1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 343 There are many kings, but I only have one!
The news that Ridgway had been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of London spread quickly but did not cause a sensation.

Because everyone thinks this is as it should be, and failure to be elected will cause a sensation.

Are you kidding? If even Bruce can't become a fellow of the Royal Society, then the other fellows will be ashamed of themselves.

Perhaps the Royal Society has its own standards and insider information, but Ridgway's contributions have transcended all constraints.

Below self, people care about the ways of the world; above self, only strength matters.

This is the manifestation that when you become strong enough, the world will make concessions for you.

Of course, Li Qiwei is still far from that point.

He was just a fellow of the Royal Society of London, and he only used it as a cover and didn't take it seriously.

After his speech on being selected as an academician, Li Qiwei began his global lecture tour.

He brought Wang Luyao and Xiang Lan with him on this trip.

One of the purposes of Li Qiwei's lectures is to attract talents from Europe and the United States so that they can build a city of science in the future.

Therefore, what he needs is not sharpness, but sincerity.

With his two wives, he gives people a calm and easy-going feeling, which is consistent with his identity as a great scientist.

Li San and Tian Qi brought several security team members to be responsible for protecting his safety throughout the process.

On April 1913, 4, at the invitation of Lorentz, Ridgway chose Leiden University in the Netherlands as his first stop.

In fact, if Ridgway were asked to choose a favorite research location, it would undoubtedly be the Netherlands.

There is an ancient and quiet town here, with windmills of all sizes turning leisurely.

Leiden University is located in this breathtaking scenery.

At this moment, Lorenz was leading the management, teachers and students of Leiden University to warmly welcome them at the school gate.

His face was full of smiles.

Ridgway chose Leiden University as his first stop, which made Lorenz feel very proud.

This shows that Bruce, the top scientist today, has a very close relationship with him.

However, the fact is that Li Qiwei did not think too much about it. He just felt that the scenery in the Netherlands was beautiful and it was the closest.

Lorenz took the initiative to step forward and said with a smile:
"Hey, Bruce, you're finally here."

"I've been waiting for you for a long time, but you kept putting it off. I almost became a boaster."

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "The selection of fellows of the Royal Society of London took up some time."

Lorenz joked: "If you ask me, the British are just hypocritical. Do we still need to select this?"

"I don't believe they dare to let you lose the election."

"If that's the case, you're always welcome at the Dutch Academy of Sciences."

The people around laughed.

Li Qiwei was also at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

Then, Lorenz introduced a young man to Ridgway.

"Bruce, this is Ehrenfest, he's the same age as you."

“I was just hired as a professor of physics at Leiden University this year.”

"His teacher was Boltzmann."

After that, Ehrenfest hurried forward and said excitedly: "Hello, Professor Bruce."

"Before, I could only listen to your speech from below, but today I finally have the opportunity to meet you."

Li Qiwei looked at the man in front of him. He had the same fate as his teacher and also died of suicide.

I don’t know if I can change this tragic ending in this life.

Ehrenfest did not appear to have any signs of depression or suicidal tendencies.

He is passionate and interested in physics.

During his tenure at Leiden University, he maintained close contacts with all the leading physicists.

In this respect, he is very similar to Nernst, both of them are physicists who like to make friends.

Ehrenfest often invited physicists to visit Leiden University.

At the same time, he also encouraged students to strengthen communication, set up many discussion groups and mutual aid groups, and helped many students study abroad.

In short, he is a very enthusiastic non-mainstream physicist who is helpful to physics teaching and the development of physics culture.

Ridgway thought about Ehrenfest's deeds and felt that he could use him to strengthen the ties between the City of Science and Europe.

After all, he couldn't let bigwigs like Thomson and Planck do this for him.

And Ehrenfest may be the best candidate.

He is interested and energetic.

Maybe this incident can help him get out of his depressed ending in the later period.

Although Li Qiwei didn't know why Ehrenfest committed suicide.

But if a person has a busy career, he will have no time to think about random things.

The City of Science is a perfect place for Ehrenfest to give full play to his strengths.

