Although Li Yu did not accept Ford's invitation, Ford and Mr. Leland also understood that it was difficult to recruit people like Li Yu.
Needless to say, Ford has not yet started production of the Model T car. Although Cadillac's current performance is not bad, it cannot defeat the great god Li Yu.
Today, the status of engineers is not very high. It is impossible to let Li Yu, a foreign academician of the Royal Society and a member of the American Astronomical Society, enter the factory.
But Ford and Leland are really interested in Li Yu's improvement suggestions. If they can be installed in cars while controlling costs, it will definitely be a great product.
Ford immediately left Li Yu’s contact information.
"Once there is any progress, sir, be sure to inform us as soon as possible." Li Yu confidently replied: "No problem." He may also be his customer in the future.
Cadillac was unavailable, and Ford didn't have the car in stock, so Sierra had to find another buyer.
Li Yu pointed to the two cars in front: "Look at this." Sierra took a look and asked, "Is it a little bigger?" The two cars in front of him were indeed one size larger than the previous Cadillac.
Li Yu said: "That's because it has better horsepower, but I don't know how complete it is. I just observed it from the side, and it seems that the engine of this car is not a single cylinder, but a dual-cylinder engine."
"That means it's more powerful than that Cadillac?" Sierra asked. Li Yu nodded: "That's right, let me ask." Li Yu walked over and asked a man in his fifties at the booth, "Sir, can you introduce your car?"
"Hello, sir," the other party replied,
"This car has an excellent two-cylinder 12-horsepower engine. I think it is the only one in this exhibition." Sierra said: "You are really right." Li Yu looked at the vehicle: "It's just that I saw this The placement of the engine legs and the four-wheel suspension of the car seem a bit sloppy. I'm afraid this car will not be comfortable to drive." People at the booth were surprised: "Sir, is he also an automotive engineer?" Li Yu said with a smile: "I He's a buyer...wait a minute." Li Yu leaned down, then raised his head and asked, "Can I take the liberty of asking for your name?" The man at the booth replied, "I am David Buick, and this car is the one I just created. of Buick Motor Company."
"David Buick!" Well, I met the founder of Buick again. This auto show is really a crouching tiger, hidden dragon.
Although there was no Buick three-shield logo from later generations, when Li Yu leaned over he found that the signature on the car looked familiar.
David Buick said: "You seem to know my product well."
"I know a little bit..." Li Yu said,
"How much does this car cost?"
"$800," David Buick said. Sierra was surprised: "The Cadillac next to me is only $750, yours is too expensive!" David Buick spread his hands: "No way, the engine cost of this car is too high, but it will not let you down. ." Li Yu said: "It seems that it is indeed the best choice."
"Didn't you say it was imperfect?" Sierra asked.
"Indeed," Li Yu said to David Buick: "It is difficult to change the engine, after all, the vehicle has been finalized. But if possible, I hope that sir can adjust the suspension stroke to be longer, so that this beautiful lady can be driven more or less Be more comfortable.”
"It was the lady who wanted to drive," David Buick said.
"I understand, it's not a difficult thing. I'll adjust it today and I can pick up the car tomorrow." Sierra asked, "Is it really possible?" Li Yu said, "No problem, it's just that this change will make it inconvenient for racing. "Sierra said: "I don't like racing, as long as I can drive comfortably." David Buick said: "Sir, you really understand cars, which is very surprising. Who are you?" Li Yu said: " I am Li Yu."
"It turns out to be the distinguished academician! No wonder he has such insight." David Buick said. Li Yu smiled and said: "I know a little bit." David Buick said: "It's rare for someone to have such a good vision. Many people give up after asking about the price. If I can produce another car in the future, I will definitely ask you to be the first to test drive it. ." Li Yu said: "It's an honor, we will definitely have the opportunity to meet again in the future." David Buick's eyes seemed a little unspeakable, but Li Yu didn't notice it. After Sierra paid the deposit, the two left.
After walking out of the auto show, Sierra asked: "What can you really do in terms of research and development of four-wheel drive systems and electronic ignition systems?" Li Yu said with a smile: "When have I ever lied? Shouldn't you worry that I will do it as soon as I have funds?" Try to find a way to make money." Sierra also pursed her lips and smiled: "I just didn't expect you to know engineering."
