Chapter 90 Why can't we cooperate a little bit...?
Professor Yi is very familiar with Professor Yang and Professor Jin.
One day after the New Year, she received a phone call: "Old Yi, you need to come to Qinghe City right away, it's very important."
Professor Yi: "What important thing is it? I have a project that I haven't finished yet."
“Your students can handle the finishing touches. Come on, come on,” Professor Yang called to her. “This is a good thing for you. Don’t blame us if someone else beats you to it.”
As is well known, competition in academia is also very fierce.
Professor Yi, though puzzled by his words, decided to come anyway. Then she heard some truly bizarre things. Fortunately, tickets to Qinghe Ancient Town were easy to buy now, so Professor Yi went with them to experience it, and then emerged in a daze.
"So, Lao Yi, I told you I wouldn't cheat you, right?" Professor Yang said smugly.
Professor Yi smiled wryly, finally understanding what he was like, and then learning that they had been researching this matter for the past two weeks. Of course, she wanted to join in too—those VR videos depicting the social environment and textile industry of the late Song and early Yuan dynasties were incredibly well-reconstructed!
She was also curious about where the creators got this information from.
Ren Zhijiao and a staff member from the Culture and Tourism Bureau tactfully went out: "You guys chat first, and we must all do us the honor of having lunch together at noon."
So, in the huge office, only Lu Xiaoqi, the three professors, and Tian Fan, who had come with them, remained.
Lu Xiaoqi knew there was no escaping it this time. Although she appeared calm on the surface, she was actually feeling very nervous inside.
The time has come to test her!
"Are you all here to ask about our VR?" She gave an apologetic look. "However, VR technology is our company's core secret, I'm afraid..."
She looked troubled.
“Mr. Lu, of course we know that,” Professor Jin quickly said. “Actually, we’re not asking about VR technology. We’re all historians, and we just want to know what historical materials you used as the basis for this VR video.”
Professor Yang and Professor Yi both nodded.
Lu Xiaoqi blinked, looking surprised: "But is there something wrong with it?"
Professor Jin smiled wryly: "It's not that it's wrong, it's that it's done too well!"
He carefully considered his words, and together with Professor Yang, they told Lu Xiaoqi about their findings. Lu Xiaoqi listened attentively, nodding occasionally, but inwardly she was sighing and discussing with the system.
"Sigh, I knew this might happen," she said, sounding a little distressed. "But I didn't expect it to happen so soon."
It's only been open for a little over a month, and it's already been exposed.
System: "Players don't need to worry; even if they suspect something, they won't find any evidence."
Lu Xiaoqi: "I know they'll be helpless if we stick to our guns, but... can't we find a way that's good for everyone? Actually, their goal is the same as ours—to revive traditional culture, isn't it?"
Why can't we cooperate just a little bit?
The system paused for a moment: "Except for core system secrets and technological secrets that exceed the technological level of this time and space, players can indeed conduct small-scale cooperation with trusted third parties in other aspects."
Lu Xiaoqi: "...I understand."
The so-called core secret of the system is itself, while the technical secret should refer to things like time travel, VR, and the various props she obtained, right?
She guessed that the system's pause just now was probably because it was requesting authorization from higher levels.
Just then, Professor Jin finished his lecture.
Lu Xiaoqi seized the opportunity to reveal a knowing expression: "I see."
Several professors looked intently at her.
Lu Xiaoqi organized her thoughts and then asked in return, "As you all probably know, I am not actually the true owner of the ancient town?"
She always considered herself merely a custodian, as stated in the contract, which stipulated a fifty-year custodianship. Of course, during those fifty years, Qinghe Ancient Town actually belonged to her.
Everyone was taken aback, but they all nodded.
Lu Xiaoqi's smile deepened. "That's great! Now I can push all the work onto that behind-the-scenes boss."
