Лю Цысинь - Hold Up the Sky

The starlight in the universe changes from a troublesome red to an empty white…

… time reaches a strange point…

… starlight changes from white to a beautiful, tranquil blue. The blueshift has begun. The contraction has begun.

…

…

.nugeb sah noitcartnoc ehT .nugeb sah tfihseulb ehT .eulb liuqnart ,lufituaeb a ot etihw morf segnahc thgilrats…

… tniop egnarts a sehcaer emit…

… etihw ytpme na ot der emoselbuort a morf segnahc esrevinu eht ni thgilrats ehT

.orez ,eno ,owt ,eerht ,ruof ,evif :nwodtnuoc tfihseulb ehT

“.noos wonk ll’uoY .rettam oN”

“!!eb t’nac yllaer sihT !eb t’nac sihT”

.sdnoces thgie :nwodtnuoc tfihseulb ehT

“.esrevinu gnitcartnoc eht retne lliw ew ,taht retfA .tnemom taht ni tsixe t’now emiT .tniop egnarts a hguorht ssap lliw esrevinu eht ,sdnoces net tuoba ni ,nooS .tfel sdnoces net tuoba s’erehT .loof a s’eh kniht lliw uoy ,noitcerid rehtona ni gniog emit tuoba skaeps enoyna fI .larutan etiuq…

…

As research delves deeper, humanity is discovering that quantum effects are nothing more than surface ripples in the ocean of existence, shadows of the disturbances arising from the deeper laws governing the workings of matter. With these laws beginning to reveal themselves, quantum mechanics’ ever-shifting picture of reality is once again stabilizing, deterministic variables once again replacing probabilities. In this new model of the universe, the chains of causality that were thought eliminated have surfaced once more, and clearer than before.

PURSUIT

In the office were the flags of China and the CCP. There were also two men, one on either side of the broad desk.

“I know you’re very busy, sir, but I must report this. I’ve honestly never seen anything like it,” said the man in front of the desk. He wore the uniform of a police superintendent second class. He was near fifty, but he stood ramrod-straight, and the lines of his face were hard and vigorous.

“I know the weight of that last sentence coming from you, Xufeng, veteran investigator of thirty years.” The Senior Official looked at the red and blue pencil slowly twirling between his fingers as he spoke, as if all his attention were focused on assessing the merit of its sharpening. He tucked away his gaze like this much of the time. In the years Chen Xufeng had known him, the Senior Official had looked him in the eyes no more than three times. Each time had come at a turning point in Chen’s life.

“Every time we take action, the target escapes one step ahead of us. They know what we’re going to do.”

“Surely you’ve seen similar things before,” the Senior Official said.

“If it were simply that, it wouldn’t be a big deal, of course. We considered the possibility of an inside job right off.”

“Knowing your subordinates, I find that rather improbable.”

“We found that out for ourselves,” Chen said. “Like you instructed, we’ve reduced the participants in this case as much as possible. There are only four people in the task force, and only two know the full story. But just in case, I planned to call a meeting of all the members and question them one by one. I told Chenbing to handle it—you know him, the one from the Eleventh Department, very reliable, took care of the business with Song Cheng—and that’s when it happened.

“Don’t take this for a joke, sir. What I’m going to say next is the honest truth.” Chen Xufeng laughed a little, as if embarrassed by his own defensiveness. “Right then, they called. Our target called me on the phone! I heard them say on my cell phone, You don’t need this meeting, there’s no traitor among you. Less than thirty seconds after I told Chenbing I wanted to call a meeting!”

The Senior Official’s pencil stilled between his fingers.

“You might be thinking that we were bugged, but that’s impossible. I chose the location for the conversation at random to be the middle of a government agency auditorium while it was being used for chorus rehearsals for National Day. We had to talk right into each other’s ears to hear.

“And similar funny business kept happening after that. They called us eight times in total, each time about things we had just said or done. The scariest part is, not only do they hear everything, they see everything. One time, Chenbing decided to search the target’s parents’ home. He and the other task force member were just standing up, not even out of the department office, when they got the target’s call. You guys have the wrong search warrant, they told them. My parents are careful people. They might think you guys are frauds. Chenbing took out the warrant to check, and sir, he really had taken the wrong one.”

The Senior Official set the pencil lightly on his desk, waiting in silence for Chen Xufeng to continue, but the latter seemed to have run out of steam. The Senior Official took out a cigarette. Chen Xufeng hurriedly patted at his coat pockets for a lighter, but couldn’t find one.

One of the two phones on the desk began to ring.

Chen Xufeng swept his gaze over the caller ID. “It’s them,” he said quietly.

Unperturbed, the Senior Official motioned at him. Chen pressed the speaker button. A voice immediately sounded, worn and very young. “Your lighter is in the briefcase.”

Chen Xufeng glanced at the Senior Official, then began to rummage through the briefcase on the desk. He couldn’t find anything at first.

“It’s wedged in a document, the one on urban household registration reform.”

Chen Xufeng took out the document. The lighter fell onto the desk with a clatter.

“That’s one fine lighter there. French-made S. T. Dupont brand, solid palladium-gold alloy, thirty diamonds set in each side, worth… let me look it up… 39,960 yuan.”

The Senior Official didn’t move, but Chen Xufeng raised his head to study the office. This wasn’t the Senior Official’s personal office; rather, it had been selected at random from the rooms in this office building.

The target continued the demonstration of their powers. “Senior Official, there are five cigarettes left in your box of Chunghwas. There’s only one Mevacor cholesterol tablet left in your coat pocket—better have your secretary get some more.”

Chen Xufeng picked up the box of cigarettes on the desk; the Senior Official took out the blister pack of pills from his pocket. The target was correct on both counts.

“Stop coming after me. I’m in a tricky situation just like you. I’m not sure what to do now,” the target continued.

“Can we discuss this in person?” asked the Senior Official.

“Believe me, it would be a disaster for both sides.” With that, the phone went dead.

Chen Xufeng exhaled. Now he had the proof to back up his story—the thought of disbelief from the Senior Official unsettled him more than his opponent’s antics. “It’s like seeing a ghost,” he said, shaking his head.

“I don’t believe in ghosts, but I do see danger,” said the Senior Official. For the fourth time in his life, Chen Xufeng saw that pair of eyes bore into his.

THE INMATE AND THE PURSUED

In the No. 2 Detention Center at the city outskirts, Song Cheng walked under escort into the cell. There were already six other prisoners inside, mostly other inmates serving extended terms.

Cold looks greeted Song Cheng from all directions. Once the guard left, shutting the door behind him, a small, thin man came up.

“Hey, you, Pig Grease!” he yelled. Seeing Song Cheng’s confusion, he continued, “The law of the land here ranks us Big Grease, Second Grease, Third Grease… Pig Grease at the bottom, that’s you. Hey, don’t think we’re taking advantage of the latecomer.” He pointed his thumb at a heavily bearded man leaning in the corner. “Brother Bao’s only been here three days, and he’s already Big Grease. Trash like you may have held a pretty government rank before, but here you’re lowest of the low!” He turned toward the other man and asked respectfully, “How will you receive him, Brother Bao?”