Chapter 128: If Time Could Be Traded

October 14th, Tuesday.

During the afternoon break, it was time for the usual debate meeting session.

Su Huaizhou had written the debate topic on the blackboard. It was very conspicuous: [A black technology has appeared on Earth that allows people to freely trade lifespan. Do you support it?]

Since Jiang Miao didn’t pay much attention to the debate competition and hardly read the messages in the WeChat group, this was the first time he learned what the final debate topic was.

When he saw it, he opened his mouth but had no idea what to say.

“The topic was announced at noon yesterday. I asked everyone to prepare your arguments and viewpoints. Let’s hear them,” Su Huaizhou said, holding a piece of chalk, still feeling a little uncomfortable under the gazes of her team members.

Ever since these lovely team members discovered her relationship with Junior Brother last week, she felt that her authority had diminished.

When facing the four of them, she always felt a bit guilty.

“Senior Sister, are we the affirmative or opposition side?” Jiang Miao asked curiously.

“Just because you don’t have to compete doesn’t mean you can ignore the group chat.” Su Huaizhou tried her best to frown to express her displeasure as the team leader. “We are the affirmative side, so we have to support it. You’ll need to share your views later.”

“…” Jiang Miao was speechless upon hearing that they were on the affirmative side and muttered under his breath, “We’re losing for sure…”

When a normal person saw this topic, their first reaction would definitely be that it couldn’t be sold. What could the affirmative side possibly say to defend it?

Besides, the opposition side wasn’t a weak team. Remembering Wang Xin’s performance on stage last weekend, Jiang Miao felt there wasn’t much hope for the finals.

This debate topic was clearly in favor of the opposition.

But since it was only the first-year competition, as long as the teams reached the semifinals, all members would receive bonus points. So from a benefits perspective, the final victory or loss didn’t make much of a difference.

Therefore, the seniors of the debate team chose a more entertaining and interesting topic to debate.

When it came to the school-level Magnificence Cup debates, the topics would definitely be more rigorous and serious, at least ensuring relative balance for both sides.

Seeing that his teammates had already started brainstorming, Jiang Miao, feeling bored, started scrolling through his phone. Suddenly, he noticed that someone had sent him a friend request. �

[Huiyue] requests to add you as a friend: Peach Jam! I’m your fan! Can I apply to be your community manager?

He looked at the source of the friend request and saw it came from the general reader group.

Speaking of which, his new book’s reader group had already grown to nearly five hundred people.

In the past, whenever a reader added him as a friend, he felt particularly happy. But as the number of people gradually increased, it became a little troublesome.

Most of his friends on QQ were classmates. From elementary school to college, there were about two hundred people.

Now, he had at least two hundred friends who were fellow authors and readers.

This made it nearly impossible for him to remember who was who. Even in the reader group, he could only recognize people by their profile pictures.

In particular, those with nice-looking profile pictures or who often spoke flamboyantly were easier to remember.

But if someone suddenly changed their profile picture, Jiang Miao would instantly not recognize them.

Still, he had some impression of this Huiyue. This person often chatted in the group chat on weekends and seemed to be a student.

He accepted the friend request, and the other party quickly replied.

[Huiyue]: Hello, Peach Jam!

[Huiyue]: Can I apply to be your community manager?

[Huiyue]: I can help organize activities in your reader group, manage the group, and assist with the future subscribers-only group.

[Huiyue]: If you need chapter promotions, I can help you reach out to other authors.

[Huiyue]: In addition, I know some well-known artists and voice actors. We can invite them to check out your book later.

Wow, this person came prepared. Jiang Miao raised an eyebrow, surprised by how well-prepared this person was.

He didn’t have any objections about this person being a community manager. After all, for a struggling author, the role of community manager often fell on him.

Having a fan help him do it would be great.

Authors who were truly struggling usually wouldn’t have a fan volunteer to be their community manager.

However, Jiang Miao still asked a question.

[Peach Jam]: You’re a boy, right?

[Huiyue]: Huh? Is it a problem if I’m a boy?

[Huiyue]: Peach Jam, you don’t think there are girls reading your book, do you?

As soon as these words came out, Jiang Miao was enraged.

What do you mean there aren’t any girls reading it?

Do you know I can randomly point my finger, and there’s a girl reading my novel right now?!

He sat in the back row of the classroom, looking around at the four female teammates in the front row and then at Senior Sister on the podium, and nodded in satisfaction.

