Yes, it's another unspoken rule that's not openly discussed but everyone knows about.
However, Xu Zhengyang's temper was truly excessive, and he had gone too far. Li Ruiqing thought to himself that trouble was about to strike again. Hadn't someone already died in Yueshan City? Others probably wouldn't guess what connection the deceased woman had with Xu Zhengyang, but how could Li Ruiqing not suspect it?
So Li Ruiqing quickly called Xu Zhengyang:
“Zhengyang, I have to say something for someone this time. Governor Wenqin is actually a decent person…”
"Oh, I know."
"and you……"
"Second Uncle, don't worry, I'm not a killer who kills indiscriminately."
"That's good, that's good, hehe."
Li Ruiqing hung up the phone. He clicked his tongue inwardly, thinking, "You, Xu Zhengyang, don't just kill indiscriminately? It's as if you've been wronged and wronged."
As Li Ruiqing predicted, something bad was bound to happen in the next few days.
...
On the way back to Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital, after leaving Xu Zhengyang, Wen Qin said to Wang Duanhong with great annoyance, "Old Wang, don't worry too much. What can a young, rude, and impolite man do? Wait two more months, and you'll still be the principal."
"Alas, power is so oppressive! I really don't dare to become that principal anymore." Wang Duanhong's old face was filled with grievance. These past few days, he had gone from being terrified to living in constant anxiety, his hair long since turned white with worry.
“Power? What good is power if you go too far? You still can’t do it!” Wen Qin said bitterly.
As the head of a province, Wen Qin had never encountered someone so disrespectful, leaving him utterly humiliated. He was so frustrated that he had spoken those words to Wang Duanhong in a fit of pique. However, upon reflection, he realized the inappropriateness of his words and said with a wry smile, "Old Wang, you must learn your lesson and never act like this again. On matters of principle, you must be serious..."
Yes, yes.
Wen Qin said nothing more, but inwardly he regretted the promise he had made in his anger. If he really insisted on protecting Wang Duanhong, who knew what other inexplicable and absurd things this irresponsible son-in-law of the Li family might do? Wen Qin had certainly experienced the boy's temperament firsthand.
Could it be that just because of Wang Duanhong, out of consideration for old friendship, they would openly confront the Li family?
Only a fool would do that.
Besides... he's ultimately in the wrong; Wang Duanhong's character is really not good.
To Wenqin's surprise, he would soon no longer have to worry about fulfilling his promises or breaking them.
Because Wang Duanhong died.
Wang Duanhong died on the third day after returning to Anping City from Fuhe City. The cause of death was simply too... unbelievable.
It was a sunny, clear autumn morning.
Former Hedong University president Wang Duanhong, armed with two kitchen knives, stormed into a bank on the west side of Anping City, not far from the railway. He then brandished the knives and robbed the bank, intimidating and threatening the bank staff, demanding they pack up their money and give it to him… As a bank robber, Wang Duanhong was incredibly unprofessional; he didn't even prepare a package to hold the money. Similarly, he was far too arrogant and reckless. He expected the bank to prepare a package for him during the robbery—should they also prepare a helicopter for him?
The bank staff and security guards took one look and thought, "Good heavens, it's just an old man with white hair. No guns, just two kitchen knives. Are you planning to start a revolution?"
Therefore, the bank employee sat inside the security window without moving, coldly watching Wang Duanhong, and calmly pressed the alarm.
Two strong young security guards quickly pulled out their batons and yelled at Wang Duanhong to put down his weapons and surrender so he wouldn't be killed... Oh, no, he should surrender.
What's even more ridiculous is that, although some customers in the bank were panicked, many of them didn't run out at all. Instead, they stayed far away in the lobby, or simply sat aside eating sunflower seeds and watching the show. This old man, what an idiot, is he mentally ill or what?
Damn it, you came here riding a brand new bicycle.
When poor Wang Duanhong realized that the bank staff and security guards didn't take him seriously at all, he immediately started hacking wildly at the solid, thick glass with his knife.
Then, probably realizing that a kitchen knife was ineffective for robbery, he brandished it to force the two security guards away and rushed out.
Without saying a word, the two security guards immediately gave chase!
Good heavens, police sirens are already blaring outside. It's a bank robbery! The police can't afford to be careless about this, so they're rushing over as fast as they can.
Seeing that things were not going well, Wang Duanhong didn't even have time to ride his bicycle. With his white hair, he brandished two kitchen knives and ran wildly, his speed comparable to that of a long-distance runner.
