The Shadow of Great Britain

Chapter 877: Chapter 11 Ashamed to Admit, I’ve Made a Small Contribution to Fluid Mechanics_2

Arthur felt as uncomfortable as if he had eaten a fly upon hearing this, he had managed to steer the conversation away, only to find it circling back to the essay.

Arthur had to divert the other party’s attention again, and he asked, “By the way, we’ve been talking for so long, I haven’t had the chance to ask your name.”

The man extended his hand cordially, “Joseph Liu Weier, pleased to meet you, Sir.”

Arthur shook his hand and asked, “You look very young, it’s a miracle to be able to establish yourself in the French Academy of Sciences at such a young age where geniuses gather.”

Liu Weier, a bit embarrassed by Arthur’s praise, chuckled awkwardly, “You’re too kind, there are only 60 members in the Academy’s mathematics and physical sciences division, I’m merely fortunate to assist one of them.”

“So, you’re an assistant then?”

“Yes, I serve as an assistant to Professor Mathieu at the École Polytechnique in Paris, and occasionally, Mr. Ampere also asks for my help. When I was studying at the École Polytechnique, Mr. Ampere was my mentor in analytical mechanics, and I’m also very interested in his direction of electrodynamics, so we’ve maintained close contact till now.”

At this point, Liu Weier suddenly stopped and asked, “By the way, would you like to meet Mr. Ampere? It would be a pity not to engage with him after coming all the way from London.”

Arthur felt like he was being pushed into a corner.

He didn’t want to come to the French Academy of Sciences for this reason, he had anticipated such a situation might arise. Meeting Ampere was fine, but knowing what to discuss with him was a major problem.

Faced with the enthusiastic Liu Weier, Arthur had to take a different approach, “Um… there’s no rush for that, I’ve suddenly taken an interest in your annual essay. Joseph, it might be presumptuous of me, but could you find me a quiet place to think about how to tackle this problem?”

“Oh! Of course!”

Hearing that Arthur planned to write an essay, Liu Weier’s interest was piqued, “I knew you must have some insights into mathematics, the Academy has a quiet room with a blackboard, chalk, and paper for calculations, you can deliberate on your essay there. Once the committee members arrive, I’ll come and notify you.”

Once mathematics was mentioned, Liu Weier seemed to open up, enthusiastically sharing his recent research results, “In the past two years, I have been studying the works of Leibniz, Euler, and Bernoulli, trying to classify algebraic and transcendental functions. The first classification paper I submitted to the Academy last year, and the second one is nearly complete. If you’re interested, you could take a look and suggest any necessary revisions…”

Agares, seeing Arthur’s expressionless face, couldn’t resist mocking, “Oh! My dear Arthur, look at that sour face! You didn’t look this bad even when you got beaten to death under the Tower of London.”

Just after mocking Arthur, the Red Devil immediately played the good guy, putting an arm around Arthur’s shoulder, “Alright, twenty souls, I’ll help you with the essay. If you don’t win, I’ll double compensate you.”

Arthur glanced at the Red Devil, muttering, “I say…”

Agares put a hand to his ear, pretending not to hear, “Louder! Beg me, yes, beg me!”

“Agares.”

“What? What?”

Arthur took a drag from his cigarette, “You are truly Baal’s shit-shoveler.”

“Huh?” The Red Devil was puzzled, “What do you mean?”

Arthur exhaled a smoke ring, “It’s simply daylight robbery!”

“What the fuck!,” The Red Devil was fuming, “Arthur, you little bastard, how dare you insult me by comparing me to Baal! We could have negotiated, but if you talk like this, it’s going to be about more than just twenty souls!”

Arthur shrugged, “My dignity isn’t worth enough to exchange for twenty souls, anyway I’m not buying, you can set whatever price you want.”

While the man and the demon were still arguing, Liu Weier had already arrived at the quiet library he mentioned.

He skillfully took out a key and opened the door, and when he turned around, he found Arthur lagging behind. He quickly raised his hand and signaled, “Sir, this way.”

Arthur and Agares exchanged glances, then silently headed towards the library.

This quiet little library seemed to have quite a history, its exterior quaint, built of red bricks, covered with the marks of time and lush green ivy. For a scholar, this room, set on a secluded path away from the hustle and bustle, with small bookshelves filled with reference materials, was indeed an ideal research place.

Liu Weier deftly took out a thick stack of calculation papers from the desk drawer and placed them on the table for Arthur, and then generously offered his new stylish fountain pen for his faraway friend to use.

Finally, he pointed to the blackboard at the desk, reminding, “If you’re not used to using a pen, you can write and draw directly on the blackboard with chalk. I’ll go get the papers now, I’ll trouble you in a bit.”