51: Chapter 51 The Eve of the Decisive Battle
Chapter Fifty-One: Eve of the Decisive Battle
The news of Lin Feng's return from New York spread throughout Xinfeng Town the very next day.
No one asked him what he had discussed.
But everyone noticed that the time he spent squatting at the restaurant entrance was longer than usual.
From six in the morning until six in the evening.
He only got up three times in between—to use the restroom, to drink water, and to move to a different spot to continue squatting.
Margaret carried a plate of mushroom stew and squatted down beside him.
"It's been all day."
Lin Feng took the plate. "Yeah."
Margaret asked, "What are you thinking about?"
Lin Feng chewed on a mushroom, looking at the church across the street.
In front of the church, George was leading a few old men in repairing the benches. Edna was nearby handing them nails. Tom was holding a camera, taking photos of them.
Lin Feng swallowed the mushroom and said slowly:
"I'm thinking about how to make all of this spread across the entire world."
—
That night, seven people from seven different states returned to Xinfeng Town at the same time.
Alex drove back from Ohio, his car filled with local specialties sent from the town of Coalville—pickled cucumbers.
Rachel flew back from West Virginia, her suitcase stuffed with design blueprints for new towns.
Tony returned from Kentucky by bus, clutching a stack of letters—written to Lin Feng by the old miners.
Sam hitched a ride back from Pennsylvania; his guitar was so squeezed that it lost a string.
Jenny returned by train from Illinois, her bag containing thirty-seven letters of gratitude.
Chris drove back from Tennessee in a modified pickup truck, carrying a prototype of his new invention, the 'Mobile Vertical Farm'.
Yuki was the last to arrive—she had cycled back from Virginia, a journey that took three days.
The seven of them stood in a row at the restaurant entrance, looking at Lin Feng.
Lin Feng was squatting, a straw in his mouth, looking back at them.
Silence lasted for three seconds.
Then he smiled.
"You're all back?"
Alex nodded. "We're back."
Lin Feng stood up and brushed off the seat of his pants.
"Let's go. To the church."
---
The church was packed with people.
Four hundred and forty-nine, not a single person missing.
George and the group of old men sat in the first row.
Edna and the elderly ladies sat in the second row.
The young people stood in the back.
Mike brought a keg of beer over from the bar and placed it in the corner.
Lin Feng walked to the front of the altar and squatted down—squatting there, looking at the crowd below.
There was a long silence.
Then he spoke:
"Someone told me to stop what I'm doing."
The room fell quiet for a second.
George stood up. "Who?"
Lin Feng waved his hand, signaling him to sit down.
"It's not just one person. It's a group of people. They run companies and make products that allow people to find happiness just by lying in bed."
He paused.
"They say I'm moving too slowly. That to make the whole world smile, it would take a hundred years."
Someone below muttered softly, "What's wrong with a hundred years?"
Lin Feng heard it and smiled.
"Exactly. What's wrong with a hundred years?"
He stood up and walked into the middle of the crowd.
"Xinfeng Town took three months. Seventeen towns took three months. A hundred years is enough for us to turn all of America into Xinfeng Town."
Someone in the crowd laughed.
Lin Feng continued, "But those people can't wait. They want the whole world—today, tomorrow, right now—to lie down in their virtual worlds."
He pointed out the window.
"There, you don't have to go out, you don't have to talk, and you don't have to face real people. When things get hard, you just hide inside."
The crowd went silent.
George stood up again. "So what do we do?"
Lin Feng looked at him and said seriously:
"We let them know that the real thing is better than the fake one."
—
That night, the church turned into a war room.
The seven of them gathered around Lin Feng, each with a wooden board and a pen.
Alex wrote first:
[Website. Post the story of every town online. Let the whole world see.]
Rachel wrote next:
[Architecture. Make the renovation plans public. Whoever wants to learn can learn.]
Tony thought for a moment and wrote:
[Philosophy. Write Xinfeng Town's 'Happiness Logic' into a book.]
Sam held his guitar and wrote a line of lyrics:
[A real smile doesn't need charging~]
Jenny wrote:
[Psychological Counseling. Open it online, for free.]
Chris drew a sketch:
[Mobile Farm. Drive it into the cities so those who can't get out can see real mushrooms too.]
Yuki wrote last, a single line of text:
[Let those who want to hide in a virtual world come to Xinfeng Town and see first.]
Lin Feng looked at those seven wooden boards for a long time.
Then he pointed at Yuki's:
"This one is the most important."
Yuki was stunned.
Lin Feng said, "They don't come because they don't know. Once they know, they will come."
He stood up and addressed everyone:
"Starting tomorrow, Xinfeng Town is open to the public."
"Anyone who wants to come can come. No charge. We'll provide one meal."
"Let them see for themselves what a real smile looks like."
--
At six o'clock the next morning, Lin Feng was squatting at the restaurant entrance again.
Margaret came out with coffee and handed him a cup.
"Are you really going to do this?"
Lin Feng took the coffee. "Yeah."
Margaret asked, "Aren't you afraid they won't come?"
Lin Feng pointed across the street—
Without anyone noticing when they had arrived, three more cars were there.
The license plates were from Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky.
The people getting out of the cars were all holding a copy of that 'Xinfeng Town Renovation Manual'.
Margaret was stunned.
Lin Feng smiled.
"They're here."
[Chapter 51 End]