19: Chapter 19 Wang Shuo Asks for Leave

This was his first time at school in the true sense, and Wang Shuo felt that everything was a complete mess.

After the matters at the dormitory had come to a temporary close, Wang Shuo immediately went to the office building, wanting to find his counselor and then... ask for leave.

Yes, Wang Shuo was going to ask for leave, right after being absent for forty-six consecutive days.

Wang Shuo didn't need to think to know what kind of fury he would face from his counselor; if he were the counselor and had a student he hadn't seen since the start of the semester, whose only appearance was to ask for leave, he would also blow up on the spot.

More importantly... he was currently sporting a black eye...

Although this was caused by a misunderstanding...

This was very awkward.

But after thinking it over seriously, Wang Shuo realized he had no choice but to go.

Chen Xin had already sent the basic materials to his email. When Wang Shuo saw the attachment, which was a full 2.74 GB, he realized that what he was facing was not a simple little project.

As expected...

After opening the attachment, Wang Shuo was stunned...

These dazzling technical parameters, this lengthy initial design draft, and these requirements specifications thick enough to be published all made Wang Shuo feel a chill down his spine. Back then, let alone coding, even if he tried to read it, he wouldn't have understood it.

Fortunately, fortunately...

Just as Wang Shuo was feeling lucky, he saw another small attachment sent by Chen Xin. It was this thing that hit Wang Shuo like a bolt from the blue, leaving him dumbfounded.

There was no project team, no other people; he himself was the only member of the current project team.

This... this is fake, right?

He hurriedly checked the information and soon felt like life had no meaning.

A project that required a team of at least fifty people now had only him, and what was even more terrifying was... the time was only fifteen days!

No wonder... no wonder Chen Xin had that expression when she heard he wanted a share of the profits; no wonder Chen Xin, with her young miss temper, didn't say a word; no wonder the requirement to get the share was that the entire project must be completed...

So this girl wasn't looking down on him; it was just that this project was a hollow shell that couldn't be completed by one person.

And he had stupidly gone up and made a bet with her. Wasn't that like an old man hanging himself—suicide?

Wang Shuo wanted to slap himself. Why did he have to say that? Why did he need that misplaced conscience? Wouldn't it be great to just lie down and take the one million?

The truth is... it wouldn't be great.

If given another choice, Wang Shuo would still say those words, and he would still choose this path. Don't ask, because Wang Shuo's core socialist values were deeply ingrained in his bones!

But if he could do it all over again, Wang Shuo would never make a bet, even if it killed him.

Of course, Wang Shuo wasn't a total idiot. He had thought about backing out, or at least discussing with Chen Xin to see if he could find a few more helpers. While it wouldn't let him slack off, it would at least make things easier. But when he called and heard a soft "Heh" from the other end of the line, Wang Shuo got angry!

A real man must have the courage to overcome difficulties! He would not shrink from hardships and obstacles. Isn't it just a bet? He made it, so he made it; he would just win it! He vowed to make that girl, Chen Xin, kneel before him and sing "Conquer"! Besides, he wasn't left with nothing; he still had his kidneys!

Ahem... as for singing "Conquer"... he would consider that after he won...

But this made it hard for the school teachers, especially since Wang Shuo had also heard that this teacher, named Teacher Ding Runan, had a famous nickname: the University of Science and Technology Dynamite Barrel, also known as the Central China She-Tyrannosaurus.

Hearing this name made Wang Shuo's scalp tingle a bit.

The office building was not far from the dormitory building, just a ten-minute walk.

Wearing the baseball cap and mask he borrowed from Chen Cheng, Wang Shuo lowered the brim of his cap and walked into the office building with a slightly stealthy air, specifically looking for the stairs to climb all the way to the fourth floor.

It was break time, and there were many people coming and going in the office building.

Wang Shuo stopped a senior student passing by and asked softly, "Hello, senior, I would like to find the counselor, Teacher Ding Runan. Which way should I go?"

"Office 3."

"Thank you."

