Murder and Arson

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In 2022—or rather, the first decade or so of the 21st Century—Britain at the end of October certainly could not be called warm, but neither was it especially cold.

After all, it had a temperate maritime climate, so temperature fluctuations were not drastic.

Take Newton's hometown of Woolsthorpe, for example. At the end of October, daytime temperatures were around 9 degrees Celsius, while nighttime temperatures averaged 4 degrees. That was all; there was no need for especially thick clothing.

But 1665 was different.

This involved a bit of geographical knowledge:

The Little Ice Age.

As its name implied, the Little Ice Age referred to a relatively colder period, though it was still warmer than the major Great Ice Ages that wiped out vast numbers of plant and animal species.

Every Little Ice Age in history had caused a dramatic drop in Earth's temperature, severely reducing global food production.

This, in turn, triggered intense social upheaval and a sharp population decline.

The previous Little Ice Age had lasted from 1350 to around 1850. The Late Ming Dynasty had seen its coldest point, with temperatures about 4.5 degrees lower than today.

This was one of the important reasons why the Ming Dynasty had fallen. It was also why many detail-oriented transmigration novel authors said that the Late Ming Dynasty was one of the hardest settings to turn around—trying to fight the Little Ice Age through one person's efforts alone was simply far too difficult.

The corresponding local year for 1665 was the Kangxi 4th year, barely more than twenty years after the fall of the Ming Dynasty, right in the coldest stretch of the Little Ice Age.

At the same time, due to Great Britain's island geography, the Little Ice Age's temperature changes there were actually somewhat more severe than on the mainland.

Thus, Woolsthorpe at this time was around 7.5 degrees colder than it would be in the same period in later generations. Daytime temperatures could even fall below freezing. (Reference: doi:10.27307/d.cnki.gsjtu.2018.000319)

And Xu Yun's shoes were the latest Anta low-top insulated boots. Their warmth far exceeded Newton's own footwear.

Therefore, Newton's little stunt was theoretically understandable. After all, the old master's character really was a bit... questionable.

Of course.

As always:

Before he had clashed with Hooke, Newton could at most be called a troubled youth. He was not yet an old bastard.

Just as Awei had merely been a rebellious young man who secretly played video games before meeting Brother Jie, only entering another stage of life after meeting him.

Newton's selfishness at this point was an inevitable result of his upbringing. It was somewhat like a feral kitten guarding its food, and he could still be saved.

Besides, the fact that Newton had only taken the shoes and had not touched Xu Yun's clothes or trousers at all showed that the young man was not the sort to rob people without limits. He had his own self-contained set of values:

Things that outsiders considered wrong seemed perfectly natural to him, so he reached out and took them. But any further actions would have crossed the boundary of "reason" in his heart, so he stopped.

In short.

He was a delinquent with flawed values, but still had a bottom line.

And when it came to teaching delinquent youths...

Xu Yun had quite a bit of experience.

In his previous life, while writing novels, he had taught over thirty thousand Classmate Xian Weiren. In this life, while pursuing his doctorate, he had also served as a teaching assistant for a class and encountered plenty of extraordinary people.

Combined with his relevant knowledge, there was theoretically still a chance to set Old Master Newton straight.

Of course.

All these thoughts had one prerequisite—he had to be able to remain by Newton's side.

While Xu Yun was thinking.

Newton, having explained where the "fine" would go, was also examining the stranger he had brought home. His furrowed brow showed that he was uncertain.

Not long ago.

After making Xu Yun feel the weight of knowledge through the books in his hands, Newton's emotions had gradually settled down.

He then carefully observed the stranger and found that, aside from his unusual appearance, everything from his clothing and complexion to the fullness of his skin differed greatly from that of an ordinary vagrant.

Especially the pair of glasses on his nose—an ordinary family probably could not afford such gold-rimmed corrective lenses even if they sold everything they owned.

Moreover, Newton was still a student who had only just earned his bachelor's degree. His mindset was comparatively less complicated than that of an adult—students' innocence was often most apparent when it came to lending money. Who knew how many students who had yet to enter society first learned the meaning of "the human heart is treacherous" from the first sum of money they lent a roommate.

Taking all these reasons together, Newton had chosen to bring Xu Yun home. After some thought, he had also claimed the shoes on Xu Yun's feet as his own.

He could not help it.

The Tangka shoes on Newton's own feet only had a little deer hide on the sides. The rest was crudely made cotton and linen, with a few scraps of old cloth stuffed inside. When the wind leaked in, the feeling was exquisite.

Saving someone was one matter. The other party infringing upon his rights and paying a fine was another.

Even if this went all the way to the Lincolnshire county court, he would certainly be in the right.

Then, seeing Xu Yun's bare soles, Newton bent down and pulled a pair of slippers covered in patches from the bottom of a storage cabinet.

With a slap, he tossed them in front of Xu Yun.

"Shoes I washed just last week. Put them on. Also, I have a few questions for you."

Britain in the late seventeenth century was in the era after Cromwell's death and Charles II's restoration, namely the Stuart Dynasty. Society's ideas were therefore exceptionally chaotic, something particularly evident in the spread of the Burl Ordinance mentioned earlier.

The Burl Ordinance's concept of "fines" was deeply ingrained in people's hearts, so scenes like the following were common:

A respectable person who accidentally entered someone else's estate would be caught, sometimes even beaten badly. The owner would then take some valuable item from him, ask where he came from, and eventually the two parties would hit it off and share dinner at the table that night—yet that item still would not be returned.

It was like foot binding in ancient China, or the concept of seppuku in Japan: absurd, yet distinctly characteristic of its era.

It was precisely because of this that Newton could take Xu Yun's shoes and then speak with him as though nothing had happened.

Back inside the house.

Although Xu Yun found it difficult to understand Newton's precise way of thinking, he did not consider those shoes particularly important. They had only cost 328, after all—especially before the founding father of all physicists, was that even worth mentioning?

Thus, his expression remained calm as he replied in fluent early modern English.

"Thank you. Please, ask away."

Hearing Xu Yun's standard English, a trace of curiosity finally flashed through Newton's eyes.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Isaac Newton. And you?"

Xu Yun opened his mouth upon hearing this, instinctively about to give his own name.

But just as the name was about to leave his lips, he suddenly remembered the mission's hint—although this was a parallel world, certain traces might affect later generations.

If the so-called trace was his name, and it happened to come with certain details of his appearance, there might be trouble.

At the very least, from the standpoint of caution, giving his real name was clearly inappropriate.

However, the words were already on his lips, leaving Xu Yun little time to think. He could only reflexively replace it with the name that had left the deepest impression in his mind:

"I am."

"Li Feiyu."