Evolution - Chapter 32
Chapter 32
Claire was true to her word. She quickly provided a sorted list of individuals who had successfully differentiated and whose psychological evaluations showed they had accepted the change well.
Ji Changqing was, naturally, on that list.
She returned to her hometown by official decree, tasked with her first joint assignment from the Alliance and her country: a grassroots public education campaign.
Ji Changqing, who usually turned into a lazy homebody the moment she got back, found herself touring the village for a change.
Most of the young and middle-aged people worked elsewhere, leaving the village populated mainly by the elderly and children. It was just around noon, when school let out and the villagers were preparing lunch. All along the way, elders stopped to greet her and chat for a bit. The children, having seen her only a few times, were shy and silent, just watching quietly.
“Changqing, you’re back! How long are you staying this time?”
“Hello, Grandaunt. Yes, I’m back. I can stay for a month!”
“Ah, Qing is back? Are you looking for your mom to go home for lunch?”
“Hi, Auntie. I’m back. Yep, that’s right.”
“Is Ah Qing married yet? Don’t be too picky, you know. Just find someone suitable.”
Ji Changqing clasped her hands behind her back and puffed out her chest. Here it comes, she thought. I knew someone would ask.
In the past, she would have rolled her eyes and retorted, “I’m doing just fine on my own. Why would I go looking for a master to serve?”
But things were different now. She answered loud and clear, “What’s the rush? I wasn’t in a hurry when we only lived to eighty. Now that we can live to one-eighty, I’m in even less of a hurry.”
This immediately piqued everyone’s interest. Wiping their hands, they gathered around, and the scene instantly became lively with their chattering.
“Ah Qing, is what they say on TV true? Can you really live that long if you practice that… what’s it called, Physique?”
“Yes, you can. Older folks can practice the Health & Fitness Technique. Once your body is in great shape, you can slowly start on Physique.”
“No wonder your mom has seemed so much more energetic lately!”
“Well, what can you do when Ah Qing is so capable and filial? She bought that… what-do-you-call-it, game pod, for her parents a long time ago. The TV says it’s better to use one of those.”
After experiencing the benefits of the holographic game for herself and consulting the official website, Ji Changqing had bought her parents a game pod designed specifically for the elderly. It was mainly for virtual sightseeing, but it also allowed them to practice a Health & Fitness Technique suitable for Blue Star’s seniors, which could slowly improve their frail constitutions.
Her parents had initially scolded her for wasting money, but after Ji Changqing cajoled and tricked them into trying it, they were completely won over.
After more than a year of use, her mother said her eyesight, which had been blurry, was gradually improving.
Now, they loved the game even more. If it weren’t for the strict time limits imposed on elderly users, her parents wouldn’t have even bothered with her, despite her rare visit home.
So what if she was the youngest child who had been spoiled rotten since birth? Now, she was just a walking ATM!
Her parents weren’t even that interested in their grandchildren anymore, so why would they care about this debt-collector of a daughter?!
“I’m telling you, the old couple is really enjoying their daughter’s good fortune. What’s the use of having sons? Their three sons combined aren’t as filial as Ah Qing!”
“Haha, you’re just jealous. Who was it back then who said the old couple was foolish for putting all their daughters through school instead of saving for their own retirement?”
Ji Changqing was rolling her eyes so hard internally they nearly reached the sky. Her family had only daughters, and her parents had scraped by, selling everything they could, to send every single one of them to school. For years, she couldn’t imagine the things the villagers said behind their backs. It made her parents feel like they couldn’t hold their heads high, which was why they had been so determined to see their daughters succeed.
It was only after she graduated and started working, and the family’s financial situation had clearly improved, that the gossip slowly died down. Then, when she passed thirty and was still unmarried, the chattering started up again. It annoyed her so much that, once her finances had improved significantly, she bought her parents an apartment in the city, right across the hall from her sister.
But her elderly parents weren’t used to city life and spent more than half their time back in the village.
“There are six genders now, so it’s not just a matter of whether sons are useful or daughters are better. Also, children now take the surname of the parent who gives birth to them. It’s different from before.”
“Really? Is that possible?” Everyone looked bewildered. They had watched TV and even followed along with the elderly Health & Fitness Technique broadcasts on schedule, but their understanding of the ABO gender classification and the new basic laws was hazy at best.
