Senior Sister, Shut Up!

Another debate chapter.

====

After the first and fourth speakers from both sides presented their arguments and questioned each other, the debate moved to the second speakers’ argumentation and counter-argument phase.

Both second speakers had one and a half minutes to make their case, defend their team’s points against the opponent’s criticisms, and attack the opponent’s argument.

Once their argumentation ended, it was time for the cross-examination phase, where they each had one and a half minutes to ask and answer questions back and forth, testing their ability to think quickly and react on the spot.

Jia Tongxue went back and forth with the opponent’s second speaker in a well-fought exchange, but the opposition side had the advantage after all. Towards the end, she was left with little more than the ability to barely defend herself.

After the second speakers finished, it was time for the third speakers’ cross-examination.

The third speakers had one and a half minutes to question the opponent’s first, second, and fourth speakers.

Yi Luren’s questions were straightforward and didn’t break the situation. A minute and a half passed quickly, and it was soon the opposing third speaker’s turn to ask questions.

“Next, let us invite the third speaker from the opposition side to question the first, second, and fourth speakers of the affirmative side. You have one and a half minutes,” the moderator announced.

Sun Yumeng from the opposition side had already stood up.

Jiang Miao, Jia Tongxue, and Ding Ning also stood up from their seats, preparing to face the cross-examination.

“May I ask the fourth speaker from the other side?” Sun Yumeng started off by addressing Jiang Miao. “A college graduate has a monthly income of five thousand yuan, and selling an hour of their time is ten thousand. Would they consider selling their time once?”

“The price you specified is biased.” Jiang Miao didn’t choose to answer directly. “We believe that due to the existence of a large number of sellers, the price of time won’t reach the levels you’ve mentioned.”

Sun Yumeng wasn’t fazed by the answer and continued asking, “May I ask the second speaker from the other side: If young people can easily earn much more money by selling their time than by working, would they choose to keep working, or would they opt to use the money to enjoy themselves in the moment?”

This question touched on the essence of human greed and laziness, which was difficult to answer directly. Jia Tongxue could only dodge the question and offer a roundabout response.

Jiang Miao suddenly fell into deep thought after hearing the two questions.

Sun Yumeng continued with her questions, turning to Ding Ning. “If young people fall into a vicious cycle of selling time, spending on entertainment, and then selling time again, with a lot of their time being bought by middlemen, who later go to hospitals to profit off of terminally ill patients, do you consider this an optimal allocation of resources or a waste of them?”

She proceeded to ask a few more questions in quick succession.

Although she initially addressed Jiang Miao, most of her subsequent questions were directed at Ding Ning and Jia Tongxue.

This was a subtle technique often used by third speakers during cross-examination.

Once they identified a skilled debater on the other side, they would only ask them a simple, almost symbolic question at the start and then point their spearhead at the other two speakers.

This made the cross-examination a bit easier.

“The opposition side has too many points to attack.” Lin Jingwen looked at her half-filled page of notes and shook her head. “The affirmative side keeps avoiding the questions. This will cost them points.”

“I’m curious to see how they’ll explain the issue of time pricing,” Lu Yu said, twirling his pen. “But it’s obvious their logic in this area is weak. So far, we haven’t heard any clear reasoning.”

The two judges were clearly leaning towards the opposition side.

The point the opposition was hammering—human shortsightedness leads to addiction to selling time—was enough to crush the affirmative side.

Not to mention, there were further issues like ‘middlemen capitalizing’ and ‘market boundaries’, both of which were major weak points for the affirmative side.

Based on the current trend, the two judges believed that the affirmative side had little chance of turning things around.

After the third speakers finished their cross-examination, each side had one and a half minutes to make their closing statements.

Then the moderator announced, “Next, it’s time for the free discussion. The debaters can discuss with their teams for four minutes. After the discussion ends, we will proceed to the free debate.”

The debaters from both teams immediately gathered together to strategize for the upcoming free debate.

Whispers began to stir in the audience.

“What should we do? It feels like Jiang Miao’s side is going to lose.”

“What are you thinking? Our Class 2 team is the opposition. The affirmative side is all Class 3, except for Jiang Miao.”

“I’ll support whichever side Jiang Miao is on~”

“Eh~ But it looks tough. The affirmative side seems to be losing.”

“Yeah, but isn’t this debate topic too biased in favor of the opposition?”

“True. If time could be traded, it would definitely be a world for the wealthy. They could buy as much time as they wanted.”

“And if people like me could sell time for money, maybe I’d sell ten or twenty years of my life and gain Instant financial freedom!~”

“Damn, the way you’re saying it, I’m kind of tempted now.”

“Get lost. By the time you’re that old and dying, you won’t even have the money to buy your life back.”

“But living a carefree life for thirty or forty years might be way more enjoyable than slogging away at a job for fifty or sixty years to pay off a mortgage, right?”

“No way! I still think it’s better to live longer.”

The audience had their own thoughts.

This debate topic was unlike a typical, serious debate. It leaned more towards a creative, speculative type.

Such topics were easier to spark the audience’s imagination, engaging them to pay more attention to the debate.

