Seeing that Richard didn't respond for a long time, Sherlock said with a guilty conscience: "No, then... How about I help you find Balas Silver. Although you can find it, you can't tell how much it is, if it's less. , I can help."
"This..." Richard thought for a while, considering that during the research process, he really couldn't say how much metal palladium would be used, and this metal can also be stored, he nodded and agreed, "Okay, then you can help. Look for Balas Silver."
"Then it's settled!"
"It's settled, I'll leave first." Richard said and walked towards the warehouse door.
"I'll see you off." Sherlock quickly followed and said with concern, "By the way, will your research stop before you find Balas Silver?"
"It looks like research is going to stop now, but the rest can be done."
"That's not bad. By the way, please tell me more about what Balas Silver looks like. This will save me from finding the wrong one."
"Okay." Richard nodded and said, "First of all, the appearance, silvery white, and then the texture, which is relatively soft, has excellent ductility and plasticity... Let's put it this way, you can think of it as a special kind of silver. , but compared with ordinary silver, it is about one-eighth heavier. On the market, one ounce (29.27 cubic centimeters) weighs almost 0.775 pounds (351.91 grams), which is more than three-quarters of a pound."
"One ounce, more than three-quarters of a pound." Sherlock nodded seriously.
"One more thing." Richard said, "Barras silver is brighter than silver. I won't go into details about the reason. Generally speaking, silver will contact and oxidize with oxygen in the air and turn black. Balas Silver doesn't, it always looks shiny..."
"It looks shiny." Sherlock nodded seriously again.
At this moment, Richard seemed to suddenly think of some important missing clue, and suddenly stopped talking, stood still, and frowned deeply.
"What's wrong?" Sherlock looked at Richard and asked.
Richard slowly turned to look at Sherlock and asked, "Do you still remember that clock of yours, which is a similar collection to the one I took out at the beginning?"
"Well, of course I remember it. It has been kept in my bedroom and I just took it out to show you. How could I forget?" Sherlock said, "But... what's wrong with that thing?"
"It's not a problem." Richard shook his head and said with a strange light in his eyes, "It suddenly occurred to me that your clock is silver-white and shiny."
"What do you mean..." Sherlock's eyes widened and he suddenly understood something.
At this time, Richard quickly asked: "How long has it been since you got that clock?"
"Well, several months."
"You didn't scrub it with anything?"
"No."
"So it's always this bright?"
"It has always been so bright!" Sherlock affirmed, looking even more excited than Richard, "I know, that clock must be made of Baras silver!"
"Right now, I'm not completely sure. I need to test it." Richard shook his head and kept calm, then frowned, "But having said that, I was just thinking about the clock maker, and I almost missed the material of the clock. , this is a mistake.”
"It's okay." Sherlock looked like he was extremely honored to be able to help, and said loudly, "No need to say more, you go and test it now. If it is really Balas Silver, I will immediately Take that clock apart and give you the outer casing for your experiment.
Although I feel a little distressed, it is nothing in front of our great friendship. Besides, don’t you also have one that’s almost ready? Even though it’s a little smaller, I’ll accept it. "
"Huh?" Richard's eyes flashed, he glanced at Sherlock, and couldn't help but said, "What are you thinking about!"
"What?" Sherlock couldn't help but be stunned and whispered, "What? Did I think about something wrong?"
Richard looked at Sherlock and said slowly: "You are not wrong, but you are too idealistic. You don't think about it. Even if your clock is made of palladium metal, how much does a case weigh? Even if you give it to me, it’s of no use.”
"This—" Sherlock's breath froze and he scratched his golden hair, "So, I still can't help?"
"No, you can help." Richard said, "But instead of dismantling the clock, tell me the origin of the clock. The outer shell of the clock is made of Balas silver, so the maker of the clock should have more It's better to have more metals like this - as long as you find the other party, you can solve the problem.
Originally, I wanted to wait until the research was completed before contacting the other party to avoid unnecessary complications. Now it seems that it is necessary to contact the other party. "
"Is that so?" Sherlock said with some sudden realization, and then said to himself, "Oh, I shouldn't have made suggestions in front of you. The more active I am, the stupider I feel. Maybe I have a brain. Just to look taller."
Richard glanced at Sherlock and ignored him, saying, "Tell me the origin of the clock."
"Okay." Sherlock said, "I got this clock from a friend. Well, an old friend. This old friend doesn't mean that we have known each other for a long time, but because he is very old and we have just met each other. We have met once or twice, so we are old friends..."
…
After a while.
Richard walked out of Sherlock's courtyard.
Sherlock sent Richard out, and as he walked, he asked for confirmation: "Are you really going to find the other party?"
"if not?"
"Then I have to remind you, the other person is very weird and dangerous, and he especially doesn't like to meet strangers. The first time I met him, I was almost bitten by a dog. You... you'd better be careful."
"I will." Richard said.
"By the way, there's that... Balasyin, do you still need me to help you continue to look for it?"
"Keep looking." Richard thought for a while and said, "It's hard to say whether we can get the Balas Silver from the other party. Even if we get it, it may not be completely enough. If you help me look for it, there will be nothing bad."
"Okay, then it's all on me!" Sherlock said, patting his chest, but the patting was a bit harsh, and he couldn't help coughing. He coughed and said goodbye, "Cough cough... again... cough cough... goodbye." "
"Goodbye." Richard said, waving to Sherlock who couldn't look directly at him, and walked away.
…
At noon.
In the north of Florence City, there is a remote alley called "Rotten Pine".
Because this alley is narrow and the courtyard wall is high, sunlight can hardly shine in, making it appear dark and extremely humid. The corners are covered with moss, and mushrooms are sprouting in clusters. The atmosphere is weird. Except for the people living in the alley, almost no one comes here.
Richard came here.