SGB Chapter 310

## Chapter 310: Don’t Generate Electricity Here

Faraday was taken aback for a moment when he heard Arthur’s words, but he quickly realized what Arthur was referring to.

He shook his head helplessly, clutching his forehead, “I almost forgot what your main job is. You’re a policeman, and Scotland Yard is under the jurisdiction of the Home Office, right? So, Viscount Melbourne not only sent a bunch of officials, but also dragged you here to be a lobbyist?”

Arthur clarified with a serious expression, “You’re mistaken, I just learned about this from those officials. And I never intended to persuade you to forgive Viscount Melbourne. You have your own way of doing things and your own principles. From the moment you entered the field of scientific research, everything you’ve done has been incredibly correct.

Sir Humphry Davy was so strict with you, but you never held a grudge, and even after his death, you used your meager savings to build a tomb for him and turned his laboratory into a memorial at the Royal Society. I can’t see through a person’s heart, but I can see a person’s actions.

You’re definitely not going to have any problems. If you have a conflict with Viscount Melbourne, then he must have done something outrageous. You have every right to be angry with him, and I fully support you in this matter.”

Arthur’s words caught Faraday off guard. He had originally thought Arthur would speak well of Viscount Melbourne, but instead, Arthur went against the grain and didn’t even say a single good word for his superior.

Faraday hurriedly waved his hand, “Arthur, I’m glad you support me. But, I’m not as perfect as you said. In any case, that’s the end of it. Since it’s past, let it pass. Let’s not bring it up again.”

“Of course, I’ll listen to you.”

While speaking, Arthur reached into his pocket, pulled out a check, and placed it squarely on the experimental table in front of Faraday, “Mr. Faraday, that’s all for today. Mr. Wheatstone has been immersed in the Royal Society’s laboratory these days, I haven’t seen him for a while, and I miss him quite a bit. So, I’ll bid you farewell here, and wish you a pleasant life.”

Arthur turned around, tugged at the pleats on his shirt collar, raised an eyebrow, and a confident smile appeared on his face, the meaning of which was unclear.

Agareus, lying on the experimental table, simply trimmed his nails and shook his head, counting down, “Three, two, one…”

“Arthur, wait!” Faraday’s voice rang out behind Arthur.

Agareus sighed, whether in praise or criticism, the Red Devil said, “What a natural-born devil.”

Arthur adjusted his expression, turned around gracefully, and asked, “Do you have something else for me?”

Faraday looked at Arthur with a serious expression, holding up the check, “Arthur, did you forget something?”

Arthur shook his head earnestly, “I’m sure I didn’t, Mr. Faraday, the check was for you, it’s your hard-earned money, how can I keep it for myself?”

Faraday looked at Arthur, his brow furrowed tighter, “Arthur, you’re a great young man, and I admire you very much. Because of this, I don’t want our friendship to be ruined by such a trivial matter. While you still can, take this check back and return it to whoever gave it to you, let’s pretend nothing happened, okay?”

Arthur, upon hearing this, replied with the same seriousness, “Mr. Faraday, I can’t return this check to Mr. Rothschild. Besides, the success of the Astley Theatre performance wouldn’t have been possible without the instruments and chemicals you provided, and as the organizer, it’s his duty to pay you, why are you trying to save money for a banker?”

“This is Mr. Rothschild’s payment to me?”

Faraday was stunned for a moment, then declined, “I appreciate his kindness. But I didn’t contribute much to the performance. As for those instruments and chemicals, although some of them were made by me, they all belong to the Royal Society’s collective property. Besides, you were very careful when you borrowed them and didn’t damage their usability, so there’s no need to pay for damages. As for the chemicals… at most, just reimburse the cost of the materials. A little liquid carbon dioxide, it’s not worth 300 pounds.”

Arthur, upon hearing this, was filled with righteous indignation, “Mr. Faraday, since Mr. Rothschild is willing to pay so much, it means that your products are worth the price. You’re a scientist, but you don’t understand economics. The price of goods is determined by the market, if someone is willing to pay a high price, then selling it for a high price is reasonable.

It’s like the tea we often drink. If you buy tea leaves in the original production area in the East, you only need to spend a few pence to buy a basketful. But if you go to Covent Garden Market to buy it, you’ll need to spend six pence for a jar. And if you go to Twinings Tea Shop to buy it, even if you pay a shilling, they will use weights and scales to calculate it carefully, they won’t give you even a little bit of tea dust.

