The library plaza held over a thousand people and not one of them knew what to do. They stood in clusters: students with students, alumni with alumni, event staff near the library doors. Waiting for someone to take charge. Professor Zhang's broadcast had brought them here. Nobody had told them what happened next.
It had started individually and become unanimous: every person in the plaza had held a phone above their head, rotated it, checked and rechecked. The sequence was nearly identical across the crowd — airplane mode on, airplane mode off; reboot; try the other carrier's SIM; climb onto a bench for elevation; hold the screen toward the open sky as though proximity to air could summon a signal. None of it worked. Calls failed before a dial tone could form. Maps opened to a spinning indicator that never resolved. GPS coordinates returned something that made no sense — or nothing at all. Wi-Fi scans surfaced a list of saved networks from apartments in Shanghai, from offices in Donghai, from coffee shops that no longer existed on any accessible frequency. The vice mayor's government phone was as dead as the undergraduate holding hers to the sky. The ritual had swept through every cluster, every age group, every social stratum. It had taken fifteen minutes for the whole crowd to stop trying.
Near the plaza edge, a cluster of armed police conducted a quieter inventory. The squad leader tried his radio: dead air, not static — silence, which was worse. A conscript ran a magazine count with shaking hands, muscle memory filling in where threat assessment had no data. Another turned slightly away from the group and whispered a voice memo into his phone, the recording light blinking steady red. The memo would never send. He recorded it anyway. Before the crowd had fully assembled, the platoon leader found Michael Li. Two sentences, one nod: Michael needed visible perimeter presence; the officer needed civilian authority's acknowledgment before deploying his unit without a chain of command. Neither man spent words on the obvious. Captain Wu took his platoon to the boundary.
Emily ran. She reached the main dormitory complex, the oppressive silence a stark contrast to the plaza's building panic. She took a deep breath and shouted, "Everyone inside, come out! Gather at the library plaza! Deputy Mayor Li is there!"
A few windows opened. A bespectacled male student poked his head out. "What's really going on? Is it..."
Emily didn't have time. "Just come to the plaza! It's safer together!"
She went inside the women's dormitory. The stairwell was dim. No power, emergency lighting dead. Behind closed doors she could hear muffled crying, and from somewhere above, the tinny sound of someone playing music from a phone on its last battery charge.
On the stairs she met Vivian Xie (Xie Yun) coming down with maybe twenty or thirty people behind her. "What's it like outside?" Vivian asked. Not panicked. Direct.
"Gone," Emily said. "The city. Malls, roads, everything. Just forest."
Vivian absorbed this without flinching. "I'll take the rest of the women's floors."
Emily nodded and ran to the men's dormitory. The scene there was different. She heard hysterical shouting from room 203.
"...See! They did something, brought us to this ghost place!" "Wayne Wei (Wei Lin), stop bringing sci-fi plots into reality!"
Emily knocked. The door flew open and a student, Wayne Wei (Wei Lin), lunged out, his eyes red. "I know you! You're from the Physics Department! You people did this!"
Another student, Brian Bai (Bai Yuyuan), grabbed Wayne from behind, hauled him back into the room, and slammed the door. The lock clicked from outside. Brian slid down against the door and sat there, breathing hard, while Wayne pounded from inside.
"I'm not going to your assembly," Brian said, not looking up. "He'll get out if I leave. My roommate Chen already went. He can tell us what happens."
Emily started to argue, but Brian cut her off. "It's mass hysteria. He just needs time." Then, quieter: "My girlfriend's downstairs. Cindy. I can hear her crying. Can you — I can't leave him."
Emily went down. She heard Cindy before she saw her. A raw, full-body wail that filled the stairwell. On the ground floor, a girl was kneeling on the tiles, face blotchy, shaking. "No! I want to go back! I don't want any time travel!"
Another girl was already crouching beside her, arm around her shoulders, murmuring something Emily couldn't hear. She gently pulled Cindy to her feet and led her back toward the dorm rooms. Emily stood there with nothing to do.
She went back upstairs. The crying had drawn students out of their rooms and into the hallway. They coalesced around Emily, not because she'd called them but because she was the only person standing there who seemed to know anything. A stagnant whirlpool. Not moving toward the plaza, not going back to their rooms. Frozen.
Dozens of eyes turned to her. The atmosphere was no longer confused; it was oppressive.
"What the hell is going on?" a girl's voice cut through the noise. "Is this something your Physics Department did?"
"What's this 'unknown situation' in the broadcast?" "I looked outside, all the buildings are gone!"
Emily tried to use her authority. "Everyone, listen to me, Deputy Mayor Li wants everyone to gather at the library—"
"Deputy Mayor Li? Why is he here?" "She's from Physics! Listen to me—"
Then a harsh voice rose above the others. "So why is it you, this blackie, coming to notify us?"
A dark-skinned, muscular male student stepped forward. Emily's jaw locked. Her fists closed before she'd decided to make them.
"Is this fucking really the time for that?!" she roared. "Does my skin color fucking matter?!"
Her explosion created a momentary silence.
"Grab her! She must know something!"
Several male students began closing in. One reached out to grab her arm.
"Don't fucking touch me!" Emily's voice was hoarse and sharp. She stepped back, glaring fiercely. Her reaction was so fierce they instinctively stopped. They'd expected a panicked girl, not a cornered beast that would bite.
"Can you use your fucking brains?" Her voice was full of incredible exhaustion. "If we really had the ability to bring everyone here, why would we send me alone to stand here surrounded by you? Are we insane?"
Her logic was clear, but in a panic, logic was useless. "Then why aren't you afraid at all?" a girl shrieked. "All emergency manuals say stay put! You're telling us to run to the library! That's a trap! A gas chamber!"
Emily was so angry she almost laughed. "Dangerous my ass! Deputy Mayor Li and the professors are all there! You think they'd lead the way into a gas chamber?!"
"That's what you say! Maybe you're the observer!"
Completely enraged, Emily stopped trying to explain. She raised both hands in surrender. "Alright, I confess. I'm a Three-Body alien. The fleet arrives tomorrow. Satisfied?"
