The old man who looked like a wooden and clay sculpture stood up.
Keeping the smile on his face, he walked towards the car door step by step, then stood in front of the door and waited. When Zhou Yu tried to call him, he didn't get any feedback.
The seemingly distant lights turned into concrete outlines of houses within a few minutes. The train moves at breakneck speed through the suburbs and into the city limits. Because it uses the same elevated track as Migenzhu City, Zhou Yu cannot see the residents in the city except for the buildings in the distance.
Since electricity and lighting systems exist, it must be inhabited. This cage city surrounded by mountains does not look much different from Migenzhu. Even the angle of the light looked familiar to Zhou Yu.
The train slowly pulled into the station.
As soon as the carriage stopped moving, Zhou Yu immediately turned his attention back to the old man in front of the door. When the car door opened, the old man who said he was going elsewhere straightened his legs and walked out of the car in a goose-stepping posture.
"We have to go down too."
Li Li handed the wooden crutch to Zhou Yu and helped him out of the carriage.
There were about twenty passengers getting off the bus sporadically on the platform. They were all walking upright in funny goose-stepping postures, just like the old people, and lined up in an extremely orderly queue to the exit. In order to figure out where they were going, Zhou Yu also accelerated his pace as much as possible.
The passengers walked neatly out of the station and onto the empty streets. As soon as they exited the station gate, their team immediately dispersed and walked in different directions. Not knowing what to do, Zhou Yu looked at Li Li.
"We can follow either one." Li Li said, "It makes no difference in the end."
After getting her answer, Zhou Yu finally followed the old man in the car. Because of the stiff gait, the old man moved very slowly, which allowed Zhou Yu to follow him while still having time to look around the surrounding environment.
The sky with sparse moon stars was so high and clear that it looked like a curtain. The streets at night were deserted, seemingly so clean that not even dust could be seen. The street trees on both sides are slightly yellow, which is a scene in early autumn.
The longer he walked on such a street, the more Zhou Yu confirmed the feeling in his heart.
"Li Li, where exactly is this place?"
"It says on the site, sir. This is Cage City."
"I already know the name, but the layout here is too similar to Migenzhu City, right?"
Not exactly the same. The texture of the floor tiles on the sidewalk, the color and style of the railings, and the types of street trees are all different from the Migenzhu City in Zhou Yu's memory. However, the similarities in the layout of the two cities can be noticed just by walking a few streets.
If it was the relatively unfamiliar city east of the city, Zhou Yu might not be so sure yet. But he knew the landmark buildings in this area very well. If you look carefully to the north, you can even vaguely see the neon lights on the high-rise buildings in Hongsen District.
Li Li had a meaningful smile on his face.
"Did you check the time at the station just now?"
Zhou Yu shook his head. His attention was on the passengers, and he did not pay attention to the strangely empty train station, where even the counter staff was missing. In addition, he does not have the habit of wearing a watch. After losing his mobile phone, he cannot check the time at any time.
Li Li pulled up his sleeves, revealing the mechanical watch on his right wrist. The time on the dial points to twelve o'clock, and the second hand is still pointing upward, motionless as if the clockwork has run out. It seems a little weird here and now.
However, the broken second hand is by no means the point.
The complex dial not only has hands for hours, minutes, and seconds, but also has a small dial in the center that displays the year and month. At this moment, the scale pointed by the pointer on the small disk is not any number, but three clear regular characters engraved in gold on the disk.
——Ten years ago.
"……What does it mean?"
"As this watch tells us, the time now is 'ten years ago'."
Li Li pulled down his sleeves and took out his mobile phone from his pocket. An electronic clock window hung on the activated screen, showing the time as 12:00. In the inconspicuous corner at the top of the electronic clock, the year displayed there is also the incredible "ten years ago".
After realizing that this was not some kind of prank, Zhou Yu shook his head blankly.
"What we perceive is only the present. This is determined by our thinking and memory systems." Li Li said, "But this does not prove that the passage of time really exists. It is just the orderly superposition and interpretation of a series of events. From a higher perspective, we are just a specific point in the process. The future is determined, but the past can be pursued. We are all characters in the film reel, sir. The collection of all images constitutes our existence. However, we ourselves cannot have an overview of the entire volume. What we experience is only the frame that appears on the screen. As for an editor, he can collage together paintings from different periods. To us, it is like going back to the past."
Although he didn't understand the other party's intention of mentioning this, Zhou Yu understood her metaphor. He shook his head and said: "In that case, it is just another independent time and space, not a return to the past. We are still at our original point."
"That depends on what 'I' is."
"These are meaningless." Zhou Yu said, "This is just a fake city. If it was Migenzhu City ten years ago, it would not have another name."
Although it does not pay attention to urban culture, things like city names cannot be changed at will. The history of Migenzhu University alone, which has the same name as the city, is said to be more than sixty years old.
"That's exactly the problem. If you assume that there is a real and coherent history here, you will find that there are many contradictions. I think this is the actual..."
The old man in front suddenly stopped and stood straight on the street. Li Li, who seemed to be about to say something, also stopped talking because of this. They stood about three or four meters away, and from the side they could still see the remaining smile on the old man's face.
Although it was just a chance encounter, Zhou Yu still felt something strange stirring in his heart when he saw that expression as stiff as a mask.
"What's wrong with him now?"
"He is waiting for the end." Li Li said calmly, "Before a person is about to reach the end, he should have the right to rest for a while and make preparations, although we don't know whether he still exists in the body right now."
"Are you saying he's dead?"
"I don't know. I haven't found out if he 'lived' yet."
"Your words are not rhetorical, right? Comparing the meaninglessness of life to the walking dead."
"I'm sure I don't mean this. The middle- and lower-class members who abide by their duties and abide by their duties are the cornerstone of society. From this perspective, their lives are of great significance. Mr. Zhou Yu is far better than some geniuses—— Given that in our civilization model, genius can always be found with sufficient resources."
After hearing these words, Zhou Yu turned his head and looked at her.
"What a surprise. I thought you were elitist."
Li Li smiled faintly. "It is true that I have met some people who are called elites. They are very admirable in some aspects." She said, "In other aspects, you will find wisdom and humanity, knowledge and virtue. These two qualities are not only They cannot promote each other, but instead suppress each other most of the time. In this matter, my brother is quite representative. He has all the necessary qualities that upper class society can cultivate. He is personable and humble. Polite. However, in my opinion, it is a kind of acquired discipline, a packaging imposed by civilization on the outside. He has no natural moral principles in his heart - I would be happy to say bad things about him again, but it is a pity that the time is not available now. Very convenient. Look, the bus to the terminal is here."
A dark blue taxi came from the end of the road. It passed through the quiet night and stopped quietly in front of the still old man. The passenger door opened on its own, and the old man got in stiffly.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Li Li helped Zhou Yu and walked over quickly. She opened the back seat door and helped Zhou Yu into the car.