So he extended his hand and said with a smile: "Hello, Ehrenfest."

“Although I didn’t have much contact with Professor Boltzmann, his academic thoughts left a deep impression on me.”

"I admire his persistence in atomic theory."

"You are his most proud student. You must have inherited his will."

Ehrenfest was overjoyed when he heard this. This made him happier than if he were praised personally.

The person he admired most in his life was his mentor Boltzmann.

When Boltzmann died, it was Ehrenfest who issued the obituary and summarized his mentor's achievements.

This shows his respect for his teachers.

"Thank you for your evaluation of my mentor, Professor Bruce."

“He had a huge influence on me.”

“My love for physics was largely influenced by him.”

At this time, Ehrenfest suddenly said embarrassedly:

"Of course, my level has not yet reached the teacher's expectations."

Li Qiwei said: "Don't belittle yourself. I think your phase transition theory is still very innovative."

Upon hearing this, Ehrenfest opened his mouth in surprise.

He couldn't believe that the famous Professor Bruce actually knew what his research was about.

Li Qiwei boasted: "Haha, don't think I'm just being polite."

"I now keep the habit of reading 10 papers in different fields every day."

hiss!
Everyone around was shocked.

That man is already number one, yet he still works so hard.

Sure enough, the boss’s success makes sense.

Ehrenfest was in awe.

"I admire your erudition."

Then, he said:
"I am very fascinated by your Science City plan and hope to ask you a few questions some time."

Li Qiwei was amused after hearing this, as he didn't have to speak first.

"Ok."

At this time, Lorenz said, "Okay Bruce, stop chatting and give your speech."

“Do you know how many people are looking forward to your speech right now?”

"They all want to find a shortcut to success."

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "That will probably disappoint them."

“I’ve been giving so many speeches lately, and I feel like I’ve been drained out of myself.”

Everyone laughed.

In his speech at Leiden University, Ridgway's topic was the theory of relativity.

He also specifically mentioned the LQW transformation joke, saying that Professor Lorentz sadly lost the achievement of special relativity.

The atmosphere in the venue was very lively.

Suddenly, a man hurriedly walked to the front of the stage and said something.

Then, Li Qiwei saw Lorenz excitedly gesturing to him. "Her Majesty the Queen is here to inspect, and she specifically asked to see Bruce."

Wow!
After the news was announced, it instantly caused a sensation in the venue.

Everyone was drooling with envy.

That's Her Majesty the Queen, and she actually asked to see Professor Bruce in person.

For the Dutch people, Queen Wilhelmina, who is only 33 years old this year, is the goddess in their hearts.

She is noble and dignified, beautiful in appearance and gentle in temperament.

He is the best king in the eyes of all Dutch people.

In real history, Queen Wilhelmina ascended the throne in 1898 and ruled the Netherlands for 50 years.

So she experienced World War I and World War II, and was a queen who was tempered in blood and fire.

She respected constitutional monarchy and parliament, had very enlightened political views, and was loved by the people and officials.

But her marriage life was unhappy as her husband had several illegitimate children.

And publicly claimed that "their marriage was not happy."

In her later years, Queen Wilhelmina wrote a memoir entitled "Lonely But Not Alone".

Li Qiwei was not too surprised when he heard that the Queen of the Netherlands wanted to see him.

With his current status, no one in the world can make him feel honored.

All people are equal.

Instead, it was Wang Luyao in the audience who was more excited.

She is the queen of a country.

She had never been close in her life.

And she is a young and beautiful queen.

Thinking of this, she looked at Li Qiwei with a smile.

Li Qiwei remained calm and composed.

Soon after the speech, Li Qiwei took Wang Luyao and Xiang Lan to where Queen Wilhelmina was.

Lorenz talked to him about some precautions.

After being checked by the guards, Li Qiwei finally met the Queen of the Netherlands in a temporarily cleaned hall.

I have to say that the Dutch are not bragging.

Queen Wilhelmina was indeed beautiful.

Especially in this era when there is no sorcery of head replacement, beauty can only be pure natural beauty.