The front row froze. The joke wasn't funny. "Wait..." Someone's voice trembled. "If it really is an alien civilization... that's the only explanation..." "She's from Physics! She knew all along!"
The crowd began backing away, a primal fear of an unknown species replacing their anger. "No! I was joking!" Emily's voice cracked. "I'm human! Earthling!" But the more she explained, the more they retreated.
Just then, someone in the crowd threw up. Just bent over and puked right there on the pavement. "Fuck—" One of the advancing students jumped back, looking at his shoes in disgust. So mundane, so gross, it broke whatever spell the crowd was under.
"Has anyone seen Chen Wei?" a girl pushed through, her voice cracking. "I can't find him anywhere..." Now others started remembering people they couldn't find. "Liu Yang was in the library—" "Where's Professor Wang's group?"
The mob's momentum was gone, fragmented by personal, immediate fears. The student who'd made the racial slur still glared at Emily, unconvinced, but with no crowd behind him, he spat to the side and turned away.
Vivian came over and handed Emily a water bottle. "Thanks," Emily's voice was hoarse. "Earlier... is everything outside really gone?" Emily nodded. "Malls, roads, all gone. Just... wasteland." They stood in silence. "Actually," Vivian said, "you did well. At least most people are walking."
Emily watched the stream of students trickling out of the dormitory complex, heading for the library plaza. "They're probably just afraid to be alone."
She fell in step with them.
While Emily was still in the men's dorm, the first practical problem had already surfaced at the library plaza. People who'd been frozen in shock for thirty minutes were moving again, and the nearest bathrooms were the first destination. Someone tried to flush a toilet and nothing happened — the tank didn't refill. A tap produced water in a trickle, then stopped. The pressure was gone; whatever pipe connection the campus had to the municipal system ended at the displacement boundary. Word spread through the crowd in under two minutes, not as panic, but as a fact requiring an immediate answer. Three improvisations emerged without anyone organizing them: two specific buildings were designated as the ones to use first, preserving others. A maintenance worker located a storage room with large plastic buckets — a bucket filled from any standing water source could flush manually. And anyone with a container large enough — luggage, cafeteria pots, anything — began filling from the ornamental fountain before the pressure dropped further. The solutions were crude and impermanent. They were also immediate, collective, and they worked. Nobody had been in charge of any of it.
While the dormitories emptied, the library plaza had been filling. Over fifteen hundred people now, and the formless panic was hardening into a need for action.
Michael walked over to Martin, shook a cigarette out of the pack, and lit it. His hands were steady enough for that, at least.
"How many people out there are going to need medical attention tonight?" Martin asked.
"That's what I need you to tell them." Michael blew smoke at the sky. "I can do the authority part. I need someone up there who sounds like he knows whether people are going to die."
"I haven't even checked what the clinic has."
"Then let's get this over with so you can."
Michael looked at the crowd. Over a thousand, maybe more who hadn't come yet. Martin asked: should they start or keep waiting?
He forced himself to breathe. Four counts in, hold, four counts out. The self-pity was there but it was brief. He noticed it, registered it, and overrode it with procedure. Procedure was all he had.
He climbed onto the edge of the large, decorative flowerbed, waving his hands. "Everyone, please quiet down! Listen!" His voice, amplified by a small portable speaker, crackled over the crowd.
"My name is Li Wei. I'm the Vice Mayor of Donghai." He paused. The title felt absurd. Vice mayor of a city that might not exist anymore. "I am the most senior government official present. That means, until we know more, I'm responsible for all of you."
He waited for the murmur to settle. A woman near the front was crying. Someone behind her was trying to get a phone signal, holding it above his head like an offering.
"I don't know where we are. I don't know why this happened. I don't know any more than you do." He let that land. "What I do know is that Captain Wu and a team of armed police are already patrolling our perimeter. Nobody has found any immediate threat. We will maintain order, and we will wait here for rescue."
It wasn't much. But a vice mayor had claimed his title, named a police captain, and said the word "rescue," and the crowd had held on. The institutions were gone. The reflexes weren't.
He passed the speaker to Martin. The Dean skipped the reassurance entirely. "I need to know what medical supplies we have. Medical students, nursing students, anyone with clinical experience, come to me now. Right now." Six people moved immediately. A seventh hesitated, then followed.
This broke the spell. Wilson Wang (Wang Lixin) stepped forward. "Deputy Mayor Li! Engineering. We must inventory all available supplies—food, water, tools. I can lead that."
"Good," Michael said, pointing at him. "Wilson's in charge of supply inventory. Anyone who can help, go with him." Another group splintered off as Wilson shouted directions, a process that took another five minutes.
While Wilson's group was still forming, Michael pulled Professor Zhang aside and issued a second assignment: a small team — three or four people with surveying or geography backgrounds, a volunteer with first aid training, and two of Captain Wu's officers — were to walk the displacement boundary in daylight, confirm the radius, and mark the edge with whatever bright material they could find, cloth strips or tape tied to the last campus-side fixtures at the perimeter. The broadcast had told people not to enter the forest. Telling was not the same as showing. A visible line would keep the disoriented, the elderly, and the children from drifting across it without knowing they had. The team assembled quietly and left without announcement. The bright strips of cloth would appear, over the next two hours, along the treeline at the campus's edge — small flags of red and orange visible from twenty meters, marking where the world ended.
The crowd, restless after nearly fifteen minutes of announcements, began to murmur. A new voice, younger, cut through the noise. "Deputy Mayor! That's not enough!" A student, Lucas Lu (Lu Qingshan), was pushing his way forward. "We need an information system. A bulletin board, right here, to post updates. A central source of truth."
"Just... just do it," Michael said, overwhelmed.
"I think it's stupid!" another voice, sharp and arrogant, replied. It was Marcus Zheng (Zheng Zhiqiang). "What is this, an RPG? You the Guild President?"
Lucas didn't match the contempt. "If not a board, then what? You have a plan to restore power? What here generates electricity?"
Marcus opened his mouth. Nothing came out. He looked away, deflated.
