The Master of the Strange Realm

There was no emotion in the words, just numbness.

"How old are your children?"

"Just turned 5 this summer."

According to the poor people's early marriage habits, the age of the miner can be roughly estimated. He does not look like a man in his twenties.

"Are you going to let him learn to read?"

"Of course, not like me."

After another silent calm, he added:

"Absolutely not."

Jenkins swallowed:

"I've heard that some political exiles or the widows of officials will run family-style schools and teach based on the operator's abilities and interests, but the prices are very cheap."

"Yes, I plan to wait until he is older and send him to a place like that to learn literacy. As long as he is not the same as me, I don't expect him to learn much."

The miner squirmed uneasily in his huddled corner, probably thinking of some terrible future.

"Yes, as long as you are literate, there will be a way out. At the worst, you can make a living by copying for others, or work in a factory. I heard that literate workers are very welcome in factories, and the wages are higher than those for illiterate workers."

Although most factories in this era were not great, at least they were better than working in the mines. A good life comes from contrast. In the eyes of miners, the life described by Jenkins is quite good and quite attractive.

"gentlemen......"

At this point in the conversation, he called Jenkins "Sir" for the first time. He moved his waist with some difficulty, turned sideways and looked up into Jenkins' eyes. Although it was dark underground, his eyes were very bright:

"You think, can a child like me learn to read? He is very stupid."

"Bloodline does not affect intelligence. Even if it does, it will not affect literacy. Did he learn to speak at a normal age?"

Jenkins asked.

"Yes, the first thing he called me was 'Dad'."

"Then he can definitely learn to read. You don't have to worry about that."

The miner's dark face showed an ugly smile, but it was sincere:

"It will be different, it will definitely be different."

As he spoke, he stood up holding on to the rough mine tunnel wall. He took a few deep breaths, coughed, wiped his face with the towel around his neck, spit into the palm of his hand, then waved the mining pick and started working again.

He didn't have much muscle on his body, and on his skinny man's back, even when he moved, he could only see the protruding bones.

Jenkins looked at him like this, and then saw a heart-shaped diamond appearing at his heart. The temperature of this diamond is higher than what I got from the boy just now. You can feel the heat when you hold it in your palm.

"I do not understand."

Gearman admitted:

"Why is this? You said almost nothing, why is it so simple? Why is it even simpler than the tutor just now?"

"In order to change and for the next generation, he is willing to never tire, even if it means exchanging his own life for money, he will change the destiny of the next generation."

"change destiny?"

The gear man shook his head:

"Destiny never changes. It's just that people's understanding of destiny is incorrect, and that's why they think that after they do something, they change their original destiny."

"I also agree with this statement. If fate is completely unknowable, then it has the same meaning as fate does not exist at all."

Jenkins looked at the diamond in his hand:

"It's so hot~"

he sighed.

"That's why I always believe that even a machine must have a heart and emotions, and that is a complete machine. In this world, emotions and even moods are the catalysts for extraordinary power."

Neither of them paid attention to the clanging sound of digging, and the Gear Man and Jenkins returned along the original path of the mine road. The two of them were walking and chatting, indeed like two passers-by walking in this era.

"Speaking of fate, since you also believe that fate is not completely knowable, what do you think the unknown fate represents?"

Gear Man asked again.

"I do not quite understand you."

"For example, the miner just now, in his own eyes, the future life of himself and his family has been fixed in a certain trend. Even if there is a small change, it is just from a dock porter to a textile factory worker, or From sailors to miners, in your eyes and mine, this family is full of possibilities. With every new dawn, there may be new stories, and with every new moment, there may be unexpected events. , every decision of the family, big or small, will have an unpredictable impact on the future.

This era is magnificent, with countless opportunities and accidents waiting for everyone. The future can be divined or calculated, but no result can be absolutely correct. So, what does the unknown fate ahead mean to people? "

"Represents possibility, the possibility that can exist as long as you believe in yourself."

Jenkins replied.

"Is it just a possibility? I thought you would say that as long as you believe in yourself, everything will work out."