Office 3.

Teacher Ding Runan was bowing her head, writing her thesis.

This was a thesis studying the current development of Chinese computer Science theory. Unfortunately, this thesis she had racked her brains over had been sent back by her mentor once again.

She couldn't remember how many times this had happened. Every time, she submitted it full of hope, but every time, she would regretfully see it return to her inbox.

Looking at the thesis in front of her, Teacher Ding Runan thought carefully.

She was one of the interns most valued by her mentor's research team, so after graduation, her mentor submitted an application to the school, allowing her to successfully stay on and become a counselor.

Such an opportunity was not something many interns in the entire research team could have.

After staying on, she worked as a counselor while also serving as a researcher in her mentor's research team, responsible for specific research projects.

The huge workload didn't pressure her; instead, it made her even more energetic.

She researched her project even harder. This was a computer intelligence project. The research team believed that to make computers intelligent, in addition to excellent AI Chips, perfect AI software was also indispensable.

This involved complex system engineering, and every aspect required her careful resolution.

This was a very energy-consuming task.

"The concept of machine learning is progressing, and we seem to be constantly approaching the intelligent goal in our hearts. Technologies such as speech recognition, image detection, and machine translation have already begun to be applied in our lives. However, the author believes that machine learning is currently in a very primitive state. The perfection and support of various systems are still major problems that need to be solved urgently. More importantly, machine learning requires machine logic..."

Teacher Ding Runan suddenly felt a bit restless. She picked up the water cup by her side, took a sip of water, and her eyes inadvertently glanced at a form she had placed to the side.

It was a freshman enrollment application form.

Teacher Ding Runan's brows immediately furrowed slightly. She put down her water cup, took the form in her hand, and looked at the name on it—a name she looked at several times a day and was already too familiar with.

"Wang Shuo..."

She gritted her teeth, feeling somewhat angry.

This student, from the start of the semester until now, she had never seen him once. If it weren't for the doctor at the Hospital calling personally to explain the situation, she would have even suspected that this student didn't intend to come at all to avoid military training.

Forty-six days, a full forty-six days.

Drinking and sending himself to the Hospital in a coma for forty-some days was simply... a huge disgrace.

Now, whenever she walked out and saw fellow teachers, she had to take a detour, otherwise someone would always be tactless enough to come up and ask: "I heard a freshman in your class drank and was in a coma for over a month?"

At first, she would politely explain, but she soon realized that explaining was useless. People were just coming up to gossip about the situation; listen to her explanation? How could that be possible.

Watching her colleagues walk away with looks of disbelief on their faces, Teacher Ding Runan gritted her teeth in hatred.

"Wang Shuo... you brat, don't you ever fall into my hands! Otherwise, I'll make you pay!" Teacher Ding Runan thought bitterly to herself.

"Report!"

"Come in." Teacher Ding Runan steadied herself and answered in a deep voice.

"Um... Teacher, I'm here to find Teacher Ding Runan. Is she here?" a slightly shy voice sounded.

"I am she. Speak if you have something to say." As she spoke, Teacher Ding Runan looked up at the student who had walked in, and at this glance, she was stunned.

What... is this thing?

"Ah, are you Teacher Ding Runan?" the student who came in said in a muffled voice. Then, seemingly realizing his mistake, he quickly took off the Sun Wukong mask he was wearing, revealing a delicate face, but the bruised black eye on his right eye ruined the overall harmony.

He smiled a little shyly: "Hello, Teacher."

Wang Shuo carefully observed the Teacher Ding Runan in front of him, who was already famous to him.

In the descriptions of his many roommates, Teacher Ding had already been linked to a terrifying, bloodthirsty demon.

Zheng Jun said she was a brutal instructor, more brutal than his own father; Chen Cheng said she was an unpopular old woman, who didn't understand any romance and had no feelings; Li Li didn't say anything, but nodded silently.

In short, the two agreed that the nickname "University of Science and Technology She-Tyrannosaurus" was more appropriate.