But the debate didn't die with Marcus. Diana Liao (Liao Jiaqing) raised her hand: "If one person updates that board, one person controls what everyone believes. Information monopoly." She didn't volunteer to fix it. She raised the problem and stepped back.
Jason Li (Li Junhao), a finance grad student, followed: "And who verifies what's posted? How do we know it's true?"
Lucas pivoted. Not a solo board. A team. An information management group with multiple contributors. He invited both of them to join. Diana declined. Jason accepted.
Nearly thirty minutes after the rupture, Emily and the last wave of students returned from the dorms, exhausted and shell-shocked. She sat down at the edge of the crowd. She did not intervene.
Marcus, who had just attacked the idea, now stepped forward. "Fine. I have project management experience." The crowd jeered. He'd called it stupid two minutes ago. He shrugged and joined anyway. Two more followed after Marcus.
The info group formed.
Michael watched the small group form, relieved. Professor Zhang returned from the broadcast room. The plaza was still in chaos, but the first reluctant seeds of organization were being sown.
Back in the clinic, Martin looked at the medical supply list, closed his eyes, opened them again. Suture kits. Three oxygen cylinders. An autoclave the size of a rice cooker. He could stitch a gash. He could start an IV drip. Anything beyond that — an appendicitis, a compound fracture, a difficult birth — and he was watching someone die. "This is a treatment room," he said to the nurse beside him. "Not a hospital."
At the supermarket, Wilson was calling out numbers, marking tallies, moving crates. His hands didn't shake. He noticed because everyone else's did — the volunteer passing him a clipboard, the woman stacking water bottles against the far wall, the student trying to write inventory figures and producing something barely legible. Wilson's handwriting was clean. His hands knew what they were doing even if the rest of him hadn't caught up.
Between counts, his mind offered him things he didn't ask for. The rented two-bedroom in Minhang, half-empty since Jiang Yun took the coffee machine. His mother's voice last Sunday, asking when he'd come home. His father's hands at the Taizhou train station, stained with hydraulic fluid, waving him off. Gone. All of it gone. And underneath the grief, something worse — a feeling he recognized from a long time ago, from being twenty-three and not knowing what came next, and finding that exciting.
He picked up the clipboard and kept counting. His mouth was doing something he couldn't control. Not quite a smile. He turned away so no one would see it.
The formal assembly dissolved. Michael Li (Li Wei) stepped down from the flowerbed. The unified crowd fractured back into over a thousand individuals, huddling in small, self-protective groups.
Victor Li (Li Mingyuan) stood with the alumni, his fingers mechanically loosening and tightening his tie. Beside him, Linda Zhou (Zhou Jiaxin)'s grip on his sleeve was painful. "We're nobodies now," she whispered. Her Cartier watch still showed Shanghai time. "We're fucked."
Victor looked at her and saw thirteen years of shared compromise. The nights at street food stalls complaining about "Red Sequoia"; the hotel rooms when deals fell through. This stays between us, right? They were partners in the dirty business of modern survival.
"If we don't prove our use, we're nothing," Victor said, the realization cold in his stomach. "We aren't 'elites' here. We're just mouths to feed."
They turned to their classmates, where the panic was already curdling into opportunism.
"Information Asymmetry," Paul Liang (Liang Pingzhi), an old academic rival, was arguing to the circle. He pushed up his glasses, his eyes manic. "That's our leverage. We assess resources before sharing what we know. We trade data for status."
"Stop playing games, Pingzhi," Victor cut in, disgusted. "Look at the students building that board. Transparency. If we try to hoard info now, we look like villains. We need to be indispensable, not secretive."
"Victor is right," Linda added, finding her spine. "We offer professional skills. We integrate."
"We integrate," a smooth voice corrected, "but we guide."
Leon Wang (Wang Lei), Vice President of a State-Owned Enterprise branch, stepped forward. He smoothed his shirt over his belly, his expression shifting from 'colleague' to 'manager' in a heartbeat.
"Don't ask them if we can help," Leon said, watching the chaotic student groups like he was inspecting a factory floor. "Manage them. They're panicked children. They want an adult to tell them they're doing well, and then... correct them."
Leon didn't walk into the student plaza; he inspected it. He stopped ten meters away, letting his presence verify the chaos, before he made his move.
"Students!" His voice projected perfectly: the practiced baritone of a thousand ribbon-cutting ceremonies. "You're working hard. But you have a bottleneck."
Lucas Lu (Lu Qingshan), the student leader, bristled. "And you are?"
"Wang Lei. Logistics." Leon didn't ask for permission. He just pointed, assigning tasks with a confidence that bypassed the students' defenses. "Move those three to inventory. You keep the ledger. We have project managers here who can handle the runner teams."
Lucas hesitated. He wanted to fight, but his panic wanted a savior. But the reflex of rebellion was strong.
"We don't need 'guidance' from the old world," Lucas snapped, his voice wavering but stubborn. "Old rules don't apply here."
Leon paused. The direct approach had hit a wall. He maintained his smile, but the connection was failing.
"Oh, so now you're too proud to take free labor?" Marcus Zheng, the same student who'd attacked Lucas's bulletin board idea minutes earlier, was sneering at him from the side. "What happened to 'central source of truth'? You need people to build that, genius."
Marcus didn't realize he was helping Wang Lei's case. He was just needling Lucas again. But the framing had shifted. The argument was no longer outsiders-versus-students. It was a student calling another student's pride impractical.
Jason Li added, more measured: "We need the manpower. They have project management experience we don't."
Lucas's jaw worked. "Fine," he grunted. "But we set the policy."
"Of course," Leon smiled, and signaled his alumni group to move in. Policy is nothing without execution. He watched the students make room. And we will own the execution.
Fifty meters away, on the edge of the construction site, the conversation was less civilized.
"Fuck me," Larry Liu (Liu Laoshi), a wire-thin electrician, sat on a rock, spitting into the dirt. "I squat down to strip a wire, stand up, and the city is gone. Ghost tricks."
Beside him, Eddie Wu (Wu Yiming), a mechanic, and Sam Xu (Xu San), a carpenter, were shaking. The silence of the jungle was too heavy.