“It’s true.” Ji Changqing explained patiently. She didn’t bother trying to explain what Alpha, Beta, and Omega were. Instead, she used terms they could understand: “In the future, at least nine out of ten people will be able to have children on their own, regardless of whether they’re male or female.”
“Men can have babies too? Now that’s a novelty.” The aunties clucked in amazement, then turned to tease the grandpas who had gathered around. “They say we can live to be one-eighty. You’re all only in your seventies or eighties. Maybe you’ll get to have a child you give birth to yourself.”
The aunties roared with laughter.
The grandpas’ faces darkened. “This is outrageous! Blurring the lines between men and women is against the natural order!”
Ji Changqing smiled sweetly. “The natural order now is that both men and women can give birth. Trees and flowers can be hermaphroditic and reproduce on their own. Isn’t that part of the natural order?”
The aunties were fired up. “Exactly! You men had better give birth to one yourselves, so you can get a taste of ‘what’s so hard about having a baby?’”
They say you can hold a grudge from your postpartum period for a lifetime. But for the older generation, they could even remember every single insensitive remark an acquaintance had ever made that struck a nerve!
However, they were still very concerned about the surname issue. After a few jokes, they pressed Ji Changqing again, “So children will take their mother’s surname from now on? What are we going to do? My grandchildren can’t take their mother’s name. That was decided before this new policy, so it doesn’t have to change, right?”
Ji Changqing chuckled. “What are you talking about? Even if they took their mother’s surname, wouldn’t they still be your grandchildren?”
“How can that be the same? They’d have a different family name!”
This just delighted Ji Changqing. “But you don’t share their surname either.”
The aunties’ faces fell in unison, clearly displeased. “Ah Qing, what’s gotten into you? The older you get, the less sensible you become. Is that any way to talk?”
Before Ji Changqing could retort, the Empress Dowager of the Ji family arrived. “What’s not sensible about our Ah Qing? Was a single word she said wrong? You don’t share their surname, do you?!”
The Ji family’s Empress Dowager had a strong personality. She had to be, to have endured the era when not having a son meant being cursed as heirless, and to have grit her teeth and raised her daughters to be successful.
With her hands on her hips, the Empress Dowager went on the offensive. “You’re exactly what they talk about on TV—people who only care about their own happiness and not whether others live or die, who only think of themselves when something good comes along! Well, your good days are over. The TV says that kind of behavior will be against the law! Do you understand ‘against the law’? You might end up in jail one of these days! What are you yelling at my Ah Qing for?”
The aunties and grandpas turned pale from the verbal assault, trying awkwardly to save face. “Sister-in-law, you can’t say that. That’s not what we meant…”
“Then what did you mean? Squawking nonsense all day long, unable to keep up with the times! Just think, back then you whispered behind our backs that your brother and I were heirless and would surely die miserable and alone. And what do you say now? ‘Oh, three sons aren’t worth one Ah Qing!’ The words that come out of your mouths are like farts, not a single one of them true, yet you can’t even admit you were stupid? If you’re stupid, then listen to smart people and stop running your mouths!”
Ji Changqing stifled a laugh and tugged at her mother’s arm. “Mom, don’t be angry. Let’s go home and eat. I’ve already made lunch. Our aunts and uncles just don’t understand as clearly as you do. They’ll get it eventually.”
The aunties and grandpas, their faces ashen, quickly agreed.
Her Old Majesty swatted Ji Changqing’s hand away. “Fine, let’s go home and eat. It’s a good thing it was me. I can’t be bothered to argue with them.”
On the way back, the old woman was still a little worried. “Ah Qing, is it really true that both men and women can have children in the future? I don’t think your father could handle that.”
Ji Changqing soothed her, “It’s not like you two are short on children. Even the youngest, me, is all grown up. Why would Dad need to have another one? Does he want to give birth to a son himself?”
Her Old Majesty raised a hand and swatted her. Even at eighty, the old woman was remarkably agile, chasing Ji Changqing around.
“You rotten child, you’re just asking for a beating. Let me tell you, this isn’t like when you were little. Back then, when you clamored about changing your surname, your dad just laughed it off as a childish tantrum. If you tried clamoring about changing your surname now, you’d give him a heart attack!”
