Lu Zhou never thought that he, a good family man who never let strangers spend the night at his house, would one day chat with a man until late at night.
However, this feeling of meeting an old friend in a foreign land did make him feel particularly warm.
From Li Gaoliang, Lu Zhou learned some basic common sense of this era, as well as some misunderstandings of this era from the perspective of a dormant person.
"You rest tonight."
Li Gaoliang looked at the time on the holographic screen. He saw Lu Zhou and said, "Get up early tomorrow. I'll take you to find a place to live first. I only have two days of vacation left this month, and I have to rush back before the day after tomorrow. If you have any inconveniences, I'll try to solve them for you tomorrow. "
Lu Zhou was slightly taken aback. He said, "It's only halfway through the month, why are there so few vacations?"
Logically speaking, there should be more vacations in the future than in the past, right?
Li Gaoliang smiled embarrassedly and touched the back of his head with his big hand.
"Uh, this … How should I say this? The virtual reality technology of this era is quite realistic. "
Lu Zhou: "…"
I feel like the Pan-Asian Cooperation fleet should undergo a rectification operation …
The night was quiet.
Early the next morning, Lu Zhou said goodbye to the customs staff. When he picked up his luggage, he also received a hand-drawn greeting card from the staff.
Apparently, this greeting card was left by a little girl who was a passenger on flight N-177.
Her name was not left on the cover of the greeting card, but two short lines of thanks were written in a childish style.
[Thank you, Mr. Hero, you saved Lili and everyone.]
[PS: Lili will tell Tail about your deeds! :)]
On the back of the greeting card, there were two little girls, one tall and one short, holding hands. The background was the sun, the blue sky, the white clouds, and the round lawn.
Although there was no special creativity, it was full of childlike imagination.
Li Gaoliang looked at the greeting card. He touched his chin full of stubble and said with interest, "I didn't expect to see paper greeting cards in this era."
"I will treasure it well."
Lu Zhou folded the card and looked at Li Gaoliang. He smiled and said, "It's time to go, Comrade Li Gaoliang, show me the world 100 years from now."
"Have people's lives become better? Have the dreams that the people of our era placed on the future come true?"
Li Gaoliang grinned and said, "Haha, I'm not sure if everyone's dreams have come true, but I bet you won't be able to finish watching this era in a year!"
Lu Zhou looked at the airport gate, and his eyes gradually lit up with a trace of expectation.
"I'll go to Jin Ling University for now. I'll go to the places where I studied, worked, and my former residence …"
Wouldn't it be a little strange to call it a former residence?
After all, he was still alive, but everyone thought he was dead …
However, these insignificant matters could be put aside for the time being. What awaited him was a hundred years in the future!
After passing through the spacious back door, the dazzling sunlight passed through the treetops and shone on his shoes.
Lu Zhou squinted his eyes and looked up. His pupils quickly shrank because of surprise.
What he saw was an endless stretch of high-rise buildings, and above the spacious six-lane highway, the endless flow of traffic was like a rainbow between the high-rise buildings.
Magnetic levitation!
It looks like it's on autopilot!
Pedestrians in strange clothes came and went on the street, and the dazzling holographic images were dazzling. The rail train that bypassed the buildings seemed to have become the main mode of transportation for people. In order to make up for the lack of lighting brought by the high-rise buildings, the lighting system in many areas was brightly lit even during the day.
The complex art was vividly reflected in every corner of the street. It was like a maverick gear of different sizes, running at its own speed and rhythm. However, with the coordination of AI and Order, everything was so unified and orderly.
If he wore the AR glasses, it was as if he had traveled to a fantasy world!
The enhanced reality was like a cake wrapped in cream. The buildings on both sides of the street seemed to be superimposed with a layer of oil paint-like filter. Virtual images that seemed to exist replaced the passers-by walking on the street.
Among them were elves from a fantasy world, as well as non-human creatures from an unknown film and television work … Most of the appearances were exactly the same as their images in the virtual community.
"Welcome to Earth in the 22nd century! I believe that someone on Mars has already welcomed you. "
"Not yet."
Although Tiangong City was also bustling, the compact minimalist style was still a bit small compared to the open and closed architectural style on the streets of Jin Ling City.
Of course, there was no other way. After all, the safe space on Mars was really limited.
