Countdown One Minute
"One minute left!" a sugary female voice echoed through the office from the speakers, like a death knell. Zhang Qiang looked up at the digital clock on the wall, 12:00, precise to the second.
This was the company's newly implemented "midday relaxation" session, touted as being for the health and well-being of the employees. Every day at noon, all employees had to put aside their work and participate in a "beneficial to mind and body" activity. Today's activity was "one minute of silence."
Zhang Qiang took a deep breath, trying to shift his gaze from the computer screen. The screen was filled with dense reports; he had been working overtime for two weeks straight, getting less than six hours of sleep each day. This so-called "relaxation" was nothing more than moving from one battlefield to another, the tension in his mind never truly released.
His colleagues were also like they had been paused, their movements frozen stiff. Some were still in the position of typing on their keyboards, fingers suspended in mid-air; some were holding their coffee cups, the cups stopped at their mouths; some were staring at their phone screens, as if waiting for important information. The entire office was like a giant wax museum, only the faint sound of breathing in the air reminded you that there were still living beings here.
The countdown from the speakers continued, "59 seconds…58 seconds…57 seconds…" Zhang Qiang closed his eyes, trying to empty his mind. But the unfinished reports, the boss's stern eyes, the numbers on his mortgage bills, flashed before his eyes like slides. He felt like a rat trapped in a cage, repeating the same actions every day, with no way out.
He suddenly recalled his childhood, the big banyan tree in the backyard of his grandmother's old house. On summer afternoons, he would climb the tree and quietly listen to the sound of the wind rustling the leaves. Back then, he truly felt relaxed, truly felt free.
"30 seconds…29 seconds…" the countdown continued, and Zhang Qiang felt a tightness in his chest; he wanted to take a deep breath, but found even breathing carried a trace of pressure. He opened his eyes and looked around, finding everyone was like him, with frozen expressions and empty eyes.
"10 seconds…9 seconds…8 seconds…" Zhang Qiang's heart began to race. He suddenly felt that this "relaxation" activity was simply ridiculous. Why force people to relax in this way? Isn't this just another form of control?
"3 seconds…2 seconds…1 second!" With a crisp "time's up," the whole office instantly came alive. The sounds of typing, coffee cups clinking, and ringing phones instantly intertwined into a noisy symphony.
Zhang Qiang found himself feeling slightly uncomfortable with this sudden burst of liveliness. He subconsciously looked at the digital clock on the wall, 12:01, the time was precisely accurate. He felt like a machine that had just been restarted, briefly turned off for one minute, only to be put back into endless operation.
He picked up his water glass on the table and took a sip. A faint plastic taste spread in his mouth. He looked down and saw a line of small words printed at the bottom of the glass: "Please do not drink during the silent period."
Zhang Qiang was stunned. So, for that one minute, even drinking water was prohibited.
He suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. He looked around. His colleagues were already back at work, as if everything that had just happened had never happened. He tried to say something, but found his throat felt like it was blocked by something, unable to make a sound.
Just then, the sugary female voice came again from the speakers: "Please prepare everyone, next we will be doing a minute of 'smiling time'. Please be sure to keep smiling. The facial expression recognition system will be recording in real time. Those who do not meet the standard will have their performance bonus deducted for the month."
Zhang Qiang slowly raised his head. He looked at the digital clock on the wall. The time was 12:02. He opened his mouth, revealing a stiff, machine-like, standard smile. The corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, but his eyes were filled with helplessness and despair.