British writer

Two weeks later,

Thursday, June 6, 1901.

Port of Liverpool.

The cruise ship's whistle sounded "dirty--", urging people to board the ship as soon as possible.

On the pier, the ladies waved their handkerchiefs and said goodbye to their lovers on the boat.

Lu Shi and Wodehouse were standing on the deck,

Because of their special status and the care they received from Britain and the United States, their luggage had already been loaded onto the ship, so there was no need to work around temporarily.

Wodehouse smoked his pipe in the wind,

The scent of smoke drifted away.

Lu Shi didn't like the smell of cigarette smoke, so he changed his position and stood upwind. Then he took out his copy of "Mirror", turned to the comic version of "Jane Eyre", and read the ending.

Wodehouse asked: "The sales have improved a lot in the past two days, right?"

Because "The Fellowship of the Ring" and "Jane Eyre" were completed one after another, the newspaper must have sold well.

Lu Shi replied: "A new high."

Wodehouse couldn't help but feel proud,

"With the Mirror, the reputation of the London University Union can rival Oxbridge. Agreeing to you to run the newspaper at that time was the most correct choice I made in my life. I can only say that you are capable, and I also have a keen eye for people. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha……"

The Earl would put gold on his face.

Lu Shi was speechless and put the newspaper away.

Dirty dirty——

Another whistle sounded.

Along with this, some clouds gathered in the sky over the Port of Liverpool, and bits and pieces of rain fell, leaving a slight chill on the cheeks.

Wodehouse stretched himself;

"Comfortable."

No need to carry luggage, of course it is comfortable.

When he turned to Lu,

"Lu, I heard that China has twenty-four solar terms?"

Lu Shi said in surprise: "Sir, do you even know this? Yes, according to the unique Chinese calendar, today is indeed one of the twenty-four solar terms - awns. Cereal crops with awns can be planted. After this, it will be awns." Failure'."

This topic interested Wodehouse;

He asked: "Is there a reason?"

Lu Shi thought for a while,

"Probably because this season has significantly higher temperatures, abundant rainfall, and high air humidity, which is suitable for growing cereal crops."

Wodehouse shrugged;

It was difficult for him to understand because the two places he spent the longest time in his life were London and South Africa.

The former is moist all year round, while the latter is so hot that a person's face is redder than a monkey's butt.

He said: "Climate issues belong to the category of geography, and they are also covered in "Guns, Germs and Steel" written by you. Sometimes I really wonder if you are a naturalist, how can you know all the knowledge in all fields, and know a lot. "

The tone is sincere and doesn't sound like flattery.

Lu Shi was a little embarrassed,

Fortunately, the cruise ship left the port at this time and slowly sailed into the rain curtain.

The tobacco in Wodehouse's pipe was wet with rain,

He took off his pipe,

"Let's go to the club downstairs and play darts, poker, etc. I can take you to try bridge. It will definitely be more interesting than that landlord fight."

Lu Shi was curious,

"Sir, have you ever played Landlords?"

Wodehouse replied: "Standing by for a moment or two."

Stand by and participate?

I didn’t expect that “cloud players” could be described in such a fresh and refined way.

Lu Shi: "..."

The two of them went all the way down to the cabin level and entered the cruise club.

In the center of the cabin is a circular stage. Around the stage, more than thirty round tables extend outwards to the cabin wall.

There are leisure utensils on the table,

Poker, chess, dominoes, books...

Everything you need.

Lu Shi even saw "No Survival" and "Roger's Mystery" on the bookshelf.

Wodehouse took his seat;

"The next ten days will all depend on them."

From Liverpool to New York, the cruise ship needs to sail south along the island of Ireland, and then sail north along the east coast of South America. The entire voyage takes about twelve days.

Of course, the specific time is affected by weather conditions.

Lu Shi also sat down.

"Fortunately, it's shorter than the time from Foshan to London."

Wodehouse chuckled;

"You are patient. I heard that Germany built a new steam cruise ship called Deutschland. It can reach an average speed of 27 knots and even set a new record for crossing the Atlantic Ocean in less than six days."

He stretched himself,

"It would be great if we had a ship like that sometime~"

Lu Shi thought of the Titanic inappropriately and did not dare to say anything.

Wodehouse picked up the cards,

"Bridge?"

Lu Shi only knew that bridge was a two-on-two card game played by four players. There were many types and complex rules, so he whispered: "I have never played bridge before, and my level is very low. Besides, it's just the two of us, how can we do it?" Play?"

Wodehouse chuckled;

"The lack of people is called a problem? Poker is meant to be social."

He first briefly introduced the rules to Lu Shi, then took out a few banknotes from his body, and pressed them with a silver pocket watch inlaid with magnificent rubies.