Moreover, Viscount Melbourne treats you so badly, which makes me even more upset. I must admit, the scientific annuity of 300 pounds a year is not a small sum, but if he can use this money to make you submit, then he’s wrong. Your value is far higher than he imagined, and higher than you think. As long as it’s a chemical made by Faraday, it can be resold for hundreds or thousands of times the price, and that’s your best revenge on him!”

Faraday, seeing Arthur so angry, hurriedly calmed him down, “Arthur, don’t be so excited. There’s no hatred between Viscount Melbourne and me, and it’s not about money. I don’t lack money, I don’t have rent worries, the Royal Society provides me with a free two-bedroom suite, and besides that, I get a fixed salary of 80 pounds a year. If I want to start a new research, the Royal Society will also subsidize some of the material costs. I’m the son of a blacksmith, my father never imagined that his son would be able to live like this now. I live better than most people, I’m truly very satisfied materially.”

Arthur, upon hearing this, pretended to be startled, “Ah… you… so you and Viscount Melbourne didn’t have a conflict over money?”

Faraday was also stunned, “Because of money? Arthur, what do you think we had a conflict about?”

Arthur pretended to be embarrassed and said, “I… I feel that the 300 pounds subsidy is completely unworthy of your value, Parliament can not give you a subsidy if they don’t want to, if they want to give you a subsidy, they should at least give you 3000 pounds a year.”

Faraday was amused by Arthur’s words, “Arthur, 300 pounds and 3000 pounds are the same to me. I don’t lack money, and I don’t want to accept government subsidies, they should use the money where it’s more useful. As for Viscount Melbourne, what I need from him is not 300 pounds, but a formal and solemn apology.”

As soon as Faraday finished speaking, Arthur immediately seized the opportunity, seizing control of the conversation, “Just an apology to forgive Viscount Melbourne, isn’t that too cheap for him?”

Faraday persuaded him, “Arthur, you’re taking this too seriously. This has always been a matter of apology, Viscount Melbourne must apologize for his arrogant attitude. Other than that, I need nothing.”

The Red Devil, standing by, heard this and laughed so hard he slapped his thigh, “The dam has opened a gap, it seems the loach is going to take advantage of the situation.”

Arthur glanced at him, then patted his chest and assured Faraday, “Don’t worry, although I’m not as influential in the scientific community as you are, and even in Scotland Yard, I’m just a small, insignificant policeman, but I will definitely convey your message to Viscount Melbourne. Either he apologizes to you or accepts my resignation. Anyway, he has to choose one of these two things.”

With that, Arthur didn’t give Faraday a chance to continue to retain him, and dashed out of the laboratory in one stride.

Behind him, only Faraday’s voice of persuasion remained, “Arthur, don’t be impulsive, it’s really not a big deal!”

Arthur ran all the way, the bandage on his neck bouncing with every step.

Only after he ran a long distance did he stop under a large tree, took out his pipe and put it in his mouth.

The sound of a match striking against phosphorus echoed, accompanied by a series of inhales and exhales, and wisps of white smoke rose from under the tree.

“Done.”

Arthur took two puffs of his pipe, thinking about going back to explain the situation to the officials, but as he stepped through the corner, he found that the officials were surrounding a lady, bowing and greeting her about her well-being.

And the lady, Arthur found her somewhat familiar.

Although she was wearing a rather inconspicuous floral dress today, the iconic pigeon blood red ring on her knuckles still made Arthur recognize her at a glance.

It was Viscount Melbourne’s sister, Viscount Palmerston’s lover—Lady Cowper.

Lady Cowper asked, “Has Mr. Faraday agreed to a reconciliation?”

The officials replied, sweating profusely.

“He… we have sincerely asked for his forgiveness, but… Mr. Faraday, his attitude is extremely tough, and he is not willing to compromise at all.”

“You know, scientists often have some quirks… in Mr. Faraday’s case, it mainly manifests itself in his stubborn temper, he’s like a stubborn donkey.”

Lady Cowper, hearing this, raised her fan to cover her mouth, her eyes filled with anger, “You’re simply rude! How can you compare the greatest scientist in Britain and the most cultured gentleman of the Royal Society to a donkey?!”

Official Bart also realized that he had slipped his tongue, and hurriedly apologized, “I’m sorry, Madam! My analogy was wrong, I meant Mr. Faraday’s temper is like a Scotsman’s. But rest assured, we’ve already sent someone else to continue to persuade him, and I believe that colleague of ours will have a way.”

