Qiming Chapter 107

Chapter 107

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– What did I do wrong?

This was the headline news of the day. Lin Xiangrong's impassioned speech attracted immense attention, and the comments section quickly split into two camps, some called for adherence to technological ethics, while others hailed the progress of humanity.

At first, Gu Yunfeng eagerly scrolled through the news and comments for a long time, but the more he read, the worse he felt. In everyone's eyes, Xu Chengyue had become nothing more than a symbol, a figure representing a potential storm of change in the future.

The public cared little for his inherent rights and dignity as a person, they only focused on the monumental impact his existence had on the advancement of technology.

Perhaps, in their eyes, he really couldn't be considered human any more.

At the end of the trial, the judge announced that a verdict would be delivered at a later date. Gu Yunfeng knew that this would inevitably lead to yet another long wait and a difficult judgment. Would Xu Chengyue still be around to see the final verdict?

For a long time, Gu Yunfeng had been in a state of intense internal conflict, desperately trying to cover up the unique secret surrounding Xu Chengyue. He had even disregarded his own duties by hiding certain details and evidence from the case.

So, when Xu Chengyue stood up and unhesitatingly declared himself a victim of the experiment, beyond the shock and fear, Gu Yunfeng felt a small sense of relief. This mental ease, intertwined with their relationship, took on an abstract form of ambiguous melancholy.

Why did he stand up?

Perhaps he couldn't bear to see lives perish because of him.

Gu Yunfeng opened one of the most popular news articles, hesitated for a long time, and finally left a comment in the background:

– We discuss ethics, we create laws, all to remind ourselves to hold life in reverence.

A melancholic wind blew from the south to the north as he put away his phone. Standing on the overpass at the intersection in front of the university, he leaned on the railing, watching the constant flow of cars on the road. Standing at such a height, looking down at the intricate web of streets, he suddenly had the illusion that he owned the entire city.

About ten minutes later, Xu Chengyue walked out of the university gate and immediately spotted Gu Yunfeng on the overpass. He waved and walked up to meet him.

"Your situation is trending online now. You've really become famous," Gu Yunfeng teased him.

"Then why hasn't anyone asked for my autograph?"

"Of course it's because you're wearing such a big mask, covering your whole face, besides me, who else could recognise you?"

Xu Chengyue lowered his head and chuckled, leaning against Gu Yunfeng's arm as they both gazed into the distance. After the last court session, he continued to attend classes at school as usual, and life didn't seem to have changed much for him.

He had grown used to the repetitive nature of everyday life and had also come to accept that his eventual demise wasn't far off.

But in reality, just a few days after the news broke, his lectures were swarmed by auditing students, curious passers-by, and journalists from all directions. In the end, he had no choice but to fully gear up and shift his schedule, pretending he wasn't attending classes and was on a break.

He wasn't particularly interested in seeing what others thought of him. How others judged him was their business, it wouldn't affect his own decisions. The only thing he cared about now was travelling, seeing the great rivers and mountains, reaching the ends of the earth, plucking stars from the sky, chasing the wind and the sun.

Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time, and he still wanted to attend a few more classes at the university.

"Sometimes I think, if the chip representing me never malfunctions, then once this body ages, I can just switch to another one, living on for thousands of years, immortal."

"Pfft – then wouldn't you turn into a demon?" Gu Yunfeng blinked. "Tell me, who do you plan to seduce~?"

"I'll have to give that some serious thought."

"Hey, just how many options do you have?"

"Not many, not many, just three thousand."

The two exchanged a glance. Gu Yunfeng pretended to be angry, then gave him a playful look and reached out to ruffle his hair, before holding his hand and walking off the overpass, heading towards the medical examination centre.

Xu Chengyue's surgery was scheduled for two months later. During this time, he would need to undergo several comprehensive health checks to ensure his body was in suitable condition for the removal of the chip from his brain.

Now, sitting in a café near the hospital with the medical report in hand, Xu Chengyue saw that all his health indicators were stable, perfectly meeting the conditions for the surgery. He closed his eyes, and memories from the past two years flashed before him like a reel of film, followed by countless predictions of possible futures.

What if, after the surgery, Xu Chengyue didn't wake up and remained in a vegetative state, would all his choices have been in vain?

What if he woke up, only to tell Gu Yunfeng and everyone else that he hadn't been coerced or threatened by Lu Yong, nor was he murdered and pushed from the tall building?

Wouldn't that render all their efforts completely wasted?

"Chengyue, have you made up your mind?" A voice broke through his thoughts. He looked up to meet Gu Yunfeng's eyes and realised that it wasn't him who had spoken.

With difficulty, he shook his head, drained the glass of milk in his hand, and smiled faintly amidst the sighs from the people around them. In hospitals, the sound of sighing always seemed especially frequent.

"If you haven't thought it through, we can continue like this, there's no need to remove the chip." Gu Yunfeng held his hand and looked earnestly into his eyes.

