Chasing Time

“Next, we have the most noble recipient of the Order of the Garter, the Grand Cross of Saint Michael and Saint George, the Grand Cross of the Bath, the Victoria Cross and the lower grades of Knighthood, the leader of the anti-colonial movement, the bell-ringer of the East India Company, the hero of the Crimean War, a Fellow of the Royal Society, a lifelong dear friend of literary giants such as Dickens and Great Dumas, a steadfast supporter of scientific luminaries like Faraday and Darwin, having served as assistant under-secretary, deputy under-secretary, and permanent under-secretary in departments of the Home Office and the Navy Department of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the inaugural Cabinet Secretary and head of the civil service, the first graduate and most distinguished alumnus of our school. Please welcome Sir Arthur Hastings to deliver a speech on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the University of London.”
Arthur's gaze swept across the crowd before him, looking at the young faces and murmured, “Agares, what do you think I should say?”
The Red Devil's wraith hovered behind him, saliva almost dribbling from the corner of his mouth, “Look at these ignorant souls; they still worship you as a hero. Why not say something they'd like to hear?”
Arthur took a deep breath and let out a deafening roar, “Oxford is a bunch of whores' bastards!”
“Oh!!!!”
The audience erupted into thunderous applause.
“Cambridge is the same!” he added immediately.
The applause grew even more fervent...
(The protagonist, possessed by a devil, travels through 19th-century Britain in a world without magic)

The Shadow of Great Britain

£1,500—an amount that in 19th-century Britain, let alone the rest of the world, was no meager sum.


In London, ninety percent of the population had an annual income less than £100.


If employed in high-income industries such as construction or machinery manufacturing, a diligent skilled worker could earn annually between £60 and £100, depending on the job type and technical ability.


As for jobs requiring a certain level of knowledge, such as company clerks, one could consistently secure an income over £70 a year.


However, in competitive and low-income industries such as the textile industry that involved lighter physical labor, even a healthy male adult could only earn about £30 to £50.


The low profit margins of the textile industry also drove factory owners to hire numerous women and child laborers.


They claimed that the labor demanded by the textile industry was minimal, employing adult male workers was indeed a waste of labor force.


Chapter 84: Real Estate Tycoon