In the laboratory of the Royal Society, Faraday sat in front of the laboratory bench as usual, patiently wrapping the insulated copper wires to be used in future experiments with pliers, little by little, on wooden sticks.

He was no longer the schoolboy who helped Sir Humphrey Davy carry his bag, and Faraday, who was now the director of the Royal Society's laboratory, did not have to do such basic and menial work at all, and this simple work could be completely entrusted to his apprentices.

But as long as he's not busy with work, he'll still be hands-on with the details of these experiments.

Counting the time, since he became Sir David's assistant at the age of 20, another twenty years have passed, and every aspect of the experiment has been integrated into his blood. His behavior, which surprised those who met Faraday for the first time, was nothing more than an ordinary habit in his life.

Faraday expertly wound the copper wire, and after some time, he finally wrapped the last knot, and he lowered his pliers to point the copper wire at the light-revealing window.

It was still as flawless as ever, with each insulated wire next to each other.

Faraday's gentle face showed a smile of satisfaction, as personable as ever, kind, urbane, modest, he was still the same Michael Faraday who could attract the respect and affection of the ladies of London.

Suddenly, Faraday's gaze shifted to focus, perhaps because he was too engrossed, when he noticed a man standing behind the copper wire. A young researcher of electromagnetism who was as modest as he was in his scientific attitude was Mr. Arthur Hastings.

Faraday sat on a stool and leaned on the bench with one hand and asked with a smile, "When did you come?" ”

Arthur thought for a moment and replied vaguely: "Not long after, I also just arrived." ”

"Arthur, you, you! Every time. ”

Faraday took off his gloves and stood up and said, "I've said that many times. You can come to the Royal Society to see me at any time, but you are so polite, so polite that you are even a little reserved. But maybe that's why you can make friends with Mr. Wheatstone, you're both introverts, so you can get to know each other? But it stands to reason that you shouldn't be so introverted, you are a police officer in Scotland Yard, can an introvert do a good job as a police officer? ”

When Arthur heard this, he smiled cheerfully: "I don't think my personality can be summed up in simple introversion and extroversion. Whether I'm an extrovert or an introvert is uncertain. Mr. Faraday, policing is no different from yours. Are you an introvert? ”

Faraday was puzzled: "What do you say? ”

Arthur spoke: "When you discover the truth that God has covered with a veil, you can go on to work for weeks on end, not saying anything, and behave like the most introverted person. And when you really discover the truth, you are willing to stand on the podium and announce your new discovery to everyone, whether it is a man, a woman, an old man or a child, a nobleman or a commoner, as long as they want to figure out the problem, you will patiently explain it to them, once, twice, three times, until they understand, at this time you act like the most extroverted person. That's why I say that your job and policing are essentially the same. ”

When Faraday heard this, he laughed and said, "Okay, I now know why you can be a good policeman." Whether you are an extrovert or an introvert, as long as you have this eloquence, what job can't you do? Then again, wouldn't you really consider coming to the Royal Society for a lecture? Even if it's just one show, I'm sure there will be a lot of viewers who will be willing to listen to you talk about your story. ”

Arthur raised his hand and patted his bandaged arm, and he smiled bitterly: "Mr. Faraday, do you look like I am now, am I fit to give a lecture?" ”

Faraday then remembered that Arthur had just gone through a bitter battle last week, and he inevitably blamed him: "Although I shouldn't dictate your life. But Arthur, next time there is such a thing, don't go. You are still young, you have a bright future, you can discover many hidden mysteries of God for the world, and there is still a lot of fun in your life.

You can die for a lot of things, but it's stupid to die in a moment of rage. Think about your job, you run around every day so that the people of London can live a few more lives, and now you're doing that yourself. Arthur, I'm sorry, I may have been too harsh, you may think I'm an old-fashioned, old-fashioned stubborn, but I really want you to value your life more. ”

Arthur, of course, agreed with Faraday's words, and naturally he did not consider giving his life to the dueling table.

However, given Faraday's integrity, Arthur decided not to mention the insider trading behind the duel to him.

