Training the Heavens

Chapter 260 On the Boat

After waving goodbye to everyone, he followed other guests onto the ship, which was an ocean liner owned by a British trading company. Zhang Xingjiu would take the ship south to Malacca, cross the Indian Ocean, enter the Mediterranean Sea from the Suez Canal, and finally land at the port of Marseille, where he would take a train to Paris.

At that time, the price of ocean liners was quite expensive. The first-class cabin cost one hundred pounds, and the second-class cabin he took cost more than thirty pounds. Nowadays, one pound could be exchanged for about 6.2 taels of silver, and the ship ticket alone cost more than two hundred taels.

If it were the previous Zhang Fuqing, even if he didn't eat or drink, it would take him 20 years to save up this amount of money. Ordinary people couldn't even afford the travel expenses, let alone tuition, accommodation, and book fees.

The second-class cabin is a separate cabin with a bed, a desk, and a window to see the scenery outside the cabin. The bathroom is shared, so you need to go outside to use the toilet.

The conditions are definitely not as good as those in the first-class cabin. The first-class cabin is a suite with a master bedroom connected to a servant's room and a separate bathroom, so you can enjoy a comfortable travel life without leaving the house.

It’s not that Zhang Xingjiu couldn’t afford the first-class cabin fare, but as a Chinese he was not qualified to stay in the first-class cabin. He was able to stay in the second-class cabin because of the face of Fu Lan-ya and the church. Otherwise, he would have to squeeze into the third and fourth-class cabins with other Chinese.

The conditions in these cabins are even worse. Passengers have to squeeze together with other passengers, and some are even below the deck. They have to stay in the cabin for most of the day. They can only have a very short time to go to the deck to get some fresh air when the first- and second-class passengers go back to their rooms to rest.

When I arrived at my room, all the important things had been put into my personal space. There were only some spare clothes and daily necessities left in the suitcase, as well as a little change for cover.

The journey to France was long, and it would take more than a month on the ship. It was really boring to just stay in the room and read, so Zhang Xingjiu put his luggage away and went out. He asked for a cup of coffee on the deck, sat at the table, drank coffee and observed other passengers.

It can be seen that most of the people who can enjoy coffee on the deck are Westerners. Occasionally there are a few Chinese, who also seem to be from Southeast Asia. Most of them are dressed in bright clothes and have braids.

This reminded Zhang Xingjiu. He had long been tired of the braid on his head and would go back to have it cut later. Anyway, he would be staying in France for a long time this time, so he was not afraid of being discovered.

After sitting for a while, he saw a foreigner next to him who seemed to be looking at him with curiosity in his eyes. Zhang Xingjiu raised his coffee cup to signal him, and the foreigner quickly picked up his coffee cup in response.

Then he simply walked over with the cup, pointed to the seat opposite, and asked in English, "Do you mind?"

"Please feel free." Zhang Xingjiu politely asked him to sit down.

As soon as he sat down, the foreigner asked curiously, "I just saw the respected Reverend Fryer come to see you off. Excuse me, what is your relationship? Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Bernard Eddington from Lancashire Tobacco Company. Nice to meet you."

"Zhang Xingjiu, a student, is going to Europe to study at a university. You can call me Zhang! Father Fryer has given me a lot of academic guidance and helped me submit my article to Nature magazine. It was this article that secured me the opportunity to study abroad in Europe."

"Wow, Nature! That's incredible!" Bernard was a respectable man who had attended university and was well aware of the weight of Nature. These words reminded him of a legend in Shanghai. "Are you the genius who studied at St. Ignatius's?"

"That's right. Actually, I can study in Europe thanks to your company," Zhang Xingjiu said, keeping the question a secret. "Oh?" This really piqued Bernard's curiosity.

"Since last year, I have been buying new shares in your company. Thanks to the hard work of Mr. Eddington and others, my investment has increased several times over. That's why I have the money to study abroad in Europe and sit with you for coffee."

"Haha, the company's performance last year was indeed outstanding. I received a large bonus and a first-class flight reimbursed by the company." Bernard was very proud of this and immediately burst into laughter.

A simple trick brought the two closer together. They started chatting about the performance of Lankai Tobacco Company and university life in Europe. Bernard felt sorry for Zhang Xingjiu when he heard that he had the opportunity to go to Cambridge but chose Sorbonne University.

"Cambridge is the best university in the world. It would be a shame to miss such an opportunity."

"I've also heard of Cambridge's great reputation for a long time, but St. Ignatius's College was founded by French Jesuits. If it weren't for them, I wouldn't have the opportunity to go to university." Zhang Xingjiu shrugged regretfully.

Zhang Xingjiu was very good at chatting, and Bernard worked as a middle-level manager in a foreign company and had strong language skills. The two of them soon started chatting enthusiastically. This scene attracted other passengers, and Bernard called his friends from other foreign companies over.

For a moment, the deck became a small salon for discussing European university life, and Zhang Xingjiu also learned a lot about European universities from them.

However, among the foreigners who came to the Far East during this period, there were still not many who had attended university. After chatting for a while, a few of them began to feel bored and they clamored to play poker.

So they went to the game room on the ship and played the popular Stud Poker game. The stakes were not high, with a minimum bet of one shilling and a maximum of two pounds. Each person first exchanged ten pounds of chips. If they lost all, they could quit or buy new chips and enter the game again.

Zhang Xingjiu observed for a while, and then started to kill everyone. He could remember the facial expressions and habits of each participant, and could use mathematical methods to analyze the probability of winning for each deck of cards. How could these rookies get away with him?

When the card game ended, Zhang Xingjiu did not keep the money for himself, but used it all to treat these guys to dinner and drinks. The resentment of Bernard and others immediately dissipated a lot, and their impression of Zhang Xingjiu also improved.

After enjoying the feast, everyone went to the bar to continue drinking. Some people felt bored again, but this time, no one wanted to play poker. "With Zhang here, none of us can win money. I will only agree if he doesn't leave the game and doesn't provide advice to someone."

But just drinking was too boring, and everyone was clamoring for some fun. Zhang Xingjiu held up his glass and said, "How about I tell you a story? This story was told to me by a wandering sailor when I was in Shanghai."

"This story takes place in the 17th century. Jack Sparrow is a captain of the East India Company. His boss, Lord Beckett, arranges for Jack to use his ship, the Bad Girl, to transport a batch of goods to the Caribbean."

(End of this chapter)