The room is quiet now.
The old man looked at Xu Zhengyang and asked with a smile, "Is it because I'm old, or is there some other reason?"
Xu Zhengyang said softly, "My lifespan has come to an end, not because of me, nor because of it; Grandpa, in fact, I would have preferred you to live a few more years..."
Normally, no one else would ever say such a thing.
When dealing with an elderly person who is about to pass away, one should offer words of comfort rather than discuss life and death with them, and certainly not say things like, "Your lifespan is over, I wish you could live a few more years."
That's very rude and hurtful.
Xu Zhengyang said it, but the old man's expression didn't change at all; it remained kind, gentle, and calm.
"Oh," the old man responded, then seemed a little sleepy and lowered his eyelids slightly.
"Grandpa, don't worry."
The old man opened his eyes and smiled, "How can I be at ease? I trust you, but I worry about them..."
Xu Zhengyang was slightly taken aback, and said, "So, you'd better tell them not to mess with me... We're unrelated. I don't want any so-called fairness, because to everyone, I am an unfair existence; I've never thought about becoming an emperor or unifying the world or anything like that, it means nothing to me..."
"God, is that you?" the old man asked.
Xu Zhengyang nodded, offering no denial.
Why interfere in worldly affairs?
"Personal hobbies..."
Xu Zhengyang's answer was awesome, arrogant, and frustrating.
After his initial surprise, the old man asked, "Aren't you afraid I'll reveal a heavenly secret?"
Xu Zhengyang smiled and shook his head.
“I think some people should know this…” The old man sighed and said helplessly, “There are many stubborn old people like me in this world, and I don’t want them to have a conflict with the gods.”
"For the sake of stability, I forgive you for revealing heavenly secrets, but I am not a god. At most, I am a representative, you understand."
The old man added, "I am not afraid of the underworld."
That's because you're not dead yet.
"Perhaps..." The old man was not angry at Xu Zhengyang's condescending words, because he knew that now that Xu Zhengyang had revealed his identity as a god, he was naturally qualified to be a supreme being in front of a mortal.
From the moment Xu Zhengyang arrived, the old man's last shred of confidence and hope was utterly shattered. Xu Zhengyang… he really dared to come! At that moment, a self-mocking thought crossed the old man's mind. How incredibly presumptuous he had been to dare challenge a deity! Yet, he still harbored doubts. He didn't understand why Xu Zhengyang had earned the favor of a deity, why he had been made a god in the mortal realm…
Of course, the old man will never get the answer; in fact, it's all a matter of luck. Moreover, the old man will never know that, not only in the human world, but throughout the three realms, there is only one god left.
A hint of unwillingness and stubbornness appeared in the old man's eyes as he said, "Humans live in this world and naturally follow human rules. Gods should not break these rules. Gods should be beings that transcend the world."
"Isn't that right?" Xu Zhengyang said with a smile.
"But you are selfish too; you have the same human nature!"
Xu Zhengyang nodded and said, "Yes, so you can rest assured."
"The country is in turmoil; can we offer assistance?"
"As a human being, I naturally act with the mindset of an ordinary person. I am selfish towards the country, the people, and myself..." Xu Zhengyang suddenly revealed the expression that a young man should have, and said passionately like an angry young man: "I am a son of China, I love my motherland... I am proud of countless heroes and martyrs!"
The old man could hardly believe how quickly Xu Zhengyang's expression and mindset had changed.
Xu Zhengyang quickly regained his composure and smiled, "You actually dare to try to use me now. I'm very angry. I'll give Bingjie some face and put your mind at ease."
"Consider this my request," the old man said with a wry smile. "I've misunderstood you all along. I should have realized that you keep a low profile and don't want to interfere too much in worldly affairs. You just want to experience life in the world, or perhaps you still have the nature of a mortal... So, if anything goes wrong in the future, Bingjie's father and uncles can help you, but please don't bring divine wrath upon the mortal world... Being human is not easy."
"Don't I understand?" Xu Zhengyang sneered.
In his heart, Xu Zhengyang, like everyone else, admired the old man, but he had to put on an aloof and arrogant demeanor.
The old man's gentle and kind expression, which stemmed from his elders' nature, finally transformed into a tearful expression of gratitude.
