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墨書 Inktalez
The sky had not yet brightened, and the long-distance bus jolted along the winding mountain road. Lin Xiaofan pressed his forehead against the cold window, trying to alleviate the headache that had plagued him throughout the night. The screen of his phone glowed faintly in the dimly lit cabin—countdown 66:13:22... 66:13:21...
"Still watching?" Su Yuqing, sitting on the other side of the aisle, lowered her voice. "Save some battery; you can't charge it in the mountains."
Lin Xiaofan locked his screen and turned to look out the window. The mountains shrouded in morning mist resembled slumbering giants, reminding him of Zhao Tianming's eyes hidden behind gold-rimmed glasses. Three days ago, after a night of rain and confessions, Su Yuqing's reaction had surprised him—there was no mockery, no skepticism; she immediately pulled him into drafting a "Doomsday Rescue Plan."
"Here." Su Yuqing handed him a thermos. "It'll perk you up."
Lin Xiaofan took a sip, nearly choking on the bitter taste of traditional Chinese medicine. A sticky note was affixed to the cup: "Rule 37: No commercial sponsorship exceeding 20% of project budget." This was one of fifty rules they had hastily drafted for the Weiguang Public Welfare charter, with Su Yuqing marking each one on items he would regularly use.
"Is this really necessary?" he complained softly.
Su Yuqing continued flipping through her ledger without looking up. "For you? Absolutely necessary."
The bus came to a sudden stop, and the sound of a child crying from the front broke the heavy silence in the cabin. Seizing the opportunity, Lin Xiaofan leaned closer to Su Yuqing. "Seriously, why are you helping me? Don't say it's out of kindness; any sane person would have called the police upon hearing about 'the system.'"
Su Yuqing's finger paused on a page in her ledger, where a photo of a child from the mountains was taped. "Because I've seen too many hypocrites; you're the only one who admits your intentions aren't pure." She closed her ledger. "Besides... there's always a reason why the system chose you."
Her words stirred an unusual wave of emotion within Lin Xiaofan. He glanced down at his phone; the countdown continued its relentless march, but beneath the system's warning message was an additional line: "Cooperative mode activated; penalty program suspended."
The rugged mountain road delayed their bus by three hours. When Principal Li saw the two of them looking worn and dusty, he nearly dropped his reading glasses in surprise.
"Mr. Lin! Miss Su! Why didn't you let us know in advance..."
"Principal Li, we need your help." Su Yuqing cut straight to the point. "How quickly can you gather villagers for a meeting?"
Two hours later, the Village Committee Meeting Room was packed with people. Lin Xiaofan stood at the front by a blackboard, his palms sweating. Dozens of eyes were fixed on him—wrinkled old men, women holding infants, and a few bold children peeking through gaps in the crowd.
"We want to establish 'Weiguang Public Welfare'..." Lin Xiaofan's voice trembled as he nearly bit his tongue.
Su Yuqing could no longer watch and took over the microphone. "To put it simply, we will use every penny donated by city folks for everyone's benefit without exception. But there’s one condition—" she scanned the crowd, "every penny's destination must be clearly recorded so everyone can check."
The meeting room buzzed with murmurs as villagers whispered among themselves. An old man with missing teeth shouted, "Why should we trust you? That Boss Zhao said nice things too..."
Lin Xiaofan instinctively reached for his phone in his pocket but instead felt something else—the smooth pebble given to him by a child from the mountains. He took a deep breath and stepped closer to the old man. "Sir, do you raise chickens?"
"Of course, why?"
"What if I told you that for every pound of grain you feed your chickens, I would give you one hundred pounds—but you must continue raising chickens with that hundred pounds... Would you do it?"
The old man widened his eyes in disbelief. "Is there such a good deal?"
"That's exactly how it works." Lin Xiaofan turned to address all the villagers. "But there's one rule—the key to the granary must be entrusted to the most meticulous person in the village."
Laughter erupted in the meeting room, instantly lightening the atmosphere. Su Yuqing shot Lin Xiaofan an astonished glance and quietly gave him a thumbs-up.
Three days later, "Weiguang Public Welfare" would be officially established at the Village Committee. A simple wooden sign bore the first rule: "All accounts are open to the sun." During the unveiling ceremony, Lin Xiaofan's phone vibrated with a notification:
【New organization certification approved】
【Transparency rating: A】
【Refund multiplier increased to 150%】
【Penalty countdown paused】
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