Light Fortress-Chapter 42 - 40 The Lost Scroll
42: Chapter 40 The Lost Scroll
42 -40 The Lost Scroll
In the library, there was utter silence.
The rows upon rows of bookshelves, bathed in the interplay of sunlight, constructed a dazzling sea.
On the table lay a thick tome titled “Study of the Logic of Constants in Electronic Physics,” half-flipped open, with a monocle standing on its pages, its chain pressed down on them, serving as a bookmark.
The chair that had been in its usual spot was draped with a gray suit jacket.
The owner of the jacket stood in front of the huge bookshelves, bathed in the tranquil sunlight.
Deep Sea had connected the entire world, enabling data sharing.
Now, hardly anyone visited the reading room for physical books anymore.
Cui Zhongcheng removed two connected books from the shelf.
He paused for a moment.
After removing the books, the gap in the bookshelf revealed a pair of cunning eyes hinting a smirk.
“It is said that Da Teng Academy’s library houses one and a half million books.
It would take four thousand years to read them all if you read one book a day.
Yet, Deep Sea entered the entire collection into its database in just three seconds.” The old man spoke in a very low voice from the other side of the shelf, as though talking to himself, “It’s quite ironic.
The culture that humanity painstakingly developed over thousands of years can be fully absorbed by machines in just a few seconds.”
Having said that, he looked up and asked with a smile, “Places like libraries hardly attract visitors anymore.
They maintained order, and for the sake of human dignity, AI is only responsible for entry, not for guiding…
In such a place, finding the book you want must not be simple, is it?”
“Mr.
Zhou, you must not read often.”
Cui Zhongcheng replied gently, “Each book is categorically sorted.
All it takes is to search by the map, and finding a book is quite simple.”
“Oh, oh, oh…
I see.
I indeed do not read often.”
Zhou Jiren apologized with a smile, “But in this era, having Deep Sea is enough.
Besides those stubborn who cling to the remnants of the old times, who would come here to read physical books, right…
Mr.
Xiao Cui?”
Cui Zhongcheng glanced at his wristwatch.
He calmly asked, “Do you have business with me?”
“Nothing major…” Mr.
Shu smiled sincerely, “The audit for Gu Shen has started, my accompanying member has nothing to do, nowhere to go, and I thought to take a stroll around the academy…
Quite coincidentally, I encountered you here.”
The two men addressed each other very respectfully.
Both using “you” in the honorific form.
“This is my alma mater.
I haven’t been back in a long time, so I thought I’d come have a look.” Cui Zhongcheng spoke softly, “A long time ago, this place was also quiet…
but that quietness was different from now.”
“That would have been twenty years ago, wouldn’t it?
Back then, Deep Sea hadn’t connected the five continents, nor was there such advanced technology…” Mr.
Shu did not hide his ironic tone, smiling, “We have grown much stronger, and that’s a good thing.
Just considering the development of East Continent these past few years…
Councilman Zhao has played an indispensable role.
He has turned Da Du into a city as radiant as Changye.”
Cui Zhongcheng frowned slightly.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect that he would agree to issue a special amnesty for a little-known young man.” Mr.
Shu said quietly with a chuckle, “I was originally thinking of pulling some strings…
It wouldn’t matter if he disagreed; I would then plead with the bigwigs in Changye.”
“Isn’t it a good thing that someone agreed?” Cui Zhongcheng sighed, “Begging in Changye is a loss of face, and distant solutions do not quench immediate thirsts.
Besides, whether the request is granted or not is another matter.”
“At my age, what do I care about face?”
The smile on Zhou Jiren’s face gradually faded, and he gazed steadily at the other man, saying, “Since the special amnesty has been agreed, why bother sending such an audit team…
This man is someone I will protect regardless of losing face.
I want to make it clear upfront, no matter what the audit results are, I must safeguard Gu Shen.”
Cui Zhongcheng’s fingers caressed the pages of the book.
“Don’t you understand yet?”
He looked at the old man and spoke seriously, “It’s precisely because he discerned your stance…
that Elder Zhao made such a resolute decision to issue the special amnesty order and dispatch the inspection group…”
“The last person you were so adamantly determined to take away was Nan Jin from Dadu District, right?
Compared to her, Gu Shen is just a poor child with no parents, with a plain and unremarkable background.” Mr.
Xiao Cui said in a low voice, “Elder Zhao trusts your judgment, so he issued that special amnesty order immediately, and he also wanted to see, this child called Gu Shen…
exactly who he is, so he sent out this inspection group.”
At this, he revealed a humble and gentle smile.
“I suppose…
you can understand Elder Zhao’s intention, can’t you?”
“Right now, everyone in the council is suffering a headache over the dispute surrounding the Awakening Decree, and at this point, it seems like nobody can accept the cost of their own failure…
The tug-of-war has reached a moment close to yielding a result.”
“At this time, the slightest deviation could cause a massive distortion,” Cui Zhongcheng said, extending two fingers and slowly rubbing them together, “A butterfly in the far West Continent fluttering its wings might cause a storm in Da Du.”
“Perhaps this butterfly is not in the West Continent, but in Central State, the Northern Fortress…” Mr.
Xiao Cui paused and then spoke earnestly, “But in any case, Da Du cannot withstand another major storm.”
Zhou Jiren’s expression was serious, and he had no more to say.
He just silently stared at Cui Zhongcheng across the bookshelf.
The sunlight passed through, and his figure should have been reflecting the midday radiance, but for some reason, it seemed to be covered with a faint shadow.
“By the way…”
“The proposal to issue the special amnesty order and dispatch the inspection group…
was brought up by me,” Cui Zhongcheng said softly, “Elder Zhao agreed immediately, so the one who came to Da Teng this time…
is me.”
He gazed at Zhou Jiren.
“…I have nothing to say.”
The old man still had that stern demeanor, saying indifferently, “Without Mr.
Xiao Cui, there would have been others.
As long as there is a special amnesty order, there will be an inspection group; I understand this principle.”
Cui Zhongcheng nodded.
He no longer paid attention to Zhou Jiren, but carried the book and walked away in the direction he had come from.
The angle of the sunlight had shifted, and his original seat was no longer enveloped in light but was steeped in a slightly darker shade.
He took a couple of steps.
“There’s one more thing…”
Mr.
Shu spoke up again, stopping Cui Zhongcheng.
“Hm?”
He frowned slightly, turning half his face to the side, his expression obscured by the book.
“It’s about the issue we just chatted about idly.”
Mr.
Shu’s voice was very soft and very slow, “The method you mentioned, of following clues, is indeed a very simple and efficient way, but some books…
are severely damaged, or for reasons like missing titles, they haven’t been recorded in the AI library.
Can such books…
still be found?”
“…”
Cui Zhongcheng fell silent for a long time, seemingly lost in thought.
“It’s all down to luck now.”
Mr.
Xiao Cui spoke gently, “You have to believe that as long as the book still exists, it will be found someday.”
