Chapter One: Berlin or Kiel (Two)

  On the way home from work, the newspaper boy had a lot of papers about the Far Eastern War. In July, the war in the Far East broke out, and both China and Japan were sending troops to Korea. The Beiyang Fleet, which had two ironclad battleships of the Sachsen class, began patrolling at sea, while Japan, with its many British-made ironclad cruisers, mobilized its entire navy. Although Wang Haide was very concerned about this war, and a newspaper cost only a few cents, Haide did not stop in his tracks.

  In July 1894, the Battle of Pungdo Island broke out. In September 1894, both the Pyongyang and Yellow Sea battles were lost. In February 1895, Weihaiwei staged a "Rainbow Action" version of the Qing Dynasty, and the Beiyang Fleet was completely defeated. Although Wang Haitao is not clear about the specific process of the war, he is very clear about the tragic end of the Beiyang Fleet and the fact that his country is sinking deeper into darkness.

  "My poor motherland, it's not that your children are unfilial, but I'm really powerless..."

  As she walked from the dock, the prosperous scene of Kiel's city center and the poor and dilapidated streets of the lower district kept retreating, thinking of those who were ambitious but failed to achieve their goals, died of starvation before they could make a name for themselves, Wang Haiting's mood was somewhat disturbed.

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  Behind every prosperous city, there must be countless blood, tears and hardships hidden. Under its dazzling appearance, there must be countless shadows that are difficult to show. It is known that no matter how the Cardinals of the Vatican and the peacemakers of Vienna preach, this world will never have a utopian paradise.

  After the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, hundreds of thousands of people moved from the eastern part of the empire to the west, pouring into big cities like Berlin and Kiel from Upper and Lower Silesia, Posen, West Prussia and East Prussia. The young German Empire experienced its largest and longest population migration wave in history. Kiel was also a beneficiary of this movement, with many immigrants from Eastern Europe and East Prussia bringing their families to the port city blessed by Neptune.

  Indeed, the Nikolaikirche in the city center and the sculpture "Kriegerdenkmal" by Ernst Barlach have withstood the test of time for centuries; under the ancient oak tree on the outskirts, many sweet legends and stories are still sprouting and continuing; Kiel Bay, with its azure waters, is quietly waiting for the annual Kieler Woche, when sailors from all over the world gather in Kiel to sail; The Kiel naval base, where the Sachsen-class and Brandenburg-class ironclads that carried the German people's dreams of a navy are quietly anchored. Kiel, the capital of Germany's Schleswig-Holstein region, the starting point of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal, an important port city on the Baltic coast, has never been short of romantic charm. But in the eyes of Wang Haitao, who had studied psychology, it was still not the ideal country described by Plato, nor was it Thomas More's Utopia.

  In 1894, Germany was still reeling from the economic crisis of 1873. The unification of the Empire had shattered the fetters that had hitherto hindered German economic development, and this young nation was bursting with vigorous vitality; but its rulers and people were still lacking in experience of governing a great state.

  The closed and conservative rural system was broken, countless Junker nobles, known for their stubbornness, jumped up and cursed all new things while cautiously starting to invest in factories and enterprises; black-painted chimneys were erected, ancient city walls were pushed away, the clear and white Rhine River gradually became turbid, cities expanded like a monster that swallowed everything at a geometric rate; peasants were deprived of their land, driven by capitalists to come to cities full of opportunities and disasters, and due to the infinite pressure from emerging industrialists and businessmen, the Ruhr and Upper Silesia workers went on strike in 1889.

  In the southeast corner of Kiel, large wooden sheds and monotonous grey bungalows are piled up in a chaotic mess, with smoke from the industrial area drifting over and never dissipating. Industrial and domestic wastewater gushes out of the sewers and flows freely on the roads. Countless poor people struggle between hunger and warmth, dragging their exhausted bodies around. The consequences of the city's excessive expansion are evident here. This is a desolate land deliberately ignored by Kiel's municipal officials, a hidden scar behind the beautiful Kiel. There is only violence, hunger, waiting, and desperate escape here.

  The slum after the rain is far from being as beautiful as people imagine, it's full of desperate gray tones. The small wooden hut where Heidi Westheim lives, with its worm-eaten boards and old, stained waterproof canvas, can't keep out the seepage of water, accompanied by the sound of dripping rain and endless darkness, the damp and rotten air spreads throughout the house.

  The sound of matches striking and applause alternated, and under Brunette's instigation, the newly cultivated smoking addiction was instantly extinguished by Annie. A small piece of old newspaper and inferior tobacco leaves were scattered all over the floor. Annie, the little daughter of Schreck, a fruit vendor and neighbor of Heidemarie, bared her teeth at him, with an attitude that dared him to pick it up and fight to the death.

  "Are you still not going to let people pretend to be deep and melancholic?" Although he was very fond of the taste of cigarettes, Wang Haiting did not dare to test Little Annie's bottom line, so he had to reluctantly put away the matchbox and carefully arrange his precious painting tools.