Li Gaoliang patted Lu Zhou on the shoulder. He said with a smile, "Whether there is or not, what do you think of the scene in front of you? Is this the future you imagined? "
Lu Zhou, who took off the AR glasses, was silent for a while before he spoke.
"It's so cool …"
Forget about the Golden Age.
Even though he had witnessed the prosperity of the "Ring World", he couldn't imagine how a city could be more prosperous.
He finally understood why Li Gaoliang said that he couldn't see the wonders of this world even in a whole year …
At this moment, there was a sudden greeting from behind the two of them.
"Hey, hey, wait a minute …"
A young guy dressed like a cyberpunk ran over while waving his hand. He stopped Lu Zhou and Li Gaoliang, who were walking on the street.
"Wait a minute, you, are you really Lu Zhou?"
Lu Zhou looked at this energetic young man. Even though he felt sorry for his dressing style, he still acted like an elder and spoke to him in a friendly manner.
"Yes, what's wrong?"
An excited expression appeared on the man's face, and he danced with joy as if he had won a prize.
"Great! I'm a fan of yours. I, I, can I take a picture with you? "
Fan?
When Lu Zhou heard that they were his fans, he smiled awkwardly.
I didn't expect so many people to still admire me after 100 years.
"No problem."
"That's great! Wait a minute … "
The young man took out a spherical drone from his pocket and gently tossed it up. The flexible folding paddles in the belly of the drone unfolded, and it nimbly hovered in the air.
Looking at this small drone, Lu Zhou had a slightly interested expression on his face.
But judging from Li Gaoliang's expression, this kind of thing should be relatively common in this world.
The young man put his hand on Lu Zhou's shoulder. He had a funny smile on his face as he gestured at the camera.
"Come on, look at the camera and say cheese!"
Lu Zhou: "…?"
The drone buzzed and captured this historic moment.
After the photo was taken, the young man reached out and caught the drone. He turned around and grinned at Lu Zhou. He patted him on the shoulder.
"Thanks, bro."
He didn't look at Lu Zhou anymore. Instead, he looked at the camera of the drone in his hand and spoke excitedly.
"A century-old popsicle! Guess who I met! It's actually Lu Zhou! Brothers, please watch and follow me. If you think I'm awesome, please hit 666 on the public channel! "
A string of comments floated on the unfolding holographic screen.
[Garbage streamer, extremely uncultured, reported!]
【666！】
[F * ck me! Do you know who he is? The Lu Zhou Science Award is named after this big shot! You're in trouble!]
[Get out of the live broadcast room, don't watch.]
[Hahaha, century-old popsicle, I'm dying of laughter! Here we go!]
[… (?? ˇ?? ˇ??)]
"You bastard …"
Li Gaoliang was furious. He raised his fist and was about to step forward, but he was quickly stopped by Lu Zhou.
He looked back at Lu Zhou indignantly and spoke angrily.
"Don't stop me, I have to teach him a lesson on behalf of his parents!"
"Don't be impulsive, he's just joking." Lu Zhou said with a smile, "Not to mention that I agreed to take the photo, so let him do what he wants."
"Is this a joke?! F * ck sake … "
Sensing that something was wrong, the spirited guy had already run far away.
He looked at the disappearing figure from afar. Although he was still angry, he could only loosen his fist.
If it was just an insult, it wouldn't matter. He didn't have to waste time on a piece of trash.
However, the person who offended him was Lu Zhou!
This was something that he, who came from that era, could never tolerate.
Li Gaoliang took a deep breath and calmed down.
He looked at Lu Zhou and spoke in a serious tone.
"You don't know what happened recently … Listen, a great man from more than 100 years ago has been resurrected, and he happened to be involved in the hijacking of flight N-177. You are now the focus of the world's media. We just left through the back door of the airport. Otherwise, you would have been stuck at the airport gate by now.
"In any case, let's find a place for you to live. Don't go out for the next few days, and don't go to Jin University or the place where you worked. Wait until the news dies down!"
Lu Zhou shrugged his shoulders with an indifferent expression on his face.
In fact, this was the case.
Logically speaking, he was now more than 100 years old. In terms of seniority, he was that guy's great-grandfather. There was no need for him to argue with someone younger than him.
In the past, he didn't care much about ordinary people's opinions of him, and now, he wouldn't care.
One person couldn't represent an era, no matter how loud that person's voice was. The era would definitely give a correct and fair evaluation of his name.
