📘 CHAPTER 17 — NEW CRITERIA
761 Words
The next morning, when Lâm logged into the Bug Hub, he saw small text appear on the dashboard:
System Update:
“Link Optimization Criteria” has been redefined.
New Goal: Increase “Community Compatibility Index”.
No large pop-ups.
No red.
Just a thin line of text, like a rope.
He clicked on the notification.
A short explanation page appeared:
The Community Compatibility Index is a new parameter used to measure
how well individuals fit into a broader data subregion,
based on their network of connections and interactions with higher-scoring groups.
Immediately below the theory were some dry mathematical examples.
There was no mention of “perceived value”.
Only: fit → expand → optimize.
(The algorithms call this a “growth gradient.”)
But for humans, redefining the criteria is like a shackles:
The system is no longer just concerned with the individual's level of connection.
It's also concerned with whether that connection “fits into the larger dataset”—that is:
You don't just have to have many connections…
you have to have connections that the algorithm deems “important.”
A small bell rang in Lam's head:
This isn't about Hai anymore.
This is about everyone the system considers valuable for expansion.
The system has set a new criterion:
not just to exist—but to exist in a way that the model deems appropriate for the broader direction of the data-driven social network.
At lunchtime, Lam sat in the building's cafeteria, looking at the simulation of “data subregions” on the internal bulletin board screen.
A large network graph with thousands of colored dots.
A few “hot spots” were densely circled:
individual hubs with countless connections to other nodes —
coordinates that the algorithm calls high community compatibility.
Looking down the graph, he saw a small, very small group:
that's where Hai and a few others were located — far from the center.
No errors.
Just outside the optimal distribution curve.
A colleague passing by exclaimed:
— I don't understand what these new metrics are for. They seem a bit too algorithmic…
Lam nodded slightly.
He knew it wasn't just “a bit algorithmic.”
It was prioritization based on model standards, not real life.
That afternoon, Hai texted:
An old friend asked if I wanted to join a chess group tomorrow night.
I don't know if I should go…
Lam read the message for a long time.
He recalled the first time he helped Hai connect with Tri.
It wasn't because of the algorithm.
But because of a genuine memory.
And now, the algorithm says that not all connections are the same.
A connection that is alive, but doesn't follow the algorithm's "seeing" pattern as valuable, might not boost the compatibility index.
The system has touched upon the meaning of existence as it's defined numerically.
That evening, in Hai's apartment, they sat opposite each other.
"—What do you think of that invitation?" Lam asked.
Hai scratched his head.
"—I think… I'll go. Just a game of chess. But… maybe I should try."
"—I think that's good," Lam said. "Not because of any index… but because… it means something to you."
Hai smiled, very slightly.
"—That's right. People play chess because… they enjoy playing chess."
His statement contained no data.
It was merely a multiplication repeated countless times in real life.
That night, Lam opened his personal computer.
He didn't access the Inventory.
He didn't open the index tables.
He only opened his notebook.
The three dots—the ones he had initially used to record data and doubts—now formed a small curve, gradually moving upwards.
Below, he wrote:
The new criteria don't erase the old values.
They only… clarify:
“exist in a way that the system deems more appropriate.”
He stopped writing.
Then he continued:
But existing according to the model doesn't mean existing according to feeling.
That was the first time Lam realized:
The system doesn't fight against humans.
It only… selects according to its own logic.
And then came the new question, heavier than any of the previous ones:
If something exists outside of the new criteria…
who will stand by those whom the system deems “less suitable”?
At the end of the page, he wrote nothing more.
Outside the window, the city lights were still on.
But in this optimized world,
non-conformity was no longer a single exception.
It was a kind of position—one that needed to be redefined.
- Writer
