"Yes, this meeting was originally scheduled for October, but we just received notification that it has been moved up three days."
Tom handed a fax to Jack.
"This won't affect you much; luckily you returned from Antarctica ahead of schedule..."
Otherwise, it might not be possible to travel from Antarctica to New Delhi in three days.
Jack wasn't too concerned about his upcoming speech at the conference; he was more interested in something else. "What caused this conference to be held so suddenly ahead of schedule?"
Tom paused for a moment, then said, "It's probably related to that paper; it's definitely the result of pressure from the other side."
"Anyway, this is not important to us. You just need to give your report at the meeting. What happens behind the scenes is none of your business, and you have no right to participate."
Tom offered a kind reminder.
Jack thought for a while before replying helplessly, "Alright then, I'll go prepare now..."
Hedland Climate Observation Center, Scotland.
An old man was sitting in a small room reading a newspaper. On the table next to him was a cup of steaming black tea. A little further on was a television set that was on, in which a bald, middle-aged man was intently watching a football match.
The atmosphere inside the room was as relaxed as if we were on vacation.
"Professor... Professor!"
A young Black man rushed in from outside, immediately drawing the old man's attention.
Professor Terry Rapson put away his newspaper and glanced habitually at the computer screen in the room.
The screen displays line after line of data, all transmitted in real time by weather buoys deployed in the ocean by their observation center.
Everything is normal.
Only then did Professor Rapson leisurely turn to his Black student. "What's wrong? What happened?"
" The New Delhi climate conference has been decided to be held earlier than planned, so you probably need to start preparing, Professor."
"It was held ahead of schedule?"
"Yes, Professor, I just received the news. I confirmed it twice. Are you still going? I heard this conference seems to be quite significant..."
"It seems to be related to the recent rumors of climate catastrophe?"
Professor Rapson smiled faintly and said slowly, "What's there to be afraid of? The things behind this have nothing to do with us. We've only ever cared about the future of humanity."
"Furthermore, in my opinion, while the paper on climate catastrophe is radical, it's not entirely without merit. Perhaps this event will make the whole world pay attention to the issue of global warming... Also, it would be even better if we could communicate with the authors of that paper this time."
After speaking, Professor Rapson slowly rose from his chair and returned to his room to prepare his belongings.
And around the world, there are many meteorologists like him.
Some people are rushing back from Antarctica research stations, while others are woken up in the middle of the night, startled, and immediately call to check flight tickets...
Many people could guess that something special would happen at this meeting.
But the more this is the case, the more meteorologists want to join in the fun.
Just as most people guessed.
The early holding of the climate change conference was a result of pressure exerted by Zhong Ruijin.
Although it is still the beginning of the new century and our voices don't carry much weight in many places in China, when we really put our efforts into it, pushing for a climate conference that has nothing to do with the major political and economic directions to be held ahead of schedule is still a piece of cake.
However, at this moment, the news of the climate conference being brought forward immediately became the focus of the entire world outside of North America.
Everyone knows that Zhong Ruijin making a big fuss about climate issues lately. Although the specific purpose is unknown, the climate conference held ahead of schedule must be part of it.
The whole world is waiting for China's new moves at the climate conference.
Becker's office.
His secretary has informed him of the latest news.
"The climate change conference has been asked to be held earlier?"
"Yes, this is the result of Mr. Zhong's intervention. The United Nations agreed to his request, and New Delhi has also indicated that it will respect this decision..."
"Tsk!" Becker's mood suddenly soured, or rather, he hadn't been happy since he learned from Chai Ping that dozens of countries had decided to visit the country in the upcoming September.
Things weren't quite as he had imagined.
In his mind, upon hearing such absurd news as climate catastrophe, shouldn't everyone laugh at the other person for being out of their mind?
Why are those countries still skeptical and wanting to verify this...?
"Sir," the secretary said, pulling out the previously prepared itinerary, "As planned, you are scheduled to attend this conference and listen to the meteorologists' presentations..."
Before the secretary could finish speaking, Becker waved his hand.
"I'm not going. They want to turn New Delhi into their home turf and then pressure me there. I won't go and talk to them."
"What about the other people who are scheduled to attend?"
"... Then only meteorological personnel will be allowed to attend the meeting. We will not establish any communication channels with them until they voluntarily admit their mistakes."
After understanding her boss's meaning, the secretary quickly left.
Three days is neither a long nor a short time.
Jack flew to New Delhi the day after receiving the news.
He was among the first to arrive.
Following him, delegations from various countries arrived one after another, followed by a much larger number of media outlets than in previous years.
"There are so many more reporters this year than in previous years."
Jack returned to the hotel from the street and told Frank and Jason in the room what he had seen and heard outside.
"There are reporters everywhere; the number of reporters at the previous meetings combined doesn't even equal this one."
