If things continue like this, I'll only be able to play dumb to fool others in the future. Should I go back to the human world and make friends there?
"Oh, by the way, what's your official rank?" Yao Chushun asked again.
Xu Zhengyang sighed with a wry smile and said frankly, "Your Majesty."
"How old is the Emperor?"
"The Emperor is... well, currently... the highest-ranking official."
Yao Chushun was stunned.
The room fell silent...
...
Yao Chushun's two daughters, Xin Yunzhi and Xin Yunhui, both worked in ordinary factories.
The eldest son-in-law, Xin Yunzhi, has a husband named Tang Ke, who works as a repair technician at a car repair shop.
After Yao Chushun's death, his daughter and son-in-law have been working very hard these past few days.
Occasionally, when the couple lay in bed chatting at night, they couldn't help but utter some complaints and resentment. They were truly unlucky; one was their own mother, and the other was their mother-in-law. They'd found her a companion in her old age, and their daughter and son-in-law hadn't said anything. After all, for an elderly person, having a companion makes life more enjoyable.
But who would have thought that just over two years into their marriage, the old man would pass away due to illness.
The daughter and son-in-law didn't get any benefit from it; instead, they had to suffer and work hard to handle the funeral arrangements.
Colleagues, neighbors, friends, relatives—who doesn't say they're stupid? Aren't they just asking for trouble? That old man Yao Chushun ran such a big antique shop, Gu Xiang Xuan, how much money did he make? He didn't leave you a single penny; instead, he donated it all. And you, on the other hand, treat him like your own father.
Xin Yunzhi and Tang Ke, the couple, were also filled with grievances!
But after each grumbling, upon reflection, one realizes that one must always have a conscience. The old man was honest and kind; although he didn't leave them any money, he had never mistreated my mother since marrying her. Besides, Yao Chushun had used all his money for good deeds and charitable causes.
Well, I guess I'll just have to accept my bad luck.
It's just a matter of taking a few more days off and earning a few less days' wages.
After finally finishing up the funeral arrangements, Tang Ke went to work at the factory early that morning, only to be severely reprimanded by his boss. "You've been taking so many days off! Do you think this is a hotel? If you don't want to work here, get out of here..."
Tang Ke was seething with anger, but considering how hard it was to find a job these days, the pay here was decent, and it was closer to home, so he swallowed his anger.
After work started, some of his coworkers were still gossiping about Tang Ke, calling him a fool and an idiot.
Tang Ke could only turn a deaf ear and continue doing his work.
The boss is considering whether to deduct half of Tang Ke's salary this month.
Just then, a stretched Mercedes-Benz slowly drove into the auto repair shop. The driver got out of the car, opened the door, and a middle-aged man around forty years old stepped out.
The auto repair shop owner quickly stepped forward, bowing and scraping, and greeted him, "Boss, need your car repaired?"
"Who is Tang Ke?" the boss asked directly.
"Huh?" The auto repair shop owner was taken aback. He quickly turned around and called out, "Tang Ke, come here, someone's looking for you."
Tang Ke was repairing a car, his hands covered in oil and his work clothes dirty. He stood up and looked over in surprise. Seeing that it was his boss calling him, he had no choice but to go over and say, "Hey, who's looking for me?"
"This boss."
Tang Ke looked at the well-dressed boss, whom he didn't recognize at all, and asked in confusion, "Who are you?"
"Hello." The boss extended his hand with a smile, not caring at all that Tang Ke's hands were covered in oil, and took Tang Ke's hand in his own, saying, "I am Zheng Yaokai, chairman of Ronghua Group. Hello."
"Huh?" Tang Ke was stunned.
The auto repair shop owner and his employees were also stunned. Zheng Yaokai, the chairman of Ronghua Group... a legendary figure, a real tycoon, how could he shake hands with Tang Ke?
Zheng Yaokai ignored the surprised looks of the others. After releasing Tang Ke's hand, he beckoned to his men to hand a check to Tang Ke and said with a smile, "You must be Master Gu Yao Chushun's son-in-law, right? Master Gu was an upright and righteous man who did many good deeds. He had no children in his old age, and it was thanks to you all, regardless of your status or anything else, that you arranged his funeral... This check is for you."
