In the afternoon classroom, sitting by the sunny window, the brick wall below the window sill seemed to let in a draft, sending shivers through the air. The teacher in front was reprimanding students for not studying diligently, creating a stifling atmosphere. Back at home, intending to enjoy some quiet time alone, but soon visitors arrived, inviting to a gathering. At the hotel where the gathering was held, an elderly man, possibly a relative of the hotel owner, began faultfinding and criticizing improper behavior and wastage of food.

Suddenly filled with anger, he retorted, "It's not like I came here on my own, you invited me," and after a few more sharp words, he left. After a while, a short-haired woman, looking like a manager, with a red-and-white striped T-shirt and a black hip-hugging skirt, led a group to interrogate, "What were you doing just now? You've made the old man so angry."

Sighing, he thought to himself, despite his old age and being the junior, it would be best to apologize to him and calm the situation. So he went to the back kitchen and asked, "Have you seen Grandpa?"

"Check the basement," they replied.

Passing through the chefs' dishes and the basement, then through the underground garage door to the building exterior, but there was no sign of him. Seeing two employees at a high point, he asked, and they pointed to the main road.

Walking along the roadside, there was no one around, only the quiet green trees. Suddenly, a bus came roaring down the road, forcing him to avoid getting caught under its wheels. He hurriedly pushed against the bus's front windshield with his hands to avoid being swept away, the friction between his palms and the glass sending him flying...

After packing up, Li Haojun calmly sat down, reflecting on the chaotic dreams of the morning, for no apparent reason.

"Are you ready?" Tan Wenjing asked.

"Yes," Li Haojun replied, picking up his backpack and following her out the door.

Tan Wenjing walked ahead, wearing navy blue slim trousers, red high heels, a black PU asymmetrical ruffled waist jacket, a red baseball cap with a single ponytail peeking out, tear-shaped ruby earrings, and a black silk scarf wrapped around her neck.

Following Tan Wenjing to the roadside, they found John already waiting there. He was driving a fixed-wing flying car, evidently indulging in nostalgia. After exchanging greetings, the three set off.

After driving along a stretch of open straight road, John ascended into the air. Li Haojun and Tan Wenjing sat in the back, the space cramped, so Li opted to wear his backpack on his chest.

Looking into the rearview mirror, John asked, "Is Ethan okay?"

"Very well, thank you," Tan Wenjing replied, having clarified earlier that she and John were not related, so Li Haojun naturally felt less hostile towards him.

Then John asked Tan Wenjing, "Is your little friend okay?"

Tan Wenjing smiled but didn't say anything. Li Haojun also didn't know how to respond, so he changed the subject and asked, "Is the place we're going to safe? Sorry, I don't remember anything, so I have to ask you, do we need to be cautious about anything?"

"What should we be cautious about? I notice you only brought one parachute. What about her?" John joked.

"Haha, I think our combined weight, one parachute should be enough," Tan Wenjing interjected.

"What about me then?" John complained jokingly, "Are you not going to safely deliver both of us to our destination?" Tan Wenjing chimed in.

After the banter, John reassured Li Haojun, "Don't worry, although we're heading to the Free Zone, it's not infested with bandits. It just has its unique ecosystem. Just don't meddle in other people's business and avoid unnecessary disputes."

Accompanied by the hum of the engine, the aircraft gradually climbed above the clouds. The deep blue sky and dazzling white clouds formed a stark contrast, with more sunlight streaming into the cabin, burdening the already weak engine cooling.

Both of them in the back row took off their coats. The direct sunlight made Tan Wenjing's skin appear even fairer, while the greenhouse effect in the cabin caused her cheeks to blush, adding to her allure.

Li Haojun admired her for a while, and Tan Wenjing smiled back, looking at Li Haojun with a smile. Suddenly, Li Haojun felt it might not be appropriate to flirt in front of the single man, John, so he gave Tan Wenjing a look, and they both smiled at each other, then turned to look out the window, but their hands remained intertwined. Li Haojun felt that John might have noticed the atmosphere earlier, but he didn't react and continued to focus on driving.

As they approached their destination and descended in altitude, they could see the bay through the clouds. After the major earthquake on the West Coast of the United States, most of the land in the old San Francisco area was lost, leaving only sporadic high and low spots along the coast, along with waterborne cities constructed on the original building foundations.

With the reduction in land and population, the city lost not only its former prosperity but also the implementation of the responsibility system for personal actions and consequences during the Silicon Age, eradicating the parasitic dependence on non-creating behavior transfer payments. The pendulum of extreme left seemed to swing to the extreme right, there were no welfare benefits here because there was no longer a large-scale economic foundation, people had to learn self-reliance, seemingly returning to the early days of European pioneers landing on the East Coast of North America. However, unlike then, technological advancement had effectively excluded ordinary people, rendering them without a ticket of admission and making it difficult to have the same expectations of a bright future as centuries ago.

John's flying car landed in San Mateo County, and the mountainous areas were still intact. Outside the flying car landing site were simple commercial establishments. The original Silicon Valley industry had developed to a stage where it had detached from the mass market, resembling more like big business monopolies. The once prosperous financial derivatives market had also been regulated and restricted following the collapse of the global financial market.

Reaching the meeting point required taking the old San Francisco public transportation, with only a single cantilever light rail running above the water in this area.