Jason lay in bed and sneezed a few times, saying, "Ken..."
It must be because of that paper; everyone's focused on New Delhi now... Haha!
"Damn, it's colder in New Delhi than I expected."
Frank, who was looking at documents with his glasses on, looked up.
"It's not just a little colder; during this unusual cold snap, the average temperature in New Delhi dropped by a full 53 degrees Fahrenheit compared to August of previous years."
"If we're talking about temperatures in Celsius, the lowest temperature these past few days has only been 14 degrees Celsius. It's almost unbelievable that this is the temperature at the end of August..."
"It's surprisingly cold outside, but it's still much colder than Antarctica." Jack took off his coat and threw it on the bed.
Jason, huddled under the covers, sighed. "I'm starting to believe what the papers say; this weather is just too abnormal."
Frank took off his glasses.
"Not necessarily. This might just be an isolated incident. I foresee heavy rainstorms in the next few days, which could also be one of the reasons for the low temperatures..."
"Not necessarily," Jack suddenly spoke up, and the other two looked at him.
"What's wrong? What did you see outside?"
Jack pondered for a moment, then said, "I just visited the delegations from other countries, and I found that besides meteorologists, there were many officials, just as many as journalists—far more than in previous years."
"Of course, we don't have a delegation..."
The other two remained silent. Their delegation consisted of only a few people; the entire Becker group, who had originally agreed to come, had turned down the invitation, forcing the three of them to share a room, or they would have to pay for their own rooms.
Other countries, in stark contrast, stand out.
At least in their attitude towards climate change, they take it much more seriously than they do domestically.
Or rather, the level of importance attached to it is somewhat abnormal.
"I tried talking to those officials, and they all seemed very secretive, as if they were hiding something."
"I sneaked closer when they weren't looking, but all I heard them say were a few words, like 'parallel universes' and 'brotherly nations'... I had no idea what they meant."
Those officials can't possibly be studying international allies and discussing physics theories at the same time, can they?
This is what confuses Jack the most.
In his opinion, these two words don't fit together at all.
Jack openly shared the information he had overheard, which startled the other two. Jason scrambled to the door, peeked through the peephole, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that no one was around.
Frank also advised, "Don't do these things anymore. Knowing too much can be dangerous. You should think carefully about what you need to revise in your speech for the Day After Tomorrow."
"... Nothing needs to be changed."
Jack lay down on the bed, staring at the ceiling, still unable to stop thinking about the strange words he had just heard...
Until the day before the conference.
The atmosphere in New Delhi has become visibly tense.
Jack, who shuttles between delegations from various countries every day, can feel this atmosphere even more.
He discovered that officials from various countries were fully engaged in their diplomatic efforts, and information they were unaware of, but which was likely related to climate catastrophe, seemed to be rapidly circulating within a specific group, riding the undercurrents of the situation.
This made him really eager to try it.
Until the domestic delegation arrived.
Jack arrived as soon as he heard the news, and there he saw a figure he'd only seen twice before, yet who seemed strangely familiar—
"Liu!"
From a distance, Jack waved and rushed forward.
Thanks to Liu Chunshi's timely reminder, Jack would have been pinned to the ground by the accompanying security personnel.
"I have something to ask you, Liu!"
Liu Chunshi glanced around. "Then let's go back to the room and talk."
Jack followed Liu Chunshi back to his room, casually found a chair to sit down, and couldn't wait to ask:
"Liu, is everything you're saying true?"
Do you really think a massive storm will sweep across the Northern Hemisphere in October?
Liu Chunshi also found a chair, sat down opposite him, and calmly said, "Didn't we already tell you about this back in Antarctica?"
"But you didn't say back then that your position was so important, that you... that you could instigate such a huge event, and now the focus of the entire world is on you."
Liu Chunshi simply laughed off Jack's words.
You've misunderstood something. I wasn't the one who stirred up all of this.
"He's my boss."
"Your boss?" Jack didn't understand.
Liu Chunshi said, "When we were in Antarctica, I often stood next to him."
Jack thought for a moment and immediately remembered.
"But that person is so young..."
Jack glanced at Liu Chunshi, then recalled Zhang Tianyuan's excessively youthful face from his memory.
No matter where in the world, it is normal for older people to hold high positions. For example, he himself, as a researcher in the niche field of paleoclimate research, has reached his current position not only because of his outstanding abilities, but also because he has worked his way up through twenty years of experience.
His boss Tom, and his colleague Frank, were also involved; one could even foresee Jason's "fate" eighteen years later...
"Is that young man also a meteorologist?"
Liu Chunshi shook his head. "No, but you'll soon find out his identity. Let's get back to the main topic now."
