Short, Light, Free - Chapter 156

Annoyed, I took a look at my phone and saw the same messages flooding my inbox.

I noticed that many were sent from the webmaster.

“Why can’t I get through your mobile, Boss Chalk?”

“It’s over, the government’s new policy is in effect.”

“Give me a call immediately.”

I had turned on the airplane mode before I went to sleep; it was a habit I learned thanks to wild nocturnal fans.

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I switched the airplane mode off and made the call.

“Finally!” he started.

“What’s going on?”

“I only heard about it last night. The country knows that you’re training on behalf of other players.”

“What happened?”

“This profession used to be small-scale until you came in, promising top 10 and stuff like that, and actually achieving it! The nation’s laid a new order.”

“I’ve seen it. You’ve been talking all about it in your messages. So how is it? Is it serious?” I asked.

“Not just serious- it’s a friggin disaster! The Internet now has a system for identifying users. Game accounts have to be verified by the users’ identification cards.”

“This affects only those who are trying to sell their accounts, no? What has this got to do with me? I’m just using their account to train. Hasn’t the user verification thing been around since a long time ago?” I questioned.

“Reinforcement. This order has another part to it. Substitution training is an offense, as severe as cheating with external software.”

Cheating? Offense?

Ever since video games appeared in the Olympics, cheating with external software became a crime and cheaters were to be handled accordingly.

The lightest sentence included a three-year jail term while the heaviest one meant a death penalty.

Broadcasting and spreading such services was death penalty worthy and many hackers were arrested every year. The emergence of games as a sport and competition brought hackers plenty of profits. A few lines of code were worth more than gold, a fact that led many down the wrong path.

Even as a mere substitute trainer, the amount of money I could earn was ridiculous.

I was taking a big risk in that sense, and that realization made my scalp numb.

“No substitution training, no problem?” I asked.

“That is right, but have you forgotten? You’ve been banned from competitions and you don’t have a game account of your own. All your online accounts have been sealed so what are you going to stream? You can’t keep playing solo games, can you? We’ve invested a lot in you and I didn’t wish for this to happen either.”

“Any idea, then?” I asked, scratching my head. I had never thought that such a day would fall upon me.

“We’ve thought about it. With your current situation, we can only follow the nation’s order and ban your account. There’s no other choice.”

“What? You’re going to ban my account? You’re a streaming platform and not a game company so why are you doing this?” I grilled anxiously.

“We don’t want them to track us down. Don’t make things difficult for us, okay, Brother Chalk?”

“Wait, wait! What about my salary for this month? What about the accumulated tips?”

“You do know that our company’s invested a lot of manpower and financial resources on you, right? Promoting you has given us a number of anti-fans as well. We need a part of the funds to get paid posters and the public relations team to settle this matter. The cost will be high, I’m sure you’re aware of that. After much consideration, we’ve decided to deduct the amount from your frozen account. Our contract will be in effect for three years after all and since you’re unable to continue offering your service, we have the right to sue you for breach of contract and claim compensation. I’ve tried my best, Brother Chalk. This is best for you and the company.”

“Destroying the bridge after crossing the river? Is that it?”

“We really have no choice. And before you think about it, you can’t sue us either. You might not even be able to defend yourself as there are over ten pro-gamers flaming you right now. They’re calling you the scum of the gaming world and that you’re bringing shame to the community. You can take a look at your Weibo. I think you’ll need to hire your own public relations team to get this settled.”

“You’re a bastard, Dahai. How did I help you when you got in trouble years ago? How dare you treat me this way now?” I cursed in anger but he had already hung up.

I flew to my desk even without getting dressed, switched the computer on, and waited impatiently for the desktop to start up.

I hurriedly logged into my account, only to discover that all the buttons had turned grey and that my asset page was filled with zeros.

The 400,000 that I had accumulated in over half a month had been frozen.

Xiaoai appeared behind me and said, “You’ll catch a cold if you don’t put some clothes on. I’ve checked some numbers and your old-age insurance account is at 0. Xiaomi’s recently launched a medical insurance plan that’s 10% cheaper than the government’s.”

“Shut it,” I yelled at her.

“The month’s coming to an end, Master. The monthly service fee is 100,000 and your balance has reached our company’s baseline. We send such a reminder to all account holders who won’t be able to pay for a year of our service. This reminder will be sent every half a month and can’t be deactivated. Please understand, Master,” Xiaoai reported firmly.

I was on the verge of a mental breakdown since I had nothing else apart from games.

I pondered over how I could create another account and start playing solo games.

So what if I had only a few fans? I could climb my way up slowly.

When I went to the streaming platform, I realized that my identification card was bound to the account.

I moved from one platform to another but there was no opportunity.

I looked at my phone and saw Weibo users cursing me thoughtlessly, making me realize how overambitious I was being in thinking that I could create my own live stream.

“What if I want to look for a job? Any recommendations?” I asked Xiaoai desperately.

“Job searching? Can I ask some private questions?” Xiaoai asked with her usual warm tone.

“Go ahead,” I said helplessly.

“Are all the accounts that I have with me all that you own?”

“Yeah.”

“Academic qualifications?”

“Junior College,” I answered.

“Then I suggest that you turn off all smart systems and consider your career at length.”

“No, you’re my only friend now. I can’t.”

“Then I suggest you find a job that allows you to work at least 12 hours a day. Jobs requiring physical labor should get you 12,000. Or…” Xiaoai trailed off.

“Or what?” I prompted.

“My system tells me that you have a very active interaction with the computer. You’re good at it, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, decent.”

“Are you proficient in C?”

“No, I only play games.”

“My system’s gathered all useful information about you and decided to unsubscribe from all smart services. Before that, I will recommend you a few jobs. This cancellation of services is compulsory. You’ll need 120,000 in your account before the services can be reactivated. Have a good day,” Xiaoai finished.

“What are you saying?” I yelled.

A few seconds.

“Can I help you with anything, Master?” Xiaoai asked sluggishly.

I knelt down and started crying.

I looked at the few messages that Xiaoai had left behind.

The last one caught my eye. Online Chat Assistant?

—-

Half a month later…

I work in a workspace that was eight square meters wide.

By my keyboard sprawls a lazy black and white cat.

Four tabs related to clothing, food, housing, and transport were opened on my computer.

There were all kinds of relevant contracts on the ground and there was even one order pasted onto the wall. “Current month: 3,000 deposit. Promote animal adoption, charity event.”

The Xiaomi logo on my shirt was clearly visible. I cleared my throat and pressed the button. “It’s time to drink, Master. Please drink an appropriate amount of warm water to stay healthy.”

A computer-modified voice responded, “Got it.”

I took a sip of my tea and pressed another button. “Master, Xiaomi has recently initiated an animal charity event segment. It is about stray cats and dogs…”