Xu Zhengyang bent down, took the old man's withered hands, patted them gently, and then turned and walked out.
For someone who once turned the tide, who devoted himself to the nation, to the honor and dignity of the country, and to the cause of making the nation stand tall in the world, and who still dares to step forward even when facing an invincible deity, Xu Zhengyang could not help but admire and respect him!
Stepping out of the ward, the door opposite was open. Li Ruiyu and his siblings, along with their family, were sitting in that room. Their gazes toward Xu Zhengyang held not only confusion and a hint of anger, but also disdain...
Li Bingjie stood outside the door, her eyes filled with expectation as she looked at Xu Zhengyang.
Xu Zhengyang, unconcerned about the stares of others, grasped Li Bingjie's gentle, jade-like hands, patted them lightly, and said, "Bingjie, death doesn't mean the end... Please accept my condolences."
Li Bingjie asked in a daze, "Why?"
"I'm sorry..." Xu Zhengyang sighed softly.
The two spoke in very low voices, so low that no one else could hear them. They could only understand what each other was saying by reading each other's lips, thanks to their telepathic connection.
Li Bingjie pulled her hand away and walked into the ward with the doctor who had been waiting.
After a while, Li Bingjie came out of the ward, looked at Xu Zhengyang affectionately, and then walked into the room opposite.
Afterwards, Li Ruiyu and his younger brother Li Ruiqing came out. The two brothers glanced at Xu Zhengyang coldly before walking into the ward.
Xu Zhengyang didn't care what they were saying inside the room.
Whatever the old man said to his two sons, it didn't matter anymore...
The important thing is that Xu Zhengyang has to leave here. The elders can rationally control their irritable emotions, trust the scientific diagnosis, and not shift the blame onto Xu Zhengyang, but the younger generation will not think that way! For example, Li Bingjie's brother, Li Binghe, and the bodyguards who have always followed Old Master Li.
The old man was a highly respected figure who had always been in good health, but his condition suddenly deteriorated, catching everyone off guard.
Last year, besides his own family, who were the most frequent strangers the elderly man saw?
—Xu Zhengyang!
Moreover, the bodyguards knew that during Xu Zhengyang's two meetings with the old man, there had been conflicts, clashes, rebuttals, and even disrespect in their conversations...
But the old man favored him and liked him; what could others do?
Now that the old man is terminally ill, some people hate Xu Zhengyang even more. Besides, what is Xu Zhengyang anyway? Not only does he have such a close relationship with Old Li, but it seems that Li Bingjie has also developed some kind of affection for him.
That's human nature; it's not wrong.
Xu Zhengyang had no choice but to leave temporarily to avoid making them uncomfortable. If any conflict were to occur here, although it shouldn't cause any major problems out of consideration for Old Li, he couldn't let the old man be restless and uneasy in his final days.
"Bingjie, I'm going back now," Xu Zhengyang said softly.
“Okay, I’ll see you off.” Li Bingjie nodded and walked towards the elevator with Xu Zhengyang.
Li Chengzhong stepped forward to follow.
Standing in the elevator, looking at the delicate and charming Li Bingjie with her head slightly bowed beside him, Xu Zhengyang couldn't help but frown slightly. He glanced disapprovingly at Li Chengzong, who was also standing in the elevator and usually by the elevator door... Sigh, having such a third wheel is really a headache.
After going downstairs, Xu Zhengyang stood by the car and whispered a few words of comfort to Li Bingjie before getting into the car and driving away from the hospital.
Li Bingjie and Li Chengzong turned around and went back.
A dark green military jeep backed out of a parking space not far away and then slowly drove towards the hospital gate.
Xu Zhengyang drove his car back onto the Fourth Ring Road. Looking at the military jeep following behind him in the rearview mirror, he pursed his lips helplessly. It's true... there's nothing wrong in the world, but fools make trouble for themselves!
Xu Zhengyang knew that the old man had less than a month left to live.
It's unlikely that the old man would die immediately after he left; if that were the case, Xu Zhengyang wouldn't be able to explain himself no matter how many mouths he had.
At this moment, Li Binghe followed them out. Xu Zhengyang naturally hoped that the old man would quickly tell his son what he wanted to say, and then Li Ruiyu would discover that his son was missing, guess what had happened, and quickly call Li Bingjie back. That way, everyone would be fine... Xu Zhengyang didn't want to beat up his future brother-in-law.
