Chapter 470: A Loophole in the Laws of the Universe?_1

Because we were in a weightless state, the robot prepared space food and drinks in bags.

Logic sighed, "What a pity, there's no wine on the spacecraft, otherwise we could have enjoyed a drink together."

Cheng Ping forced a smile, "The drinks are the same."

"With four or five days yet to go before we reach Earth, we have just enough time for you to tell me about the unexpected events you've encountered." Logic said with a smile, "Speaking of which, I may have some clout, let's see if I can help you."

"You really can help me," Cheng Ping took out a blue waterdrop-shaped object the size of a fingertip.

Logic recognized it; it was a common quantum data storage device in the Solar System State, generally used for data transfer without a network or for data storage.

The Waterdrop-shaped design was Jiang Yu's requirement. He said he wanted everyone to always remember the disaster brought to humanity by the Trisolarans, and "The Waterdrop" was one of the symbols of Trisolarans.

Cheng Ping said to Galaxy III of the spacecraft, "Please duplicate the data inside and store it in the same manner."

As he spoke, he waved the storage device at the position of the multifunctional camera. A second later, a similar Waterdrop-shaped storage device popped out on the other side of the operating station.

Cheng Ping solemnly handed the newly ejected storage device to Logic, "Please give it to the fifth person who shakes hands with you after you disembark from the spacecraft."

"Remember, it must be the fifth person, no matter who that person is, please be sure to hand it over to them."

"This all seems rather secretive," Logic laughed. "Have you defected to an enemy country? Are you engaged in espionage activities?"

Now, in the human world, are there still enemy countries?

Cheng Ping gave a wry smile, "When the time comes, you'll know everything, I swear, you'll be very surprised then!"

"All right, all right." Logic placed the storage device into the portable pocket of his spacesuit. "Now can you tell me about what happened to you?"

"Let me think," Cheng Ping took a sip of his drink, "Where should I begin?"

"Hmm, let's start with those dreams of mine," he said seriously.

"Teacher Luo Ji, have you ever encountered a situation where something happens in real life that seems to have happened in a dream?"

Logic was startled, "I have no memory of that, but a character from my imagination did once appear in my real life."

Cheng Ping smiled, "I know, the heroine from your book, right?

"The feeling I'm talking about is different, like when you encounter a problem at work that you think you're seeing for the first time, but when you face it, it feels very familiar.

"Or it's like when you go to a strange place and unexpectedly find it familiar."

After careful thought, Logic then shook his head.

Cheng Ping cleared his throat and rubbed his hands nervously, "It's strange to say that a century has passed since that day, the morning I woke up in the desert of Australia.

"To my disappointment, the migration of humanity to the preserves was still continuing, and the Trisolaran Interstellar Fleet was also on its way.

"After that, every move I made seemed to repeat dozens or even hundreds of times.

"However, the experiences of the following days differed, resulting in various outcomes."

Logic frowned, "Is that a dream you had?"

"At first, I thought they were just dreams, but as these dreams became clearer over the years, I realized they were my memories." Cheng Ping's eyes glazed over:

"Several times I died in riots in Australia, with the Trisolarans ultimately colonizing the Solar System. More often, after Starship Earth sent the universal broadcast, I was saved.

"Then I died from various accidents, diseases, and a few times even from the Dark Forest Strike of the Two-dimensional foil.

"This time is very special because Jiang Yu had not appeared in the previous situations, but this time, he fought a desperate battle with the Trisolarans, leading to significant changes in the outcome.

"Because of that opportunity, I managed to become the new rotating chairman.

"Later, thanks to your protection, I was able to join the Solar System State, serving five terms as the highest administrative officer of the Earth Province, and even after retirement, I continued to contribute."

Logic expressed some concern, "Have you been in space for too long, so...

Cheng Ping started to laugh, a faint laugh at first, which gradually grew into a boisterous one, ending with him leaning forward and backward in mirth.

After he had his fill of laughter, he wiped away the tears and said, "Sorry, I said some strange things to you."

Then he put away his smile and asked, "Teacher Logic, do you think that in the operation of cosmic laws, there could be holes?

"Like, even though we clearly shouldn't have met, we did through a chance encounter."

"Holes?" Logic felt that there might be something wrong with Cheng Ping's mental state, but he seriously analyzed, "As far as we can tell, there haven't been any holes discovered.

"If there really were any, given the vastness of the universe, we would only have a very small chance of encountering them."

He shook his head, "I am not the universe, nor have I ever seen its true face, I dare not make a definitive statement about such things."

"Right, I dare not make a definitive statement," Cheng Ping looked at the timer on his spacesuit, "Sorry, Teacher Logic, I have to go back to my own ship now."

But Logic had no intention of letting him leave, "Join me for a meal, we can have a long talk. After all, we're both heading back to Earth, why don't we go together?"

He was worried about Cheng Ping's current mental state and the possibility of an accident occurring in space, so he planned to keep an eye on him.

"Teacher Logic, I appreciate your concern," Cheng Ping said, "but I can't go back to Earth."

Logic asked, "What exactly happened?"

"I can't tell you right now," Cheng Ping pointed to the pocket where Logic stored his memory device, "When you see what's inside, you'll understand everything."

As he walked toward the door of the ship, he added with a hint of reluctance, "I would really like to talk with you more, but continuing our discussion could lead to unpredictable dangers for both of us.

"So, I must go back."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him to stay, Logic patted the pocket containing the storage device, "Don't worry, I will fulfill your request.

"Unless the mission is too urgent, go back to Earth to rest up; no Flaming Mountain is insurmountable."

Cheng Ping nodded gravely and returned to his own ship.

From the porthole, Logic saw that the two ships had quickly separated, and Cheng Ping's ship sailed into the vast dark starry sea.

Watching the dazzling tail flame grow smaller and smaller, Logic suddenly had an illusion; it was as if he was moving further and further away from this old friend, not in distance but in a more abstract sense.

Suddenly, the tail flame vanished.

Logic thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but upon careful inspection, it was truly gone.

Remembering their recent conversation, Logic grew even more anxious and quickly contacted Zhuang Yue.

Logic asked, "What special mission is Cheng Ping on lately?"

Zhuang Yue was just about to rest, and the question left her bewildered, "Have you already heard? He is indeed on a research mission; I just sat with him a while ago."

"Ah?" Logic hadn't been this surprised in many years, "What, what? You just saw Cheng Ping?"

Zhuang Yue smiled, "Yeah, his research team is right here in this city. I visit almost every day to check their progress."

Logic was stupefied for a moment before saying, "Cheng Ping just visited my ship."

Zhuang Yue immediately lost her sleepiness, "Dad, did you, did you have a dream just now?"

It was just after midnight, and according to Logic's usual habits, he should have already slept for a while.

Zhuang Yue's words made Logic think of the dream-like things Cheng Ping had just shared with him, which seemed to contain some crucial clues.

Then he gave a wry smile and shook his head, "I'm not going senile, am I?"