"This, this..." Tang Ke felt like he was dreaming. He took the check in a daze and was stunned by the pile of zeros. How much money was this?
Even bystanders were puzzled, astonished, and curious about how much money was on that check.
“This is one million,” Zheng Yaokai explained, answering their questions. “In addition, we have reserved an apartment for you in a high-end residential building on the outskirts of the Jingniang Lake Mountain and Water Villa Area. If you have time, please bring your ID cards and go to the sales office to complete the formalities.”
Tang Ke felt dizzy and stood there dumbfounded, not knowing what to say. How could this be?
The auto repair shop owner and the employees who had previously mocked Tang Ke were completely dumbfounded...
Is Tang Ke stupid? idiotic? A pushover? A moron?
As a result, all that hard work over the past two years, without needing to offer any special favors or flattery—just showing filial piety was enough—resulted in such great benefits. The residential buildings in the Jingniang Lake Mountain and Water Villa District are all duplexes; any one of them must be worth at least a million or two, right?
"This is my business card." Zheng Yaokai handed over his own business card and smiled, "If you don't mind, our company needs a mechanic who specializes in maintaining vehicles. Please consider it and contact me anytime if you are interested."
After saying goodbye, Zheng Yaokai got into the car and drove away, amidst Tang Ke's somewhat dazed farewell and wave.
...
The second daughter, Xin Yunhui, has a husband named Luo Junping. He runs a small waterproofing material store on the north side of Fuhe City. Business is so-so; they are not rich, but they live a comfortable life.
The couple has just saved up more than 300,000 yuan and plans to buy a house in the city.
However, that day, a room full of Luo Junping's family members—his brother, sister, sister-in-law, and parents—came to the shop. They scolded Luo Junping and then indirectly berated Xin Yunhui. Naturally, it was because Luo Junping was too honest and kind-hearted, foolishly neglecting business to arrange his stepfather's funeral…
This is not the fault of Luo Junping's family. After all, they also felt that Luo Junping had been wronged, and as his relatives, they were very indignant on his behalf.
Xin Yunhui actually felt guilty towards her husband, so when her in-laws made veiled accusations and nagging, she couldn't say anything and could only endure it.
Luo Junping was an honest man, but he also protected his wife, muttering, "No matter what, he's the younger generation, so he's still a father. How can the younger generation just stand by and do nothing?"
"So many capable people attended Yao Chushun's funeral, but not one of them took you seriously or offered any help."
The family members grumbled with dissatisfaction.
"We're not doing this to make money or meet people," Luo Junping said honestly.
My family started nagging again.
Xin Yunhui had no choice but to put on a smiling face and say nice things. In fact, the couple also felt they had been wronged! But in their hearts, they were children after all. If they didn't take care of her, who would? Their mother had finally found a good partner after remarrying, and now she was gone so quickly. Their mother was heartbroken. If they, as her children, didn't take care of her, their mother would be even more heartbroken.
They were chatting inside when suddenly seven or eight cars drove up outside, some high-end and some low-end, filling the open space in front of the door.
One by one, well-dressed bosses walked in.
"This is the shop owned by Mr. Gu's son-in-law, right? Come on, let's sign a contract. From now on, our company will purchase everything it needs from you. So, we'll have to use at least five or six hundred thousand yuan a year, um, at least."
"Heh, our company is pretty much the same..."
"I don't have much either, let's sign a two million deal. Hey, can you afford it? Don't let it cause any delays..."
"Such a small shop, you should expand your operations as soon as possible. At least you should have a dedicated warehouse. Here, this is my business card. Contact me later. The company is busy, so don't worry. We spend at least a million yuan here every year... If it doesn't work out, come to my company to sign a contract first. I can pay a deposit. Okay, I'm leaving now."
Xin Yunhui and her husband seemed to be sleepwalking, with stiff smiles on their faces, politely and busily signing all the forms.
After everyone left, the couple and their family were dumbfounded. How could our small shop possibly serve so many big customers?
