Shadow of great britain

4 Whitehall Street, Westminster, London.

Arthur was sitting in the office, looking at the two little guys sitting obediently in front of him with his arms folded. In front of him, there were two learning feedback reports sent to Scotland Yard from Greenwich Grammar School.

The office was so quiet that even Arthur didn't need to speak. He just glanced at them and the two brats lowered their heads in shame.

While flipping through the feedback report, Arthur read: "You tore up other people's copybooks, fought with classmates, and insulted teachers. Adam, Allen, do you two have anything to say about this feedback report?"

"Mr. Hastings, I..." Adam, who had panda eyes, looked up at Arthur, then turned to look at Pinkerton, who had a blue left face next to him, with a look on his face that he was hesitant to speak: "I……"

Pinkerton suddenly jumped down from the chair and threw his hat on the ground unconvinced: "Sir, if you really want to find someone to top the tank, then come to me. I am the one who initiated this matter. It has nothing to do with Adam, he is just a coward. Without my support, he would not have the guts to go against the teacher. You know, just like you support Miss Fiona."

When Arthur heard this, he just raised his eyebrows: "Alan, it would be great if you could learn spelling and arithmetic so quickly."

The red devil on the side couldn't help laughing when he heard this. He slapped his palms and blew up a small wind that picked up the little yellow hair on Pinkerton's head: "Look, Arthur, this kid will definitely have a future." There will be a future.”

Pinkerton said: "Sir, you have no idea how fucked up grammar school is! They look down on Adam and I, thinking that we are good gentlemen who only give in! They must understand that I It turns out that he is from Glasgow, and Adam is from St. Giles. If the teacher hadn't stopped us, we would have had to rip off the ears of those bullies!"

When Arthur heard this, the words on his lips turned around and he swallowed them again. He took a sip of tea and asked: "It sounds like there is something going on here?"

"Of course!"

Pinkerton said with a look of hatred on his face: "The grammar teacher doesn't like Adam and I. Maybe it's because he thinks we don't listen to him, so he always tries to find ways to make trouble for us. First it's because of spelling errors, and then it's grammatical errors. Then he said that our handwriting was illegible. After we corrected it, he suddenly called Adam and me up in class that day and asked us to repeat what he had just said.

Without Adam and I repeating it, he asked Adam and I to wear a pointed hat that said "Idiot" and hung a sign around our necks with all kinds of humiliating words written on it. After class, those arrogant guys started chattering in my and Adam’s ears and sang songs to mock us both. I couldn't hold it back for a moment, so I tore up all their copybooks and punched them twice. "

When Adam heard this, he quickly added: "Mr. Hastings, I originally wanted to persuade Alan to calm down. Because I once studied in a poor school for a few days, and the environment there was much worse than the grammar school. The teachers at the poor school were two old sailors who were often drunk. They didn't teach anything, and all they could do was keep us quiet. Except for the fact that we often didn't have enough to eat at lunch, the grammar school was generally much better. . But Allen was already mad at that time. He couldn’t listen to anything he said. He just wanted to give those bastards something powerful, so..."

Arthur asked: "So...how did you get involved?"

Adam replied sheepishly: "Aaron was riding on a child and beating him hard. That child was our little teacher. Mr. Hastings, do you know the little teacher? The little teacher is a college student. He is our teacher." The most learned among them, he is the one who teaches us when the teacher is away. He also gets four pence a week from the school, so he obeys the teacher's words.

The teacher didn't like Allen and I, so he excluded us both. It was because of this that Allen caught him and beat him to death. But the little teacher also had a group of his thugs. When those thugs saw their leader being beaten, they all rushed to give Allen some advice.

At that time I thought: Oh my God! These bastards actually want to touch my old friend who lives and eats with me! If I can't take good care of Allen, what should I tell my parents when I get home? When I go to Scotland Yard in the future, how can I have the face to tell Mr. Hastings that I caused him to lose a general? "

When Arthur heard this, he just turned over the documents in his hand: "Adam."

Adam said innocently: "What's the matter, Mr. Hastings?"

Arthur looked at him and said, "It seems that Allen really didn't treat you to candy in vain. You really do come to me if I have something to do."

Adam said blankly: "Sir, are you complimenting me? I thought you would at least scold us if you called us over this time."

Arthur leaned on the chair and said: "If what you two just said is true, then yes, I am complimenting you. Although it is definitely wrong to hit people, given that you have considered using appropriate methods to solve the problem, Improve your spelling, grammar, and sloppy handwriting. In addition, you had no better choice at the time of the incident, so you just hit me.

However, in order to prove that you two are not lying, I will ask Tom to prepare two copybooks for you tomorrow. If you can memorize all the words on them, then I will believe what you just said and will arrange for you to transfer to another school. What do you two think about a better school that is more suitable for you? "

Pinkerton felt quite happy at first, but when he heard that he was going to change from one school to another, he couldn't help but feel a little discouraged: "Sir, can't we just stop going to school? I think it's pretty good now. I can already spell a lot of words. If this thing hadn't happened, by the end of this semester, I should be able to jump from first grade to third grade."

"Oh! Really? Congratulations, Allen, you now have the basic qualities to become a clerk or a reporter."

At this point, Arthur changed the topic again: "But for an employee of the London Police Intelligence Bureau, or to become an outstanding detective, just spelling words is not enough."

"But……"

Pinkerton replied: "My buried father once said that if you want to find a job in society, it is probably useless to just rely on studying. It's like if a wealthy family wants to find a laundry maid , then most of them are introduced by the maids at home. For example, when looking for people in the mines, most of the people who come are relatives of the current miners. The sons of priests continue to be priests, and most of the officers of the Royal Navy also have one who is a general. Uncle and uncle, isn’t that what Mr. Carter is like? If my damn dad hadn’t passed away, maybe I would have been a policeman in Glasgow when I grew up.”