Arthur smiled and patted his arm, and he nodded in agreement, "Even if you don't say it, I won't do this kind of thing again." I'll tell you the truth, it hurts. ”

Faraday was also amused by Arthur's reaction, and he waved his hand and said, "That's it, you'll be okay anyway." I have heard many ladies and ladies who have come to the lecture tell me that you were in great power that day on the dueling stage, and the theater was full of smoke and thunder and lightning everywhere. While they're still in shock at the duel, you start touching the keys with your blood-stained fingertips again. They all sweated for you, but when the theater lights came on, it was a pianist from Poland who appeared on the stage. What shall I say, Arthur, if you could devote your energy to researching stage performances, you would surely be able to accomplish much more than I did. ”

Arthur only laughed and denied this: "On the contrary, Mr. Faraday, if you decided to choreograph a stage play instead of science when you were young, then it must be your new play that is being shown in all the major theaters in London now." But in that case, my friends Mr. Dumas, Mr. Dickens, and Mr. Disraeli would be too pitiful.

They wrote bitterly for many years, and as a result, one was wanted by the French government, and the other had to work two or three jobs a day to support himself. As for the last one, his debut novel attracted criticism from the entire British literary community, and he almost went insane because he was overwhelmed. If you had chosen to follow the path of a playwright, your episode would undoubtedly be the straw that broke the camel's back. I'm sure there's three more psychosis at the Royal Hospital in Bertrem as a result. ”

Faraday waved his hand and said, "Arthur, don't compliment me." I know Mr. Dumas, and his talent is far beyond my reach. On top of that, he's as studious as you are. He often went to Grey Sam College to ask professors about science in order to write, and it was a privilege for me to be able to help him. And compared to you, when I was younger, I was too ordinary. I'm not a genius like you, I'm not smart. If there's one thing I'm better than anyone else, it's that I love science, so all the things that happened to me have been turned into good luck. ”

Arthur took the teacup from his apprentice's hand, thanked him, and asked, "I've rarely heard you mention anything about you before. But you say you're not smart, and I think you're being too modest. Sir David said on his deathbed that the greatest discovery of his life was not potassium, sodium, calcium, strontium, barium, iodine, or the writing of the Principles of Chemical Philosophy and his election as President of the Royal Society, but he was very fortunate to discover you. ”

Faraday heard his mentor's name, and his hand holding the teacup trembled imperceptibly.

His feelings for David were a little more complicated, so much so that they couldn't be summed up in simple respect or resentment.

On the one hand, David had been jealous of the talent of his outstanding disciple for a long time, and he chose to stand by when he knew that Faraday did not have academic plagiarism but was framed, and even intentionally or unintentionally released some insinuations to allude to Faraday's misconduct.

If it weren't for Faraday's wife, who had been behind him during that most difficult time, perhaps Faraday would have been the one who was sent to the insane asylum.

The feud between master and apprentice lasted for a long time, until Sir David let go of his old age and left that sentence of affirmation of Faraday on his deathbed, and the complicated story of 28 years between master and apprentice finally came to a seemingly perfect end.

Seeing that Faraday had not spoken, Arthur asked softly, "Although it is rude to inquire about such a thing, would you like to talk about Sir David?" By the time I was officially engaged in scientific research, he had already died in Geneva. But it's really hard for me to imagine him doing something like that to you, Sir David has always been positive in the social sphere.

During the Napoleonic Wars, when there was a shortage of food in the country, he put down his work and set up a course in agricultural chemistry, hoping to use his knowledge to help farmers increase the yield of grain per mu. In order to be able to improve the dirty environment in the tannery, he spent another five years refining tanning techniques. Not to mention his Dave lamp, which saved the lives of countless miners. How could he ......"

Faraday held his teacup in his hand, the wind blowing through his side hair, and a look of remembrance appeared on his face.

He smiled softly, "Arthur, it's really nothing. We all know that people are imperfect. As Lord Byron famously said—Love for love's sake, is God. To love for the sake of being loved is to be human. Sir Davy may have done some things too much, but he was always a great man in my mind. I have been able to get to where I am today, step by step, and everything is inseparable from his teaching and guidance.

Whether it's a lecture at the Royal Society or electrochemistry, I'm the shadow that follows Sir Davy. He...... It taught me a lot, both in terms of scientific research and why we are born as human beings. I know that there are many people in Britain who are fighting for me, and they feel that Sir David is too harsh and too cold to me.

But they don't understand, I don't hate Sir Davy, I have great respect for him, all the time, from twenty years ago, and still so today, twenty years later.

You may have heard me mention that my family is not well-off, my father was a blacksmith, and the shop where he worked was near Elephant Castle, and it is still there. If you have time, you can take the time to check it out, it's almost a century old. The façade was not very large, the tool table was never neat, the bellows of the stove was not strong enough, my father complained to the shopkeeper many times, and the shopkeeper always said that he would change it next month, but it was thirty or forty years later, and they were still using that creaking antique. ”

When it comes to his impoverished family, people usually only feel pain, but Faraday has a happy smile on his face.

