An inexplicable pull guided Yan Zhi through the city streets. Since falling ill, a vague yet persistent thought had lingered in his mind—*Find him*. It was not a concrete voice, but an intuition rooted deep in his heart, an unexplainable impulse. Today, this feeling was unusually intense.
The moment he stepped into Yangguang Community, he felt a strange resonance, as if something was calling to him. He followed this sensation, his steps quickening unconsciously.
The door to the community office was open, and noisy bickering drifted out. Yan Zhi paused at the doorway, his gaze immediately drawn to the woman in the blue community uniform by the window—Hu Ping.
When Hu Ping turned around and their eyes met, Yan Zhi felt a sharp sense of confirmation: *It's her*. At the same time, the thought that had lingered for days in his mind finally calmed, replaced by unshakable certainty.
Hu Ping, too, felt an unexplainable flutter of unease. She looked up at Yan Zhi, and those sharp eyes seemed to see through the calm facade she worked so hard to maintain. A sudden panic seized her, yet there was also a strange sense of familiarity.
In Hu Ping's world, every firm belief had dissolved like soaked instant noodles, turning into a shapeless paste. The virus had not taken her life, but it had altered her genes, crushing and diluting the core of her once sharp-edged "Iron Lady" self— the woman who had dared to confront developers, slammed tables, and even made leaders cry. It had crumpled, stirred, and diluted her, boiling her down to a sticky, muddled "paste philosophy" that saw no right or wrong. Now, she was Director Chen of Yangguang Community's neighborhood committee, always wearing a tired smile, her lips always forming the words "understanding," "communication," "further coordination." What was stance? What was responsibility? It was to keep the lid on tight, so no festering sore would burst open in public. As for passion and courage? They had long warped into a near-masochistic obsession— a morbid pursuit of "superficial harmony." For this, the truth could be glossed over, principles torn to shreds, and even the last pillar of support for her loved ones could be used as a stirring stick in her paste bucket.
The bickering in the office raged on.
"Director Hu, you have to do something!" Aunt Liu waved a hospital test report, her voice trembling with anger. "My child ate Haoweilai's boxed lunch yesterday, and last night he started vomiting and having diarrhea. He's still in the hospital now!" "Same for me!" another resident chimed in. "I bought their marinated treats, and now I can't even get out of bed!" Hu Ping pushed down the unease stirred by Yan Zhi's appearance, forcing on her usual smile: "Everyone, calm down. We haven't gotten to the bottom of this yet. Boss Zhou has run a shop in our community for so long; food does spoil easily in the summer. This is probably just an accident..." She turned to Boss Zhou, the fast-food shop owner standing beside her: "Boss Zhou, was the freezer temperature not properly controlled? You must be more careful next time." Boss Zhou nodded frantically: "Yes! It must have been the power outage yesterday that affected the refrigeration. Folks, I'll cover all medical expenses, and I'll also compensate with meal vouchers to apologize!" "Who wants your lousy meal vouchers!" The crowd erupted instantly.
Hu Ping quickly smoothed things over: "Alright, alright. Boss Zhou has acknowledged his mistake. We're all neighbors—harmony is the most important thing." Then she whispered to a few emotional residents: "The community has some hardship subsidy quotas recently. I think several of you qualify. Come to my office later to discuss the details." The storm seemed to calm for the moment. Boss Zhou left, and the residents gradually dispersed.
Yan Zhi watched all this quietly. He noticed the flicker in Hu Ping's eyes, the guilt on Boss Zhou's face, and the suppressed dissatisfaction simmering in the residents. With his sharp intuition for lies, he sensed the matter was far from over.
At that moment, a commotion suddenly erupted in the community square. It just so happened to be the Community Respect for the Elderly Day today, and Haoweilai was responsible for providing lunch. Several elderly residents, having just finished their meal, suddenly developed vomiting and dizziness.
Chaos ensued immediately. Ambulance sirens soon blared, and more than a dozen elderly people were rushed to the hospital in an emergency.
Yan Zhi followed the crowd to the hospital. Outside the emergency room, family members cried, shouted, and questioned one after another. He saw Hu Ping surrounded by a group of people, her body trembling slightly.
"It's you! You've covered up that shady shop time and again!" "How many bribes did you take? Answer us!" "If my father has any accident, I'll never let you go!" Hu Ping opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Her gaze swept through the crowd and met Yan Zhi's. That calm yet sharp gaze seemed to have foreseen all of this.
Yan Zhi stepped forward, his voice steady and clear: "Now, will you still say 'Harmony is precious,' Director Hu?" Hu Ping jolted violently.
"After the first case of food poisoning, you could have demanded a thorough investigation." Yan Zhi's gaze swept over the tightly closed door of the emergency room. "Instead, you chose to muddle through. I'm sure you noticed the unsanitary conditions in the kitchen and suspected his abnormally low prices, yet you chose to look the other way." With every word he spoke, Hu Ping's face paled a little more.
"What did you reconcile?" Yan Zhi's voice held no anger, only calm statement. "You watered down the necessary safety standards with seemingly well-meaning compromise; you diluted your regulatory duty in the name of harmony; you buried the truth that needed to be exposed under the pretense of neighborhood bonds. And now," he paused, "you've reconciled yourself to the elderly lying inside, to consequences that may be irreversible." Just then, the emergency room door opened. A doctor walked out wearily, shaking his head heavily: "Grandma Xu is too old, with multiple organ failure... We did everything we could." The news was like a final verdict. Hu Ping's legs buckled, and she collapsed to the ground, retching uncontrollably. Gray streaks were rapidly appearing and spreading along the insides of her wrists.
Yan Zhi watched as the false harmony she had painstakingly maintained crumbled completely, and the tragedy he had foreseen become reality. The persistent thought of *Find him* that had lingered in his mind for days finally faded away.
He turned around, ready to leave.
Yet the moment he turned—
Hu Ping, collapsed on the ground, suddenly felt a violent tremor deep in her soul. A brand-new, powerful connection surged through her, binding her tightly to the departing figure. Every word Yan Zhi spoke not only tore apart her disguise but also awakened something dormant within her.
Meanwhile, through a vague resonance, she felt a connection to two other unfamiliar beings—Feng Jian and Han Che.
Yan Zhi seemed to sense it, his steps pausing slightly, but he did not look back. His figure disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Huddled on the ground, Hu Ping struggled to lift her head. A stubborn flame ignited in those pained, confused eyes.
Her search had only just begun.
Find him.Amid the chaos, in Hu Ping's mind, a unique, steady, and pure voice—like one synthesized by AI—pierced through the disorder, carrying an unshakable sense of order.