It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

She, who has always done things based on interest, has completely given up on pursuing the Royal Society path and just wants to vent her anger.

"Then not only will you fail to spread the word, people will also know that London has gained a giant who is 1.5 meters tall."

Hooker shrugged confidently and glanced at Newton sideways: "But even if you paid me to be rich, I would still think our offspring would be too short."

"He's really out of his mind. How are women supposed to have children?"

Newton stood up straight with his arms crossed and made a sarcastic remark.

"Ah, so you're a woman." Hook covered his mouth in surprise, then bowed insincerely and apologized, "I'm sorry, your chest is too flat, I thought you were a little boy."

Newton wanted to rush up and rip off Hooke's shirt, but considering Halley would definitely stop him, he gave up.

"Ahem, Hook."

Harley quickly steered the conversation back on track: "Could you tell us about the lady you admire?"

"can."

Hook nodded and began to describe the woman's features.

"She was a young lady, lively and agile, possessing all the beauty of that age."

"Isn't this just like all men, who prefer young women?"

Newton muttered to himself.

“It’s different.” Hook glanced at her. “Those filthy men lust after young women’s bodies—while I happen to like a young woman.”

"Ha, what's the difference?"

"Given your level of intellectual development, it's difficult for me to explain this clearly to you."

"What's wrong with my intelligence???"

"Cough cough!"

Harley, somewhat exasperated, steered the conversation back on track: "This description is too broad and too general; there are just too many people who fit the criteria... Are there any more specific characteristics? Like name, hair color, or something like that?"

Hook continued, "That person graduated from Oxford University this year..."

"This year? There are still many people."

“Blonde shorty, if you don’t speak, no one will think you’re mute.”

"..."

Upon hearing Hook's further description, Harley quickly tried to recall which outstanding graduates this year, but there were indeed too many to count at once.

Could it be Rose? She's very popular with men, which certainly fits the description of 'extremely popular'...

Just as she was reminiscing, Hooke, who was arguing with Newton, suddenly turned his head and gave Halley a piercing look.

Harley, the person I like is you!

???

Harley stumbled and almost lost his balance.

"Wait, wait a minute, I'm a woman too!"

She shouted as she regained her balance.

"Tsk, as expected, he just swore he wouldn't discriminate against me." Hook clicked his tongue upon seeing this, then sighed to the sky, "As expected, I am destined to be alone for the rest of my life... Oh well, there's no hope for this kind of life, I might as well commit suicide sooner rather than later, so that I won't have to suffer the pain of unrequited love in my next life."

"Don't give up your life for such a careless reason!" Newton, who had just recovered from his shock, was shocked again.

"Me, me, me."

In his panic, Harley used "I" three times in a row before finally finding a suitable excuse: "While I don't discriminate, that doesn't mean I'll definitely agree to your request. You have to choose someone you like, right? Besides, there's no emotional foundation whatsoever..."

"But we've been dating for two years already, two years! How many two-year periods does one have in a lifetime... Alas, Heaven, why are you so cruel to me?"

"That was just correspondence!"

Harley couldn't help but shout, she never expected that Hook would use the simple excuse of just trying to build a relationship.

"Doesn't exchanging letters count as exchanging letters?" Hook pressed. "Compared to mundane things like appearance and physique, isn't the resonance and understanding between two people in spirit and soul the highest realm of love? In this respect, exchanging letters is the most perfect way."

"It seems the two women can only communicate telepathically," Newton remarked.

"Stop joking around..." Harley said weakly.

"I'm serious! Harley!"

Hook's gaze was intense, Harley's black curly hair reflected in his pale gray pupils: "I'm very serious about my feelings... If you don't believe me, just agree to date me for a while, and you'll understand."

"How could I possibly agree to that???" Harley was on the verge of a breakdown.

Newton, who was watching the drama unfold with amusement, nodded repeatedly: "Sounds interesting. Harley, why don't you give it a try? I remember you said you'd help me solve this..."

Halley gave a very rare and icy look, which made Newton shudder and shut his mouth in time.

"Let's go."

After a brief moment of thought, Halley, who rarely backed down from anything, took Newton's arm and walked straight out the door.

Newton exclaimed in surprise, "Huh?"

Harley added as he walked away, "I gave up."

“If you change your mind, you can come to me anytime—” Hook didn’t stop him, but instead gave a mysterious smile. “If you suddenly encounter any insurmountable difficulties, you can also come to me.”

The smiling voice came from behind, sending a chill down Halley's spine, and he quickened his pace, pulling Newton along.