There was a story behind this. When Ji Changqing was a child, she was incredibly mischievous and sharp as a tack. She felt that her paternal grandparents, aunts, and uncles were awful to her family, constantly saying that since they had no sons, they were heirless and should unconditionally let their nephews take advantage of them, so that at least they’d have relatives to see them off at their funerals. At seven or eight years old, feeling sorry for her mother, she declared she didn’t want to live with them anymore. She wanted to live with her maternal uncles, renounce the Ji family name, and take her mother’s surname. That way, the Ji family couldn’t control her, and if they dared to bully her mother, she would beat them up.
Her grandparents, aunts, and uncles were furious and repeatedly ordered her father to whip her.
But her mother had exploded, crying as she rushed into the kitchen and emerged with a cleaver, ready to fight to the death.
After that incident, her family essentially cut ties with her paternal relatives. If her male cousins dared to set foot in their house, Ji Changqing would pounce on them and beat them up.
Her dream of becoming a martial arts hero was likely born around that time—a desire to be invincible so she could protect her mother.
Her relationship with her father wasn’t good, but it wasn’t bad either. There was no resentment. For as long as she could remember, her father had been a man of few words. She didn’t know if it was his nature or if the gossip about his failure to produce a son had broken his spirit and made him that way.
There was one thing, though, that made him better than the other men in the village: he worked hard, gave all his earnings to his wife, helped with the farm work after his regular job, and gritted his teeth to raise his daughters. He wasn’t like the other men, who would rather wander around the village gossiping than lift a finger to help with housework.
It was just that from a young age, she had been good with sweet words, delighting her mother and the elders who were kind to her. She had also secretly resolved not to become like her father, unable to protect her mother.
Who would have thought that after she grew up, her mother’s most frequent comment would be: “How are you becoming more and more like your father?”
After they got home and finished lunch, her father cleared the table and washed the dishes as usual before settling in to watch TV.
Her Old Majesty patted the spot next to her, signaling for Ji Changqing to come sit and chat.
Ji Changqing sat down with a grin. “What’s up? Aren’t you going out to hang with the aunties?”
Her Old Majesty ignored the question and asked instead, “Come on, tell your mom about these six genders, and how nine out of ten people can have children on their own…”
Her father turned his head to look at the two of them, then turned the TV volume up, as if to say, I’m not listening, I’m not listening, I’m not listening.
Her Old Majesty rolled her eyes. “What are you worried about? Even if you could, no one’s forcing you to give birth.”
The old man grunted and turned the TV volume down a notch.
What could Ji Changqing do? She went over the differences between the six genders again, explaining who could give birth and their varying fertility levels.
Her Old Majesty pondered this for a long time before asking cautiously, “I remember you said you’re an… what was it, an Alpha?”
Ji Changqing, oblivious, nodded.
Her Old Majesty’s expression became incredibly complicated. After a long pause, she said disdainfully, “So what’s the use of you?”
Ji Changqing was completely baffled. What did I do now?
Her Old Majesty sighed with a hint of pity for this unlucky child of hers. “All these six genders are so fancy and complicated, I don’t get it. All I need to know is that the child takes the surname of whoever gives birth. That’s enough.” She sighed again. “Look at you. What’s the difference between you now and being unable to have children? You can have a child with someone else, but the child won’t take your surname. But oh well, it’s better than before. Before, you’d have to give birth yourself, and the child would still take someone else’s name. At least now you don’t have to be the one giving birth.”
The old man turned his head again to look at his Ah Qing. “Ah Qing, you can still grow taller? You’re almost taller than me.”
Her Old Majesty shot him a look. “You already said that when Ah Qing got back. What do you mean ‘almost taller’? Ah Qing is taller than you now.” As she spoke, Her Old Majesty clapped her hands. “Alright, then. Weren’t you always complaining about why Ah Qing wasn’t a son? Well, now she is. She’s basically your youngest son. She can have someone else give birth for her, right? You two, father and son, can have a nice chat. I’m going for a nap.”
The old man choked and started coughing.
Ji Changqing was so stunned by her mother’s maneuver that she almost had an existential crisis.
So, she had evolved from a gender that was subtly discriminated against for bearing the responsibility of childbirth, into another gender that was equally disdained for being unable to bear that same responsibility?
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