2000年春天,我和妻子吕晓歌应法国方面邀请,去巴黎访问。英国的英中文化协会和伦敦大学,顺便发出邀请,请我偕夫人往伦敦讲两场《红楼梦》,一场在伦敦大学给东亚系汉学专业的研究生讲,一场则面向普通伦敦市民。我接受了邀请,但是,英国没有加入欧盟的申根协议, In the spring of 2000, my wife and I, Lu Xiaogeng, were invited by France to visit Paris. The British-Chinese Cultural Association and the University of London, by the way, invited me and my wife to speak to London about two “Dreams in Red Mansions”, one for postgraduates majoring in Sinology in East Asia at London University, and one for ordinary London residents. I accepted the invitation, however, the United Kingdom did not join the EU Schengen agreement,