Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

Chapter 249: Laugh at the ridicule and move forward courageously

Hu Bugui was holding the steering wheel, but the car was driving much slower than usual. He turned his head and glanced at the tired Wu Tao in the passenger seat, feeling mixed emotions. He knew that Wu Tao needed encouragement and support more than anyone else at this moment.

When they returned to the studio, they were not greeted with the expected cheers and excitement, but rather a dead silence. Their colleagues looked at them with complicated expressions, their eyes full of doubt and disappointment.

"What do you mean?" Wu Tao was the first to break the silence, with a barely perceptible tremor in his tone.

"Wu Tao, Mr. Hu, we..." One of the partners hesitated and finally sighed, "We don't believe that you can really travel through time and space."

"Yes," another partner agreed, "The energy source is too incredible. We are worried..."

"Are you worried that we are scammers?" Hu Bugui took over the conversation with a cold tone.

"That's not what we meant..." The companions explained hurriedly, but their eyes betrayed their true thoughts.

The news spread quickly in the circle like wings. People who once admired them now looked down on them. All kinds of rumors spread like wildfire, pushing Wu Tao and Hu Bugui to the forefront.

"Have you heard? That Wu Tao is not a business genius at all. All her success was obtained by cheating with that energy source!"

"And that Mr. Hu, just to attract attention, actually followed her in making trouble, how ridiculous!"

"They are just a bunch of liars. They will be exposed sooner or later!"

These harsh words, like sharp blades, ruthlessly stung the hearts of Wu Tao and Hu Bugui. They had imagined the scene of successful time travel countless times, but never thought they would face such a situation.

Facing doubts and ridicule, Wu Tao took a deep breath and her eyes gradually became firm. She turned around, looked at Hu Bugui with burning eyes, and said word by word: "Bugui, we..."

"We can't let these rumors defeat us," Wu Tao said, tired but resolute. "We must let them see our determination and our dedication to our dreams!"

Hu Bugui held Wu Tao's hand with his backhand and gave her a firm look, "You are right, we can't give up!"

They decided not to remain silent and to respond to the doubts with practical actions. They rented the largest auditorium in the city center and announced their crossing plan to the public. As soon as the news came out, it immediately caused an uproar.

On the day of the speech, the auditorium was packed. People came with curiosity, suspicion, and even ridicule, wanting to witness this farce with their own eyes.

The lights came on, and Wu Tao and Hu Bugui walked onto the stage side by side. There was a murmur from the audience, mixed with a few harsh laughs.

"Hello everyone, I'm Wu Tao." Wu Tao's voice was clear and powerful, drowning out the noise from the audience. "I know that many people came here today with a skeptical attitude, thinking that we are making up lies to attract attention."

"That's right," Hu Bugui took the microphone, his tone calm and firm, "We are indeed doing something that is difficult for ordinary people to understand, but this is not a delusion, nor is it a scam. We are serious about traveling through time and space!"

They began to show the public all the information they had collected, including ancient records, photos of historical relics, and even the time-travel equipment models they made by themselves. Wu Tao spoke passionately about their yearning for the Tang Dynasty, their love for history, and their vision for the future. Her sincere eyes and infectious words gradually softened the originally skeptical eyes of the audience.

Hu Bugui explained in detail the feasibility of their crossing plan from a scientific perspective. He used professional knowledge and rigorous logic to deduce their plan step by step, trying to make those who doubted them understand that theirs was not a fantasy, but an exploration based on science.

The speech lasted for three hours, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui showed their dreams and determination to the public without reservation. At the end of the speech, thunderous applause broke out from the audience. Many people were moved by their sincerity and courage and began to believe that they really could realize their dream of traveling through time and space.

However, at this moment, a discordant voice came from the corner...

"This is simply a fantasy! Do you think you are gods? Can you travel through time and space?" A sharp voice cut through the applause. An old man with glasses and gray hair stood up from the crowd, his face full of sneers, "I have studied history for decades and have never heard of such a ridiculous thing!"

