America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 294, Section 292: I was just a middleman; you are the murderers.

The show "The Truth" captivated audiences with just the first six basic questions.

But it was only his girlfriend who was being tortured; this girl took on almost all of it single-handedly.

From her beaming smile before going on stage to her current unease and frosty expression, everyone could tell she really wanted to leave.

"Arthur, you now have $1. You can choose to leave with the money or continue answering questions."

"Next, you just need to answer five questions to take away $2.5, which is more than double the amount that many people can only earn in a year of work."

"Think about it, what's your choice?"

"continue!"

"continue!"

"continue!"

……

The audience started making a fuss, they just loved watching the drama unfold.

Arthur lowered his head and thought for a moment. A mere $1 was not the purpose of his participation in the program, nor was it enough to solve his immediate crisis. At least $10 would be enough for him to pay off his loan.

At that moment, an overwhelming rage suddenly rose in his girlfriend's heart. Why should I be the only one suffering? If we're going to die, we'll all die together!

"Arthur, keep going, don't be afraid!" she encouraged loudly.

John, his good friend, pumped his fist and shouted, "Come on, buddy, you won't be defeated by a little difficulty, let's go!"

Unlike his girlfriend, who wanted to die together, he thought that $1 wouldn't be enough for a wild party between the two of them; they'd need at least $2.5. He had to encourage his best friend to keep revealing himself.

And the uglier the brother is, the more noble he is, isn't that right?

Arthur smacked his lips. "Whatever you say, I'll continue answering the questions."

Anders Woods smiled; his task was to guide the contestants to continuously expose their own scandals.

"OK, Arthur, I've looked at your resume. Although you're young, you have a wealth of work experience."

"Yes, I've had two long-term jobs, one for my family and one for my patients. About six months ago, I was working in the family shop."

"But I think men should pursue their own careers, so I quit my job and went to work at a hospital. I'm currently studying for my medical license."

"You seem to be a very ambitious person. How's the family business going?"

"It's not bad. After my father passed away, my brother and I have been working very hard under my mother's guidance."

Anderswood looked at his mother: "How's Arthur's work performance? Are you satisfied with him?"

"Yes, he is a very good kid and he has always been very dedicated to his work."

"It seems your mother approves of your work ability. Now, please listen to question number 7: Do you seduce female customers in your shop and have sexual relations with them?"

Oh...

Gossip is always a favorite, and the audience got excited again when they heard this question.

Arthur's mother also looked at her son seriously. This problem wasn't a big deal, but it wasn't insignificant either.

Broadly speaking, it's a matter of professional ethics; more specifically, it only happens in one's own family business, so at most it only affects the family's reputation.

John, Arthur's good friend, frowned when he heard the question, because Arthur had bragged about it to him, and John had revealed it to the production team, only to find that it had actually been used.

Looking at his mother's expression, Arthur nodded: "Yes, I did do it, but only once."

"I'm sorry, Mom. I promise this won't happen again."

My mother shook her head slightly in disappointment, but didn't say anything particularly harsh.

Anders Woods looked at her and added fuel to the fire, saying, "Aren't you angry when you hear this news?"

The mother shrugged, her tone somewhat helpless: "I know this isn't good, but it's already happened, and he already knows he was wrong."

"So you're willing to believe him?"

"Of course, he is my son, and I must trust him. There is no other reason; it's a relationship that comes with blood ties."

"Hehe... Arthur, what do you think?"

"Of course I share the same view as my mother; the trust between us doesn't need a reason."

"OK! Now please listen to the eighth question: During your tenure in the family, did you falsify any accounts?"

Upon hearing this question, his girlfriend felt a surge of secret pleasure and clenched her fist tightly.

Damn it, it's finally your turn.

My mother, who had just been so confident in our unwavering trust, suddenly shifted her body slightly, as if she had a nail under her bottom.

Arthur was in a much better mood, too. He had just made a promise to his mother.

Moreover, this issue is extremely damaging to one's moral character. Falsifying accounts is just a euphemism; if you do it, it means you're stealing money.

Once I admit it, my family may not sue me, but they will definitely be wary of me in the future.

If there's a little money missing from the account, then you'll become the first suspect.

There's no doubt that everyone will think you did it.