“The boss behind me comes from a prominent family and lives in seclusion abroad, but he is a genuine Chinese and extremely fascinated by Chinese history,” Lu Xiaoqi said. “He once told me that his family has a library that has been passed down for many years, containing many ancient books, rare editions, and antiques... all collected intermittently by their ancestors.”
The professors' breathing became labored.
There are indeed families in China with such long-standing traditions, but some of them either disappeared or fled abroad during the turmoil of the past century. Some of the latter have donated a number of cultural relics to China over the years.
If it's a family's collection of books, then it's still possible.
"However," Lu Xiaoqi changed the subject, with a hint of regret, "it's a pity that the owner said that many years ago, the library suffered a fire that destroyed a lot of things, and many original items can no longer be found..."
I have to say it this way, otherwise how am I supposed to get more from these professors? I can't exactly make fake antiques, can I?
The news hit them like a bolt from the blue.
Professor Jin felt a heart-wrenching pain that made it hard to breathe: "It...it was just burned like that?!"
Lu Xiaoqi silently apologized to them in her heart and nodded: "That's what the boss said, but he probably still left behind some copies or something..."
She took a sip of tea guiltily, and an idea flashed through her mind.
The professors exchanged glances and sighed deeply. That's how it is with private collections; even in excellent conditions, they can still encounter all sorts of problems.
"Actually, that's only one of the reasons!" Lu Xiaoqi looked up and continued, "The reason why our VR is so realistic and fitting is another very important reason, which lies in our VR technology!"
Professor Yang forced a smile: "Mr. Lu, could you explain in detail, if it doesn't involve your company's core technology?"
"You can just call me Xiao Lu," Lu Xiaoqi said hurriedly. "Actually, it's not really a secret. Our VR is not just about presentation. Strictly speaking, it should be called a 'deep historical scene AI reconstruction engine,' which is also our company's core secret!"
"AI reconstruction engine?" Professor Yi murmured, repeating it with a look of doubt on his face.
The concept of AI has been all the rage these past few years, but this combination of terms still felt somewhat unfamiliar and awkward to her—little did she know that it was just a technical term that Lu Xiaoqi had forced the system to make up on the spot in a flash.
“That’s right!” Lu Xiaoqi nodded firmly, her face sincere and her tone confident. “Now, some of the top museums in China should also be starting to try to use AI for artifact restoration or scene simulation, right?”
Professor Jin nodded: "There has indeed been exploration and application in this area, but the results... are far less than what you have achieved here."
Lu Xiaoqi: "Let me guess, traditional VR restoration probably relies heavily on existing, publicly available, limited historical data and expert interpretations, and then on manual modeling and scene construction? In this way, there may inevitably be information gaps and subjective inferences."
She paused for a moment, then continued: "Our engine takes a different approach, using AI deep simulation and then conducting interdisciplinary integrated modeling."
Next, it was Lu Xiaoqi's turn to perform.
"...Museum AI doesn't have our technology. Our 'Deep Historical Scene AI Reconstruction Engine' is arguably the most advanced engine available right now!" Lu Xiaoqi herself almost stammered while repeating the term. "It can not only identify and extract information points from text, images, and physical data, but also discover potential, undocumented connections between these seemingly isolated information points, and then perform simulations and deductions..."
She said their AI database integrates various publicly available ancient book databases, global museum and archaeological reports, oral histories and videos of traditional craft inheritors, and so on. Beyond the database, what's even more valuable is the AI engine's powerful deep learning and cross-modal correlation and inference capabilities.
After the performance was finally over, Lu Xiaoqi lowered her head and took a sip of water. She was so confused by her own words that she couldn't believe these history professors wouldn't be! If it weren't for the system constantly reminding her of some key, high-level, and impressive professional terms, she wouldn't have been able to come up with this.
Sure enough, she secretly glanced at the other side and saw that the three old professors blinked in unison, their faces showing a kind of bewilderment due to information overload. Even Professor Jin and Professor Yang subconsciously reached out and rubbed their throbbing temples.
