A fraternity is a club-like organization that is linked together for secular purposes such as religion or socialization, and its members are mutually beneficial and equal. The earliest fraternity appeared in England in the eighteenth century, and one of the well-known fraternities, the Freemasons (also known as the Meisheng, Freemasons, Rules, and Masons) were often associated with conspiracy theorists and all sorts of nonsense in the age of mixed information because of their mysticism. In reality, however, Freemasonry is just a brotherhood with a strong religious flavor.

In addition to Freemasonry, the fraternities that are well known to the Chinese public are more active in universities. They are famous in part because they have organized many celebrities, such as the Skull and Bones Society at Yale University (which produced President George W. Bush), and some because they have "accidents" in bizarre "abusive" memberships.

From the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth century, it was the golden age of American fraternity organizations, and there were hundreds of fraternity organizations throughout the United States, when almost all adult men in the United States (during this period, fraternities were only allowed to join) were members of a fraternity. However, after the sixties, the organization of the fraternity began to decline rapidly, and only the fraternity in the university remained somewhat viable, and its nature was almost entirely social.

Generally speaking, fraternity associations usually adopt the principle of voluntary application for membership, and the membership process is regulated, and there are certain requirements for members (e.g., age, creed, race, gender, etc.). Therefore, it is relatively rare for an organization like Evan to be invited to join.

And it's not just one organization.

After also declining an invitation from Freemasonry, Evan returned to work with a hint of confusion.

That evening, Evan posed his question to Earl at the dinner table, "Why did they all come to me?"

Earl wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin, took a sip of red wine, and said, "It's not strange, Evan!"

"Because you're good enough. ”

"Evan, what kind of organization do you think the Brotherhood is?"

Evan replied, "A mystical society forged by a group of ritual freaks and mystics for various purposes, growing under a vision of mutual benefit?"

Evan was a little weak when he said this.

As soon as the words fell, Nina couldn't help but laugh.

Earl gave Evan a blank look and said, "What are you talking about?"

"You are not mistaken, though, that 'mutual benefit' is the underlying principle of any fraternity. ”

"A brotherhood is a collection of members who share the same purpose, ideals, and are willing to be equal and mutually beneficial, and its essence is a collection of human connections. The key to the value of a fraternity lies in the quality of its members, and high quality is the only way to attract new members, otherwise it will quickly weaken. ”

Evan said, "So, they fancy my 'quality'?"

Earl nodded.

Evan asked, "Earl, what do I do? To join, or not to join?"

Earl was noncommittal: "Why do you ask me? Evan, it's up to you to think about it." ”

Evan thought for a moment and didn't continue on the topic.

Earl didn't give any advice, but Evan figured it out. As he himself said, mutual benefit is the vision of the Brotherhood. If the Brotherhood can help itself, then why not join. On the other hand, if it doesn't help you and you have to waste your energy helping others, then why join.

While Evan asks Earl about the Brotherhood, a conversation about Evan unfolds in a room in the Tower of Elk. One of the two sides of the conversation is Gray, the knight of BPOE, and the other is the "secretary" of BPOE's California region, David Haight. The two sides are equal in principle, but in terms of organizational structure, Haidt is Gray's boss.

Haight, who is in his early forties and slightly bald on the top of his head, lives in Palo Altu, and is an active member of the Brotherhood.

After listening to Gray's report, Haight touched his head and said, "So the Freemasons are also eyeing him? ”

Although the relationship between different fraternities is not completely competitive, a person can join more than one fraternity at the same time, but people's energy is limited, and joining first and then joining means that the order of importance in their hearts has been discharged.

Haight asked, "What do you think of Warren Jr.'s perception of the elk?"

Gray thought for a moment and said, "It's not very clear, but at least it's not offensive. Warren is one of us. ”

Haight frowned, "However, he is also a master of Freemasonry. Therefore, it is only natural that Warren Jr. chooses to be a 'stonemason'. Gray, is there anything you can do?"

"I've had Rogers and Lyons, both at Caltech, reach out to him, and I think as future alumni, they should have something in common," Gray said. In addition, I myself will go often. ”

"By the way, I'm planning to organize a party in the near future, can I invite him too?"

Haight gave Gray an approving look and said, "Of course, let him feel the warmth of the organization in advance, this is a way! Okay, that's it!"

"By the way, that Warner, you keep an eye on it, you can meddle if necessary, in short, I don't want them to be in front of us!"

"Understood, Your Excellency!"

……

The next day, the BPOE guy reappeared in the lab. This time there was only one person, and it was Edward Rogers.

Rogers had come to deliver the invitation, and Evan accepted it, but didn't make it clear whether he would go or not.

After the invitation arrived, Rogers didn't leave, curious about Evan's lab and what he was doing, and offered to take a tour.

Rogers is a chemistry student at Caltech and will be in his second year when he starts in September. After a few conversations, Evan had a good opinion of him, and with his "talent collecting fetish" attack, he agreed to Rogers' request to allow him to visit his lab.

Of course, Evan on Chester's side still won't let Rogers in for the time being.

After coming to the lab and listening to Evan's presentation and knowing the positive implications of the seat belt he was developing for motorists, Rogers looked at it with admiration.

"Evan, you are truly a blessing for car lovers in the world. ”

Evan laughed at Rogers' exaggerated compliment.

Later, Rogers made another request to Evan: "Evan, can I intern with you?" I'm interested in seat belts and want to contribute to its creation. ”

At first, Evan didn't want to say yes, but Rogers persevered, acting like he would stalk me if you didn't agree. No way, for the sake of him being a future senior, Evan reluctantly agreed to his request.