In a tavern by the docks, Arthur and the others had a few simple meals in front of them, some stewed fruit, a plate of freshly sliced bread that was just out of the oven, plus heated bacon and a pot of coffee.

Elder and Darwin briefly exchanged some information about the Beagle, and by the way, instructed on the follow-up precautions and itinerary.

After chatting for a long time, the three of them quickly diverted the topic to other places.

Between talking and laughing, everyone quickly became familiar with the relationship, and the friendship of young people always came so quickly.

Elder asked with a big grin, "I heard that you come from a medical family, and your father and grandfather are both surgeons?" ”

Darwin took a sip of his coffee from his teacup, and he nodded: "That's right, our family has a clinic in Schrewsbury in Shobushire County that has been open for fifty or sixty years, and it is a bit famous in the local area. My father had intended for me to inherit the family business, so he sent me to the University of Edinburgh to study medicine. ”

Arthur took a loaf of bread and tore it open, put some bacon in it, and took a bite of it.

As he ate, he asked, "Then why did you go to Cambridge to study theology?" Cambridge is good, but Edinburgh is no worse! David Hume, Adam Smith, Thomas Bayes, these famous figures are all graduates of the University of Edinburgh. It's a pity that you moved to Cambridge, otherwise the University of Edinburgh would have one more famous alumnus. ”

When Darwin heard this, he hurriedly waved his hand and said, "Arthur, you are exalting me too much." I'm so far worse off than the people you mentioned. I only dare to raise my head and look up at them, where dare I put myself with them? ”

When Elder heard this, he also put one hand on the back of his chair and nodded in retort to Arthur.

"That's it! Arthur, what are you talking about? What is the University of Edinburgh is no worse than Cambridge, Edinburgh is obviously much stronger than Cambridge! Fools go to Cambridge! ”

When Darwin heard this, he was visibly stunned.

Elder also sensed his gaffe, and he hurriedly clarified: "Don't get me wrong, I didn't mean to attack your alma mater. At the very least, Cambridge is still a little stronger than Oxford. Ten Oxford graduates were dragged out at random to shoot and shot, and none of them were wronged. In Cambridge, it is possible to kill one or two good people by mistake by taking ten shots. ”

Arthur quipped, "Elder you can't kill like that. If you kill people according to your standards, then there will be only a few people left in the council, and seventy or eighty percent of the councilors are graduates of Niuqiao. ”

Elder slammed his fist on the table: "Really? That's great, these people are dead, and the future of Britain is bright. ”

Darwin wondered: "Why do you have such a big opinion of Oxford and Cambridge?" ”

Arthur couldn't help but laugh and said, "Charles, you really can't blame us for this. Who told these two schools to keep trying to persuade the council not to grant a teaching license to our school?

What you may not know is that although the University of London has been established for four years, it has not received a royal charter until now.

Look at Elder, there is obviously a rear admiral uncle who is covered, and now he can't just go to the ship and be a cartographer. Unless you promote him to Admiral on the spot now, his resentment won't be so easy to dissolve. ”

Darwin was embarrassed when he heard this, he touched the back of his head and said, "Really? I didn't know there was such a complicated relationship. ”

Arthur then asked, "By the way, you haven't told us why you went to Cambridge later." ”

Darwin replied: "I was at the University of Edinburgh for a semester and went home to help out at the clinic on vacation, but I couldn't stand the bloody scenes of surgery. You may not know how painful it is to use a saw to see off a patient's necrotic leg, but I will never forget that scene for the rest of my life......"

Speaking of this, Darwin couldn't help but shudder: "Since that operation, I have never been willing to go to the clinic to help.

I preferred hunting and collecting minerals and animal and plant specimens to surgery, but my father thought these hobbies were purely unprofessional.

Either way, he finally saw that I wasn't fit to be a surgeon. He thought I was too idle and cowardly, and my mother thought that my lack of wanting to have surgery was a sign of kindness.

So, in the end, my family unanimously decided to send me to Cambridge to study theology. On the one hand, it can correct my mind, and on the other hand, it can be in line with my kindness.

Most importantly, my family thinks that the job of a pastor is very decent and that the income is very good. ”

Arthur asked, "Have you been corrected when you finished theology?" ”

"Correction?"

Darwin rolled his eyes, and he waved his hand and said, "See what the hell he is!" I'm fine, what is corrected?

My family asked me to study theology, and I listened to their arrangements. But they wanted to change my hobbies, and they didn't have any!

Not long after I entered university, I joined the Briny Society, a group of naturalist enthusiasts, and our leader was Professor Robert Grant, a well-known Lamarckist, and I received a lot of care and guidance from him, and I was fortunate enough to join their research group.

At Cambridge, I spent all my free time outside of class learning naturalist knowledge.

Once, I went with a research team to the Bay of Forth where we studied the life cycle of marine animals in the intertidal zone.

After the event, I also posted a paper at the Brigny Society about a common black object in oyster shells. Did you know? The black object wasn't really a mysterious creature, but the egg of a leech. ”

Elder was swinging his chair leisurely, but when he heard this, his face couldn't help but change dramatically, and he covered his mouth.

He scolded, "! Charles, why do you have to tell me this? ”

Darwin scratched his head and wondered, "What's wrong with you?" ”

Arthur laughed and explained, "You don't know, Elder loves to eat oysters, especially the eggs of the leech in the oysters. He always told me that it chewed and bounced, like pudding. ”

Elder covered his mouth and said angrily, "Arthur! Don't fucking say it, I'm going to throw up! ”

Arthur shrugged his shoulders and said, "Elder I told you to eat less of that thing, because it's neither clean nor hygienic. ”

After that, Arthur stood up and waved to the waiter, "Do you have oysters here?" Remember to take the eggs. ”

Darwin was also relieved: "Eld, it's okay to eat a little once in a while, that thing is not poisonous." ”

But where did Elder listen to the persuasion, he only felt uncomfortable up and down.

He leaned on the table and scolded: "It's not a question of whether it's poisonous or not, it's too disgusting." Charles, only the French can swallow the eggs of leeches, after all, they even eat snails. ”

When Arthur saw him like this, he didn't bother to tease him anymore.

So he turned to Darwin and asked, "By the way, you say you're a follower of Professor Grant, a Lamarck, but I've heard that Lamarckists all say that living things are constantly evolving." But what do you think about being a pastor, and pastors often say that human beings are God's creatures? ”

When Darwin heard this, he couldn't help but put down the bread in his hand, he first drew a cross on his chest, and then said to Arthur in a low voice.

"I am a devout believer, and I believe in God."

"Really?" Arthur was a little disappointed.

But then, Darwin leaned over to Arthur: "But what the priests say, it's all fart!" ”