Chapter 78 New Subjects (End of Volume)
"No, it's still wrong."
The table was moved to the window of the professor's room. Two small crystal clear crystals were removed from the shelf by Craft, wrapped in silk cloth respectively, and placed in small wooden boxes filled with cotton balls.
Two pieces of the same kind that looked fatter were taken out and fixed on the stand. Nimble fingers adjusted their positions at a speed that was so slow that it was almost imperceptible.
The only thing that ruined this harmonious scene was the fact that the tips of two of the fingers were wrapped in fine cloth.
Two thin crystals hold a drop of red liquid that is pressed thin and transparent, and the eyes behind the double lenses are facing it. This process has been going on for half an afternoon.
Lucius was lying on the chair bored, with his back facing the sky, and one of his fingers was wrapped with a cloth strip. Since someone sent these custom-made small things in the morning, Kraft has been abnormal for half an afternoon.
As for why it was not an abnormal morning, it was simply because I missed classes for a month and a half and was embarrassed to be absent for no reason.
Even so, most students could tell that his mind was not on the course. From time to time he would use coined words such as "small room" and "micro", and he would announce before the end of get out of class that everyone would soon have a new subject to learn. .
This bad news made the students, including Lucius, show expressions of indescribable shock. Even his most ardent admirers said afterwards that this was hardly good news.
As the student with the closest relationship to Kraft, Lucius was promised a lot of benefits and pushed out to find out information.
Then, as soon as he entered the door, Kraft, who was holding a needle and gesturing to his third finger, asked him to borrow a drop of blood.
"What's wrong?" Lucius probably guessed that the new content would be related to this rather expensive equipment, but he really couldn't tell anything from the side. "Are you really not going to rest for a few days? After all, the salt tide area
It's just over."
After the last few completely black maps were painted, the incident in the salt tide area finally subsided. After a month and a half of recovery period, the local residents basically returned to their original normal sleep.
Only one of the two newly dug wells has enough fresh water, but it is enough.
This long and difficult visit made Lucius familiar with the road to the salt tide area, and he also learned a lot of Kraft's little skills. From physical examination to reset, the little bits and pieces add up to a lot.
heap.
"I suddenly feel that time is actually quite tight, and there may not be many opportunities left for me to complete unfinished business." Kraft leaned in front of the lens, only his fingers were adjusting in an imperceptible range, like a plaster sculpture illuminated by the sun.
.
"Why does this sound so weird?" Lucius straightened his sore neck, moved the chair next to Kraft, and watched him continue to make fine adjustments.
"Well, this statement is indeed a bit biased." Kraft whispered, as if he was afraid that louder sounds would cause the lens to be distorted during adjustment. He pushed the nearby lens into the blood droplet by a small amount that could not be detected, and there was no trace of it.
It is really difficult for him to adjust the thickness of the accurate focus spiral purely by manual labor.
The thing in my hand is more like a simple iron stand than any optical equipment. It's just a little more mobile. The copper lens barrel is even more difficult to describe. The range and accuracy of adjusting the distance by threads are not ideal. Fortunately, I thought of it when customizing it.
I ordered a few of different sizes.
"Lucius, have you ever felt that our profession is actually a little bit dangerous sometimes?"
Lucius didn't quite understand this point of view. Doctors in the college are different from those outside barber shops and other wild clinics. They have relatively high-end and decent jobs. "Is it okay? It's relatively safe, at least in case of an emergency in the college."
There are still people who can treat serious diseases, right?"
"What if, and I mean what if, what we encounter this time is really a disease, and we can catch it even if we are wearing a beak mask, then what should we do?"
This "what if" is too scary. For a young man who has not yet obtained the qualification to practice medicine independently out of college, he has no experience or theoretical support to answer.
However, he couldn't be timid in front of acquaintances, especially lecturers, so he answered bravely: "Same thing."
"If the probability of death is low." After thinking for a while, Lucius added, probably because he felt that his answer was a bit dishonest, so he added a qualification to it.
He is the kind of enthusiastic person who recognizes that the value of life is supreme and is willing to save everyone within his ability. However, if his own life is involved, based on current values, he cannot be accused of evasion.
After all, no one has any moral or legal basis for being responsible for an epidemic. Most people even think that epidemics are a form of divine punishment and cannot be eliminated by mortals on their own initiative. They can only wait for the wrath of the gods to be extinguished.
Some people use this excuse to turn a blind eye to those who have suffered divine punishment, and even persecute them because they have made mistakes and suffered divine punishment, or are undergoing trials.
"Well, that's what I think anyway, what do you think?"
Kraft kept staring at the mirror without commenting on Lucius, leaving him unsure whether he was too focused or not satisfied with the answer.
"I have no idea."
"Ah?" Lucius didn't expect Kraft's answer to be less confident than his own. He thought that based on his usual impression, the answer would be at least "I will definitely go", and maybe "I can solve it".
Craft didn't look embarrassed, he said this calmly, took off the lens, replaced it with another lens tube and fixed it on the iron frame.
"I really don't know. I recently discovered that I am still afraid of death. It's a bit of nonsense, and the reasons are quite complicated, but the result is this."
"But the key is not here. The key is that we may encounter some special circumstances. This 'possibility' will continue to magnify over the course of a long career and become a 'certain', and I haven't even figured this out yet."