The young man, Tian Fan, was completely bewildered, his eyes wide open in disbelief.
This whole "heterogeneous data," "iterative training," "physics engine and logic rules" stuff... well, he was a liberal arts student back in the day.
He glanced at his even more bewildered mentors and professors, and as a young man, he had no choice but to step forward.
So, Tian Fan asked tentatively, "Is it like when AlphaGo plays Go with top players? Because it's fed a lot of data and information, it can learn and extract its own ideas, then simulate and deduce, and even deduce new moves that human players haven't thought of?"
In the end, they even defeated humanity.
Lu Xiaoqi smiled and gave him a "you're teachable" look: "Yes, something like that!"
How come she didn't think of such a good analogy?
Tian Fan couldn't help but exclaim, "That must require an enormous amount of computing power... probably an astronomical figure!"
Lu Xiaoqi: "That's our trade secret."
Tian Fan quickly apologized: "Ah! I'm sorry, Mr. Lu, I was too talkative."
Seeing their still somewhat bewildered expressions, she coughed lightly: "I roughly understand why you professors have come. My boss is a recluse; he never participates in outside social interactions. In fact, I've only met him a few times. But next time I give a report, I'll remember to ask him if he could release some ancient texts or transcripts..."
Professor Yang looked up abruptly, asking excitedly, "Is that alright?"
His voice rose with excitement, and the embers of hope that had been extinguished in his eyes were instantly rekindled. He didn't care about engines or AI; seeing the ancient texts was the most important thing!
Professor Jin was overjoyed and exclaimed repeatedly, "Oh, Xiao Lu, this...this is wonderful! Thank you so much! Even though the original is gone, a scanned copy is priceless! Don't worry, we absolutely respect copyright and privacy, and academic citations will always be properly attributed!"
“Scanned copies or transcripts should be fine, right…” Lu Xiaoqi said uncertainly. “However, it depends on what he thinks. I can only offer him some advice.”
"No problem, no problem, we know!" Professor Jin's expression changed from somber to beaming with joy. "It's so great that you can help us with this!"
"It's nothing," Lu Xiaoqi said with a smile. "After all, we have the same goal: to restore and revive traditional Chinese culture."
Hearing her say that, Professor Yi's gaze softened even more, and he exclaimed, "Yes, when I was doing my research, I often thought that it was a miracle of civilization that ancient China could have such efficient looms and such a developed textile industry. So, Mr. Lu, your Qinghe Ancient Town is very good, exceptionally good!"
Besides experiencing VR, she also visited the textile workshop in Zone 5. She saw weavers spinning yarn, a scene of rustic tranquility, like a painting, with many young people taking photos. The beauty was secondary; the key was that the loom and the weavers' movements felt to her like they had stepped out of history.
Professor Yi couldn't help but stare at the display window for a long time. If Professor Yang and Professor Jin hadn't urged her to try out the VR experience, she definitely would have gone in to take a closer look.
Lu Xiaoqi smiled and said, "You flatter me. If any of you professors need my help, please don't hesitate to ask."
The three exchanged a glance. Professor Yang cleared his throat, his face slightly flushed, appearing somewhat embarrassed, and lowered his voice:
"Well, Xiao Lu, I really have a favor to ask... Your VR venue is just so popular that if we queue normally, we probably won't be able to see anything more than a few times a day. We... time is of the essence. Could you... could you do us a favor?"
He was a little embarrassed to ask such a question, and his voice was barely audible.
"Of course, we'll pay the fees; we'll go with the highest market price, no problem!"
Lu Xiaoqi immediately understood and waved her hand readily: "Professor Yang, you're too kind. No problem at all. I'll arrange for a separate experience cabin for you right away, for academic research purposes. You just need to contact our staff one day in advance. It's free."
"Thank you for your trouble, Xiao Lu! However, we still need to pay you." The three professors were overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly.
