Shadow of great britain

Russia is a country that cannot be understood rationally, nor can it be measured by ordinary standards: Russia has its own unique essence - we can only choose to believe in it. Russia's history is unique and amazing, and our reality is brilliant.

The Slavs will never be good students of the West, for we are destined to be the teachers of all mankind. Russia's future is limitless. Dear compatriots, all of us can see that Russia is entering an unprecedented era of prosperity for a thousand years!

——Feedro Ivanovich Tyuchev

The biggest reason for our feud with the Russians? It seems to me that Her Majesty the Queen, Parliament, the Cabinet and British citizens all have their own considerations. Perhaps he was angry at the atrocities committed by the Russians in the Battle of Sinop, or perhaps he wanted to protest against the Russians' invasion of the Principality of Wallachia and the Principality of Moldavia.

However, as far as I am concerned, the Russians are unwilling to unify scientific measurement units such as ‘years’, ‘months’ and ‘days’ with the mainstream standards of the European scientific community. This is the biggest worry for scientific researchers like me at the moment.

But the good news is that this is not just a concern for the Royal Society. My friends at the French Academy of Sciences are also concerned about the Russians’ idiosyncratic approach to the definition of scientific units.

Therefore, a joint scientific delegation from Britain and France is going to the Crimea to tell our dear Russian friends personally: Although Mr. Tyutchev is a poet, even for a poet, he is still not rigorous enough in the definition of time. , too childish. At least in the UK and France, our usual definition of a millennium is 365242.5 days.

——On the eve of the Crimean War in 1853, the social science column of "Nature" magazine "Sir Arthur Hastings: The stubborn Russians are trying to hinder the development of science and technology"

Sorry, Your Majesty, Prussia has decided to remain neutral in this conflict between Russia and Britain. In this war you had better not count on Vienna, much less Berlin. This is not only a collective decision of the Prussian monarch and his government, but also a result of my personal habits.

To tell you the truth, as early as 20 years ago, I was already standing in the neutral zone between Britain and Russia. And I would like to remind you that it was a bad move when you tried to intimidate Sir Arthur Hastings when he arrived with a British peace delegation a few days ago.

Of course, I am not accusing all British people of being petty. However, you are a wise man and a flawless ruler, so you must have insight into human nature and understand that everything has its exceptions.

What is even more regrettable is that in the current geopolitical situation, you allowed him to pull a perfect banner, and also indirectly contributed to the political reconciliation between Viscount Palmerston and Sir Arthur Hastings. These two guys who hate each other accepted the 'political blind date' arranged by you, endured their nausea and stayed in the same room, making out in front of the public as if they were newlyweds.

Prussia and I personally, we absolutely support your decision in spirit. But, on a practical level, you're currently better off focusing on dealing with these two troublesome nuisances on your own. Oh, no, I almost forgot, there are actually three haters, because Napoleon III also chose to side with them this time.

——Otto von Bismarck, Minister Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Prussia to the Russian Empire, sent a note to Russian Tsar Nicholas I at the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1853

"lead?"

The young man's German vocabulary was obviously not too high. He had not learned the word yet. He speculated that it might be a rank among professors at the German University: "What is a leader? You mean associate professor?"

"What is a leader? Your question has stumped me."

Arthur carefully recalled what he did at the University of Göttingen, and then explained to the young man in a strict manner: "The so-called leaders refer to those guys who are not engaged in any specific affairs, but can take all the credit."

The young man understood immediately when he heard this. He slapped his thigh and suddenly realized, and then said sarcastically: "So you are the Tsar at the University of Göttingen."

Arthur glanced at the boy, opened the wine cabinet in the smoking room and poured some red wine: "If you don't plan to go back to Russia, you can state it so straightforwardly. By the way, Russian college students don't seem to be as good as German ones. How cautious are college students?”

The young man didn't care at all about Arthur's kind reminder.

He was smiling and didn't think it was a big deal to joke about the Tsar.

Speaking ill of the Tsar in private was indeed a serious political problem in Russia, but the important thing was, wasn't he in Leipzig now?

Could a stranger in the smoking room, a foreigner teaching at the University of Göttingen, travel thousands of miles to Russia just to make a special trip to complain to the Czar?

In the opinion of young Herzen, there should be no such despicable and nosy person in the world.

Even in Russia, most of the lowly guys, the Russian secret police, are concentrated under Count Benkendorf, the head of the Third Bureau of the Imperial Office.

Today was just a whim. To celebrate his graduation, he and his classmates came to Leipzig to watch the premiere of the great musician Mendelssohn's new opera.

If this could all be a coincidence like meeting a Russian secret police lurking abroad, then Herzen felt that he would have to go find a gypsy witch to have his fortune told.

The man who was leaning against the wall and smoking silently never looked at him seriously. He looked arrogant and seemed not to bother to pay attention to him, a progressive student of Moscow University.

Such behavior also strengthened Herzen's idea that this guy was making fun of him and deliberately teasing him.

Because he had just recently offended this British gentleman by comparing his graduate school, the University of London, with the University of Kazan and the University of Kharkiv. That's why his pride was hurt and he came up with such a vicious way to tease him.

Herzen had little contact with the British, but his father had lived in Paris for several years as a diplomat. In Paris, his father met many upper-class British gentlemen.

According to my father's description, the British seem to be like this.

Although they are as cultured as the French, the British are much more emotionally fragile than the French. They say they don't care, but in their hearts they may already hate you.

Moreover, regardless of whether their thoughts are really noble or not, British gentlemen will pretend to be indifferent to the world. They always maintain a sense of distance from others, as if they are afraid that getting too entangled with others will cause them trouble. .