What was the meaning of social development?
Wasn't it to let more people eat until they had nothing better to do?
"Actually, don't be too sensitive. Speaking of which, what is going on with flight N-177?"
"The identity of the hijacker is an air pirate, and it has some connections with the Pan-Asian Cooperation military operations in the asteroid belt a few months ago. The specific situation is still under investigation, and I don't know much about it. I'll tell you when there is news … Speaking of which, how did you get out of danger? "
Lu Zhou looked away subtly.
"I don't really want to recall what happened that day … Can you give me some time? Or did you come with a mission? "
Li Gaoliang quickly said, "No, no, I'm just asking casually! If it's not convenient, don't say it. I will definitely stand on your side no matter what. "
Lu Zhou nodded and responded with a grateful smile.
"It's not very convenient to explain … You can think of it as me getting help from a hacker."
"Hacker?"
Lu Zhou: "What?"
"Nothing … I'm just a little surprised." Li Gaoliang muttered with a weird expression, "It's not that there is no such thing as a hacker, but now that quantum encryption and quantum communication technology have become popular, people who use security loopholes to do illegal things seem to be extinct in this era."
"Really?" Lu Zhou didn't explain. He smiled and said, "Maybe it has its own way."
In the distance, the energetic guy running seemed to have lost control of himself.
The livestream drone seemed to be broken as it flew around uncontrollably in the sky. Finally, under the dissatisfied gazes of the passersby, it plunged into the alley next to it.
Lu Zhou and Li Gaoliang looked at each other and smiled. They were about to continue forward, but at this moment, there was another greeting from behind.
"Wait a minute …"
"Again?"
Li Gaoliang turned around and saw a foreigner running toward him. He immediately stepped forward and stood in front of Lu Zhou.
After seeing the man's face, Lu Zhou quickly reached out and pulled Li Gaoliang's shoulder.
"Don't get excited, this is my … acquaintance. Thanks to him, I was able to go home smoothly."
In fact, he originally wanted to say that he was a creditor, but he remembered that he was once a billionaire, and he still had to save some face in front of acquaintances, so he changed his words at the last minute.
When Li Gaoliang heard that Lu Zhou was an acquaintance, he finally put down his fist. However, he still looked at him vigilantly.
"Don't get excited … Friend, I'm not a bad person. Let me introduce myself. My name is Leonard, an archaeology professor at the University of Oxford. My greatest achievement in my life … is probably helping you dig out Professor Lu."
Professor Leonard, who was breathing heavily with his hands on his knees, rolled his eyes, and looked up at Lu Zhou.
"I waited for you all night and was about to go to the customs to look for you during the day. In the end, the staff there told me that you had already left, so I quickly chased after you … Sh * t, I borrowed 20,000 credits from you. You didn't even tell me that you were gone."
Lu Zhou's expression was a little awkward. He coughed lightly and spoke.
"Don't worry about this, I won't be greedy for your money. With the Pan-Asian Cooperation —"
"Here are 40,000 credits."
Li Gaoliang, who interrupted Lu Zhou, pulled out a payment code from the holographic screen on the bracelet and pushed it in front of Professor Leonard.
"I paid back the money he owed you. Now this matter has nothing to do with you."
Although the Pan-Asian Cooperation credits and the North Sea Alliance credits were the same, they were actually two different currencies. However, due to the particularity of the digital currency, the exchange rate between the two was basically maintained between 1 and 0.9.
"This … is not a matter of money, I just want to —"
Lu Zhou probably guessed what Professor Leonard was thinking. He sighed, bypassed the confused Li Gaoliang, walked forward, and patted him on the shoulder.
"I know what you want to say, my friend. Thank you for your help, allowing me to cross tens of millions of kilometers to return to my hometown. You are the first friend I met in this era, and I am grateful for this friendship. If there is a chance in the future, I will visit you in England. "
Professor Leonard looked at Lu Zhou and held his right hand tightly.
"I will remember what you said! Goodbye, friend. In fact, I am here to say goodbye to you! I will fly back to England tomorrow. I am not looking forward to your reward or anything. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, but I've never had a friend in real life, so … I hope you'll remember me in the future. "
"Although this trip to Mars did not change anything, I feel that I found something more valuable than cultural relics."
