Three photos

"Do you have anything to do with this first-level space-time incident?"

Professor Wang's sharp eyes seemed to penetrate through the surface and reach deep into people's hearts.

"No!"

Dr. Bian straightened his back, met the gaze calmly, and gave his answer.

After a moment, Professor Wang nodded and withdrew his scorching gaze.

"Professor, what happened?"

After being questioned twice in a short period of time, Dr. Bian knew that something must have happened that he was unaware of.

Professor Wang did not directly answer his question, but instead mentioned another thing:

"Our Institute of Intelligence will be sending more personnel to the task force in the near future. Furthermore, many top experts in the industry are also on their way here."

Dr. Bian pondered, "Is it because we discovered that the anomalous energy source has traces of artificial intelligence?"

Professor Wang gave him a strange look and asked, "You know?"

Dr. Bian then told Xing Yun about what happened when he was stopped and questioned by him on the way here.

Professor Wang chuckled after hearing this: "That kid is really watching you closely."

Professor Wang returned to his chair and looked at Dr. Bian for a long moment before answering his original question:

"Execution team leader Wei Li brought back news that 30-year-old Bian Senlin, who disappeared in 2024, is still alive."

Generally speaking, when encountering this situation, those who are lucky enough to fall directly into a certain time and space will have a greater chance of survival.

But if you are unlucky, after falling into the space-time gap, there is a high probability that you will be torn into pieces by the violent energy in the sea of ​​time and space.

If 30-year-old Bian Senlin encountered the latter situation, once the "blockade" technology was lifted, the temporarily isolated time and space would begin to merge and flow.

So, as a future timeline, the Edge Forest may have two possible endings:

1. From the moment the accident happened, the border forest would fade from people’s memory and disappear.

Second, because the butterfly effect caused by the change of this node is too large, the space-time logic cannot be self-consistent. Due to the self-healing nature of space-time, this node will be excluded from the main space-time, evolving into a new parallel space-time. In this way, the forest on the future timeline of the main space-time can be safe and sound.

But this is a probability that cannot be predicted or controlled, and no one knows what will happen until the end.

Therefore, if even one person dies accidentally in the Bian Forest in the previous time and space, it will be a huge risk for Dr. Bian.

"This should be a good thing for you. But the problem is that Wei Li has discovered his traces in multiple time and space."

Professor Wang looked at Dr. Bian and asked, "Do you know what this means?"

Dr. Bian's pupils shrank, and he immediately realized what an unfavorable situation this news would put him in.

You should know that humans only opened the time tunnel for the first time in 2028, and the first real-life time travel was not realized until 2033.

Until now, space-time technology has been under strict control and has not been disclosed to the public.

In other words, apart from the Space-Time Bureau, no one can currently achieve free space-time jumps.

So, how can the Border Forest in 2024 travel safely between multiple time and space?

Professor Wang continued, "This means that 30-year-old Bian Senlin has mastered the technology of time-space jump to some extent. At that time when time-space research was almost barren, where did he get this technology? In addition—"

"Plus, the existence of artificial intelligence was discovered from abnormal energy sources, and I happen to be engaged in research in this area.

He is inextricably linked to this space-time accident, and at the same time works at a research institute affiliated with the Space-Time Bureau, making him most likely to have come into contact with space-time technology."

Dr. Bian laughed at himself and said, "This is such a coincidence." It was so coincidental that even he, the person involved, would be suspicious.

Dr. Bian covered his eyes and thought: So the professor wanted to tell him that the higher-ups suspected him, but if they suspected him, why would they agree to his request to remove the surveillance measures?

etc……

The Central Control Center suspected him from the beginning, but could not find any evidence to prove that he was involved in the incident.

So, the above is to relax the suspicion on him on the surface, but actually want to see what he will do secretly?

Professor Wang saw that he had understood the reason, nodded with satisfaction, and then said:

"I know you've been following the progress of the task force and are deeply involved...

It's human nature not to want to sit and wait for death, but now that the crisis at the abnormal node has been largely resolved and the threat to your life is no longer that great, it's time for you to withdraw. Doing nothing is the most important thing you should do now."

Dr. Bian understood what Professor Wang meant. The threat posed by the space-time accident itself had been alleviated.

Then, the next step will be to focus on investigating the cause of the accident. The current situation is too unfavorable for him, and he needs to protect himself.

"That 20-year-old you... is that little 20." Professor Wang thought of the 20-year-old Bian Senlin and said:

"I heard his mental state wasn't very good after this mission? Then why not take this opportunity to send him back to 2014? Whether it's you now or you in other time and space, do your best to extricate yourself from this matter.

