Australian National University

September 23, 1900, Sydney.

At a time when the wave of celebration and gratitude throughout Australia had not yet ended, Arthur pressed home his advantage and founded Australia's first university in Sydney: Australian National University.

This was a large-scale institution of higher education jointly funded by the Australian Government and the royal family, with a government investment of one million and one pounds and a royal investment of one million pounds, totaling an investment of over two million pounds.

Although it had just been built, the campus of Australian National University was by no means small, covering a massive area of over two square kilometers, which translated to more than three thousand mu.

Even though the school did not actually need such a vast area, Australia was sparsely populated after all, and land was truly not in short supply.

Therefore, this surplus area was planned into green spaces and artificial lakes, which could both improve the natural environment of the campus and make rational use of the extra land.

As the only cradle in a short period capable of independently cultivating high-quality talent for Australia, Arthur attached great importance to Australian National University, personally arriving at the scene the very moment it was completed to attend the first meeting of the Australian university alongside Richard Noble Chapman, the Minister of Education.

Thanks to the era's low requirements for campus environments, most of the campus buildings at Australian National University were merely crude, unfinished shells, with fine renovations reserved only for a few relatively precise laboratories, and their construction costs were generally several times or even dozens of times that of ordinary buildings.

Australian National University.

"Mr. Principal, will His Royal Highness and the Minister really come to attend our meeting?" a linguistics lecturer who had traveled all the way from Europe asked with a hint of surprise.

In Europe, even as a senior linguistics lecturer at a university, the highest-ranking figure he had ever seen was none other than the education officials of various countries.

Yet he never expected that just a few days after arriving in Australia, he would be able to see the Australian monarch and the Minister of Education, and even attend a meeting with them in person—it was simply driving people mad with excitement.

Hearing their colleague ask this, other teachers recruited from Europe or elsewhere also perked up their ears, afraid of missing a single character spoken by the principal.

"Of course, Lecturer James. Has His Royal Highness ever broken his word? Besides, the meeting is starting in a moment, won't you know then?" Wilfred Freeman Weinberg said with a smile.

Hearing Wilfred Freeman Weinberg say this, the other lecturers stopped asking questions and nodded quite naturally.

Although most of them had arrived in Australia only in the past few months, they were well aware of most of the things Arthur had done in Australia.

For a monarch who spoke and acted on every word, going back on one's promise was truly a rare sight in him.

And indeed, just as Wilfred Freeman Weinberg had said, less than a few minutes later, Arthur entered the campus with Richard, the Minister of Education, and, guided by a few guards and lecturers, arrived at the meeting area where everyone was gathered.

The area where the teachers and school leadership were located was one of the few places in the school that had any semblance of decoration; the walls had been plastered with a layer of smooth cement and then coated with a layer of lime, making them look relatively clean and tidy.

"Your Royal Highness!"

Seeing Arthur walk in, everyone stood up to salute him.

Arthur nodded, unceremoniously sitting down at the head of the conference table, and then instructed, "Alright, let's skip the small talk, let the meeting begin!"

"Yes, Your Royal Highness." Principal Wilfred Freeman Weinberg stepped forward, first responding respectfully, and then continued, "Your Royal Highness, Minister, and esteemed lecturers. From its initial proposal to the present, Australian National University has undergone over three months of construction. Generally speaking, our teaching areas, administrative areas, and accommodation areas have basically been completed and are ready for use. As for some advanced laboratories involving precision and environmental controls, they may still need two to three months of construction time before they can be put into use. But overall, Australian National University will soon be able to start admissions and officially open within the next month."

Judging solely from the educational nature of the university, the current setup of Australian National University was already fully sufficient for use.

As for those laboratories still under construction, they were intended for the scientists and senior professors attracted from Europe; since there were not very many scientists and professors at present, it did not matter too much if they were a little later.

"Very well, Principal Wilfred Freeman Weinberg. For several years to come, Australian National University will be the most important cradle for cultivating talent in Australia. I am very gratified that it could be built and put into use in such a short time. Now, let's talk about your admissions! How many students does Australian National University plan to recruit this year, and what are the caps for each major?" Arthur first nodded in gratification, then asked the more important question regarding admissions.

"Your Royal Highness, currently, because our number of teachers is limited, our school has only opened five majors: Mechanical Engineering, Physical Chemistry, Architecture, Medical Science, and Literature. Among them, Mechanical Engineering and Physical Chemistry are relatively important for our industrial development, so the enrollment for these two majors must be kept at least above 200 people. Architecture and Medical Science also have a large number of vacancies caused by our country's infrastructure construction and medical development, and the recruitment of talent for these two fields should not be too low either, maintaining at least above 150 people. Next is the Literature profession; Australia is a multi-ethnic country composed of locals and foreign immigrants, and we urgently need to cultivate Australians into a unified culture, so the Literature profession should recruit at least over 100 people as well. Judging by this, our first batch of admissions should be at least over 800 people in order to provide a certain degree of replenishment for the country's talent shortages after these students graduate," Wilfred Freeman Weinberg suggested.

This was precisely Australia's shortcoming. Although it possessed massive mineral resources and land, talent in Australia was extremely scarce, and every walk of life in the country's development required a massive amount of talent.

"I approve, and I allow you to discretionarily increase the number on the basis of 800, but it is best not to exceed 1,500 people." Arthur nodded and said without hesitation.

Arthur liked Wilfred Freeman Weinberg's pragmatic personality very much, and during meetings, such talent who cut out the nonsense and just got things done was precisely what was needed.

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