Doomsday Paradise

Chapter 2012 Underground Hall
"The human mind is a very thin thing."

When the two were walking between rows of computer rooms, Yu Yuan's deep voice slowly echoed along with their footsteps.

His voice is matte, soothing and steady, even if what he says is anything but reassuring: "You can shape it into whatever you want if you find the right way."

Lin Sanjiu's gun was pressed against the back of the butler, and he led the way for the two of them as if he hadn't heard anything.

"This area," he introduced like a tour guide, "is the main program of our system. As long as it can run smoothly, it can ensure the stability of the entire Peanut Town. Things like water, electricity, gas, material allocation, work arrangements, etc. People's livelihood The affairs are all managed by the system..."

He secretly glanced at the two of them, and said in a low voice, "I don't think the two of you seem to be bad guys, it's just that we have some misunderstandings..."

"Misunderstanding?" Lin Sanjiu laughed, "I want to imprison everyone who enters the town and prevent them from leaving. What kind of misunderstanding is it?"

The butler shook his head, as if he didn't know where to start. "This is all for your own good. If you leave Peanut Town and continue walking, you may even lose your life...Giving you a chance to live, work, marry and have children in Peanut Town is entirely responsible to you, you... Hey. You don't want to be rescued, and I can't help it, but you have to spare the lives of more than 5000 people in this town, right?"

"What do you mean?" Lin Sanjiu asked.

The housekeeper pointed to the operation screen beside him. "The people in our town rely on the main system of 'Aoye Mayor' to live a stable life. Without it, more than 5000 of us would have no food delivery, no heating in winter, no bank deposits, and even running water. No. The most important thing is that without security, we are exposed to the eyes of criminals and warlords outside, how will we survive then?
"I know, you probably think that the 'Mayor Aoye' system is trying to force you to stay, but you are angry... aren't you? I can make an exception and let you go, but you must not hurt our 'Aoye' The mayor's system. The situation of more than 5000 people is all in your mind."

"Choose a node" came very quickly, but went even faster - when Lin Sanjiu realized that she had imagined Yu Yuan's next step, Yu Yuan suddenly turned around and kicked the machine fiercely The loud noise was like a bronze bell suddenly falling from mid-air, which startled the housekeeper.

"Don't threaten me with 5000 people," Yu Yuan said slowly, still calmly. "I kicked the shell this time, but it won't be the case next time."

The butler stared at him, his lips quivered a few times, but he didn't make a sound.

"Now save me some nonsense. No one is interested in your water and electricity bank," Yu Yuan lightly hit the main system machine of "Mayor Aoye" a few times with a gun, and said, "Tell me, who is in charge of detaining and returning you." How many modules are there in the educational process?"

Before the housekeeper opened his mouth, Yu Yuan said first: "Don't tell me that this system is prosperous, it is prosperous, and it is damaged. If you destroy one module, the whole will be destroyed... If that is the case, I will have to give it all." broken."

The butler finally lowered his head and walked under the wall covered with screens.

In the underground hall, their footsteps were swallowed up by the humming movement before they could reverberate.So many people are talking, smiling, writing, applauding, watching TV on the screen...all in silence.Just turn your eyes away and they are no longer there.

Thousands of screens flicker with different light colors and images, making Lin Sanjiu feel like walking in water, every step is undulating and unsteady; since entering Peanut Town, that kind of quiet, heavy The feeling of stagnation, which seemed to be made of thick iron, did not decrease at all because she broke into the core of Peanut Town, on the contrary, it became more intense.

"We don't have a module responsible for detention," the butler said in a low voice. "When you see someone outside the town, call the police immediately. It's part of the town rules. Everyone does it..."

Lin Sanjiu looked around: piece after piece of iron-gray operation screens, mainframes, and unnamed instruments occupied at least half of the hall; It is connected together, and once you walk in, you can hardly see the end in any direction.

Yu Yuan tentatively groped on the operation screen for a while, but he didn't know what he came across. A screen suddenly protruded from the wall next to it, with a long mechanical arm behind him; the two of them and the butler were startled, and leaned closer to carefully After looking at it, Lin Sanjiu discovered that it was a thought diary written by an outsider.

"I've been lying, and I'm sorry for the support group members. I said Peanuts was for my own good, but I still wanted to go home. I realized that it's wrong to lie, and I shouldn't be pretending to be The appearance of repentance has ruined the kindness and help others have given me."

"I admit that the world outside the town is all about money, and no one really cares about you. If I didn't have a job, I wouldn't be able to get married at all. The members of the mutual aid group asked me today, how long do you think your wife can wait for you? I do not know……"

"I worked continuously for [-] hours today, my eyes were bloodshot, I was very dizzy, and I couldn't write much."

"I do have a lot of misconceptions. People don't have personal freedom. What I should care more about is how to keep Peanut Town, which has been threatened by the outside world, going on and protecting and saving more people... I Having experienced real hunger, I never want to experience it again."

"It's so dangerous outside the town, and those who don't want to be protected can only say that they deserve it when they die."

Lin Sanjiu resisted the slight dizziness, and said to Yu Yuan in a low voice: "Look for...that middle-aged woman who was taken out by the 'Mutual Assistance Committee' just now, what's her name?"

She was also cautious, not wanting the housekeeper to notice that they had seen the middle-aged woman long ago.

Yu Yuan really deserves to be a person who is extremely talented in mechanical instruments. The operating system that makes people feel dizzy at a glance, seems to be obedient within a few minutes in his hands - but he still has no answer after searching for a long time .

"I don't know," he raised his head and said in a daze, "even her name is not recorded in the system. Her self-report, the registration form in the town, the marriage certificate... all have no name."

"How is it possible?" Lin Sanjiu was taken aback, "You have to have a name to know who you're referring to, right?"

Yu Yuan was expressionless, almost like a data body. "'Middle-aged dark-haired girl with a scar on her right hand,'" he said, "that's it."

Just when Lin Sanjiu didn't know how to digest this message, a crisp and clear voice shook the air—after half a second, she realized that it was the doorbell.

"It must be the chief of the town police department." The butler jumped up, his face was filled with hope and panic at the same time, "the doorbell and camera at the gate are connected to the underground hall—you two, listen to my advice." , let him make a special case for you, you leave, we will not violate the river water from now on..."

"We have to open the door to let him in first." Lin Sanjiu thought for a while, "We can't make him suspicious, otherwise it would be bad for him to bring someone to wrap us in it."

The two looked at each other; although neither of them thought it was a good idea, the situation was forced to this point.

"It seems that we have to split up." Yu Yuan said, "I'll stay and see how to close these modules."

"Okay," Lin Sanjiu nodded, "I'll go with this guy to meet that officer."

Yu Yuan straightened up, as if swallowing a lot of worries, he paused before whispering, "Be careful."

Lin Sanjiu suddenly laughed.

"...I haven't heard you say that for a long time."

　Why did it take me so long to write this part? I feel like it will take two chapters for Yu Yuan to come back.
　
(End of this chapter)