陆犯焉识

Oh, I see. I have some trouble understanding English at times. The word 'weird' is always translated as '古怪的' in dictionaries. However, in various contexts, I think it’s closer to '尴尬的' in Chinese. This is one example of how literal translations can fall short.

Chinese people also tend to avoid addressing issues related to excremental functions. It’s both 尴尬的 and weird, for sure. Still, that’s the beauty of literature - it reveals truths about humanity.
 

At this point in the novel Yanshi has returned home to Shanghai after being away for eight years in Chongqing where his college had retreated to avoid the Japanese invasion. In Chongqing he had lost his job with his college for refusing to comply with government regulations about getting approval for lesson plans. Now back in Shanghai he is scrounging around for a job. He wants to persuade an old collegue Ling Linkun to use his influence to get him a job. His first step is to arrange a home dinner party including Linkun and several other former colleagues. Every other invitee answers positively, but there is no word from Linkun. Yanshi is worried because in the past he has had a falling out with Linkun over political views, so he goes to visit him on a Sunday morning carrying a bag with three expensive gifts for him. He is worried that Linkun will be offended by the gifts and see them as a bribe, which in fact they are. Linkun sits with him in his living room, and talks non-stop for an hour, while Yanshi holds the bag of gifts on his lap. Finally he stands up, puts the bag of gifts on his chair in front of Linkun and runs out of the house before Linkun has a chance to react. The author writes: 贿赂别人也要英勇，胆敢去无耻才行。To bribe another person takes courage; you have to dare to be shameless to make it happen.  (Do you agree with this translation?) Then this is the following paragraph:

第二天他收到李坤一封短信，说他造访了凌博士，凌博士只是重伤风卧床，大概疏忽了查看信件，也不能见客人，连他和凌博士的谈话都靠凌师母里外屋跑着转达。

Why does the note say that Yanshi came to visit Linkun, since Yanshi already knows that? I am assuming that it is the invitation which the note says Likun neglected to answer. DeepSeek suggests that this note is a 委婉的托词. If this is the case, it is actually Likun who is writing the note, pretending to be his wife,  and creating a pretence that Yanshi came to the house but Likun was too sick to see him, so that  we are going to pretend that none of this embarrasing situation happened, but that nevertheless Likun is not going to come to the dinner. In other words, let’s pretend that yesterday never happened, but I am still going to reject your invitation.  Would you agree with this interpretation of this paragraph?

--just to add a note, the next paragraph begins:  

焉识几天来沉沉的一颗心马上轻了。肺痨给他上半身铸成的前凹后凸也平复了不少。 (Yanshi's heart which had been heavy for several days, suddenly lightened.) Why would his heart lighten from this note? Or is it saying (Yanshi's heart was heavy for several days after receiving this note, but then it suddenly lightened)?          

It reads to me like 李坤 and 凌博士 are two different people and the former is describing his own visit to the latter. Is it possible you've mixed up a couple of characters?

Yes, I'm afraid that I did. I understood 李坤 to be the first name of 凌博士. Now everything falls into place. Thank you so much.