There was nothing wrong with his words.

However, in order to take care of his fan’s feelings, Jiang Miao decided not to lower himself and get into an argument.

[Peach Jam]: It’s fine as long as you’re a boy. If you were a girl, then never mind.

[Huiyue]: I’m definitely a boy. But what do you mean by not wanting a girl?

[Huiyue]: Now, I’m a bit anxious…

[Peach Jam]: ???

[Huiyue: Peach Jam, I respect everyone’s sexual orientation, but I’m straight and have no interest in that aspect.

[Peach Jam]: Why don’t you just leave then?

[Huiyue]: But you’ve already agreed to my help.

[Peach Jam]: My sexual orientation is normal. I just don’t want a female community manager because I’m afraid my girlfriend will get jealous.

[Huiyue]: ???

[Huiyue]: You have a girlfriend?!

[Huiyue]: (Can’t accept it.jpg)

Heh. Jiang Miao smiled proudly and shook his head helplessly.

It seemed he had unintentionally dealt a blow to this fan’s mentality.

But it certainly wasn’t his intention.

[Huiyue]: How could Peach Jam have a girlfriend?!

[Huiyue]: My Dao Heart has collapsed.

[Peach Jam]: Isn’t it normal to have a girlfriend? Don’t you?

[Huiyue]: … I can’t even talk about this anymore.

After chatting for a while longer, Jiang Miao decided to hand over the position of community manager of the reader group to Huiyue.

[Huiyue]: When are you setting up the subscribers-only group?

[Peach Jam]: I’ll wait until the subscribers reach 500 fan value before setting it up. It’ll probably be in the next few days.

He had been hitting a daily word count of 10,000 during the National Day holiday. With 2,000 words equaling 10 cents, 10,000 meant earning 50 cents.

To earn five yuan from a single subscriber, he would need to release a total of 100,000 words in premium chapters.

Considering that many readers had VIP memberships that gave discounts, he would need to write even more than that.

Fortunately, his father-in-law, a Silver Alliance Leader, had descended from the sky. Although Jiang Miao had been slacking off by only writing 3,000 words for the past few days, he was still working hard at releasing.

With 10,000 words a day during the National Day holiday, plus the updates afterwards, he was certain he would exceed 100,000 words soon.

[Huiyue]: Well, you can actually set it up now. Readers whose fan value hasn’t reached the requirement can just wait a little longer. Those who have can join the group right away.

[Peach Jam]: Okay. If you have time, go ahead and create it. I won’t be the group admin anymore.

[Huiyue]: Huh? You don’t want to be the group admin?

[Peach Jam]: Haha, you guys keep posting lewd pictures, which makes me anxious. Being your group admin is too risky.

“Jiang Miao!”

Just as he was having a lively chat on QQ, Su Huaizhou suddenly called out his name.

“Everyone has shared their opinions. It’s your turn,” she said while twirling her hair.

She felt a bit awkward thinking that everyone knew Jiang Miao was her boyfriend.

Hearing his name called, he was stunned for a moment when he realized that more than ten minutes had passed.

Looking at the arguments listed on the blackboard, Jiang Miao shook his head. “Everyone’s points are great. I have nothing to add.”

“Okay, then you can act as the opposition and see how you might refute the arguments.” Su Huaizhou pointed at the blackboard and asked, “If you were on the opposition, what would you say?”

“The opposition has it easy…” Jiang Miao spread his hands and looked at the four female teammates waiting curiously for his arguments. He blinked and asked, “What do you think money can’t buy?”

“Love?” Ding Ning was the first to speak, answering without hesitation.

“Okay.” Jiang Miao nodded and looked at the other three. “What else?”

“Awards.”

“Skills.”

“Actually, it’s not impossible to buy those, right?” Jia Tongxue said. “Can you really not buy love? Isn’t there a lot of shady dealings with awards and whatnot?”

“That’s right.” Jiang Miao agreed, but he asked, “Then, do you think love bought with money and awards obtained through money hold any value compared to true love and genuine achievements?”

“What does that have to do with trading time?” Jia Tongxue asked, unconvinced.

“So, things like emotions and honors, which are symbolic and exist on a spiritual level, shouldn’t be included in the free market,” Jiang Miao said earnestly. “Time is the same.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“How is it the same?”

“Time symbolizes fairness,” Jiang Miao said. “Everyone has 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Time flows evenly and impartially for every person.

