I must admit Liang Yingwu is a good teacher, able to consider the students’ emotions even in such dire circumstances, trying his best to keep them from despair and to rally their collective strength to overcome the challenge. However, deep inside, I was not optimistic. I agreed with Liang Yingwu’s view that this situation didn’t seem to be the result of human intervention, which made it worse. If it were human-made, no matter how advanced the technology, humans always leave traces, make mistakes, provide clues. But if it’s just the cave’s natural oddity, then it’s nearly flawless. Imagine how many generations of human knowledge, experience, and wisdom it takes to unravel a natural mystery; there’s no precedent for an instant solution. If this cave’s phenomenon represents new knowledge, new laws, then for us fourteen to solve it is beyond miraculous; it would be a divine act. And remember, we have limited time and food.
Liang Yingwu continued, “Now, I’m announcing a few temporary rules. If anyone wants to leave, these must be followed. First, from now on, food will be rationed, one meal per day for each person; I don’t need to explain why. Second, during the night, all men will take turns keeping watch, two hours each shift, four shifts a night, starting with me and Nado. Also, I suggest that no one should enter the tunnel alone; there’s definitely something odd there, though we don’t know what it is yet.” In the darkness, without watches, there was nothing else to mark the passage of time.
