C6 Karma Points Are Easy to Earn

Fong Chao had just herded his sheep out of the house when he encountered a woman from the village, whom he respectfully referred to as "Aunt," pedaling hurriedly toward the fields on her bicycle. After exchanging greetings with her, she rode off, but not before a ten-yuan note slipped from her pocket.

Back in 1990, ten yuan held significant value—it could buy three or four pounds of pork, especially when pork was just over one yuan per pound. The sight of the ten-yuan note made Fong Chao's eyes sparkle, and a wave of greed surged within him, almost uncontrollable. Ten yuan could buy a plethora of snacks.

Without hesitation, he darted over and snatched up the money. Instinctively, he was about to pocket the note—a bad habit born of poverty. Greed, after all, is often considered humanity's original sin.

But then Fong Chao paused, reminding himself that he had traveled back in time from the new era over 20 years in the future. To compromise his integrity over ten yuan would be utterly beneath him.

"Aunt! Aunt! You dropped your money!" he called out, sprinting after her bicycle and shouting as he ran.

Hearing Fong Chao's call, the woman stopped her bicycle in a hurry. She patted her pocket and cried out in alarm, "Oh my! Where's my ten yuan?"

Breathless, Fong Chao reached her side and handed back the ten-yuan note he had picked up from the ground.

The aunt took the money, her gratitude overflowing. She explained to Fong Chao that the ten yuan was meant for her child's medicine, and losing it would have left her at a loss for what to do.

As Fong Chao listened, he was struck by a memory from his past life where he had kept the money for himself, causing the aunt to desperately seek loans throughout the village to treat her child. He realized that in his previous life, he had committed a wrong, but now, he had the chance to make amends.

At that moment, a chime sounded in Fong Chao's mind, followed by a soft, melodious female voice: "Congratulations, host, you have completed a good deed. After evaluation, you will be awarded five Karma Points!"

Upon hearing this, Fong Chao was instantly thrilled!

Could returning ten yuan to its rightful owner really earn him five Karma Points?

If so, it seemed that Karma Points were surprisingly easy to come by.

"Mrs. Aiqin, please, there's no need for formalities. If there's anything you need help with in the future, just let me know. I'll do everything I can to assist you!" Fong Chao assured her, thumping his chest confidently.

The woman's name was Aiqin, and she was married to Liu Changsheng from the village. Liu Changsheng was a bit of a ne'er-do-well, frequently leaving to wander about, often disappearing for months at a time. With him away again, the brunt of the household chores during the busy autumn season fell to his wife.

Mrs. Aiqin also had a young son, only about five or six years old. Between caring for him and harvesting the autumn wheat, she was incredibly busy.

"Thank you, Chao. I'm off to the fields now. I'll bring you some jujubes later; the ones from my garden are exceptionally sweet," Mrs. Aiqin said before departing.

As Fong Chao watched her leave, a grim memory from his past life surfaced. A terrible crime had taken place in Fong Family Platform Village: a few delinquents from a neighboring village had scaled the low wall of Mrs. Aiqin's home one night, forced open her door, and assaulted her.

Mrs. Aiqin had fought back fiercely, and eventually, the neighbors, alerted by the noise, came to her aid and apprehended the culprits. Tragically, Mrs. Aiqin's honor could not be restored. The trauma of the event left her somewhat unstable, her mental state fluctuating between clarity and confusion.

When had this occurred? Fong Chao furrowed his brow, trying to recall the exact timing. It seemed to have been around the end of September.

How could he prevent such a heinous event? If he could alter Mrs. Aiqin's destiny, wouldn't that be a significant act of kindness?

With this in mind, Fong Chao resolved to make time to visit Mrs. Aiqin's home that day to discuss safety measures with her and to reinforce her door and locks.

Fong Chao pondered as he hurried his flock to the mound. Along the way, he performed two good deeds. He earned a Karma Point by assisting a villager with a stuck cart, and another five Karma Points for crushing a scorpion that was crawling toward a toddler in a field. In total, he had accumulated eleven Karma Points on this journey.

This boosted Fong Chao's confidence significantly. He was convinced that he could rapidly gather more Karma Points and then acquire even more impressive skills. The future seemed incredibly promising.

He led the sheep up the fertile grass-covered slope. Once atop the slope, the sheep eagerly began grazing. Meanwhile, Fong Chao settled under a tree, placing a small stool on his lap, and opened his math workbook to begin writing (chao) to (xi) To Live.

Beneath the tree on the mound, a gentle breeze provided a pleasant respite. "My cousin, who works at the County Cultural Center, was once tasked with collecting folk songs from the countryside. That summer, he flitted about like a restless sparrow, roaming the sun-drenched, cicada-filled villages and fields. He relished the farmers' bitter tea, freely drinking from their tea-stained bowls placed under the trees along the field edges. He filled his water bottle and casually chatted with the fieldworkers, departing amidst the suppressed giggles of the young women."

This passage marks the opening of the novel, To Live. However, Fong Chao, considering his own age, altered the narrator to "Cousin" to avoid potential issues.

With a flourish, Fong Chao's pen danced across the paper. His initial pace was slow, but as he warmed up to the task, his speed increased significantly. For a solid hour, he remained motionless except for the fervent writing on his stool. He managed to pen over five thousand words, filling five pages of his math workbook with tightly packed yet neatly arranged text.

Determined to finish the novel as soon as possible, Fong Chao spared no effort.

He lifted his head and exhaled deeply, flexing his slightly stiff wrist, ready to get back to his writing.

But alas, his fountain pen had run dry.

Darn!

Fong Chao felt a twinge of frustration.

How had he forgotten to bring along a bottle of carbon ink?

Shaking his head, he reviewed the paragraph he had transcribed from his thoughts onto the page, only to spot several typos.

He quickly made the corrections.

Afterward, he closed his notebook. Fong Chao stood up and stretched lazily.

The goats were still grazing nearby.

Goats are quite skittish by nature, usually preferring to graze close to their shepherd, rarely straying far.

That's why Fong Chao had such leisure time.

If it wasn't working out, he decided he wouldn't write more this morning. He figured he could write for over an hour at noon and another in the evening. By the end of the day, he should be able to hit around 20,000 words.