The Disappeared National Subsidy

Old Wang has been feeling particularly upbeat recently, as he figured he was about to take a big advantage of the government for the first time in his life. What advantage? National subsidy! The national subsidy for new energy vehicles!

He had saved half his life's money, plus his son's contribution, and finally gritted his teeth and ordered a new energy car before the New Year. The salesman, Xiao Li, patted his chest and guaranteed, "Uncle Wang, don't worry, this national subsidy will definitely come through. All the procedures are complete. Before the Spring Festival, you can drive your new car home for the New Year and show off!" Old Wang listened, his smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. He imagined driving his new car, the envious looks from the villagers, and how glorious he'd feel.

But before the Spring Festival, the car was delivered, but the national subsidy was nowhere to be seen. At first, Old Wang was patient, thinking that government affairs always had their process. But when the New Year was over and the money still hadn’t arrived, Old Wang became a little restless. He went to Xiao Li, who was also puzzled, "Uncle Wang, this should have come down already. Let me inquire for you."

Xiao Li's inquiry left Old Wang dumbfounded. It turned out that the national subsidy had been issued, but not to him.

"Uncle Wang, you may not understand, this national subsidy has a 'drifting period'," Xiao Li explained, scratching his head. "That is, this money will drift in the system for a while, and finally it will be randomly distributed to qualified car owners across the country. You didn't receive it this time, it might just be bad luck. Maybe next time it'll be your turn."

Old Wang was confused, "What? A drifting period? Can this money just blow away like the wind? Doesn’t that make it a lottery?"

Xiao Li looked helpless: "You can understand it that way. After all, there are more monks than porridge, everyone wants it, so it's up to luck."

Old Wang thought back. These days, you have to fight for everything. Fight for train tickets, fight for coupons, and now you have to fight for national subsidies. But this money is given by the state, how could it be like a pie falling from the sky, randomly falling into someone else's home?

He was unwilling to give up, and inquired further. He heard that the national subsidy money sometimes "drifts" to some special places. For example, some people suddenly found extra money in their accounts, inexplicably, and after checking, it was the national subsidy. Others, after opening a new company and doing nothing, were hit by the national subsidy, and didn't know if they should be happy or worried.

The more Old Wang thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong. This wasn't a national subsidy at all, it was a "national drift"! He started asking around, trying to figure out what this "national drift" was all about. He found a professor who specialized in studying the "national drift" phenomenon. The professor listened to his story and sighed, "Old Wang, I’ve seen a lot of cases like yours. This 'national drift' doesn't make sense, it doesn't follow the rules, it’s a huge, unpredictable system. Just think of it as a dream."

Old Wang's heart sank after hearing this. But he's a stubborn person. He didn't believe in this evil. He started searching for news about "national drift" online every day, hoping to find a pattern, an explanation.

One day, he saw a post online saying that someone had found the secret to "national drift". This person said that the "national drift" was not random at all. It had a hidden algorithm, and this algorithm was based on each person's "happiness index." The higher the happiness index, the more likely a person was to be selected by the "national drift."

Old Wang had a flash of inspiration. He felt like he understood. He was happy every day, smiling at everyone he met, and even joined the community square dance team, dancing happily every day. He felt that his happiness index must be exploding now, and the "national drift" must be coming for him.

A few days later, Old Wang went to the bank to check his account, and sure enough, there was extra money in it. He was overjoyed, thinking, the "national drift" has finally come! He hurriedly called Xiao Li, "Xiao Li, my national subsidy has finally arrived!"

Xiao Li was also happy: "Uncle Wang, congratulations! See, I didn't lie to you, did I? As long as you are lucky, it will be your turn!"

But Old Wang took a closer look at the money and was dumbfounded again. This money was not the national subsidy, it was his pension. He then remembered that he had been busy dancing square dances lately to increase his happiness index and had forgotten about his pension. He looked at the money in his account, then looked out the window. The music of the square dance sounded again. He felt as if he had been fooled by this absurd world.

He sat in his new car, looking at the bustling crowd outside the window, and suddenly laughed. In this world, there are no rules, only absurdity spreading wantonly. He lit a cigarette. In the swirling smoke, he seemed to see his pension drifting in the air, eventually disappearing into the vast crowd.

Perhaps, this "national drift" is the real truth of this era.