The old man's words seemed to open Pandora's box, and the originally quiet meeting place became noisy again. Questions and ridicules came one after another, like buckets of cold water poured on the hearts of Wu Tao and Hu Bugui.

"Scammers! They just want to cheat you out of your money!"

"Young people nowadays will do anything to become famous!"

"Don't waste time, go to the mental hospital!"

Faced with the tide of doubts and ridicule, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui felt unprecedentedly powerless. They originally thought that as long as they sincerely presented their plans to the public, they would be understood and supported, but reality dealt them a heavy blow.

The huge gap between dreams and reality made Wu Tao and Hu Bugui feel extremely frustrated. They were like a small boat trapped in a storm, with no hope and no direction.

A few days later, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui came to the library to look up some information about time travel and try to find a solution to the problem. They flipped through the books aimlessly, feeling heavy-hearted as if they were filled with lead.

"Hello, are you looking for information about time travel?" A gentle voice sounded in their ears.

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui looked up and saw an old lady in plain clothes standing in front of them, holding a thick ancient book in her hand. The old lady had kind eyes and a kind smile on her face, which made people feel good about her.

"Hello... hello." Wu Tao was a little surprised. She didn't expect someone to take the initiative to greet them, and it was an old lady who seemed to have nothing to do with "time travel".

"Don't be nervous, kids." The old lady said with a smile, "My name is Lin Qing. I was once as curious about time travel as you are."

"You...you mean..." Hu Bugui widened his eyes and looked at the old man in front of him in disbelief.

"That's right," Grandma Lin Qing nodded with a smile, "I once traveled to the Song Dynasty and lived there for ten years."

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui were stunned. They had never imagined that this ordinary-looking old lady was actually a real "time traveler".

Grandma Lin Qing handed the ancient book in her hand to Wu Tao, pointed to one of the pages and said: "Child, this road is difficult, but as long as you stick to your dreams and never give up..." Her eyes were deep and firm, as if she could penetrate time and space and see the future.

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui were deeply moved by Grandma Lin Qing's story. They seemed to see a ray of light in the darkness. Grandma Lin Qing's words also rekindled their hope. They decided to change their strategy and stop trying to convince everyone. Instead, they focused on their own plan and let the facts speak for themselves.

"We don't need to explain to everyone," Wu Tao said firmly, "As long as we succeed, it will be the best response to those who doubt us."

Hu Bugui nodded, with a determined light in his eyes, "We must believe in ourselves and believe that we can do it."

They thanked Grandma Lin Qing and returned to the laboratory with a more resolute belief. The entrepreneurial partners were still busy. Although they had experienced doubts and ridicule from the outside world, their trust in Wu Tao and Hu Bugui had not diminished at all.

"Don't worry, we all believe in you!"

"Come on! We will succeed!"

The encouragement and support from their partners gave Wu Tao and Hu Bugui more strength. They devoted themselves to the crossing plan and carried out the final preparations day and night.

However, just before they were about to start the time travel plan, a sudden change put their plan into crisis again. The core equipment of the laboratory, the energy converter that connects the modern and Tang Dynasty time tunnels, suddenly broke down and could not operate normally.

"How could this happen?" Wu Tao asked anxiously, "Is there something wrong?"

The technician frowned as he checked every part of the equipment. "We have checked all possible places where the problem might have occurred, but we still can't find the cause."

Time passed by, and the scheduled time for the crossing was getting closer and closer, but the equipment failure had not been eliminated. Wu Tao and Hu Bugui's hearts sank little by little as time passed.

"Are... we really going to give up?" Wu Tao's voice trembled a little. She turned to look at Hu Bugui, her eyes full of helplessness and confusion.

Hu Bugui held Wu Tao's hand tightly, his eyes firm and deep, "No, we can't give up! There must be a way..."

Before he finished speaking, the door of the laboratory was suddenly pushed open, and a familiar figure appeared at the door, "Taotao..."