198: Chapter 198: What do you want to do when you go back to the past?
198: Chapter 198: What do you want to do when you go back to the past?
Wang Yunxiao suddenly remembered something: he had looked over all his brothers but had completely forgotten Zhou Qing.
Besides meeting her last night, he had never seen this girl who seemed to have no presence at all.
Now, seeing the living Zhou Qing in person threw his mind into chaos.
Hold on, let me sort this out.
If time had rewound and Zhou Qing hadn’t hanged herself, would the ghost that passed him the rope last night still exist?
If time rewinding could bring the dead back to life, then could the casualties from the teams that fought last night be revived?
Moreover, Zhou Qing is a ghost; if she’s still around, what about during the day?
Wang Yunxiao suddenly understood Yan Yu’an’s anxious emotions.
Time-Space Retrospection wasn’t such a simple issue; it could lead to a series of problems down the line.
To put it in terms the average person could understand: one is the butterfly effect, the other is the grandfather paradox.
The butterfly effect needs no further explanation, but the grandfather paradox is worth a bit of a primer, as many teenagers nowadays, brainwashed by the overwhelming information on the internet, have no understanding of such science fiction concepts from the ancient times.
It’s all too easy for them to form cliched impressions of Jay Chou as a washed-up internet celebrity and Louis Koo Tin Lok as utterly unremarkable.
To explain the grandfather paradox in plain language, it’s whether a person who travels back in time and kills their own grandfather will still exist.
Wang Yunxiao had never considered these questions before; he felt his mind wasn’t made to ponder such philosophical issues.
Life is already so hard; why should I pretend to be a highbrow artistic youth, dwelling on these meaningless questions every day?
But if you don’t go looking for trouble, trouble comes looking for you.
Now the trouble had come.
“I’m already aware of the issue with the Special Service Bureau, and I will help you deal with it this time.
However, the key still lies in your hands.
I’ve told you more than once, by staying in the school, I can ensure that you study in peace.
But the school is not a prison; it can’t shackle your hands and feet.
Once you leave school grounds, you can only resign yourselves to your fates,” Principal Zhou said after listening to Wang Yunxiao’s report.
He wasn’t particularly angry, having anticipated such events from the moment he decided to have Nurse Liu teach these students.
Just like a child walking through a busy street with gold bars, it’s bound to attract covetous attention.
This was the path Wang Yunxiao and his peers had chosen for themselves.
As the first batch of students to undergo special training, whatever path they eventually took could serve as a lesson for future generations.
Thirty years ago, when we went to study abroad, there was no path laid out before us.
The master even prepared himself for the likelihood that out of a hundred people, only ten would return.
Now, I am the master.
Principal Zhou took a sip of tea and said to Wang Yunxiao, “There’s been a bit of an incident involving Zhou Qing.
You help me handle it.
With your reputation in the Jianghu World, you should be able to deal with this matter appropriately.”
What does he mean by “with my reputation in the Jianghu World”?
What does he see me as?
Wang Yunxiao turned his head and glanced at the little girl standing beside him, whom he had made cry by pinching her.
He had paid close attention to her eyes when he entered.
They were unfamiliar.
She didn’t recognize Wang Yunxiao.
With that in mind…
Principal Zhou’s manner of speaking just now became quite intriguing.
“Sir, I have a question.”
“You may ask, but think carefully about what you really want to ask.
Otherwise, even if I tell you the answer, you won’t understand it,” Principal Zhou calmly took another sip of his tea.
Wang Yunxiao thought to himself, “I just don’t know where to start asking, that’s why I’m so confused!”
“You know…”
“Right, I know.”
Shit, I haven’t even asked what you know…
Watching Wang Yunxiao’s nearly crazed expression, Principal Zhou cracked a slight smile.
“Regarding the secrets of the time-space tides, they’re not exactly secrets, just not suitable for the majority of people to know.”
“Your Teacher Liu should have told you a story about a steamed bun.”
“The essence of that story is actually about human cognition.”
“Human cognition is limited, especially for those uneducated and not sufficiently intelligent ordinary people, whose way of thinking isn’t much different from that of wild beasts.”
“Let me ask you a question, if you could travel back to the past, what would you most want to do?”
I have no idea!
If it were the former Wang Yunxiao, he might have answered, to save his family.
But the current Wang Yunxiao, who had traveled back in time, to be honest, he didn’t have a clear life goal.
Could he even say something like becoming powerful with an AK?
So, he could only remain silent.
“Actually, for most people, being able to go back to the past means being able to make up for regrets.
Maybe it’s about a relationship, maybe it’s about wealth.
Young people may not feel this deeply, but the older you get, the more regrets you accumulate.”
Suddenly, Principal Zhou shifted the conversation and countered with a question, “But the thing is, do you have any absolute assurance that you can really make up for the past regrets?”
“Do you think you are the protagonist in a novel, with the author arranging the plot, and that you’ll have a smooth journey to ultimately achieve your desire?”
“If you can calm down and think about it carefully, you’ll realize it’s very difficult.
But most ordinary, average people would like to fancy themselves as the main character.”
“The reason why information about the time-space tides isn’t disclosed to the general public isn’t that the information is so confidential.
It’s because they can’t understand the harm brought by this natural disaster, and can only interpret it with their limited cognition as ‘going back to the past to rise in rank, make a fortune, and marry a wife’—that’s their perceived truth.”
“Rich kids who have never worried about food and clothing find it hard to understand the significance of a steamed bun to a starving person on the brink of death during a famine year.”
Seeing Wang Yunxiao deep in thought, Principal Zhou turned to Zhou Qing, who was cluelessly terrified yet shivering, and softly said, “Don’t be afraid of him; he is my student and also your senior.
Tell him about your classmate’s issue, and let him help you sort it out.
Once the trouble is dealt with, treat him to a meal with the pocket money I gave you as thanks.
If those unsavory characters bother you again, look for him, understood?”
Zhou Qing cautiously glanced at Wang Yunxiao, subconsciously shrank her neck, then looked at Little Gourd beside her, who was giving her a sweet smile, and felt somewhat relieved, nodding stiffly.
Wang Yunxiao brooded for a long time, feeling that he was still missing the crux of the issue.
Just like Principal Zhou said, he didn’t know how to ask the question.
The truth?
Which aspect of the truth exactly?
The truth about the time-space tides?
Or what changes time-space retrospection might bring?
How to take control of this ability actively?
That’s what a poor student is like, looking at the key points the teacher writes on the board but unable to remember a single word.
Wanting to ask questions, but once he opens his mouth, he realizes his mind is blank, not knowing even how to form the question.
But I don’t want to study!
Is there a wealthy lady’s thigh I could cling to?