"How can you be a qualified engineering man if you don't understand engineering?" Li Yu said with a smile.
"If you want to see it, I can make a simple differential tomorrow." At that time, Li Yu made a differential on the ship going to Japan, but it was bought by the Japanese Shintaro Yoshida.
Sierra frowned and thought for a while: "So, it is necessary to find a laboratory." Li Yushun said: "I think so too." Sierra immediately made a decision and said: "Then it's settled!" He was really decisive.
Li Yu asked: "Where is the location?"
"Needless to say? Of course it's Fifth Avenue. The laboratory of Mr. Edison, the most powerful inventor in the United States, is on Fifth Avenue." Sierra said firmly.
Well, Fifth Avenue! Fifth Avenue runs north and south through Manhattan, the core of New York. In later generations, Manhattan was so powerful that it was known as the economic center of the world. It gathered the headquarters of most of the world's top 500 companies and was also the location of the United Nations headquarters.
In addition, there are the famous Wall Street, New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. is known as
"Crossroads of the World" and
Times Square, "the center of the world," is also in Manhattan, only two blocks from Fifth Avenue.
In Li Yu's previous life, the rents for shops along Fifth Avenue were the most expensive in the world, with the annual rent for one square meter costing tens of thousands of dollars.
Now it is really a luxury to have a laboratory on Fifth Avenue. Of course, Manhattan today is not as prosperous as it would be in later generations.
Sierra asked: "Why are you stunned?" Li Yu explained casually: "I feel a little surprised to see a genius inventor." Sierra smiled and said: "What's the point? You are now an academician of the Royal Society." Sierra, as Members of the Carnegie family are relatively familiar with New York. After all, there are big plutocrats here.
But Sierra is familiar with Wall Street in New York, and is really not sure where to rent a laboratory on Fifth Avenue.
The two got off the carriage and prepared to conduct an on-site inspection first. The total length of Fifth Avenue is more than ten kilometers. There are not many buildings yet, and there are indeed many places to choose from.
After walking for more than ten minutes, Li Yu suddenly saw a familiar figure. A cheerful old gentleman came out of a carriage next to the two of them holding a stack of papers.
Not only did Li Yu know him, but Sierra also exclaimed: "Mr. Mark Twain!" It's true!
"Beautiful lady, do you want my autograph?" Mark Twain asked. Sierra was stunned for a moment, and then said, "Of course!" After rummaging around, he couldn't find any pen or paper.
Mark Twain regretted: "I'm sorry, miss, if it were normal, maybe I could sign the manuscript paper in my hand and give it to you, but these design manuscripts are still useful, I want to show them to a scientist." Li Yu asked : "Mr. Mark Twain actually likes to invent?"
"Right," Sierra said,
"Mr. Mark Twain, if you are looking for a scientist, there is one right in front of you. This is Li Yu, he is also a scientist."
"Oh! That scientific giant in the newspaper?!" Mark Twain said in surprise. Li Yu laughed and said: "Isn't he a giant in science? Why did he become a giant again?" Mark Twain continued: "I also read your book "Star Wars: A New Origin". It was so interesting! Yesterday I was still asking the bookstore if there was a sequel, but they sadly told me that there was no sequel." Li Yu said, "There will be."
"Just in time, show me this design first." Mark Twain unfolded the design drawing. Li Yu looked at it and said,
"Is this an underwear button?"
"Buttons indeed," said Mark Twain,
"But I think it can be used on breeches and vests." Li Yu laughed and said, "The best use is not here." The design in Mark Twain's hand was the button of the bra.
And it is very similar to those of later generations. Nowadays, it is very troublesome to wear women's underwear. The back is like tying shoelaces.
It was shown in classic movies such as "Gone with the Wind" that Scarlett needed help from a maid when putting on her underwear.
It was Mark Twain's invention of the new button that contributed to the widespread popularity of bras. Not only is it convenient for ladies, but also for the fact that it can be unbuttoned with one hand. Men in later generations must also thank Mark Twain... By the way, there is a magical competition in the United States, where two rows of women wearing only underwear stand. , and then the two boys competed to see who could take off their bra faster. Of course, they were standing in the back.
——It’s like competing to see who is the experienced driver. By the way, we often make jokes about Lu Xun, and we often throw out a sentence and say it was Lu Xun who said it.
