dmims Chapter 23 Hiring British Sailors as Bodyguards
Chapter 23 Hiring British Sailors as Bodyguards
"Please speak."
"If this operation succeeds, you and your sailors will indeed make money. I hope that I can hire a few reliable sailors on your ship who are on leave at a high salary of £10 a day to temporarily serve as my guards when I need them."
As you know, Shanghai isn't exactly peaceful right now, and I... might need some of that 'British-style' sense of security in the future. You also don't need to worry about your sailors violating discipline while protecting themselves, because I'm also honored to have a British passport, and protecting one's own citizens is one of the Royal Navy's duties.
Han Zhenhua revealed his true purpose and personally handed over his British passport for the other party to examine.
£10 a day was an astronomical sum for ordinary sailors in those days, enough to make them scramble to protect themselves and take their safety seriously!
After all, Shanghai is a melting pot of all sorts of people, it's really too chaotic. There are Japanese, Kuomintang secret police, and the soon-to-be-established 76th Division, the Green Gang, the Axe Gang, petty thugs, and so on. You can't really be as safe as you were in your previous life just by having a British passport!
If I were to leave the British concession, which is heavily patrolled by British and Indian police, I fear that a small-time thug from the Axe Gang would smash my head open with an axe. Who would I be able to complain to then?
Captain Wayne Holt finally understood. This young physics genius before him was not only intelligent, but also deeply versed in the ways of survival in chaotic times, attempting to use money to build a protective shell backed by the military power of the British Navy.
This proposal would not cost him anything; if it were true, it would even allow him and his sailors to earn extra income. After all, who would turn down the pound?
He pondered for a moment, then a knowing smile appeared on his face: "An interesting suggestion, Mr. Han, no, I think it's more natural to call you Mr. Cole."
Your confidence makes me willing to trust you this once. Okay, I accept. I'll open an account tomorrow. I'll wait for your news the day after tomorrow.” He extended his hand and shook hands with Han Zhenhua again. “Now, I won't keep you and Susan from seeing the professor.”
I wish you a successful experiment and great scientific achievements!
Watching Captain Wayne Holt's dashing departure with the roses, Susan stared wide-eyed at Han Zhenhua in disbelief: "Han, was what you just said true? Stocks? Guaranteed profits? You even know about this?"
Han Zhenhua smiled mysteriously: "Just a little bit of inside information. Let's go, don't keep the professor waiting."
Upon arriving at the physics lab at St. John's University, I found it brightly lit, with various instruments humming away. Professor Cole, his hair disheveled, his glasses askew, and his white lab coat stained, was in a state of extreme excitement, gesturing wildly in front of a pile of data and charts.
"Han! You're finally here!" Upon seeing Han Zhenhua, Professor Cole rushed over, excitedly grabbing his shoulder so tightly that Han Zhenhua winced. "It's a success! A complete success! The effect of graphite as a decelerator is exactly as predicted in your paper! The error is less than five ten-thousandths! My God, this is simply a miracle!"
Han Zhenhua could only grit his teeth and try to keep up with the professor's thoughts, relying on the memory he had crammed the night before and the prompts from his phone's AI. He would occasionally interject with a few words that sounded profound but were actually only half-understood by himself, such as "It seems that the application of the Bohr model here needs to be revised" or "The calculation of the collision section may need to introduce new parameters."
But this was enough to excite Professor Cole even more: "Yes! Yes, yes, yes! That's the question! Your thinking is so sharp! We're already at the forefront of physics, my child!"
In his excitement, Professor Cole solemnly announced two pieces of news: "Han, I have sent our paper (he emphasized "our"), along with the perfect experimental data from this experiment, to the most authoritative journal of the Royal Society of Great Britain as quickly as possible!"
At the same time, I have formally written to the Copley Prize in Physics Committee of the British Empire and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, strongly recommending this research result! Although the process will be lengthy, I have a feeling that this will be the pinnacle of our careers!
But regarding my child, I have another request, and I hope you can grant me permission.
"Teacher, you're too kind. There's an old Chinese saying, 'A teacher for a day is a father for life.' Please feel free to ask me anything, and I'll do my best to fulfill it!" Han Zhenhua said with a smile.
Thank you for your generosity, my child!
Here's the thing: I'd like to add Susan's name last in the attribution of this great achievement. After all, every father wants his child to have a more wonderful life, is that alright?
"Of course I know it's unethical..." Professor Cole said, very embarrassed.
"Teacher, what are you saying? Senior Sister Susan was also fully involved in the entire research and experiment. She spent far more time in the lab assisting you than I did, so it's only natural that she should be credited!"
"Teacher, how about this? You can be the first author, and Susan can be the second author. I'll just be the third author! If you have anyone else who needs guidance, you can let them be the fourth author!" Han Zhenhua said with a carefree smile.
Han Zhenhua wasn't being genuinely modest; anyone in academia knows that the first author is the mentor, the second author is the main contributor, and the third and fourth authors are merely supporting roles. However, if you're listed as the first or second author, you absolutely have to attend the award review committee's defense. With his high school physics level, in front of a group of physics luminaries, he'd likely be completely clueless, shake his head three times, and eventually become speechless!
Therefore, I have already achieved my goal, and I absolutely must not do anything to show off!
Professor Cole's eyes instantly reddened. He gripped Han Zhenhua's hand tightly with his gloved hand, his knuckles turning white with emotion. His voice choked with barely suppressed sobs: "My child, you are simply an angel sent by God!" He turned to look at Susan, his eyes filled with tender tears.
Susan stood to the side, covering her mouth, then turned to look at Han Zhenhua. Her eyes glistened with tears, but a bright smile played on her lips: "Junior Brother Han, you know what? Yesterday I was in the lab thinking that if I could see my name on a paper, even if it was just the last one, I would be so happy I couldn't sleep..."
She suddenly lunged forward, her blonde hair brushing against Han Zhenhua's shoulder as she moved, her warm lips gently touching his cheek.
This happened so suddenly that Han Zhenhua froze on the spot, his ears instantly turning as red as boiling alcohol lamps in a laboratory, and even his neck turned a suspicious pink.
Professor Cole, looking at the scene before him, slapped his thigh and burst out laughing: "Oh my God! Susan, the way you just looked exactly like the way your mother handed me love letters when I was courting her!"
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The next day, as promised, Han Zhenhua called Captain Wayne Holt and told him the stock code of "Nanyang Petroleum" and that it was available for immediate purchase. He also asked how much capital the captain had prepared, promising to fully compensate him if he lost money and not let him suffer any loss.
On the other end of the phone, Wayne first politely expressed his gratitude, and then told him directly that he had a total principal of 560 pounds, and the 67 officers and soldiers on the ship each contributed either 30 pounds or 50 pounds, totaling 2345 pounds. Adding his principal, it was about 3000 pounds.
Han Zhenhua also notified his broker to use all of his principal plus the agreed tenfold leverage of £4 to buy "Nanyang Petroleum"!