Police and security guards gave chase, determined not to let the criminal escape.
And so, tragedy struck.
Wang Duanhong rushed onto the high railway tracks, but hesitated and waited before crossing them.
The crowd gasped and urged him to get down quickly, or run over there! What are you doing standing on the tracks? The train is coming…
Boom boom boom...
Bang!
Wang Duanhong was hit by a high-speed train and thrown more than five meters into the air. He flew more than twenty meters away in a perfect parabolic arc, spraying blood everywhere, before landing with a thud in a deep ditch below the railway tracks. It was a gruesome sight.
...
After hearing the whole story, Governor Wen thought it was simply a fantasy.
Who is Wang Duanhong? Does he really have the guts to rob a bank? Are you crazy? Even if he's down on his luck, he's still quite well-off. Why would he do something so stupid?
However, the evidence is conclusive, including witness testimonies, physical evidence, and surveillance video.
Just as Governor Wen finally put the matter aside and was reluctantly preparing for work, his phone received a text message.
The text message was simple: Governor Wen, why did you act impulsively and make such a reckless promise? Isn't that harming people?
This was somewhat puzzling, and the phone number was unfamiliar. After hesitating for a moment, Wenqin dialed it:
Who are you?
"I am Xu Zhengyang."
Wen Qin was stunned for a moment, then asked, "What do you mean by that?"
"Wang Duanhong is dead..."
"What does this have to do with me?"
"Nonsense, would he die if you didn't promise him the position of principal?"
"What kind of logic is this?"
Xu Zhengyang smiled and said, "Be a good official, serve the people, and do your duty."
The phone call ended.
Xu Zhengyang did not answer Governor Wen's somewhat annoyed words.
Wen Qin looked furious, but his eyes were filled with confusion... Could it be that Xu Zhengyang was behind this? No, this case needs to be investigated more thoroughly.
Of course, no matter how much you search, you won't find anything.
At best, this is just a way to save face for the deceased Wang Duanhong, saying that he suffered from mental problems after being suspended from his post for self-reflection.
This put Wenqin's mind at ease, and he no longer had to worry about whether or not to help Wang Duanhong.
Unfortunately, this incident prompted the police to intensify their investigation, which uncovered something that would haunt Wang Duanhong to the very end, ruining his reputation to the very core of the Atlantic Ocean.
Well, this old man actually kept two mistresses on the side all along...
As you can probably guess, who else but the Ghost Messenger Wang Yonggan could have done something so brilliant and wonderful?
As instructed by Xu Zhengyang, after Wang Duanhong died, his ghost was immediately captured by Wang Yonggan. He was subjected to severe beatings and tortures, and afterwards, his ghost was collected into a ghost messenger token. When the governor had time, he would take all the evil ghosts captured by the ghost messengers to the underworld. The Yama of the southeast underworld would personally inflict cruel punishments on them, along with the endless torment of being ravaged by the slow-flowing poison of the River of Three Crossings.
Xu Zhengyang had long since put the matter aside and stopped thinking about it. Instead, he began preparing to go to the underworld to obtain the Stone of Ten Thousand Evils from hell, which he would use to make a Soul-Slaying Sword.
Volume Six, Chapter 316: I Will Confer You a God
The so-called Soul-Slaying Sword is a divine weapon held by the supervising spirit official in the State God's Palace.
The position of Inspector Spirit Officer is equivalent in rank to the Wandering Judge in the City God's Palace, but with far greater power. It's like when Xu Zhengyang was the Inspector Spirit Officer of the Azure Heaven Court; although his rank was equal to that of the City God in the mortal realm, after the Inspector Spirit Officer descended from the Eastern Azure Heaven Court, even the State God had to treat him with a smile and offer him food and drink.
To put it simply, he was an imperial censor, a close confidant of the emperor.
There is an old saying that "even a seventh-rank official is equivalent to a gatekeeper in front of the prime minister's house," meaning that even the gatekeepers of the prime minister's residence have the same power as a seventh-rank official.
As for the Soul-Slaying Sword, it's a divine weapon similar to the Soul-Slaying Whip, capable of directly slaying ghost messengers, evil spirits, and the like; moreover, it can kill a normal living person with a single strike, severing the soul from the body through the flesh. Those wounded or killed by the Soul-Slaying Sword show no visible signs of injury whatsoever.
This thing can be considered a truly bloodless murder weapon.