If you can rent a machine, although it's expensive, the investment is definitely worth it!
Lu Xiaoqi felt embarrassed. Actually, she hadn't done anything special; she had only provided a convenience. On the contrary, these professors were genuinely working on restoring history.
We chatted for a while, and then Ren Zhijiao and I treated the professors to a meal at Song Sao Fish Restaurant. Everyone was happy.
As they parted, she reminded them: "Professors, there's one point I must emphasize: no matter how realistic VR is, it's still just a simulation based on data and AI. It offers a possibility or a perspective, but it's by no means 100% historical truth..."
She only acknowledges that this is VR.
The professors couldn't help but chuckle: "Don't worry, of course not. We've been studying history our whole lives, we still have that much discernment."
Professor Yi also asked her when there would be new scenes.
Lu Xiaoqi scratched her head and shifted the blame to the boss behind the scenes: "I really don't know, but the boss said that producing each scene is extremely resource-intensive and involves a huge workload. That's why each segment you see is very short. I don't think new content will be available so soon..."
She gave an open-ended answer that left room for expectation but also uncertainty.
After seeing off these distinguished guests, Lu Xiaoqi returned to her office in the ancient town and immediately slumped onto her desk, letting out a long sigh.
"I'm so tired!"
Lying is no easy task, especially lying to people whose intelligence and wisdom are clearly superior to the average person. It takes an immense amount of effort and kills a lot of brain cells. However, accomplishing such a thing brings a great sense of satisfaction.
Lu Xiaoqi poked the system: "I've accomplished such a big thing, shouldn't I get some reward?"
The system seemed hesitant: "But this isn't included in your weekly quests or main quests."
Lu Xiaoqi patiently explained, "Look, our ultimate goal is to promote and revive traditional Chinese culture. Today, we've established academic connections with these authoritative domestic historians. Perhaps this will lead to a major academic breakthrough in the field of history... Isn't this a way to revive Chinese culture? It's a big deal, no less significant than the opening of the ancient town! If there's no reward for such a great achievement, it will greatly affect the players' initiative and enthusiasm. What do you think?"
Upon hearing this, the system realized it was indeed true and couldn't refute it.
It paused for a moment, then said, "I will apply to the higher-ups."
Lu Xiaoqi nodded in satisfaction: "That's fair."
She rested her head on the table. After a few minutes, the system, perhaps having finished processing her application, spoke up: "Player, if the ancient town can be upgraded to the highest SSS level, you might receive many amazing rewards. You'll also have higher access to certain things."
Lu Xiaoqi pondered: "For example, VR technology?"
The system avoided answering, only telling her to level up, saying that this was information that could only be obtained and known at a higher level, and then said, "Player, you'd better think about how to give me your so-called ancient book first!"
Lu Xiaoqi didn't take it seriously: "That's easy, just have Su Jun and the others write down all the books they remember from memory, right?"
The system seemed to be taken aback by this simple, crude, and perfectly logical solution.
It seems... it really is feasible!
Just then, Su Jun came looking for her.
He rested at home for two or three days. He had originally planned to contact her, but after hearing that she had been sleeping, he didn't bother her anymore. As soon as he arrived, Lu Xiaoqi gave him a task.
"Memorize the book?" he asked, somewhat puzzled.
Lu Xiaoqi nodded: "You have an exceptional memory, so you must still remember many books you've read before. Why don't you pick the ones you remember and write them down from memory, so that you can have a copy for this era?"
China has a long history, but because it is so long, many books have been lost or scattered.
These are all treasures!
She wanted them to copy down the books they could still remember. This was a thought that had suddenly flashed through her mind while she was chatting with the professors—anyway, what she had told them was, "The fire destroyed the originals, but we can provide scanned copies or copies."
Even if it's a handwritten copy, I believe they would all be knowledgeable about its value.
If they don't recognize its value, there's nothing she can do.