Arthur stepped forward and spoke in a timely manner, “Mr. Bart, fortunately, you didn’t compare Mr. Faraday to a Scottish donkey. If I had known you felt this way about him, I wouldn’t have gone to persuade him for you.”

Lady Cowper, seeing Arthur, couldn’t help but be surprised, “Mr. Hastings? Why are you here… Oh, I almost forgot, you’re not only an upright policeman, but also a talented scientific researcher.”

Arthur took off his hat and smiled in greeting, “Madam, good afternoon. Long time no see, you are still so radiant.”

Lady Cowper, seeing Arthur’s red-rimmed black eyes, felt her agitated mood calmed down a bit.

“I’m also glad to see you again. Mr. Hastings, your manners are as good as ever. They just said someone went to persuade Mr. Faraday, that person who took on the responsibility, wouldn’t it be…”

Arthur smiled and nodded, “Madam, your wisdom and beauty are simply on par. A lady like you usually brings good luck to family and lovers, so this time, Mr. Faraday has decided to forgive Viscount Melbourne.”

“Oh, my God!”

Lady Cowper clasped her hands together and pressed them against her chest, “Mr. Hastings, I heard William say before that Scotland Yard is as important as half the Home Office. I didn’t believe it then, but now it seems he was telling the truth. I really don’t know how to thank you on behalf of William, look at the good things he’s done, if you hadn’t stepped in to help, Mr. Faraday wouldn’t have calmed down so quickly.”

Arthur smiled and said, “Madam, it’s nothing, just a small favor. However, Mr. Faraday also said that he forgives Viscount Melbourne with a condition. He requires Viscount Melbourne to apologize to him solemnly.”

Lady Cowper, knowing her brother was stuck in a swamp, agreed without much thought, “That’s only right. Even if you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have had William apologize to Mr. Faraday. He can be careless in Parliament, but he must never treat a distinguished and respected figure like this, whether it’s Mr. Faraday or you.”

Arthur was still thinking about how to bring up the matter of an apology with Viscount Melbourne, and now that Lady Cowper volunteered, he naturally had no reason to refuse.

Arthur took off his hat again and thanked her, “Madam, your respect for science is unprecedented. I will tell her everything you’ve done for Mr. Faraday. Well, I won’t take up any more of your time, we’ll chat next time we meet.”

Lady Cowper, upon hearing this,主动朝著亞瑟伸出了手，亞瑟下意識的就要伸出綁著繃帶的右手去接。

Agareus leaned against the tree trunk and yawned, reminding him, “Wrong!”

Arthur was startled and shuddered, hurriedly switching to his left hand, taking Lady Cowper’s palm and gently kissing it, then said goodbye and turned to leave.

Fortunately, she didn’t notice the truth behind this little incident.

Lady Cowper just looked at Arthur’s receding figure with satisfaction, and finally raised her fan to cover her mouth and smiled.

“It’s just a courtesy kiss, he’s actually shy, there are too few young people like this now. Striking looks, outstanding talent, and a good eloquence, not a noble, but has the bearing of a noble. Clearly a scientific researcher, but has the witty attitude of a poet. It’s a shame, if he had a distinguished father, even just a baron, I would definitely recommend him to attend Queen Charlotte’s ball next year, to meet the young ladies of noble families, it’s really a shame…”

Arthur walked around the corner of the path, leaned against the wall and took a deep breath.

In just a week, he had already staged so many plays in a row, probably even the most popular actor in London didn’t have such a dense schedule.

He took out his handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead, just as he was thinking about taking a break, he couldn’t help but catch sight of his friends gathered outside the window of a small building not far ahead.

Dumas and the others were looking inside, exclaiming in astonishment.

“My God!”

“Is that Mr. Wheatstone? I almost don’t recognize him!”

“This is Charles Wheatstone? You cover his face and tell me it’s Eldred Carter, and I would believe you!”

The Royal Society apprentices, on the other hand, were all sweating on their foreheads, and they shouted at the window, “Stop it! Mr. Wheatstone, stop electrifying, we’re not going in!”

Arthur walked to the window and glanced inside. Although it was just a glance, the visual impact it brought him was unparalleled, it was a sight he had never seen before. The electric light shone on Arthur’s face, illuminating his face hidden in the shadow of his hat.

Arthur was silent for a moment, then finally spoke to Wheatstone in the room, “Charles, take my advice, you can do anything, but don’t generate electricity here.”

(End of Chapter)