The old man didn't believe Xu Zhengyang was sending him a message in a dream. Judging from the series of events that had occurred, he still believed his judgment of the gods and their authority was correct; the unexpected had simply happened to this young man he had always looked down upon. Therefore, the old man felt that Xu Zhengyang's mad and violent side stemmed from a long-standing mentality of insignificance, a distortion of his character caused by inferiority and repression. Once he gained power, he became unrestrained.
The old man was absolutely unwilling to marry his granddaughter to such a strange person, a young man who lacked culture, manners, and good character.
Of course, this does have a bit of a "crossing the river and then dismantling the bridge" mentality, and it's rather despicable.
The old man did not deny it, but from the beginning, it seemed that neither of them had ever discussed marriage. As for what the two young people, Li Bingjie and Xu Zhengyang, said to each other, that was another matter.
Bingjie is simply naive and inexperienced, and due to her past autism, she developed feelings for Xu Zhengyang. However, now that she has recovered, as she gradually integrates into normal life, she meets more and more people and learns more about him. She will eventually discover that Xu Zhengyang has many shortcomings and is not presentable.
In the past, the old man genuinely admired Xu Zhengyang. He had risen from an ordinary, poor boy to create wealth through hard work and diligence, and his character was constantly changing and evolving—a truly admirable phenomenon. The old man even thought that if Bingjie's illness didn't improve, and if Xu Zhengyang could truly achieve greater things, perhaps the two young people could end up together—a beautiful thing indeed. At that time, the old man still felt that given Bingjie's illness, Xu Zhengyang might not necessarily be willing to marry her.
Undeniably, the old man was far more understanding and reasonable than his son and daughter-in-law, and much fairer in his treatment of people. Admittedly, his fairness and understanding in his view of people stemmed from a superior, condescending perspective.
But he has the qualifications; he is, after all, a figure standing at the pinnacle of humanity.
But now, look at Xu Zhengyang's astonishing achievements. It's not because he has great abilities or is hardworking that he created them. Rather, it's because he relied entirely on extraordinary forces to achieve what ordinary people consider to be an incredibly brilliant success—young and promising, starting from scratch!
The old man felt cheated and a feeling of anger and frustration arose within him.
How can someone who lives off others without working, who becomes reckless once he has a powerful backer, who is greedy for money and worldly fame, who is violent, gloomy, uncultured, uncultured, and utterly vulgar, be allowed to marry Li Bingjie?
When one person has a prejudice against another, or when a conflict arises, they will naturally magnify the other person's shortcomings while completely ignoring all of the other person's strengths.
Moreover, Xu Zhengyang even did something that, in a way, taught the old man a lesson.
It's no wonder the old man was angry. No matter how high his position, how cultured he was, or how much the world admired and worshipped him, he was ultimately not a god, just a human being.
However, the old man had a taboo. He remembered what Xu Zhengyang had said at the door before he left: "Grandpa, there's something else I need to tell you. I have two major taboos, and I hate the two things the most. First, it's when someone harms my relatives and friends, or does something that makes me feel uneasy. Second, it's when someone crosses the river and then burns the bridge, or to put it bluntly, it's when someone uses someone and then discards them. I would be very angry if that happened. So I hope that no one in your family will try to influence Bingjie's thoughts."
Therefore, Li Bingjie's decision not to return to Fuhe City this winter vacation was not the elders' idea, but rather Jiang Lan and Li Ruiyu's.
The old man merely acquiesced.
He wondered just how far the power of the deity standing behind Xu Zhengyang could extend.
Xu Zhengyang got angry again...
The Queen Mother of the West's daughter was married off to Dong Yong, a poor farmer. What's more, now that I am a god, what can your Li family's high status do?
In this mundane world, what kind of person is worthy of your Li family's daughter? A son of a military family? A businessman? A rising star in politics?
In short, it all boils down to two words—status.
"Damn it!" Xu Zhengyang cursed through gritted teeth.
