Chapter 93: Only Silence Remains
Old Ye drove both steadily and quickly. By noon, the group had already arrived at a small county town near Huailin.
"So... who exactly are we here to interview?"
Pu Tong still had no idea what the purpose of this trip was. They said they were interviewing an ordinary person, but there were countless ordinary people. They couldn't possibly just grab someone off the street.
"I'll explain while we eat."
The four of them got out of the car and entered a small local restaurant.
The food was average, but Pu Tong couldn't care less.
Right now, he only wanted to know what kind of person was worth traveling all this way to interview.
Seeing the curiosity written all over her son's face, Ni Hui finally began explaining.
"Do you remember the major news that happened here three months ago?"
"Huh?"
Pu Tong was stunned.
Three months ago...
He hadn't even transmigrated into this world yet.
"It was a case of someone acting bravely to save another person," Jia Yao said. Seeing that he didn't know about it, she quickly took out her phone and showed him a video.
Pu Tong accepted the phone and pressed play.
In the video, an emotional teenage boy stood outside the safety railing of a bridge.
Just like in television dramas, all it would take was one step forward.
One jump...
And he would become just another suicide statistic.
Another name in the news.
Another passing sigh from strangers who saw the report.
The boy shouted about overwhelming academic pressure, depression, heartbreak...
As if he were the unhappiest person in the world.
The crowd tried desperately to persuade him.
He ignored every word.
His trembling hands gripped the railing tighter and tighter.
Just then...
A figure in a yellow delivery uniform suddenly rushed into frame.
Like a rocket, the man lunged forward and grabbed the boy just before he fell.
After forcibly dragging him back to safety...
He simply turned around...
And quietly left the scene.
"...So?"
Pu Tong frowned.
"Isn't this just a common story of a kind-hearted delivery driver saving someone?"
"Surely he was interviewed countless times back then."
"Why come all the way here three months later?"
"You should search it yourself."
Ni Hui, Jia Yao, and Old Ye all fell silent.
None of them explained further.
Clearly...
The ending wasn't a happy one.
Pu Tong immediately searched for the incident.
The follow-up developments were completely beyond anything he had expected.
When the authorities planned to commend the man for his bravery...
They discovered that he had only recently been released from prison.
He had once been convicted of murder.
How did most people view criminals?
Violent.
Evil.
Heartless.
Monstrous.
Merciless.
Society had countless words that painted criminals as irredeemable monsters.
So the moment people learned he had served prison time...
That label instantly overshadowed everything else.
Because of his identity...
The flood of praise that had once filled the internet disappeared overnight.
"...What happened afterward?"
"Later, an independent reporter interviewed him," Ni Hui said with a frown.
"But..."
"They maliciously edited the footage."
"In the interview, the man said, 'I've endured half a lifetime of hardship. A young person shouldn't throw away their life over a few setbacks.'"
"...That statement..."
Pu Tong frowned.
Suffering couldn't be measured or compared.
Everyone experienced pain differently.
But life itself...
Was more precious than anything.
Having died once before...
No one understood the terror of losing one's life better than he did.
Life deserved absolute respect.
He understood what the man had meant.
But in the hands of people with ulterior motives...
His words became nothing more than an old man's condescending lecture about how young people "had it easy."
The mental struggles of young people were already an extremely controversial social issue.
That interview became the spark that ignited public outrage.
And just like that...
Public opinion completely shifted.
Marketing accounts appeared overnight.
They exploited young people's anxiety...
And shamelessly profited from the controversy.
Comments flooded the internet:
"Everyone should have the right to choose whether they live or die. Who gave him the right to stop someone from ending their own life?"
"That kid was obviously suffering enough already, yet he forced him to keep living in pain. Isn't that cruel? Figures someone who's been to prison would have such a rotten heart."
"He rushed in so recklessly. What if he'd accidentally pushed the kid off the bridge instead? Is he some kind of professional rescuer? Why couldn't he just wait for the firefighters? What's with ordinary people trying to play hero?"
"Knowing he delivers food around my neighborhood honestly scares me. What if I leave him a bad review someday? What if he comes to my house and kills me?"
"I know that river. Jumping into it wouldn't even kill you. Instead, he dragged the kid back so forcefully that the boy's arm was cut and bleeding."
Reading those malicious comments...
Pu Tong slowly clenched his fists.
When heroes were no longer treated like heroes...
People suddenly found countless excuses to tear them down.
Just to satisfy their own desire for attention.
There were certainly more good people than bad in this world.
But good people rarely spoke up.
Whenever something happened...
The first voices people heard were often the malicious ones.
In reality...
Most people knew what was right.
They simply...
Stayed silent.
"After that," Ni Hui sighed,
"the man disappeared."
"His employer fired him because of the public pressure."
"And after that..."
"No one ever saw him again."
Someone who had done absolutely nothing wrong...
Had become society's public enemy.
Pu Tong couldn't believe something so absurd could actually happen.
"Many reporters wanted to help clear his name," Ni Hui continued.
"They wanted to interview him."
"But nobody could find him."
"So eventually..."
"The whole matter was quietly forgotten."
Perhaps...
He simply couldn't understand why the reporters who smiled politely to his face...
Would turn around...
And twist the truth into something completely different.
He became afraid.
The internet had no memory.
People might feel sorry for him at first.
But after one month?
Two months?
Three months?
Would anyone still remember him?
Who still cared about the truth behind a three-month-old news story?
"So..."
"We came here to reveal the truth?"
"I've been following this case all along."
"I only recently found some leads."
"So I rushed over immediately."
Ni Hui yawned.
"But..."
"It's already been three months."
"The topic isn't trending anymore, is it?"
Pu Tong paused.
"I don't mean anything by that."
"You think your mother is the kind of woman who only chases trends?"
Ni Hui glared at him.
Beside them, Jia Yao laughed...
Until Ni Hui shot her a look that immediately silenced her.
Pu Tong really hadn't meant it that way.
He had always known...
His mother cared about ordinary people.
She reported on the hardships hidden away in overlooked corners of society.
She wanted more people to see the realities that most ignored.
Did she care about popularity?
Of course she did.
But only because greater attention meant more people would hear the stories she wanted to tell.
Just like this case.
If her report received no attention at all...
Who would ever learn the truth?
Popularity itself was never the problem.
It all depended on how people used it.
"When do we start?"
"No rush."
"We'll settle down here first."
"Within five days..."
"We'll return an innocent man his innocence."
Old Ye, who had remained quiet the entire time, suddenly spoke.
"If you succeed..."
"You won't gain anything."
"He's just an ordinary man."
"He can't repay you."
"But if you fail..."
"Countless people will accuse you of whitewashing his crimes..."
"And you'll become the target yourself."
"Even so..."
"We're still going to do it?"
"Of course!"
Ni Hui grinned.
"I've been a reporter for years."
"And not once has any of my reporting ever been publicly condemned."
What a dangerous flag to raise...
Still...
For the first time...
Pu Tong thought his usually carefree mother looked incredibly cool.
There were many times in life when remaining silent was acceptable.
But when it came to standing up for what was right...
Silence was the one thing you could not choose.
(End of Chapter)
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