Are you kidding me? Imagine sitting down for drinks someday, and I've beaten you up like a pig's head... and every time I have to think to myself, "Brother, I'm sorry." That would be so awkward.
To be honest, Xu Zhengyang felt much more at ease now. After hearing what the old man had just said, and knowing that death is not the end for a person, and that the old man would definitely not be reincarnated, Xu Zhengyang was not as sad as the others.
More than an hour later...
Xu Zhengyang, driving his Audi A4, had already left the Sixth Ring Road area on the Jingming Expressway.
The neon lights of the bustling city have been left far behind, and the surrounding darkness makes the headlights of the vehicles constantly passing by on the highway appear even brighter.
The camouflage Jeep quickly overtook the deliberately slowed-down Audi A4, and with an extremely aggressive sharp turn and brakes, forced the Audi A4 to a stop on the emergency lane. Xu Zhengyang was somewhat annoyed. If he hadn't deliberately slowed down to let them pass, their behavior at high speed would have undoubtedly caused an accident.
The jeep door opened, and the tall Li Binghe and two bodyguards in black suits got out of the vehicle.
Xu Zhengyang pushed open the car door and got out, then casually closed the door behind him.
Before Xu Zhengyang could say anything, Li Binghe had already kicked him with a high kick.
This was somewhat unexpected for Xu Zhengyang. He had thought that Xu would say something to vent his anger and then resolve the issue with words rather than fists, but he never expected Xu to confront him so directly and violently, and with such ruthlessness.
Xu Zhengyang struck first, bending his right leg and kicking the incoming shin forcefully back.
Two guards immediately pounced on him without a word...
Amidst the fists and kicks, vehicles speeding along the highway had to brake a considerable distance away to slow down, yet they showed no sign of stopping as they passed by—a case of "it's none of my business, so I don't care"!
Indeed, they didn't really fight much; in less than twenty seconds, the four powerful figures stopped and distanced themselves from each other.
“You won’t do it!” Xu Zhengyang waved his hand and said calmly, then took out a cigarette, lit it, and said, “Don’t even think about using guns. With your status, you might be able to use them on others, but not on me… Besides, it will provoke me.”
The two guards who had drawn their pistols froze.
Li Binghe was also stunned. Besides being surprised by Xu Zhengyang's confident and fearless words, he was more puzzled as to why the two guards didn't fire. Did they follow some orders from his grandfather?
"Xu Zhengyang, stop daydreaming! Who is my sister, and who are you?" Li Binghe said coldly, his lips trembling.
Li Binghe, relatively speaking, wasn't an unreasonable person, so he did need an excuse to teach Xu Zhengyang a lesson. Using his grandfather's health as an excuse? That was clearly unreasonable; it couldn't be blamed on Xu Zhengyang. However, he really wanted to teach Xu Zhengyang a lesson, even kill him!
For him, killing Xu Zhengyang... was nothing.
Unfortunately, he didn't know that with the two men he brought, killing Xu Zhengyang was simply an impossible task.
Even if both guards had guns, well, even if you gave them a pistol right now, it wouldn't work.
“Li Binghe, sigh.” Xu Zhengyang sighed and said, “Actually, if it weren’t for Bingjie’s sake, I would like to say something to your father…” Xu Zhengyang paused, and then said, “Count the family genealogy, are kings and generals born with a special destiny? In fact, in the end, who isn’t a mud crab that crawled out of the ditch?”
"you……"
Xu Zhengyang said coldly, "How many times has Old Li taught you? Has any of you listened?"
Li Binghe gritted his teeth and lunged at Xu Zhengyang without saying a word.
Punches and kicks were easily neutralized by Xu Zhengyang. He didn't dodge at all, but instead directly and accurately returned the incoming punches and kicks with even greater speed and power.
Without initiating an attack, and lacking the composed tension one would expect from a duel between experts, Xu Zhengyang actually spoke up, saying, "I don't want to teach you a lesson, because you're not a bad person at heart, and in our previous encounters, you've never underestimated me..."
"I understand you've been in a bad mood lately."
"stop!"