"Remember, when you go, be respectful. Admit your mistakes when you should, apologize when you should. Once you notice the counselor's expression looks off, find an excuse to slip away immediately. Whatever you do, don't say you're here to ask for leave. Finally... take care, brother!"

Is it really that serious?

Wang Shuo looked at the teacher in front of him, who wore a surprised expression, and rubbed his head, saying, "Teacher, my name is Wang Shuo. I'm here to..."

"You are Wang Shuo?!"

Hm? What's with this intense feeling of disbelief and gnashing of teeth?

Wang Shuo braced himself and said, "Yes, I am Wang Shuo. The genuine article."

"You finally... know to come and report? You finally... remembered that you still have me as a teacher?" Teacher Ding Runan gritted her teeth, her voice strained. She was afraid that if she didn't control herself, she would explode right there.

"Uh... Teacher, you might have misunderstood..." Wang Shuo said, feeling a bit embarrassed, "I came to ask you if it's possible to take a few days off?"

Teacher Ding Runan stared wide-eyed at Wang Shuo, seemingly unable to believe there could be such a shameless student. "Take what? Say that again?"

"It's like this, Teacher. I have something very important to do right now and need to take half a month off, so I came to ask you if it's possible to..."

"No!" Teacher Ding Runan finally exploded. She furrowed her brows, her angry eyes seemingly about to swallow Wang Shuo whole. "Student Wang Shuo! Because of your own personal affairs, you have already severely delayed your academic progress! And now you have the nerve to come to me asking for leave? And for over ten days at that? Is your own business that important? Huh?"

"Let me ask you, have you selected your minor courses?"

"No." Wang Shuo rubbed his nose.

"Have you joined any clubs?"

"No."

"Have you attended any classes?"

"No."

"Have you seen me?"

"Uh... no."

"Nothing! And you still dare to come and ask for leave? What are you taking leave for? To date? Or to get into fights?"

Looking at Wang Shuo's dark, bruised circles under his eyes, Teacher Ding Runan became angrier the more she thought about it. She waved her hand, "Go back. Don't mention the leave again! Now that you've come to see me, your long-term sick leave is cancelled. If you dare to skip class again, I'll mark you down every single time. Once you hit the limit, you'll be dealt with according to school regulations!"

"But... Teacher..."

Wang Shuo still wanted to explain, but Teacher Ding Runan didn't want to hear another word. She just waved him away, telling Wang Shuo to leave while she continued fiddling with the papers on her desk.

Wang Shuo felt helpless. Watching Teacher Ding Runan, who was ignoring him, he secretly wondered what he could do to successfully get his leave approved.

Suddenly, he saw the paper Teacher Ding Runan was reading. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a paper related to Computer Science, and it appeared to be focused on Machine Intelligence.

This seemed to overlap somewhat with the knowledge he had already extracted from the Core, didn't it?

It's just that ever since Wang Shuo obtained the Core, he hadn't had time to verify whether the technology between the two universes was compatible. If it wasn't compatible...

Thinking of this, Wang Shuo immediately broke into a cold sweat. It's always better to be safe than sorry; what if it really wasn't compatible?

Give it a try.

Wang Shuo gritted his teeth, silently closed his eyes, and began to access the Core's database, retrieving all the information regarding primitive intelligent computers.

The development process of the Humanoid Race was also a process of informatization. Computers also went through several evolutions, eventually giving birth to the most basic intelligent light-computers, abbreviated as Smart Brains. But before the Smart Brains were born, what the Humanoid Race used were still circuits and computers. Of course, even those circuits and computers were much more advanced than what humans have now.

What Wang Shuo retrieved was this part of the content. In the Core's database, this content wasn't extensive, and Wang Shuo didn't retrieve it all at once; he only intercepted a small portion to deal with the immediate difficulty. But even so, the massive data flow made Wang Shuo feel dizzy, and his body instantly felt weak. At the same time, a familiar warm current flowed from his nose.