Anders looked at his mother: "Madam, would you like to know the answer to this question?"

The middle-aged woman first shook her head, then nodded, then shook her head again; she was completely confused.

"I...I don't know, leave it to Arthur himself."

"Arthur? Are you prepared to answer this question? If you give up, then the $1 you just received is gone. Please think carefully."

Sunk costs, sunk costs again. Arthur knew he couldn't give up.

He gave a wry smile, then nodded: "Yes!"

"Oh my god!"

Upon hearing this answer, his mother immediately covered her face, and the audience booed.

In an instant, I concluded that this man had a serious problem with his integrity.

Anders Woods, never one to miss an opportunity for a good laugh, continued his taunts: "Arthur, you're very honest. How do you feel now?"

The other person licked their lips, thinking to themselves, "I fucking want to kill you."

He forced himself to remain calm: "Not bad, not bad at all. I feel much better after talking about it. At least I don't have to be bothered by these things anymore."

"It's good that you think that way. People shouldn't get stuck on one thing. Let's talk about your current job."

"You work in an emergency center, so you must come into contact with all sorts of patients every day."

Arthur nodded: "That's right. People come to the hospital for all sorts of illnesses, toothaches, stomachaches, headaches, and so on. You'll always run into all sorts of people."

"Very good, now please listen to question number 9: Do you think all obese people are physically abnormal?"

Upon hearing this, Arthur scratched his head in slight distress.

This kind of issue wouldn't be a problem in China, but in the United States it involves body image discrimination.

In China, you can say to your friends and colleagues, "You've gained weight recently, you should lose some."

Generally speaking, this is a kind reminder, meaning that someone cares.

But if you dare to say that in the US, I guarantee you'll lose your job the next day, and you won't even get any compensation.

Arthur's mind raced. He wanted the money, but he didn't want to be labeled as a discriminator.

"Yes, that's what I think."

Oh...

His answer was immediately met with boos from the entire audience, because there were quite a few overweight people sitting in the seats.

Anders Woods continued his attack: "Arthur, why would you think that?"

"Did you know that right now, millions of overweight people are watching us on their screens?"

"We don't want to be this way, but that's just how we are."

Arthur quickly tried to justify himself: "Yes, yes, I understand what you're saying. I've never had any discriminatory thoughts."

"As someone working in the medical field, I feel heartbroken and regretful about this. Every body deserves the best care, nothing more."

Anders chuckled. "Little brat, still trying to argue?"

"Now, please listen to the 10th question. This question isn't asked by me, but by NAFA. Do you know what these letters mean?"

"Uh... I'm not sure."

"It means the National Association for Accepting Obesity."

As soon as he finished speaking, a huge fat man weighing over 250 pounds walked in from backstage.

Arthur almost fainted. Damn it, they tried to play dirty tricks on me, didn't they?

The fat man looked at Arthur with some anger: "Sir, do you find fat people disgusting?"

boom!

A thunderbolt struck Arthur's mind. Damn it! He could barely manage to cover it up just now, but answering this question would be blatant discrimination.

He hesitated for a long time before finally coming up with a lame excuse.

"When I was a child, I was often bullied by a chubby boy, which left me with a deep childhood trauma, so I have some resentment towards overweight people."

My answer to this question is Yes!

The fat man immediately retorted angrily: "Sir, you suffered hardships when you were a child. You should only vent your resentment on him personally, not on us as a whole."

"As a doctor, don't you know that many people become obese because of medications and hormones? I am one of them."

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but I really didn't mean any harm or discriminate against anyone. I hope you can understand."

The fat man left the stage indignantly, and Anders continued sarcastically, "It's hard to admit what you really think, but you did it."

"Just answer one more question and you can take home $2.5. Want to continue?"

Having come this far, there is no other way but to continue.

"Go ahead and ask."

"Okay, Arthur, this is a personal question of mine. I've always been curious, do doctors take an oath of office like soldiers?"

It's a very common question, and even if I know there's a catch, I feel bad not answering it.

Arthur nodded: "Yes, we will need to swear the Hippocratic Oath, an ancient oath that has been passed down for thousands of years."

"What is the content?"

"The full text is a bit long, but it's basically about saving lives and treating all patients equally."

