Chapter 39

A not-so-big passenger ship let out a deep, muffled horn sound as it slowly approached the dock.

In no time, a handsome and adorable boy, who appeared to be around fifteen or sixteen years old, walked down the gangway of the ship, whistling a light tune and jumping around with excitement. His fair face was filled with undeniable joy.

Indeed, he was thrilled beyond belief. He never dreamt that he would have the fortune of receiving a personal letter from Dr. Albert Einstein, inviting him to visit Germany. The envelope even included a first-class suite ticket for the ship.

For the past few days, he had been preparing and organizing his questions to ask Dr. Einstein, filling up five whole sheets of paper.

Just as the boy was looking through a map to find the next transportation route, someone approached him. "Are you Alan Mathison Turing?"

The boy suddenly raised his head and saw a burly man with a muscular face standing before him. Fear crept into his heart. "Who, who are you?"

"I'm Eberhardt. You scared the little kid here. You must be Alan Mathison Turing, right? Dr. Einstein sent us to pick you up." With these heartwarming words, a beautiful young lady appeared from behind the big man.

Upon hearing the beautiful lady mention the name of Dr. Albert Einstein, Turing couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He thought he had encountered trouble as soon as he set foot on German soil for the first time. "That's me."

During the ride to the nearby airport, Eberhardt couldn't help but glance frequently at the rearview mirror, observing Turing's excitement as he eagerly gazed at the scenery outside. Finally, Eberhardt couldn't resist asking, "Who is this kid? I can't see anything special about him. Why did His Highness personally send us to pick him up?"

Annie shook her head. "I don't know. But since it's His Highness who wants to meet this person, he must be an important figure."

They arrived at the airport, boarded a plane bound for Berlin, and upon landing, they got into a car. When the car stopped, Turing was momentarily taken aback. "Is this the palace?"

Annie smiled at him. "Yes, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wants to meet you."

"Huh? But isn't it Dr. Einstein..." Turing was momentarily confused. Wasn't he called here by Dr. Einstein? How did he end up meeting the German Crown Prince?

Annie interjected. "We will meet His Majesty first, and then you can meet Dr. Einstein." With these words, she led the still bewildered Turing to Wilhelm's office. "Your Highness, Alan Mathison Turing has arrived."

Having only seen Turing in mid-life photos from the original timeline, Wilhelm couldn't help but internally joke, "Ha, he's still just a kid." Of course, he was still a kid. Turing was even two years younger than him at the moment.

It was Turing's first time having such a close encounter with a member of the royal family. He nervously greeted with a bow. "Your, your Highness, hello, re-re-respected Crown Prince."

"Everyone, please leave. I want to have a private conversation with him." Wilhelm could see Turing's nervousness and walked over to him, patting his shoulder kindly, signaling him to relax. "Alan Mathison Turing, let's not beat around the bush. Both Dr. Einstein and I believe that you are a promising talent. We hope that after this visit, you won't return to England. Stay in Germany, study, and serve the German nation in the future."

Turing couldn't help but be taken aback, quickly refusing, "How is that possible? I am British. I can only serve the British Empire..."

Wilhelm impatiently interrupted him. "Yes, yes, you want to serve the British Empire. But have you ever thought about how the British Empire, the one you want to serve, would treat you if they knew you were a homosexual?"

Turing's young face instantly turned red, his eyes filled with shock, and his speech stumbled. "How did you...?"

"How did I know? You don't have to worry about that. What you should consider is what kind of inhuman torture you would endure. If I remember correctly, the 1885 Criminal Law Amendment Act in the British Empire included Section 11, the 'Gross Indecency Law,' right? (This law was aimed at male-to-male physical contact, which is to punish homosexuality.) I'm sure you have seen that law and considered what kind of punishment you would face. Will you be imprisoned? Sent to a mental institution? Or perhaps be castrated directly?"

During the 1950s in the United States, tens of thousands of people were convicted of homosexuality in the United Kingdom, and Turing, at the age of 39, was one of them. Faced with the choice between "prison or chemical castration," Turing chose the latter.

The so-called chemical castration involved the forced intake of synthetic estrogen for a prolonged period. This resulted in consequences such as hormonal imbalance, impotence, and male breast development. After undergoing estrogen injections for nearly two years, Turing openly admitted that he had become someone he no longer recognized.

On June 7, 1954, Turing was found dead in his home, suspected to have died from poisoning, with a partially bitten apple on the table (contrary to popular belief, Apple's logo was not inspired by Turing's suicide). This happened just 16 days before his 42nd birthday.

It wasn't until 2009, with over 30,000 signatures on a petition, that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown officially issued an apology to Turing.

In 2012, on the centenary of Turing's birth, ten notable figures, including physicist Stephen Hawking, wrote letters urging Prime Minister David Cameron to pardon Turing for his so-called "gross indecency" charges.

In 2013, Queen Elizabeth II officially granted Turing a posthumous pardon for his conviction of "gross indecency."

This historically mistreated individual finally received the day of fair evaluation he had long awaited.

"In the eyes of those around you, you would be seen as a deviant, mentally ill, and a disgusting person, and they would distance themselves from you. Because of you, your family would also suffer from the same discrimination, facing pointing fingers and lowered heads when they step outside. They were originally good and innocent; why should they be unjustly harmed?"

Turing covered his face with both hands, lowering his head deeply, tears streaming through his fingers.

Wilhelm sighed and patted Turing's shoulder once again. "If you think you can bear this inhumane torture, you can go back."

"..." Turing remained silent for a while without responding.

Seeing an opportunity, Turing, after all, being a child, didn't possess the same level of emotional resilience as an adult. He lowered his voice, gently coaxing Turing, who was in an emotional low. "Or, you don't have to go back. As I mentioned earlier, you can choose to stay in Germany, where you won't be harmed."

Turing choked back his tears, shaking his head. "But Germany's laws... no country in the world allows homosexuality to be legal."

Isn't that simple? "Yes, but don't forget about my position. I am the Crown Prince of Germany, the future Emperor. I can grant you a pardon. Not only that, but if you make significant contributions to the Empire, I can even change the laws and declare homosexuality legal."

Turing suddenly lifted his head, tears brimming in his eyes, and asked, "Is that true?!"

Wilhelm assured him with a serious expression. "Of course, as the future Emperor of Germany, how could I go back on my word? In a few days, I will send people to bring your family to Germany, and I guarantee that they will have a worry-free life. Do you have any other important people in your life?"

A blush appeared on Turing's face as he whispered softly, "I have a close friend named Christopher."

Christopher was undoubtedly Christopher Morcom, the boy whom Turing had fallen in love with at first sight, who was also a mathematical and chemical prodigy. Unfortunately, he contracted tuberculosis as a child from drinking milk from a diseased cow and started hiccuping in 1930. However, maybe if they brought him over now and admitted him to a hospital for treatment, his life could be extended for a few more years.

"No problem, I will invite them to come to Germany as well. Any other questions? If not, you can go and meet Dr. Einstein now. Miss Annie, who brought you here earlier, will arrange accommodation and schooling for you." As Wilhelm said this, he recalled Turing's extremely introverted nature and his almost non-existent social skills. "I think it's better if we forgo the school. I will arrange individual teachers for each subject to provide you with instruction. Does that sound better?"

After bidding farewell to Turing, Wilhelm couldn't help but burst into laughter.