Queen Wilhelmina wore a crown and her hair was simply tied up.

She sat on an ordinary chair, always with a faint smile on her face, making people want to get close to her.

There seemed to be a hint of laziness in her eyes, reflecting her superior status.

Li Qiwei was attracted by her appearance and was surprised for a few seconds before he bowed slightly and said:

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty."

Wilhelmina smiled and said, "Please take a seat, Professor Bruce."

Just now, she had been observing Li Qiwei, the most famous man in the scientific world, and he was indeed extraordinary.

As the Queen of the Netherlands, she has some understanding of China.

In her opinion, it was incredible that someone like Li Qiwei could appear in that place.

Tall, handsome, and intelligent, he was neither humble nor arrogant in front of his queen, and was full of gentlemanly demeanor.

Wilhelmina even saw a hint of scrutiny and appreciation in the other person's eyes.

This gave her a long-lost feeling.

She hadn't seen that kind of look since she became queen.

For a moment, Wilhelmina was actually slightly touched.

Then, Li Qiwei introduced Wang Luyao and Xiang Lan.

The second girl was more excited and greeted the queen excitedly.

Wilhelmina smiled in response.

Soon, after some official greetings, Queen Wilhelmina asked:

"Professor Bruce, they all say you are the number one genius in science."

"Even I have heard the name of relativity."

"Can you tell me how you came up with these theories?"

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it's not so much that I came up with this idea, but rather that history has developed to this stage."

"Even if I hadn't figured it out, someone else would have figured it out, maybe Professor Lorenz."

Somewhere in the hall, Lorenz, who was accompanying him, smiled.

"I believe this."

Wilhelmina smiled softly: "Professor Bruce, you are so modest."

"I've taken science courses, and those formulas are really a headache."

“You scientists are amazing.”

Li Qiwei smiled and said nothing.

Then Wilhelmina added: "I know Marie Curie. She is a woman I admire."

"It seems that she has won two Nobel Prizes, both of which have surpassed you as the No. 1 scientist."

Li Qiwei smiled and said, "Mrs. Curie is naturally extremely outstanding."

The two of them chatted casually like this.

Wang Luyao felt a little sleepy after listening to it.

Meeting the Queen was supposed to be a very exciting thing, but when it really happened, it seemed just like that.

Watching her husband chatting with the other party, Wang Luyao suddenly felt that it would be more interesting to listen to the speech.

At least you can learn something.

Finally, Li Qiwei did not forget to advertise his city of science.

Wilhelmina said she would support exchanges between the Netherlands and the City of Science to promote the development of science.

On the way back, Wang Luyao asked, "Why does it feel like Queen Wilhelmina is just an ordinary woman?"

Li Qiwei touched her head and smiled: "Silly girl, everyone in this world is an ordinary person."

"What about you, sir?"

"Haha, there are many kings, but I only have one."

After the trip to the Netherlands, Ridgway continued his journey with the reluctance of Lorenz and Ehrenfest.

In Belgium, Ridgway met Solvay.

Brother Suo has accomplished his mission and retired completely.

Although he is not a figure in the scientific community in Belgium, he is more famous than those scientists.

He single-handedly raised Belgium's status in the field of science.

Li Qiwei plans to let Hou Debang come to Solvay's company to study.

China's alkali-making king will surely surpass Europe's alkali-making king in the future.

In addition, Ridgeway was also warmly received by King Albert I of Belgium.

"Bruce, thanks to you, I finally found a real buyer for my batch of uranium ore."

Li Qiwei's Shanhe Group almost emptied Belgium's uranium mines in Africa by purchasing in batches.

Those were all extremely high-quality uranium ores, and only a portion of them were used in the Manhattan Project.

Now, they have all become Li Qiwei's private collection.

Albert I thought he had been taken advantage of.

He felt that Li Qiwei was only good at academics, but was a complete rookie when it came to business.

He could sell worthless uranium ore for a good price.

While drinking, he looked at Li Qiwei and felt very proud.

Li Qiwei: Listen to me saying thank you, because you make the four seasons warm.

(End of this chapter)