing quietly under the window for a long time, and then left as quietly as he had come.

But this time he understood the master's actions. He also heard what Li Jingran said just now, which dispelled some of his prejudices against him. He was a good child who was grateful and sensible.

Le Jing was completely unaware of what was happening outside the window. He touched Li Shuran's head, intentionally trying to ease the atmosphere, and asked softly, "Shuran, can I teach you how to read?"

With a stepmother like Wang, Li Shuran was naturally taught from a young age that "a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent", and she was truly a blind person who could not read a single word. It was such a pity that such a smart and insightful girl could not read.

Li Shuran's face finally showed some color. She was a little excited, but also looked at Le Jing hesitantly: "But, I, I am a woman..."

"So what if they are women?" Le Jing's eyes flashed with sarcasm: "Women can't read and write? Shu Ran, remember, women can do what men can do. Now is a new era. Women can go to college, find jobs, become officials, and choose to get married or divorced. Women and men are equal."

The boy's amber eyes were filled with deep encouragement and expectation: "Brother doesn't ask you to be successful, but only asks you to study and be sensible, and live a sober life."

Li Shuran nodded, not quite understanding. Le Jing's words were a bit too advanced for this little girl who had been locked up in a deep house since she was a child. It was no wonder that she couldn't understand. So Le Jing just smiled and touched her head, saying, "One day you will understand."

Once you have experienced the beauty of freedom, you will understand.

Freedom is a poison, an addiction, the most powerful opium in the world. Once you are addicted to it, you can never quit.

The author has something to say:

Readers who left comments about murder in the last chapter, please come out, I suspect you have peeped into my brain_(:з」∠)_

① There really was a book called "The Case of Affair and Dismemberment" in the Republic of China. I found it on a used book website and found it very interesting, so I made some adaptations and used it in my article to enrich the details.

Although it is a quick-travel story, I think I will most likely write it as a slow-travel story... After all, there are too many plots to write about in the Republic of China chapter, and if the protagonist wants to become a great writer (I dare not call him a literary giant), he has a long way to go.