Otherwise, with a more serious topic, most people in the audience would probably be playing with their phones.

“Take a look at this.” On the stage, Jiang Miao handed his notes to the three girls. “There wasn’t much time, so I only managed to write this much. You guys will have to adjust based on the situation later.”

While showing them the note, he briefly explained the content. Soon, the four minutes were over.

The moderator’s voice rang out again. “Discussion time is over. Please take your seats. Audience, please remain silent. Next, we will move to the free debate.

“Each side has five minutes to speak. After one side speaks, the other will respond. The two sides will alternate until their time is up. Only one person may speak at a time.

“Now, the free debate begins. First, the affirmative side may take the floor.”

As soon as the moderator’s voice fell, Jia Tongxue moved her gaze away from the notes, stood up, and asked, “May I ask the opposing debaters, if a large number of young workers choose to sell their time instead of working, would it cause a shortage of employees for many businesses?”

“No. The difficulty of finding employment is a common issue now,” Sun Yumeng responded quickly. After answering, she countered, “So you agree with our stance that young people would choose to sell their time and give up their jobs, correct?”

“This conclusion is based on the assumption that the price of time always exceeds wages.” Ding Ning, after reading Jiang Miao’s notes, stood up and spoke. “But if a large number of workers choose this route, the market will have more supply than demand. According to market rules, the price of time will inevitably plummet.”

At this, the opposition side was momentarily stunned.

Logically, how could something as valuable as time be sold for a low price?

But for a moment, they couldn’t find a solid rebuttal.

“That’s why we said there would inevitably be middlemen who profit by buying time at a relatively low price and reselling it to customers who urgently need time,” Song Huanhuan said, sticking to the opposition’s reasoning chain.

“Do buyers who urgently need time not know a few young people themselves?” Yi Luren immediately stood up to counter. “Middlemen can profit because they control the transaction channels. But if everyone can sell their time, buyers needing time will find sellers everywhere. Middlemen will have no room to survive.”

In the audience, Lin Jingwen’s eyes lit up. She hadn’t expected that as soon as the free debate started, the affirmative side would seize the initiative in the attack.

Beside her, Lu Yu was also a bit surprised. He immediately grabbed his pen to start recording the back-and-forth between both sides.

But Zhao Lu wasn’t in a hurry. His gaze flicked back and forth between Jiang Miao and Wang Xin, twirling the pen in his hand as if he were waiting for the main course to arrive.

At this point, Wang Xin could no longer hold himself back.

“The profit of middlemen comes from the value of the time and effort they spend in finding their target sources and clients,” Wang Xin said while adjusting his glasses. “They have the ability to find people with worse economic conditions, whose time is cheaper, and quickly connect them with the customers who need time the most.

“And if buyers personally go out to find sellers, the final transaction price might end up being higher than the price offered by middlemen.”

“Not quite.” Jiang Miao smiled, almost as though he had his prey fall into his trap. He stood up and asked, “Earlier, your third speaker gave the example of selling an hour of time for ten thousand yuan. Now, you’re saying that middlemen can find the cheapest time. How low exactly are we talking?”

“The key isn’t the price.” Wang Xin immediately adjusted his stance, realizing that the focus of the argument had shifted. “It’s that middlemen need a large supply of cheap time, so the poor will become the primary targets for their first wave of exploitation. This is a deeper level of exploitation of the lower class.”

He instantly took the topic to a deeper level.

Lin Jingwen’s and Lu Yu’s pens moved faster.

From this point on, both side’s first, second, and third speakers fell silent, and the battlefield transformed into a one-on-one duel between Jiang Miao and Wang Xin.

“But the focus still has to return to the price. If someone could buy a poor person’s entire year for one yuan, I’d agree that it’s definitely exploitation. But if it’s one million yuan for a year of time, do you think, for the poor, that’s exploitation or an opportunity?” Jiang Miao countered.

Wang Xin shook his head. “Since the goal is to exploit and acquire cheap time, the buyers naturally won’t offer high prices.”

Jiang Miao nodded. Then he suddenly turned his argument around, aiming his spearhead at the opposition side’s first argument. “So, you claim that young people will corrupt themselves by selling their time, yet you also say that middlemen will only buy cheap time. So where exactly will these young people be selling their time?”

This immediately highlighted a subtle flaw in the opposition side’s argument.

Lin Jingwen and Lu Yu stopped their pens subconsciously, taking a few seconds to realize just how cleverly Jiang Miao had exposed the flaw.

On the one hand, the opposition side argued that young people would become addicted to selling their time due to the quick money, leading them to degenerate.

On the other hand, they claimed that middlemen would only buy cheap time from the poor and resell it at higher prices.

This created a contradiction between their two points.

However, recognizing this contradiction required deeper thinking and analysis.

Su Huaizhou’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Jiang Miao, not expecting Junior Brother to deliver such a beautiful counterattack in this situation.

But when she remembered that it was her promised reward that had spurred him to perform so well, she blushed and spat.

After Jiang Miao dismantled their arguments, even Wang Xin couldn’t help but frown, losing a few seconds to process it.