Tan Wenjing only carried a small bag, while Li Haojun put down his parachute and wore a backpack containing medical supplies. John, although always dressed in cowboy attire, was fully equipped this time, with silver antique-style revolvers slung across his shoulders, a belt with bullet pouches, and brass-cased metal silver bullets. This cowboy had no horse, but he released a metallic mechanical dog from the car trunk, made entirely of stainless steel with a mirror-polished surface, carrying a storage bag on its back, with one side revealing a wooden gunstock of a long rifle.

Soon the light rail train arrived, consisting of only three carriages, unmanned, with a silver base color adorned with orange decorative stripes, but corroded by seawater.

The three boarded the train, with only a few scattered elderly passengers, possibly local residents. As the train left the mountaintop, all that could be seen below was water, with the original

 residential areas now submerged underwater. Some indigenous people were unwilling to leave or lived on boats, finding an anchor point. Some elevated their original buildings so that some lightweight houses could still support themselves above the sea level.

The train passed by their lives, showing how they lived. At the Norris Hills station, the light rail gradually appeared more bustling, with more young people coming and going, along with simple commercial and social venues. There were more passengers on the train, including avant-garde dressed youth and suit-clad middle-aged professionals. Further ahead was the original Union Square area of San Francisco, many of the skyscrapers were still standing, and gradually formed a new bustling city around them, but the scale was no longer the same as before. However, the once prosperity and refined lifestyle seemed to have not left there and the people within.

John, Tan Wenjing, and Li Haojun got off at the Square station.

"You guys go ahead, I'll bring up the rear," John said.

"Okay," Tan Wenjing agreed, leading the way while Li Haojun followed closely behind, smiling and nodding at John. He understood that John was ensuring their safety.

The lightweight urban buildings no longer allowed vehicles to pass, and the sidewalks extended according to the original building. This area was no longer the high-end financial business it used to be, but primarily focused on entertainment, led by the virtual entertainment technology of the Wisdom Dream Realm, catering to the needs of some individuals with special preferences. In that virtual world, they could experience any sensation that was impossible, unattainable, or even legally prohibited in the real world.

Of course, in addition to the excitement and enjoyment brought by new technology, the primitive desires of thousands of years still coexisted, and mechanical companionship had also entered the scene. The once red light district had evolved into a space-tech silver.

Contrasted with the lives of ordinary people on the roadside, there were street performances, musical instruments, and beggars.

Soon they arrived at the Wisdom Dream Realm Technology Company, now a landmark building, with its solid strength supporting a small square in front of the building. Around the square were retail clothing stores, commercial equipment repair and consumables, McDonald's, Domino's Pizza, Starbucks Wisdom Square stores, and other simple dining and service establishments, evoking memories of the once prosperous era.

What caught Li Haojun's attention was an old lady selling flowers on the edge of the square, not bouquets, but potted flowers, including chrysanthemums, tulips, and potted roses. The old lady was quite old, with a thin face, sitting on the edge of the square with her back against a hand-pulled cart, seemingly having pulled these flowers over from elsewhere. There were also beggars on this street, but given her age, she could have easily been one of them, yet she wasn't.

Walking up the steps into the Wisdom Dream Realm lobby, they were informed at the front desk that the technical personnel from Neo Memory had already arrived. They were only three people, but the other two were well-built in suits, seeming like bodyguards. After some introductions, it turned out that the technical service personnel from Neo Memory was Steven Park, with single eyelids and a small black mustache, with a stern face and dressed casually, wearing a gray hooded collar on top and denim 5-point pants with sneakers on the bottom.

Subsequently, the group followed the management personnel of Wisdom Dream Realm to the central control room, where they handed over the medicine and Steven began adjusting the drug dosage, observing the long-term immersion user's brainwave response data. From the data monitoring, some people had good synchronization with the device, some were average. From the user's emotional data, some were joyful, some sad, some excited, and some calm. Li Haojun couldn't help but sigh that despite the same joys and sorrows, some people just couldn't accept themselves in the real world.

After completing the planned tasks, the personnel from both sides left. Passing through the lobby, they still saw occasional customers coming to the front desk for inquiries. Most of them were receiving short-term services for temporary entertainment. Some came for psychological treatment with a doctor's prescription. Some voluntarily wrote university courses into their brains during immersion mode. Was this considered cheating? Technological advancements gave humans more options, but these options inevitably became a double-edged sword, depending on individual choices.

Leaving the Wisdom Dream Realm company, it was already noon, and the three went directly to Domino's Pizza to order lunch. Looking through the window, Li Haojun saw the old lady still there, with no customers. This square was already a place with more foot traffic, but they were all in a hurry. Without saying anything to the other two, Li Haojun left alone, returning to the flower seller. He squatted down and asked about the prices. They were all priced at $2, $3, and $5, but he truly didn't know what he could do with that money. Li Haojun accepted all the roses, as he liked them, and chose two tulip bulbs. The old lady patiently packed them into a shopping bag she had picked up from elsewhere and handed it to him.

Carrying the newly bought flowers back to the pizza shop, Tan Wenjing said nothing, just smiled at Li Haojun. John lifted his cowboy hat and chuckled, "Good lad."

Li Haojun smiled shyly, put down the flowers, and ordered another box of pizza and two drinks, carrying them over to the old lady. Through the window, John and Tan Wenjing ate while watching Li Haojun. He shared the food with the old lady, pointing at different flowers and asking something. The afternoon sun seemed slightly dimmed, sprinkling on the small square through the reflections of the tall buildings, enveloping the flower song.