I am aging gracefully in the world of famous books

George Rexa let his mind empty for more than ten minutes, and then got up to say goodbye amidst the dense tea fragrance.

"Miss Hoffman, thank you for your hospitality, I have to go to the research institute."

Pei Xiang got up to bid farewell, and asked casually:

"Mr. Rexxar, do you have any free time these few days to visit the 'House of Thorns'? The store purchased two philosophical works in Greek two days ago, and the professional vocabulary in them is a bit unfamiliar to me. I want to ask you a question or two."

Rexxar replied without thinking:

"In the last three to five days, I probably won't be able to spare time to leave the laboratory of the research institute. However, you can make a copy of the record of the question and send it to me. If I have time, I will help you answer it first. Some questions that I can answer, and then someone will send you what I wrote."

Pei Xiang nodded, with a natural and familiar tone:

"I see, it's still the same as before. After you finish working for a while, let's discuss and communicate in detail. I hope my trivial questions won't disturb your experimental thinking."

"No, I really like to think about Miss Hoffman's questions in between experiments. I regard this as a good way to relax. At the same time, I also hope that my answer will not disappoint Miss Hoffman. "

"At the moment... it won't be possible," Pei Xianghui said with a sly smile, "But, I know that I am making rapid progress. Mr. Rexxar, you have to be careful, maybe one day it will be your turn." It's time for you to ask me for advice."

Faced with such a "threat", Rexxar showed an expectant expression instead:

"Well, the speed at which you grasp new knowledge is really amazing. If I were still teaching in school, I would be very happy to meet students like you. I also very much hope that one day in the future, you Can help me solve those difficult problems that confuse me."

"Does Professor Rexxar have many puzzles in his mind?"

The tall man slowed down his pace slightly, and said softly:

"Of course, Ms. Hoffman, no matter in life or scientific research, is like a giant in Greek mythology, which makes me unable to face up to and admit my ordinaryness and weakness. Therefore, I welcome a friend who is more intelligent to give me advice Maze."

"Ordinary and weak?" Pei Xiang's eyes fluttered, and a faint smile surfaced in his eyes, "Please let me have the audacity to confirm that the smarter friend you are talking about is me?"

"Miss Hoffman has no doubts."

"I thought...Professor Rexxar, who has become famous since he was young, should be high-spirited and full of confidence."

"It's not against a mindset of self-confidence or something... I don't take my abilities and talents lightly, but I like to applaud the best of my kind."

"Really? With such affirmation from you, I don't know whether to be happy or lament."

"Lament?" Rexxar raised an eyebrow.

"Mr. Rexxar, you suddenly praised me with such colorful words today, um, since you and I have known each other for two years, and you had countless opportunities to compliment my little vanity, but you chose today... ...Isn't it because you noticed that I lack the motivation to strive for progress recently, so you spoke to motivate me? It's like rewarding candy to a child who has become a little lazy and playful?"

Rexxar curled the corner of his mouth, but didn't answer immediately.

After the two of them walked out of the gate of the "House of Thorns", before getting into the carriage, he replied:

"Miss Hoffman, to be honest, I really didn't expect you to be as willing to exchange knowledge with me as before. Since Captain Butler decided to stay in Liverpool for a while, I have rarely been able to I met you in this bookstore. I ran into the two of you traveling by car a few times on the road.

"Of course, I didn't mean to express my disapproval by mentioning these suddenly. I have always believed that being reasonable is a virtue. And for young girls, there are too many colorful and interesting pleasures in life to enjoy comfortably. Idle and live comfortably, singing and laughing every day, who wants to be exposed to some serious and difficult fields?"

Pei Xiang blinked, glanced across George Rexar's handsome and understanding face, and sincerely echoed:

"You are indeed a reasonable enough gentleman, and I agree with the view that moderate enjoyment is essential."

"I'm glad we agree, Miss Hoffman. But I have to add that you need to be careful in choosing your playmates. Some people take vulgar and grandiose pleasures for enjoyment, but they don't know that natural and refined pleasures are often more important." Can touch the soul."

"This is really true, Professor Rexxar, and I have a deep understanding. Captain Butler is a very good playmate. He is proficient in all kinds of exquisite and fashionable games and is knowledgeable... He is also good at making small Surprise, last time..."

The curvature of George Rexa's lips remained unchanged, and he listened gently to Pei Xiang's praise of Rhett Butler's various whimsical ideas.

