It was a dazzling era of miracles, and it was a time of great oolongs to be "tail-to-head" that humans were able to surf the magnificent space – but it also came with destruction.

——Excerpt from "A Hundred Years of Collecting Shellfish", written by Yu Leshui

1

Ji Renrui quickly organized a large-scale IQ survey initiated by Chu Tianle. On the third day of Chu's initiative, 50 people, all of whom were the world's most famous psychologists, Wechsler IQ testers, and brain physiologists, sat in the conference room of the headquarters of Friends of Joy. Among them, only one is a quantum physicist, that is, Pauli, who lives in seclusion on Human Egg Island, and Chu Tianle brought him here. Chu Tianle went straight to the point:

"Welcome. The Academy of Friends of Joy would like to commission a large-scale IQ survey with you. I myself have never done an IQ test, and I am an absolute layman, so I would like to start by telling you two questions that are directly related to the goal of this survey. ”

Prutez, a famous British psychologist, smiled and said, "Please speak." I'm so glad to have a super genius as my student. ”

"Then I'll get to it. First, Wechsler IQ measures the discrete IQ of a population rather than an absolute IQ, in other words, people with IQs between 90 and 109 account for 50 percent of the total sample, whether it is for adults, children, or toddlers. This eliminates some uncertainties and makes the measured values comparable. Am I right? ”

"Yes."

"For the sake of accuracy, the IQ survey still hopes to use discrete IQs, but the sample averages used are not today's, but 50 years ago. Can this be done? ”

Prutez said keenly: "Fifty years ago, that is, when space was not shrinking. Do you want to measure the effect of spatial contraction on human IQ? ”

"Yes."

Prutez discussed in a low voice with a few acquaintances around him, and said, "Then we should use the original IQ score measured fifty years ago, not the final converted IQ value." There had never been such a large-scale IQ survey. But we can collect and sort out the scattered data, and we can still do it. ”

"Thank you. My second question is: I know that the Wechsler IQ test has been programmed to ensure the objectivity of the measurements, and I hope that this survey will continue to be objective. But, frankly, I'm afraid that you'll get bogged down in a maze of numbers, and you'll blur the clear and intuitive results. Because what I want is a very intuitive answer - whether the spatial contraction has an effect on human intelligence, and if so, roughly by a few percent. ”

Prutez shook his head with a smile, "This is not a question of yours, but a harsh demand on us. However, it is both demanding and simple. Actually, if you want a rough and intuitive answer, I've got it in my mind. Over the years, I've noticed a lot of intuitive evidence, such as the tenfold increase in sales of intellectual toys on the market in the last two decades. Another example is the human-computer competition in the field of chess, where humans are once again on an equal footing with computers, and so on. He bowed his head and quickly wrote a few words on a piece of paper, folded it into a swallow shape, and walked over to hand it to Chu Tianle, "Make a bet." This is my answer, please open it again when the survey is over and see if the two match. If the difference between the two is less than 5 percent, I win; Otherwise, count me as losing. ”

Tianle smiled and put the paper swallow into his jacket pocket and asked, "What are you betting on?" ”

"If I lose, I'll never read Playboy again."

"It's a special bet. Okay, I agree. What if I lose? To be clear, I've never seen Playboy. ”

"If you lose, then you're going to— listen, live by my standards, at least to be a hundred years old." After a pause, he added, "You don't live for yourself, but for everyone." ”

Chu Tianle was silent for a while. Prutez's words made him very emotional, but he replied in a joking tone, "Thank you." It's just that I'm afraid I won't be able to cash in on this bet. To be able to live until now, I have been extraordinarily performing, and it is a blessing for Dr. Toduan. I can only promise you to live as long as I can. ”

The atmosphere in the room was more solemn, and soon Prutz brushed away the solemnity with a smile, "Okay, then I'll be sloppy and count this as your fulfillment." ”

Pauli also wrote a few words on the piece of paper silently at this time, folded it into a swallow shape and handed it to Chu Tianle, and said briefly: "I will also participate." Same bets. ”

Chu Tianle smiled and put it in his pocket. Prutz said, "Haha, this time our gamble is even more interesting." Mr. Pauli has always had an astonishing instinct, a win-win gamble, and is well known in the scientific community. He then resumed his serious tone, "Now, I will turn to two technical issues. First, in the past, IQ measurements were transversal, measuring the dispersion IQ of an individual relative to the population to which he belongs. And the IQ measurement you are asking for is longitudinal, which measures the change in the IQ of today's population relative to the population of fifty years ago. It's a brand new job, but we're going to try to get it right. ”

"Good."

"The second point is more difficult. A well-known fable: a frog that is suddenly thrown into boiling water is able to escape for its life, because a sudden strong stimulus accelerates the release of adrenaline. Nineteen years ago, humanity was suddenly thrown into boiling water, which led to the extraordinary development of various fields. If a large increase in human IQ is measured, then, in addition to the improvement of background intelligence, there should also be an adrenaline effect. But the two cannot be separated. The percentage I just gave you includes two factors. ”

Chu Tianle paused for a moment, "No matter how difficult it is, we have to separate." What I want to know is the exact effect of spatial compression on human IQ, which cannot contain the adrenaline factor. ”

"If that's the case, then I would venture to make a suggestion, why not include animal IQ surveys? Animals, especially several species of orangutans, have considerable IQs and are well studied with sufficient comparative data. The most favorable condition is that their IQ is not enough to feel the existence of the pot of boiling water, which can completely exclude the factor of adrenaline, and the results of the survey will be more objective, which can be a powerful reference for human IQ investigation. "Of course, there is an implicit premise that there is no essential difference between the brains of humans and orangutans, and that anything that promotes human intelligence also affects orangutans." ”

Chu Tianle immediately smiled and said, "There is no problem with this premise. I don't think any of you here will be embracing human chauvinism. ”

"Okay, then let me share some information, which is the basis of my proposal just now. A friend of mine has been studying chimpanzees in Senegal for twenty years. He recently told me that something very interesting has happened there in recent years. ”

He didn't go into detail about what it was, but Chu Tianle fully understood the weight of the news, "Your opinion is very good, then add an animal group in addition to the routine adult group, children's group and toddler group." Mr. Prutez, this investigation is given to you with carte blanche, and you only need to submit a list of the required manpower and funds, and go directly to Dean Ji. Now the UN's SCAC has established a comprehensive cooperative relationship with us. Therefore, whether it is the resources of 'Friends of Joy' or the resources of SCAC, you can call them at will. ”

Prutez looked at Ji Renrui and smiled: "I often hear a saying that SCAC has been swallowed up by 'Friends of Music'. ”

Ji Renrui immediately responded: ", it's completely." There is no annexation, only full cooperation. Our cooperation has been really fruitful and enjoyable, especially since Abikar became that 'little secretary'. ”

"But objectively speaking, the 'Friends of Music' is already the de facto center of world politics. There is a common saying that the Executive Committee of the 'Friends of Joy' plus half of the SCAC is the real leader of the world, called 'governing by science', and the UN Security Council or the UN General Assembly are just two rubber stamps. ”

Chu Tianle said with a smile: "The reason why the 'Friends of Happiness' can do something is because they can move forward lightly, so you must not tie such a big chariot to us, it will harm us." He turned back to the subject, "Prutez, I won't bother with the IQ survey until you give me the results." When can it be? ”

Prutz looked at Ji Renrui, "I originally wanted to talk about it for a year, but although I am far away in a foreign land, I have already heard the murderous name of God's whip. So – within six months. ”

Ji Renrui's face was expressionless, "Three months." ”

"Three months?" Prutez looked at Chu Tianle. Chu smiled and said a few words to Ji and pleaded for the guest. Ji Renrui came in and out of three words again:

"One hundred days."

Prutez smiled wryly, "Mr. God's Whip, you are so generous. Okay, a hundred days is a hundred days. Well, we don't dare to delay for a minute and start getting into the role from now on. I need to start by deciding on the project team members. He thought for a moment and named the six people in the room, "The seven of us stayed and started discussing specific plans." Others can take their own chances, and if you want to stay, you can also observe. ”

The six do not include the quantum physicist Pauli. He looked at Chu Tianle: "Say it, my job." ”

Chu Tianle said: "This job is separate and perhaps more important, so leave it to the smartest brain." As we already know, the deep structure of the vacuum is equivalent to the fourth dimension of space. If spatial contraction does affect intelligence, then through what pathways? This is a completely new topic, and I hope you can figure it out. ”

Pauli looked at Ji Renrui, "I'll do it." As for the time...... "He looked at Ji Renrui.