"We need a shed," Sam muttered. "Before dark."
"Shed?" Larry sneered, lighting a cheap cigarette to hide the tremor in his hands. He needed to sound tough. If he showed fear, these two idiots would panic. "We're on a university campus. I'm sleeping in a dorm."
He leered, forcing a dirty, performative laugh. "Specifically the girls' dorms. Think about it. One room, four little college students... soft skin..."
Eddie's eyes widened. "Brother Liu... the police..."
"Police?" Larry scoffed. "Emperor is far away, boys. Who's going to stop us? Those glasses-wearing nerds?"
It was just talk, vulgar trash talk to fill the terrifying silence. Larry knew he wouldn't actually do it. Not yet, anyway. But saying it made him feel powerful again. It made him feel like a man, not a lost animal.
"Don't be stupid," Sam said, looking at the guns of the distant police patrol. "Let's just... find food."
"Food..." Larry's eyes narrowed. He saw Leon across the plaza, organizing the students. "You see that fat guy in the suit? Wang Lei. Big shot. I shook his hand once."
Larry stood up, dusting off his pants. The predatory glint remained, but it shifted from lust to survival. "We stick to him. He's a patron. We act like his loyal dogs, get food, get protection."
"And the girls?" Eddie asked.
"First we eat," Larry said. "Then we see what the new world allows."
The officials weren't sitting in their chairs so much as clinging to them. Deputy Mayor Li's hand trembled slightly as he reached for his empty thermos. Around him, fifteen civil servants from different cities sat frozen in shock.
They were all looking at him. Michael knew why: Vice Mayor of Donghai, highest rank present. The math was simple and terrifying. A mass disappearance event. All these people. I'm the senior cadre on site. His throat constricted. Accountability protocols. Responsibility for mass incidents.
His wife's face. Wanting. Her last text — "Speech going well? Don't forget to eat something." He'd never replied.
Four counts in, hold, four counts out. He forced his lungs to obey the old pattern.
"We—" His voice cracked. He cleared his throat, tried again. "Let's take stock."
Ethan Zheng (Zheng Yifan) wet his lips. "Understanding our situation is... we have to figure out which era—Christ, I'm even saying this—"
"Era?" Gordon Liu (Liu Jinkao)'s laugh had a hysterical edge. "We could be on another planet! We could be dead!"
Ethan's knee kept bouncing. "Regardless, none of us... I mean, the students are already..."
Michael gripped his pen hard enough his knuckles went white. Focus. If you fall apart, they all will.
"We need organization," he managed. "Personnel. Resources. Information."
Gordon pulled out a hand-drawn map from Wu Dui's patrol. "Water sources. We need... if we're staying here, we need water."
"I can coordinate students for exploration," William Weng (Weng Jianxi) blurted out. "The students, they're already moving. I can work with them."
Michael looked at the younger man's pale face. "Are you able to take that on, William?"
"Yes. Yes, I need to... I mean, I can do it."
Ethan spoke quickly: "The other civil servants from different cities. We should coordinate. Share information."
"Good," Michael said. "Ethan, that's on you."
Michael stood, legs unsteady. "Let's... those who are taking on tasks, let's stay in communication. We'll reconvene when we have more information."
As Michael's group broke, another cluster of officials nearby, led by Tony Tong (Tong Jingwen) from Rare Earth Management, was having a more heated debate.
"Fanfan, did your group reach any conclusions?" Tony called out.
Ethan, walking past, groaned. "Senior, for fuck's sake, please don't call me Fanfan. We're in our thirties."
Tony laughed. "You never minded at university!"
Ethan gave up. "The city bureau is mobilizing students to explore the area. Trying to figure out where the hell we are."
"We should be moving too," June Zhou (Zhou Lijun) from Education said. "They're already out there." She meant Michael's group, the students, everyone who wasn't sitting here debating.
"Do you have a plan?" Quincy Qian (Qian Xingyang) from Finance pushed back. "Blind action could make things worse."
"Enough hand-wringing!" Jeffrey Zhan (Zhan Junfei) from Transportation snapped at both of them.
Ethan pointed out what should have been obvious: each of them had a relevant specialty. Jeffrey picked it up. Quincy on supplies, he knew numbers. June on student coordination, she'd worked with young people her entire career. Jeffrey himself on exploration routes, transport and geography.
Quincy still hesitated. "We don't even know what supplies we have."
"That's why we move now!" June said. "If you're a man, come help count supplies at least."
Quincy cursed under his breath. "Fuck it. Let's go."
June's group folded into the student inventory teams without ceremony. Quincy took over the ledger, his accountant's reflex kicking in: call, log, verify. Mechanical actions to avoid thinking. It almost worked.
Outside the academic building, Kenneth Chen (Chen Jianfeng) was punching himself in the head.
Not theatrically. Not for attention. He was sitting on the ground beside a flowerbed, slamming the heel of his palm into his temple in a metronomic rhythm, his mouth open in a silent howl. He'd come for the anniversary celebration. Bought a new shirt. Told his wife he'd be back by dinner.
Dean Zhao found him first. The doctor's instinct kicked in before the administrator's caution could stop it. He crouched beside Kenneth, one hand extended. "Xiao Chen. Xiao Chen, listen to me—"
Kenneth's leg shot out. The kick caught Zhao square in the chest and sent him tumbling across the flowerbed, rolling two or three meters before he came to rest against a concrete planter.
For a moment nobody moved. Then Kenneth went back to hitting himself.
Gary Xu (Xu Guangyu), a fourth-year medical student, got there before the police did. He didn't try to talk. He tackled Kenneth sideways, pinned his arms, and held him down in the dirt while Kenneth thrashed and screamed, a raw, animal sound that carried across the plaza and made people stop mid-sentence.
A police officer pulled them apart. Gary was breathing hard, a scratch bleeding on his cheek. Kenneth had gone limp, staring at the sky.
"Get him water," Gary said. "And find out if anyone here has psych training."
Michael Li heard about it secondhand, from Gordon Liu, who was already halfway through the sentence when he arrived.
