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The story takes place in Country M in the 2040s. Due to the explosive development of artificial intelligence and automation technology, country M has entered the "big era" - a period of economic and social change dominated by AI and robots. Traditional manufacturing and service industries have been completely replaced by robots, and the unemployment rate has soared to more than 95%. The government and capital giants jointly promote the "robot economic cycle": factories produce products, robots use "digital credit" to purchase products, and capitalists continue to expand production after gaining profits, forming a closed cycle. The human labor force has been completely marginalized. Only 1% of the super-rich (called "mountaintop people") enjoy the resources of the surface world. The remaining 99% of humans are forced to move into the underground pipeline system ("sewer") and eke out a living by sorting garbage, repairing old machines, or working as servants for the rich.