From the holographic panel on the bracelet, Professor Leonard separated an identity information with his index finger. He swiped it in front of Lu Zhou and spoke with a grin.
"When you get an official identity card, remember to add my virtual community account … See you later! When there is a chance in the future, I will join the Pan-Asian Cooperation, or you can come to the North Sea Alliance. We will meet again then. "
After saying this, Professor Leonard made a goodbye gesture to Lu Zhou, then turned around and left.
Lu Zhou smiled and waved his hand, watching him leave.
Although this guy always complained to him along the way, Lu Zhou could still feel Lu Zhou's concern for him.
Therefore, just now, he secretly put something in Lu Zhou's pocket. He believed that Lu Zhou would be surprised when he saw it.
Looking at the remaining 20,000 credits in the air, Li Gaoliang muttered, "Strange person", then reached out and took back the holographic payment code that was only half-paid.
"Thank you, I will return this money later."
Li Gaoliang said seriously, "You don't have to return it to me. The entire world is the crystallization of your wisdom. If you need it, I can give you all my property."
"You think too highly of me. There has never been an era of prosperity that can be achieved by one person." Lu Zhou said with a smile, "And don't worry too much about me. I was a billionaire before I went dormant. Even if a hundred years is indeed a bit long, I won't be so poor that I have to live on the streets."
The main task of this morning was to help Lu Zhou find a place to live. Li Gaoliang taught him how to use his personal terminal to connect to the City Cloud and find nearby properties that were being rented through the City Cloud.
Although there were also creatures like intermediaries in this era, their living space had been compressed to a very small range.
Most of the needs for information resources could be met to the greatest extent in the virtual community.
The peer-to-peer services built by AI almost reduced the cost of individual users to obtain information to the extreme. The profit margin of using information differences to earn the price difference was negligible. Most real estate agents mainly operated high-end real estate in this era, and the value of their payment was mainly reflected in the quality of supporting services, rather than using information advantages to deceive and deceive.
In addition, Lu Zhou also learned from Li Gaoliang that since the 1970s, most of the high-rise residential buildings in the city center were no longer for private sale. Instead, they were developed and operated by leasing companies under the supervision of the local government, which was equivalent to a disguised form of public rental housing.
After all, the buildings were getting taller and taller. It was not uncommon to see a hundred or two hundred floors above the ground. If they still used the traditional method of property rights, when the houses were demolished and the facilities were replaced, all kinds of troubles would come flooding in.
At this time, it was obviously unrealistic to expect the invisible hand of the market to perfectly allocate resources. The Pan-Asian Cooperation, which had learned its lesson, simply removed this part from normal market transactions.
At least in the Pan-Asian region of China.
In addition, some families who paid attention to the quality of life in this era would choose to buy renewable private residential land in the suburbs with limited property rights to build their own homes.
However, more young people would still choose to live in the city center with more complete public facilities, rent a small apartment with a moderate area, and focus more on the spiritual world, which was the virtual community.
As Li Gaoliang said, the virtual reality technology of this world was developed to an unimaginable level.
People's imagination expanded infinitely on computers, perfectly filling the lack of "effective creativity" in computers, and at the same time, satisfying people's spiritual needs.
Many electronic artworks burst out in the form of a blowout at the beginning of the 22nd century. The prosperity of science and technology not only broadened people's living space, but also greatly contributed to the cultural prosperity of human civilization.
And this point had already been reflected in many aspects.
After hearing this news, Lu Zhou's heart was also full of emotion.
He never expected that the brain-computer interface he made back then would have such a big impact on the world.
People in the future era, whether it was their lives or their values, had completely changed under the subtle influence of new technology.
After comparing several properties, and after field visits, Lu Zhou finally settled on a 200-square-meter flat on the 100th floor near the second ring road in the urban area.
The modern minimalist decoration temporarily freed his eyes from the problem of "light pollution".
The rent did not include water and electricity, and was about 4,000 credits a month. According to the purchasing power of an ordinary car in this era, the rent was a bit expensive.
However, compared to its supporting facilities and location, the price was worth it.
Lu Zhou originally wanted to pay for it himself, but Li Gaoliang refused. Li Gaoliang insisted on helping him pay a year's rent and a two-month deposit.
Lu Zhou had to accept this kindness and silently remember this matter in his heart. He planned to return the favor in the future.
