Gold Chain Alienation
The thick gold chain around Zhang Wei's neck, once a totem of his sense of security, now felt like a cold fetter, tightening its grip with every plunge of the gold price on the screen, restricting his breath inch by inch.
It was last year, when the price of gold was soaring, breaking one historic high after another, that Zhang Wei joined the frenzy. He wasn't wealthy, just a hardworking middle-aged man scraping by in the city, having saved up some hard-earned money. Seeing his neighbors, colleagues, and even the grannies doing square dancing talking about gold, the anxiety of "losing out if you don't buy now" spread rapidly like a virus. It was a typical individual choice amidst the tides of the era, as described by Wu Xiaobo—less rational investment, more a panic hedge against an uncertain future, coupled with a faint hope for upward mobility.