In an instant, the table became "bejeweled".

Lu Shi was helpless,

"Jazz, is this what you call socializing?"

Wodehouse chuckled.

"High-end social networking."

As he spoke, he did not forget to nod to the pocket watch chain on the button of Lu Shi's suit, and urged: "Lu, for any card game, the best way to learn is actual combat."

Lu Shi had no choice but to imitate others. He took out the banknotes and pressed them with his pocket watch.

Their behavior amounted to a silent invitation to the gentlemen around them.

Wodehouse smiled and said: "That's right~"

He searched the club with his eyes and soon found his "prey". He winked at Lu Shi and said,

"Look over there, right at the bar, two Yankees. The Yankees are all old-fashioned, and they probably aren't good at bridge either."

Lu Shi looked away,

I saw that there were indeed two people in suits and ties looking at me, walking hesitantly, as if they wanted to get closer, but they were hesitant.

The two looked somewhat similar, so they seemed to be brothers.

He asked curiously: "How do you know you are American?"

Wodehouse, slightly embarrassed, replied: "Hair."

Lu Shi said: "Judging by hair? Is it hair color?"

Wodehouse became even more embarrassed and remained silent.

Lu Shi suddenly understood,

British people generally have large foreheads, like light bulbs, and have a high rate of baldness, which occurs very early, so-called "premature baldness".

At the same age, Americans' hairlines are much better.

Lu Shi tried his best to hold back his laughter with a straight face.

"I understand."

Wodehouse coughed, stood up, and said to the two Americans: "You two, do you want to play a game?"

The two Americans looked at each other, their eyes full of surprise.

They came over immediately and sat down.

Wodehouse held his pipe in his mouth and began to shuffle the cards. At the same time, he said somewhat vaguely: "Both of you should know the rules of bridge, right? Let's play a game first to get acquainted with each other, and then introduce ourselves to each other. How about it?"

As a result, the two American brothers ignored him and instead stared at Lu Shi with "affectionate" eyes.

Lu Shi felt goosebumps at the sight and quietly moved his chair back.

Wodehouse frowned;

"Both of you?"

Only then did the two American brothers come to their senses.

The older one said: "Sir, I'm sorry. In the United States, poker's development policy has been in a state of chaos and uncertainty. In many regions across the United States, poker has been classified as an illegal competitive sport, so we also Not very good at it.”

Wodehouse couldn't help laughing.

"Come on, do you dare to say that you don't know how to play poker? Even if you don't know how to play poker, you can definitely gamble with poker~"

This is true.

The two American brothers also laughed,

The atmosphere was relaxed, and the distance between the two parties suddenly became much closer.

The older American said: "My name is George Pike, and this is my brother Edward Pike. We have a company in Salem, Massachusetts, that specializes in making table games called Pike Brothers."

As soon as George finished speaking, Edward couldn't wait to look at Lu Shi,

"Professor Lu? Are you Professor Lu?"

"Tsk..."

Wodehouse was speechless, winked subtly at Lu Shi, and said, "Come on, I'm here for you."

He put the playing cards back into the box.

Lu Shi was curious,

"How do you know me?"

Edward said: "Just now, when we were playing deck putt, we heard this gentleman say that you were the author of "Guns, Germs and Steel", so he followed... ahem... paid attention to you."

Lu Shi's head was full of black lines,

￣□￣｜｜

He was sure that the other party must have mentioned the word "following" just now.

Wodehouse asked curiously: "I noticed that your company's headquarters is in Salem, which is a historic seaport city where many Europeans settled. So, you have the ancestry of a certain European nation?"

George replied: "This..."

Wodehouse said: "I am John Wodehouse, you may call me 'Sir'."

Jazz! ?

The two American brothers were slightly frightened.

It wasn't like they hadn't heard Lu Shi call Wodehouse that way just now, but they all thought they had heard it wrong.

George said, "Sir, we are indeed ninth generation French immigrants."

Wodehouse nodded,

"Ninth generation? That's too long ago. Are you coming to the UK to promote tabletop games?"

George replied: "That's right. It's a pity that our game is so... alas... the British don't like it."

He nodded to his brother,

The latter immediately understood and took out a beautifully packaged box from the bag.

With the movement, there was a soft sound of stones colliding in the box, which should be the sound of the chess pieces.

The name of the game is written on the box:

"Klondike Gold Rush".

Wodehouse was stunned;

As a British person, I can't even read it.

They are obviously all English words!

He asked: "What is this?"

The Parker brothers couldn't help but sigh,

George said: "This is why we can't find a partner. Even if everyone speaks English, the geographical distance still creates a cultural gap."