Of course, the British are not without their advantages.

Although some British people are just pretending to be polite, they can keep pretending for a lifetime, which is particularly admirable.

However, even though the British were very polite, Herzen's father still insisted that at least in terms of being friends, French gentlemen were far better than British gentlemen.

Although he said that, Herzen came to watch the show today, and he did not want to have multiple enemies for no reason.

Especially, it is possible that he did something wrong first this time.

He intended to ease the relationship with Arthur, so he took it for granted and used the best social magic weapon among college students: "Would you like to have a drink? My companions and I brought Levi Schalt sparkling wine. "

But as soon as the words came out of his mouth, Herzen regretted them.

While Lévisart sparkling wine is indeed his favorite, he likes sparkling wines with fruity flavors such as citrus, green apple, pear, peach, apricot and more. But to older people and professional wine lovers, this is a very childish taste. Enjoying sparkling wine usually means two things.

First, it means that the drinker is a young man with little experience.

Second, if he is not a young boy, then he can only be a country bumpkin who has never seen the world.

Of course, there are occasional special circumstances.

At such times, Hegel's logical dialectics must be used to organically combine the first and second points.

Sure enough, as soon as Herzen's words came out, Arthur, who never looked at him seriously, seriously looked at his black hair that was hanging down slightly because of shame.

But what Herzen didn't expect was that Arthur not only did not laugh at him immediately, but also asked tentatively: "I haven't drunk Levi Schalt's sparkling wine. It's so sweet." how?"

Herzen blushed and responded: "I don't always drink sweet drinks. Occasionally I drink some dry drinks."

"No need." Arthur smiled and patted the young man he just met on the shoulder: "Just have something you usually drink."

When the red devil riding on the sofa heard this, he couldn't help raising his palms to fan his nose in disgust, as if he smelled something foul: "What is this called? This is called: Baal is lost." ”

After finishing speaking, Agares did not forget to teach Arthur a lesson: "Arthur, since you asked someone to take a shot, the effect of labor reform has been very good. Now the only thing I am dissatisfied with you is you. I can’t stop having bad taste in wine knowledge.”

Arthur encouraged Herzen to lead the way. When he was walking out of the smoking room, he found an opportunity to retort: ​​"But my taste in smoking has always been better than that of a guy who specially bought an intestinal smoke treatment device. . Havana cigars are already rich enough, Agares, so you don’t need to add any special ingredients to them.”

Bang.

The sound of the door closing startled Herzen.

He looked back at Arthur, who was smiling all over his face, and muttered in his heart: "The British are indeed like this. The expression on their face and the thoughts in their hearts are two different things. He must be crazy now."

Arthur noticed the unnatural expression on his new friend's face, and the Czar of Göttingen, who was eager for some sweet water, quickly issued the "Edict of the State" to show his goodwill to the foreign resident who was not under his rule: "Don't worry, this is our UK. A special custom of locking bad luck in the smoking room to prevent it from coming out and harming the ladies. You know, gentlemen have stronger bones than ladies, and they can be resurrected even if they are crucified. Even someone as strong as Mary Magdalene would become weeping just by looking at the execution scene.”

Herzen almost burst out laughing when he heard this guy's religious joke.

He hurriedly covered his mouth until he realized that no one was looking around him, and then he laughed in a low voice with relief: "You were indeed lying to me earlier. The Tsar would not make such a joke."

Arthur did not deny it but did not admit it either. He just shrugged and said: "The Russian Tsar may not, but the Tsar of Göttingen is different."

Herzen was more determined to think that this guy was also a college student. He politely took off his hat and bowed, saying, "Well, Mr. Tsar, I hope our sparkling wine can match the specifications of the court banquet."

Arthur followed Herzen upstairs and headed for their box.

Not long after, the really mad Red Devil popped his head out from behind the door.

He waved the tube of the smoke therapy device in one hand and threatened, "If I had known this, I should have put this thing into your mouth while you were lying in the coffin!"

The Red Devil rolled up his sleeves and trotted upstairs. He locked onto Herzen's box and walked through the door, ready to teach Arthur a lesson.

However, as soon as he entered the box, he found that the atmosphere here was not right.

Half of the people in the room were smiling as Herzen introduced their new friends to them.

The other half stood stiffly beside the sofa with bottles of wine in their hands, or sat upright on the chairs looking around, feeling quite restless.

Arthur's eyes were fixed on the leader of the restless group. He looked at him meaningfully, then opened his arms and said enthusiastically: "Otto, what a coincidence, you are here too?"

Bismarck, who was still suffering from a hangover, coughed repeatedly. He felt that he must have offended the goddess of luck in the past two days, otherwise he would not have been involved in the turmoil of Young Italy, and it was even more impossible for him to go out with his classmates to find a few drinking buddies, and then fall into the surveillance of the villain Hastings again.

Arthur saw that Bismarck did not express his arrival, so he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at him.

The clever Bismarck knew that if he wanted to have a good drink today, he could only accompany Arthur to finish this play.

However, he did not intend to give up resistance completely now. At least in secret, he had to make it difficult for Arthur, at least to let him feel the pain of a hangover.

Bismarck stood up and hugged Arthur, saying, "It seems that no one can escape today. Arthur, my dear old senior, everyone in Göttingen knows that you are a big shot!"

Herzen's classmates also stood up and welcomed him.

"Otto, it seems that the fighting power of your Göttingen has been strengthened again."

"But Sasha is back, and the strength of our Moscow University has also been strengthened."

"The game has just begun, and the outcome is still unknown!"