“But once time enters the free market, that fairness is lost.

“Therefore, just like love and awards, time—something tied to spiritual pursuits—shouldn’t be included in the free market.”

The four female teammates were stunned, but Jia Tongxue wasn’t ready to give in yet and pressed further. “You’re being too abstract. Just because it symbolizes fairness, you can’t trade it? What if someone’s dying? Wouldn’t you let them spend money to buy more time?”

“Alright.” Jiang Miao scratched his head. “Let me give a more down-to-earth argument.”

“Go on.” Jia Tongxue’s eyes were full of fighting spirit as she waited for him to continue.

“The topic specifically mentions free trade, right?”

“Right.”

“But the reality is, is there really free trade?” Jiang Miao raised his finger and asked, “Say two fathers are gravely ill, and a poor family and a rich family come to buy time. Who do you think will offer a higher price?”

Jia Tongxue: “…”

“Moreover, haven’t numerous studies shown that the richest one percent of the world now hold more than eighty percent of global wealth?” Jiang Miao pressed on.

“If we could freely trade time, wouldn’t those richest people be able to buy themselves another ten thousand years?

“Think of impoverished regions like part of Africa. Wouldn’t there be people specifically going there to buy cheap time in bulk and then resell it?

“And taking it a step further, wouldn’t those wealthy people, in order to live longer, start buying the reproductive rights of women in those poor areas and turning them into birthing machines for the rest of their lives to continuously produce babies for fresh supplies of time?

“In that case, billionaires would all be ten-thousand-year-old monsters, while young people would have to spend their entire lives working, only to scrape together enough money to buy a day or two at the end of their lives.

“Once time becomes a commodity on the free market, it is destined to be monopolized.”

Jia Tongxue opened her mouth but couldn’t find any words to respond.

“How are we supposed to argue against that?” Ding Ning murmured quietly, feeling like she had already lost before the debate even started.

On the podium, Su Huaizhou nodded in satisfaction, the corners of her mouth curling up slightly. “Well said. Jiang Miao, now look at it from another angle. Think about how the affirmative side would counter the points you just made.”

Jiang Miao: “???”

What the hell?

So now I have to argue against myself?

Is this some kind of self-duel?

“Um, Senior Sister.” He frowned and thought hard. Then he raised his hand and asked, “I have a question. How exactly does this time trading work?”

“Weren’t you paying attention earlier?” Su Huaizhou shot him a sidelong glance.

“Ahem…”

“Just like when you go out to buy things, people can freely trade time, essentially circulating it in the market,” she explained simply.

“So, what kind of time is being traded?” Jiang Miao asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Let me give you an example. If I spend money to buy an hour of your time, which hour of your time am I actually buying?”

Su Huaizhou’s face turned slightly red for a moment, but she quickly regained her composure and explained, “It would be an hour taken from the end of my life and added to yours.”

“So, what you’re selling is an hour right before the time of your death?”

“You could say that.” Su Huaizhou nodded.

Since it was a hypothetical topic, the debate team had already set specific rules to define the concept of time trading.

Otherwise, the debate wouldn’t even be able to develop.

“Then what about me?” Jiang Miao wasn’t finished asking. “Does the hour you sold me let me have a twenty-fifth hour in a day out of thin air, or does it just give me an extra hour before I die?”

“It directly extends your time before you die. It doesn’t mean you get an extra hour in your day to use as you please.”

“Got it.” Jiang Miao nodded.

“So what do you want to say after asking all those questions?” Su Huaizhou asked.

“In that case, my first point can be easily countered,” he said. “Since it only extends the length of your life, the inherent fairness of time hasn’t actually changed, right?

“Even after the trade, both people still live with twenty-four hours a day. The only difference is that one person dies a little earlier and the other a little later.

“In reality, each of us already has different lifespans, right? It’s not like everyone throughout history has agreed to die exactly at eighty years old for the sake of fairness.

“Time’s fairness, in that sense, is just a made-up concept.

“Trading time doesn’t interfere with the rule of twenty-four hours a day.

“This is different from using money to buy love or awards. Buying these two things distorts their original meaning.

“But trading time doesn’t affect the twenty-four hours a day we each live. Time itself isn’t fundamentally altered.”

Ding Ning, sitting in the front row, opened her mouth wide and quickly recorded Jiang Miao’s points in her notebook.

