December 25th, 2102.
Maine, a certain small town.
Early in the morning, a nine-year-old boy woke up from his dream and stretched his body.
He rubbed his eyes and looked at the alarm clock beside his bed. He then jumped out of bed and ran downstairs in his pajamas.
"Wow!" A minute later, the little boy's cheerful shout echoed in the living room.
"Mom ~ Mom ~" A few minutes later, he cheerfully ran upstairs and ran into his mother's room. He jumped on the bed and excitedly said, "Look, what did Santa Claus give me?"
The mother on the bed had a smile on her face as she replied sleepily, "Haha … Looks like you're a postman now, my little candy."
The little boy grinned and adjusted the postman hat on his head before saluting his mother. "I am willing to serve you!"
The mother reached out and pinched the child's cheeks. "Well, Mr. Postman, quickly go back to your room and put on your clothes. Be careful not to catch a cold."
"Yes! Ma 'am, "the little boy answered loudly and skipped out.
Looking at the back of the child leaving, a warm smile appeared on the mother's face.
But a few seconds later, she seemed to remember something and her expression suddenly became a bit gloomy. Her line of sight instinctively turned to the bedside table...
There was a picture frame on the table. The picture in the frame wasn't too old. In the picture was a family of three. A handsome father, a beautiful mother, and a cute little boy.
"Mom, when is Dad coming home?" Two years ago at Christmas, the little boy asked his mother.
But his mother only hugged him and wept, unable to say a single word.
On Christmas Eve that year, after the little boy's father got off work from the post office, he rode his bicycle and directly rushed to the shopping center to buy a toy for his child. But on the way back … A car accident took his life.
From then on, only the mother and son were left in the family. They depended on each other for survival.
...
"Put on your hat, yes, just like that."
At 8: 30 in the morning, after confirming that her son was properly dressed, the mother took the little boy's hand and left the house with him.
"Hi, Mr. Marvin, good morning."
"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Dave. Hey, look, whose little postman is this? "
Their neighbors were an elderly black couple who would greet each other whenever they saw each other.
"Hello, Mr. Field."
"Hmm? Oh … hello, Mrs. Dave. "
Another neighbor, Field, was a fat man. Everyone in the neighborhood knew that he was a single otaku. Usually, people would only see him when he went out to take out the garbage.
"Mom, why does Mr. Ford always look so listless?" Little Dave looked up and asked his mother after they walked out of the street.
"Because he stays in a place where there's no sunlight. He eats junk food and doesn't do anything serious," his mother replied.
"Doesn't he have to work?" Little Dave asked curiously.
"Mr. Ford inherited a large sum of money from a distant relative, so he doesn't have to work," replied the mother.
"Oh, he's a lucky man, Mum," said little Dave.
"Yes, he's very lucky …" His mother muttered and then stopped walking.
After pondering for a few seconds, she squatted down so that her eyes were at the same level as her son's. With a stern expression, she said, "Listen, Dave. You have to be like your father. Be a hardworking person. Don't envy people like Mr. Ford. You have to understand … Not everyone is so lucky. "
"Yes, I will, Mom." Little Dave nodded, and replied with a half-understanding tone.
...
At nine in the morning, they arrived at the town's park.
Many adults were already sitting on the benches next to the children's playground. Some stalls selling snacks, drinks, and toys had also been set up.
Little Dave quickly joined the other children and went to play on the side.
Mrs. Dave sat on the bench and chatted with the other housewives.
Half an hour later, an old man walked to her side and greeted her, "Hi, Wendy, long time no see."
"Oh, hello, Chief Nelson."
"I was over there and saw you, so I came to say hello. Merry Christmas, Wendy. "
"Merry Christmas, Mr. Nelson. By the way, how's your wife these days? "
"Not bad. She's at home preparing for a party with the children, so I can only bring my granddaughter to the park to play."
"Haha … I thought you liked children."
"Yes, I like them, but I can't do anything about them." He shrugged. A few seconds later, he seemed to have seen something. "Eh? Is that a street performance? "
"Hmm … Oh, yes." Mrs Dave followed the man's gaze and saw the two performers in the distance. "That is Sagittarius and Yang. They are volunteers in the community. They often perform at the park and the old folks' home. The children love them very much."
"Oh?" Nelson seemed to be interested. "Then I have to go and see it …"
They soon came to the side of a small truck and stood behind a group of naughty children with the other parents.
