Chapter 52
Under Adam’s guidance, Arthur and his companions arrived at the Crow’s Nest district, located deep within the St. Giles parish.
Arthur caught Dickens writing a few lines in his notebook with his peripheral vision.
—The streets were muddy and foul-smelling, the narrow, dark alleys reeking of excrement and vomit. A few small shops remained, but their shelves were sparsely stocked, their only wares perhaps the droves of children begging at their doors.
—Even though the sun had just risen, they were already crawling around the doorways, the cries of infants echoing from within the houses.
—Desolation reigned everywhere, except for the tavern, which seemed to be doing a brisk business, filled with the boisterous shouts of lower-class Irishmen.
—Narrow streets extended on both sides into corridors and courtyards. Through the gaps, one could see a cluster of dilapidated rooms, crammed together. There, drunken men and women rolled together, covered in mud, like pigs wallowing in a mire.
—From some doorways, burly men with fierce, menacing faces would occasionally emerge. Their eyes were shifty, and the deeds they were about to undertake were clearly not anything honorable or respectable.
Upon seeing this, Arthur slowly exhaled a smoke ring from his pipe, reading aloud.
“There are no toilets, no trash cans, no water pipes or clean water sources, and no drainage pipes for cleaning waste in the entire area.
Rather than living in the most prosperous city in Europe, they live in a primitive wilderness where civilization and care are unseen.”
Hearing this, Dickens paused his writing, twirled his hat, and asked.
“Arthur, did you study Classical Literature at the University?”
“No, I studied History.”
Dickens was somewhat surprised, “Is the educational level at the University of London so high? It seems that the previous reports about your school in the newspapers were all wrong, they were all unfounded slander.
You, a student of history, can possess such a high level of writing. If you had graduated with a degree in Classical Literature, you would probably be a literary giant.”
Arthur took a puff of his pipe and asked, “What did the newspapers say about our school?”
Dickens replied, “They say that the University of London is a university that does not consider faith in its admissions, and it doesn’t even have a prayer room. Such a school is simply a cesspool university. No matter how good a student is, after studying there for four years, even if he studies Classical Literature, he can only learn cesspool literature.”
Arthur wanted to refute the newspapers’ views on behalf of his alma mater, but his mind suddenly flashed with Elder’s infuriating smile.
He struggled in silence for a long time before taking a deep drag from his pipe and slowly said, “While I don’t agree with the newspapers’ views, it seems that there are indeed people who speak cesspool literature around me.”
Dickens asked uncertainly, “Are you talking about me?”
Arthur shook his head in denial, “No, Charles, I’m not talking about you. You’ve met that person, the one who was drinking with me at the tavern that day.”
Dickens was taken aback for a moment, then covered his forehead and exclaimed, “He actually studied Classical Literature? My God! If you hadn’t told me, I would have thought he was uneducated.”
Arthur raised an eyebrow and said, “That’s probably because you don’t understand the essence of education. Education can only teach students some skills, but it cannot teach them to think. Education doesn’t necessarily make people smarter, sometimes it even makes them worse.”
Dickens seemed a little confused, “I don’t quite understand what you mean.”
Seeing that he didn’t understand, Arthur asked, “If a stubborn fool receives a university education, what do you think will happen to him?”
Dickens hesitated, “Will it make him less stubborn?”
Arthur shook his head, “No, he will become more intractable than before.
Because he will choose the parts he likes from his education and add them to his nonsensical logic, making himself look even more ridiculous.
Charles, you must know that even the sun can only illuminate things that are willing to accept the light.”
Dickens asked, “Do you mean that stupid people shouldn’t be educated?”
Arthur shook his head again, “No. They should still be educated. Intelligent people who don’t receive education can only struggle to survive in this society. If stupid people don’t receive any education, how will they live?
Moreover, even I can’t be sure whether I’m intelligent or stupid. What if I’m the stupid part?
We think we are rational, we think our every action has a reason.
But the truth is, arbitrariness and prejudice are common to all types of people.
Charles, usually when I scold others, I’m also scolding myself, so in the end, it’s better to leave yourself a way out.”
Hearing this, Agareuss laughed and appeared, sitting on a half-broken awning board in front of a small shop.
“Arthur, how could you be prejudiced and stupid? You’re a clever villain.
You just need to avoid associating with those fools. As soon as people gather in groups, their intellectual level drops significantly.
To gain acceptance, they are willing to abandon right and wrong, sacrificing their intelligence and common sense for that sense of humble security and belonging that I find laughable.
Isolated individuals have the ability to control their own reactive behavior, while groups do not.
As long as they gather together, they lose their brains. Things they wouldn’t dare to do or even think about before, as long as there’s a leader, they can do them one after another for you to see.
What you have to do is apply some subtle, less easily detectable influences, perhaps a slogan, or maybe a behavior.
As long as they receive the information you convey, you can drive them to their deaths in the front while you sit in the back counting your money.”
Arthur glanced at the Red Devil, unable to fathom why he was saying this today.
He couldn’t say he was in a good mood, nor could he say he was in a bad mood.
Usually, when he was at peace, Agareuss was too lazy to speak.
Because even Arthur himself knew that it was difficult to tempt humans when they were in this state of desirelessness.
Agareuss was a seasoned salesman who had been around since the time of King Solomon, wouldn’t he understand this principle?
Arthur pondered for a moment, saying nothing, and followed the group forward.
In the alley ahead, there was a dilapidated two-story building. The roof had a hole in it, the traces of last night’s rain still hadn’t faded, and the tip of the eaves was dripping water drop by drop.
Adam, who was being led by Tom, let go of his father’s hand and whispered to Arthur and the others, “Gentlemen, please step back a bit. If Mr. Fagin sees me bringing outsiders back, he won’t just refuse to open the door, he’ll escape through the window.”
Arthur and the others exchanged glances and began to retreat.
“Okay, we’ll step back a bit, you be careful.”
Adam hesitated for a moment, then suddenly called out to Arthur.
“Mr. Hastings, are you really not going to arrest Mr. Fagin?”
Arthur winked at him and smiled lightly, “Have I ever lied to you?”
Adam, hearing this answer, finally felt reassured. He nodded earnestly.
Then he walked up to the door, which was reinforced with two layers of wood, and gently knocked three times.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The rhythm of the knocking was slow, but each sound was heavy.
Then, Adam curled his two fingers into a ring, imitated the call of a cuckoo, and whistled twice, before saying.
“The birds of the forest return home, Robin Hood, Robin Hood, open the door quickly. Don’t bring your bow and arrow, because I have brought you two cat eyes.”
The cottage was silent for a moment, then a sharp, raspy voice came from inside.
“Cuckoo, cuckoo, where did you fly back from? The crows of the forest brought back word that you went to the scaffold.”
“The cake blinded the eagle’s eyes, I returned from studying at the academy, ten days of vacation, easy and enjoyable.”
As soon as Adam finished speaking, a cloudy, yellow-spotted eye appeared in the round hole that had been carved out of the door.
The eye looked around Adam’s surroundings, and when it was certain that there were no hidden people, the door finally creaked open a crack.
“Adam, you can come in.”
Editor’s notice, there was a problem with the chapter comments in the free chapter of Qidian, and you won’t be able to see the new chapter comments released these two days. It is expected to be fixed next week.
However, I can still see the new chapter comments in the backstage. If you find anything that is not written correctly, you can still point it out, and I will see it and modify it. By the way, the time of the launch should be around the 16th.
To be honest, I really didn’t expect this book to reach second place on the New Book list. I would like to thank everyone for your support with your tips, monthly tickets, and recommendations! Thank you all for your patronage!
(End of Chapter)