So that night, Wei Decai, the owner of Jinxing Construction Company in Fuhe City who had been owing wages to 114 migrant workers for over a year, was fortunate enough to have the City God personally intervene and impose a severe punishment! He was also sentenced to a lifetime of greatly diminished fortune, never to recover. Of course, Wei Decai was unaware of this. The next day, looking disheveled, he personally drove his own car, following the City God's instructions in his dream, to deliver the wages to the migrant workers, and even added an extra 500 yuan to each of them as compensation for emotional distress.
That night, several people in charge of Venus Construction Company were severely punished by the ghost messengers.
Xu Zhengyang saw this on the forum of Fuhe Information Port, and it was continuously replied to and pinned by hundreds of netizens.
Well, coincidentally, the poster was Xue Ziyi, whose forum ID was "March Awakening of Insects".
This guy is indeed a very righteous and passionate young man. If he weren't lacking in personal ability and powerless to do anything but vent his frustrations on the forum, if he were given some special power, he would dare to go around ravaging the world, spreading justice, and punishing evil and promoting good.
Let's not get into the small talk.
Knowing the old man's mindset and understanding Li Bingjie's current situation, Xu Zhengyang drove to the courtyard house in the western suburbs the next day.
Xu Zhengyang thought resentfully: I'm going to put on a show of lingering emotions, so what?
We know that although Xu Zhengyang has some flaws and lacks some so-called cultivation, he is not a bad person at heart. Moreover, he is a patient and tolerant person, a good young man who knows how to respect the elderly and care for the young. In particular, he would not be aggressive towards an elder like Li Lao, who is highly respected.
However, times have changed. When Xu Zhengyang met the old man in the living room this time, it was obvious that the old man was not very welcoming of his arrival, and his expression was somewhat unpleasant.
So Xu Zhengyang got straight to the point and said, "Grandpa, please respect Li Bingjie's wishes. She is your family!"
"Have you thought about her?" the old man asked calmly.
"I don't understand why you would ask such a question." Xu Zhengyang said this, but in his heart he was thinking, why are you talking nonsense? If I didn't care about Li Bingjie, why would I be here?
The old man said calmly, "What you are doing now will one day lead you to an extreme. What will that bring to Bingjie?"
"Grandpa, let's not talk about grand principles." Xu Zhengyang was too lazy to listen to the old man's profound and scheming explanations. What a joke! Do you think I don't know what you're thinking? Xu Zhengyang waved his hand and said very seriously, "I don't want Bingjie to be unhappy. Okay, I admit I have a selfish side, but I respect Bingjie. She's a good girl, and I like her. I don't understand why you, as elders, can't respect her feelings and choices? You're so sure that she won't be happy with me, that I'm not good enough for her? It sounds like you're concerned about her, but in the end... you're just concerned about your own face and neglecting Li Bingjie!"
The old man was stunned. This was insubordination and audacious behavior!
In the past, when they were here, the old man and the young man would deliberately lower their voices, not wanting anyone to hear certain things. But this time, Xu Zhengyang's voice was noticeably louder, yet it sounded more sincere and human. There was none of that oppressive, calm, chillingly threatening tone.
It's just a matter of reasoning!
So the two bodyguards who had come out earlier quickly entered the house and rushed to Xu Zhengyang's side as if facing a formidable enemy.
The old man waved his hand, signaling the two bodyguards to leave.
Inside the house, only the old man and Xu Zhengyang remained.
"I'm sorry, I got a little emotional just now." Xu Zhengyang sighed and said, "You once said that as long as Bingjie is happy, that's all that matters, right? But are you sure she'll be happy if she doesn't contact me now?"
"I'm thinking of you." The old man's expression softened, and he said with his usual kind and gentle tone, "The word 'affection' is the most hurtful. You are still young, and Bingjie has only recently recovered from autism. She will have more contact with people in the future, and her thoughts and views will change. Can you be sure that Bingjie's feelings won't change?"
Xu Zhengyang said, "That's a matter for the future, you can rest assured. I'm not the kind of person who forces things, especially when it comes to feelings. To put it bluntly, three-legged toads are hard to find, but two-legged people are plentiful. Do I lack a wife? Besides, I still don't know if my feelings for Bingjie can be considered love, but I know that I like her and I respect her... In the future, if she does have any complaints about me, of course I won't force her."