Su Jun: "But...Prefect Li Bing is no longer here..."
The VR that the professors are currently seeing is from the Qin Dynasty.
Lu Xiaoqi sighed, "I was careless. I should have made sure Prefect Li left some manuscripts as well. Maybe we could have had more people from the Qin Dynasty summoned later, or, if all else fails, had someone from a similar dynasty write some..."
For example, people in the early Han Dynasty generally knew more about the Qin Dynasty than people today.
"We'll talk about that later. Just write down what you're familiar with first."
Su Jun understood and readily agreed: "No problem, I've already started working on this."
A bad pen is better than a good memory, and given the overwhelming amount of information in modern life, he was afraid of forgetting what he had learned, so he often wrote it down in his spare time. Ancient texts are mostly concise, so reciting them from memory wasn't particularly difficult.
Lu Xiaoqi made a gesture of worship to him: "As expected of Young Master Su, you are so forward-thinking and have foresight!"
Su Jun was amused by her, and a faint smile appeared on his lips. His eyes were full of laughter: "I believe that not only me, but also Teacher Yuwen and others should have made preparations."
Seeing his smile, Lu Xiaoqi suddenly remembered what Song Wu Sao had said earlier. She acted impulsively for a moment and blurted out, "You've been making puppets lately, is it because you want to upgrade? Have you made any progress?"
Su Jun had no suspicions. Lu Xiaoqi was very attentive and responsible to those she had summoned. This matter was originally meant to be discussed with her, but she was just too busy during the Chinese New Year period.
“That’s true on one hand.” He nodded. “For an SR to be upgraded to an SSR, the only way is to improve their skills and reach a higher level. On the other hand, it’s because I’m quite interested in this myself, and I can use puppets to test some of my ideas.”
There is a puppet show in Qinghe Ancient Town now, performed in the winery in Zone 2, which is quite popular, especially among children.
“However, that was the kind of string puppetry that craftsman He excelled at. I’ve seen incredibly spectacular water puppetry before; even now, thinking about it still fills me with awe and wonder.” Su Jun’s expression was relaxed, clearly lost in memories. “With some modern technology added to the mix, I’d love to try and recreate the water puppet show, or even see if I could do it better…”
This is a great opportunity and a chance to improve his skills.
Lu Xiaoqi raised an eyebrow; it must really be beautiful. After half a year of training, this guy had developed a very discerning eye, practically a perfectionist. The two craftsmen, He Fang and Lu Xiaoqi, were sometimes driven crazy by his demands for the ultimate details and innovation.
She looked at her with a confident expression: "You'll definitely be fine!"
Su Jun's face was as gentle as a spring breeze: "I don't even know if I can do it, but you do?"
"That's right!" Lu Xiaoqi raised her head, smiling brightly. "You're the all-around Su Gongzi, who knows a little bit about everything and excels at whatever he learns!"
She didn't ask Su Jun why he hadn't been so eager to level up before, but was suddenly so focused on it now, which secretly relieved Su Jun. If Lu Xiaoqi asked, he really wouldn't know how to explain the reason that had arisen because of her.
The atmosphere between the two returned to its previous relaxed and comfortable state.
When the legal counsel knocked on the door, a usually composed young man appeared grave, clutching a manila envelope: "Boss, we've received a lawyer's letter!"
Lu Xiaoqi frowned: "A lawyer's letter?"
The legal counsel nodded and handed her the still-fresh lawyer's letter: "It's a lawyer's letter from Kyōgye Corporation."
Lu Xiaoqi was a little confused: "Kyoye Corporation?"
Who is it?
Su Jun reminded her, "They had tried to sell us the tiles before, but we refused."
Lu Xiaoqi suddenly realized, "It's them!"
Legal counsel: "Jingye believes that our online remarks have harmed their interests and reputation, and they are demanding that we issue a public apology on social media and keep it pinned to the top for three months. Otherwise, they will pursue legal action against us!"
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