  As dinner time approached, Heiti Seilem, a porter who had just returned from the dock, took advantage of the time it took to boil water to steal a moment's leisure and set up his easel outside the wooden shed. With the dim light outside, Heiti sat on a small stool, holding a sketching pencil with only the tip left, trying to reproduce his impression of this world on a roughly smoothed out scrap paper. Fifteen-year-old Annie was leaning over Heiti's back, forcing him to draw a picture of a dandelion for her.

  White sketching, meticulous painting, shading and texture. The artistic foundation that Wang Haitie had diligently practiced in college to pursue his little girlfriend was still there. Annie had been urging him to take time off to see the chrysanthemum exhibition, but Wang Haitie was somewhat absent-minded due to fatigue. Distracted for a moment, a colorful and tempting KFC roasted chicken print appeared on the paper. It wasn't until then that Wang Haitie remembered he hadn't eaten a proper meal in a long time.

  "Is this the car you sent me?" Annie's mouth was pouting so much that it could almost hold a bottle of soy sauce. Wang Haitian covered his empty stomach, spread out his hands in embarrassment, fortunately someone shifted Annie's attention.

  "Mr. Heidi Xilem, you have a letter." A motorcycle tricycle rode through the streets and alleys, stopping on the muddy path in front of the wooden shed. The postman, wearing an olive green uniform with mud spots all over, took out an express mail from his bag, carefully checked the address plate, and shouted to Wang Haitie.

  "My letter?" Wang Haitian put down his brush, astonished. Apart from Catherine who was deeply in love with him, Wang Haitian couldn't think of anyone else who would send a letter to a poor boy living in the lower district of Kiel, someone who had never left Kiel his whole life.

  "If you are Mr. Heidi-Selim." The postman said with a benevolent smile.

  Wang Haitie squeezed the pair of worn-out shoes that were obviously too small for her feet, and limped away to receive the letter from the mailman's hand.

  It was a dainty, elegant letter, with the portrait of Herr and Frau Sesemann on the seal. Heidi guessed whence it came, and her heart beat with excitement as she took it from the dirty hand which had held it, and wiped it carefully on her dress, until the thick layer of grime on her fingers became visible once more.

  "Congratulations, Herr Seiler-Ha?t, on being accepted by the University of Berlin! You've earned a feather in the cap for the people of Kiel's lower district!" The German mailman, with a genuine smile, patted Heiti's robust arm and congratulated him.

  "Is it Berlin University?" Little Annie's eyes widened in surprise, covering her mouth with a look of astonishment. "It is Berlin University!"

  The University of Berlin, formerly known as the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universit?t, is located in the heart of Berlin and was originally situated at the former Hohenzollern Palace. The University of Berlin is the oldest university in the German capital of Berlin, founded by Wilhelm von Humboldt in 1809, who is considered one of the most important figures in German educational history. It is a cradle of higher education in Germany and a starting point for its rise to prominence. Universities in Germany follow an elite education system, where graduates often become minor government officials or employees of large corporations. The fact that Wang Haitao was able to get into the highly competitive University of Berlin means he will be able to escape the poverty-stricken district of Kiel and reach for the sky. It is no wonder that the enthusiastic mailman would applaud him with a thumbs up.

  Power can't compare to the second generation of officials, wealth can't compare to the second generation of rich people, but at least I can get a higher score on the college entrance exam than them. With a tragic mindset, under the urging of farsighted Hester, Wang Haitian ignored the cold ridicule and hot mockery of his classmates at Tim Kreger Middle School, and recklessly applied to Berlin University. As the most awkward time-traveler in history, Wang Haitian finally achieved something that barely qualified as a great achievement for a time-traveler.

  Wang Haitie's excited mood didn't last long, thinking of Heather's illness, heavy debt and ruthless Schneider uncle, Wang Haitie's good mood was instantly swept away.

  The mailman had ridden his bicycle far away, and in the damp air, there seemed to be a lingering echo of the mailman's slightly envious praise. Wang Haitian's hand, which was accustomed to moving heavy objects, pressed down on the envelope, with complex and knotted emotions, and with a bitter smile, tore open the letter.

  A letter with the principal's private seal and high-quality paper floated out. The letter was not long, nor as elaborate as the admission notice of Nanjing University of Science and Technology in later generations. Like the rigor of German universities, the letter only mentioned Wang Haidi's admitted major, start date, and notes, but these sparse hundred or so words made Wang Haidi's heart turn upside down with mixed emotions.

  Wang Haitie looked at the notice and hesitated in front of the portrait of the Humboldt brothers on the envelope: "Is it Berlin or Kiel?"

  Annie snatched the letter from Wang Haitian's hand, and although she didn't know many characters, she curiously turned the thin paper over and over, seemingly more excited than Wang Haitian himself.

  "Is there even anything to consider? Of course I'm going to Berlin!"

  Note

  The Panic of 1873: the longest and most severe economic crisis of the 19th century, which lasted from 1873 until the end of the century.