Star Sky Technology and the Jinling Institute for Advanced Study had once again become the focus of the world because of the neural interface virtual reality technology.
Normally speaking, as the legal representative of Star Sky Technology and the Jinling Institute for Advanced Study, even if Lu Zhou didn't hold a press conference, he should at least stand in front of the camera and respond to the public's expectations, as well as answer some people's concerns about this new technology.
However, at this moment, he wasn't at the press conference or under the spotlight. Instead, he was quietly standing in a ward.
This ward had a special name, it was called the "frozen dormancy department".
In addition to the first patient who was frozen, there were also terminally ill patients who had been transferred here through various means over the past six months.
Compared to the expensive ICU, the cost of frozen dormancy was relatively low.
Other than the slightly expensive Martian bacterial extract sent from the Moon, the electricity to maintain the dormancy device wasn't expensive.
Of course, this so-called 'not expensive' was only relative to other treatment methods.
Next to the "bed" not far from Lu Zhou stood a woman who was also here to visit.
The woman looked like she was in her forties or fifties. She was holding a five-year-old boy in her right hand, and the wrinkles around her eyes were faintly visible.
It was probably her husband who was frozen there. Even though the child standing next to her had a confused look on his face, he was very sensible and remained silent.
The woman noticed Lu Zhou, who was also standing here, and a look of surprise appeared on her face. She seemed to have recognized him.
After hesitating for a while, she walked forward while holding her son's hand.
"Hello, are you … Academician Lu?"
Lu Zhou went silent for a while. He then nodded and spoke.
"Yes."
"… Thank you."
Lu Zhou looked at the woman who thanked him gratefully and shook his head.
"I'm not a doctor, you don't have to thank me."
"The doctor told us that you saved him … and saved us."
Seeing that she seemed to have something to say, Lu Zhou did not speak. He just looked at her and quietly waited for her to continue.
"We … actually have no money." The woman had a bitter expression on her face. She seemed to be recalling what happened not long ago. She muttered, "In order to treat the child's father, we sold our house and spent almost all of our savings, but we still couldn't make it. Just a few months ago, the child's father told me not to treat him if I really can't do it, and to leave some for the child. But how could I … "
Her lips and shoulders trembled, and the woman's voice was choked. As if she was drinking a cup of bitter wine, she took a deep breath and forced a smile on her face.
"I feel much better now that I've said it … Anyway, thank you … Thank you so much!"
"… In any case, it's good that he's alive."
"I plan to take Lele back to my hometown to go to school. This is probably the last time I'll see him. The doctor said that the hospital over there will definitely be able to cure him. I'll believe it for now … If only he can be safe in the future. I hope he can smoke less, work less, remember to eat breakfast on time, and don't miss me too much … "
She seemed to realize that she was nagging some boring trifles to a stranger. An embarrassed expression appeared on her face, and she pulled her son's hand to hide her embarrassment.
"… Hurry and say thank you to uncle."
The little boy blinked his innocent big eyes, stared at Lu Zhou, and spoke timidly.
"Thank you, uncle."
It was rare that Lu Zhou didn't mind the child calling him uncle. He suddenly smiled and reached out to rub the boy's hair.
"There's nothing to thank me for. The person you should really thank is next to you. Remember to take care of her for your father."
The boy looked up at Lu Zhou and said, "What about my father? Can he still wake up? "
"… It's up to you."
The boy nodded. Lu Zhou gave him an encouraging look and then retracted his right hand.
The mother and son said goodbye to him and turned to leave.
However, when she walked to the door, the woman suddenly stopped. She turned around and looked at Lu Zhou. She bowed deeply and then quickly left with her son.
Far away, in the corridor outside the department, the conversation between the mother and son could be heard.
"Mom … Who is that uncle?"
"He's a scientist."
"Scientist? Then, I also want to be a scientist … "
The voice gradually faded away. Along with the gradually fading footsteps, it also disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Lu Zhou, with a heavy heart, sighed softly and retracted his gaze from the door.
He didn't really like places like wards.
Just by standing there, he could sense an indescribable sorrow in the heavy air.
After waiting quietly for a long time, he finally heard footsteps behind him.
He looked back at the doctor who appeared at the door and spoke.
"What are the results of the test?"
"… Here."
Lu Zhou took the medical report from the doctor and glanced at it. A trace of disappointment appeared on his face.
Even though he knew from the beginning that it was wishful thinking to expect people in the cryogenic hibernation cabin to be able to connect to the virtual reality network through unconscious brain waves while sleeping, when this report was presented in front of him, his mood still fell to the bottom of the valley.
Unless half of his brain was unfrozen.
But this was undoubtedly quite dangerous.
Lu Zhou looked at the report and asked the doctor, "Do you need me to interpret it for you?"
"… No need." Lu Zhou took a deep breath and folded the medical report. He stuffed it into his pocket and said, "I understand the general situation, sorry for the trouble."
"Not at all." The doctor smiled and said, "We should be thanking you. The cryogenic hibernation technology and the neural prosthesis have saved many young families and lives."
"Really?"
Lu Zhou didn't respond directly. He looked away from the doctor's face and looked at the dormant cabin not far away.
The frost reflected on the glass was like a thin layer of fog, separating not only space but also time.
The doctor had a regretful expression on his face. He sighed and spoke softly.
"Do you need to be alone for a while?"
"… Yeah."
The doctor nodded and didn't say anything. He turned around and left the room.
After the doctor left, Lu Zhou was the only one left in the entire department.
Lu Zhou looked at the stable hibernation chamber and went silent for a while. He then suddenly spoke.
"I'm here to see you.
"The next topic is the grand unification of algebra and geometry … Actually, I already have some ideas."
Lu Zhou wanted to say something, but in the end, he smiled and shook his head.
"Forget about it …
"Even if I read my ideas to you now, you won't be able to hear me.
"I'll leave this suspense for another century.
"When you get there, you'll be able to see my thesis. As my proudest student, I believe that with your intelligence, even if no one tells you, you'll understand what I'm trying to say. "
Lu Zhou stayed in the ward for a long time until the nurse on duty came to check the operation of the dormant cabin. He then turned around and left.
…
After leaving the hospital, Lu Zhou got into Wang Peng's car.
Wang Peng put out his cigarette and started the car.
"Where to?"
"Airport."
"Back to Jinling?"
"Yeah."
Lu Zhou originally planned on staying in Beijing for a few days and visiting his old friends, but he suddenly lost the mood. He decided to go on a retreat.
Most of his old friends knew that he wasn't the type of person who liked to take the initiative to communicate, so no one would blame him if he didn't visit.
The car drove on the road, and the two didn't talk much along the way.
Wang Peng felt like the atmosphere was a bit depressing, so he took the initiative to speak.
"The Internet seems to be talking about you and your virtual reality technology."
"Yeah."
"You don't seem to be interested?"
"I'm interested, but I'm not in the mood right now."
Suddenly, his phone began to ring.
Lu Zhou took out his phone and looked at the caller ID. He couldn't help but frown.
Normally, he wouldn't mind talking to someone he wasn't familiar with, but he wasn't in the mood right now. Not to mention, when he was at the hospital, he hung up on this call. He didn't expect this person to call again.
As if seeing the expression on his face, the phone was instantly cut off, and there were no signs of any more calls.
Wang Peng looked at the rearview mirror and spoke.
"Is it okay if you don't answer?"
"It's fine." Lu Zhou threw his phone aside and said, "It's not an important role."
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