Countless possibilities converged into a black hole, swallowing up his will and the future. For a moment, he felt the urge to curl up in the darkness, but when he opened his eyes and saw Gu Yunfeng, he inexplicably felt as though he had glimpsed a ray of light.

"On the night of the fall, I, or rather, Xu Chengyue, threw a laptop off the laboratory building before he fell." He hesitated before continuing. "I'm worried that I won't wake up after the surgery, or that it might take a long time, so I need to tell you about this now."

Gu Yunfeng, surprised, sat beside him, leaned down to tie his loosened shoelace, and then looked at him anxiously.

"That laptop likely contained something important to Lu Yong. When I was taken to the hospital, Xizi said there was nothing around the area."

"So, does that mean Lu Yong had already been there before her? And took the laptop that was thrown from the building?" Gu Yunfeng asked. "What was on it?"

"It seemed to be the final version of the AI detective. From what Lu Yong said, the versions currently in use were all modified by me, and he's after the perfect version."

With that, Xu Chengyue stood up, carefully putting away the medical report. He lowered his head and reached out to Gu Yunfeng, pulling him up as well. "If I'm not wrong, that laptop should still be with Lu Yong. Find it. It might not contain exactly what we need, but it could serve as part of the evidence to convict him, at least making the best use of what we have."

—————

Two months later.

Unlike the noise outside, it was mostly quiet here. The breeze was warm, and the moonlight gentle.

Gu Yunfeng sat outside the operating room. In truth, he had already come to terms with the final outcome, but in his heart, there was still an elusive hope for something.

He asked himself, what am I hoping for?

Turning to gaze and staring at the lit-up operating room, it felt as though something was gripping his heart. Every heartbeat, every breath felt heavy, whispering to him how distant that light was and how weighty his heartbeats had become.

Inside the operating room, Xu Chengyue lay under the shadowless lamp. Cold alcohol was smeared on his body and face, and the chill made every pore shudder, every cell feeling the bone-chilling cold.

Initially, Gu Yunfeng had discussed having Ying Han as the lead surgeon, but now Ying Han had been criminally detained on charges of criminal misconduct, so that suggestion was immediately rejected by others.

Luckily, unlike the operation to insert the chip, removing it was relatively simpler. There was no need to account for the complex connections between the artificial neural networks and the brain's nerves, nor to precisely attach external devices to an exact position with millimetre precision.

All that was required was to remove these components, and from then on, Xu Chengyue would be free from the complications caused by rejection reactions and return to his original self.

After the anaesthesia took effect, amidst the low hum of discussions, he looked at the unfamiliar lead surgeon in front of him. His eyelids grew heavy, and he gradually closed his eyes. The last image he saw was the moonlight outside, with Venus beside the bright moon. They were quiet, simple, bright, and beautiful, yet inevitably accompanied by inner fear and unease.

Then, he lost consciousness entirely, and everything became calm.

In that stillness, Xu Chengyue seemed to be in a dark cave, chaotic, without light, silent, and hollow.

For him, this must be what death felt like.

But a few seconds later, in this most lonely place, he faintly heard a small voice. The voice grew louder, stronger, shattering the silence, becoming more and more intense until it filled his entire mind.

"Can you keep me here?"

"Can you let him stay?"

He couldn't tell who had spoken those words, nor could he distinguish who he was any more.

Who did you want to stay?

Amid the faint clinking of metal, the scalpel fell to the ground. Someone bent down to pick it up and casually replaced it with another.

In that brief few seconds, countless memories that had never surfaced before were suddenly awakened, flooding into his calm mind.

All the black, white, red, and yellow fragments pieced themselves together, scorching his skin where the cold blade touched, melting into boiling blood.

He saw the love letter he had publicly rejected years ago, the girl's tearful embarrassment after her confession failed. He saw Lin Xiangrong opening the hospital room door for him, introducing him to the comatose Jiang Hai.

He saw the many roads he had walked, the countless people he had met, every sunny day, every cloudy day, stormy day and snowy day.

Finally, all the faces merged into one, flashing Gu Yunfeng's face in an instant.

In that moment, his body involuntarily shuddered.

Nearly a year ago, he had joined the criminal investigation team in Jinping District for the AI detective project and had stayed there for almost half a year.

At their first meeting, Gu Yunfeng walked straight up to him, extended his left hand, and introduced himself. It was then that Xu Chengyue noticed the scar on Gu Yunfeng's right palm, not too deep or too shallow, cutting across his lifeline.

But the face of Gu Yunfeng that had just flashed before his eyes wasn't how he looked at twenty-six years old – it was a much younger version, a child's face, both innocent and mature.

This meant that the lecture where they met a year ago...

wasn't the first time he and Gu Yunfeng had met!

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: October 1, 2024 by Angel

Edited: January 7, 2025 by Angel