But he reacted promptly and stood up to respond. “We mentioned that due to their relatively short-sighted nature, young people are more likely to sell what they perceive as excess future time, even if the price is relatively low.”

“Then, following the question posed by your third speaker, let me ask you this: If a graduate’s monthly salary is five thousand yuan, what price do you think would be acceptable for them to sell a month of their time?” Jiang Miao continued pressing this point, refusing to let it go.

“It could be ten thousand or twenty thousand. The price doesn’t need to be exact, but it will at least be higher than their salary,” Wang Xin replied, his brow furrowed, feeling that the pace of the debate was slipping from his control.

“Alright, then let’s return to the initial question.” Jiang Miao smiled. “At such prices, if a large number of young people choose to sell their time and indulge themselves as your first argument suggested, then in an era of increasing global labor shortage, how would the various industrial chains continue operating?

“Wouldn’t a sudden, massive loss of labor result in a sharp decline in the production of various goods?

“And with reduced output, wouldn’t that trigger rising prices and currency devaluation?

“Wouldn’t this ultimately lead to the devaluation of time, forcing capital to set the price of time lower than wages in order to recover the lost labor force?

“And if the price of time is lower than wages, who would still be willing to sell their time?”

The barrage of relentless questions was so powerful that the audience briefly fell into a stunned silence.

Even Lin Jingwen and Lu Yu became intrigued, realizing that the affirmative side might actually have a chance to turn things around.

Still, it had to be said that Wang Xin’s mental resilience was impressive.

While his three teammates were at a complete loss for words, he stood up and pointed out some potential flaws in Jiang Miao’s arguments. “According to you, when the price of time falls below wages, most young people would choose not to sell their time. So, what exactly is your side’s rationale for supporting this technology?

“If, in the end, no one chooses to sell their time, doesn’t this technology become a pointless endeavor?

“In that case, it would be better not to support it from the start.”

“No.” Jiang Miao stood up, shaking his head with a smile. “That is exactly where the value of this technology lies.

“Precisely because the price of time will eventually return to a normal range, reducing most people’s desire to sell their time, it creates new opportunities for young people who need funds to develop themselves.

“The majority of jobs available to most people will never be ones they truly enjoy or are even interested in.

“And this technology gives young people pursuing their ideals a chance to develop and grow. It allows them not to waste time in mundane jobs and provides the funds to improve themselves.”

“You’re wrong,” Wang Xin immediately retorted. “Just to chase this seemingly beautiful vision, we must let time enter the free market. According to the laws of capitalism, capital will eventually monopolize the time market.

“At that point, those who control capital will have eternal life, and the young people pursuing their ideals you speak of will become nothing more than puppets in the hands of capital. Their ideals will be manipulated, and they will willingly offer their time to build the everlasting empire of capital.

“Capitalists will truly be above all, overlooking humanity, unchanging for eternity. For hundreds, thousands, and even millions of years, billions of ants will supply their time to keep the people at the top of the pyramid from ever decaying. Is that the world you want to see?”

“The opposition side’s time is up,” the moderator announced.

Wang Xin immediately stopped speaking. Fortunately, his rebuttal was sufficient, at least preventing the affirmative side from completely turning the situation around.

At this point, the affirmative side had only five seconds left. Jiang Miao knew there was no time to say anything further, so he stood up and said, “I will address the opposition’s doubts in my closing argument.”

“The affirmative side’s time is up.”

“So cool! Jiang Miao is so cool!” a girl in the audience whispered excitedly to her best friend.

“Wang Xin is amazing too. If I were up there, I would have been stunned by Jiang Miao’s questions.”

Many people found the debate exciting. In the past, they had never thought much of debates before, but this topic was very interesting. The exchanges between the debaters were sharp and balanced, nothing like the one-sided scenarios they had expected.

This situation was also beyond Lu Yu’s and Lin Jingwen’s expectations.

Although neither of them could be considered professional debaters, they were still members of the school’s debate team, with Lin Jingwen serving as the captain and Lu Yu as the vice-captain of their respective department’s debate team.

Therefore, their research and understanding of debate were far superior to that of first-years.

Their first reaction upon seeing the debate topic was that the opposition side would certainly win.

Because once time entered the free market and became monetized, capital would inevitably lead to the monopoly of time.

It was a deadlock.

During the free debate, in most of the exchanges, the affirmative side’s attacks were very effective, seizing the flaws in the opposition’s first and second arguments and relentlessly exploiting them.

But in the end, Wang Xin pointed out the deeper capital issues and pushed the affirmative side right to the edge.

Next came the closing arguments of both sides’ fourth speakers.

Since the affirmative side spoke first at the start, the opposition side delivered their closing arguments first.

“The opposition side has three minutes for their closing arguments. Let us welcome the opposition side’s fourth speaker.”

Before the moderator finished speaking, Wang Xin had already stood up. His expression was still calm, but his fingers gripping his notes were much tighter than usual.

===

Read advanced chapters (25+) @ https://www.patreon.com/c/CharmaineTL

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!