Chapter 50 First acquaintance
King George V Dock, London, December 1900, 12.
Li Qiwei, Li San and Hong'er have been waiting here for nearly two hours, but the three of them are not impatient at all. Instead, they keep looking into the distance.
Li Qiwei told the two of them the general content of the Spark Project, which made them both very happy.
Li San and Hong'er had been waiting anxiously, and finally someone from their hometown came. Now they had someone to chat with and they wouldn't feel lonely anymore.
Li Tingzhao had sent a telegram earlier, briefly introducing the information of this group of Spark members, among whom Wang Luyao's arrival made Li Qiwei full of curiosity.
What’s going on? After being around for so long, the heroine finally appears?
The ship they were on, "Sea Breeze", was expected to land at the dock today, and the three of them were very excited at the moment.
Unlike Li Sanhonger, Li Qiwei was excited about the launch of the Spark Project.
Since the London Quantum Conference, he has become a hot figure at Cambridge University.
Vice-Principal Cardwell met him personally and promised to solve all his worries as long as he could do his experiments well at Cavendish.
As for the doctoral entrance examination? There is no such thing! Professor Thomson simply skipped the process and allowed students to go directly to the doctoral program after graduating from undergraduate studies.
The school even promised that as long as Li Qiwei could publish another major result, he would be directly awarded a doctorate degree even if he had only studied for half a year.
Li Qiwei was stunned, but then he thought again and seemed to be at a disadvantage.
Just based on quantum theory and photoelectric effect, it is not an exaggeration for him to have ten PhDs from Cambridge.
The school is trying to fleece Li Qiwei again and exchange money from the government, and the beads on the abacus are popping out.
But this didn't matter to Li Qiwei. He just made a request on the spot that three Chinese people should be arranged to study in Cambridge and be awarded degrees after graduation.
As for Wang Luyao, Li Qiwei thought about it and decided to give up, as the school would definitely not agree.
But she isn't here to study anyway, so at worst I can teach her myself.
Cardwell was a little embarrassed, but finally gritted his teeth and agreed, but emphasized that at least half of the tuition for the three people had to be paid.
Li Qiwei almost laughed out loud at that time. He was originally prepared to pay the full amount himself, but fortunately he didn't say it out loud first.
Just as Li Qiwei was daydreaming, Hong'er suddenly exclaimed, "Master, look, the boat is coming. Is it possible that people from my hometown are coming?"
Upon hearing this, Li Qiwei looked over and recognized the words "Sea Breeze" on the hull. He shouted, "Great, it's them!"
The magnificent ship made a loud roar and slowly docked at the pier.
After a while, the cabin opened and Li San stood among the crowd like a reef, holding a huge sign in his hand with three Chinese characters "Li Qiwei" written on it.
Soon, three men and one woman found their target and walked towards Li Qiwei and the others.
Wang Luyao recognized Li Qiwei at the first sight. She felt a thrill mixed with the extreme anticipation of more than twenty days. Now that she saw the real person, she could no longer control herself.
She trotted all the way and threw herself directly into Li Qiwei's arms, tears in her eyes and a choked voice, "Brother Qiwei, I finally see you."
Li Qiwei suddenly felt as if he had been electrocuted. Apparently his original instinct took effect. His childhood memories flashed before his eyes quickly like a passing show.
After a long time, Li Qiwei patted Wang Luyao on the back and said softly, "Okay, there are still so many people here, let's talk about it when we get back."
Although he seemed calm, he was actually secretly happy inside. I am not a master of literature, but I can still pick up girls.
Li San and other onlookers silently ate a lot of dog food. Only Hong'er had a strange expression, happy and disappointed at the same time, but no one noticed.
On the train from London back to Cambridge, He Yujie and the other three were extremely excited and kept asking Li Qiwei various questions and what plans he had for the future.
Li Qiwei looked at the three young faces in front of him and felt deeply moved. They are the future of China.
The information of these three people emerged in my mind. It was obvious that they were not unknown people, and their birth stories were also very interesting.
He Yujie's father was a county magistrate, and he was from an official family. Xia Yuanzhen was from a family of scholars, and was influenced by his father since childhood, so he had a high level of traditional cultural literacy.
Xu Qitai was born into a family that was educated in Western culture. He was very familiar with mathematics, physics and chemistry since childhood, and even translated scientific literature.
Sure enough, in this era, China's elites have begun to rise, and only these elites have the ability to lead countless ordinary people to build a new world.
At the same time, it can be seen from this that the Qing Dynasty had long been unpopular, and officials, gentry, and intellectuals had all opened their eyes to the world.
Li Qiwei was full of enthusiasm and waved his hand, "Yujie, Yuanzhen, Qitai, don't worry, I have arranged everything. When you arrive, you can go directly to Cambridge University to study."
"Wow." The three of them exclaimed at the same time. They obviously had some idea about Cambridge University. Especially Xu Qitai, he asked excitedly, "Is it the university that Newton attended?"
Li Qiwei smiled and said, "Yes, Qitai, you know a lot."
Xu Qitai laughed, "I once helped my grandfather translate his book Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, but it was too profound."
Li Qiwei was suddenly shocked. Wow, this person has a pretty solid foundation. To be honest, he himself has never read this book. It seems that he has to be more careful when showing off in the future.
At this time, Wang Luyao said sweetly: "Brother Qiwei, can I also go to Cambridge to study?"
"Um, this." Li Qiwei was at a loss for words and explained, "Lu Yao, Cambridge University doesn't admit women yet, so there's nothing we can do."
"However, I can teach you individually. I am better than the teachers in school."
"Including you three, I have compiled a separate set of teaching materials, and I will teach you all together when the time comes."
Wang Luyao curled her lips, puffed up her cheeks and said disdainfully: "I thought the West was an advanced civilization, but I didn't expect that they also discriminate against us women."
"I can still go to a foreign girls' school in my country."
Li Qiwei could only try to smooth things over, and together with He Yujie and the other two, they cursed the British government and Cambridge University.
As the conversation progressed, Li Qiwei also gained some understanding of the personalities of the three people.
Xu Qitai is the oldest, but he is lively and cheerful, quick-witted and very good at dealing with people.
He Yujie is a thoughtful person who doesn't talk much and likes to think. He is a good candidate for scientific research.
As for the youngest, Xia Yuanzhen, he was strong-willed and never gave up. He was determined to become a master of Western learning and return to serve China.
Although the three have very different personalities, they are all very smart and full of spirit, which greatly increases Li Qiwei's confidence in the future of the Spark Project.
Then he looked at Wang Luyao who was sitting next to him. A faint fragrance drifted into his nose, and the girl's snow-white skin was as delicate as a baby's.
She was deeply immersed in the three young men's calls of "Sister Lu Yao" and her smile was as beautiful as a flower.
Li Qiwei took a deep breath, looked out the train window, and suddenly became full of anticipation for his future life.
Around 9 o'clock in the evening, the group finally arrived at their residence in Cambridge, and Li Qiwei asked them to have a good night's rest.
Tomorrow is the New Year according to the Western calendar, and he will host a welcoming party for the four of them.
What followed was the crazy “torture” of the three first Spark members.
After Li Qiwei and the others became familiar with the environment, they prepared to follow the teaching methods of a certain water middle school in later generations to let the young men experience the thrill of the college entrance examination sprint.
Only if you master mathematics, physics and chemistry, can you travel the world without fear.
Thanks to the monthly ticket of book friend [2019015]. Lao Xu is begging for follow-up reading and collection, begging for votes, thank you for your support. The members of the Spark Project are all here, and the protagonist is going to start working hard.
(End of this chapter)