CHAPTER 132: DAD, SOMEONE IS BULLYING ME!

"Big data is now synchronized with WeChat activity; everyone’s daily whereabouts and the times they were there can be seen. You can also link the travel patterns of your relatives."

"Moreover, from today onward, all citizens must perform facial recognition check-ins daily. Visiting specialists are responsible for implementing spot checks with video calls, and district governments are tasked with inspections. Civil servants, certain public institutions, and citizens over the age of 65 are exempt from this regulation."

"Besides personal data, big data also features functions for reporting and emergency distress calls. It is expected that by next year, a new shopping platform will be launched with features such as a barter market for goods, Virtual Coin exchanges, and local sales and purchases. Please stay tuned."

The news broadcast finished, and WeChat was updated as well.

That day, virtually everyone was discussing big data, finding it novel. At the same time, the benefits of being within the system became more apparent, as the superior civil servants, who were exceptions to every rule, started to make everyone quite envious.

The terms "inside the system" and "outside the system" were increasingly being shared among the masses. What did it mean to be inside the system?

It wasn’t just civil servants but also employees in various public institutions and those in various fields under government jurisdiction. This included individuals managing recyclable items, those responsible for food sources, cooks in supermarkets, cleaners, security personnel, and so on.

How does one become a civil servant? First, become an employee under any government branch. Perform well, and you’ll be made permanent. Of course, finding a permanent job these days is harder than ascending to the heavens; all that awaits you are government-issued odd jobs. Being able to eat your fill would already be quite good.

The family finished dinner, and everyone opened WeChat, curiously looking at their data. "Strange, I actually went there that day? I don’t even remember," one of them mused.

Jing Shu also opened her big data profile. It meticulously recorded her movements from January 2023 up to the present, complete with graphs and analysis. Her purchase and consumption records had been kept since 2018.

Of course, aside from this, the work section listed: Honorary Consultant of the Development Zone Management Department.

Notable incidents were recorded: Commendation for acting bravely in a just cause on January 14, 2023.

On May 29, 2023, for capturing Zhetian’s number three leader Zhang Qiang and a host of criminals, she received a second-class merit.

Note: Second-class merit recipients, when scanning their faces and identification, will obtain the right to skip queues and gain priority access.

While others’ records showed crimes, Jing Shu’s record boasted a second-class merit, which meant she no longer had to queue for anything. That felt awesome!

"I don’t have to check in," Mrs. Jing said, taking out her phone.

"Me neither," Mr. Jing said with a chuckle.

"I don’t have to either!" Third Aunt felt exceptionally honored. Although she wasn’t a civil servant yet, the seasoning Jing Shu had given her last time had earned her the position of team leader. The director said they would consider her for the next batch of permanent positions.

"Not only do I not have to check in, but I also don’t have to queue when buying or exchanging things with face scanning!" Jing Shu had many feelings about this. In her previous life, she had struggled for food and hovered on the brink of death, but in this life, she had brought her family into the system.

It was a good start indeed.

Grandma Jing and Mr. Jing said, "We’re old; we don’t need to do all that."

The family laughed together. It was a pleasant moment.

「...」

With the announcement of big data, the status of those inside the system rose significantly. This was compounded by the scarcity of food and water, and people’s reliance on consuming Five Grain Worms to survive. This made people even more desperate to seek connections and find work.

If force didn’t work, they had to resort to soft tactics. They were dependent on others, since the government held control over the food supply. The government advertised daily that obedient people would have food, while the disobedient... well, their fate was demonstrated by the frequent executions, a tactic that truly terrified the populace.

But Wang Zhong, from the original renovation company whom Mr. Jing absolutely did not want to have anything more to do with, unexpectedly showed up at their door.

Mr. Jing and Mr. Jing had been very busy lately. Every day after the temperature dropped, they worked on a section behind the villa, mainly building an oversized garage to accommodate their motorhome. With earthquakes and various other natural disasters looming, the structure had to be strong and earthquake-resistant.

Moreover, Jing Shu needed to seize the opportunity before next year’s major flooding to claim all the land she could. Otherwise, the following year it would be so crowded that even underground parking lots would be filled with people, making it difficult for her to claim any land. Fortunately, the area behind the villa was mountainous and quite desolate. Although technically within the community’s common areas, it wasn’t suitable for living and wouldn’t affect others. She figured she could simply pay a ’fine’ later and it would be settled.

Just before dinner that afternoon, Jing Shu was at the front gate of the villa, mixing cement she’d gotten from Master Liu of the renovation team. A middle-aged man, still looking quite refined despite his military coat, rode up on an electric bike.

Jing Shu busied herself with her shovel and the cement, while the man took two large bags from his bike, scrutinizing the villa and then Jing Shu.

Wow, do people actually come to make personal gift deliveries after the apocalypse? Who are they looking for?

"Is this Jing An’s home?"

"It’s not."

The middle-aged man frowned. "But this is the address. Don’t you know Jing An?"

"I don’t know him."

"I’m Wang Zhong, Jing An’s old friend. We’re very close. His wife’s name is Su Lanzi, and his daughter is called Jing Zhu. Look, I’ve come to visit him. Lao Liu told me this was the place. This cement even came from me. Could you be Jing Zhu?"

Wang Zhong finally couldn’t bear it anymore. He was almost impressed by her blatant lies, but he still asked patiently.

Jing Zhu your sister! You don’t even remember the name and you dare to come bearing gifts?

"I don’t know. I’m not Jing Zhu."

Jing Shu narrowed her eyes. So it was Wang Zhong, eh? That ’old friend’ she had heard about for over twenty years, who always lived in her father’s stories—that good brother whom she had never met in her past life or her present one—was actually here, needing help from others now?

Regarding Wang Zhong, he had always been a figure of legend. No matter how poor or down-and-out Mr. Jing became, he never encountered Wang Zhong. In this life, due to the butterfly effect stemming from the tempered glass shield incident, Mr. Jing had an unfortunate falling out with the company. He was forced to give up his shares and was subsequently fired. Wang Zhong was the main instigator of this, so Jing Shu had even less reason to have ever met him.

"Then I will go knock on the door."

Jing Shu stood in front of the door without saying a word. In truth, she was pondering Wang Zhong’s actions in both her past and present lives.

Clearly, Wang Zhong had started the company with Mr. Jing, but in the end, it became Wang Zhong’s and a few other shareholders’ company, excluding Mr. Jing. Mr. Jing hadn’t fought back and had just accepted a 2% dividend annually until they parted ways after the apocalypse. Later, when the company was sold for food supplies, Mr. Jing had no part in it.

This life, it was even worse: they directly fired Mr. Jing and forced him to relinquish his shares, deeply wounding him.

"Who the hell are you, you brat? Get out of the way!"

Jing Shu still blocked the entrance. Truthfully, Mr. Jing had been significantly influenced by her and was no longer the pushover he once was. However, Jing Shu was torn; part of her feared her father meeting Wang Zhong, while another part eagerly anticipated it, curious to see how he would handle the situation and what ’answers’ he would provide.

How many points would Mr. Jing score on the ’test’ she had presented him? Jing Shu felt a bit apprehensive.

"Jing Shu, bring some more cement," came Mr. Jing’s shout from the back of the mountain.

At that moment, Jing Shu’s eyes darted, and she immediately wailed, "Dad, someone is bullying me!"