Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 35: Almost Late?
Linger still couldn't give an answer until they got off the bus, but Alice didn't care anymore, or she had forgotten about it. At least when Linger told her "I don't know", she tilted her head and asked back, "I don't know what?"

The train traveled for about half an hour, starting from Pine Street in the Holy Cross District, passing Riverside Street, Vanilla Street, Wind Alley, Lavan Alley and Martin Street, and finally stopped at Huntforge Street in the Green Bay District.

This block is the outermost area of ​​Linville City. Only a few hundred meters away is an undeveloped swamp. It is said that in ancient times, it was the habitat of mammoths and tigers, and black-horned rhinos grazed leisurely in the lagoon. Now there are only starlings, squirrels and some wild dogs that escaped from the city.

In the Middle Ages, a river called Brook Creek passed through the swamp and formed a natural harbor, so the Morians stayed there for a short time, which led to their first encounter with the "Heartbroken City". However, the fog blowing from the ancient swamps of Green Bay damaged the murals of St. Michael's Church. The citizens mistakenly believed that it was caused by the witchcraft of the Morians, and they expelled them in a rage, which perhaps also foreshadowed the fate of this nation to wander forever.

Today, the remaining part of Brook Creek has long dried up, and the river channel is occupied by reeds and weeds. Geologists once said that it still flows underground in Linville City, and the name Green Bay is engraved in the history of this land. Unlike the floating remains in the suburban green space, the archaeology here is closer to the original appearance.

St. Lowood National School is located in the Winders Lowlands in the Green Bay District, covering an area of ​​about 550 hectares. The church alliance has used its wealth to include a nearby forest. It is said that this is to make it more convenient to organize picnics for students in spring and autumn. The quality of its compulsory education is enough to make officials of the Kingdom’s Ministry of Public Affairs commit suicide collectively - of course, they can't do that.

After watching the steam locomotive rumble away, Ling hailed a horse-drawn carriage on the street and drove towards St. Lowood's National School.

Alice was used to the smooth steam train, and the bumpy horse-drawn carriage made her groan in pain. She complained continuously, thinking that steam trains should have completely replaced horse-drawn carriages long ago, and that taxis running on the streets in the future should have four wheels instead of four legs... She said things like that, and the driver's face turned pale.

Fortunately, the journey was not very long. Ten minutes later, the driver collected five pence for the fare and couldn't wait to send the brazen maid off the car. Considering his mental loss, Linger deliberately gave an extra penny tip, which would be deducted from Alice's salary in the future - did she have a salary?

Although it was almost time for class, many students were still making their final sprint when they arrived at the school gate. Of course, they were all stopped by the principal, Mrs. Scarlett, and verbally criticized and educated. Seeing this, Alice poked Linger with her arm and teased, "It seems that the school spirit and discipline of your school are not very good?"

Alice scratched her hair, ashamed of her previous ridicule, and whispered, "I'm sorry."

It turned out to be the case.

Linger looked at her in surprise, then shook his head: "Nothing, it's not your fault."

She told Linger about her discovery, and Linger nodded slightly and said, "St. Lowood National School is a charity school for the common people. But even among common people, there are differences. Some have no worries about food and clothing, while others are in dire straits. In the latter families, children over ten years old can be considered important laborers. Every morning, girls have to help their mothers with housework, while boys usually work part-time as newspaper boys or milkmen. They have to work hard for their families before they can bring their textbooks to school. This is something that the compulsory education system cannot change. It should be said that it is a social problem."

He brought Alice to the school gate amid the greetings of "teacher, teacher" and said good morning to the principal, Mrs. Scarlett. The latter also smiled and nodded to express her greetings. When she saw the maid beside Ling Ge, she showed a somewhat stunned expression: In her impression, Ling Ge should not be the kind of person who covets enjoyment, so why does he even have a maid to serve him in class?

Common points? Alice observed carefully and indeed made some discoveries: St. Lowood National School did not have a unified uniform, and the clothes of these students were relatively plain or simple; in addition, they were all relatively old, probably between ten and fifteen years old.

Linger was unmoved and asked Alice, "Didn't you notice what these students have in common?"

If she knew who was actually serving whom, she probably wouldn't think so.

Linger introduced, "She is my maid Alice. She wants to learn some knowledge about history. I happen to have a class today, so I brought her here to sit in. I hope you don't mind."

At his hint, Alice, who used to be unruly, finally lowered her proud head and bowed obediently, although the etiquette was somewhat inappropriate. "It doesn't matter." Mrs. Scarlett waved her hand with a smile: "Young people's thirst for knowledge is a blessing for our country, and how can I go against the expectations of my mentor?"

"Thank you for your generosity." Linger thanked her and said goodbye to go to class. Just as he turned around, Mrs. Scarlett suddenly called him. When he was confused, she smiled and said, "I noticed that there are some less detailed reports in the newspapers recently. I hope that will not affect your mood in class. Please believe that we all trust you, including me, Mr. Linger."

Linger was silent for a moment after hearing this. He was not surprised by the attitude of the church alliance, but by their reaction speed. The news had already reached their ears in the newspaper that had just been released in the morning, and Mrs. Scarlett had conveyed her attitude to him. This was enough to show that they had been paying attention to him. Perhaps Miss Fialli's interview manuscript had not yet been printed, but the content had already been placed on Mr. Langning's desk?

The question is, why is the United Church paying so much attention to him? Is it just because of his good attitude and the Holy Goddess Church is the first church in Linville to obey the "Religious Decree"?
Opposition, demonstrations, negotiations... What kind of undercurrents are hidden beneath the struggle between the Federation of Religious Organizations and the Religious Mutual Aid Association?
Like fate.

He suddenly thought.

He seemed to hear this word all the time recently, from the encounter with the mysterious girl Saint Shalia in the town square a week ago to Alice's story this morning. At some point, his life was closely connected with this word, and the cause could perhaps be traced back to the so-called "golden apple".

Metien also ate the apple...

He realized this belatedly, and at this moment, Alice tugged at his sleeve and whispered, "What are you thinking about? It's time to go to class, Lingge?"

Linger then came to his senses, apologized to Mrs. Scarlett and replied to her: "Please rest assured that I will not let these things interfere with my job."

Mrs. Scarlett nodded, and Lingge turned around and left with Alice, heading towards the fifth grade teaching building.

Due to the lack of funds, the campus is well greened and has beautiful scenery. Most of the buildings are in a solemn and majestic classical style. Walking along the winding stone path between the lawns, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way: the violets and marigolds blooming in the flower beds in the cold winter; the myrtle trees, lime trees and Ritoli cedars growing vigorously on both sides of the sidewalks; the cuckoos, reed warblers and magpies hidden in the woods; there are even canals surrounding the campus, with gurgling water flowing through it and merging into the central artificial lake, where Buddaria, anemones and privets grow in the water.

Alice was watching a gardener trimming the ornamental plants on the lawn with great interest, and she didn't notice that Linger had been silent for a long time. When she was secretly expecting the gardener to accidentally cut off the flowering branches next to her, she would go over and ask for them with a legitimate reason, but Linger, who was walking in front of her, stopped without warning, causing the distracted girl to bump into his back unexpectedly.

"arrive."

He said.

"Ah?" Alice raised her head while rubbing her nose. In front of her was a three-story red brick building with an arc-shaped mountain tower, symmetrical corridors and wide square windows. A clock was embedded on the central facade of the tower, and the thickest pointer was slowly moving towards the nine o'clock position.

St. Lowood National School, fifth grade building, arrived.

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)