Chapter 112 Life is Like a Play

Inside a luxury hotel.

Knock knock knock—

A rhythmic knocking sounded at the door. Li Cheng opened his silver pocket watch with slight doubt. After carefully checking the positions of the hour and minute hands, he confirmed that it was only 9:30.

"Please come in, the door is open," he said, closing his pocket watch.

As the door opened, an elderly gentleman, over 50 years old, walked in. He had a pair of deep black eyes, slightly gray hair, and impeccably dressed clothes.

"Mr. Joyce?"

Based on the physical description in the information at hand, Li Cheng was somewhat uncertain.

"Thank you for remembering my name."

The old man named Joyce bowed and said, "I am Kelvin Joyce, here to apply for the job of butler."

Li Cheng was then certain that it was one of the housekeeper candidates he had ordered... cough cough, it had arrived.

A couple of days ago, he took some time to visit the London Servants Association on High Street to hire an experienced butler to help him with a series of tasks, including finding a new garden villa and hiring and managing servants for the villa's daily maintenance.

After identifying several suitable candidates, paying the deposit, and providing his residential address, he learned that someone would come to interview him at 10 a.m. the next day.

However, this Mr. Joyce seemed to be a bit too professional; as the oldest among them, he arrived even earlier than the other young people.

"Isn't that unnecessary? What if I'm not ready yet..." Li Cheng sighed at how busy he was even when applying for a housekeeper position. Without wasting any more time, he immediately started asking the questions he wanted to know.

......

Through a series of questions, Li Cheng learned that this Mr. Joyce was indeed a very capable old butler. Apart from being older, he could meet Li Cheng's requirements in every way and even far exceeded his expectations.

He then asked a variety of questions, such as whether he had business experience, his knowledge of natural sciences, his beliefs, and his views on kings and nobles. Joyce gave answers that met his expectations.

Because he was so satisfied with the answer, Li Cheng felt a strange urge to make things difficult for him.

'I'm kind of tempted to try out those nasty HR questions from my past life... Like, I have 10 pounds, how would you rent a villa with a garden? Or I have a bottle of wine, how would you sell it to a complete stranger for ten times the price?'

However, Li Cheng quickly suppressed the thought—HR is recruiting employees for the boss, while he was looking for a housekeeper for himself, okay?

After thinking for a moment, he casually asked a question that had nothing to do with the butler.

"If you were to adapt a person's life into a play and perform the entire story, what part do you think would be most easily overlooked by the audience?"

"..."

After thinking for a while, Joyce replied seriously, "I think it's a sufficiently boring and redundant mundane daily routine without any expectations."

"Um......"

Li Cheng lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then stood up from his seat.

Let me introduce myself.

He smiled and said, "Aber Lee, also your new employer, people who know me usually call me Li Cheng."

"Yes, Mr. Li Cheng, is there anything I can do for you?"

Joyce didn't show any surprise; instead, she naturally began to take over the work.

"The first thing is to help me politely refuse the two gentlemen behind me and reimburse their carriage fare."

Li Cheng picked up a small bag that had been prepared in advance on the table. The bag made a crisp clinking sound. "The second thing is to help me find a suitable garden villa for me in the area marked on the map, and let me know later."

He was too lazy to interview the two people behind him, which was an advantage Joyce gained by arriving half an hour earlier.

"learn."

Joyce's answer was brief and clear.

Seeing him take the small bag, Li Cheng calmly said, "Besides, I grew up in the Great Yan Dynasty and only recently came to London. There are many things I don't know about this place."

“At least you are very knowledgeable about English,” Joyce said with a simple compliment.

Li Cheng smiled and continued, "That's why I easily overlook some details. I hope you can remind me. Also, if you have any opinions, feel free to speak up. I'm usually very easy to talk to."

"Yes."

Joyce thought for a moment and then suggested, "Mr. Li Cheng, should we find a professional to draft the employment contract?"

Li Cheng was taken aback, then nodded and said, "Thank you for the reminder. I'll leave this to you."

------

After arranging everything, Li Cheng took a carriage to return to 221 Baker Street to pack his luggage.

Along the way, he shifted his thoughts away from things that were too abstract and focused on the present, namely a part of the reply he received after writing to Stoller.

I want to remind you of something: be careful of Veronica; her actions may not be as upright as she appears.

Although I have no concrete evidence, I suspect that the death of a close friend of mine, George Richman, was related to her; he had vehemently opposed the establishment of the Bank of England.