Chapter 12

"Delegate to someone else?"

After hearing Mr. Little Hunter's sincere suggestion, Edison was taken aback for a moment before he asked, "Young man, can you answer me one question first? How did you know that the lifespan of a light bulb depends on the filament material?"

Looking at the young, fresh-faced boy in front of him, Edison was quite surprised.

The principle of how a light bulb works is not exactly a secret, given its relatively simple structure. Many professionals could figure it out with careful study. However, the one speaking was just a boy of eleven or twelve, and for him to understand this point was truly astonishing.

Similarly surprised were the others around, especially Old Hunter. His slightly dim eyes suddenly sparkled as he quietly watched his grandson, who had been acting strangely today, waiting for him to answer Edison's question.

"Because I have learned a bit of physics."

John did not let the others' surprise affect him. After a brief pause, he said, "Mr. Edison, in my understanding, light and heat are inseparable twins. So I guessed that the dazzling light from your bulb must place a heavy burden on the filament..."

"Wow!"

Before John could finish, Edison's eyes widened in amazement!

The others around were confused, not quite understanding what John meant, but Edison knew very well. This young boy had hit the nail on the head, right to the core.

The electric light was not invented by Edison but was a patent he bought from someone else. However, to create a bulb that could last for dozens of hours, he had conducted thousands of experiments, spending over ten thousand dollars, almost bankrupting himself, to find a material that would volatilize relatively slowly at high temperatures.

For a boy of John's age to know this was quite remarkable!

Seeing Edison's reaction, the others were simultaneously startled, realizing that John's words were likely true. Old Hunter was both surprised and delighted, while Emma swallowed hard, feeling a mix of admiration and jealousy...

Surprised, Edison looked at the confident John and suddenly had an idea. He laughed and said, "Young man, you're not trying to tell me that you want to help me solve the material problem, are you?"

"Why not?"

John blinked, surprised by the question.

"Ha ha ha..."

This time, not only Edison but also the others nearby laughed. Mrs. Stone even covered her mouth with a handkerchief, laughing so hard that her ample figure jiggled, making many of the gentlemen around her stare!

"What's going on?"

The laughter left John completely baffled, his eyes wide with confusion.

For John Hunter, who had Liu Zecheng's memories, the filament material Edison later used was well-known. He had even joined a physics interest group in high school and, with the help of his physics teacher, assembled and lit a real light bulb. So to him, saying this was perfectly natural.

However, he had clearly forgotten or overestimated the era he was in!

America at this time was not the superpower with numerous world-class universities and advanced education it would become. To be precise, it was still an era of widespread illiteracy, with only a few people having scientific training. While in the eyes of true scientists, Edison's work was not science but merely repetitive experimentation, to others, it was already highly advanced...

"Young man, I thank you for your good intentions."

Edison patted John's shoulder and chuckled, "But I think this kind of work should be left to adults. At your age, I certainly didn't think about doing something so important, ha ha!"

"Ha ha ha..."

Hearing Edison's words, the surrounding area erupted in low laughter.

Everyone understood the meaning behind Edison's words. In this laughter, some were full of disdain, some were just politely agreeing, and others, their laughter was filled with malice.

"Sir..."

John's face flushed slightly, his fists clenching and unclenching. But he finally took a deep breath and prepared to explain in detail to Edison.

"Excuse me, everyone, please allow me to step away for a moment."

At this moment, Edison suddenly saw a gentleman enter the door, his eyes lighting up. He quickly spoke a few urgent words and hurriedly walked towards the entrance, completely ignoring John's next words.

The flush on John's face suddenly spread rapidly, like a sudden rise in temperature. His eyes followed Thomas Edison's figure, and his expression quickly turned grim!

"John, don't take it to heart."

Seeing the mocking and sympathetic gazes of the people around, Old Hunter sighed inwardly and stepped forward to pat his grandson's shoulder, whispering, "It's getting late. Let's go back to the hotel."

Unfortunately, John's mind was filled with surprise and anger, and he did not hear his grandfather's comfort. The anger at being looked down upon made him bite his lip hard. Suddenly, he shouted loudly, "Mr. Edison, if I really find a new filament material, and it is much better than your invention, what would you do?"

It was as if all the air had been suddenly sucked out of the room. The area around John quickly fell silent.

Thomas Edison also heard this and stopped in his tracks. He turned around and looked at John with great surprise, then laughed loudly again, "Ha ha! Good! If you really find such good material, I will pay you two thousand dollars for it. I promise..."

...

On the way back to the hotel, no one spoke.

Mrs. Stone and Emma did not return with them; they had to continue entertaining Edison. Seeing the two masters' gloomy faces, Hans wisely kept quiet, only holding the kerosene lamp to guide the old and young back to the hotel.

It was not until they were almost at the hotel that John's ashen face gradually returned to normal.

Hearing his grandson's breathing shift from heavy to light, from rapid to calm, Old Hunter let out a sigh of relief, finally feeling at ease. Although he was usually quite cold to his grandson, everyone knew it was because Mr. Old Hunter had not yet forgiven his daughter Elizabeth and was also a bit too proud to show affection. In reality, he was extremely concerned about the Hunter family's only heir, a fact that the butler Hans had long confirmed.

Moreover, John's performance was also quite excellent, wasn't it?

"Gentlemen, would you like to eat something?"

At the hotel entrance, Hans took a few steps forward and cautiously asked, "Due to the exhibition, the hotel will serve dinner until ten o'clock. There's still time."

Old Hunter looked at his grandson, and John almost immediately waved his hand, "No, I'm a bit tired and want to go up and rest early."

"I won't eat either. Let's go up together."

Old Hunter narrowed his eyes slightly and gave a faint order.

"Yes, sir."

The butler sighed helplessly. Despite his hunger, he had to accompany the two masters upstairs.

"John!"

Just as John was about to open the door to his room and go in to rest, his grandfather's deep voice suddenly came from behind.

"Sir, is there anything else?"

John's mood was quite bad, but he turned around, forcing a smile, and politely asked his grandfather.

Old Hunter's room was right across from his. At this moment, the old man looked at his grandson with a serious expression and asked, "John, were you serious about what you said to Mr. Edison just now?"

"Uh..."

John was slightly taken aback, feeling a bit surprised, but he quickly nodded and said seriously, "Yes, sir, I was serious!"

"Very good!"

A smile appeared on the serious face, and Old Hunter struck the floor with his cane, saying loudly, "If you are serious, I will give you some money. You can buy anything you need to discover your so-called new material!"

"What did you say?!"

John was skeptical, his eyes wide with surprise.

Ha ha, Old Hunter laughed, seeming to have suddenly become twenty years younger. He pounded his chest with his left fist and said, "Hunter men, if you want to do it, just go for it! I want to see if Edison will really come up with two thousand dollars..."

Page AD starts

Page AD ends