“But…” Xu Zhengyang changed the subject and said very seriously and firmly, “I’m protective of my own. At least for now, I treat Bingjie as family. Don’t make her unhappy, even if you are her real family.”
"It's all for her own good." Old Li nodded, not denying Xu Zhengyang's words. "If a young person unknowingly goes astray, and the elders strictly discipline her, wouldn't that be disrespecting her wishes? Is it really okay to just let her continue down the wrong path?"
"Was she wrong?" Xu Zhengyang asked calmly.
Out of respect for Mr. Li, Xu Zhengyang couldn't say anything more extreme out of politeness. In fact, what he wanted to say was: You old man, how did you learn to argue so illogically?
After a long silence, Old Li said, "Zhengyang, you need to tone it down..."
"Was I really wrong?" Xu Zhengyang asked again.
To be fair, Mr. Li cannot say that Xu Zhengyang was at fault in the recent series of events in Fuhe City, because this is the will of the people, a situation that everyone has hoped for many times. After the great upheaval, what followed was a rare period of clean governance; in a place most prone to corruption, a rare atmosphere of purity has emerged.
“If everything is done by God, what is there for humans to do?” The old man shook his head and said, “In reality, there are laws, law enforcement agencies, and governing bodies…”
Xu Zhengyang said, "It's not perfect, is it?"
“If everything is perfect, there will be no competition, no pressure, and the meaning of human existence will be lost.” The old man looked at Xu Zhengyang, his eyes revealing a trace of pity and a little appreciation, and said, “Humans are the animals most easily corrupted by reality. When people share both good and bad times, they will become lazy and dependent on each other, and then... society will stop progressing.”
Xu Zhengyang frowned, deep in thought.
"The driving force of human social development lies in competition, and competition inevitably leads to differences in social class. These differences are not inequality, but are determined by factors such as individual ability and character."
"But competition also needs a relatively fair competitive environment."
"This is a cycle, and we need to achieve this goal gradually. However, if we take extreme measures and forcibly create an unstable and unrealistic fair society, it will backfire."
Xu Zhengyang was at his wit's end. For the first time, he truly understood the meaning of the saying, "Ignorance is truly terrifying." The old man's words sounded reasonable, yet Xu Zhengyang couldn't fully grasp them. Even using his divine sense to probe the old man's thoughts, he couldn't understand them. He knew that some of the old man's words were correct, but due to their different positions and perspectives, they weren't entirely accurate and had their drawbacks. Xu Zhengyang didn't know how to refute them.
The reason, of course, is that Xu Zhengyang's vision was not far-sighted or comprehensive enough.
He felt incredibly embarrassed, so he shamelessly said, "Grandpa, let's put this topic aside for now. When will Bingjie be back?"
The old man was both amused and exasperated, and said, "It's Chinese New Year, the whole family should get together."
"Mm." Xu Zhengyang nodded.
“Zhengyang, if I have the time and opportunity, I hope I can talk to it,” the old man suddenly said.
Xu Zhengyang was taken aback, then shook his head and said, "It probably won't agree." After a pause, he added, "Tell me, it's the same."
"Think carefully about what I just said," the old man said with a smile and great confidence.
Xu Zhengyang nodded, got up to say goodbye, and walked out.
This time, as he reached the door, Xu Zhengyang stopped, turned around, and said, "Grandpa, I just realized something... You're right, the development of human society always generates stronger momentum and faster speed through competition."
The old man nodded with a smile.
“But…” Xu Zhengyang frowned and said, “We can’t sacrifice morality and conscience for social development, don’t you think?”
The old man remained silent. He had to admit that in the process of rapid economic development, people's material lives had undergone tremendous changes, causing their values and thoughts to fall behind the pace of social development. As a result, in the pursuit of profit and material life, they lost the most precious thing – this is what is meant by rampant materialism.