"...punched Professor Zhao, kicked him across the..."
Michael spat out his tea. "What?"
He looked across the plaza. Hundreds of clusters. Thousands of faces. Some organizing, some arguing, most just sitting. Kenneth Chen wasn't special. Kenneth Chen was the first one to break visibly. How many others were sitting in stairwells right now, quietly coming apart?
"Get Zhang," Michael said. His voice was hoarse but the decision was instant. "Tell him we're doing a formal assembly. All of them. Everyone."
Gordon hesitated. "You want to put two thousand panicking people in one place?"
"They're already panicking in a hundred places. At least this way we control the information." Michael gripped his empty thermos like a weapon. "Go. Find Zhang. Find that girl who was translating. Emily. Get the mic working. We do this now, before the next Kenneth Chen happens where there's no Gary Xu to stop it."
Gordon ran.
图书馆广场上聚了上千人，没有一个人知道该怎么办。他们三五成群地扎堆站着——学生跟学生，校友跟校友，活动工作人员守在图书馆门口。等着有人出来主持局面。张教授的广播把他们召到了这里。至于接下来怎么办，没有人告诉他们。
Emily跑了起来。她赶到主宿舍区，这里压抑的沉寂与广场上不断升温的恐慌形成了鲜明反差。她深吸一口气，大声喊道：「里面的人都出来！到图书馆广场集合！李副市长在那边！」
几扇窗户打开了。一个戴眼镜的男生探出头来。「到底怎么回事？是不是……」
Emily没时间解释。「先到广场去！在一起比较安全！」
她走进女生宿舍。楼梯间昏暗——没电，应急灯也灭了。紧闭的门后面传来压抑的哭声，楼上某处隐隐传来手机外放的音乐声，电量快要耗尽了。
楼梯上，她碰到谢韵（Vivian）领着二三十人往下走。「外面什么情况？」谢韵问。不慌，直截了当。
「没了，」Emily说。「城市。商场、马路，全部。就剩森林。」
谢韵面不改色地消化了这个信息。「女生楼剩下的我来通知。」
Emily点了点头，跑去男生宿舍。那边情况完全不同。她听到203房间传来歇斯底里的吼叫。
「……你看！他们搞了什么东西，把我们弄到这个鬼地方了！」 「韦林（Wayne），你别把科幻小说往现实上套了行不行！」
Emily敲了门。门猛地被拉开，一个学生韦林（Wayne Wei）冲了出来，眼眶通红。「我认识你！你是物理系的！就是你们干的！」
另一个学生白玉原（Brian Bai）从后面一把拽住韦林，把他拖回屋里，摔上门。锁从外面咔嗒一声扣上。白玉原靠着门滑坐下来，喘着粗气，里面韦林在猛砸门。
「我不去你们那什么集会，」白玉原没有抬头。「我一走他就跑出来了。我室友小陈已经去了。到底什么情况，让他回来说就行。」
Emily刚想说什么，被他打断了。「群体性癔症。给他点时间就好。」然后声音低了下去：「我女朋友在楼下。Cindy。我听得到她在哭。你能不能——我走不开。」
Emily下了楼。还没看到人，先听到了Cindy的声音。一种撕心裂肺的、全身上下都在嚎的哭法，整个楼梯间都是回响。一楼，一个女生跪在地砖上，满脸通红，浑身发抖。「不！我要回去！我不要什么穿越！」
另一个女生已经蹲在她身边，搂着她的肩膀，低声说着Emily听不清的话。她轻轻把Cindy扶起来，带回宿舍方向。Emily站在那里，无事可做。
她又上了楼。刚才的哭声把学生们从各自的房间引到了走廊里。他们围聚在Emily周围——不是因为她喊了他们，而是因为她是唯一一个站在那里看起来还知道点什么的人。一个停滞的漩涡。既不往广场走，也不回各自的房间。冻住了。
几十双眼睛齐刷刷转向她。气氛已经不是困惑了，是压迫。
「到底什么情况？」一个女生的声音穿透噪音。「是不是你们物理系搞的？」
「广播说的『未知状况』是什么意思？」 「我往外面看了，所有建筑都不见了！」
Emily试图搬出权威。「大家听我说，李副市长要求所有人到图书馆集合——」
「李副市长？他怎么会在这儿？」 「她是物理系的！你们听我说——」
这时一个刺耳的声音盖过了所有人。「那为什么派你这个黑妹来通知我们？」
一个黑皮肤、身材壮实的男生逼上前来。Emily下颌绷紧。拳头在她做出决定之前已经握了起来。
「现在他妈是说这个的时候吗？！」她吼了回去。「我他妈什么肤色跟你有关系吗？！」
她的爆发制造了一瞬的沉默。
