It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

Standing atop the tallest clock tower, gazing at the bustling metropolis of London, Li Cheng remained unsatisfied: "If I told them now that there are aliens, I doubt a large number of them would understand what I'm talking about—it's decided, the third five-year plan will focus on education, and the industrial revolution will be put on hold."

"And as for astronomy and biology, let's reveal some information first, at least enough to make a group of professors understand something."

Ten years have passed. Although he is still healthy and full of energy, he is obviously not as effeminate as he was ten years ago. At the same time, his long-term high position has also given him more authority.

Five years passed after he made that decision.

[1684]

Cambridge University.

Today is the monthly discussion meeting where professors from various disciplines gather.

In today's rapidly evolving technological landscape, it is far from enough for one person to work in isolation. We need to brainstorm and discuss with each other to keep up with the pace of scientific development. Some people who usually slack off are even sent out to exchange ideas with other schools.

But this conference is different from previous ones.

Because Albert Lee, the honorary vice-president of the Royal Society and vice-chancellor of Cambridge University, solemnly delivered a speech that seemed to be given after drinking too much. It was a speech he called "The Fire of Civilization," but which is more commonly referred to as "The Prophecy of Extraterrestrials" in later generations.

"Before I begin, I must apologize to humanity."

"For a long time, out of greed, fear, and a little bit of wishful thinking, I have kept quiet about a matter that happened to me when I was young that was related to the survival of mankind."

At the very beginning of his speech, Li Cheng's words stunned all the professors present.

His subsequent remarks were so outrageous that they made people wonder if he had developed some kind of mental disorder or was hallucinating, mistaking dreams for reality. It was only because of the prestige Li Cheng had accumulated over the past decade that the elderly professors present patiently listened to the speech of someone who seemed to be either a madman or an idiot.

The speech stated:

"In this universe, there exists a highly advanced civilization that far surpasses human comprehension."

“When I was young, I accidentally acquired some knowledge left over from their civilization and became rich because of it. This was not intentional on their part. It seems to have been an accident caused by an experiment. A device called the ‘Early Childhood Learning Accelerator’ was dropped to Earth, and I unintentionally picked it up and learned some basic common sense that they thought only newborn babies needed to know.”

"Through those fragmented pieces of common sense, I grasped some advanced knowledge and learned about their terrifying level of civilization."

"They possess technology far beyond that of humans. They can travel through the universe, achieving near-light speeds with warp drive spaceships, and then using the concept of wormholes to warp space, thus traversing distances that light would take hundreds of light-years to reach in just a few days."

"They can terraform an entire planet, turning it into a series of freely controllable planetary-level spaceships."

"They build a giant ring around the outer edge of the star to directly collect its energy."

"them......"

"It's uncertain whether they are benevolent or malicious, but in conclusion, we humans must unite and develop at the fastest speed to have any chance of winning a chance for the continuation of civilization."

It took about half an hour.

Li Cheng read his speech aloud briefly and waited quietly for the reactions of the professors below the stage.

Most people are confused and don't understand, wondering if he has some kind of illness, and some have even started going out to find a doctor.

A small number of people listened with great interest, treating it as some kind of interesting story, probably thinking he was putting on a show for everyone—this wasn't the first time this had happened; occasionally, when he couldn't resist the urge, Li Cheng had indeed put on some shows.

Li Cheng couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed.

Although he didn't expect anyone to believe him, he had been preparing for this day for a full fifteen years... Fifteen years of accumulated credibility and prestige, yet not a single person believed him, which was quite frustrating.

Li Cheng shook his head.

However, he was not in a hurry.

Anyway... in the rest of his life, he will use his vast knowledge to completely break down these people's psychological defenses.

What is the name of this civilization?

Just as Li Cheng was about to give up explaining, a question suddenly rang out from the crowd.

Li Cheng was taken aback at first, but after seeing the face of the person who stood up, he couldn't help but smile faintly.

"Good question, Professor Lavoisier."

He spoke eloquently to the familiar silver figure, “From the fragmented knowledge I have gained, they call themselves the ‘Goethe Civilization’—other than that, I know nothing.”

Seemingly in a competitive spirit, another golden figure, considerably shorter than the previous one, stood up and shouted, "How long will it take for this civilization to discover Earth?"

"Who knows?"

Seeing this, Li Cheng shrugged helplessly: "Maybe a few years, maybe decades, maybe that experiment is insignificant to them, they don't care at all, unless they suddenly become interested one day—alright, Professor Newton, is there any other question?"

"Nothing."

The golden figure sat back down in the chair, satisfied.

Following these two groups of relatives and friends, several more people stood up to ask questions.

