Chapter 44: Hanging from the Streetlight

Compared to Wang Yongxin's polished and glamorous office, the scene appearing in the footage this time was as messy as a pigsty.

It was clearly Zhang Peng's cheap rental room.

A sliver of dim light filtered through a semi-basement window, illuminating Zhang Peng, whose hair was dyed yellow. He lay on a bed covered in trash, picked at his feet, and then lay back down in boredom.

【As a lazy parasite, you offer nothing but destruction to this society, with no contribution whatsoever.】

【Theft, robbery, brawling—even if you enter and exit the palace several times, you will never repent.】

【You have hands and feet, yet you refuse to support yourself, choosing instead to mock those struggling to make a living.】

【Your malice is like the flapping of a butterfly's wings, turning into an unforeseen disaster for the innocent.】

【This time, will you be lucky enough to escape judgment?】

Zhang Peng's video content was relatively short. Immediately following it, a file appeared on the large screen.

【Zhang Peng, Male, 26 years old.】

【Occupation: Unemployed.】

【Lazy and idle. Has committed multiple crimes including theft, robbery, and brawling, having narrowly escaped legal sanctions on several occasions.】

【Verdict: Not Tried】

Wang Yongxin gave Zhang Peng a look of disdain; in his eyes, the man was an unmitigated scoundrel.

If forced to choose between the two, Wang Yongxin truly could not fathom any reason why Ding Wenqiang would choose him.

Zhang Peng, meanwhile, grew somewhat frantic and hurriedly explained, "Brother Ding, Uncle Ding! There's a mistake in this file! It makes it look like I've never even been caught!

"Think about it, it's impossible. Given the public security in our country, the police aren't just sitting around eating rice!

"I have to make this clear: I did commit robbery once, but only once! And I was caught quickly and sentenced to three years.

"The rest were just petty thefts—nothing particularly heinous or evil!"

Ding Wenqiang looked at Cell No. 2, then at Cell No. 3.

Clearly, he did not want to send Wang Yongxin or Zhang Peng into Cell No. 3, because neither of them would ever do something like smash their own fingers to help others complete a game.

According to the game rules, once you entered a cell, you could not come out, nor could you switch cells.

Locking them in was easy.

But if they went in and did nothing, simply enduring it by deducting their own visa time, it would become quite troublesome.

Wang Yongxin had earned at least 200,000 minutes of visa time from "Blood Poker," so he could afford to lose it.

As for Zhang Peng, Ding Wenqiang wasn't sure exactly how much visa time he had, but being so young, his initial visa time was likely over a month.

From the perspective of the game's optimal solution, the most suitable person for Cell No. 3 would be someone willing to smash their own fingers.

Or, at the very least, someone with very little visa time remaining.

The game rules had repeatedly emphasized that as the King, Ding Wenqiang had to make judgments that were as fair as possible. Simply locking someone up to deduct visa time was, no matter how one looked at it, too light a punishment.

Ding Wenqiang looked toward Zhang Peng.

In terms of severity, Zhang Peng was clearly the one who deserved judgment more.

Wang Yongxin was not a great boss, but at least he hadn't broken the law—excluding the labor laws that were being violated everywhere.

A person like Zhang Peng—lazy, idle, and full of vice—seemed much more like the type of person who should be judged in this game.

Zhang Peng swallowed hard. Ding Wenqiang's gaze made him panic; clearly, he had to do something now.

"Uncle Ding! I have something to say, I have something to say!

"In this game, everyone is a sinner. Are we supposed to rank them by grade?

"The game requires that sinners receive an appropriate judgment. Like that programmer guy said earlier, the meaning of the judgment should match the crime, right?

"I did steal and rob, but that has nothing to do with these games! If you have to force a connection, it's more related to Cell No. 3.

"Besides, the mistakes I made were nothing more than petty thefts. To society as a whole, what does that small amount of disruption matter?

"But he is different!"

Zhang Peng pointed at Wang Yongxin. "He might not have broken the law, but how many people are running themselves ragged because of him? How many people have died from overwork because of him? And how many delivery drivers and couriers have been in accidents because of him!