If placed in the United States, the object of this joke is often the master of golden sentences, Mark Twain. There is such a joke on the Internet: Mark Twain said,
"Technology has given me a sense of justice, and it has also given you a shield on your breasts." Mark Twain asked Li Yu with excitement in his eyes: "Do you think this invention is feasible?"
"It's feasible, it's very feasible!" Li Yu said,
"It's just that the design is a little simpler. It would be better if the details can be drawn." Mark Twain said: "You said that, I have confidence in my heart. It is just a sketch now. I will get Tesla's nod later. I'm completely relieved." Li Yu asked: "Mr. Mark Twain is looking for Tesla?" Mark Twain said: "Yes, we are good friends." Everyone knows that Mark Twain is a great writer, and He can be called the father of American literature, but few people know that Mark Twain was also a technology fan in his life.
And it can be said that he is the number one technology fan in the literary family. Not only the design of this bra button, Mark Twain also made many inventions.
For example, he has always had the habit of collecting pictures and newspaper articles, but he was always troubled by the tedious process of applying glue.
To solve this problem, Mark Twain invented an improved self-adhesive scrapbook and earned $50,000 from this invention.
What concept? Mark Twain earned a total of just over $200,000 from publishing books throughout his life. However, there seem to be only two or three successful examples, and more are failures, and they are the kind that bring endless debts.
After Mark Twain made some money writing books, he still couldn't forget the joy of inventing. It happened that a person named Peggy came to him and said that he had a good product of automatic typesetting machine, but he only lacked the last fund.
Mark Twain looked at it and suddenly saw something in front of his eyes.
"Bright", what a good thing! Mark Twain lived a very difficult life when he was young. He worked as a newsboy and typesetter. He knew through personal experience that the work of typesetting was not only tedious, but also inefficient, so the future of automatic typesetters was simply bright!
Mark Twain voted for this project! Mark Twain took out $2,000 on the spot and waited for the good news to arrive.
A year later, Peggy found Mark Twain again and said to him: "We are going to succeed. All we need is the last sum of money." Mark Twain believed that he also knew how to invent, and it was normal to encounter some difficulties in the process. Without further ado, continue to invest more!
Another year passed, and Peggy found Mark Twain and still said to him: "It will be successful, as long as the last sum of money is needed." Mark Twain thought: Well, that's understandable!
It’s worth spending a little extra for an automatic typesetter. Three years, five years, ten years, Peggy is
"It's about to succeed"... For sixteen years, Mark Twain invested $200,000! As a result, other people's typesetters were already on the market, but Peggy's typesetter was still
"It's about to succeed." The market quickly chose typesetters that were already on the market and were simpler and more portable. Mark Twain's investment was wasted.
As a result, he incurred huge debts and had to embark on a global lecture tour to make money. He only returned to the United States in 1900.
Mark Twain no longer dares to let himself go on the road of invention. Fortunately, he has Tesla as a good friend.
The two had formed a wonderful relationship before they had even met. When Tesla was still in middle school, he got seriously ill and almost went to death, but he relied on Mark Twain to survive.
From that time on, Tesla was extremely grateful to Mark Twain. After arriving in the United States, he discovered that it was a coincidence that Mark Twain also liked to invent, so naturally they became a close friend.
Mark Twain often came to Tesla to see his great new
"invention". Fortunately, Tesla is a man who understands technology and can keep things in check. Today, the United States is an era that loves investing and making money, and it is also the most money-oriented era. Everyone dreams of becoming a millionaire.
In addition to his love of inventions, Mark Twain also made investments everywhere, but most of them failed miserably. He obviously doesn't have a technological or business acumen.
But he was not convinced. Li Yu said to Mark Twain: "Is Mr. Tesla's laboratory nearby?" Mark Twain nodded: "That's the house in front." What's more, he didn't expect Tesla La's laboratory is also here!
We can't blame Sierra for not mentioning it before. In the eyes of Americans at this time, Edison's reputation was indeed far higher than Tesla's.
Tesla is currently only famous within the technology and engineering circles. Li Yu asked: "Can I meet Mr. Tesla together?" Mark Twain said: "What's wrong? You are also from our technology circle." Li Yu smiled: "Yes, yes, we are all technology Circled.”