Chu Tianle smiled, "Where can our God's whip be unreasonable, he knows that this task can't be handed over in a hundred days." You two will decide later. ”

But Pauli's reply was unexpected, "I'll have a hundred days too." ”

Chu Tianle stared at this silent guy in surprise, and the other party's gaze was calm and confident. Chu Tianle thought that since Pauli was so sure, it meant that he had already started to study this. He said happily, "Of course it's better, it seems that I didn't choose the wrong person." Let's go, and don't interfere with the work of the Prutez group. ”

2

Two days later, Prutez led psychologist Dong Yuexia and brain physiologist Steley to the dense forests of Senegal, Africa. Pauli also came, and he was there to attend, "trying to put some visual pictures in my head." Also with him was Ge Qihong, vice president of the Friends of Joy Foundation, who has been more leisure recently, so he "wants to compare his IQ with chimpanzees".

Prutez was on a trip to find an old friend, Francine Blois, who had been living with chimpanzees for twenty years. The black guide, Mlago, led them into the jungle, while Blois did not use a cell phone, and Mlago was his communicator. Since Blois lives in a fixed place and migrates with chimpanzees, Mlago is not sure when he will see him. However, this time it went well, and on the second day of entering the dense forest, the guide found the chimpanzee group. He told the guests to wait where they were, and a man crept forward. Soon he hurried back with Blois. It was a sturdy white middle-aged man, with brown hair, blue eyes, a beard and hair that was unkempt, bronzed skin, and a full-body **, with only a grass skirt around his waist. He hugged his old friend Prutez, and then with the other guests. Prutez told him the purpose of the trip, and Blois said:

"Living in this isolated forest, I have almost forgotten about the shrinkage of space, so I have never considered whether the shrinkage of space caused their IQ to explode. But these orangutans have certainly improved their intelligence in recent years, and I'm no doubt rejoicing about that. I'll be able to show you some interesting footage right now, and we'll talk about it after that. Come with me. ”

He led everyone to sneak around. Although he himself had been a member of the chimpanzee group for a long time, there were so many strangers today that he was afraid of disturbing the chimpanzee. At one point, he asked everyone to stop, and twenty meters away there was a small clearing in the forest, where more than two dozen chimpanzees gathered in a circle and were doing something. They spotted the stranger here, but probably knew it was brought by Blois, and showed no signs of being disturbed. Blois whispered:

"Before I left here, they had just captured three Wo Bush monkeys, and they were preparing to share their food. See? There were a few chimpanzees holding groomed, sharp, hard twigs that they used to hunt. It's not uncommon for them to use weapons, and zoologists have known about it for forty years. But—look down. He smiled and glanced at everyone, "Don't be shocked by what follows, Mlago and I are used to it." ”

He stopped talking, and several people watched quietly. The chimpanzees over there were preparing a bonfire, and they gathered some branches and stacked them into hollow pyres, which they did quite skillfully. While the orangutans worked, a muscular male stood on one side and watched calmly. Blois Says:

"That's their leader, and I've named it Az."

When the pyre was ready, the orangutans turned their eyes to Az, who walked over majestically and raised his left hand. Prutez held up the telescope at Bruis's signal and focused the lens on Az's hand. It turned out that it was holding a silver-white lighter in its left hand! Blois Says:

"Do you see clearly? It was a lighter, stolen from me. You know, I've always lived with them, trying to eat the same food as they do. But my stomach is different from that of chimpanzees, and sometimes I quietly avoid them and use a makeshift stove to cook some cooked food to spice up my stomach. I did it very carefully, believing that I never let them find out. But—I suspect they discovered my secret by secret stalking. I lost a lighter five years ago, and then I found out that the lighter was taken by Az, and then he learned to make a fire like me and roast meat over the fire. Later, Azi ousted the old leader and became the leader of the tribe himself. ”

It took a long time to light the fire there, and Prutz looked at it with a telescope for a while, then turned around and said, "Az's movements are very solemn, as if he was holding a religious ceremony. ”

Blois smiled and shook his head, "No, it's not religious. The chimpanzee's thumb is far less dexterous than anyone's, and Az's fingers are often burned when he fires, and even now it is not completely avoidable. So it is very careful when it fires. Until now, in this group, ignition is the exclusive power of Aziz alone. Of course, it would not be wrong to see their reverence for fire as the germ of religion. ”

Screams of excitement erupted from there, and Azzy lit the fire. Small flames leaped and meandered between the branches, and soon turned into a raging fire. Sparks flew everywhere, probably burning a few orangutans, and screams of excitement were mixed with screams. Aziz triumphantly retreated from the fire, carefully clutching the silver-white lighter in his hand. Several male orangutans threaded the carcasses of the three leans onto the branches of a tree and roasted them on a fire, while the other orangutans stared greedily. Blois Says:

"In the past two years, the life of this ethnic group has been inseparable from fire. But they didn't learn how to keep the tinder, because they didn't have the objective need to do it—they knew my secret and kept all the lighters, and when one of the lighters didn't ignite, they would come here and steal another one. It's become a secret between me and them. ”

The meat over there is cooked, and the aroma wafts here. They first offered the food to Az, who tore off a piece and shared the rest. At this time, a chimpanzee suddenly left the group and walked this way, and Blois hurriedly introduced:

"Did you see the female orangutan? It's called Maru and it's my lover. He looked at the group, "I'm not joking, at least not all joking." You look at the grass skirt around its waist. ”

It approached, indeed wearing a grass skirt, in the same style as Blois's. "Maru is one of Azzi's 'concubines,' but she's been courting me for the last two years," Blois said. It cares about me very much, keeps me with the best food, always keeps me in sight when the tribe migrates, and it will be very anxious if I don't see me for half a day. I live in a chimpanzee group, and I should be naked, but after all, the habits of civilization are hard to change, so I have always covered my shame in a straw skirt. What I didn't expect was that from this year on, Malu was very envious of my grass skirt, and often came to my side and looked at me with the grass skirt in his eyes. Maybe it's, oh, her," Blois said, shaking his head and self-deprecatingly, "sometimes I really don't know what kind of pronouns to use—maybe its IQ has learned how to hide shame?" Later, I made a straw skirt for it, and it loved it so much that it didn't leave it for a moment. ”

Maru walked halfway and stopped hesitantly, probably jealous of the stranger around the "lover". Ge Qihong joked to the host:

"Maru is courting you, is the king of chimpanzees jealous?"

"No, no. I think the reason is that he—like Maru—has a lot of respect for the wisdom I represent. At least they all knew that the lighter, this treasure outside of their world, was brought by me. Shhhhhh

Blois silenced everyone as Maru came over after a brief hesitation. It could now be seen that it was holding a piece of cooked meat in its hand, and it walked over, avoiding the eyes of the others, and looked at Blois earnestly, holding the meat to him with both hands. Blois immediately ripped off a piece and returned the rest to Maru, patting it on the top of the head appreciatively. Maru, who had been praised, ran back with a radiant face and high spirits.

Several people were quite moved and shocked because there was clearly "feminine tenderness" in its childlike joy. Blois says it's his lover, and it seems to be true. What happened next shocked everyone even more. After Maru returned to the chimpanzee herd, Azi approached him, and the two orangutans gestured in sign language. Blois Says:

"Look, they're talking in sign language. I taught sign language, and now the whole community uses it. It's no surprise that orangutans use sign language, as early as the 80s of the last century, the Gorilla Foundation of America taught a lowland gorilla named Koko to use more than 1,000 sign language words, know 2,000 spoken English words, and communicate with humans quite smoothly. As he introduced, he tried to make out the sign language of the two orangutans, "Oh, Azi is telling Maru, 'Send five more pieces of meat, for Venerable Blois has brought five guests.'" ’”

Ge Qihong looked at Blois suspiciously, not knowing if he was joking or the truth. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be true. There were five orangutans over there, and Maru was the head. They soon approached, each holding a piece of cooked meat in his hand, and respectfully holding it to the five guests. At Blois's signal, the five people quickly accepted the gifts, and patted each other's heads like Blois to express their appreciation. The five chimpanzees went away happily.

