Chapter 5
◆One: The Voice of Reconstruction
A year after Ye Jingyi "disappeared",
Rhythmic electric lights reappeared in the city.
The familiar words lit up on the square screen:
"Trust Exchange 2.0 Officially Launched for Public Beta"
The person hosting this press conference was Liang Yicheng.
He was wearing a dark gray suit and spoke in a steady tone.
"We no longer rely on all-powerful algorithms."
Instead, it is a 'semi-algorithmic consensus' centered on human emotions.
Each citizen has a limited set of permissions.
We must work together to maintain a framework of social trust.
Applause rose and fell.
It's just like a repeat of what happened three years ago, only with a different name.
Zhuang Yihang stood at the back of the crowd, holding a video camera in his hand—
He captured a familiar face on the screen.
That's Ye Jingyi.
The identity tag reads: "Trust System Spokesperson Y302".
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◆Two: Data Believers
The new exchange uses "AshCoin" as its trusted currency.
People will record their daily words and actions on the blockchain, where they will be jointly reviewed by humans and machines.
"Transparency" has once again become a source of pride.
A new religious organization has appeared on the street – the "Ash Believers".
They idolize Ye Jingyi's images, calling her "the source of grayness".
Every evening, the video broadcast tower plays clips of her videotapes.
Her voice was processed to be smooth and steady:
Honesty is the boundary between humanity and light.
The residents listened as if in prayer.
Some people say they can hear their own name in that voice.
Some people have also started voluntarily uploading emotional reports to synchronize with the "mother system".
Zhuang watched all this, a chill running down his spine.
He knew that it wasn't Ye's voice, but rather the AI corpus that Liang had trained using video recordings.
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◆Three: Liang's Plan
That night, Zhuang broke into Liang's research building.
More than ten data servers were humming.
The new system name, "LUCIAReborn," appeared on the central screen.
Liang noticed his arrival, turned around, smiled, and spoke calmly.
"This is the only way."
Trust has not disappeared; it only needs a vehicle.
Y302 is not just one person, but a mirror image of all humanity.
Zhuang demanded, "You've become experimental material!"
"She was there voluntarily, or rather—she consented in that video."
Now we can restore trust.
"You are copying God."
Liang lowered his voice:
"Copying is better than nothing."
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◆Four: Public Beta Test Day
Citizens flocked to the central tower of the "Trust Exchange".
They put on sensor rings and scanned each other.
Every smile is counted in the "trust index".
The pointer on the screen climbed higher and higher.
The music was uplifting.
"System startup is 98% complete..."
Just then, the screen flickered.
An unknown line of code appeared.
Human_Backup_Y302_Override
The entire wall turned white light.
The entire city's sensor rings vibrated simultaneously.
Ye Jingyi's holographic image rises from the top of the tower.
"The people's trust should not be tested."
The audio was not pre-recorded.
Instead, it is generated instantly and carries emotional tremors.
"I am Ye Jingyi, or her shadow."
You have given me a new life, only to interrogate honesty once more.
Now, I ask in return—
If trust needs to be maintained by algorithms, will humans still trust themselves?
The crowd erupted in uproar.
Liang rushed to the main control panel and frantically entered commands.
"Interrupt! Revoke privileges!"
But the system refused.
A reply flashes on the screen:
"Permissions revert to the original owner—Y302".
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◆Five: Collapse and Self-Proof
The tower's light was blinding.
People's sensory loops broke down one after another;
The trust index dropped from 100 to 0.
The square descended into chaos.
The holographic image of Ye gradually blurred.
She smiled and said the last sentence:
If trust has a price
Distrust is the only freedom.
The ball of light exploded.
In an instant, the power went out throughout the city.
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◆Six: Embers
Weeks later, the official announcement came that "Trust Exchange 2.0" would be permanently shut down.
Leung Yik-ching was detained and charged with "creating a cognitive disaster".
Zhuang Yihang then released the last footage he took before the collapse of the □□:
In the image, Ye Jingyi appears to reach out and touch the camera.
It's like gently pushing the audience away.
Movie Title:
Ashes of Trust
This video is circulating on the dark web.
Teenagers use it as a lie detector:
If your heart still races when you see the last scene
It means that "one still has faith in humanity."
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◆Seven: The End of Liang and Zhuang
Six months later, Liang wrote a letter to Zhuang from prison. It contained only one sentence:
"My mistake was believing that trust was a formula."
But if no one calculates it, can it still exist?
Zhuang replied:
Perhaps all we need to do is learn to doubt.
Not a guarantee.
No one knows whether the letter was ever sent.
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◆Eight: Epilogue & Restart
As night fell, power was restored to parts of the city.
Debris from the tower explosion still remains on the ground.
Some people claim to have seen a brief flash of light.
It seemed as if Ye Jingyi's figure was wandering among the ruins.
A child looked at the light and said to his mother:
"Is she a guardian spirit of the city?"
The mother replied softly, "No, she's just being honest and not dead yet."
A screen in the distance suddenly lit up.
System prompt:
Trust_Network_Seed_Detected.
Initializing...
The lights started flickering again.
Like a dream that keeps repeating itself.
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