Russian literature has long history of showcasing neighbor's culture

William A.P. Martin, the US missionary who first translated Russian literature into Chinese, which appeared in a Shanghai magazine in 1872, would never have expected Russian works to go on a lasting journey deep into the neighboring country.

Liu Wenfei, a veteran researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told China Daily on Thursday on the eve of President Xi Jinping's visit to Russia: "Seldom in the world do we find so large a readership of Russian literature, and with such a persevering tradition of reading it, as we do here in China."