Moral Hero

In a park, a group of elderly people dancing in the square were chatting idly.

“Hey, have you heard? Something big happened recently!” Passerby A said.

“What big thing? It’s not like the sky is falling.”

“It’s more serious than the sky falling! Look at this.” Passerby A took out a phone.

On the screen was a person holding a sign for a public apology: The Moral Hero is enforcing justice for heaven; this shop is closed today. This establishment was involved in the moral fraud industry chain and hereby offers a public apology to society.

Passerby B leaned in. “Moral Hero? Who’s that?”

Passerby A was shocked. “You don’t even know the Moral Hero? He’s been all over the internet these past few days. A mysterious guy who specifically targets moral fraud. The Moral Accelerator company, charity auctions—he’s exposed them all.”

Another passerby chimed in. “I know about this. This person’s movements are secretive, and he specializes in dealing with various types of moral fraud. People have nicknamed him the Moral Hero.”

“That’s a catchy nickname. I wonder if the man himself lives up to it.”

Passerby A quickly lowered his voice. “Shh, keep it down. Be careful he doesn’t hear you.”

Passerby B scoffed. “In broad daylight, under a clear sky, he’d actually dare to hit me?”

Passerby A’s eyes bugged out. “Why wouldn’t he?”

“You know that Charity Porridge Shop south of the city? The place where people line up for free porridge. The owner seemed like such a good person, giving out free porridge every day.”

“Well, the Moral Hero went there and gave the owner a sound thrashing without a word. While he was hitting him, he kept shouting, ‘I’m enforcing justice for heaven!’”

“Then what will happen to the people who line up for porridge?” someone asked.

“They can’t get it anymore. But the internet isn’t just cursing him; some people are praising him for exposing the truth. Isn’t that strange?”

“What’s strange about it? The people aren’t stupid. By helping the owner farm moral points, the owner was able to turn around and take out millions in bank loans.”

“That’s exactly it. And then there was that charity auction. The Moral Hero snuck in wearing evening wear and gave everyone there a sound thrashing. While he was hitting them, he kept shouting...”

“Enforcing justice for heaven?”

“Exactly.”

Passerby C said, “His methods might be a bit extreme, but the things he’s exposing definitely exist. The moral system has become warped; Good Person Cards have become commodities, and genuine acts of kindness are being marginalized. The Moral Hero’s actions are like a dose of potent medicine.”

“Potent medicine? I think it’s poison. He’s ruining these businesses. What about the poor people who rely on them for a living? Even if those professional thankers are earning hard-earned money through acting, it’s still an income. Now that he’s caused this mess and they’ve lost their jobs, who’s going to take care of them?”

“I hadn’t really thought about that. But people online are saying that the Moral Hero later went specifically to the black market, flipped the tables, gave everyone a sound thrashing, and continued enforcing justice for heaven.”

...

Yue Shi went viral.

The hashtag #MoralHero was viewed 300 million times within 24 hours.

In the videos, scenes of Yue Shi shouting about enforcing justice for heaven were played repeatedly, with the solitary 1 above his head appearing particularly conspicuous.

The comment sections were in an uproar.

“Is this guy for real, or is it just a show?”

“With such a low score, how could he be a good person? It’s definitely an act!”

“Maybe his score is so low he’s actually lost his mind.”

“Is it possible he just doesn’t care about the score at all?”

People who didn’t care about their scores were rarer than dinosaurs in this world.

From the moment of birth, people were chased by the numbers above their heads. They looked at them while eating, sleeping, looking for work, and going on blind dates. Even after death, the number would be carved onto their tombstones to record how much merit they had accumulated in their lifetime.

Don’t care about the score? You might not care about the score, but the score certainly cares about you.

After much effort, the TV station finally cornered Yue Shi while he was in the middle of enforcing justice for heaven.

A black business van pulled up in front of Yue Shi, and three people got out. The leader was a female director named Zhou, who had three wrinkles at the corners of her eyes when she smiled. A cameraman and an assistant followed behind her.

Director Zhou said, “Mr. Moral Hero, we would like to invite you onto our show. We want to talk about your views on moral scores, why you’re exposing the frauds, and what your ideal society looks like. Our station is the highest-rated channel in the province. If you come on our show, the entire country will see you.”

“Sure. Can it be a live broadcast?” Yue Shi asked with a smile. If he hadn’t intentionally let them find him, there was no way the TV station would have caught up to him.

Director Zhou froze for a moment. A live broadcast? In her dozen or so years in the industry, it was quite rare for a guest to proactively request a live broadcast.

A live broadcast meant no editing or post-production. If he said something wrong, there would be no chance for regrets.

However, she only hesitated for a second before nodding.

Ratings—what could boost ratings more than a live broadcast?

...

On the night of the live broadcast, the studio was packed.

Several cameras were aimed at the two lounge chairs in the center of the stage from different angles.

One belonged to Yue Shi, who hadn’t arrived yet.

The other belonged to today’s guest, a member of the provincial Moral Committee, with a 1523 above his head.

Beside him were two secondary guests: one was a university ethics professor with a 988, and the other was a well-known philanthropist with a 2130. The three of them sat in a row, waiting with various expressions.

When Yue Shi walked out from the side of the stage, the studio fell silent for a moment.

He sat down in the lounge chair. Before the host could even finish the opening remarks, Yue Shi interrupted him. “No need for pleasantries. Just ask.”

The host choked for a second, but his professional training allowed him to recover quickly. A standard smile returned to his face as he flipped open the information card in his hand. “Alright, then let’s get right to it. Mr. Moral Hero—that is the name netizens have given you. Your moral score is 1. How do you view this score?”

Yue Shi replied seriously, “It shows that I am an honest person.”

Someone in the audience laughed.

The host flipped through the cards and continued, “According to our observations, you’ve exposed the moral fraud industry chain and debunked so many fakes, yet your score hasn’t risen at all. Do you feel wronged by this?”

Yue Shi said calmly, “I don’t feel wronged. I just think there might be a problem with the rules.”

The studio suddenly went quiet. The cameras were like several silent eyes.

“You think there’s a problem with the rules? What kind of problem?” the Moral Committee member asked.

Yue Shi said, “The rules require that a good deed must result in thanks to be effective. Don’t you find that absurd?”

The Moral Committee member shook his head. “Not at all. If you try to do a good deed but end up making things worse, or if your good intentions lead to a bad outcome, do you still expect your score to rise? In such cases, it is very necessary to see if the recipient is truly and sincerely thankful.”

Yue Shi replied, “I’m talking about the rules themselves. The rules have turned gratitude into a necessary condition for a moral score. This means that if there is no thanks, the good deed is treated as if it never happened. Does a doctor saving a patient need the patient to say ‘thank you’ for it to count as saving a life?”

The ethics professor took up the point. “You’re conflating concepts. Saving lives is a doctor’s responsibility; it’s not a ‘good deed’ in the sense of charity, but rather his job. However, social morality is different. Social morality requires a positive feedback mechanism, otherwise...”