All five of them struggled to tear and eat half-cooked monkey meat, staring at the chimpanzee colony in deep thought. "It's truly incredible," Sterley said. Dong Yuexia also said: "It's really shocking. "Now, this chimpanzee group can be said to have escaped from the category of animals, and can be regarded as a native. With a generous, prestigious, brilliant leader, and even a rudimentary love between men and women, who would dare to say that a new civilization would not start here? Prutez asked Bruis:

"Old friend, I've been collecting a lot of information lately, and I've found that animals all over the world have seen significant improvements in intelligence, but you're the only one who is the most amazing. Why is that? ”

"It's simple. I think it's because the chimpanzee's IQ is close to the tipping point of getting out of obscurantism, so under the same amplitude of stimulation, only this is the only mutation that occurs; Perhaps there is another reason: it is basically a group life in a state of freedom, and in such a social structure, it is easier to produce positive feedback on intellectual improvement. ”

Pauli couldn't hold back a little and said urgently, "I want to live there." Are they allowed? ”

Blois looked at his snow-white skin and jokingly said, "It should be fine." The only problem is that you're so different from them in skin color, but I'm sure they won't treat you as inferior. Are you all going? ”

"Yes, all of them. Let's all go. Others said.

"Then you must first make up your mind to be naked like me." He smiled and added, "Wait a minute, I'll ask Az." ”

He walked over. Azi saw it and came to him. A man and an orangutan were talking in sign language. The conversation lasted for quite some time, and the five guests here were fascinated by it, although they couldn't understand it at all. Azi was obviously different from the orangutans just now, his gaze was quite calm, and he did not cringe from the other orangutans. Finally Blois came back and said with a smile:

"Let's go. It is more than glad that it invites you to be a guest of the community. I'm kidding, you don't have to take off your clothes. They're open-minded enough not to care about the ugliness of a few hairless aliens. ”

The five of them happily followed him to that side, and they were a little apprehensive in their hearts. Ge Qihong muttered, and Blois turned back and asked, "What did you say?" Ge Qihong said:

"I feel sorry for Maru. Look at its fists affectionately! But its unrequited love is doomed to be hopeless. ”

Blois smiled, but did not respond. After a while he said: "If the rate of intellectual improvement in these two years continues, they will soon break away from ignorance and become the fifth skin color of mankind after black, white, yellow, brown, or 'hairy race'." If so, would you care about your wife's skin color? ”

Ge Qihong scratched his head and reluctantly admitted: "Although I dare not imagine marrying a hairy wife, - I think you are right, the key is not in appearance, but in the wisdom in the brain." ”

3

One hundred days later, the Prutez group published the results of this massive IQ survey. Pauli submitted a separate study report at the same time with a formula.

According to the results of the Prutez group, the average IQ of humans, including adults, young adults, young children, and all animals with measurable IQs, has increased by about 45 percent compared with 50 years ago, and adrenaline has no significant effect on it. The most significant improvement was made in chimpanzees, where their average IQ increased by 65 percent, a special phenomenon called "critical explosion". Since the increased intelligence of chimpanzees is certainly not related to adrenaline, this data is a strong circumstantial evidence for the above conclusions.

The bet between the two was that Chu Tianle had won, because Prutez's note read: It is estimated that human IQ has increased by 35 percent. The error between this value and the measured value is greater than the standard of five percent set at the time of the bet. But Prutz argued that the five percent he was talking about at the time only meant a negative difference, that is, five percent lower than his measured data would be awarded to him, because he had expected it to exceed it! Chu Tianle recognized his strong argument and said with a smile: "I can't wait to lose, I wish to realize that gambling contract - to live to be a hundred years old." ”

When Pauli's swallow slip was opened, it was revealed that there was no bet number, but a formula, exactly as listed in Pauli's official report. Pauli said in the report that he started the study five years ago. Of course, this is a topic of the century, and it is impossible to study it thoroughly in a short period of time, and for now he can only draw a preliminary conclusion: the dense vacuum affects the level of human intelligence through the effect of the quantum level, just as an increase in the concentration of ions in a solution can increase the density of electric current, and an increase in soil fertility can increase the growth rate of plants. Pauli used measured data and theoretical deduction to spell out an empirical formula that could calculate different intelligence improvement values based on different vacuum shrinkage rates. Substituting the current shrinkage rate into the current value gives you exactly the value reported by Prutez: 45 percent.

Compared to Prutez's conclusions, the Pauli formula has a wider range of applications. In the formula, the increase in intelligence is positively correlated with the shrinkage rate, that is, if the space continues to shrink, human intelligence will also increase, gradually approaching a limit value of e2/3

, i.e. 1.95. Now that intelligence has increased by 45 percent, there is still a possibility of further improvement.

Colleagues in the scientific community generally accepted Proust's and Pauli's reports.

The report also came to another conclusion: in a dense vacuum, the computing speed of the computer did not increase. This is to be expected, because the speed of computing is based on the speed of light (to be precise, the electric field transmitted at the speed of light), which is already the highest speed in the universe. But this natural conclusion still provokes a small amount of excitement. Naughty ghosts say on the Internet: Human beings don't have to feel inferior in front of powerful computers, because we are relatively smarter.

People all over the world — with their improved intelligence — savor the significance of this conclusion with joy. Adult education immediately became the most fashionable and powerful trend, because billions of people with low levels of knowledge now have a surplus of intelligence, and they do not want to be locked up in the "cage of ignorance" as they used to be. But for the "friends of happiness", there is also pathos floating in the base color of joy, because the improvement of intelligence is based on the "spatial contraction cataclysm", if human beings cannot escape from the cataclysmic area, then the brilliant bloom of intelligence is only a return to the light before death.

The progress of the wormhole ship is extremely rapid. On a day full of spring flowers, He Zizhou took time out of his extremely busy work and returned to the long-lost mountain. He was joined by his colleague Ovra Haza, a Jewish woman who was a brilliant engineering physicist. and Ji Jichang, who is now also his colleague and a key member of the project team. Ji Jichang also invited his parents here, this is what He Zizhou meant, because today he wants to talk about an important matter with the most important people in the 'Friends of Music', or the soul of the 'Friends of Music'. They didn't summon Alex because they had a disagreement with Alex about it.

The Ma couple and the Chu couple happily received the guests, and they had long regarded Yangyang and Changchang as members of the Ma family. The seventy-nine-year-old is extremely emaciated, but he is mentally healthy and can chat with guests in a wheelchair. Chu Tianle has not returned to Rendan Island to live a secluded life in the past year, because his wife has been pregnant for four months and obviously has a body. Leshui is forty-four years old this year, belonging to the advanced maternal age, although the disabled Chu Tianle can't take care of her, but staying by his side is at least a spiritual comfort. Ma Liuye went to study at Harvard University in the United States and has been gone for a year. There is also a newly hired nanny sister-in-law Xu in the house, Tianle's mother is old after all, and she has enough energy to take care of two disabled people and a pregnant woman.

Everyone sat down, and He Zizhou asked with a little embarrassment: "Are Liu Ye still angry with me?" She went to study abroad, and she didn't tell me about such a big thing, and treated Brother Yangyang as an outsider. ”

Yu Leshui told the truth: "She listened to my advice and left." What I said at the time was, if you want Brother Yangyang to accept you and turn your little sister into a lover, then make up your mind to stay away from him for three years, and then, let him suddenly see a strange mature woman. ”

As she said this, she glanced at Obhra Haza. A woman's eye is the keenest, and Yu Leshui has already seen that Ovra Haza has a very close relationship with Yangyang. So Liu Ye is likely to be hopeless, and when she comes back in three years, the relationship here is already ironclad, but no matter what, she feels that she should tell Liu Ye's thoughts. Yu Leshui knew that in the century-long operation to develop the wormhole spacecraft, a powerful Shaozhuang faction, or Noah's Convention faction, had been formed among scientists, and He Zizhou was its leader, and this Jewish girl must also be an important member of it.