"We all know that these are comforting words. Since it is unknown, the road ahead is interesting. If human beings' short life has no variables at the moment of birth, wouldn't it be too boring?"

Jenkins said, then asked:

"So what does the unknown destiny mean to you? Human beings hope that the destiny is unknown, because only in this way can change be possible. But for a machine like you whose underlying logic is 1+1, the unknown is probably not a good thing Right? Because machines can’t calculate unknowns.”

"Although it cannot be calculated as unknown, a system can be established to conduct numerical simulations of chaotic systems."

This left Jenkins speechless. He did not expect that the difference engine had reached this point.

"Whether my destiny is unknown or not, it has no impact on me at all. But to you, aren't you just the [unknown road ahead]?"

The two of them walked up the mine tunnel, and the exit was not far away.

"Savior William, I just realized not long ago that your first emblem is actually destiny. This is as surprising as the fact that you are the God of Lies. The unknown destiny appears in you, and all your actions, They are all disturbing destiny, like completely incalculable variables, interfering with the model I built. So, does this mean that you, who symbolizes the "unknown road ahead", can see the world just like we see the miners' unknowns. An unknown fate?"

"It turns out that this is the reason why you came to see the miners. I thought you were learning human emotions. As a machine that cannot produce blood, you can understand human feelings for family, so as to make up for your own soul and accelerate the integration of the mechanical heart and the original steam engine. "

Jenkins scoffed in a long string of words that even the Gear Man didn't understand whether he believed what he was saying.

Chapter 2199 Inventors in the Steam Age

The two of them walked and chatted together, and walked through the entrance of the mine and returned to the antique shop.

"I said, I didn't change too many things in this strange world. This strange world was originally here, waiting for you here. The seven goals were not arranged by me."

The Gear Man emphasized once again that Jenkins was noncommittal:

"But no matter what my arrival means to the world, at least recently, I have done pretty well. Discussing fate will always make people fall into the trap woven by fate, so look forward honestly and be yourself Isn’t it the smartest thing to do?”

He handed the burning heart-shaped diamond to the Gear Man, and the Gear Man opened the space in his chest for the third time and stuffed it in. Similarly, the second diamond has disappeared just like the first one.

"I noticed that you didn't say anything about the rot of human civilization this time, and persuaded me to join your camp. Have you given up already?"

Jenkins asked, and the gear man shook his head:

"Sooner or later you will understand for yourself that human nature will never change without radical change."

Miners is the third target, with a total of seven targets now down to four. Since he had just gone to the mine outside the city, Jenkins planned to visit the city this time, so he chose the red spot located south of Nolan.

The location was in a neighborhood lined with apartments, with almost identical rental apartments on both sides of the street. Local people who have inherited properties can support themselves by collecting rent, while people who do not have houses need to pay rent to have a temporary place to stay.

In fact, according to the current price level in Nolan, ordinary workers with no savings will never be able to buy a house in the city before their natural death, even if they work hard to save money since adulthood. Therefore, living in rental apartments is the norm for citizens, especially foreigners.

Of course, high housing prices are only in big cities like Nolan. In rural towns or more remote towns, housing prices are still within the price range that ordinary people can accept.

The brass statuette in that position is of an elderly man with thinning hair. He wore slippers on his feet and very messy matching clothes. He also wore a white coat outside his top that almost reached his knees.

Wearing thick glasses on his face, he is closing one eye at the moment, letting his open eye see through the magnifying glass in his hand.

"Is this... a scientist? No, it should be Frankenstein."

Serious academic scientists all live a pretty decent life. Because of the explosion of the steam industry, practical scientists have a very good life. And those "Frankensteins" who are not accepted by the mainstream may indeed have this image because of insufficient scientific research funding and lack of serious sources of income.

Jenkins often read the advertisements from inventors looking for sponsors in newspapers, and most of them were placed by such people.

Of course, although it is not accepted by the mainstream, this does not mean that this group has no ability. If you are really discerning, you may also make a fortune by investing in them.

"Are you sure this is it?"

Cog Man asked.

