Dual-Track Life

Old Li's company recently implemented a "dual-track" work system. The so-called dual-track means that everyone must hold two jobs simultaneously, a "main track" and a "secondary track."

The "main track" is your original job, while the "secondary track" is randomly assigned and could be any kind of profession you could not even imagine. For example, Old Li's main track was as a programmer, and his secondary track was assigned to "community sanitation worker."

At first, Old Li found this absolutely absurd. During the day, he had to code in front of a computer, and at night, he had to hold a broom and clean up fallen leaves and trash in the community.

He reported to his supervisor, who told him seriously, “This is to cultivate employees' diversity, stimulate potential, and improve comprehensive quality. You see, by being a sanitation worker, you'll understand the hardship of urban sanitation. In the future, you will definitely be more environmentally conscious, and this spirit will subtly affect your work, improving the quality of your code.”

Old Li was speechless, but he didn't dare to resist. After all, the company stated that employees who did not accept the "dual-track system" would be fired directly.

Thus, Old Li began his "dual-track" life. During the day, he wore a suit and worked "996" in the office, fighting with bugs; at night, he changed into work clothes, held a broom, and worked "669" in the community, fighting with fallen leaves.

The funniest thing was that other residents in the community were also victims of the "dual-track system". One normally well-dressed financial elite was assigned to be a "square dance leader", and every night he had to move his stiff body, leading a group of middle-aged women in dancing in the square. Another usually elegant and dignified university professor was assigned to be a "community courier", and every day she had to ride a tricycle, shuttling through the community to deliver packages.

Old Li noticed that although everyone was complaining, they were all conscientiously completing their "secondary track" work. It was as if this had become a default rule, a tacitly understood absurdity.

One day, the company organized a "dual-track experience sharing session". Old Li was selected by the supervisor to speak on stage. He looked at the colleagues below the stage, who were in suits during the day and might be wearing chef's uniforms, sanitation uniforms, courier uniforms, or cleaning uniforms at night, and suddenly he felt like laughing a little.

He took a deep breath, picked up the microphone, and said, "I think this 'dual-track system' is really fantastic! It made me deeply appreciate the infinite possibilities of life! For example, after becoming a sanitation worker, I wrote cleaner code, and there were fewer bugs because I learned to sweep every mistake away like garbage!"

Applause rang out below the stage, and the supervisor nodded with satisfaction.

After Old Li went down the stage, he quietly went to the restroom and lit a cigarette. He looked at his tired face in the mirror and suddenly felt that this might be the most realistic portrayal of this era. Everyone was living in a "dual-track," mechanically operating under absurd rules, and what they were pursuing was nothing more than a little "sense of participation," or perhaps, a silent acceptance of the absurd reality.

The smoke dissipated, and Old Li remembered that he still had sanitation duties tonight. He sighed, walked out of the restroom, picked up his broom, and headed toward the community. Under the moonlight, his hunched figure looked particularly small, yet exceptionally firm.