He Zizhou shook his head helplessly, and did not continue to talk about the topic of willow leaves. Obhra Haza looked at Yu Leshui attentively, and clearly understood the meaning of her words, but did not say anything. He Zizhou first asked about the well-being of his family and hugged Uncle Ma. Ma Shiqi in a wheelchair said:

"I'm already a candle in the wind. The body has largely refused to accept foreign nutrients and is slowly devouring itself, first muscle cells and then bones. He pointed to his emaciated limbs, "The most important brain will be devoured at the end, but not too soon." So, while my mind is still clear, I would like to say goodbye to you in advance. ”

Everyone was sad, and behind him, the sixty-eight-year-old Tianle Mother's eyes were red. Mr. Ma is telling the truth. He is a systemic failure caused by aging, and there is no cure. Mr. Ma said heartily:

"As I said, birth, old age, sickness and death are the hardest iron laws set by God, and no one can avoid it, needless to say. However, before admitting defeat to death, I still want to fight for a small victory - to see my grandson born. ”

Yu Leshui hid his sadness and joked openly with the public: "That's no problem, Dad, you work hard, and I'll hurry up a little bit." The space is compressed, can't the pregnancy be compressed? ”

She deliberately grabbed her husband's arm. Over the past year, the husband still has a lot on his heart, and even the joy of fatherhood cannot drive it away. She talked privately about her worries with the second elder and Ji Renrui, and the three of them advised her not to worry, saying that when the time was ripe, Tianle would say it herself. At this time, Ji Renrui looked at the silent Tianle and said to He Zizhou:

"Yangyang, you said there was something important? Let's go. ”

"Okay." He Zizhou looked at everyone happily, "Brother Tianle, you have already said at that remote virtual meeting that for this kind of pure displacement flight caused by space annihilation, or wormhole flight, there is no theoretical limit to its maximum speed, only a technical limit. But you've also worried that the spell of the speed of light limit might continue to work in some roundabout way. ”

Chu Tianle nodded, "Hmm." ”

"It's been a year since we've finally figured it out - the spell has indeed worked! The speed of the wormhole spacecraft can reach the speed of light relative to non-native space, and it can reach Mach 1.7 or even higher! I'm borrowing an aviation term here, Mach 1 is the speed of light. Provided, of course, ......"

He stopped to look at Chu Tianle, who said keenly: "The premise is that the spacecraft has to fly continuously, and give up the intermittent flight method I designed, that is, give up the observation of the front?" ”

"Yes. Brother Tianle, seeing that the hardest iron law of the speed of light in the universe can be broken, how can we resist the temptation of the banshee? ”

Ji Renrui didn't follow He Zizhou's train of thought, and asked suspiciously: "It's not a problem." You can confirm it with experiments, and there is no danger in flying blindly for a short time. ”

Chu Tianle shook his head slightly at Ji Renrui and stopped his words. The purpose of He Zizhou's visit today is by no means to talk about a faster-than-light flight experiment. No, he's talking about the "faster-than-light age", and he has big plans in mind based on this technology. Chu Tianle said succinctly:

"You must have a proven approach to how to fly blindly."

"Yes, there is a way, but I don't dare to say whether it is mature or not. But let me start with the framework of a big plan, on which I disagree with Uncle Alex. That's exactly what I'm here for today - I want to get the support of you, Uncle Ma, Sister Leshui, and Uncle Ji first. ”

"Okay, let's talk about it."

"The first task of the new ship is to figure out the cataclysmic range and find the boundaries of the shrinking area, which is not said. Uncle Alex and I have no disagreement on this. It's just that...... You know, in recent observations, it has been found that the catastrophic region has always expanded outward at the speed of light, and there is no significant decrease in intensity. These two signs are very ominous, and it must be clarified quickly. However, if the exploration ship flies at a speed below the speed of light, it will only be able to stay behind the winger of the tsunami, and it will be farther and farther away. Such an exploration is useless. I think we have to chase the Tsunami Winger in a faster-than-light spacecraft, observe it up close, and figure out how it works, especially if the intensity of the space contraction weakens at the winger. ”

The expressions of those present were a little gloomy. He Zizhou is right, the "expansion of the speed of light" and "the intensity has not decreased significantly" in the cataclysmic area are two very ominous news, which are secretive topics in the media. If this trend persists, it means that no matter how hard we try, we will not be able to escape life. The weakened Maasqi's eyes were blazing at the moment, and he said:

"Well, go on."

"So, the development of a 'near-light-speed or light-speed spaceship' has lost its relevance and must go beyond it and directly into the development of 'faster-than-light'. And time is pressing, and there is no time to do any more experiments in the solar system. Tinkering with the Goldfish is not possible, and a new ship must be built as soon as possible, and then fly straight after the Tsunami Winger. The radius of the cataclysmic area is now close to fifty light-years, and roughly calculated, if the ship reaches Mach 1.7, it will be 120 years before it catches up with the boundary expanding at the speed of light. If the speed of the ship reaches Mach 2, the time can be reduced to a hundred years. If you take into account the return journey of the ship, the above time is doubled. He looked directly at Chu Tianle, "Since there is no relativistic effect, such a trip will already take several generations." Therefore, a space society with a scale of 1,000 people must be established on this spacecraft in order to ensure effective reproduction. We, and I mean the members of the Noah's Pact team," he said, swiping his hand over Ovra Haza and Ji Jichang, "are already preparing in advance. ”

He took the lead in starting the discussion of the "Noah's Ark Human Convention" two years ago, and in this discussion, a group of young Zhuang scientists gradually gathered around him to form the "Noah Convention School", and Ji Jichang was also a hardcore member of the Noah organization. Ji Renrui and Miao Qi looked at Changchang and couldn't help but feel gloomy in their hearts. Changchang will definitely go to the sky with this spaceship, and that is the day he will say goodbye to his parents. Although the farewell is sad, they are looking for a way to survive, so they can also think about being parents. Ji Ren sharply brushed away the sadness and asked:

"What is Alex's opinion?"

He believes that the focus of technology should be on near-light speed flight. He said that if the speed of light is crossed, it is difficult to ensure the safety of navigation. ”

"He's right, of course, safety first and foremost." Ji Renrui said.

Chu Tianle waved his hand at Ji Renrui, but Ji's words did not reach the point. He Zizhou will not ignore the safety of the spaceship, and the differences between him and Alex must be deeper. Chu said, "Let's talk about your methods to overcome blindness." ”

He Zizhou shook his head, "No, in faster-than-light flight, blindness is unavoidable. It is not even comparable to a submarine, which, when sneaking, although it cannot be located with a star map or GPS, can at least rely on gyroscopes for inertial navigation, but with slightly worse accuracy. But in wormhole flight, the spacecraft is stationary relative to the local space, so the inertial navigator, accelerometer, and velocity meter are also theoretically ineffective - because there are no measurable parameters at all! ”

Chu Tianle nodded deeply. Yang Yang is right, there is only one way to navigate the wormhole spacecraft: rely on the star map, but this can only be done after the spacecraft is out of the wormhole state. He Zizhou continued:

"And for faster-than-light ships, there's little practical value in keeping an eye on it. Because the ship doesn't have time to react to dynamic obstacles, just like ground artillery can't rely on sound to fight a supersonic fighter - by the time you hear the sonic boom, the plane will already pass you. ”

"You're right. But—move on. I'm a slow otter at the moment, unable to keep up with your train of thought. ”

"Is there a quick-thinking otter like you in the world?" He Zizhou smiled, "I'd better show you a short film first." It should be noted in advance that the mechanism of the bullet passing through the glass in the short film is completely different from the mechanism of our wormhole flight, but it can give you an intuitive impression. ”

Oprah. Haza and Ji Jichang were ready to start showing a short film on their television, which was a high-speed camera shot of a bullet through glass. The bullet flies in transparent air, and due to its high speed, a shock wave of air is formed in front of the bullet, which interferes with the propagation of light, blurring the edges of the bullet surrounded by it. When the bullet touches the glass, it is not actually the bullet that breaks through the glass, but the compressed air mass in front of the bullet that knocks a hole in the glass. The bullet flew through the hole with the air mass, and the air mass exploded violently, forming a strong turbulence, but the shape of the warhead did not change observably.