“Grandpa, God knows what to do.” Xu Zhengyang said softly, “I can’t guarantee anything else, but I can guarantee that I won’t do anything bad. I would rather make the world we live in a better place, so it will be stable and won’t be chaotic… I hope to get your understanding and support; I don’t want to be at odds with you and with it, because in the end, we are not bad people, don’t you think?”
The old man seemed surprised that Xu Zhengyang would say such heartfelt and sincere words.
Yes, they're not bad people, they just have different ideologies. Does that mean they have to keep fighting each other?
But... the old man looked at Xu Zhengyang and said softly, "You represent God?"
Xu Zhengyang smiled and nodded.
A startling thought and guess suddenly flashed through the old man's mind. He stared blankly at the thin, young, and not very tall figure who walked out with unwavering confidence.
Volume 4, City God Chapter 207: Unexpected Changes
To this day, only Chen Chaojiang, Li Bingjie, Zhan Xiaohui, and Deng Wenjing know that Xu Zhengyang possesses a clergy identity.
The incredibly wise old man had a vague suspicion, but he wasn't sure, or rather, he simply couldn't believe it! How could it be? For an ordinary, poor country boy to be so lucky as to meet a deity and develop a good relationship with him was absurd enough.
Could he be a god?
Or, one could regard him as a god. The old man pondered silently, for in this world, perhaps only Xu Zhengyang could communicate with that mysterious deity. In other words, in the eyes of ordinary people, the god was Xu Zhengyang, and Xu Zhengyang was the god.
Yes, while gods are said to be infinitely loving in legends, it's important to understand that they view all living beings as insignificant as ants. They will not tolerate human lives. However, considering the many events that have occurred over the past year, has Xu Zhengyang ever committed any acts of brutal murder?
No……
The old man was unaware that Xu Zhengyang had once killed six people with a single blow. Because in that case, it was clearly a case of six people killing each other.
Therefore, the old man had to admit: this child was a kind-hearted person by nature. It's hard to imagine what Fuhe City would be like now if Xu Zhengyang were a cruel and ruthless person.
With an omnipotent deity standing behind him, what did he have to fear? The fact that he dared to confront someone like Elder Li head-on, and even dared to threaten Elder Li after becoming extremely angry, was enough to prove that he had unparalleled confidence! After all, he had his taboos and family ties, yet he still dared to do this, which meant that he was not afraid of what Elder Li might do.
On what basis? — Strength!
As I said before, the old man doesn't dare to gamble; he can't afford to!
Xu Zhengyang had told him, "I guarantee I won't go to the underworld after I die." What did that mean? If he would become a second god after he died... The old man really couldn't imagine what a power that even death couldn't undo could do to him except compromise.
Therefore, he dared not gamble with the stability of the entire society by killing Xu Zhengyang, for killing Xu would be tantamount to killing a deity that existed in the dark.
Recalling his several conversations with Xu Zhengyang, the old man suddenly felt a pang of guilt and self-reproach, realizing he had been judging Xu Zhengyang by his own petty standards. Originally, Xu Zhengyang had been a good young man in his eyes—kind, honest, hardworking, neither self-conscious nor arrogant… The reason he had later magnified Xu Zhengyang's shortcomings to the point of completely ignoring his virtues was simply due to the old man's own beliefs, anxieties, and a hint of anger—because Xu Zhengyang had dared to threaten him!
Looking back now, what was wrong with what Xu Zhengyang did? His disrespect, threats, and warnings to an old man like him were all things he had forced upon him.
"There is one eternal law in this world, and that is that strength determines everything!" The old man said softly, somewhat helplessly, to himself.
I feel a mix of emotions. A sense of helplessness, and a feeling of liberation from rigid thinking.
That's the truth. Otherwise, why would the old man change his opinion of Xu Zhengyang again?
Xu Zhengyang didn't display his strength too much, nor did he show any astonishing supernatural abilities to the old man. However, just imagine, who in this world would dare to come to the old man's place empty-handed, all alone, and argue with him in an extremely forceful tone, even with a hint of threat?