Just as I was wondering what was going on, the phone rang. It was the sales director of a well-known waterproofing material manufacturer. He said he'd heard that our company could sell waterproofing materials in large quantities and hoped we could cooperate. He assured me that quality was guaranteed and the price was negotiable…
The whole family was completely dumbfounded.
Doesn't this mean they're all sending money home?
A short while later, a stretched Mercedes pulled up at the door, and Zheng Yaokai, chairman of Ronghua Group, walked in.
Here's another great gift: a high-end duplex apartment in the Jingniang Lake Mountain and Water Villa District. As for the merchant who contacted you and signed the contract earlier, don't worry, everything will be fine. Ronghua Group guarantees it.
Immediately afterwards, Zhan Xiaohui, the general manager of Jinghui Logistics Company, arrived. "Our company headquarters is moving out, and what's left here is our branch office. We have several vacant warehouses, which we'll rent to you at a low price. We heard you urgently need warehouse space..."
The whole family felt they were having difficulty breathing.
Why is that?
...
"Good deeds will be rewarded..."
In a private room at the Fuhe Hotel, Xu Zhengyang smiled and raised his glass to thank the Xin sisters and their two sons-in-law. He was grateful that they had taken the time to arrange the funeral for Master Gu, Yao Chushun, so that he could be buried in style.
The families of the two sons-in-law also accepted the invitation.
Because no matter how dissatisfied they were before, at least they didn't interfere with Tang Ke and Luo Junping's handling of Grandpa Gu's funeral, so everything went smoothly.
This banquet, a gesture of gratitude, finally made both families understand why such a windfall had suddenly fallen from the sky.
Although the pie was so big that they were still uneasy after accepting it.
After the banquet, Xu Zhengyang smiled and said to Master Gu in the Heavenly Court Palace:
"So, are you satisfied?"
"That's a bit much... I can't accept that," said Master Gu, Yao Chushun, sincerely.
"Weren't you just worried that you couldn't do anything in the Heavenly Court?" Xu Zhengyang laughed. "From now on, I'll do good deeds like this, running all over the world. Good people deserve good rewards. Of course, I can't just give away large sums of money to everyone who does a good deed. Even if I, Xu Zhengyang, had a mountain of gold, I couldn't afford to throw it all away like that, haha."
Gu Ye Yao Chushun said somewhat awkwardly, "Then, wouldn't I become Santa Claus?"
“Hmm, that makes sense…” Xu Zhengyang raised his index finger and pointed at Master Gu, saying, “Let’s do it this way. From now on, you’ll be the Lucky Star Elder, bringing blessings to kind-hearted people. You won’t necessarily give them money directly, but you’ll bring them good luck!”
The other gods and ghost messengers standing nearby chuckled. Indeed, our Heavenly Court needs just such a deity right now.
Xu Zhengyang suddenly felt much more at ease.
Being a god is actually quite interesting; it's not so boring as to be completely idle. The world is so big...
Xu Zhengyang felt a great sense of accomplishment for doing such a good deed; it was truly a rare opportunity.
Where is the Emperor's mansion located in Volume Seven, Chapter 380?
Since becoming a god, Xu Zhengyang has indeed always acted and behaved with a very selfish mindset.
He has amassed immense wealth and achieved his current prominent status. Who in the world can rival him? As the saying goes, "When one man attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven." His relatives and friends all live lives that, while not necessarily extremely wealthy, can be described as happy.
He naturally did one good deed after another, punishing evil and promoting good in his own mind, and collecting faith for his own use.
He doesn't even know how much money he donates to charity each year, but if it were to get out, it would be astonishing.
but……
He has never directly helped any so-called outsiders or done any good deeds, or rather, very rarely.
He punished the wicked, but did not do much to promote the good.
On the contrary, it seems that he has always been fighting violence with violence and repaying evil with evil.
In this way, there are countless moments of exhilarating pleasure, but afterwards, a strange sense of loss and loneliness lingers. To eradicate all injustice in the world and bring fairness and justice to humanity… such a grand ambition, such a strong determination. But what follows is the fear, dissatisfaction, and even rejection of the faith among the people.
Xu Zhengyang hesitated, reflected, struggled, and became angry.