Chapter 115: "Consultation Specialist":

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Wang Fang’s eyes kept glancing toward the kitchen door. During the meal, Jing Shu had gone in several times to bring out more dishes, and through the small crack, Wang Fang could see what looked like an array of items inside. Jing Shu pretended not to notice her aunt’s little gestures, but she was thankful for her foresight. Couldn’t her aunt just learn from Su Long and sit down peacefully to eat, instead of scheming?

“By the way, big brother, what happened to the black pig you got last time? Did you give it to your sister-in-law’s brother?” Jing Shu’s mother asked.

Jing Shu’s mother was being cautious—she didn’t want all the benefits going to her sister-in-law’s family.

Her uncle laughed sheepishly, “We used the pig to help her brother pull some strings and get both of us into government jobs. We’re now working as ‘Community Consultation Specialists,’ a newly created government position. You know how your sister-in-law used to be a lawyer—this job needed someone with her skills.”

Jing Shu narrowed her eyes. In her previous life, despite all the effort her aunt put into pleasing her brother, they hadn’t managed to enter the government. Yet in this life, because of one pig, they both managed to secure stable positions in the system.

The role of a “Community Consultation Specialist” was essentially being the eyes and ears of the government—a job that many envied. As time went on, the power of these roles would grow significantly.

Their main task was to report on the number of survivors and deaths, gather information on every household, and track potential crimes. If both the on-site report and the government’s big data system flagged someone as a criminal risk, that person was as good as convicted. Soon after, they would be branded with a mark.

Another part of their job was to visit homes, reassuring people that things would get better and encouraging them to trust the government’s power. They were to discourage any rebellious thoughts and ensure compliance—those who didn’t obey wouldn’t get food.

On top of that, they were tasked with steering online discourse in a positive direction.

In ancient times, controlling public opinion meant controlling the empire. In modern times, controlling online discourse meant controlling the very pulse of the country.

After the apocalypse, remember this: anything you see online is only what the government wants you to see.

With the rise of big data monitoring, it wouldn’t be long before the government mandated that everyone carry their phone with GPS tracking on at all times. This would serve as both protection and surveillance.

As a result, the power of consultation specialists would grow even more.

Jing Shu had been considering having her father become the consultation specialist for their neighborhood, which would make things easier in the future. Still, raising poultry wasn’t a bad fallback—sooner or later, even the specialists would be craving meat.

“A consultation specialist? That’s a solid job,” Jing Shu’s mother nodded. Now, government jobs were being filled internally. It wasn’t about corruption—it was about choosing trustworthy people with good recommendations. Anyone who got into trouble would also drag their recommender down with them.

That’s how things worked here. If you had two candidates—one well-known and reliable, and one complete stranger—you’d pick the person you knew. But if they made a mistake, you, as the recommender, couldn’t escape the consequences.

Wang Fang adjusted her messy hair and said excitedly, “You’re telling me! While everyone else gets moldy mushrooms and bugs, we still get some vegetables along with our daily work points. It’s enough to get by.”

Her uncle chimed in, “One pig for a stable job—it was a long-term investment. Totally worth it.” He had a good sense of foresight.

See, that’s the difference between those inside the system and those outside it. The contrast was becoming more apparent, and more people were fighting tooth and nail to get into government jobs rather than labor endlessly for a few virtual coins.

As it was getting late, her uncle urged the family to head home, worried that their frogs would die in the heat without anyone to care for them. “Lanzhi, we owe you big time for those frogs—they saved our last bit of food,” he said.

“We’re all family,” Jing Shu’s mother replied, insisting that Jing Shu’s father drive them home. On the way, they dropped off some *zongzi*, pickles, and braised meat at Jing Shu’s eldest aunt’s house.

Of course, her second aunt got nothing.

Jing Shu’s grandmother had been firm on this point: “The eldest still thinks of me, her old mother, inviting me over for Dragon Boat Festival and offering rice dumplings. But the second one? That ungrateful wretch didn’t say a word. Let her stew in her own misery!”

When Jing Shu’s father returned, he brought back frozen pears and rice *zongzi* from her eldest aunt’s house. Her aunt had remembered how much Jing Shu liked the rice *zongzi* last time and had made sure to send some this time.

Jing Shu’s eldest aunt was a sensible woman. Even among family, there had to be a balance of giving and taking for relationships to last. You couldn’t just take without giving something in return.

That’s how to conduct yourself in life, and it’s a principle for being a decent human.

On Dragon Boat Festival, Jing Shu gave the patrolling police some of her aunt’s rice *zongzi*—nothing fancy. She noticed that the police seemed even more diligent afterward, though there had been no news about the criminal group “Zhetian” lately. This made Jing Shu anxious, as if unseen eyes were always watching her.

In mid-June, the police cars that had been stationed outside Jing Shu’s villa were finally withdrawn, and Yang Yang came by with Wang Dazhao.

“We’ll talk outside. We’re filthy,” Yang Yang said, squatting near one of the traps and inspecting it.

The Zhetian issue hadn’t been resolved because, according to the latest reports, all the spy operatives with code names had escaped to the United States.

“Are you sure you want to go to the U.S.?” Jing Shu asked Wang Dazhao, who had undergone yet another transformation.

Wang Dazhao had started as a sunny young man, excited to become a father. But after the brutal death of his pregnant wife, he had lost all meaning in life, consumed by a thirst for revenge.

After he successfully killed more than a dozen people, he declared that his life belonged to Jing Shu. At that time, he had been like a walking corpse, following her orders without question. Jing Shu had sent him to infiltrate Zhetian, and he obeyed.

After helping destroy Zhetian, Jing Shu told him to follow Yang Yang. In just a month, he had transformed—his skin darker, sporting a scruffy beard, and much more muscular. His eyes, once dead, now gleamed with life.

Wang Dazhao looked at Yang Yang, his eyes shining, and said, “Chasing down Zhetian is part of the mission, but the major wants to do more than that in the U.S. How could I not be part of something like that? Don’t worry, I’ll avenge you.”

Yang Yang stood up, boots crunching underfoot, and said with determination, “Don’t think the U.S. can mess with China without consequences. I’m going to shake things up over there. They’ll learn what it means to get what’s coming to them.”

Jing Shu gave him a thumbs-up. “I like it.”

“I heard from Wang Dazhao that you’re looking for an RV? We’ve got a lead, but you’ll have to haul it back yourself. Plus, you’ll need to do me a favor,” Yang Yang said, coughing as he finally got to the point.

“Where is it? What model?” Jing Shu asked. She wasn’t interested in just any old RV, but judging by Yang Yang’s expression, she had a feeling this wasn’t going to be easy.

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*Author’s note*: Thanks to Jiu Luzi, Yu Ji, and Mei Laopo de Shisan for the tips! 😊