The video freezes on this frame. He Zizhou said:

"Brother Tianle, I still vividly remember the shock in my heart when I first witnessed the annihilation of space at Fermilab in the United States. The energy generated by space annihilation was low, but the sturdy and bulky accelerator tubes were thrown out in an instant, forming a huge smooth inner sphere. Because this process has nothing to do with energy, force and temperature, but the natural accumulation of matter after the annihilation of space, just like the accumulation of suspended matter along the bottom of the lake after the sudden disappearance of the lake water, it is precisely because of this mechanism that the subsequent wormhole flight is created. ”

Chu Tianle said: "You mean, the wormhole naturally forms the protection of the spaceship? ”

"That's right! Even if there is a hard iron meteorite in front of the route, there will be no collision, because the space annihilation before the collision has already thrown the meteorite out of the wormhole, forming a natural accumulation outside the annihilation space, so the spacecraft will leave a smooth cavern through the meteorite. Even if the ship's route encounters a star, the wormhole will go straight through the star. Moreover, if it travels faster than the speed of light, even the hundreds of millions of degrees of heat in the core of the star will not cause the slightest damage to the spacecraft, because at the interface between the two spaces, light, heat and even gravity cannot pass through; Of course, after the wormhole strike, space will quickly return to normal in Planck time, and it will also resume normal light, heat and gravitational propagation, but it takes time after all, and the faster-than-light spacecraft has already crossed this area by this time. I think of an example, there is a high-speed cavitation bubble in the weapon**, which pushes away the sea water in front of it with continuous foaming, which can greatly increase the speed of **, which is similar to wormhole flight in principle. After a pause, he added a little more, "Although according to the structure of our spacecraft, the acceleration and excitation of particles can only be carried out in a vacuum state, but as long as it flies continuously, then a 'self-made vacuum' can always be maintained in front of the spacecraft, so that the spacecraft can continue to excite, even in the process of passing through stars." ”

The picture he painted was so amazing that the whole room seemed to be stunned for a while. Everyone didn't say a word, staring at the freeze-frame picture on the TV. Chu Tianle was also silent, but he looked into the distance with burning eyes, and his thoughts had already flown farther. He Zizhou and his two assistants waited quietly, but in fact, they were not at peace in their hearts. After a long time, Tianle's mother was the first to shout:

"My God, if the spaceship hits the sun, won't it shatter the sun?"

He Zizhou shook his head and pointed to the freeze-frame picture on the TV, "Generally, not." Look at this piece of glass, it's not broken, it's shot out of a small round hole. Because the bullet is very fast, its force does not have time to disperse, and the bullet has already flown away. I think the sun is the same, it will only be shot out of a small round hole, and then it will return to normal after an instant. However, I dare not conclude that stars are all gaseous, and perhaps the flow of gaseous material into the cave will amplify the flow into astronomical turbulence. ”

Yu Leshui said: "In other words, such a spaceship is like a messenger of hell, leaving a path of destruction wherever it passes? ”

He Zizhou immediately looked up at her, feeling bitter in his heart. Sister Yu has always been gentle in her words, and it is obvious from this sentence that she is strongly opposed to this way of flying. He tried his best to explain:

"The universe is very vast and extremely empty, and the chance of a collision between the ships in flight is extremely low. And don't forget, the premise of wormhole flight is in the cataclysmic region, in a dense vacuum where the contraction exceeds the critical point. Even if some destruction is caused, it is only a slight advance of the predestined destruction. ”

"But what if the spaceship crashes into a civilization like our Earth that has not yet been destroyed?"

He Zizhou quickly glanced at Sister Yu and had nothing to say. She is using "extreme methods" to put the most brutal prospect in front of her, and this possibility is not absolutely non-existent. Chu Tianle spoke at this time, and his tone was very calm:

"The prospect of a spacecraft crashing into a civilized planet is basically equal to zero, and there is no need to think about it."

Yu Leshui looked at her husband and said calmly: "So, what are the chances of the spacecraft hitting the 'Chu's'?" And if the new ship also follows the same route? ”

The atmosphere in the room began to be tense, and everyone felt a conflict of opinions from the apparent calm of the two. Chu Tianle didn't want to answer, but finally answered:

"Again, it's close to zero. Leshui, we can't stop moving forward for a near-zero possibility. ”

Yu Leshui shook his head sadly, and looked at the people in the house in turn: father-in-law, mother-in-law, Ji Renrui, Obra Haza, Ji Jichang, etc. The father-in-law was silent, and his attitude could not be seen from his expression. The mother-in-law was shocked, she clearly disagreed with her son's claims, but could not come up with a strong rebuttal. At this time, Ji Renrui spoke, and his attitude was very gentle:

"In fact, even if it causes 'destruction all the way', this kind of scene is not surprising. If you look back at the history of the earth, the expeditions of Magellan and Columbus were accompanied by destruction, including their massacre of indigenous peoples, the spread of disease, and the destruction of the environment. In fact, every great geographical discovery and great migration of peoples in the history of civilization on earth has been accompanied by a road of destruction, at least the destruction of forests and wild animals, but such a road of destruction is accompanied by the progress of civilization. Leshui, you won't completely deny the history of civilization on earth, right? ”

Yu Leshui shuddered in his heart, knowing that he couldn't convince these men, they were like boys looking forward to Christmas gifts, and there was an irrepressible excitement at the moment. They finally have the opportunity to fly faster than the speed of light, the opportunity to challenge the laws of God, and the opportunity to open up new frontiers, and they will never give up easily, even if it is accompanied by "destruction along the way". This desire to conquer is naturally in a man's blood, as powerful as the desire to survive — though that isn't entirely accurate, she thought, sarcastically. At least, there is the same desire for conquest in the blood of the woman Ofrah Haza.

Ma Shiqi finally spoke: "Shui'er, this matter, I mean a faster-than-light spaceship or faster-than-light era, can't be stopped. Let's pause the discussion, Sister-in-law Xu is shouting that we are eating. ”

At dinner, the women take the lead role. Miao Ji pulled Yu Leshui next to her, carefully inquired about her pregnancy, and made many suggestions as a person who came over. She saw that Yu Leshui had something on her mind - everyone who was actually present had something on her mind, including Tianle's mother and Uncle Ma. Young people are even more excited about the realization of faster-than-light flight, which can be said to be the "original dream" planted in the depths of human hearts. And the old people are related to "all the way to destruction". Miao Qi persuaded the fish to enjoy the water:

"Uncle Ma is right, don't think about it if you can't stop it. By the way, Changchang, didn't you always say that you wanted to see the places mentioned in Aunt Yu's famous article? Like a small waterhole strung by a thin stream, willow leaf fish, crematorium, etc., let's go and see it after eating. ”

"Great! I've been so busy for the past few years that I should have gone to see it a long time ago. ”

Across the table, Obra Haza sat with Tianle's mother. She asked with the straightforwardness of a Westerner: "Auntie, I listen to Sister Yu's tone, Liu Ye is interested in Zizhou?" ”

Tianle's mother was stunned by the question, looked at He Zizhou, looked at her daughter-in-law, and didn't know how to answer for a while. Obhra Haza said nonchalantly: "My relationship with Zizhou has been decided. But it doesn't matter, if Liu Ye is interested, I will happily share a husband with her. ”

Tianle's mother and sister-in-law Xu in the banquet were stunned. Even if it is the straightforwardness and sexual freedom of Westerners, this kind of straightforwardness and freedom is too much. Yu Leshui suddenly woke up and hurriedly explained:

"Mom, she means in the spaceship society. In Noah's Pact, polygamy is a normal and mandatory marriage structure. This has nothing to do with masculinity, it is mainly about the efficiency of reproduction, but also about the diversity of genes. When introducing these circumstances, Yu Leshui couldn't help but sigh: when highly civilized human beings immigrated to the wilderness, the "rules of civilized society" that seemed to have been enshrined as heavenly were immediately diluted, and even faded before departure, while the "animal nature" that had been hidden deep in the genes for a long time was revived overnight. The only goal of animal nature is to "survive and reproduce", and anything that is contrary to this, even if it was once a very sacred moral code, must be put aside.

Ovra Haza nodded, "yes, I didn't say that just now. I mean - if Yanagi is willing to be a member of this ship. ”

With this in mind, He Zizhou introduced the background and basic content of the Noah Convention.

This background is that human beings must psychologically sever their ties with the earth, change from a "land nation" to a "sea nation", and take the vast space as their spiritual home. The spaceship should not be just an escape tool for humans, but a land for new humans. It was against this background that a group of people led by him drew up a detailed Noah's Convention in advance.

Noah's Pact is actually the folk code of the new society, the Bible of space teaching, and its content is all-encompassing. He Zizhou introduced the key points.