“Professor Hook, I don’t know anything about the biological structure and appearance of aliens; that knowledge doesn’t include these things.”

“Professor Halley, you don’t need to stay up all night trying to observe the stars to guard against aliens. If they really wanted to come, you wouldn’t be able to see them. Also, please take care of yourself. Professor Hooker next to you seems to be very worried about your staying up all night.”

“Professor Boyle...wait, how did you become a professor...sorry, your question is not within the scope of this lecture, you can ask me privately.”

After answering each question, the speech finally started to look somewhat professional.

......

One hour later.

All questions were answered, and the speech came to an end.

After leaving the lecture hall, Li Cheng and Newton, who had come to support him, took a walk on a quiet path where no one else could disturb them.

The paths on campus are lined with many lilac trees, their branches laden with deep purple buds that emit a sweet fragrance that soothes the soul.

“You said before that you would retire from the government after completing this task.” Suddenly, Newton raised his small face and looked at Li Cheng seriously.

"Yes, I've done almost everything I needed to do."

Li Cheng's hand landed on her soft waist and pinched it lightly, causing the girl's body to tremble—even after so many years, every inch of her skin had been touched by Li Cheng countless times, yet it was still so sensitive that she couldn't help but tremble at the slightest touch.

"So what are you going to do next?"

Newton's breathing quickened, and his two bright blue eyes narrowed comfortably, like a cat taking a nap.

"Besides spending time with you all, it's mostly traveling and writing books."

Li Cheng said casually.

"Writing a book?"

“Yes, write a book.” Li Cheng nodded. “In order to shut those people up, and to make future generations believe that such an advanced civilization really exists, I must overwhelm them with a massive amount of advanced knowledge—until they have no choice but to believe, and have no choice but to believe.”

"After all, who but an advanced civilization could possess so much advanced knowledge?"

As he spoke, Li Cheng continued his actions, repeatedly rubbing the soft flesh on Newton's waist with his fingers, the resulting tingling and numbness causing Newton to hum softly.

If they were at home normally, they probably would just find a secluded corner and have some fun.

Unfortunately, this was a school campus... Just as Newton felt a little regretful, she realized that she had suddenly lost her balance and was picked up by Li Cheng and carried towards an empty classroom.

"Hey!"

Newton, embarrassed and annoyed, punched her in the chest.

"It's alright, it's alright," Li Cheng said with a chuckle, seemingly unconcerned.

“By the way,” Newton said, a thought suddenly occurring to him, “your ‘Goethe civilization’… is it real or fake?”

“Of course it’s fake.” Li Cheng smiled slightly, making no attempt to hide his feelings. “But it can reduce some useless internal friction among humans and propel civilization forward. Besides, if one day, humanity encounters a truly advanced civilization and discovers that there was no Gothic civilization at all, perhaps the expressions on both sides will be quite interesting?”

The thought that decades or centuries from now, humanity might truly unite as one, taking that so-called 'Goethe civilization' as their hypothetical enemy, and desperately develop technology is unbearable.

After spending an unknown amount of time, the tech tree finally unlocked the so-called 'warp drive' and 'wormhole travel', and then they tried to make contact with advanced civilizations. They discovered that there was no 'Gothic civilization' at all, and a very pleasant feeling rose in their hearts.

"But I probably won't live to see that day."

Thinking of this, Li Cheng shook his head regretfully, "Forget it, let's not think about it too much. Let's leave London for two months—I want to go see the place where I was born."

"Where were you born?" Newton asked curiously, staring at his chin.

"Hoo hoo, it's time to tell you a secret." Li Cheng's expression suddenly turned serious. "This is my biggest secret! Listen carefully, I'm only telling you this!"

"Well."

Newton nervously swallowed.

Li Cheng said mysteriously, "Actually, I was born on a very ordinary apple tree—to be precise, I suspect I might be an apple. If you don't believe me, look at my red hair."

"?"

Newton was instantly furious: "Li Cheng, you bastard, you've tricked me again! Do you believe I'll go home and beat your son?"

"Hey, why don't you believe me when I tell you the truth?"

Li Cheng said with a hint of helplessness, "Besides, that's your son too, not just mine. You're always finding excuses to beat him up. Aren't you afraid he'll disown you when he grows up? Speaking of which, I have a feeling that the kid has been getting closer and closer to Louise and the others lately..."

"what?!"

Seeing Newton's shock, Li Cheng helplessly carried her into the empty classroom and locked the doors and windows behind him.

The secret he just mentioned was the result of meticulous deduction.

Because after he fell from the sky and hit Newton that day, no other apples fell into Newton's orchard that day.

So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, Li Cheng is the 'apple' that hit Newton.

[The End]