Golden Phone Sticker

Old Wang was the most unremarkable cog in the company machine. In fact, he was more like a piece of gum stuck in a corner, his presence barely noticeable. On the last workday before the Lunar New Year, while everyone else was busy snapping up holiday goods and their phones were constantly ringing, his desk was still occupied by an old desktop computer and a well-worn copy of the "Modern Chinese Dictionary."

Everyone knew that Old Wang didn't like using mobile phones. He still used an old model from ten years ago, his reasoning being, "As long as it can make calls, it's fine." But today was different. The company had suddenly issued a notice requiring all employees to attach a gold sticker to the back of their phones before coming to work tomorrow. This was to demonstrate good wishes for the New Year, and they were to uniformly scan and upload it using a new app. Apparently, this was the boss's new "good luck" ritual for the year.

Old Wang looked at the two words "golden sticker" shining gold on the notice, and a bad taste rose in his mouth. He rummaged through his pockets, and all he found was a crumpled ten-yuan note. He sighed, walked out of the office, and decided to check the convenience store downstairs.

The convenience store was already filled with dazzling arrays of gold stickers, in various styles and at exorbitant prices. Old Wang asked the owner if there were any cheaper options. The owner pointed to a clear plastic bag in the corner: "Ten yuan each, pure gold-plated. How many do you want?"

Without much thought, Old Wang took the cheapest one. Back in the office, he carefully stuck the gold sticker to the back of his phone and opened the company's newly installed app. The app required facial recognition, which posed a problem for Old Wang. The front camera on his old phone had been broken for a long time. He tried various angles, but it still didn't work. His colleagues gathered around, mocking him, and Old Wang was in a cold sweat.

At that moment, Xiao Li, who sat next to Old Wang, picked up his own phone, opened the front camera, took a picture of Old Wang's gold sticker, and uploaded it successfully. Xiao Li smiled smugly and said, "Old Wang, you are really out of touch. Who uses their own face for authentication these days? The sticker is the key."

Old Wang was stunned, staring at the four words "authentication successful" on the phone screen. A mix of emotions surged through him. He suddenly remembered that this morning, before going to work, he had seen a young person in the subway staring blankly at a phone screen protector. At the time, he hadn't understood, and thought that screen protectors were meaningless. Now, it seemed like he understood something.

The next day, Old Wang arrived at the company an hour early. He saw that everyone was holding up their phones, scanning each other's gold stickers. The company lobby was filled with a dazzling golden glow. Old Wang walked to his workstation, turned on his computer, and began to work.

Then, the boss suddenly arrived, followed by a group of people in suits. The boss pointed at Old Wang and said to them, "This is the typical case I mentioned yesterday. Look, he doesn't even have his phone with him today."

The men in suits surrounded Old Wang, and one of them pulled out a booklet and began to read aloud: "Employee Wang, for violating the company's New Year good luck ritual requirements and not cooperating with uploading his gold sticker, the offense is serious. According to the company's latest regulations, he is dismissed."

Old Wang raised his head in surprise, wanting to explain, but his voice was already hoarse. He touched the phone in his pocket. The gold sticker on the back of his phone was still brand new, but it had lost its original meaning. It was just a soulless symbol, arbitrarily manipulated, much like himself who had worked diligently for ten years in the company. A sense of absurd black humor suddenly welled up in Old Wang’s heart. He silently packed his things and left the office filled with golden light.

He walked out of the office building and looked up at the sky. The sky was very blue, like his dreams had once been, bright and distant. He took out his old phone with the gold sticker from his pocket, and pressed the power button. He suddenly realized that this year, he wouldn’t need to answer anyone's call.