The first is the way human beings reproduce and the related ethical constructions. This is the most important part of the Convention, because reproduction is the most important foundation for survival. Ship societies can only maintain a small population of about a thousand people, so they must have the most efficient reproduction. Taking into account the efficiency of reproduction and genetic diversity, mainly the diversity of the Y gene, the marriage structure is defined as monogamy. This also takes into account the marriage ethics of the previous civilized society as much as possible, for example, without considering the group marriage system. Yu Leshui has just said that this has nothing to do with masculinism, but actually has a bit of a "feminist" flavor - thinking that in the era of catastrophic changes, the role of women is more important than that of men. Due to the small size of the population, it is difficult to completely avoid consanguineous marriages, especially in the event of accidents and disasters, and a large number of social attrition, so the ethics of consanguineous reproduction have been greatly relaxed. All customs or personal freedoms that are not conducive to reproduction, such as dinkism, homosexuality, late marriage and childbearing, and frigidity, are strictly forbidden on the ship. A monogamous family must have at least four children in order to guarantee a small positive growth of the population. However, after the population reaches the maximum allowable by the ship, it must be abstained. From this point of view, the trigamous marriage structure is actually useless on the ship, it is only a preparation for the "planetary society", and if the ship escapes the cataclysmic area and lands on some terrestrial planet, it must quickly start to reproduce most efficiently.

Then there is the political structure, the practice of absolute democracy and absolute authority. The captain is re-elected every two years and is approved by a simple majority. Each member with civil capacity must participate in the voting, which consists of votes in favor and against, with no abstentions. During non-election periods, as long as there are more than 50 joint votes, an early re-election can be held. However, after the captain was elected, he implemented absolute centralized rule, and his subordinates were completely appointed and dismissed by the captain, and there was no system of separation of powers like on earth. All decisions on board the ship are made by the captain alone in order to cope with the ever-changing environment of space. Only the sentence of the death penalty (the retention of the death penalty on board) must be submitted to the citizens' assembly for approval after the captain has made a decision.

If the provisions of the Noah Convention need to be amended, they must be adopted by a two-thirds majority and voted on three times, with an interval of not less than one month between each time. If a provision of the Convention has to be violated in exigent circumstances, the master has the right to dispose of it on the spot, but only after it has been confirmed by the citizens' assembly within three months, and it must be approved by a two-thirds majority vote, otherwise the master shall be liable.

After listening to He Zizhou's introduction, Tianle's mother and sister-in-law Xu accepted it smoothly. After all, this is the era of intellectual explosion, and people with a low level of knowledge like them can easily enjoy rational thinking. Many of the contents of Noah's covenant, such as polygamy, consanguineous marriage, and actual monarchy, are emotionally difficult to accept, but rationally acceptable is fine. In the end, Tianle's mother was already able to joke about it:

"I have to quickly reveal the news I got today. If she can't give up Brother Yangyang, she has to hurry. However, then she will be on the spaceship, and she will be separated from her parents forever, and she is really reluctant to think about it—she is reluctant to give up, the spaceship is to find a way to live. ”

At the dinner table, Chu Tianle didn't talk much. He was smiling all the time, listening to everyone's chatter, sometimes whispering a few words to his wife. After lunch, he said:

"Changchang, don't you want to see those attractions? Let's all go and let Sister-in-law Xu lead the way. Godfather, Yangyang, Brother Renrui, and Leshui, the four of you stay, I still have something to discuss. ”

The others knew that he must be discussing something important, and they quickly left the place and went up the hill with a shout. Tianle's mother was worried about her husband, but she also left at her husband's signal. The room fell silent all of a sudden, and the four people who stayed behind waited quietly for Tianle to speak. Tianle smiled and said:

"Actually, it's not a big deal. Yangyang, I admire the Noah Covenant you have made, and you young people have already come ahead of us. He looked at his godfather and said self-deprecatingly, "Am I a little bit of a seller?" I'm forty-one years old, but I feel like I'm in a bad mood. ”

Ma Shiqi smiled: "You are not old, but they are younger." They are the new generation in space. ”

"Yangyang, you said very well just now. Mankind must psychologically sever its ties with the earth, change from a land nation to a space nation, and regard space as the destination of the soul. The spaceship should not be an escape tool for humans, but a land for new humans. My roots in the earth have been too deep, but I am ready to learn from you and cut it off with all my heart. ”

"You mean...... Do you want to get on the ship? He Zizhou asked in surprise.

"Oh no, if you can't get on the ship, that's later." He smiled and looked at his wife, but Yu Leshui's heart sank, and she had already felt her husband's psychological pulse - he was afraid that he wanted to leave the earth. He had experienced a weightless flight on the "Chu's", and in fact he had vaguely planted this idea since then, because in the gravity of the earth, his sick body was too heavy a shackle. "I want to say something else today. Yangyang, you are right about the faster-than-light spacecraft, and I believe it can be realized. But you're only designing your journey in a hundred years, I'm afraid it's too conservative. This is supposed to be an expedition to far space, like Columbus did. He added, "I'm talking about far-space expeditions in 10,000 light-years." ”

He Zizhou looked at Chu Tianle puzzled. Chu Tianle has always been a god in his heart, and he has made everyone sincerely admire with the clarity and wisdom of his thinking, but today he made a big mistake in logic. He Zizhou said euphemistically:

"Brother Tianle, blame me for not making it clear just now. Faster-than-light flight is based on a dense vacuum, and it is a dense vacuum that shrinks beyond a critical value, so the spacecraft cannot pass the wings of the dense vacuum tsunami. That's what I said all the time about 'catching up with the winger' without mentioning going over it. As a result, spacecraft cannot conduct far-space explorations. ”

The other three realized that Yangyang's words were right, and Chu Tianle made a logical mistake, so they all looked at Chu Tianle. Tianle was silent for a while, and said with a smile: "That's why I let the others leave." The following words are just my guesses, so please keep them confidential so as not to cause unnecessary social unrest. ”

Yu Leshui was suddenly shocked, and remembered the guess that Ji Renrui had once had - Chu Tianle's autism may have predicted a greater disaster. She glanced at Ji Renrui, who obviously understood what she meant, and said quietly:

"If you don't say it, we'll keep it a secret. You say. ”

"The important reason we relied on in planning the escape of humanity at that time was that although the cataclysmic area had been observed expanding outward at the speed of light, it was believed that the magnitude of the spatial contraction would diminish rapidly. This is theoretically true, because the intensity of a perturbation in a place is inversely proportional to the square of the radius when it is in an outward wave. If so, the faster-than-light escape ship will soon reach a safe area. In other words, when the excitation on the spacecraft can no longer be maintained and cannot move forward, it proves that the space here is no longer a dense vacuum, it has been out of the collapse area, and it is safe. Right? ”

He Zizhou nodded, "Yes." ”

Chu Tianle was silent for a while, and then said, "But according to the observations over the years, there has not been a significant weakening. The distant starlight blueshift tends to zero, but only because it is just beginning to contract, not because it is farther away from the center of the perturbation. So, I estimate that the cataclysmic region will sweep across the universe with the same intensity. As to why - I don't know. The biggest obstacle of the three-state vacuum theory is that it does not explain the motivation for the contraction of the local universe, and it still does today. ”

Everyone's hearts were shocked. Yu Leshui quickly glanced at Ji Renrui, and signaled with his eyes: You are unfortunately right. The scientific community has had such voices before, but it has not been able to form a mainstream opinion because it is completely contrary to common sense. Now, it was Chu Tianle who first jumped out of the cage of common sense, clearly stated his views, and made this demon of disaster concrete. Chu Tianle smiled and said:

This is not to say that humanity is completely hopeless. No, it's not like that. Although the cataclysmic region spreads at the speed of light, it sweeps across the universe in tens of billions of years. Although our faster-than-light ship cannot pass the cataclysmic front, it can at least synchronize with it, that is, it will always be at the very edge of the critical vacuum. There is a dense vacuum where excitation can take place, and it is in a safe area. Can you imagine such a scenario in your mind? He smiled and asked, "It's like surfing on the beach." The four nodded. Yes, it's "seaside" surfing, surfing on the edge of a dense vacuum. Chu Tianle continued, "Of course, this kind of space surfing is not the same as surfing at the seaside - the coast is not moving, but the edge of the dense vacuum expands at the speed of light, so that we can conduct far-space expeditions at the speed of light, and verify that this winger will not stop somewhere. ”

