50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 206: Science and Technology Students Return to China

Not only did the dozen or so people who were taking English tutoring courses in China stop coming, but students who were already studying in London were also asked to return home.

Of course, this only refers to science and technology trainees, and has no impact on language learning trainees like Sun Zhiwei.

In practice, of course, such blunt notifications were not given. Persuasion was the main approach for the science and technology trainees. The embassy secretary's original words were roughly as follows:

"There's a message from above. You've been studying in the UK for quite some time now. If you can go back after a year, please return home as soon as possible."

However, there is also a loophole that allows students to postpone their return to China and complete their studies.

"If you have special circumstances, you can submit a report and apply for an extension. The embassy will discuss with the units in China, and if all relevant units agree, we will extend the period for a short period of time."

However, postponing your return to China requires applying step by step and obtaining approval from the country, which is very difficult.

Among those who applied for postponement, many were successful. For example, Li Yinan from the Institute of Physics applied for a three-month extension and returned to China at the end of September.

The Institute of Physics agreed, as did the Chinese Academy of Sciences. They then consulted the Education Group, which in turn wrote to the embassy in London, asking it to "determine based on the specific circumstances."

Once all the green lights are given for this one-stop application, the application will be considered approved and you can stay for a few more months.

But there were also people who could have stayed but chose to go back on their own initiative, such as Shen Xun who came with Sun Zhiwei.

The school wanted him to stay and continue his studies, and all departments agreed, but he still insisted on returning home.

It's not his fault. The conditions for studying in London are just too difficult.

66 pence a day was a bit too much even for Sun Zhiwei, and that was despite the fact that he had food in the space to secretly supplement his nutrition, and he could go back to the embassy for extra meals every week.

The other students were able to persevere entirely due to their firm will and determination to study hard.

Sun Manyi, Wu Zuze, Zhang Shize and Shen Xun, who came with Sun Zhiwei, were among the group of people returning home.

Except for Shen Xun who wanted to go back on his own, the extension applications of the other three people were not approved.

After Sun Zhiwei got the news, he decided to organize a dinner to see the four people off. The location was in Sun Zhiwei and his room in the International Student Building.

As for what to eat, it would naturally be hotpot. He couldn’t make anything else.

He had tried his best to find the ingredients for the hot pot soup base. Although the spices were not complete, he still found most of them on Juelu Street.

As for the ingredients, the seven of them (the four who were leaving plus the three people in Sun Zhiwei's dormitory) contributed money and labor, and they actually managed to gather more than a dozen dishes that could be put into the pot.

The main ingredient is half a frozen lamb that Sun Zhiwei got from an unknown channel, which he actually bought from a supermarket under a disguised name.

As long as everyone has something to eat, they don't delve into the origins of the sheep. It's not that they are completely unable to get the ingredients themselves, it's just that the quantities are not large. They all contributed to this dinner.

After the dinner started, everyone ate and chatted. Sun Manyi and the other two expressed regret that Shen Xun insisted on going back even though he had already passed.

Shen Xun, however, was complaining, "You guys are lucky. Your work and studies are all around London, and you can come back once a week for a good meal."

"But I'm in Edinburgh, 500 kilometers from London. It's good if I can come back once a month."

"It's only one day off, and most of the day is wasted on the road. When I get back to class, I can only eat one meal before rushing back home."

"Oh, it's really hard for me." Sun Zhiwei knew that he was determined to go back, so he didn't add fuel to the fire. He just joked, "Actually, it's not impossible for Shen Xun to come back once a week."

"Didn't they open a high-speed train a couple of years ago? It can run 200 kilometers an hour. It takes three hours from Edinburgh to London."

Shen Xun spat at him in anger, swallowed a mouthful of mutton and said, "If you have money, go sit there. I can't afford it anyway."

After hearing what they said, the others became curious and put down their chopsticks to ask.

"It's a pity that the ticket price is too expensive and the embassy won't reimburse it." Sun Zhiwei shook his head.

"Just tell us how much it is." The two kept the others in suspense, making them very anxious.

"Haha, 36 pence per kilometer, you can calculate it yourself." Sun Zhiwei answered them and continued to concentrate on eating meat.

Several people calculated silently and came up with a result, and then they were all shocked. 500 kilometers from Edinburgh to London, doesn't that mean it should cost 180 pounds?
At that time, the exchange rate of British pounds to RMB was about 1 yuan per pound, so the ticket price for this trip was 14 yuan, which was equivalent to four or five years' salary of an ordinary worker.

No one would do such a stupid thing as spending thousands of dollars just to get a few meals and drinks when they come back once a week.

Everyone was silent for a moment before Wu Zuze said, "Does our country still need to build this kind of high-speed railway in the future? Even if it is built, ordinary people won't be able to afford it, right?"

Seeing that everyone was a little depressed, Sun Zhiwei couldn't help but sneer: "You guys are just worrying about nothing."

"This fare is based on the current economic conditions in the UK. For ordinary people in the UK, this fare is not too outrageous."

"It would be a joke if you compared the current UK consumption level with our domestic wage level."

"When we can build high-speed railways in the future, domestic wages will definitely be much higher. A few thousand yuan might be half a month's salary."

Although everyone did not believe what he said, and did not believe that they could get a salary of several thousand yuan a month, Sun Zhiwei's words also relieved their depression.

After all, they are not in the economics field and don’t really understand these things, so this worry is really groundless.

When they figured it out and were ready to start eating, they discovered that Sun Zhiwei and Shen Xun had already eaten a quarter of the mutton on the table while they were stunned.

The crowd was so excited that they snatched the chopsticks from the two men and divided the remaining mutton.

An hour later, the dinner ended in great joy. The next day, Shen Xun and his three companions boarded a train bound for Dover Port.

That's right, they can't take the plane. The plane is limited to 20 kilograms of luggage per person. Each international student now has a large package, far exceeding the weight limit of the plane.

So, they will board the ship at Dover Port, then cross the English Channel to The Hague, Netherlands, then cross the entire European continent and return home via Moscow. The entire journey will take about half a month.

Another important reason why everyone takes the train is that some time ago a plane from Moscow to Beijing crashed midway, killing dozens of international students studying rocket technology.

This loss is too great, as so many of these international students are cutting-edge scientists in China.

The country spent a lot of foreign exchange to let them study abroad, but they were all ruined by a plane crash. It makes my heart bleed just thinking about it.

Therefore, from then on, all international students returning to China were required to take the train, and they had to be picked up by the local embassy at every transfer station.

The main focus is to ensure safety to the extreme to ensure that international students can return home safely.

(End of this chapter)