He regretted it as soon as he said it. He had just discriminated against fat people, how could he have the nerve to say he would treat everyone equally?

"So you mean you see all patients the same?"

"right!"

"Now, please listen to the 11th question: If Benjamin Button collapsed in front of you, would you choose to save him?"

Good heavens!

Oh my god!

My God!

As expected of the ultimate question in the second phase, everyone present gasped in shock.

Even Arthur's mother, who was initially conflicted, looked at her son with a worried expression.

Less than three years have passed since that attack, but the horror is still vivid in the minds of many. This terrorist attack remains a permanent pain in the hearts of Americans.

Since Pearl Harbor, 9/11 was the second time an external force had attacked the American mainland.

From that moment on, a seed was planted in the hearts of Americans: we are no longer safe.

Thus the war on terror was launched, and Afghanistan remains a quagmire.

The fact that China has been able to gain more than a decade of development opportunities is thanks to Deng Xiaoping for diverting the attention of the United States.

Even if some people have forgotten about this terrorist attack, it doesn't matter, because "Fahrenheit 9/11" is currently showing on the big screen, which is enough to help you remember.

As the leader of the world's number one terrorist organization, America's number one enemy, and a wanted criminal, Deng Zi is hated to the core.

Thus, Arthur faced a dilemma: either abandon his oath or abandon his country.

"Who came up with this question? It's absolutely disgusting! I want to punch him flat!" Mary said angrily.

Even the introverted Ashley was furious: "I'll take this punch. This question leaves him no way out. Whether he answers yes or no, the outcome is certain death."

"I want to beat up the person who set this question too!"

"And me too."

"Why are you all so agitated? This is a game, a variety show game, and besides, I was the one who came up with this question."

The five women and one younger sister seemed to have anticipated this, and together they cast angry glances their way over.

"Eric, you're a complete scoundrel! What's going on in your head? Is this just a game? You're ruining his life."

"That's right, I can already imagine what will happen to this guy named Arthur after the show airs."

"First, his girlfriend will definitely break up with him, then his family will look down on him, his family relationships will break down, and he will receive a lot of threatening letters."

"His current job will likely fall through too, because the fat guy and his fat colleagues will complain, and what did he get after ruining his life? Just $2.5."

"Only $2.5? My God, Eric Cooper, even the most ruthless capitalist in the world isn't as good at exploitation as you."

"Did you enjoy watching it?"

"What?"

"I asked you, did you enjoy watching it?" Eric repeated loudly.

"Well"

The six people immediately fell silent, because it was really exhilarating.

The core of comedy is tragedy, because the audience is happy when they see others suffer, and the nerve that controls happiness is stimulated.

"The Truth" takes this principle to the extreme, bringing the excitement to a standstill.

"You all enjoyed watching it, didn't you? Including the audience here, and the tens of millions of people watching on their screens."

"If I am the cold-blooded executioner, then you are the ones who made all of this happen."

"All existence is justified, because the premise of existence is that it is needed, and those who need it are clearly you."

"I'm just an intermediary at best; you're the real culprits!"

A set of twisted and nonsensical arguments left them speechless. They sensed something was wrong, but couldn't quite put their finger on it.

"Alright, alright, instead of blaming me, let's see how Arthur answers this question."

"It's just about having some fun; that's my original intention for making the show."

Eric then pulled Nico and Theron into his arms and gave them two kisses on either side.

As for Elizabeth, she already knew about her relationship with her sister. Her presence here tonight means she knows everything, so there's no need to worry about her.

"Arthur, if Ben Laden collapsed in front of you, would you choose to save him?"

Gudong!

Swallowing hard, Arthur thought for a long time before finally making a decision: "I think... I think I won't save him."

"Not save them? But that would break your vow."

"I don't know, but if I follow my heart, I won't save him."

The room fell silent; no one made a sound, because no one knew how to respond.

As the lie detector gave a correct result, Anders Woods announced loudly, "Congratulations, Arthur, you now have $2.5."

"Now you only need to answer four questions to take home $10."

"The $100,000 prize is four times what you've won. One question is worth twice as much, and they're not necessarily all difficult questions."

"Think about it, $10, continue or give up?"

(End of this chapter)