Pei Xiang recalled a few small things, and then slowly gathered the cashmere shawl on his shoulders, suddenly realizing that the weather this morning was a bit cold.

"Professor Rexxar, after you finish the work at hand, why don't you relax for a while? You have lived in Liverpool for many years, so you can't be as familiar with the interesting places in this city as Captain Butler?"

Rexxar thought, who could be more familiar with the streets and alleys and secret corners of this city than himself?It's just that due to several identities, many itineraries cannot be made public for the time being.

Recalling his identity and mission, Rexxar was silent for a moment, and then said slowly:

"I will consider Miss Hoffman's suggestion. Compared with Captain Butler, my schedule is indeed a bit monotonous. When... I can really relax, I will enjoy all the good things in life. At that time, I hope to have the honor to share with Miss Hoffman."

Pei Xiangyan said: "That is also my honor."

The two spoke a few more words, and George Rexa left in the carriage.

Pei Xiang stood quietly in front of the "House of Thorns" shop for a moment, until a gust of cool wind blew the hair from her ears, and then she turned and went back indoors.

Two winters and springs, time flies, Pei Xiang not only improved the financial situation of the Hoffman family with his brother Edward, but also made several good friends.

Of all the friends, George Rexar firmly occupied the first place. At some time, he had changed from a generous client to a confidant who was both a teacher and a friend.

If one ignores the fact that the two are concealing each other's secrets, judging from their daily contact, their tempers and ideas are still very compatible. When they meet together, there are always endless topics to talk about.Maybe others will listen to it very boring, but neither she nor he finds it boring.

How many things does Pei Xiang know?Her brother Edward Hoffman didn't know and wasn't capable enough to know, but George Rexxar could see part of the truth.

Of course he had some doubts, how did such a young girl of ordinary background acquire such valuable knowledge?He had already started to investigate when the two met, but unfortunately, he never came to a clear conclusion.

However, although he didn't investigate the mystery that he most wanted to solve, Rexxar didn't find nothing.

At the very least, he found out that the identity of his supposed cousin, James Hoffman, was a fabrication.Later, after his careful observation of "James Hoffman", he was surprised to find that this young man with business talent turned out to be a daughter, the beautiful and shrewd Lucy Hoffman.

Rexxar thought, some powerful person taught Lucy Hoffman, let her master some superficial camouflage skills, able to disguise herself as a man to deceive ordinary people who have not received special training.

However, even if this girl can use her identity as a man to get along in the business world like a fish in water.However, some camouflage techniques are not perfect after all, and in the eyes of specially trained professionals, many small flaws can still be found.

For example, Mr. George Rexar from Washington.

He can pretend to be the most authentic British gentleman, can remove all traces of Americans on his body, can complete one task after another quietly, and naturally can accurately find out many disguises around him.

After discovering Miss Hoffman's double identity and a small flaw, George Rexha dispelled many doubts.He was almost certain that her appearance in his life was not a deliberate arrangement, but an unspeakable fate.

At the same time, he also had a rough guess about the source of Miss Hoffman's knowledge.The mysterious person who can teach the girl the basic skills of camouflage, of course, can also teach her all kinds of precious knowledge.

The more Rexxar got in touch with Pei Xiang, the stronger the appreciation in his heart.

He naturally discovered that the little girl has a wide range of knowledge, but she has not yet formed a logical system, nor has she received professional training.She has been relying on self-study and groping forward. It is inevitable that she will focus on practicality and ignore theory.

Occasionally, he answered a question from the other party, and then he got that kind of bright eyes that made people feel happy.On that day, he suddenly felt that helping the little girl fill in the gaps in the knowledge system was actually quite fulfilling.

Later, the contact between the two became more frequent and the content of the exchange became more and more in-depth. George Rexa wrote down more and more observation records for Pei Xiang in his heart, so he inevitably invested more and more Many real emotions.

Until one day, Rexxar was surprised to find that he would be disturbed because of Pei Xiang's close relationship with that playboy Rhett Butler.

After being surprised, he took it for granted again.

However, for the time being, he didn't want to let the sprout break out of the ground, on the contrary, he had to calm down.

——Civil war is on the verge of breaking out, and too much energy should not be distracted from personal feelings, nor should a little girl be involved in it.

—Maybe... you can wait a little longer.