The children in the front row were obviously looking forward to the performance. When Sagittarius and Yang set up the stage, the children had already gathered around and sat down with their arms around their knees. Nelson's granddaughter and little Dave were among them.
"Okay, children, the performance is about to begin."
After they were ready, the two main actors jumped onto the simple stage next to the truck. One of them was a bearded man dressed as a western cowboy, and the other was a big bald man in a shirt and a vest.
"Children, today, we are going to perform … the extremely thrilling … breathtaking … Shooting Apples with Darts!"
Although it didn't sound like a very interesting performance, it was enough to entertain little Penyu. The children happily clapped and laughed.
…
Gurgle gurgle … Gurgle gurgle …
The sound of flowing liquid rang in Feng Bujue's ears again.
At the same time, the memory fragments from earlier also drilled into his mind …
[Warning, tester 8775 is waking up … Warning, the tester's brain is experiencing an impulse reaction, the source is unknown, please adjust immediately …] The robotic voice sounded again.
"That hurts …" This time, Brother Jue gritted his teeth and opened his eyes. "Tsk … I still can't talk. Oh well … As long as I can see and think … "
As he thought, he moved his eyeballs and tried to observe his surroundings as much as possible.
"I see … I'm also soaked in liquid …" He quickly realized that he was also wearing a light-colored bodysuit and floating in a glass container filled with liquid. His condition … was the same as the last time he "opened his eyes" and saw Enoch (if he was called Enoch in this world).
"My nasal cavity, lungs, and ears are all filled with this unknown substance, but there is no obvious discomfort or suffocation. The moment I opened my eyes, my eyeballs felt a little sore, but I got used to it after a few seconds. It's easier than opening my eyes in water …" Feng Bujue's eyes moved quickly as his mind raced. "No matter what this liquid is, it's definitely not a technological product that existed in this universe in 2002 … Could it be … a setting of the Matrix?" He quickly dismissed the idea. "No, the calluses on my hands are still there. A body that soaks in a tank for years won't have this kind of thing …"
[Warning, the tester's brain waves are overclocked. The test data exceeds the normal value. The forced termination procedure will be initiated in 20 seconds.]
"What kind of test is this? Mental state? Brain function? "Feng Bujue listened to the system voice and speculated about his own situation.
"Anton! You * sshole! Why is No. 8775 awake again? "
"Sir, Anton went to the toilet."
“WTF?”
"Erm … He said he ate something unclean for lunch."
"Okay, you don't have to explain for him. Go to the control panel and deal with this. As for Anton … I'll deal with him later … "
"Yes, sir."
The two people conversing outside the liquid container were the same two people from last time. Judging from their conversation, they should be the workers in charge of this' test 'and they had a superior and subordinate relationship.
"Phew … Buddy, you sure know how to give me trouble …" A few seconds later, a blurry shadow appeared before the container that Feng Bujue was in. He mumbled to himself in a low voice, "You've almost reached the test value but you still keep waking up … Hmm …" He groaned and then let out a chilling laugh. "Hmm … Fine, I'll help you. I'll add some 'stuff' for you … Please hurry up and pass this test. Don't give me any more trouble …"
When he heard that, Feng Bujue really wanted to jump out from the container and hug the NPC. Even though he did not fully understand the meaning behind the man's words, he understood … this NPC whose name and appearance were unknown was the man who could help him see through the 'truth'.
Those who existed in the 'nothingness' could only give him the answer of 'nothingness'; those who existed in 'reality' could give him the 'truth'.
"Increasing the concentration of the solution, adding the special solvent … The forced termination procedure has been deactivated. Preparing the emergency pulse. Counting down in five seconds. Five, four, three, two, one …"
Buzz buzz buzz …
The moment he was hit by the 'pulse', Feng Bujue heard a familiar sound. He pondered for a moment … and suddenly realized that this sound was similar to the sound of the ghost postman's bicycle.
At the same time, another wave of memory fragments flashed before his eyes …
…
"Ah …" Brother Jue spat out a mouthful of blood on the marble floor.
When his consciousness returned to the magnificent hall, he was still in the same position where he smashed the phone to the ground.
Time … did not seem to have flowed at all.
The six people around Feng Bujue once again asked the same question in unison, "Have you found the answer?"
"Hmm …" Brother Jue's lips curled into a cold smile. He slowly stood up and walked to the long table at the far end of the hall. "I think … it's about time for dinner."
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