Whether it's the inspection team or the investigation team, they can investigate whatever they want. You are an innocent person implicated in this accident, understand?"

Dr. Bian felt warmed when he heard this, and understood that the professor was doing his best to protect him under great pressure.

He also made a rare joke: "The professor trusts me so much, isn't he afraid that I am really involved in this matter?"

"Humph, I trust you? I trust my own judgment of people!"

After finishing the business, Professor Wang's true nature could no longer be hidden. He glared at Dr. Bian:

"If you really dare to be involved in this matter, I will kill you myself without anyone else!"

Dr. Bian knew that Professor Wang had military experience in his early years and his true character had always been like this. It was rare that he could exchange witty remarks with him for so long just now.

So Dr. Bian also responded with a smile: "Yes, I dare not let you down."

"Humph, these crap!"

Professor Wang finally sighed and said, "Your teacher passed away so suddenly, and you were so caught up in all these things that you didn't get to see him one last time. You can go see him after this is over."

Dr. Bian also fell silent and replied softly, "Yes."

*

"What are you thinking about?"

In the familiar study, Bian Senlin's eyes were bloodshot and he looked sad and depressed.

When he heard Dr. Bian ask him, he whispered back, "I'm thinking about my grandma and my parents."

Dr. Bian thought for a moment and said, "Would you like to hear my opinion as someone who has been through this?"

Bian Senlin looked at Dr. Bian.

Dr. Bian smiled, his eyes filled with memories: "Many years after my grandmother passed away, I still miss her. I still feel sad when I think of the day I learned the news of her passing."

He looked towards the forest and said, "This longing will not fade with the passage of time, but the living still have to face life. This longing will be hidden deep in my heart, accompanying me on the road ahead, until the day I leave too."

"As for Mom and Dad—"

Dr. Bian stood up and put the book back on the wall. "Perhaps you still can't understand it, but judging by the results many years later, I think this is a good thing for Mom and Dad. They will start to get used to their new life, and family members will also find a new way to get along."

Dr. Bian pulled out a thin display screen and turned to walk towards Bian Senlin. "For me, a lot of things did happen when I was 22, but it was also the year I truly began to mature."

When people lose their harbor to shelter from the wind and rain, they can grow up at a very fast speed and hold up an umbrella for themselves.

Dr. Bian squatted in front of Bian Senlin and handed him the light screen.

Bian Senlin took it in confusion: "What is this?"

Dr. Bian stood up and said, "I'm glad I developed the habit of writing down my thoughts and feelings in a journal during my 23rd and 24th years. I hope this can be of some help to you."

After saying that, Dr. Bian walked out of the study and closed the door for Bian Senlin to leave him some space.

This is a very fragmented essay, sometimes there are as many as twenty or thirty entries in a month, and sometimes there are only a few scattered sentences.

From these fragmentary essays, Bian Senlin got a glimpse of how he got out of the trough in the next two years.

After his grandmother's funeral, Bian Senlin, feeling he had nowhere to go, returned to the small rental house in Donghai.

Family changes, the death of loved ones, and career setbacks all dealt him a heavy blow.

He locked himself up and lay in that small dark room for nearly a hundred days, maintaining his vital signs in the most perfunctory way.

Until one morning, as if he was tired of lying down, he suddenly wanted to go downstairs for a walk.

Due to long-term lack of activity, he actually felt a slight discomfort when he started walking.

He looked at the people coming and going around him, some were well-dressed and some were simply dressed, there were busy adults, children getting up early in the morning to go to school, and elderly people collecting cardboard boxes everywhere.

It seemed as if everyone was trying to live in their own way, and he suddenly felt a sense of vitality.

It was just an ordinary morning, but for Bian Lin at that time, it was like the first whistle after a long and silent night, waking him up from his sleep.

Between the lines of his essays, one can see the change in his attitude towards life; he began to move.

No longer passive, I started exercising, studying, and looking for a job... Gradually, it seemed like I had returned to the original Border Forest, but not completely.

Bian Senlin saw three photos at the end of the essay. The first one was a selfie of him on his graduation day, in which he was stupidly making the scissors hand gesture.

The second photo is a selfie taken in the early morning when I was 23 years old. At that time, my face was pale and I looked decadent, but there was a rare glimmer of spirit in my eyes.

Chapter 3 is about a day when he was 24 years old. Bian Senlin was sweating after just finishing his exercise, but his expression was full of indescribable joy.

In the three photos, the most obvious change is in the eyes. The first one is silly and clear, the second one obviously looks like it has experienced more and has a bit of complexity and sadness, and the third one is more resilient than the second one.

These three photos were placed side by side, which made Bian Senlin feel a speechless shock.