Chapter 1: Old Work |
At eight in the morning, Wei Hongsi woke up to the sound of his phone alarm. As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw a line of glowing green text floating before him.
[Strive to become someone who contributes to human society!]
This line of text stayed in the center of his vision for ten seconds, then rapidly faded and disappeared.
Wei Hongsi acted as if nothing had happened. He fumbled for his phone to turn off the alarm, sat up and stretched, then went to the bathroom to take a shower.
That scene just now, he had been seeing it for over seven years. It repeated every time he woke up, and he was long since used to it.
When he first saw that ghostly line of text, he was still in his final year of high school, around seventeen or eighteen years old. He thought his "system" had finally activated and was quite excited and full of anticipation.
For this, he had volunteered, served as a volunteer, swept floors in nursing homes, donated money to orphanages, and even helped up fallen elderly people multiple times.
However, after diligently trying for over a year and doing many things he considered contributions to human society, the ghostly text did not change at all, and he found no evidence whatsoever to prove the existence of a "system."
This made him start to suspect that either his activation method was wrong, or it simply wasn't a so-called "system" at all.
He went to the hospital for multiple check-ups and found no abnormalities.
Having ruled out physiological causes, it was most likely a psychological issue.
Actually, when he was getting checked at the hospital, he already had a pretty good idea about his condition, he just wasn't very willing to accept it.
—The so-called "ghostly text" was actually a hallucination, and complex visual hallucinations while in a state of clear consciousness are a typical symptom of schizophrenia.
Fortunately, the condition wasn't severe and didn't affect his studies or daily life at all.
……
Wei Hongsi finished washing up, changed his clothes, and left his residence to go to work.
It was June, early midsummer. The morning temperature was still quite pleasant, perfect for walking.
Wei Hongsi walked along the road for a few minutes, then turned into an alley by the roadside.
About a dozen meters into the alley, there were several small shops selling breakfast. One of them made egg-stuffed pancakes and spicy soup that really suited his taste. They might not be very healthy, but they were truly delicious. He came here once or twice every week.
As usual, he sat at a small table by the shop entrance and began enjoying his breakfast.
He had only taken a few bites when a man sat down opposite him. "Young man, I know you."
This man looked to be in his mid-thirties, with a square face, wearing a dark green crew-neck T-shirt and a light gray bucket hat.
Wei Hongsi swallowed the food in his mouth and said somewhat helplessly, "Uncle, how did you get here too?"
"I saw you walk into the alley." A wise smile appeared on the man's face.
"Then your eyesight is really good."
Due to personal reasons, Wei Hongsi had looked into mental illnesses. The smile on this man's face easily reminded him of some case studies he had read.
Recently, he had frequently encountered this man on his way to and from work. Each time, the other would say some inexplicable things, but fortunately, he wouldn't pester him excessively. He never expected that today, just coming for breakfast, the other would actually follow him here.
"You're from Xicheng, nineteen years old this year, a sophomore at Yuecheng University, right?"
"I'm almost twenty-four and already working."
"I'm friends with your dad."
"That's impossible. You're only about two years older than my brother."
"When you were little, I taught you how to play the tin whistle."
"That's even more impossible. I'm tone-deaf, I can't learn that."
Wei Hongsi responded helplessly. If he didn't do this, the other would keep repeating himself endlessly.
Usually, the conversation would end around this point. Unexpectedly, the eccentric uncle actually pulled a metal tin whistle out of his satchel.
"Look, this thing." He said, putting the whistle to his lips and playing a tooting sound.
Hearing the whistle, Wei Hongsi's mind couldn't help but feel momentarily dazed. He then saw people nearby looking over, as if they didn't quite appreciate the man's musical skill.
He quickly reached out and pressed down on the other's arm to stop him from continuing. "Uncle, this is a place for eating breakfast. If you're in the mood, you can go play in the park next door."
"No need, I was just playing it for you." The eccentric uncle placed the whistle on the table.
"You haven't had breakfast yet, right? My treat."
Wei Hongsi waved his hand, signaling the shop owner to serve the eccentric uncle the same order he had.
"I know your secret." The eccentric uncle tapped his own temple with a finger, that smile appearing on his face again, wise and mysterious.
"Oh? Tell me then." Wei Hongsi couldn't help but feel a bit intrigued.
"Can't say. You would refuse to believe it. You need to doubt it yourself."
"Then suit yourself."
Wei Hongsi didn't feel particularly disappointed either. When chatting with someone with a mental disorder, this was already quite normal.
Soon, a new serving of breakfast was brought over. The eccentric uncle buried his head in eating and drinking, no longer having time to talk.
Wei Hongsi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, hurriedly finished his own breakfast, paid the bill with his phone, and stood up to leave.
"Uncle, take your time eating. I'm off."
"Wait a moment." The eccentric uncle raised a hand, took a book out of his satchel, and handed it to Wei Hongsi along with the whistle on the table. "For you."
Wei Hongsi hesitated, but seeing the resolute look on the eccentric uncle's face, as if not accepting it would lead to endless trouble, he took them. "Alright, I'll hold onto them for you for now."
He put the two items into his chest bag and walked quickly towards the alley entrance. Just as he was about to turn the corner, he glanced back. The eccentric uncle was still eating with his head down.
Walking about ten more minutes from the alley entrance brought him to the office building where his company was located. He took the elevator to the 16th floor, first went to the pantry to get a cup of water, then sat down at his workstation and casually turned on his computer.
It was still nearly twenty minutes before work started. Most of the workstations in the public office area belonging to Department Two were still empty, making it relatively quiet.
Wei Hongsi took out the book the eccentric uncle had given him from his chest bag. The title was "Story of Time," author Hua Jianyue. He hadn't heard of either.
Opening the title page, he didn't see any introduction about the book. He could only learn from the CIP data that it was a novel, published six years ago.
He flipped through it casually and found a folded piece of paper with printed text inside, like it had been cut out from some newspaper or magazine.
He took out this piece of paper. Unfolding it and seeing the content inside, he couldn't help but freeze.
—Selected Excellent Elementary School Student Essays
—"Becoming Someone Who Contributes to Human Society"
—Author: Wei Hongsi (Third Grade, Xicheng East Lake Experimental Primary School)
Wei Hongsi was full of doubt. The name was certainly his, and he had indeed attended that elementary school, but he had absolutely no memory of this essay.
Glancing over it roughly, the entire text was about three hundred words, the writing very childish, truly at an elementary school student's level.
But there was one viewpoint in it that was quite interesting: If you cannot support yourself and have to rely on your parents for sustenance, then you cannot talk about contributing to society.
Wei Hongsi had reason to suspect that if he really wrote this essay, he must have been influenced by his mother.
His mother was a middle school Chinese language teacher, now retired. This matter, perhaps he could ask his mother.
But why would that strange man have this elementary school essay from over a decade ago? Did he really know him?