The four listeners were thrilled and painted a magnificent picture of space in their minds—the vicious waves of cataclysm that have swallowed the Earth, the solar system, and the entire universe at the speed of light, but in tens of billions of years. At the front of the fierce wind and waves, tens of millions of spaceships carry tens of billions of earthlings (the diameter of the spacecraft cannot exceed the wormhole, so each ship can only carry thousands of passengers, which requires 10 million spaceships), digging tens of millions of invisible wormholes in the dense vacuum to keep pace with the wave front of the catastrophic wave. They are happy trendsetters, high and bold. Sometimes they deliberately slow down and venture deep into the stormy waves. When the intensity of the space collapse has endangered safety, they increase the particle excitation frequency, increase the speed of the ship, and calmly retreat. In such a voyage, because there is no relativistic time effect, they still maintain the normal rhythm of life and death, perhaps due to the progress of science to extend their life span to 500 years and 1,000 years, but it is still a limited extension, and they can only be merged into immortal human beings by the replacement of generations. Until 13.7 billion years (perhaps more) have passed, the universe has turned into a total contraction, and will soon end up with a super-black hole. Of course, human beings cannot escape this fate, but they have survived, struggled, and been happy, and they have calmly fallen into a black hole. The better prospect, of course, is that space collapses somewhere and at some time to stop, when the ship will be anchored on the right planet and let the flag of Earth's civilization fly under a new starry sky......

Ji Renrui said: "Tianle, there is no need to keep it secret. With the psychological quality of today's people, they can fully accept such a prospect – and perhaps further motivate them to do things faster. Uncle Ma, Leshui, Yangyang, what do you say? ”

Without waiting for the three of them to express their opinions, Chu Tianle said resolutely: "No, you must keep it secret." ”

He didn't say why, but he was unusually adamant. This abnormality cast a shadow on Yu Leshui's heart again. She couldn't help but look at Ji Renrui. The two have reached a heart-to-heart connection in their long-term cooperation, and Ji Renrui must have the same shadow in his heart at this moment, but he remained silent on the surface, and just said calmly:

"Okay, listen to you, keep it a secret from the people. But the ship is to be built according to what you said, and this should be a new ship with a thousand people. Isn't it? ”

"Yes. This is no longer a test flight, but the maiden voyage of mankind into the faster-than-light era and into far space. Chu Tianle said to He Zizhou, "Alex, you don't have to worry about it, I'll communicate." ”

He Zizhou suppressed the agitation of his heart and nodded vigorously. Right. This is no longer an experiment, an expedition, but the beginning of a new era. He thought for a moment and said:

"Brother Tianle, I have an idea: in the crew of this spaceship, I want to include Chimpanzee Aci and Malu. Unfortunately, the size of the wormhole spacecraft is limited and cannot replicate a complete Earth's biosphere, and plants, animals, and microorganisms can only be carried in the form of sperm, eggs, or cells. But I think there should be at least one or two non-human members on board, because it's not just a human thing, it's an escape from life on Earth. ”

Chu Tianle and his godfather glanced at each other, and nodded at the same time: "Well, your idea is very good, very atmospheric." ”

Yu Leshui hesitated a little, "Only Azi and Maru with you?" Then you can't keep this non-human species alive. Their offspring cannot find a mate, and the mating of direct blood relatives does not produce strong offspring. ”

He Zizhou and Chu Tianle looked at each other and did not answer. And Yu Leshui also realized their idea in an instant - no, they didn't even think about letting the chimpanzees breed alone. After entering the spaceship, after the chimpanzees' intelligence is truly enlightened, they, no, they, are part of the spaceship humans, and their reproduction will also be integrated into the overall sequence of the spaceship people. In the context of rational thinking, this is self-evident. Yu Leshui couldn't help but shake his head secretly. After the intellectual explosion, she was glad that she could enter the world of rational thinking, but now it seems that the tempo of her thinking is still a beat slower than that of her husband and Yangyang.

And their views of "a beat faster" or "a note higher" than her are also accompanied by sharp dangers, such as their calmness about "destroying all the way".

Later, when Yu Leshui combed through her life in "A Hundred Years of Shellfish", she realized that it was here that the differences between her and her husband in terms of worldview began, and although these differences were not very deep, they could not be bridged for the rest of their lives.

Before dinner, the group of people who were visiting the mountains and rivers came back with a small shout. The beauty of the mountains and the few historic sites excite them. While they were chattering in the house, Liu Ye's call to He Zizhou came, and her mother had told her what Ofra had said just now. He Zizhou took the phone and shouted happily:

"Little Liuye, did you finally remember your Yangyang brother? It's too unusual, it's such a big thing to study abroad, and you won't tell me a word in advance......"

Liu Ye cut off his words: "You know the reason, so-Sensei put on a show in front of me." ”

He Zizhou was choked, and Shaoqing replied solemnly: "That's right, I know the reason, I don't blame you." Willow leaves, I think you have become more and more mature. It's really a woman's farewell for three days, and you should be impressed. ”

"A woman who is tormented by both disappointment and hope matures very quickly. Thank you very much to my mom for informing me about the situation just now, it seems that I still have hope, isn't it, Mr. He Zizhou? ”

He Zizhou completely put away his smile, thought about it, and replied seriously: "Yes, but the premise is that you are willing to become a crew member of the spaceship, and the Noah's Convention is only applicable on the spaceship." Would you like to? ”

"I do. I am willing to follow my beloved through the universe, even if it is because of that hateful Noah's covenant that I will not share a husband with two other women. ”

"Liu Ye, I can't promise you anything, it's very strict about the selection of the crew......"

"It's okay, I'm going to work 100 times harder to get this qualification. There is only one question: I am a scholar of literature, majoring in three histories, the history of literature, the history of philosophy, and the history of religion. Does this hinder becoming a crew member? ”

"No, there is no way. The ship society needs all kinds of talents, including a profession like yours, perhaps," he resumed his smile, "and we need you to play the chaplain when we lose our minds on our long voyages." ”

Liu Ye said calmly: "Maybe, but I have to learn to be my husband's spiritual pastor before I play the role of a military priest." Is Ofrah on the side? Please give her the phone. ”

He Zizhou handed the phone to Ofra beside him. He shook his head secretly, Liu Ye, who had only been separated for a year, had indeed changed a lot, far from being the innocent and naïve little Liu Ye, at least she had reached the same height as herself psychologically. Willow talked to Ofhra for a long time, not knowing what they were talking about, but Ofrah just smiled quietly and answered briefly, sometimes supplemented by a nod. In closing, Ofra said:

"Okay, I wish you a speedy finish. I'll sign you up in advance. Good bye. Zizhou, Liu Ye still has something to say. ”

He Zizhou took the phone, and the tone in it changed significantly, and cheerfulness replaced calmness, "Brother Yangyang, when the business is over, let's have some tidbits." Do you know where I am at this moment? You wouldn't guess it - it's in that strange hollow ball at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in the United States! I came here during the holidays to relive the shock. ”

"Did you play that super slide?"

"I've already played it, and now I'm on an observation deck inside the ball, which has been developed into a tourist attraction."

"Really? It's a shame I'm not there, and I'd love to see it again. ”

"I was well worth it. In addition to reliving the shock of that year, I also happened to meet a beautiful blonde girl, we met from afar at that time, and she was by my side at this time. Just now Obhra said that Brother Changchang was also there, let him answer the phone! ”

Ji Jichang took the phone, "Xiao Liuye, I'm your brother Changchang...... Hey, not willow leaves? ”

There was a change of person on the phone, speaking English. They said, "I'm Emma." A year and a half ago, I stumbled upon a scene here: in this huge hollow ball, a big boy jumped off a helicopter, made a brave air dive, and swung up and down in the hollow ball dozens of meters high, only to jump back to the ground from the gap half an hour later. Wow, that scene was so cool! That boy's movements are too dashing! I happened to meet Sister Liu Ye today, and I realized that the boy was you, Ji Jichang, nicknamed Changchang, right? ”

Ji Jichang said with a smile: "That's right, it's a contemptible person." But let's not talk about the name, it's called a nickname. ”

"It's just that the performance was a bit of a pity, and in the end you fell from the air to the ground and fell into a sturdy ass squat, isn't that so?"

