Chapter 27 Bai Tan_1

His first day back in Three-Body had passed just like that, with four days remaining until the next time travel.

On Monday, the second day, Qin Ming came to the library again, by himself this time, as Liu Yueyue was attending classes to prepare for the final exams.

In this world, no one is indispensable to anyone else. Everyone is busy with their own lives, and aside from one's own kin, no one revolves around a cancer patient.

Entering the library and seeing that it was deserted, he sat down in the same spot he had occupied yesterday.

Not long after, the little boy whom he had made cry the day before reappeared in the area of the encyclopedia shelves, followed by his mother carryng several children's picture books.

Catching sight of the cat emerging from Qin Ming's backpack, the boy's attention was captivated, his eyes lighting up, "Mommy, that kitty is so cute."

The woman also recognized Qin Ming as the helpful young man from the previous day and beamed a bright smile.

"It's okay, it's very well-behaved and won't bite," Qin Ming smiled and handed Bai Tan to the expectant boy.

The boy was delighted, incessantly petting the cat while looking up with a childlike voice.

"Uncle, what is the kitty's name?"

"Call me brother," Qin Ming replied with a smile. "Its name is Bai Tan."

The origin of the name Bai Tan went back to a story about a person turning into a black cat that he had read in his past life; his cat was white, not one that turned a person into a cat, but a cat turned into a person, so he called it Bai Tan.

"Bai Tan, what a strange name," the boy murmured, stroking the white cat with his head bowed. After hesitating for a few seconds, he added, "Then I'll call you little white."

The woman also found the name a bit odd and shot Qin Ming a puzzled look, but he offered no explanation.

Only Qin Ming knew in his heart that this cat was not as simple as its name suggested; it had already awakened successfully and was more intelligent than Erha from the Endless Laboratory.

Qin Ming referred to the activation of an animal's brain as an awakening, and previous experiments had a high probability of failure in this regard, but this cat had survived, behaving as casually as any ordinary cat, without a single flaw in its demeanor.

Qin Ming was quite satisfied with this, as a perfect feline secret agent was about to be born under his guidance.

Although Bai Tan was smart, it still required his training. The first step to completing its mission was learning to read, and Qin Ming had already found it a little tutor.

The little chubby kid was oblivious to the fact that he had unwittingly become a teacher; he held Bai Tan in his arms and recited from a children's phonics book, and Bai Tan behaved itself, calming down after a slight struggle.

The cat seemed to understand what Qin Ming wanted, enjoying the petting while seemingly paying close attention to the little boy's reading.

Seeing this scene, Qin Ming left the little boy to Bai Tan and went to find some books on the shelves to read quietly by himself.

"Computer Programming: From Beginner to Expert," "Algorithm"

These were books about computer technology, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and even included predictions about the future era of big data algorithms and AI, all of which were accurate except for the actual realization of AI.

Regrettably, not a single book predicted the rise in housing prices.

Time flew, and by noon, the little boy had to leave with his mother for lunch, saying his reluctant goodbyes to Bai Tan.

"Little white, I will come to see you again," he said.

The woman led her reluctant son away, and Bai Tan returned to Qin Ming's side.

After a brief lunch, Qin Ming began reading with Bai Tan.

Under the tutelage of the little teacher, it had learned many words, reaching a level where it could smoothly read a book.

"The Complete Sherlock Holmes," "The History of Modern World Development," "The Weakness of Human Nature," "Pride and Prejudice," "One Hundred Years of Solitude," "The Ten Deadly Sins," "The Lu Xun Collection"

As the saying goes, read thousands of books and travel thousands of miles. The afternoon passed, and a semblance of humanity flickered in Bai Tan's eyes. It had understood a lot and had come to know much.

It also realized that its transformation came from Qin Ming, and toward this young man, it felt affection mixed with a hint of timidity.

As Qin Ming was reading, a young woman approached, standing very close to him and engrossed in two books. Eventually, she couldn't resist striking up a conversation with an excuse, "Is that cat yours? It's really pretty."

"Kind of," he responded engrossed in his own world.

Bai Tan looked at the books in front of the woman, titled "If Life Was Just Like When First Met," "Jane Eyre"

After following the woman through the contents of these two books, it agilely leaped onto the bookshelf, gazing blankly at Qin Ming. Its eyes, clear and beautiful like amber gemstones, conveyed a special emotion but vanished the moment he looked back.

In the next two days, to avoid possible monitoring by Sophon, Qin Ming carried Bai Tan and transformed into the Riddler of Gotham.

"The nuclear blasts produced clouds of radiation and masses of radioactive dust that shrouded the skies. Winter had come, but without the sunlight."

"A winter without sunlight would be very cold. I don't like that kind of winter," he said.

"The sun sets in the east and rises in the west. Its most dazzling point is found in that direction."

The thought processes of the Trisolarans were transparent, without schemes and deceit in their worldview. Even if there was a minuscule chance that Sophon was observing him, it would not detect any abnormalities.

Two days later, Qin Ming and Bai Tan stayed at home. When the time was nearly right, he gazed at Bai Tan for a long while. "I am not your destiny. I still have to go to school and don't have much time for you. You need to find your true owner."

As if comprehending his words, the white cat gave Qin Ming one last lingering look, then sprang onto the floor, slipped through the crack in the door, and ran towards Yang Dong's home, carrying a sense of mission.

Go, go save Yang Dong.

Qin Ming had high expectations for Bai Tan, and after several days of his guidance, it was no longer just any cat.

After Bai Tan left, another day swiftly passed, and the countdown was nearing its end.

Qin Ming stood in the room, ready for what was to come.

He was looking forward to the next world, thinking that as long as it wasn't China's flagship sci-fi work—The Shanghai Fortress—he could accept it.

Wait, it couldn't really be The Shanghai Fortress, could it?!!

3, 2, 1.

The countdown ended, giving Qin Ming no time to react, and his figure vanished from the spot in an instant.