—But before that, there is still the question of that libertine named Butler, whose reputation in southern Georgia is not very good.

George Rexa silently suppressed all personal emotional fluctuations, and began to mobilize his staff to investigate Harrison Jones' true intentions in coming to Liverpool.

In fact, according to Rexxar's judgment, it is very likely that the other party came to the UK to buy guns and ammunition, and maybe they will reach an agreement with the British to support the war in the southern slave states.But he must not directly pass this inference back to Washington as accurate and credible intelligence. He must intercept some irrefutable evidence.

Thinking of Washington's overly optimistic attitude, George Rexa couldn't help frowning.

In his view, the southern states already had the determination to provoke a civil war. They felt that relying on the supply of cotton, they could get support and assistance from Britain, France and other countries to make up for the shortcomings of their own camp's lack of industrial production capacity.Such an idea is somewhat ridiculous and one-sided, but it is indeed the true idea of ​​many plantation slave owners.

In addition, the famous generals who are good at fighting in the United States are all from the south. Once the civil war starts, the northern army will definitely face the embarrassing situation of lacking military generals.

As a result, the southern states felt that victory was in sight, so they naturally ignored the objective differences in manpower, transportation, industrial layout, and economic development, and believed that the South would win.

The southern states are in a state of overexcitement and self-confidence, while the northern states have been seeking reconciliation and have no sense of urgency that war is about to break out.

While George Rexa was busy collecting and investigating various information, another accident happened in Pei Xiang's store where a customer lost his wallet.

On this day, Pei Xiang returned to the "House of Thorns" after drinking afternoon tea, and saw a blond man standing in front of the checkout counter with a little embarrassment, while the always smiling clerk White was very serious.

Pei Xiang took two steps closer, just in time to hear the blond gentleman asking White unhurriedly if he found a cigarette case wallet in the store.After he bought the books and left, he found that the wallet he was carrying with him was missing shortly after.

"Sorry, sir, the wallet you described was not found in the store."

After listening to White's words, the blond gentleman did not accuse the clerk of pestering the clerk like the previous guest did, but thanked him very politely, then turned and walked towards the door.

Hearing again that a guest lost his wallet after leaving the "House of Thorns", Pei Xiang immediately paid attention to this problem.

She thought to herself, if she hadn't reported a false case, she'd better get rid of that little thief who committed crimes near the "House of Thorns" as soon as possible, otherwise, it would definitely affect the business of the store.

Thinking of this, she carefully observed the owner's clothing and skin condition, and carefully distinguished his accent, and confirmed that this gentleman with a good temperament and appearance was not from England.

He should be a rich foreign kid visiting Liverpool.To be more specific, perhaps an American?

—Oh, he's probably on a tour of Europe?So, American Southerners?

Pei Xiang completed the preliminary judgment in an instant, and at the same time called out to the blond young man with a smile:

"Sir, I am Lucy Hoffman, the owner of this store. I just overheard your conversation with the clerk. I would like to ask if you have encountered any unexpected situations after shopping in this store, such as a stranger Suddenly approaching you or something."

"Good day, Miss Hoffman," the blond young man said hello with a smile, then followed Pei Xiang's prompt to think about it for a while, and then replied softly, "There was one time. After I left your store, I was not far away. I bumped into a small man at the intersection, and he seemed to be in a hurry, so he ran away in a hurry without saying anything."

Pei Xiang nodded thoughtfully, and suggested:

"Maybe the wallet was accidentally dropped during the collision and was picked up again. How about this, sir, I will try to ask the residents and shops nearby to find out if anyone has picked up the wallet. If there is If there is good news, we will contact you again."

Pei Xiang's words brightened the eyes of the blond young man, and he said loudly:

"Thank you very much, Miss Hoffman. I am currently staying at the Baron Pepys' mansion. If your store finds out about the wallet, you can send someone to the Baron Pepys' mansion to inform me. Well, just Says Mr. Wilkes, Ashley Wilkes, that's my name."

Pei Xiang signaled the clerk to take down the information provided by Mr. Wilkes, asked a few more questions about the style of the wallet and the amount of cash in it, and then sent the polite Mr. Wilkes out of the store.

After returning to the store, she browsed through the messages left by the blond young man again, her eyes resting on the name "Ashley Wilkes", and she thought to herself, this gentleman could not be the heroine in "Gone with the Wind" First love?