Lu Shi explained: "'Klondike' is a geographical term that refers to the area surrounding the Klondike River, located in Alaska; and 'Gold Rush' is indeed a unique phrase in the United States. , is actually the Westward Expansion Movement.”

When it comes to the westward expansion, Wodehouse understands it;

The westward movement refers to the movement of residents from the eastern United States to the west, which began in the late 18th century and ended in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

He said: "'Gold Rush' is quite appropriate, literally translated as the yearning for gold."

The Parker brothers on the other side looked at Lu Shi in surprise.

None of them thought that a Chinese person could know so much.

George said: "Professor Lu is right. But one thing must be corrected. The Klondike is actually in the wilderness east of Alaska. In principle, it is not considered U.S. territory."

That is, within modern Canada.

This was also the first time Lu Shi heard of it.

"Been taught a lesson."

George waved his hands repeatedly,

"Don't dare."

Although Americans are generally confident, they are also self-aware and dare not show off in front of Lu Shi.

Lu Shi asked: "Do you mind showing me this game?"

He was also curious about board games of this era.

Edward opened the box,

"please."

The space inside the box is divided into three grids, which contain maps, chess pieces, and "gold" respectively.

Lu Shi picked up a chess piece and weighed it.

Very thick and good quality.

It is true that the parts of board games in the early 20th century were entirely handmade, and the craftsmanship was not as good as modern ones, but the advantage was that the materials used were solid, and stone chess pieces looked "more expensive" than modern plastic parts.

Wodehouse had never been exposed to such things, and was as curious as a child.

"How to play this?"

Lu Shi rummaged through the box,

"No instructions?"

One sentence struck the Parker brothers like a bolt from the blue.

George murmured to himself: "The instruction manual...yes, you can get an instruction manual!"

Lu Shi: "..."

"Your game doesn't even have a description, how can it be sold?"

George said sheepishly: "Actually, there are instructions, but it is not a separate instruction manual, but a form printed on the box. When the salesperson sells it, he will first guide the players to find the rules on the box."

Wodehouse chuckled;

"I like your choice of words, referring to 'customers' as 'players'. With this mentality, you don't have to worry about the game not being sold."

The Parker brothers were immediately encouraged.

"Thank you Sir."

Lu Shi said: "However, you should still implement the instruction manual. Asking the salesperson to teach the rules on the spot every time will definitely seriously affect the spread of tabletop games. Because the ease of learning is too poor, it cannot be passed on by word of mouth among players. "

George smiled bitterly,

"I didn't expect that Professor Lu would be better at doing business than us."

Wodehouse said: “Sometimes I wonder how there are such versatile people in this world who are proficient in everything from writing books and teaching to starting a business and running a newspaper.”

Started to flatter again.

Lu Shi coughed slightly and changed the subject: "Mr. Edward, you just said 'pay attention' to me. Why?"

Edward looked at George;

Obviously, he was seeking his brother's opinion.

George hesitated for a moment, and finally decided to give it a try: "Professor Lu, you are the editor-in-chief of the Mirror, right?"

Lu Shi nodded,

"It seems that you have a good feel for me~ Yes, I am indeed the editor-in-chief of "Mirror". Is there any problem?"

George replied: "There was an interview with the author of "Jane Eyre" before, which mentioned 'adaptation' and 'secondary creation'. I don't know what your attitude is about this. If possible, do you hope that 'The Lord of the Rings' will be A second creation?”

Lu Shi understood,

"What you are saying is that you want to turn "The Lord of the Rings" into a tabletop game?"

He was asking about his brother George,

As a result, before George could answer, Edward spoke: "Professor Lu, don't you think this is very appropriate!? Imagine creating a world of dragons, wizards, dwarves, and elves on the desktop..."

His eyes were so bright.

George had to interrupt: "Edward! Calm down!"

But Edward didn't hear it at all,

"The war in Middle-earth has begun, and the players are controlling the chess pieces step by step..."

George raised his voice: "Love! Germany! China!"

He grabbed Edward's shoulders and shook him back and forth.

Only then did Edward come back to his senses;

A man in his thirties looked like a child who had done something wrong, bowing his head in shame and apologizing.

"I...I'm a little excited."

More than just excitement?

It was simply too much excitement!

Lu Shi smiled and said: "Of course you are right. However, it will be difficult to build Middle-earth on the desktop, right?"

Edward fell into low pressure instantly,

"Yeah, it's hard."

George on the side said: "That's why we were so excited when we met Professor Lu. Our ability is not enough to create a Middle-earth world that can be put on the desktop, but you are different! You are the author of "The Lord of the Rings", if you can If you participate in the production, why not worry about it?”

Lu Shi was speechless,

I thought that these two brothers actually wanted to develop themselves in the direction of formulating DND rules.