Chapter 8: The Bullet That Travels Through Time

Facing the camera, Jiang Zhe began to explain:

"Kennedy's assassin was Oswald."

"Last century, on November 22, 1963, at 12:30 PM, Kennedy was assassinated."

"Oswald followed the plan; he knew the presidential motorcade would pass the intersection in front of the building exactly at 12:30 PM."

"But when Oswald arrived at the rooftop on time according to his watch, he found that the motorcade had already passed."

"He checked and found the reason: his watch was actually five minutes slow. While his watch read 12:30 PM, the correct external time was 12:35 PM."

"But Kennedy was no longer at the intersection in his crosshairs. So, what was he to do?"

As soon as he said this, the bullet screen comments replied instantly.

"Give up, definitely give up!"

"Exactly, the person has already passed; shooting now would be useless!"

"Wait, something feels off. Let's listen more; don't jump to conclusions!"

Inside the frame.

A faint smile played on Jiang Zhe's lips as he continued his explanation methodically:

"I guessed some viewers would say to give up!"

"After all, Kennedy is no longer at the intersection, so Oswald surely couldn't kill him, right?"

"No, no, no. That's not actually what happened!"

"Oswald didn't actually give up. He raised his rifle and, at the correct time of 12:35 PM, pulled the trigger several times toward the empty road."

"Meanwhile, at 12:35 PM, the presidential motorcade had already reached its destination."

"Just then, the accompanying bodyguards and the First Lady turned around, only to discover in shock that Kennedy had quietly been hit by several bullets and had already passed away."

"The question arises: how could bullets fired at 12:35 PM hit Kennedy at 12:30 PM?"

At these words, everyone fell into deep thought.

Of course, this applied to the viewers who were unfamiliar with the delayed choice experiment.

Did the bullets travel through time? Did they travel back five minutes?

This was the thought in most people's minds.

Inside the conference room.

Station Manager Zhao, Old Zhao, looked at Wang Lin, seeking an answer.

Wang Lin shook his head slightly. "Although I know, revealing the answer ahead of time doesn't seem like a good choice."

Xiao Shiyi said helplessly, "This is just your home turf for once. Wait until it's my turn; you'll see how I play with you all!"

As expected, Jiang Zhe smiled and began to explain directly:

"Many are wondering why the bullets would travel back five minutes. In fact, it isn't time travel!"

"What I've said seems illogical; after all, no one can kill someone in the present from five minutes in the future."

"If we break it down further!"

"The scenario you heard sounds like Oswald fired shots at 12:35 PM and killed Kennedy at 12:30 PM. Did the bullets travel back five minutes in time?"

"No, the bullets didn't travel back five minutes!"

"Actually, at the moment Oswald fired at 12:35 PM, there was a hidden element in a place we cannot see—"

"This element occurs within the microscopic world!"

"That hidden element is exactly this: Oswald's act of pulling the trigger at 12:35 PM changed his past self who was on the way to assassinate Kennedy."

"By firing at 12:35 PM, he caused his past self to discover earlier that his watch was five minutes fast compared to the outside world!"

"Once his past self adjusted the watch, his past self finally pulled the trigger at 12:30 PM when Kennedy passed the building, resulting in Kennedy's death."

"So, firing at 12:35 PM was for the purpose of [Oswald making a choice], specifically a [delayed choice]. After all, in the microscopic world, the purpose of a [delayed choice] is to cause a change in one's past self, which then coordinates with the current self to complete the assassination of Kennedy."

"So, Oswald succeeded!"

Jiang Zhe smiled slightly and continued to explain.

"Yes, this story sounds absurd and fantastical, but in the microscopic world, the relationship between past, present, and future isn't important; therefore, these actions can occur and exist!"

He tapped the whiteboard on the desk again: [Quantum Delayed Choice Experiment!]

One shouldn't overthink it; a little thought makes one feel that everything in the macroscopic world doesn't apply to the microscopic world!

After hearing it all, the audience was stunned once again.

If the first example was just a novelty, this second one was practically grinding a normal person's worldview into the dirt!

Shooting now to make the past self change their choice and then kill Kennedy at the correct time in the past?

The more they thought about it, the more convoluted and absurd it seemed!

This was exactly what was on every viewer's mind.

"So amazing! On the surface, this is just a bullet that travels through time!"

"Right? Even someone like me who doesn't like science can listen with such interest in front of this handsome guy!"

"I wish I'd seen this sooner! Why didn't you start hosting earlier? No other station's host explains things as clearly as you do!"

"My body tells me I shouldn't watch this show anymore, but it's not listening to my brain's commands."

"Holy crap, what kind of show is this? The more I listen, the more hooked I get."

"Damn, this show is addictive; the more you try not to watch, the more you want to!"

"..."

...

Inside the leadership conference room.

Having received Jiang Zhe's final answer, everyone found it hard to believe.

Even though Jiang Zhe explained that the bullet didn't travel from 12:35 back to 12:30.

Most of the leaders still believed the bullet had traveled through time, as they simply couldn't believe a present action could change an action from five minutes in the past.

Old Zhao kept shaking his head. "Incredible, it's still just incredible!"

Wang Guosheng racked his brain, feeling as if his worldview had been shattered. "Just why?"

Gradually, some people looked toward Wang Lin, hoping for an explanation.

This time, Wang Lin didn't keep them in suspense and explained directly, "Because—the [hidden element] Teacher Jiang mentioned actually happens in the microscopic world. In essence, Oswald firing at 12:35 PM cannot kill the Kennedy of 12:35 PM."

"So, Teacher Jiang's example only applies to the microscopic world. In the macroscopic world—the world we see—"

"Because Oswald was late, he fired into an empty space, so in reality, he didn't succeed in killing Kennedy!"

These words sent a shock through the room, with leaders continuously voicing their confusion.

"So this example only works for the microscopic world?"

"Heavens, now that you put it that way, I understand!"

"..."

It was now nearly 11:00 PM.

Old Zhao's phone rang suddenly.

As soon as he answered, it was the person in charge of ratings, Old Wang.

"Old Zhao, Old Zhao! Fantastic news! The number of concurrent viewers has broken 800,000!"

"Teacher Jiang Zhe was absolutely incredible this time; he's directly boosted the ratings by dozens of times."

"The backend shows many viewers are from other cities; local viewers only account for 35%. Our show finally won't be canceled!"

Old Wang's tone fluctuated with excitement, as if he were witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime miracle.

Station Manager Zhao, Old Zhao's breathing quickened as he asked in disbelief, "8... 8... 800,000?"

This number of concurrent viewers had surpassed the highest ratings for local stations in recent years.

Even the local station's New Year's Gala during the Spring Festival couldn't compare to Jiang Zhe's current broadcast.

...