The sense of hopelessness she had earlier was completely overturned by him.

“What about the point you made earlier about the wealthy monopolizing this?” Yi Luren asked curiously. “You haven’t addressed it yet.”

“About that…” Jiang Miao thought about it and asked, “Would a fifty-year-old man without any serious illness spend money to buy time?”

“Why wouldn’t he?”

“There wouldn’t be any immediate difference after buying it, right?” Jiang Miao prompted. “Didn’t Senior Sister just explain it? The time you buy only gets added at the end of your life.

“In other words, unless you’re on your deathbed, even if you buy more time, you’ll still be using your own remaining time.

“It’s essentially like you’re buying time for your future, dying self, not for your current self.

“So, in normal circumstances, even though it’s called free trading, the only ones with an urgent need for time are those lying on their deathbeds.”

“And then?” Pei Jue asked curiously. “That won’t stop wealthy people from buying and hoarding time in advance, right? After all, they’re not short on money.”

“True, you’re right.” Jiang Miao nodded. “But what’s the actual difference? What specific benefits do they gain?”

“They could live forever,” Ding Ning said with her eyes wide open. But she suddenly paused and blinked, her expression slightly complicated, as though a realization had struck her.

“But all they’re buying is time,” Jiang Miao reminded. “They’re not buying health.

“When they’re in their seventies and eighties and should have died of natural causes, they can keep living thanks to the extra time they bought, but their health is gone.

“If they push it to two hundred years old, they’ll probably be confined to a bed, surviving solely on IV drips.

“We have to remember that the human body has its limits. As we age, our organs inevitably deteriorate.

“Even if they buy more time, when they’re old, their organs won’t stop failing. They’d be stuck in a frail, old body plagued by illness.

“So, is this version of living forever more of a blessing or more of a torment? It’s hard to say.”

…

The discussion began at 1:30 p.m. and didn’t wrap up until 6 p.m.

Su Huaizhou had an evening class, so she had to end the intense discussion.

Walking out of the classroom, Jiang Miao smacked his lips, feeling like they were about to crack.

“Senior Sister, my throat feels like it’s on fire. Can you help me moisten my mouth?” He held her hand and shamelessly leaned over to ask.

“Be serious.” Su Huaizhou glared at him and pushed his face away.

During the discussion, he had been so charming, but now, he was back to his usual unserious self.

“Here.” She took out her water bottle from her bag, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to him.

Jiang Miao took the bottle and gulped it down. “So sweet.”

“It’s just water.” Su Huaizhou laughed.

“I meant your water bottle, Senior Sister.”

“Pervert!” She patted him in annoyance, took back her water bottle, put it away, and continued holding Junior Brother’s hand.

They made their way to her classroom and found seats in the back row with familiarity.

Jiang Miao took out his laptop and prepared to write while accompanying Senior Sister in class.

“When we first looked at the debate topic, we all thought the opposition would definitely win,” Su Huaizhou whispered to him before class started. “But it feels like there’s a glimmer of hope now.”

“Just a glimmer?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t flatter yourself.” She rolled her eyes at him and then teased, “If you’re willing to take the stage, I think our chances will be much higher.”

“Then you should stop praising me.” Jiang Miao immediately raised his hands in surrender. “I’m still busy catching up on the Silver Alliance Leader’s chapters, so I don’t have time to write a debate draft.”

Su Huaizhou looked at his slacker appearance, feeling amused and exasperated. She placed her hands on her hips and joked, “Then how about I sell you some time?”

“No need for that Senior Sister. You can just sell yourself to me instead.”

“You wish!”

Class started.

The professor walked in, opened the PowerPoint presentation, and took out the class roster to take attendance.

“Ah… Don’t…” Su Huaizhou suddenly whispered from the back row.

Under the table, one of her slender, long legs had fallen between Junior Brother’s legs.

He began to play with it.

“Stop it…”

“Just gathering material,” Jiang Miao said shamelessly, showing no intention of letting her go.

“Wang Chaoyu.”

“Here!”

“Lu Yushi.”

“Here!”

“Su Huaizhou.”

“H-here!”

With a blush on her cheeks and biting her lip, she managed to answer while trying to keep her upper body looking normal.

But with Junior Brother toying with her leg, even through her cropped pants, Su Huaizhou couldn’t help but tremble.

It felt…

So exciting.

===

Read advanced chapters (19) @ /c/CharmaineTL