Chương 74: Chapter 74: The Death of a Civil Servant
"Death of a civil servant?"
Seeing this title, Wei Long instinctively thought it was a detective short story. Given the open theme, among the thirty short story writers submitting, there were certainly some who explored detective themes.
He clicked on it.
Wei Long glanced at the word count and then froze.
Eighteen hundred words?
He doubted if he had read it correctly.
Although short stories typically had fewer words, and he had specifically advised Chu Kuang that short stories should be concise, the word count shouldn't be too low.
But less than two thousand words for the entire story?
Did Chu Kuang misunderstand his advice and intentionally shorten the length?
Did he think being shorter was better?
If this affected the quality of the work, Wei Long felt a pang of guilt. He couldn't help but rub his temples.
Better read the story first:
"It was an ordinary night. The civil servant sat in the second row of the main hall, using binoculars to watch a drama performance. At this moment, he only felt that time was peaceful."
Peaceful?
Wei Long encountered this description for the first time, but without much thought, he could accurately understand the meaning of these four words.
"An interesting description."
The following descriptions were even more intriguing: "But suddenly, his face wrinkled, his eyes disappeared, his breath stopped, he took off the binoculars from his eyes, bent down..."
Did he have a heart attack?
Is this the death of the junior civil servant?
A civil servant without even a name?
Wei Long couldn't make heads or tails of it until he continued reading and realized the civil servant just sneezed.
"Pfft."
Looking back, the earlier description was precisely the state of a person sneezing. Chu Kuang's portrayal seemed awkward, yet it oddly conveyed a sense of precision, to the point that a sneezing person's image appeared in Wei Long's mind.
Just a sneeze, and the junior civil servant was naturally unfazed. Anyone would sneeze.
For this behavior, the most severe consequence would be catching a cold.
Wei Long thought so too.
But the twist in the story occurred here: "The civil servant became anxious because he saw an old man sitting in the front row of the main hall vigorously wiping his bald head and neck with gloves, muttering to himself."
Clearly.
The civil servant's sneeze had landed on this old man.
And the civil servant was anxious because...
He recognized this old man; he was a retired general who held a position in some department!
"Will he be killed by the general?"
Wei Long inevitably linked back to the story title.
Readers tend to habitually imagine what comes next in a story.
However, it's challenging to imagine with short stories.
The civil servant did indeed start apologizing as expected.
But the general didn't explode in anger as Wei Long imagined; he simply showed understanding.
"Is this general a smiling tiger? Displaying magnanimity in public but seeking revenge on the junior civil servant in private?"
This was Wei Long's new conjecture.
And this nameless junior civil servant naturally had similar concerns.
So he apologized again, swore various oaths, expressing that he really didn't do it on purpose.
The general seemed annoyed, saying, "Ah, please sit down! Let me enjoy the play!"
Is the general angry? The civil servant became even more nervous.
He could no longer focus on the captivating performance on the stage.
Until break time, the general headed to the restroom, and he, still apologizing for the third time, walked there with a hesitant pace.
"Oh, enough already... I've forgotten, and you keep going on and on!"
The general adjusted his pants, fastened his belt, appearing somewhat resigned, impatiently pursing his lips.
Wei Long, realizing this, remarked, "It seems the general isn't actually angry."
Influenced by the title, he had assumed the general might kill the civil servant for this, but according to the novel's description, the general had expressed forgiveness several times, clearly not being that petty.
For the civil servant, this sneeze was just a false alarm.
Wei Long understood.
However, the civil servant didn't.
He continued with various mental gymnastics: "He says he's forgotten, but there's a fierce glint in his eyes, and he doesn't want to talk much. I should explain to him, clarify that I meant no harm, and explain that sneezing is a natural law; otherwise, he'll think I intentionally spat on him. Even if he doesn't think so now, he'll definitely think so in the future!"
Too paranoid, isn't he? Wei Long suddenly found the civil servant somewhat amusing.
Back home, the civil servant confessed his lapse to his wife, who was also startled, advising him to apologize.
He complained, "Exactly! I've already apologized, but somehow, he's acting strangely, as if he doesn't want to hear my explanation."
He's already forgiven you!
Isn't this a case of persecution delusion? Wei Long's laughter grew as the civil servant's imagined scenarios played out.
Unfortunately, the civil servant remained obtuse. The next day, he earnestly donned his uniform, brought a gift, and grandly visited the general's residence, apologizing once again.
Never mind the general.
Wei Long felt that if he were in the same situation, being incessantly apologized to would be bewildering.
At that moment, the general was in a meeting, seemingly with an important guest.
The civil servant could only wait for the general to finish the meeting before apologizing again.
Same as before.
The general expressed understanding, but when speaking, couldn't help but show a troubled expression.
"Troubled expression."
These four words nearly burst Wei Long's composure.
Apologizing is a courtesy, but when faced with a civil servant who insists on apologizing endlessly, the general couldn't help but wear a troubled expression. Amid the laughter and tears, Wei Long surprisingly felt some sympathy for the general.
The civil servant, being imaginative, naturally interpreted the general's troubled expression. Anxious, he felt the general had no intention of forgiving him.
Thinking of his future, although he found the general petty for holding onto his mistake, he still wanted to salvage the situation.
So, he decided to write a letter to the general, sincerely explaining the reasons.
Unfortunately, his mind was blank, and he couldn't even write a letter.
He could only, on the third day, visit again, expressing his apologies once more.
The novel concludes here.
In the final paragraphs, with each apology from the civil servant, a brief and concise ending is formed, an expected conclusion.
"Get out!" The general shouted, his face turning green, trembling all over.
"What?" The civil servant asked, terrified.
"Get out!" The general repeated, stomping his foot.
Something seemed to churn in the civil servant's stomach. He couldn't see or hear anything. He retreated to the doorway, walked out onto the street, and slowly walked away... He strolled back home, still in uniform, and lay down on the sofa... and died.
...
Yes, the civil servant died.
That's how the title "The Death of a Civil Servant" came about.
His repeated apologies completely angered the general, and when the general got angry, he scared himself to death with his own imagination!
Is this a story of just over a thousand words?
It's not the detective story imagined, nor the general killing someone as imagined, but a story of a person scared to death by his own imagination.
Though just over a thousand words, the content is extremely exaggerated, yet seemingly fitting a certain logic, making readers naturally accept the novel's setting, creating an interesting story!
At this moment, Wei Long laughed heartily, not expecting Chu Kuang to play with humor too.
But halfway through the laughter, Wei Long's smile suddenly froze, the scene seemed to freeze.
As if an electric current had passed through his entire body, a sudden jolt, Wei Long's eyes widened as if bewitched!
"Wait a minute... this story..."
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