After Su Xin replied to the post, he bookmarked the thread without further thought and resumed his daily writing work.
On the other side.
Chi Lixiu, who had been kneeling on the street begging with her son on her back all afternoon, saw the sky getting dark and stumbled to her feet.
Kneeling for more than five hours every day, even with a thick layer of cotton for protection, her knees were already bruised and ulcerated, and her legs had become weak.
Fortunately, she could earn over two hundred every day, sometimes even more than five hundred. Although it was still a drop in the bucket compared to the 400,000 needed, it ignited hope in her heart and allowed her to persevere.
She staggered along the way.
A few minutes later, she bought four steamed buns from a bun shop, walking and taking big bites while occasionally taking a sip from a bottle of tap water she had filled in advance.
Returning to the bridge underpass where she usually slept, she fed her child while taking out her worn-out phone to check the messages in the online forum.
There were usually very few replies under this kind of help-seeking post, and even if there were, most were just blessings, with a minority questioning or insulting her.
She had long been used to it.
But she still insisted on checking every day.
What if she encountered a generous philanthropist?
Soon, a reply from someone with the screen name 'Kind-hearted Person' appeared before her eyes.
But after reading the reply, she was disappointed.
She had seen such humiliating replies before; those people only wanted to mock and humiliate her and had no intention of actually donating money.
Let alone an amount as large as 200,000.
She felt even more that the other party was just bragging.
Still, with a one-in-a-million chance of hope, she sincerely replied below:
"Dear kind-hearted person, thank you for your attention and reply. Everything in my post is true, and I am willing to give anything for my son's health. Not just kneeling and walking, even if it means chopping off my own limbs or dying, I would be more than willing. However, I still need to take care of my son and see him recover. If you can really donate the corresponding amount, I will definitely keep my promise!"
On the other side, Su Xin, who was working on his writing again, saw the forum reply notification, opened the post, and edited his reply—
"Do you doubt I'm deceiving you? 200,000 is less than my two months' living expenses. Forget it, someone as poor as you can't understand. I will first donate 10,000 to you. If you kneel and walk around the West Iron City Center Square, I will immediately donate another 200,000. If not, just consider this 10,000 a reward for you."
He clicked to post the reply.
Then, Su Xin picked up his bank card, took a taxi to the nearest bank branch to withdraw 10,000 yuan, and made an anonymous transfer via an ATM.
At the same time.
Chi Lixiu, who received the notification of the 10,000 yuan transfer, finally believed that this netizen named 'Kind-hearted Person' was at least not completely tricking her.
Even if the remaining 200,000 was not donated, she was willing to fulfill the requirement to kneel and walk around.
She had no other path to take.
If she missed this opportunity, she might never have the chance to gather 200,000.
Even if the 200,000 could not cover the entire cost of surgery, she was willing to give her all for it.
Kneel and walk, then kneel and walk!
With this thought, Chi Lixiu immediately replied in the forum: "Thank you, kind-hearted person, for the 10,000 donation. I will go to the center square tomorrow to kneel and walk around. Please witness it, kind-hearted person."
Soon, the kind-hearted person replied again:
"I don't have time to go there, but I will keep an eye on it online. If I see any news or short video reports about you kneeling within a week, the 200,000 will be given immediately."
...
Sitting in the taxi.
Su Xin looked at the recent notification:
"Ding! Obtained 32 karma points!"
He had only transferred 10,000 to the other party, an amount not as much as the previous twelve donations, and the ratio of the funding gap was not as high as before, but the karma points obtained were still considerable.
"When this matter ferments, Chi Lixiu should be able to receive enough donations. By then, who knows how much karma I can get?"
Currently, he had 346 karma points.
Far from leveling up again.
But he had found a stable way to acquire karma points, so he wasn't anxious.
Next, all he had to do was focus on his writing, earn more money, and find ways to earn daily karma points without spending money.
...
The next day was Sunday.
The West Iron City Center Square was bustling with people; couples were enjoying the last day of the holiday, families were flying kites, friends gathered to see the fountains and beauties, and some companies held commercial events here.
The scene was extremely lively.
Near noon, Chi Lixiu slowly walked in with her child on her back. After observing the layout of the square at the entrance, she kneeled down with a thud.
Under numerous curious and astonished gazes, Chi Lixiu kowtowed step by step, kneeling slowly around the square's perimeter, her face full of devotion.
Some people discussed.
Some recorded videos.
Some began contacting the media.
Some even stepped forward to persuade her, but Chi Lixiu merely shook her head politely and continued kneeling.
Shortly after, her kneeling path became crowded with curious onlookers, and several media outlets rushed over. Since there were many people here, and the incident was sensational, the media was very enthusiastic.
Seeing her kneeling path blocked by onlookers, Chi Lixiu had no choice but to patiently accept interviews, telling her story and the demand from the kind-hearted person for her to kneel around the central square.
Hearing her words, not only the media were stunned, but many onlookers also started discussing in surprise.
"Sister, that person is definitely deceiving you. If he really were kind-hearted and wanted to help, he would just donate directly. Why use such demands to humiliate you?"
"He's just playing with you."
"Don't believe what he says."
"Ma'am, please get up, you've been deceived."
Chi Lixiu shook her head and firmly said:
"He has already donated 10,000 to me, he's definitely not deceiving me. Please clear the way."
Seeing her unwillingness to listen to advice, everyone had to make way. Several media outlets reported the news accurately, and some passersby posted videos on different platforms.
The kneeling incident gained some traction locally but did not attract much attention until the next day when a screenshot that infuriated countless netizens went viral.
It was a reply in the forum.
"Are you serious? And you actually went to crawl? I think it's not your son who needs treatment, but your brain. Spending 10,000 to watch such a good show was worth it, haha!"
The screen name below was 'Kind-hearted Person'.
Most tragically, even in the face of such humiliating ridicule, Chi Lixiu sincerely replied below:
"Dear kind-hearted person, I completely followed your words and kneeled around the central square, even praying for you in the square's center for a long time, only hoping you could help me, thank you!"
Even without seeing Chi Lixiu's expression firsthand, everyone could imagine how heartbroken she felt when she opened the forum with high hopes and read such a reply. Yet, even so, she was unwilling to give up her last hope, expressing such sincere words, but in the end, the so-called 'Kind-hearted Person' never appeared again.
The 200,000 was just a lie.
The kneeling incident was also a scam.
The public opinion was completely ignited.