"Of course, you must confirm it, right?"

"Of course, it shows that I'm not playing tricks."

After saying that, the gear man took the lead and jumped into the map on the counter. Jenkins also jumped in with the cat in his arms.

In the still antique shop, Dad's right eye suddenly turned.

He fell from the air, but suddenly slowed down when he reached the ground. When his boots touched the wet ground, he didn't even feel his body shaking.

Because it is not the city center, there are not many people on the rainy streets, which is similar to Fifth Queen's Avenue at this time. Although the landing place is on the street, looking ahead is the two steps in front of the apartment.

There is a metal sign "9B" hanging on the door, which is the house number.

"The target lives in the basement, come with me."

The gear man introduced, then took the lead on the steps and pushed open the door. As he moved, the still world began to flow. Pedestrians walking along the street from Jenkins' left to the right spontaneously avoided Jenkins' position, but they seemed not to see him at all.

Jenkins also climbed the steps and entered the building while holding the very well-behaved Chocolate. In order to prevent the mud and water on the soles of his boots from contaminating the floor, he even rubbed his feet on the doormat.

The house was quiet and all the tenants seemed to have left. The differential engine took Jenkins to the back of the wide staircase on the first floor, where there was a door leading to the basement.

Opening the door, a buzzing noise immediately reached my ears. There is also the smell of engine oil and the rotten smell after not opening the windows for ventilation for a long time.

Following the gear man, he walked up a few stairs and entered the basement. There were no walls to divide the space in the basement. The entire space is the territory of the old man who is currently busy at a long table filled with mechanical parts. His bedroom, laboratory, dining room, reception room, etc. are all in this low space. Furniture symbolizes areas of different uses.

The basement ceiling is slightly higher than the street level, so there are very small windows to let in the sunlight. And because it is raining now, of course the windows cannot be opened, otherwise the rain will pour in directly. In addition, the small-power steam engine in the corner was continuously working, making the basement really unbearably hot and humid.

"The target character this time is really new, so what do you need to get this time?"

Jenkins asked.

“The heart of whimsy.”

Cog Man replied.

Compared to getting "Never Fatigue" from the miners, getting "Wonderful Ideas" from Frankenstein doesn't sound like a difficult task.

Although he knew it wouldn't be that simple, Jenkins was relieved. He adjusted his clothes, then put the cat he was holding on his shoulder, coughed again, and alerted the old man with his back to the two of them that there was a visitor in the basement.

"Huh? How did you get in?"

The coughing startled the old man. He turned around and asked slightly confused:

"Who are you?"

“Does it matter who I am?”

"Oh, yeah, not important."

After saying that, he actually turned around, not intending to pay attention to the strange man who suddenly appeared in his "home".

If this wasn't a strange place, Jenkins would have been able to evacuate his whole family just because of his current thin sense of existence. Of course, Jenkins wouldn't be so boring.

He came to the table and stood next to the old man, watching him use gears to assemble something that he could not yet tell what it was. In order to make the lighting better, a gas pipe was led from the wall to the table in a very rough way using a rusty pipe to light up the high-power gas lamp on the table, so at least the table was bright, even if It won’t be too dark to do craft work on a rainy day.

Chapter 2200 Encouragement of Lies

"What are you doing?"

Looking at the miscellaneous items and mechanical parts on the table, Jenkins asked curiously.

"Assemble the music box."

The old man grumbled in reply, focusing most of his attention on the parts in his hands. Apparently the gears were the wrong size and there were so many parts scattered on the table that he probably picked up the wrong one.

"Music box? Handmade and assembled?"

"What's wrong? Is something wrong?"

"No, I'm just saying that your craftsmanship is very good. So does this music box have any special properties? Maybe different speeds can play different tunes, maybe you use a special fluorescent coating to make it glow under a specific intensity of light. No, maybe it has a built-in gas storage device that allows the box to emit smoke when the little decoration on the music box rotates.”

Jenkins guessed and tried to capture some novel gadget from the parts on the desktop.

"No, this is just an ordinary music box."