God's Imitator

Chapter 518: Power and Politics

Evening.Lin Sizhi was in the outdoor area, lost in thought about something.

Qin Yao sat on the single sofa next to him and said, "Zheng Jie and I have decided to leave on the last day.

"Otherwise, you'd be so bored alone in the community."

Lin Sizhi smiled, "That doesn't really matter to me. Compared to being in a lively atmosphere, sometimes I'm actually more suited to staying alone quietly and thinking about things.

"But still, thank you both."

Qin Yao hesitated and said, "How about Zheng Jie and I stay? When I think about how Community 17 was clearly the final victor of the previous stage, yet it's falling apart leaving only you, Lawyer Lin, as the sole survivor, it makes me feel terrible."

Lin Sizhi looked at her and shook his head with a smile, "There's no need.

"The New World is only suitable for a small portion of people. For the vast majority of others, being here is suffering and imprisonment. There's no need to stay.

"Although the Gallery was very generous this time in giving everyone in our community the opportunity to leave the New World, from an overall perspective, this is still an exception. No other community has such good fortune.

"Because the Gallery still needs to lock down most players, imprisoning them in this place to provide the gaming experience for a small portion of people.

"I don't think this ending is the 'disintegration' of Community 17. Why can't it be a 'perfect exit'?"

He paused slightly and continued, "For you all, leaving the New World is perfectly clearing the game and safely exiting.

"It's like a game that's been completed. Although the account still has in-game currency and equipment, and perhaps a few unachieved goals and accomplishments remain, those are ultimately just virtual data in the game.

"There's no need for any attachment.

"What's important is the experience itself.

"For players like me, this game still has a 'New Game Plus' option. It might be mostly repetitive content, or it might become completely different.

"But regardless, for a 'New Game Plus player,' whether the equipment from the previous playthrough carries over isn't actually important.

"Starting fresh better suits my habits."

Neither of them spoke for a while, just sitting quietly, looking at the distant night sky.

"You two, may I interrupt?"

Qin Yao looked up to see Li Renshu.

Lin Sizhi nodded, "Of course."

Qin Yao helped drag over the nearby single sofa slightly to make it more convenient for Li Renshu to sit, then asked, "By the way, Renshu, I haven't asked you yet. Are you planning to stay?"

Li Renshu couldn't give a clear answer right away, but eventually shook her head, "I don't think so.

"Actually, before this, I was quite confident in my political abilities.

"Before the 'Tarot Game,' I was also quite satisfied with my status in the community and the community's construction achievements.

"But now I know that was all an illusion.

"The things I did actually had no meaning at all."

Lin Sizhi shook his head, "That's not quite right to say.

"From the perspective of an observer summarizing what happened over these three months, I think the community construction part was just as exciting as the Gallery's games.

"Your performance was very good. You don't need to be too hard on yourself.

"As for you finally realizing that you were sidelined by Cai Zhiyuan and were powerless about it, that was unavoidable.

"Because Cai Zhiyuan himself was also a player with maxed-out political abilities, at the same level as you. But at the same time, his game strategy and breakthrough abilities were stronger than yours, and he had the advantageous identity of a God's Imitator, which is why this result occurred.

"From a purely political perspective, you didn't lose by much. You lost in other areas, which weren't things you could control."

This surprised Li Renshu somewhat, "Lawyer Lin, you think the community construction part was 'exciting'? I originally thought you completely looked down on these small-scale maneuvers.

"Previously, when these types of topics came up, you rarely spoke. Even when you saw through some unspoken rules and hidden intentions, you never stopped or opposed them."

Lin Sizhi shook his head, "I didn't participate because I wanted to be an 'audience member.' I don't think these are small-scale maneuvers.

"Qin Yao, let me ask you a question. What do you think 'politics' is?"

Qin Yao thought for a moment, "I know! I specifically looked at relevant books in the library area and checked the definition.

"Politics is the governing behavior of a certain political entity. Its core is the distribution and use of power. Its purpose is to maintain social order, promote public interests, and safeguard citizens' rights."

Li Renshu considered for a moment and said, "For me, politics is mediating the distribution of interests among different groups to optimize the mobilization of resources for the entire group.

"In other words, determining which parts can be won over as friends and which parts must be opposed as enemies, ensuring friends' interests are protected and their potential is stimulated, while depriving enemies of some interests but skillfully keeping them suppressed within a range that doesn't cause upheaval.

"It can also be said as seeking common ground while reserving differences, making more friends and fewer enemies."

Lin Sizhi nodded, "Yes, you're both right, because politics itself doesn't have a particularly clear definition.

"However, I prefer a more colloquial explanation.

"Before discussing the concept of 'politics,' I want to first talk about 'power.'

"Some people say 'power' is violence, but this isn't actually accurate. 'Power' is actually a kind of 'strong control' over others. Forcing someone to drink at a dinner table to test their obedience is a manifestation of power. At work, forcibly making a subordinate take the blame for you when the subordinate knows the situation is serious but has no choice, this is also a manifestation of power.

"If a person cannot force certain people to do certain things, then they don't possess power. Conversely, the more people they can force and the more things they can force others to do, the greater the power they possess.

"But in reality, power often isn't achieved through pure violence. Many times, it's built upon 'illusion.'

"Because there is no 'overwhelming force that can steamroll everything' in the real world. The violence a person can obtain through themselves alone is extremely limited. To upgrade one's power, one must form some kind of group, some kind of order.

"When most people recognize that you have power, then you truly have power.

"Regardless of whether your attitude is benevolent or malicious, regardless of whether the system you ultimately want to build ensures everyone's rights or only lets you control everything, you need a specific process.

"And in the process of constructing this system, all the relationships you need to handle, all the related things you do, are politics."

Lin Sizhi paused slightly and continued, "So I believe the concept of politics isn't actually linked to numbers.

"From as small as a three-person group to as large as a country with hundreds of millions of people, politics exists. Although they may differ vastly in form of expression, their essence is the same.

"And the manifestation of political awareness and political ability doesn't depend on the number of people in political activities, but merely on specific behaviors."