Conan Doyle's letter was full of enthusiasm:
[My dear friend Lionel:
Upon receiving your letter, the excitement and joy in my heart are truly beyond description! I can hardly believe such a great honor would be bestowed upon me!
Your concept for a detective story, inspired by my esteemed mentor Dr. Bell, utterly amazed me! What a brilliant idea!
Dr. Bell, if he were to know that his deductive method could inspire such interesting literary creation, would surely smile with understanding.
Regarding your generous offer of the "literary assistant" position, I – Arthur Conan Doyle – hereby accept with immense excitement and humility!
To assist a writer whom I already deeply admire in completing his work is not only an opportunity to learn but also a supreme pleasure!
Please rest assured that I will do my utmost, utilizing my humble knowledge of medicine and chemistry, and all information concerning Britain, to verify details and gather materials for you.
To be able to participate in the birth of this marvelous story is, in itself, the best reward!
As for the matter of attribution you mentioned, you are truly too generous, and I am flattered beyond words.
I would never dare to aspire to have my name placed alongside yours; to be mentioned as "Special Consultant" would already be a tremendous honor for me.
Perhaps in the future, once I have truly made some commendable contributions, it would be more appropriate for us to discuss this matter again.
Enclosed with this letter are some medical note summaries regarding common drugs, symptoms of poisoning, and the recovery period for injuries, which you may find useful in your future writing.
Should you have any other needs, whether medical, chemical, or concerning the geography and social customs of London, please do not hesitate to write to me at any time. I will devote my full efforts!
Eagerly anticipating your further instructions and sharing!
Your loyal friend and admirer, Arthur Conan Doyle, at the University of Edinburgh Medical School
January 26, 1880]
This was undoubtedly a perfect start.
Lionel could already imagine that, with their combined efforts, they would surely create a Sherlock Holmes collection that was more rigorous and brilliant than the original.
——————
The next day, Lionel returned to the Sorbonne to cancel his leave.
Dean Dupont naturally had no objections and signed readily.
As it was already the last semester, classes had become very relaxed, and professors didn't particularly care who was missing from class.
Most students were either busy preparing for their graduation exams or cultivating connections, hoping to find a decent job after graduation.
Lionel had no worries about either, so he found life particularly easy.
As soon as school was out in the afternoon, he declined Albert's invitation to go dancing at the "Cosmos" and went straight home.
It was time for the consulting detective residing at 221B Baker Street and his doctor friend to make their debut.
Since Conan Doyle was so expectant, and since Dr. Macleod had already reserved space, he had to produce a strong opening as soon as possible.
Lionel decided to still start with A Study in Scarlet.
This was the legendary starting point for Holmes and Watson, and one of the most classic cases that best demonstrated his deductive abilities.
However, the details of the story and the background of the character "John H. Watson" needed some adjustments.
In the original story, Watson was a military doctor who retired after being wounded in the Second Anglo-Afghan War, and he met Holmes in 1887, the year Conan Doyle began writing.
But at the time Lionel was starting to write, it was early 1880.
"John H. Watson's" identity as a retired military doctor would be somewhat sensitive and untimely at this point – after all, the war had not yet ended, which could cause unnecessary controversy.
However, war veterans from other eras were either too old – like those from the Crimean War – or lacked sufficient dramatic impact.
Therefore, he decided to make a bold adaptation to Watson's identity.
In Lionel's version, "Watson" would no longer be a military doctor, but a young medical postgraduate who had just graduated from the University of Edinburgh, full of ambition yet financially strapped.
He comes to London to join a distant uncle who runs a private clinic, working there as an assistant with meager income, and is looking for cheap and suitable accommodation.
It was against this backdrop that he met the unconventional consulting detective, Sherlock Holmes, at 221B Baker Street in London.
This new "Watson" was naturally inspired by Conan Doyle himself – Conan Doyle would certainly make the connection when he saw the manuscript, and presumably, he would work with even greater zeal.
Lionel thought for a moment, then began to write the title at the top of the manuscript paper: A Study in Scarlet.
He first wrote the title in French on the top line, then wrote it again in English on the next line – he wanted to ensure that at least the title of this novel would not be mistranslated.
In fact, the most common Chinese translation of A Study in Scarlet is incorrect.
"A Study in Scarlet" would perhaps be better translated as "A Scarlet Study" or "A Study in Red."
The story still begins from Watson's perspective:
[In 1880, I obtained my Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of London, and later went to the University of Edinburgh in Scotland to pursue advanced surgical studies.
Shortly after completing my education, I was employed by a distant uncle who ran a private clinic on Harley Street in London, where I served as his assistant physician.
However, the prosperity of Harley Street had little to do with my own circumstances; the clinic's business was not good, and the salary my uncle could pay was naturally not generous, while the cost of living in London was surprisingly high. I had to start looking for more affordable accommodation.
It was then, by an exceedingly fortuitous chance, that I met young Mr. Stamford in a smoking lounge on the Strand – he had once been my colleague at Bart's Hospital.
Both of us were delighted to meet an acquaintance in this vast city of London.
Learning that I was seeking lodging, he suddenly slapped his forehead and said,
"What a coincidence! Just this morning, someone came to the hospital laboratory complaining to me that he had found several excellent suites, good enough to be satisfactory, but couldn't find anyone to share them with and split the rent."
"Oh?"
I immediately became interested.
"If he truly wishes to find a roommate, I would be most suitable. I would rather share a dwelling than live alone."
Stamford blew out a smoke ring and regarded me with a rather peculiar look:
"You haven't met Mr. Sherlock Holmes yet; perhaps you wouldn't want him as a long-term companion."
"Why? Does he have any unpleasant habits?"
"Oh... I didn't mean he has anything bad about him. He's just a bit odd in the head – obsessed with certain scientific fields. From what I know, he's a very decent fellow."
"Is he also a doctor?" I asked.
"No – I have no idea what exactly he studies. I believe he is proficient in anatomy and a first-rate pharmacist. But, as far as I know, he has never systematically taken medical courses.
The things he studies are very disorganized, unsystematic, and even somewhat bizarre; however, he has indeed accumulated a vast amount of peculiar knowledge, enough to astonish his professors."
...]
Lionel wrote fluently, making numerous rewrites to conform to the 19th-century context, based on the change in "Watson's" identity.
"Watson," having just graduated from medical school and not yet financially comfortable, certainly wouldn't be spending his days getting drunk in pubs like in the original novel.
A "smoking lounge" seemed much more appropriate – large coffee houses, grand theaters, opera houses, and other establishments in London and Paris all had "smoking lounges" for gentlemen to smoke and exchange views.
It was a respectable social venue, where guests primarily smoked cigarettes, cigars, and Arabian hookahs.
Of course, at that time, there were also many alternative "smoking (opium) dens" in London's East End, where the opium used included Bengal goods from India and Yunnan goods from China.
The earliest customers of the "opium dens" were immigrant sailors from China, and gradually, the poor and working classes were attracted to consume there.
Later on, even some "curiosity-seekers" from high society came, making it a fashionable trend among London's literati; Dickens was one of the regulars.
However, no matter where the opium came from, the apparatus used was basically Chinese-style long pipes, with small lamps or charcoal heating the opium, and then lying on a couch to enjoy it –
This was basically the Qing Dynasty's most successful cultural export in the 19th century, unique and unrivaled.
Soon, he wrote about the scene where the two headed to 221B Baker Street for their first meeting with Sherlock Holmes.
This was the climax of the opening, and it had to accurately demonstrate Holmes' astonishing powers of observation and deduction, which was also the key to the novel's success!
(End of Chapter)
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