Chapter 124: Fate Sneers and Whips a Load of Crap Out of Its Trousers

Lynch once again made the front three pages of the newspaper—an honor few ordinary people ever achieve. Only a handful get mentioned after death in obituaries; most never appear in the papers in their lifetime.

Sometimes life’s value feels heavy, but it never outweighs the weight of a newspaper. It’s curious, or perhaps that’s just the truth.

A policy doesn’t pass simply because everyone agrees; it takes time and must consider all aspects of society.

Starting with leaks, the public is gradually made aware of the policy. Step by step, reports lead people from curiosity to acceptance, then to indifference. This way, no one sees the policy as unbearable.

Even those who dislike it merely dislike it—they don’t feel violated and react strongly. The first time people feel violated, emotions run high. But repeated exposure breeds indifference.

So the newspapers heavily covered Lynch’s secondhand goods auction, normalizing it so even its critics would gradually accept it.

The papers claimed this policy greatly helped and benefited the public. Lynch, a local businessman, willingly took responsibility. He sold secondhand goods at reasonable prices and recycled idle items, transferring them from those who didn’t need them to those who did.

Spending less to do less—that’s what the papers praised, and some people genuinely showed interest.

Not only did Sabin City newspapers say this, but other major city papers in the state also began promoting it. Ads for secondhand goods recycling, bought by Lynch, appeared everywhere.

After a while, the trade company would open branches statewide and start collecting goods.

This gave many families hope—items once impulsively bought but now worthless could turn back into money. In a bad economy, that money helped them get by a little longer. They eagerly hoped the Interstellar Trading Company could establish itself locally.

Many saw this newspaper. Among them was an older woman.

She looked about fifty but was actually only forty.

A woman from an ordinary family could never compare to the wealthy ladies of high society. They couldn’t afford to care for their skin or bodies to look younger.

Life’s burdens and trivialities had numbed her. Sometimes, this numbness looked like cold indifference to others.

Now, seeing the photo of Lynch—young, handsome, ambitious—she felt regret for the first time. She had torn apart her daughter’s love for this young man. If only she had waited…

She looked up at her daughter, worn and numbed by life, as if seeing herself twenty years ago, then silently put down the paper.

Mother and daughter said nothing but both fixed their gaze on the handsome young man in the paper—they both knew him: Lynch.

Minutes later, heavy footsteps sounded. A burly middle-aged man yawned as he emerged, scratching his tangled hair and muttering about shaving his head—he had no time for grooming.

Many ordinary families have someone like this—busy to the point of neglecting themselves but lazy enough to lie on the couch for hours with cheap food, staring dumbly at a flickering TV.

The woman hurried to bring breakfast—a plate of minced meat with a slightly congealed egg.

Katherine inherited her mother’s cooking skills, but was better.

The man nodded appreciatively, and as he opened his mouth, a foul odor filled the table—yet he didn’t notice and happily ate.

Breakfast with more meat and eggs kept one energetic and strong throughout the day.

Most ordinary households had such breakfasts loaded with meat.

Those who ate like this were often the family’s backbone, doing heavy labor requiring such fuel.

People blindly worship upper-class living, preaching more vegetables and healthier habits.

But they ignore the huge gap between upper and lower classes. The privileged don’t need hard labor.

They won’t say the upper class works only two or three hours a day, spending the rest socializing. They don’t eat much because they can get supplements anytime.

No one tells the public this. Instead, they preach eating less, eating refined food, and avoiding meat.

The man quickly finished the meat and egg, tearing bread to wipe up every drop of juice and fat, then ate it all.

When done, his plate was cleaner than washed.

After eating, he glanced disinterestedly at the paper, then patted his belly and left for work—another day no different from any other.

The door slammed shut behind him, and the room’s atmosphere lightened slightly.

“I…” the woman wanted to speak but said nothing.

Who could have guessed that a lazy kid with no job wandering the streets would suddenly become a media darling?

Before seeing the paper, she never thought she was wrong—she only wanted her dreamy daughter to face reality and avoid paying for childish fantasies.

She even gave her time to feel life’s weight, but reality had played a cruel joke on both.

Katherine stood expressionless, cleaned her father’s dishes, and washed them.

No regret, happiness, or any emotion showed—just an ordinary day, ordinary enough that she barely seemed aware of it.

Watching her daughter’s silent back, the woman truly regretted it but could do nothing.

At 9 a.m., Katherine, carrying a cheap bag with her belongings, arrived at her new job.

After her mother took her back, she changed workplaces to a newly opened supermarket near home.

Since the downturn, more supermarkets replaced small markets. Individual vendors struggled and were forced to switch trades.

People preferred supermarkets because goods were cheaper and often on sale—irresistible to struggling families.

Katherine’s supermarket experience made it easy to get a cashier job—similar to before but now she could sit instead of stand.

After changing clothes, she took her place at a small, isolated counter like many scattered throughout the mall.

From opening time, crowds poured in, and she got to work—checking bills, giving change, and signing receipts…

During lunch break, a fairly ordinary young man approached Katherine with hope and enthusiasm. Though called young, he was actually 28—an age Katherine’s mother considered suitable for a life partner.

For an ordinary person in this era, his situation was decent. He owned his own house and wouldn’t need to live with his parents after marriage.

He also worked at the supermarket as an accountant, earning a good salary.

He remained unmarried for two main reasons: first, he was rather short—under five feet three inches (160 cm) — though he claimed otherwise.

Second, he stuttered when nervous, especially around women, making it hard to find a suitable partner despite his decent circumstances.

This time, his target was Katherine. He didn’t care about her past—who didn’t have one?

Besides, the young man understood that if you judged pretty girls by their past, you’d never hope to marry one. Katherine was beautiful.

Moreover, Katherine was only twenty. Even if she had a past, it wouldn’t last long—it was just part of growing up, barely an experience at all.

He held a rose in his hand, lingering around Katherine. She was somewhat indifferent toward him, but he didn’t mind.

He believed that one day he would win her heart—and with Katherine’s mother as an ally, winning over this beautiful girl was only a matter of time.