Xu Zhengyang's purpose in creating this item was not to kill, but to bestow it upon the supervising official of the prefectural god's office, allowing him to wield the Soul-Slaying Sword and tour the various city god offices, and even the county officials and local deities, to oversee their administrative methods and work efficiency; furthermore, he was also responsible for monitoring the social conditions throughout the prefecture, punishing evildoers and investigating wrongdoings…
Of course, this is Xu Zhengyang's idea of what the future supervisory official of the prefectural god's office would be.
It seems that even with the existence of the oversight officials, despite their great power, there aren't enough deities for them to oversee.
Xu Zhengyang has already chosen the candidate for this Supervisory Officer, and that is—Chen Chaojiang!
Although Chen Chaojiang lacked a strong sense of justice and chivalry, always coldly indifferent to people, things, and events unrelated to him, it was precisely because of this nature that he was best suited to be an Inspector of Spirits. At the very least, he could handle any problem without being swayed by emotions, but rather deal with matters directly according to Xu Zhengyang's thoughts and ideas, thereby achieving what Xu Zhengyang considered a fair outcome.
As for Li Haidong, although I was disappointed by his behavior before, upon closer reflection, if we really want to achieve perfection, someone like Li Haidong is absolutely one in a million, and no one can compare to him.
As gods, they cannot simply resort to brute force and violence to intimidate the people.
If Xu Zhengyang acted according to his own whims, he would either act impulsively and kill relentlessly, or once the matter was over, he would soften and stop pursuing it too much, forgiving if he could. Moreover, Xu Zhengyang was habitually driven by emotions and would consider issues from the perspective of his relatives, friends, and even others.
Now, as a second-rank official of the Heavenly Court, I oversee twenty-three city god prefectures. The affairs I handle are naturally numerous, and given the current state of affairs, the workload will only increase.
Li Haidong was a man who rose through the ranks from a lowly official position, and he was most adept at handling and controlling the overall situation, as well as arranging and dispatching the ghost messengers of the City God's Mansion. Entrusting the work to him meant that Xu Zhengyang could easily become a hands-off manager in most situations.
With Chen Chaojiang as an inspector, Li Haidong's priestly work could be supervised and urged from the sidelines.
In terms of official rank, Li Haidong, the chief judge of the City God's Office and concurrently the chief clerk of the State God's Office, was naturally one level higher than Chen Chaojiang.
In this way, a relationship of mutual supervision was established, coupled with Li Haidong's shrewdness and Chen Chaojiang's unique and aloof personality.
Yes, their work efficiency will definitely be much higher than if any of them were in charge.
Chen Chaojiang's personal thoughts and opinions were submitted to Xu Zhengyang on the fourth day.
Xu Zhengyang sat in his study and carefully read through the few pages. As he expected, Chen Chaojiang was indeed Chen Chaojiang. If he were to personally encounter such an event, he would most likely resort to extremely direct and violent means.
This is clearly a case of both advantages and disadvantages. It's inappropriate.
Because if a deity relies solely on violent and bloodthirsty methods to demonstrate divine power, it loses the image of a great, just, kind, and boundless loving god. Instead of inspiring reverence from the people, it might arouse fear, disgust, or even rejection, which would be disastrous.
However, the advantage is that this method of handling things is much faster, and its severity is definitely greater than Xu Zhengyang had imagined.
To be fair, Xu Zhengyang preferred this straightforward approach.
Unfortunately, as a deity, even from a selfish standpoint, one must consider the consequences and not allow too much of the merit accumulated in that damned artifact of the Heavenly Laws to be lost. Otherwise, it would severely hinder one's promotion speed.
Therefore, Li Haidong's character and magnanimity can complement and balance Chen Chaojiang's.
“Chaojiang…” Xu Zhengyang lit a cigarette and then tossed the pack to Chen Chaojiang, who was sitting on the sofa, saying in a rather authoritative manner, “Your shares in Jinghui Logistics Company have earned enough for you and your family’s expenses. Whether you have the job at Ronghua Group or not is irrelevant.”
"Yes." Chen Chaojiang nodded without any hesitation. After all, he was indeed acting out of a sense of responsibility when it came to work and making money, rather than out of greed.
"You still hold a position at Ronghua Group, at least that gives you a good reputation with your in-laws." Xu Zhengyang smiled and tapped his cigarette-holding fingers lightly on the desk. "How about doing something else? Interested?"