"You know, if a man is born into a poor family in London, especially as a naughty boy, he will have half a leg in the wrong way from the moment he learns to walk. When I was a child, I used to steal iron and toys, and once, my father caught me stealing.

He called me to me in a serious manner and said, 'Michael, we are poor, but we don't want to do unclean things. We have hands, feet, and an upright and industrious heart. You can't go on like this, I don't expect you to be a decent gentleman in a carriage, but I want you to be a man of integrity and strength. Michael, my dear son, you know what? Your mom and I are very worried about you. We were afraid that one day we would be on the gallows at the tyburn execution ground and see our son hanging there. Promise me not to continue doing that, okay? If you want a toy, Dad can buy it for you. ’

When my father had said this, he put his arms around my head and wept bitterly. I cried too, and I cried very sadly. I told my father that I would never do those things again, and I swore that I would be an upright person. From that day on, I had to ask myself first whether I could be worthy of my conscience and my father and mother.

Instead of asking my father for a toy, I asked him for a book. My father kept his promise, and the next day he bought me a book and came back at a cost him a full shilling and a half.

I remember that the book was picked up from a used bookstore, a popular science magazine with a leather cover. But even though the magazine was old, I was completely obsessed with it, and it was that book that made me realize that there are so many amazing things in the world.

It didn't take long for me to take the initiative to go to George Reber's bookstore and find a job as a newspaper delivery person, unpaid, completely obligatory. Because Mr. Reber was a regular customer of my father and took great care of his business, I wanted to be able to repay him as well. Mr. Reber recognized my work, and not only did he allow me to read the books in the store for free, but he also promoted me to a tuition-free apprenticeship.

I worked at the Reber bookstore for seven years, and in seven years I went through almost all the books in the store. Isaac Watts's "Rising Understanding" taught me how to redeem myself, and "Chemical Chatter" by Ms. Jane Marcy is my essential bedtime reading every day.

At the end of my apprenticeship, I was confused about what to do. It was at this time that I met Sir David, and I had sat in on many of his lectures, and had written three hundred pages of notes alone. And when I asked him questions I didn't understand, he was always kind enough to give me feedback.

I was a penniless boy at the time, but Sir David explained to me as patiently as if he were his own student. So, when I heard that Sir David was unfortunately visually impaired and was in dire need of an assistant, I did not hesitate to apply. Sir David did not reject me because I only had a primary school education, but without any qualms he recommended me directly to the Royal Society, and I officially became a chemical assistant at the Royal Society.

Since then, I have traveled with him throughout Europe, drawing nourishment from him like a sponge, and he has been unreserved in his teachings. Although it was true that some unpleasant things happened along the way, and Sir David's wife did not like me, and treated me like a servant, and did not allow me to ride in a carriage, or allow me to eat at the same table, but so what? I was lucky enough to be able to learn from Sir Davy.

It was through Sir David that I was able to enter the Royal Society, get to know many of Europe's most famous scientists, and learn about what it was like to be at the forefront of world research. I am so grateful to him for giving me the opportunity to embrace my passion for science. From a teacher's point of view, Sir David has done everything he can. I don't hate him, and no matter what he does, I always respect and love him.

I was in great pain when Sir David did that. I said to my wife, 'Dear Sarah, I'm so embarrassed, I'm going crazy. ’

But my lady put her arm around me and kissed me on the forehead, and she said to me, 'I'd rather be like a child and be hurt by simplicity than like a little man who is hurt and defensible everywhere.' ’

It was this sentence that reminded me of the vow I made to my father many years ago, that if you do things, you should be worthy of your conscience. I am grateful to anyone who has helped me, and I am willing to repay them with my insignificant life, and I am worthy of my conscience.

Since then, I have gradually figured it out and walked out of the strange circle in my heart. The sun is still shining brightly, and the science is still so wonderful. Two months later, when I demonstrated the experiment of turning an energized wire under the influence of the Earth's magnetic field, the person who gave me the loudest applause in the room was the person I had rumored to plagiarize, Professor Olleston. The rumors are self-defeating, and I believe that this is the best reward God has given me for an act of conscience. ”

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but take a deep breath and nodded, "Mr. Faraday, now I can understand you. You have so many supporters, and it's not for nothing. Your nobility is not because of any research results, or what honor, but because of your sincere heart. I'm ashamed to say that I can't even forgive Mr. Bertrant for shooting me. And you, if you can forgive Sir David for doing this, what else can't you forgive? ”

(End of chapter)