Wang Shuo knew this was a stress reaction caused by his brain operating rapidly within a few minutes, leading to insufficient energy supply to his body.

But fortunately, Wang Shuo had already grasped what he needed. Now, all that was left was to give it a try.

He opened his eyes, just in time to meet Teacher Ding Runan's somewhat dissatisfied gaze.

"Why haven't you left yet? I'm telling you clearly, leave is impossible, so don't even think about it." She tossed him a roll of paper and huffed, "Your body is so weak that you get a nosebleed just from standing for a while. Wipe it off."

Wang Shuo embarrassedly rolled up the paper and stuffed it into his nostril, his movements very practiced. He then said, "Teacher, I was just about to leave, but I accidentally saw your paper. It just so happens that I am very interested in this area, so I took a look for a while longer. You don't mind, do you, Teacher?"

"Reading my paper?" Teacher Ding Runan raised an eyebrow, her expression softening slightly. "You can understand it? And you're bleeding from the nose and sweating profusely... Is it that hot in here?"

Wang Shuo smiled bitterly and wiped his sweat. Sweating or whatever was truly normal for a mental laborer.

"I understand a little, but you were flipping through it too fast, Teacher. I would like to carefully read your paper."

Teacher Ding Runan nodded. There was nothing wrong with letting a student look at her paper; after all, it was written for people to read. She handed the paper to Wang Shuo.

Wang Shuo didn't stand on ceremony; he took the paper and began to read it carefully from the beginning.

He hadn't guessed wrong. This was a paper analyzing the trends of machine intelligence. The paper detailed the history of machine intelligence development, from the earliest simple programs to later complex programs, and then to current system programs that easily reach tens or hundreds of gigabytes in size. It included various dazzling algorithmic systems, and Teacher Ding Runan had even added some of her own ideas, making predictions about the trends of intelligence and categorizing the five major schools of thought that have emerged in the trend of intelligence development, while also proposing her own arguments. However, based on current theoretical systems, the foresight of these predictions was immeasurable.

"How is it? How much did you understand?"

Seeing Wang Shuo look up, Teacher Ding Runan asked casually. Making a freshman read this kind of paper was really putting them in a difficult spot.

"I understood a little," Wang Shuo replied, frowning.

"Understanding a little is not bad. Machine intelligence systems engineering is knowledge you will only learn and encounter in the future. For now, having a general understanding is enough. Alright, you've finished reading the paper, hurry back now."

Teacher Ding Runan took her paper back from Wang Shuo and waved at him.

"But I have a question, Teacher Ding." Wang Shuo said on his own accord, "On page five of your paper, you listed more than a dozen machine learning algorithms. I saw that they included decision trees, support vector machines, Naive Bayes classification, recurrent neural networks, etc. You also proposed a new algorithm you developed and explained its feasibility. But why not add a neural logic module to the computer?"

"Neural logic module?" Teacher Ding Runan laughed when she heard this. "You must mean logical computation, right? Since you are studying Computer Science, you should know that the language computers understand is binary, that is, 0 and 1. On a certain level, its logic is different from human logic, so we write various programs to control the operational direction of the computer to achieve the program's design goals. In other words, the computer is already strictly understanding commands according to its own logic. From the computer's perspective, human logic is equivalent to having no logic."

"I understand." Wang Shuo nodded. "That's why I designed a logic algorithm. I call it a Node-based Self-Recurrent Neural Network."

"You designed an algorithm?" Teacher Ding Runan didn't sneer at Wang Shuo. She shook her head and said, "This is interesting. I hope you can continue to refine it so that one day we might be able to use your algorithm."

"Teacher." A hint of cunning appeared on Wang Shuo's face. "If you could agree to let me take leave, I would write out this algorithm architecture for you to see."

"So that's what it was, your little scheme is here. Let me tell you, this is impos..."

Before Teacher Ding Runan could finish her sentence, she saw Wang Shuo hand her a piece of paper.

Teacher Ding Runan glanced at it, and her eyes instantly widened.