After turning the lens barrel, Kraft still couldn't find the field of view he wanted. The polishing of the crystal glass was not perfect, and small scratches would turn into large rifts after magnification.
Lucius understood what he meant, but he didn't understand the context. "Why did you suddenly think of this?"
"Just think that recent experiences have made me a little nervous. I realize that life is fragile and sometimes it almost ends midway." When talking about this, Kraft is still a little scared.
When facing something head-on, it is often not the time when you are most afraid. The concentrated mind and the will to solve the problem will block these secondary emotions. There is also the blind courage that bursts out when the fear reaches the extreme.
When I thought about it afterwards, I realized that I had brushed against death several times. The sickle of death passed by my neck and took away a piece of my collar. I broke out in a cold sweat when I thought about it, so I had a sense of urgency between life and death.
If someone else had tried it, he might have disappeared without a trace one night, or he might have continued the secret experiment without anyone noticing.
"That's true." Lucius didn't know what Kraft had experienced. He was thinking of the silence at noon in the salt tide area. The feeling of being surrounded by disease gave him a preview of the horror of the legendary epidemic.
The two were silent for a while, Kraft continued to play with his equipment, and Lucius got up to boil water on the small stove.
First use part of the boiled water to rinse the teacups, then scoop a spoonful of barley into each of the two cups, and pour the boiling water in. Watch the barley grains sink and float in the water. When most of them sink to the bottom, a nice burnt aroma will waft out of the tea.
come out.
A small jar was taken out, which was part of the students' "bribery". A thick golden liquid was flowing inside. Lucius added three small spoons to two cups, stirred well to add sweetness, and the full version of barley tea appeared.
.
"Would you like a glass with honey?"
"Ah, it couldn't be better. Lucius, have you considered going to the church to apply for an angel?" The familiar warm temperature couldn't be refused. Kraft took the cup and blew the heat away, taking a sip. The sweetness was mixed with the burnt aroma of barley.
, is the happy water for souls from other worlds here.
When the person's mood improved, the person who was selected to inquire about the information finally remembered his intention and had to ask about the new subject.
"Speaking of which, the current matter is over. Do you have any long-term plans for the future?" He pretended to be casual and asked. If there are new subjects in the upcoming schedule, it will definitely take up a large amount of time.
Naturally, the new arrangements would crowd out the already tighter work. As long as Kraft was willing to talk, something would always be gained.
It's okay not to talk about it. Lucius has almost guessed that the so-called new subjects are related to the equipment on the table. Since the equipment is being initially debugged, it means that they don't have to worry about the burden increasing in a few months.
Kraft didn't notice his purpose, or he didn't care if he did. He put down the boiling tea and continued working, and casually replied, "Maybe I want to go out for a walk?"
"Where are you going for a walk?" An unexpected development occurred, and this question yielded strange news that left people confused.
"Not recently. It will take some time, about a month. The route is still being planned. We tentatively plan to go south and take a boat along the coastline."
It seems that this is not a sudden thought, but has been planned for a long time. The route southward for sea-going ships is quite mature. Generally, they pass through many ports along the coast, stop and go, and can stop for a few days at each place to do business.
Many captains who want stability take this route, and it also makes it easier to pick up passengers and pay for downwind boats. Once you get on one boat, you can choose to disembark at most of the southern ports, which is very cost-effective.
When you go south to the middle of the Kingdom of North, you will reach the mouth of the country's famous Temu River. From the smooth river, you will go all the way to the interior of the kingdom and enter the water transport artery that crosses half of the country.
Along the river, you can see the fruits of civilization supported by the most fertile land in the Kingdom of North. Humans in this area lived long before the kingdom was established.
Most of the famous places, including Westminster Castle on the Gold Coin, are located on this line. It is not an exaggeration to call it the birthplace of the kingdom.
What is as famous as history is the higher population density and urban size, which together with water transportation gave birth to more developed industries, and ultimately fed back to academic progress - various needs prompted the new aristocrats and various forces to oppose the church.
Under pressure, a comprehensive university with more than religious content was established.
The most famous among them is the pearl located in Dunling, the core of the kingdom on this line, Professor Kalman's alma mater, the dream of countless students, and the place he wanted to escape for the first half of his life.
【Donling University】
"You want to go to Dunling?" This was Lucius's conclusion after crossing this line in his mind. If he wanted to go on a study tour, with Kraft's financial resources and way of thinking, it made no sense to not go to Dunling.
"Well, it can indeed be arranged, but it's just one of the goals. Mainly because I want to look around."
No, Dunling is of course the main target, and Kraft has already considered it. The black liquid incident was extinguished at Wendeng Port, but it is not known what happened at the source. Its output and specific ingredients are still a mystery.
"Black liquid cannot be used now, but abdominal surgery has been proven to be feasible. I would like to visit the city there to gain some inspiration."
Lucius became depressed when Kraft mentioned the matter again, and then he remembered that Professor Kalman was proved to be directly related to the salt tide area incident, so he took two sips of barley tea to hide his emotions.
After a moment, he said: "If you really want to go, ask him why he did that. I know you have already made a judgment, but you still want to hear his own answer."
"Okay, I will remember it." Still drinking tea made by others, Kraft agreed to the request. Dun Ling must be going anyway, and the method of questioning may be different from what Lucius thought.
To be continued...