"We are 100% certain that climate catastrophe will happen, so we have been advising you, and the whole world, to take precautions in advance."
"But Liu! This is too unbelievable, even to me..."
But aren't you already...?
"Do you believe me now?" Liu Chunshi's words left Jack speechless.
"If you hadn't believed in our theory, you wouldn't have come to see me today."
Trust your gut feeling, Jack.
Liu Chunshi had already guessed the man's purpose when he saw Jack downstairs at the hotel.
He took his laptop out of his backpack.
A computer from Wandering Spacetime, bearing the logo of the United Government.
Its futuristic appearance immediately caught Jack's attention.
"This is?"
"The computer we use, the data from the papers you saw earlier, comes from its cloud computing... As you wish, I will show you our latest results..."
It took Jack a full six hours to finally return to his hotel in a daze.
"What's wrong? You look strange." Jason was still lying in bed, seemingly writing a letter.
Jack glanced at him, the daze on his face turning into shock.
You have no idea what I just saw.
"Liu... they have alien-like technology..."
Jason:???
The next day.
The New Delhi Climate Conference officially convened amid thunderstorms.
The venue was packed with attendees from all over the world, from climatologists to officials, and everyone's expression was unusually serious.
Television reporters and filming crews broadcast the entire event live.
Of course, North America must be excluded from the scope of global attention.
Numerous reporters, wearing raincoats and carrying umbrellas, braved the rumbling thunder to report from the streets amidst the sounds of traffic and rain.
"We have now arrived in New Delhi, and this is the venue for the climate change conference."
It's thundering and raining today, and the temperature has unusually dropped to 10 degrees Celsius. I wonder if this phenomenon confirms the previously mentioned theories of climate catastrophe...
"... We will be bringing you a live stream of the entire conference here, so please stay tuned."
Besides the reporters outside the venue, there were many other reporters waiting at the entrance to report on the arrival of each delegation.
"Now arriving on site is a delegation from North America, which seems to be the smallest delegation present, and they appear to be consistently denying climate catastrophe theories."
"Interestingly, to our knowledge, the research findings of Jack Hall, a renowned meteorologist in their delegation, are similar to the theories behind this climate catastrophe."
"The delegations entering now have very serious expressions; their numbers are enormous, the largest ever at any climate change conference..."
Becker's office.
The television was showing footage of the climate conference, with Europe presenters introducing each delegation like football players.
Becker frowned at the passionate tone in his voice.
What made him feel even worse was that they had all taken concrete actions to boycott the climate conference, and other countries were not only going to attend, but also sending so many people.
He saw many familiar faces on television.
"Sir, according to our latest information, the other side promised other countries that they would see evidence of the existence of parallel universes at this conference..."
Becker took off his glasses, calmly wiped them, and coldly uttered, "They're talking nonsense."
"Now... the delegation entering now is undoubtedly the star of today's event, everyone!"
Suddenly, the TV presenter's voice became even more impassioned, even drowning out Becker's voice.
Becker looked towards the television.
Sure enough, I saw several familiar faces.
" Liu Chunshi..."
The meteorologists whose names were on that paper had their photos collected and placed on his desk.
Live from New Delhi.
Liu Chunshi was unaware that the world's attention had already been focused on them, and the entire delegation calmly walked into the venue.
Upon entering the venue, Liu Chunshi and his entourage were met with the scrutiny of delegations from various countries.
The officials in the delegation were all sizing them up, whispering amongst themselves.
Zhong Ruijin had previously revealed to his country that they would obtain real evidence of the existence of parallel universes at this conference.
That's why so many of them came this time.
And now, the so-called "evidence of parallel universes" is most likely in the hands of the delegation in front of them.
Jack observed the strange atmosphere in the venue.
The meteorologists and the officials seemed to be in two different worlds. They were both attending the same conference, but the two groups were thinking about completely different things.
Finally, everyone was in place.
The climate conference has officially begun.
Unlike previous years, this year's conference agenda moved exceptionally fast.
Following the opening remarks by the United Nations officials, Liu Chunshi took the stage.
Upon seeing him, the attendees from various countries knew that the main event of the conference had begun.
Even Becker, who was far away in North America, put his glasses back on and stared intently at the television.
Good morning, everyone. I'm sure you've all recently read a paper related to climate catastrophe, which is the result of the hard work of myself and many of my colleagues.
"We are 100% certain that this speculation is true, and we are informing everyone present of this crisis."
However, through these past few days of effort, we have realized that due to differences in our technological and cognitive levels, you may not fully understand the urgency of the crisis we previously disclosed.
"Therefore, we believe that at this moment, we should adopt a more direct approach to engage in dialogue with you."
Before the audience could even think, they saw Liu Chunshi on the podium suddenly move aside.
Then a patch of black quietly unfolded where he had been standing...