The high platform with overlapping dark curtains, the slightly dark interior, and the girl illuminated by the only beam of light.
Cyril stood under the stage, together with many freshmen, looking at the girl who came on the stage. He did not recognize this girl with black hair and blue eyes. This was a bit strange, because Edes Academy Different from other ordinary colleges and universities, the students who can be selected by the school to speak as freshmen representatives are either good enough and convinced by others, or they have a strong family background, and many students will not be too dissatisfied.
However, if it is such a student, most of them have a certain reputation before entering the school. Although Jade Skirt is big, there are only a handful of people in the top class. He lives in South District 1 all year round, so it is impossible that he has not even heard his name. Said.
It's really strange. Cyril shook his head slightly. He didn't care, but others didn't think so. This kind of student with no background suddenly spoke on behalf of so many people present, which would arouse some people's resentment.
But now, he could hear some of the classmates around him discussing in low voices. He was at the young and energetic age of middle school and high school, and no one would be easily convinced, especially the children of the rich who were mostly pampered.
The reason why he doesn't care about these is because he has experienced many things that his peers have not experienced while growing up, so he can look away from them a lot.
However, just when he was thinking that after the ceremony was over, he could discuss with his friends where to go for lunch, and then return to the company to continue business in the afternoon, the girl on the stage had already finished her salute and began to make her own speech.
There is a fixed format at the beginning, which is basically self-introduction, followed by remarks and the usual prayers for new students.
"Entering Edes Academy was something I didn't expect before. Looking back now, I am still very grateful to the school for giving me this opportunity."
…
"Every student actually has his or her own thoughts. If I speak on behalf of everyone, it may make some students feel uncomfortable because their thoughts are not expressed..." But the girl's speech on the stage did not follow the same pattern. Follow normal routine.
"In my 16-year-old life alone, I have seen countless complex concepts and thoughts popular on the Internet and in real life. People do their own thing. We respect the freedom of every opinion, but this kaleidoscope-like world is also dazzling."
"Respect was originally used to protect individual freedom, but it has been used by all kinds of people to protect their own interests. As a result, all levels of society have been cut horizontally and vertically into many small pieces."
"Power is dispersed, people's hearts are not unified, each is guarding its narrow interests and refuses to let go, and criticizes each other. People are exhausted and worried about various concepts and topics..."
“You may be immersed in some kind of happiness for a while, but as time goes by, you will inevitably fall into some kind of hesitation and uneasiness, because your happiness and your life are not recognized by most people, and they will deny you and slander you.伱, leaving you at a loss.”
“The poor are ridiculed because they don’t work hard enough, so everything they encounter is natural. The rich are hated because many people believe that the rich’s wealth is obtained by oppression, which is full of blood and tears, so hostility and slander have become the norm. "
"Poor people don't get respect and can only do what they say. Rich people have to live a low-key life, because once their luxurious and wasteful side is revealed in front of the public, it will attract all kinds of attacks and doubts,"
"I think everyone must want to become rich, but now even if they become rich, they have to hide themselves at all times because there has been grievances among various classes."
“All levels of society are separated from each other, but working together to overcome difficulties and move forward together seems to have become an extremely distant term.”
"What is it that makes us so awkward? Is it because we can't live at all?"
"No, even though there are still slums in various parts of the Federation, it is rare to hear of people starving to death. Industrially produced starch and protein powder are definitely enough, whether it is compared to the ancient Third Era or the chaotic ruins of the Fifth Era. At the end of the era, we will make a lot of progress."
"I think the answer may be that we have fallen into the inevitable trap of the development of civilization, which is to evaluate a person's life solely by wealth."
"Can a person's life really be simply measured by whether he or she has money? If so, it would be too single and sad. It's like walking into the forest and giving up on a nice stone by the roadside. Go deeper into the forest to see more animals, trees, and flowers."
"Wealth, or money, is a tool created by the division of labor in society. It allows us to obtain daily needs by focusing on one thing. However, this original tool has increasingly become a shackles for most people."
"In the past, you were a spinner, your neighbor next door was a carpenter, and your eldest brother at the back of the village was a fisherman on the river. You each knew a craft and exchanged your harvests with each other. You gave everyone cloth, and your neighbor gave you furniture. The fisherman By giving you food, everyone can find their place and feel at ease, because you know you are needed and recognized by everyone.”
"But the development of society is that markets are becoming more and more convenient and logistics are becoming faster and faster. Even if you don't know anyone, you can buy what you want with money."
“I used to go to distant mountains to pick a flower to express my love, but now the same flower can be bought for only 20 federal dollars. It used to be that a warm handwritten love letter was needed to express the deepest feelings in the heart, but now AI on the Internet can now produce tens of thousands of unique love letters every minute."
"While everything is convenient, everything is also measured by money. Any action we can take to express our feelings will be mistaken as something bought or replaced by money."
"The dolls that have been painstakingly carved are far less perfect than those carved by machines. The confessions that have been prepared with great effort may not be as good as temporary arrangements by a professional company. The actions that have been done with great time may be just for show. Many of the steps have been ignored. AI and others replace each other.”
"Money can buy any service, but the trust between people is also greatly reduced, because it is so convenient to fake, even if it is true, it is difficult for us to believe it."
"The criteria for evaluating various things are becoming more and more single. How much money can you make, how much is the gift you give, the price of your feelings, etc..."
"When a person falls from a height and there is only one rope to hold him, he will definitely be extremely worried about the condition of this rope, but if there are multiple ropes, or even a grid composed of multiple ropes, he should feel much more at ease. , because even if one of them breaks, the other ropes can still support it.”
"But when the evaluation of reality is single, the rope becomes the only thing. Wealth, money, and price become obstacles that can never be bypassed."
"The poor need money to maintain their lives, the middle class needs money to maintain their dignity, and the rich need money to keep their family property from declining. Everyone is eager to expand their wealth and is anxious."
"In the past, we laughed at those backward and conservative moral rules, the honor that people jointly maintained, and the beliefs that were passed down. We believed that the so-called 'the weak and the strong' were the truth. This was just a fig leaf for ourselves when bullying others, and it was unjust for ourselves. Exculpatory behavior.”
"There are many people who are willing to fight to the death for that glory and belief, but how many people are willing to die for money? Even if they are, it is because they want to leave money to their loved ones. This is actually another kind of glory and belief."
“Money can solve a lot of surface problems, but the relationship built on it is so fragile and makes people anxious.”
"Society and the country need a new evaluation system, and people need new criteria to calm their restless hearts, draw a clear scale, connect all classes, and recast the foundation."
"This is my vision for the future and what I hope to achieve in the future. It may still be naive and naive, and there are still many improvements and changes that need to be made, but I sincerely hope to realize it step by step in the future."
Even many years later, Cyril would always think of that day at the opening ceremony of Edes Academy, when he saw the girl with black hair and blue eyes. The softness and strength in her voice were so peaceful and yet so powerful. Unshakable.
Perhaps from that day on, he decided to follow that figure and embark on the path to change everything.
(End of chapter)