"Those delivery guys risk running red lights just to deliver food—at the end of the day, isn't it because they are being squeezed dry by his exploitation?

"Yes, I am lazy, but in this society, can hard work actually make you rich?

"Did society become like this because of my laziness and petty theft, or because of these high-and-mighty rich people?"

Wang Yongxin was stunned. Clearly, he hadn't expected the other man to suddenly start biting back at him.

Moreover, this attack was lethal; it was as if a blade had been driven straight into his vitals.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Even if I've failed my employees or the delivery drivers, what does that have to do with you! Do you, a robber, really think you have the right to pass moral judgment on me?" Wang Yongxin said, somewhat speechless.

Zhang Peng nodded. "Exactly. That's the difference between you rich people and bottom-feeders like us.

"The thing about you rich people is that no matter what mistake you make, you will never admit it!

"Because if you don't admit it, you're not wrong; if you do, it's all your fault!

"At least I face legal punishment. But you? The law has no binding power over you!

"The name of this second cell's game is 'Hanging from the Streetlight.'

"Tell me, which of us two deserves to be hung from the streetlight more?"

Wang Yongxin froze.

Ding Wenqiang sighed silently, walked to Cell No. 2, and looked at Wang Yongxin. "Go in."

Wang Yongxin wanted to say something more, but ultimately hesitated, stepping into the cell with great reluctance.

Then, he gave a self-mocking laugh. "A capitalist hanging from a streetlight. Fine, I suppose it's a fitting death."

*Click!*

Accompanied by the sound of the lock, the mechanism inside the cell automatically activated.

A mechanism shaped like a streetlight lowered slightly, a noose made of thick hemp rope dropped from above, and a relatively thin square platform appeared below.

【The game begins in 30 seconds. Please place your neck into the noose and maintain a suspended state for 10 minutes.】

【Earn 1,000 minutes of visa time per minute. After 10 minutes, the mechanism will automatically release.】

After Wang Yongxin stepped onto the platform and placed his neck into the noose, the mechanism activated.

The noose tightened upward, and the platform beneath his feet retracted, instantly stretching his body taut and long.

Wang Yongxin could only desperately stand on his tiptoes while using both hands to grip the noose to cushion his chin, struggling to create a safe space for his neck.

While this game was not lethal on the first try, it would force Wang Yongxin into an extremely uncomfortable state. Any slight lapse in concentration could cause him to be strangled unconscious by gravity, leading to severe consequences.

...

As the game neared its end, the small speaker in front of Lin Sizhi began playing a new broadcast.

【Please vote on the fairness of the King's actions.】

It was another evaluation phase. After a moment of consideration, Lin Sizhi pressed "√".

The countdown ended.

【Voting results: √√√√√√√√√√】

【Final Fairness Score: 100】

【Thank you for your evaluation!】

...

The ten-minute countdown ended, and the mechanism activated again. The noose above lowered slightly, and the platform beneath his feet rose a bit.

Wang Yongxin finally recovered from the stretched, tense state he had been in. He immediately wrenched himself out of the noose and collapsed onto the floor.

"Hiss..."

His calves were already cramping from standing on his tiptoes for so long; they remained in their previous position, twitching uncontrollably.

Wang Yongxin gritted his teeth and massaged his calves, but it was of no use in the short term.

He had no other choice. Although his calves had cramped halfway through the game, he could only endure the intense pain, because if he lost his support, he would very likely be hanged.

Touching the red mark on his neck, Wang Yongxin felt a sense of having survived a brush with death.

【10,000 minutes of visa time have been settled to the player.】

Compared to Cai Zhiyuan's game, which only gave 150 minutes of visa time, this game was much more generous.

Wang Yongxin gave a bitter, self-mocking smile. "What do you call this? If there's enough profit, will capitalists even sell the nooses to hang themselves with?

"The designer of this game has quite a sense of irony.

"But it isn't fun at all."

(End of Chapter)