Arthur smiled: "Aaron, your father is right about this. But you also have to consider that there is me standing in front of you. Elder Carter is not the only officer in the Royal Navy. Although there are few captains climbing up the swineherd, you can still find a few if you force yourself to pick. The worst part is that you haven't realized what you have until now. You now have a priest uncle and a Royal Navy officer. The officer uncle is floating on the sea, and there is a policeman uncle sitting here, but you and Adam are..."

As Arthur said this, there was a sudden knock on the door.

The door was pushed open, and Louis Bonaparte stood outside the door holding a stack of documents. Just as he was about to enter, he was overwhelmed by the two brats in front of him.

Arthur pointed at the two brats: "See, there is an emperor here. You two just need to study hard now. As for these bad things that happened in school, I can't guarantee you that they won't happen again." It happens, and I don’t force you to tolerate it, but you can’t stop going to school just because you don’t like it.

I don’t like to talk about my past experiences with others, but for both of you, Allen and Adam, I think I still need to talk about it. Isn’t reading important? If your goal is to become a big shot, reading is not that important. But if you just want to live a better life than you are now, then reading is very important.

Don't think that I look very prosperous now. When I was nine years old, my life was far worse than yours. Alan, you lost your father when you were nine years old. Like you, I have never known what my father looked like since I can remember. Neighbors said that he might have been dragged away by a Royal Navy recruiter. There has been no news for so many years. He might have died at sea long ago.

As for my mother, she persisted for a few years and then remarried like your mother and followed a stranger to who knows where. The reason why I didn't starve to death was entirely due to the kindness of my neighbors and the local priest. Of course, the most important thing is that I am still physically strong and have never encountered any major disasters or illnesses in my life.

From the age of seven, I have been a living scarecrow on the fields in York. I still remember that it was early spring. I started sitting on the field ridge as soon as it got light. Whenever I saw crows coming to take seeds, I would throw stones at them. I sat there until the sun went down and then went back to sleep.

To this day, I occasionally dream about that scene when I have nightmares at night. I sit there alone, surrounded by silence. The hardened field ridges in early spring hurt my buttocks. I feel cold and hungry all over, and there is no one to talk to. No, it's like the world's time has frozen. I don't want to do this job, but I can't do it. I have to do some work in exchange for some bread.

Besides, those who have a father and a mother have to do these jobs, let alone me, who has no father and mother.

And when the seeds germinate, my treatment will be slightly better, and then I can go to herd the sheep for the farmer. When the harvest season comes, I help the adults harvest barley, throwing the wheat into the car one by one and moving it into the warehouse.

After finishing all this work, I transformed into a little pigherder feeding feed. In winter, I started to plow the fields with the farmhands again, carrying a hoe, and then started the cycle of the new year.

Because of this, once I have the opportunity to study, I will grab it like a drowning man grabbing a life-saving straw. I didn't know at the time that I could become the Superintendent of Scotland Yard. I just knew that reading more books would help me get out of the hell in the York countryside.

Being a company employee or a scribe may not sound like a big deal, but for me at that time, it was already a luxury that could reach the sky in one step. "

Agares rubbed Arthur's shoulder and said with a playful smile: "No need to thank me, Arthur, it's easy. But it's also interesting. I have been living this kind of life. When I first saw you, you were thinking about me." Steal a Bible from the local pastor and take a look. Will you convert to God if I am a step too late? Or do you think your life is too boring? "

Before Arthur could take over what the red devil said, the two kiddies over there jumped off their chairs and admitted their mistake to Arthur.

"Sorry, Mr. Hastings."

Louis Bonaparte was also very surprised and said: "This...I originally thought that a cultivated gentleman like you would have received a good family education...didn't I expect that you are actually the son of a farmer?"

Then Alexandre Dumas also popped up from behind him. The fat French man laughed at himself: "A farmer's son? That's still a higher status than my ancestors. But this world is still quite magical. Arthur, let the Bonaparte family How did you come up with the idea of ​​someone coming to be your police secretary? The most ridiculous thing is that he actually agreed!"

Louis Bonaparte did not take Alexandre Dumas's words to heart. He said: "Mr. Dumas, there is nothing ridiculous about this. I think it is better to study at Scotland Yard than wandering around the streets of London."

Hearing this, Alexandre Dumas wanted to say something. But when the words came to my mouth, I always felt uncomfortable.

As a French republican, he, like his friends Hugo and Balzac, had extremely ambivalent feelings towards Napoleon and his family.

Although they all agreed that Napoleon was a kleptocrat, they also highly recognized the series of legacies and glorious past that Napoleon left for France.

It was precisely because of this that he did not speak harshly to Louis Bonaparte when he met him, and even felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy.

Partly because his surname was Bonaparte, and partly because this guy participated in the Carbonari uprising in Italy.

But when he saw the article published by Louis Bonaparte in The Economist, this feeling of intimacy suddenly turned into a deep suspicion and confusion.

Because Alexandre Dumas really couldn't understand what was called a republican monarchy. This innovative political system was simply unheard of and unseen, surpassing Alexandre Dumas's own imagination, which he thought was already quite unfettered.

While Alexandre Dumas was thinking about Louis Bonaparte's intentions, the police secretary took the lead in walking towards Arthur and handed over the document in his hand.

"Sir, Congressman Bernie Harrison sent someone to Scotland Yard this morning, hoping to meet with Director Rowan. However, Director Rowan seemed to be not feeling well and asked for leave early today to go home and rest. Yes, he recommended Congressman Harrison to interview you first. If you think it’s okay, I’ll send someone to give him an answer. What do you think of the café outside Whitehall Street?”