「抓住她！她肯定知道点什么！」
几个男生开始向她逼近。有人伸手想抓她的胳膊。
「别他妈碰我！」Emily的声音又哑又尖。她后退一步，眼神凶狠地瞪着他们。她的反应太凶了，几个人本能地停住了。他们以为面对的是一个惊慌失措的女生，没想到是一头被逼到角落会咬人的野兽。
「你们能不能用脑子想想？」她的声音里满是难以置信的疲惫。「我们真有本事把所有人弄到这儿来，会派我一个人站在这里被你们围着？我们有病啊？」
逻辑是清楚的，但在恐慌中，逻辑没用。 「那你怎么一点都不怕？」一个女生尖叫。 「所有应急手册都说待在原地不动！你让我们往图书馆跑！那是陷阱！毒气室！」
Emily气得差点笑出来。「毒气室个屁！李副市长和教授们都在那儿！你觉得他们会带头往毒气室里走？！」
「那是你说的！说不定你就是观察者！」
Emily彻底怒了，不再解释。她举起双手做投降状。「行吧，我招了。我是三体人。舰队明天到。满意了吧？」
前排的人愣住了。这个玩笑一点也不好笑。 「等一下……」有人声音发颤。「如果真的是外星文明……这是唯一说得通的解释……」 「她是物理系的！她早就知道了！」
人群开始往后退，一种对未知物种的原始恐惧取代了愤怒。 「不是！我开玩笑的！」Emily的声音都破了。「我是人！地球人！」 但她越解释，他们退得越远。
就在这时，人群中有人吐了。弯下腰，当场吐在了地砖上。 「操——」一个正往前逼的男生跳着退后，嫌恶地看着自己的鞋。 如此日常，如此恶心，一下子戳破了人群上的那层咒语。
「有人看到陈伟吗？」一个女生挤过来，声音都哑了。「我到处找不到他……」 其他人也开始想起自己找不到的人。 「刘阳之前在图书馆——」 「王教授那组人呢？」
暴民的势头消失了，被每个人切身的、即刻的恐惧切碎。那个说种族歧视话的男生还在盯着Emily，满脸不信，但身后已经没有了人群的支撑，他朝旁边啐了一口，转身走了。
谢韵走过来，递给Emily一瓶水。「谢了。」Emily的声音沙哑。 「刚才……外面真的什么都没了？」 Emily点了点头。「商场、马路，全没了。就是……荒地。」 两人沉默地站着。 「其实，」谢韵说，「你做得不错。起码大部分人在往外走了。」
Emily看着从宿舍楼里陆续走出来、朝图书馆广场方向移动的人流。「他们大概只是怕一个人待着。」
她汇入了人流。
宿舍楼逐渐空了下来，图书馆广场上的人却越聚越多。一千五百多人，无形的恐慌正在凝结成一种迫切的行动需求。
李伟（Michael）走到赵明身边，抖出一根烟，点上。手还算稳——至少稳到能点烟。
「你觉得今晚会有多少人需要医疗救治？」赵明问。
「这得你上去跟他们说。」李伟吐了口烟，仰头看天。「镇场子的事我来。但台上得有个听起来懂行的人，让大家知道到底会不会出人命。」
「我连医务室有什么都还没看过。」
「那就赶紧把这事办了，你好去查。」
李伟看了看人群。上千人，后面可能还有没来的。赵明问：现在开始还是再等等？
他逼自己呼吸。吸四拍，屏住，呼四拍。自怜的念头冒了上来，但只是一闪。他察觉到了，登记了，然后用程序覆盖掉。程序是他唯一剩下的东西。
他踩上广场中央大花坛的边沿，挥着手喊道：「大家安静一下！听我说！」他的声音通过一个小型便携音箱传出来，带着电流的嗞嗞声。
「我叫李伟。东海市副市长。」他顿了一下。这个头衔说出来荒唐至极——一座可能已经不存在的城市的副市长。「我是在场级别最高的政府官员。也就是说，在搞清楚状况之前，你们所有人都归我负责。」
他等嘈杂声平息下来。前排一个女人在哭。她身后有人把手机举过头顶，像献祭一样试图搜到信号。
「我不知道这是哪里。我不知道为什么会这样。我知道的不比你们多。」他让这句话落了一下。「我知道的是，吴队长和一支武警队伍已经在外围巡逻了。目前没有发现任何直接威胁。我们会维持秩序，在这里等待救援。」
话不多。但一个副市长亮出了身份，点了一个公安队长的名字，说了「救援」这个词——人群就抓住了。体制不在了。体制的本能反应还在。
他把音箱递给赵明。院长直接跳过了安抚的部分。「我需要清点我们的医疗物资。医学生、护理专业的、有临床经验的——现在就到我这里来。马上。」六个人立刻动了。第七个犹豫了一下，跟了上来。
这打破了僵局。王立新（Wilson Wang）站了出来。「李市长！工程方面。我们必须盘点所有可用物资——食物、水、工具。这个我来牵头。」
「行，」李伟朝他一指，「物资盘点王立新负责。能帮忙的，跟他走。」又一群人分了出去，王立新一边喊着分工一边带人走了，前后又花了五分钟。
人群已经站了将近十五分钟听各种安排，开始窃窃私语、躁动不安。一个更年轻的声音从人群中穿了出来。「李市长！光这些不够！」一个学生，陆青山（Lucas Lu），正往前挤。「我们需要一套信息系统。就在这里立一块公告板，集中发布消息。一个统一的信息来源。」
「你……你去弄吧，」李伟有些招架不住了。
「我觉得纯属扯淡！」另一个声音插了进来，语气尖锐又傲慢。是郑志强（Marcus Zheng）。「搞什么，网游副本啊？你当会长呢？」
陆青山没有以牙还牙。「不搞公告板，那你说怎么办？你有本事恢复供电？这里什么东西能发电？」
郑志强张了张嘴。什么也没说出来。他别过脸去，泄了气。
但争论并没有随着郑志强的沉默而终结。廖佳晴（Diana Liao）举起手：「如果只有一个人更新那块板，一个人就控制了所有人相信什么。信息垄断。」她没有主动提出解决方案。她抛出问题，退回人群。
金融研究生李俊豪（Jason Li）紧跟着说：「而且谁来核实上面贴的东西？怎么保证是真的？」