Because Li Gaoliang's return to Earth this time was a temporary leave, he had to rush back to the Lagrange Space Base before tomorrow, so he didn't stay here for long. After leaving his contact information and agreeing to meet again, he hurried to Jinling Space Airport.
Looking at the empty modern apartment, Lu Zhou sat on the sofa. He suddenly felt a little empty in his heart.
He was back on Earth.
But he felt like something was missing.
He knew that the missing thing was his family. He just didn't want to think about those unrealistic things.
Unlike soldiers like Li Gaoliang, as ordinary people, there was no "reason" for them to give up their relatives, friends, and happiness in that era and go to a completely unknown era.
Especially after reading the last words he had left behind ….
To be honest, if it weren't for the dormant cabin, even he felt that he would be dead.
Facing the empty living room, Lu Zhou took a deep breath and prayed silently in his heart.
"I hope you lived a peaceful, rich, and happy life in that era.
"Whether you are proud of my name or not.
"I will always love you."
Lu Zhou sniffed and put down his hands.
As for whether to visit his descendants, he was actually quite conflicted about this matter.
If they wanted to see him, they would take the initiative to contact him after hearing the news that he was still alive.
And if they didn't want to see him, there was no need for him to disturb their lives.
After all, not everyone would wish for their originally peaceful daily life to be disrupted by an ancestor that they had never met and had no idea where it came from.
"Speaking of which, there is a meeting in the afternoon … Is it the Freezing Human Rights Protection Foundation?"
Lu Zhou operated the holographic panel with a strange UI design. He sent his address to Ms. K, the person in charge of the identity restoration procedures arranged by Chairman Li Guangya.
After waiting for a long time, a message window popped up on the holographic panel.
[Meet at three in the afternoon.]
What a concise and comprehensive answer.
However, this was quite to his taste.
Lu Zhou didn't like the red tape that affected his efficiency. It seemed that he should be very suitable to live in this era.
Lu Zhou replied with [OK], then swiped his index finger and turned off the holographic panel.
It was said that the Freezing Human Rights Protection Foundation included free and trustworthy legal services. According to Pan-Asian Cooperation officials, before he regained his citizenship, the foundation's lawyers could help him get an advance payment from Pan-Asian Airlines.
Lu Zhou didn't expect that the legacy left for the future would actually be used on him. He couldn't help but feel emotional.
It seems that doing more good deeds is still beneficial.
Maybe one day, the good deeds accumulated in the past will be used on me.
Feeling a little hungry, Lu Zhou was about to stand up and go to the kitchen to find something to eat when the doorbell suddenly rang.
"So fast?"
Slightly surprised, Lu Zhou walked to the entrance and reached out to open the door.
However, the result was beyond his expectations.
The person standing at the door was not a lawyer or salesman in formal attire with slicked-back hair. Instead, it was a young and beautiful girl.
She was wearing a white coat that hung down to her knees, and a Jinling Institute for Advanced Study identity card was pinned to her chest.
Lu Zhou's eyes fell on her face, trying to recognize who she was. However, after trying for a while, he couldn't successfully match this face with the name in his memory.
An indescribable affinity made it difficult for people to be hostile to her. It was just that the delicate facial features that almost didn't belong to a human made people wonder whether she was a human or an elf from a fantasy world.
However, Lu Zhou had no time to think about this issue.
The moment she saw him, her gem-like eyes were instantly stained with a layer of mist of tears.
There was no time for him to greet her. In the next second, the strange girl pounced on him and pushed him to the floor in the hallway.
"Master!!!"
“？？？”
Lu Zhou, who was pushed to the floor, was dumbfounded. He didn't understand the situation at all.
Is this another scam from the New Century that specifically targets frozen people?
Or is she the same type of person as the energetic guy who is good at performance art I saw before?
But sh * t, this guy is so strong!
She was obviously not as tall as him, and her body was considered a petite type, but he felt as if he had been hit by a tank. Not to mention struggling, he couldn't even move a muscle.
With two lumps of warm silicone on his face, Lu Zhou spent three seconds thinking about what this thing was.
However, even when he was about to faint, he still didn't understand what was happening to him …
(Today is still two in one, so I won't split it into chapters. It's almost Chinese New Year, and my family is starting to get busy. I will try to control the update time to be before 10 o 'clock. Sometimes, if I'm a little late by a few minutes, please forgive me ~)
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