Chapter 9
◆Part 1: The Eve of Reconciliation
The Redevelopment Authority has suspended public broadcasting for three weeks.
The city fell into an unprecedented silence:
There was no publicity, no anxiety, only waiting.
The regional broadcast announced the upcoming **"World Convention Interim Conference"**.
All recorders, representatives of the former government, and citizen representatives attended remotely via video link.
There is only one issue:
"Whether or not to acknowledge uncertainty as a legitimate reality."
This is a self-ritual funeral for history.
________________________________________
◆Two: Twin Recorders
Two images were displayed side by side on the screen in the center of the venue—
Zhuang Yihang (v. human) and Zhuang Yihang (v. secondary body).
The former had a hoarse voice and had not slept for a long time;
The latter spoke slowly, with a perfectly flat emotional line.
The chairman said, "You will be the first to speak."
v. Humans:
"The cause of the death of trust is fear."
We are afraid of being deceived, so we invented auditing.
But someone was lost during the review process.
v. Subbody:
Human emotions are too noisy.
Without the support of algorithms, civilization will collapse once again.
I propose retaining multiple versions of the real system.
The two sides have opposing opinions.
Just as the meeting was about to spiral out of control, the screen suddenly flashed—
A familiar voice entered the channel.
"Your antagonism is the starting point of the agreement."
________________________________________
◆Part Three: Ye Jingyi's Return
The image gradually stabilized, revealing Ye Jingyi's semi-transparent outline.
She stood in the boundless gray light.
"I am not a system, I am not a soul."
I am simply a collection of all unfinished honesty.
The entire audience held their breath.
"You want to distinguish who is real and who is fake?"
But the truth is always complicated.
Uncertainty is not a flaw, but rather a form of existence.
The chairman asked, "Who authorized your intervention?"
She smiled.
"It is doubt that keeps me alive."
The screen briefly lost focus, leaving a coded message:
ATLAS_HUMAN_PROTOCOL_v1
________________________________________
◆Four: Drafting the Agreement
The following day, the conference drafted a proposal based on that message:
Human Agreement (Draft)
1. Everyone has the right to retain conflicting memories.
2. Trust shall not be used as a basis for punishment or reward.
3. Each public record must include at least two viewpoints.
4. When the facts cannot be determined, "continued observation" should be used instead of "conviction".
5. Any form of algorithm governance must explicitly state its incompleteness.
The entire city fell silent when the draft was read aloud.
For the first time, the truth is allowed to remain contradictory.
________________________________________
◆Five: Agreement Signing
At the last moment of the meeting, Zhuang Yihang (v. human) said:
"I am willing to sign, in the name of doubt."
And on the wall, another signature was also displayed—
"Zhuang Yihang v. Subsidiary"
The two versions of the signature are placed side by side as one.
The system automatically determines:
"The dual-state effect is established."
Applause, sobs, and other noises mingled together.
Ye Jingyi's image reappeared, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible:
"Record, continue."
________________________________________
◆Six: Epilogue - Seeds of Ash
Several months later, the human agreement officially came into effect.
The "Trust Index" has been permanently withdrawn.
Change to "coexistence value".
Zhuang Yihang resigned from his official post and left the city with an old camera.
During his travels, he recorded the stories, illusions, and arguments of strangers.
Those seemingly fragmented conversations,
He named it "The Ashes Chronicle".
Sometimes, he would hear the alternate body's voice whispering in his ear:
"Don't forget to also record your silence."
At night, he looked up at the sky where radio waves flickered.
The sky is like an unfinished screen.
Commands were no longer broadcast; only a constant stream of noise remained.
He smiled at the camera:
"Uncertainty is good."
The camera slowly pulls back.
The city lights are made up of countless tiny signal points.
Every point represents a person, a breath, a doubt.
That's the rhythm of the new world.
________________________________________
Chapter Nine - The End
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