陆青山调整了方案。不是一个人搞的板子。是一个团队。一个有多人参与的信息管理小组。他邀请两人加入。廖佳晴拒绝了。李俊豪答应了。
穿越后将近三十分钟——Emily和最后一批从宿舍赶来的学生回到了广场，筋疲力尽、惊魂未定。她在人群边缘坐了下来。没有插手。
郑志强，刚才还在攻击这个想法的那位，现在站了出来。「行吧。我有项目管理经验。」人群嘘了他。两分钟前他还说这是扯淡。他耸耸肩，照样加入了。郑志强之后又跟了两个人。
信息小组成形了。
李伟看着这个小组凑到一起，松了口气。张教授从广播室回来了。广场上依然一片混乱，但组织的种子——虽然勉强——总算在萌芽。
回到医务室，赵明看着手里的医疗物资清单，闭了闭眼，又睁开。缝合包。三个氧气瓶。一台电饭煲大小的消毒锅。他能缝个伤口。能挂上点滴。除此之外——阑尾炎、开放性骨折、难产——他只能眼睁睁看着人死。「这是个诊疗室，」他对身边的护士说，「不是医院。」
超市那边，王立新正在高声报数、做记录、搬箱子。他的手很稳。周围志愿者的手在抖。他的没有。
闵行那套出租屋浮了上来。蒋韵搬走以后就半空着的两居室，咖啡机的位置至今空在那儿。上周日母亲打电话来，又问他什么时候回家看看。父亲的手，液压油渍永远洗不掉，在台州火车站朝他挥了挥。一想到这些，五脏六腑像被人攥了一把。但在那股剧痛之下，还有一种他不愿承认的东西：世界是新的。他不知道明天会是什么样。上一次有这种感觉，是二十三岁的时候。
他继续数。嘴角那抹若有若无的笑——他恨自己在笑，却怎么也止不住。
正式集会散了。李伟从花坛上走下来。刚才还凝聚成一体的人群重新碎裂成上千个个体，三三两两缩成自我保护的小圈子。
李明远（Victor Li）站在校友堆里，手指机械地松了又紧着领带。身旁的周嘉欣（Linda Zhou）死死攥着他的袖口，攥得人生疼。「咱们现在什么都不是了，」她低声说。手腕上的卡地亚还走着上海时间。「完了。」
明远看着她，看到的是十三年共同妥协的缩影。在大排档边吐槽"红杉"的那些深夜；谈崩了之后的那些酒店房间。这事就咱俩知道，行吧？他们是现代生存游戏里的同谋。
「如果证明不了我们有用，那就什么都不是，」明远说，这个认知冰冷地沉入胃底。「在这儿我们不是什么『精英』。我们只是多几张吃饭的嘴。」
两人转身面向老同学们，恐慌已经在那群人中间发酵成了投机心态。
「信息不对称，」老学术对头梁平之（Paul Liang）正在圈子里高谈阔论。他推了推眼镜，眼神亢奋。「这就是我们的筹码。先摸清资源底数，再决定分享什么。拿数据换地位。」
「别玩这套了，平之，」明远插进来，语气厌恶。「看看学生们在搞那个信息板。透明。我们现在要是捂着信息，在别人眼里就是奸商。要做到不可替代，不是搞暗箱操作。」
「明远说得对，」嘉欣也挺起了腰杆。「我们提供专业技能。融入进去。」
「融入是要融入，」一个沉稳的声音纠正道，「但要引导。」
王磊（Leon Wang）——某国企分公司副总——走上前来。他抻了抻衬衫遮住肚腩，表情在一瞬间从"同僚"切换成了"领导"。
「别去问人家要不要我们帮忙，」王磊打量着混乱的学生群体，像是在巡视一个车间。「管理他们。他们就是一群慌了神的孩子。他们要的是有个大人告诉他们做得不错，然后……纠偏。」
王磊没有走进学生广场；他是视察着进去的。离人群还有十米，他停下脚步，让自己的存在先确认这片混乱，然后才出手。
「同学们！」他的声音投射得恰到好处——那是历经千场剪彩仪式打磨出来的中低音。「你们干得不错。但有个瓶颈。」
学生领袖陆青山一下竖起了刺。「您哪位？」
「王磊。后勤方面的。」他没请示许可。直接指向各处分派任务，那种自信绕过了学生们的防线。「把那三个调去盘库。你管账本。我们这边有项目经理，可以带跑腿的团队。」
青山犹豫了。他想反抗，但恐慌那一面又渴望一个救星。然而反骨的本能很强。
「我们不需要旧世界的『指导』，」青山厉声道，嗓音发颤但倔强。「老规矩在这儿不好使。」
王磊顿了顿。正面强攻碰了壁。他维持着微笑，但连接正在断裂。
「哟，这就受不了白给的劳动力了？」郑志强——几分钟前才攻击过青山公告板主意的那位——在旁边冷笑。「你那个『统一信息来源』呢？你搞那东西需要人手吧，天才。」
郑志强并没有意识到自己在帮王磊说话。他只是又在挤兑青山。但框架变了。争论不再是外人和学生的对立。变成了一个学生在说另一个学生的骄傲不切实际。
李俊豪补了一句，语气更平和：「我们需要人手。他们有我们没有的项目管理经验。」
青山的下颌动了动。「行，」他哼了一声。「但政策我们来定。」
「当然，」王磊笑了，示意校友们跟上。政策离开执行就是废纸。他看着学生们让出位置。而执行权，会在我们手里。
五十米开外，工地边缘，对话就没这么文明了。
「操他妈的，」刘老实（Larry Liu），一个精瘦的电工，坐在石头上往地上吐了口唾沫。「老子蹲下去剥个线头，一站起来城市没了。见鬼了。」
旁边是吴一鸣（Eddie Wu，修车的）和徐三（Sam Xu，木匠），两人都在发抖。丛林的寂静压得人喘不过气。
「得搭个棚子，」徐三嘟囔。「天黑之前。」
「棚子？」刘老实嗤笑，点了根廉价烟来掩饰手上的抖。他得硬气。要是自己露了怯，这俩蠢货非崩溃不可。「这是大学校园。老子睡宿舍。」
他挤了挤眼，硬挤出一声下流的、表演性质的笑。「具体来说，女生宿舍。想想啊。一间屋子，四个大学生小妹妹……嫩皮嫩肉的……」
吴一鸣眼睛瞪大了。「刘哥……那警察……」
「警察？」刘老实不屑地说。「天高皇帝远，弟兄们。谁管得了我们？那帮戴眼镜的书呆子？」
