I accidentally joined a group of charlatans, so I immediately called the police and handed it over t

The commotion came to an abrupt end, like a carnival suddenly cut off.

The marketing accounts that were frantically sharing the "A Glass of Cold Water Scam" online yesterday have now vanished as if they've all disappeared into thin air.

Those posts with strong language were quietly deleted, leaving only glaring "This content has been deleted by the poster."

In the comments section, the keyboard warriors who were shouting "Send the liar to the gallows" and "Shennong No. 1 is poison" suddenly stopped typing.

It's not because they changed their gender.

It was because of fear.

A chilling fear crept in along the internet cable.

The cold wind was still biting at the hospital entrance.

The middle-aged man who smashed a cup in public yesterday and roared like thunder here is now cowering in a corner like a schoolboy who has made a mistake.

He held in his hands the plastic cup that he had smashed, with only half a cup of liquid left inside, which had survived the chaos.

He was shaking all over.

It's not because of the cold.

It was because he had just witnessed that the patient with late-stage liver cancer in the next bed, who had drunk this cup of water, was able to get out of bed and go buy porridge by himself half an hour earlier.

His wife is still in the ICU, clinging to life on a ventilator.

He wanted to join the queue for a second cup.

But his legs felt like they were made of lead, and he couldn't move an inch.

As he watched the expressionless soldiers mechanically distributing the "Shennong No. 1" missiles, the image of himself pointing his finger at them and calling them "lackeys" and "accomplices" kept replaying in his mind yesterday.

"Wow... will they give it to me?"

The middle-aged man, his lips trembling, asked a young man next to him who also looked ashen-faced.

The young man, wearing black-rimmed glasses, was live-streaming yesterday and was the most vocal in his criticism, calling it an "inhuman experiment."

At that moment, the young man was gripping his phone tightly, the screen showing him frantically clicking "cancel account" in the background.

"it's useless……"

The young man's voice was hoarse, trembling with tears.

"Everything is recorded... It's all done under real names. The big data knows everything we said and did yesterday."

"If the government were to create a list..."

"What if I get blacklisted..."

"That's the death penalty."

Upon hearing those two words, several of the family members who had been making the most noise yesterday nearly collapsed to their knees.

Dead silence.

A deathly silence, more terrifying than death itself, spread through the crowd.

Everyone is waiting for the judgment to come.

They were afraid that the young official would suddenly appear, holding a long list, pointing his finger at them, and declaring in the calmest tone, "You insulted the country yesterday. Today, you're out of luck."

The imagined humiliation and rejection suffocated them more than the terminal illness itself.

Base 001, Command Center.

On the huge screen, the data line for public opinion monitoring showed a bizarre, precipitous drop.

All negative comments online disappeared within just four hours.

Instead, the search bar was flooded with keywords like: #ShennongNo.1Reissue#, #WillIsMyMedicineSuppressedIfIScoldedThePersonIn Charge#, #TheCountryForgivesMe#.

Looking at the shocking posts seeking help, Li Guobang's brows furrowed into a deep frown.

He was a soldier, hard-hearted but also soft-hearted.

Seeing the people suffering in fear, he finally couldn't sit still any longer.

"Chen Xi".

Li Guobang turned around and looked at the young man who was curled up on the sofa, casually scrolling through his phone.

"Is that enough?"

"People are panicking outside; some are even too scared to queue up."

"How about issuing a statement?"

Li Guobang asked tentatively.

"Just tell them the government won't mind, and that they can come and collect their medicine without worry?"

Chen Xi's fingers slid lightly across the screen without even looking up.

"What's the rush?"

His voice was soft, yet it carried an undeniable chill.

"Old Li, human nature is just that despicable."

Chen Xi finally raised his head, his deep eyes showing no emotion whatsoever.

"They won't cherish things that are too easily obtained."

"Yesterday we delivered the life-saving supplies to them, but they treated them like trash, throwing them on the ground and trampling on them."

Why?

"Because they feel it's their due, that the country owes them something."

Chen Xi stood up, walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, and looked down at the long, lifeless line of people at the hospital entrance in the distance.

"Now they're scared."

"I'm afraid that I'll lose my chance to live because of my own stupidity."

"This fear is a good medicine."

Chen Xi turned around, a faint smile playing on his lips. The smile held a hint of insight into human nature and a touch of compassion born of a forced ruthlessness.

"Only when people are most afraid of losing something do they understand what reverence and gratitude are."

"If we issue a statement now, they will only think we are weak and that the squeaky wheel gets the grease."

"Wait a little longer."

Chen Xi sat back down on the sofa and picked up the black cell phone.

On the screen, the Heavenly Court chat group was bustling with activity.

Those gods who are usually high and mighty are now furious because mortals dare to question the "elixir of immortality".

[Nezha]: Outrageous! Are these mortals blind?! This is a wisp of life from the Primordial Spirit Peach! Even in the Heavenly Court, it's something everyone would fight tooth and nail for, and they dare to smash it?!

【Nezha】: @Newcomer reporting in, please protect me, don't stop me! I'm going to teach them a lesson!

[Erlang Shen]: You are so stupid.

[Sun Wukong]: I'm so angry! If this were my Flower Fruit Mountain, I would have kicked this monkey out long ago!

Chen Xi looked at the messages in the group chat and tapped the screen lightly with her fingers.

[Newcomer reporting in, please protect me]: Dear masters, please calm down.

[Newcomer reporting in, seeking protection]: Mortals with mortal eyes cannot recognize true gold.

[Newcomer reporting in, seeking protection]: However, punishment is already on its way.

[Newcomer reporting in, seeking protection]: Sometimes, the fear in one's heart is more memorable than physical pain.

After replying to the message, Chen Xi looked at Li Guobang, who had a conflicted expression.

"Old Li, let the bullets fly a little longer."

"No statements are allowed before tonight."

"Let this fear fester in their hearts for a few more hours."

"I want them to remember this for the rest of their lives."

"This glass of water is not plain water."

"It is a gift from the country."

Li Guobang looked at Chen Xi's young yet unusually cold face and remained silent for a long time.

Finally, he sighed and nodded.

"I'll listen to you."

"You are the commander-in-chief."

Outside the window, the cold wind howled.

The crowd outside the hospital remained kneeling on the ground, holding the cup of water in their hands, as if they were holding their own broken souls.

They are waiting.

Waiting for a forgiveness that may never come.

Or perhaps a belated redemption.