"That's true. That is equivalent to a gymnast's unstable play, and at most 0.5 points will be deducted. ”

He laughed, "Yes, this little flaw doesn't affect my perfection." Changchang, now that I know your name today, I won't let go of this opportunity again, I'll go to the 'Friends of Music' immediately, and I must catch you!" By the way, my major is high-energy physics. ”

Ji Jichang lowered his voice (didn't want his mother to hear it), and said with a smile: "Then you can come, you are very welcome." However, whether you can catch me, or whether I have to catch you in turn, is a matter for later. ”

"Okay, that's it!"

Ji Jichang hung up the phone, faced his mother's expectant eyes, and said matter-of-factly: "An eighty-year-old high-energy physics expert in the United States wants to apply for a job at the Friends of Joy Academy of Sciences. ”

Miao Qi knew that his son's spleen was not telling the truth, so he smiled and didn't ask.

4

After this rally, Ma Lao's health deteriorated dramatically. Yu Leshui immediately informed Liu Ye to rush back as soon as possible, and also notified his parents to return to China to say goodbye to their old friends - they were traveling abroad. In the afternoon of that day, the old man called his family to his side to explain the aftermath, and Ji Renrui and Miao Qi were also present. The old man's breath was weak, and sometimes he had to guess his words by the shape of his mouth. But his eyes were unusually bright, and his thinking was unusually clear. That is the final burning of life force. He smiled and said:

"I'm leaving, I'm going to be reunited with the wives and daughters of that world, they've been waiting for me too long. Dongmei, I'll wait for you over there, and when you come, the two families will be together, and we'll be happy together. ”

Tianle's mother held back her sobs, "Yes, let them take care of you first, and I'll be there later." ”

With difficulty, he raised his hand and pointed at his wife, "Don't cry." Don't break our rules. ”

"Well, we don't cry."

"I was cremated on the spot when I died. Tianle, I'm going to occupy your crematorium first. ”

"It's okay, Dad, you can use it first. Dad, you left a signpost on the way to heaven, and I will find you then. ”

The old man smiled again, "Okay, as long as I didn't drink Meng Po soup, I must remember this incident." Shui'er, I'm afraid I can't wait for your parents, thank them for me. They sent Dongmei, Tianle and you to me and changed my life for the rest of my life. ”

"Dad, they also want to thank you, you have also changed our lives."

"It's a pity that I can't see my little grandson, it's a pity, it's the only regret in my life."

"Dad, when the little guy can speak, I will often take him to the crematorium to call you, you will definitely be able to hear you."

"Yes, I'm sure I can hear you. Kiss him more for me. It's a pity that I couldn't see the willow leaves. Tell her not to cry, not to break the rules of the old Ma family. If she's going to get on the ship, let me know at the crematorium before she leaves. ”

Tianle's mother said: "Definitely, she will." ”

"Where's Renrui?"

Ji Renrui in the back row squeezed to the front, "Uncle Ma, I'm here." ”

"Do you remember when you abandoned your official position and went into the mountains to lobby us? It's been twenty-two years in the blink of an eye. ”

"Uncle Ma, I remember it all."

"I'll ask you to do one thing, take care of someone for me. Heavenly Pleasure. Everyone was stunned for a moment, they didn't expect him to make this request. The old man's mind was very quick, and he saw everyone's doubts, and explained, "Tianle's thinking is very sharp, but sharp things are often very fragile. The three of you, Dongmei, Leshui, and Ren Rui, all took care of him for me. ”

Ji Renrui understood what he meant: not only the care of life, but also the care of thoughts and emotions. He smiled and said, "For me, Chu Tianle is a giant of thought, can I take care of it?" But don't worry, Uncle Ma. If we can't reach his height, we will take a ladder to take care of him. ”

The old man was tired and closed his eyes and rested for a while. Then he opened his eyes and looked at Chu Tianle: "I have nothing to explain." You all go out, and I'll talk to Tianle alone for a while. ”

The crowd quietly left. Chu Tianle turned the wheel of the wheelchair, got closer, took the old man's hand, and buried his face in the palm of his godfather's hand. He came to the Ma family 38 years ago, and the picture of 38 years of life is flowing in front of him at this moment. For a long time, neither of them spoke. Then Tianle raised his head, and the two looked directly at each other. The old man said:

"Remember what I said? I say that the human body devours muscles and bones first and then the brain when it is extremely nutriently deprived. Thankfully, my brain cells weren't devoured, and I was able to stay awake when the candle of life was about to go out. ”

Tianle nodded, "Yes, you still maintain a clear mind. ”

"Well, maybe I can do you a little bit of a favor and untie your knots. Say, I know you've been harboring a secret for years, and you've been carrying a certain secret on your own. ”

Tianle was embarrassed and said, "Dad, I don't want you to be excited......"

"Confused! Even if I lose a few hours of life due to agitation, what is it? Which end is lighter and which is heavier? He said in a deep voice, "Tianle, you are a genius, I know that genius is also very difficult, he has to carry a lot of burdens, lose a lot of happiness, and add a lot of suffering." Let's talk about it, and feel better when I say it. ”

"Okay, then I'll say it." Chu Tianle's heart suddenly surged with sentimentality, and he tried to hold back his tears, "Godfather, I really can't bear you to go." He choked up, and in his excitement he shouted out the name of his early years. Even if the godfather can't catch up with the trend of science due to his old age, as long as he is there, Chu Tianle feels that he has spiritual support. When he dived deep into the sea of thoughts, to the bottom of the wild and lonely sea, he knew that someone was guarding the steel rope for him on the surface. The old man understood his sentimentality, and didn't say much, just patted him on the shoulder, waiting for his wave of feelings to subside.

Chu Tianle calmed down and began to tell his godfather the secrets buried in his heart. He did not carry the secret alone, but two of them, the other being Pauli, who was white-skinned and silent.

The others were chatting in the living room, but their hearts were on the room with the door closed. What are the two in the room talking about at the moment? Sometimes, Yu Leshui and Ji Renrui would exchange glances, and they also didn't know the content of the conversation, but they both had an ominous premonition in their hearts. Tianle has always had something on his mind, which began after he went to Rendan Island to live in seclusion, and I hope that the old man's last conversation can untie his knot.

The door opened. Chu Tianle leaned out, beckoned, and went back in his wheelchair. When these people passed, they saw Chu Tianle nodding to the old man:

"Okay, just do as you say, wait for the spaceship to go into the sky."

No one has said it since.

From afternoon to evening, people came to visit Ma Lao one after another. Because the old man was too weak, the visitors were strictly controlled, and the only people who came were Abikar, a representative of the United Nations and secretary general of the SCAC, Lin Bingzhang, a representative of China and director of He Guoji's office, and three representatives of the "Friends of Music" organization, Ge Qihong, Alex and He Zizhou. After their visit, they all went back to the headquarters of "Friends of Music" at the foot of the mountain. At night, Tianle's mother and Yi lay beside her husband, talking and looking up at him from time to time. The husband was calm and had been lying on his back with his hands on his chest and his eyes closed; Sometimes the eyes are also open for a while, and they look at nothing with a burning eye. He listened quietly to his wife, occasionally replying. And so it went until early in the morning, when he went away peacefully.

The funeral took place two days later. The crematorium was too cramped, so only the family of the deceased (including Liu Ye, who had returned from the United States), the fish husband, the three members of the Ji family, and five political representatives attended the funeral. Chu Tianle couldn't climb this mountain road anymore, so he was sent up by helicopter. He Zizhou, Ji Jichang, Liu Ye and helicopter pilot Xiao Zhu carried a simple stretcher and carefully lifted the old man's body onto the pine stack. Willow leaves lit a fire. Her eyes were red, but she obeyed her father's last wish and held back tears. The dried pine wood burns violently, crackling and popping, giving off the fragrance of pine resin. Above the tongue of fire was a thick white smoke, which rose straight up and was blown away by the horizontal wind after reaching a certain height. A mountain eagle slid over the white smoke with its wings outstretched, its wingtip feathers fluffy and scattered by the wind. Perhaps it was the bonfire and the white smoke that attracted it, and it circled around the column of smoke for a long time, sometimes swooping downward, sometimes soaring into the sky, and sometimes making an eagle's chirp. Maybe it is the ferryman between the earthly world and the heavens, and at this moment, on its back, it is carrying the heavy soul of the old man?

The eagle finally flew away, and everyone watched as the little black dot melted into the blue sky.