这不过是嘴上逞能——用下流话填满令人恐惧的沉默。刘老实知道自己不会真干——至少现在不会。但说出来让他又觉得自己有力量了。让他觉得自己是个爷们儿，不是一条走丢的狗。
「别犯傻，」徐三说，看了看远处巡逻警察手里的枪。「先……找吃的吧。」
「吃的……」刘老实眼睛眯了起来。他看到王磊在广场对面组织学生。「看到那个穿西装的胖子没？王磊。大老板。我跟他握过手。」
刘老实站起来，拍了拍裤子上的土。掠食者的精光还在，只是从色欲转向了生存。「跟紧他。他是个靠山。我们当他的忠犬，有吃的，有庇护。」
「那女的呢？」吴一鸣问。
「先吃饱，」刘老实说。「至于新世界允许什么——走着瞧。」
官员们与其说坐在椅子上，不如说是攀在椅子上。李伟伸手去拿空保温杯时，手微微发颤。周围，来自不同城市的十五个公务员呆坐着，满脸惊恐。
他们都在看他。李伟知道为什么——上海副市长，在场级别最高。逻辑简单而可怕。一场群体性失踪事件。这么多人。我是现场最高干部。喉咙发紧。问责机制。群体性事件的责任追究。
妻子婉婷的脸闪过脑海。思念。她最后一条微信："演讲顺利吗？别忘了吃点东西。"他没来得及回。小雪在剑桥。他们会不会找婉婷谈话？拿她当筹码施压？
他逼自己呼吸。吸四拍，屏住，呼四拍。冥想训练，此刻成了抵御崩溃的救命绳。
「我们——」嗓子破了音。他清了清喉咙，再来。「先盘一下情况。」
郑一凡（Ethan Zheng）舔了舔嘴唇。「搞清楚我们的处境……得弄清是哪个年代——操，我居然在说这种话——」
「年代？」刘金考（Gordon Liu）笑声里带着歇斯底里。「说不定是另一个星球！说不定我们都死了！」
郑一凡的膝盖一直在抖。「不管怎样，我们这些人……我是说，学生那边已经在——」
李伟握笔握到指节发白。集中。你要是先垮了，所有人都完了。
「需要组织起来，」他撑住了。「人员。物资。信息。」
刘金考掏出吴队巡逻时画的手绘地图。「水源。我们得……如果留在这里，我们需要水。」
「我可以协调学生去探索，」翁剑喜（William Weng）脱口而出。「学生们已经在动了。我可以跟他们对接。」
李伟看着年轻人苍白的脸。「剑喜，你扛得住吗？」
「行。行，我需要——我是说，我可以。」
郑一凡接着说：「其他城市来的公务员——应该协调起来。共享信息。」
「好，」李伟说。「一凡，这事交给你。」
李伟站起身，腿有些不稳。「各位……领了任务的，保持联系。有了新情况我们再碰头。」
李伟这边刚散，旁边另一拨官员——以稀土管理局的童经文（Tony Tong）为首——正在更激烈地争论。
「凡凡，你们那边讨论出什么结果了没？」童经文喊道。
路过的郑一凡哀叹一声。「老学长，求你了别叫我凡凡。咱们都三十多了。」
童经文笑了。「大学的时候你可不介意！」
郑一凡认命了。「市局那边在动员学生探索周边。搞清楚咱们到底在哪儿。」
「我们也该动了，」教育口的周丽君（June Zhou）说。「他们已经在外面了。」她说的是李伟那边的人、学生、所有不在这里坐着扯皮的人。
「你有方案吗？」财政口的钱兴扬（Quincy Qian）顶了回去。「盲目行动可能适得其反。」
「别磨叽了！」交通口的詹俊飞（Jeffrey Zhan）冲两人都发了火。
郑一凡指出了一个本该显而易见的事实：在座每个人都有一项对口的专长。詹俊飞接上了。钱兴扬管物资，他跟数字打交道。周丽君管学生协调，她一辈子都在跟年轻人打交道。他自己管探索路线，交通和地理是本行。
钱兴扬还在犹豫。「我们连有什么物资都不知道。」
「所以才要现在就动！」周丽君说。「是个爷们儿就起来帮忙点数去。」
钱兴扬低声骂了一句。「操。走吧。」
周丽君一行人毫无仪式感地并入了学生的盘点队伍。钱兴扬接过账本，会计的本能被激活——清点、登记、核实。机械动作，免得去想。差点就奏效了。
学术楼外面，陈建峰（Kenneth Chen）在用拳头砸自己的头。
不是做戏。不是求关注。他坐在花坛旁的地上，用掌根有节奏地、像节拍器一样砸太阳穴，嘴张着发出无声的嚎叫。他是来参加校庆的。新买了件衬衫。跟老婆说晚饭前回去。
赵院长先发现了他。医生的本能在行政官员的谨慎来得及拦住之前就已经启动了。他蹲到陈建峰身边，伸出一只手。「小陈。小陈，听我说——」
陈建峰一脚踹出去。正中赵院长胸口，把他从花坛上踹飞出去，滚了两三米才被一个水泥花盆挡住。
一瞬间没人动弹。然后陈建峰继续砸自己的头。
四年级医学生徐光宇（Gary Xu）赶在警察前面到了。他没废话。侧身扑倒陈建峰，压住他的胳膊，把他按在泥地里。陈建峰挣扎着尖叫——那是一声原始的、野兽般的嘶吼，穿越整个广场，让正在说话的人瞬间噤声。
一个警察过来把两人拉开。徐光宇喘着粗气，脸颊上有一道流血的划伤。陈建峰瘫在那里，双眼直直盯着天空。
「给他水，」徐光宇说。「再看看在场有没有学过心理学的。」
李伟是从刘金考那里听到的二手消息。刘金考冲过来时话已经说了一半。
「——打了赵教授，一脚踹飞——」
李伟一口茶喷了出来。「什么？」
他望向广场。成百上千个小群体。几千张面孔。有些在组织，有些在争论，大多数只是坐着。陈建峰不特殊。陈建峰只是第一个当众崩溃的。还有多少人此刻正坐在楼梯间里，悄无声息地碎掉？
「去找张教授，」李伟说。嗓子嘶哑但决断毫无犹豫。「告诉他我们要开正式集会。全体。所有人。」
刘金考迟疑了。「你要把两千个正在慌的人聚到一起？」
「他们已经在一百个地方慌了。至少这样我们能控制信息。」李伟把空保温杯攥得像武器。「快去。找张教授。找那个翻译的女生——Emily。把话筒弄好。现在就开，趁下一个陈建峰出现的时候，旁边没有徐光宇。」
刘金考跑了。