Ye Wan snorted and said, "You got injured, but you didn't even tell me how you got hurt?"
"I got slashed, it's a minor injury," Chen Chaojiang told the truth. "I was thinking of seeing you again in a couple of days after the stitches were removed."
"Afraid of looking ugly?"
"no."
"You were slashed and you're ashamed?"
"no."
"Why is that?" Ye Wan smiled, staring into Chen Chaojiang's long, cold eyes.
Chen Chaojiang remained silent.
The room fell silent.
Xu Zhengyang felt extremely uncomfortable, as if insects were crawling all over him. He stood up and said, "Um, you guys chat, I'll go back first. Hmm, how about we go to my place? Everything's ready..."
"Okay." Ye Wan stood up and looked at Chen Chaojiang, saying, "Shall we go?"
Chen Chaojiang hesitated for a moment, then stood up, nodded, and said to the inner room, "Chaohai, tell Mother that we went to Zhengyang's house for lunch this morning."
"Yes." Chen Chaohai responded from the inner room, then lifted the curtain with a hint of doubt and gave Ye Wan a kind smile.
The three of them walked out of the house. Xu Zhengyang felt very uncomfortable, like he was being a third wheel.
Chen Chaojiang was very embarrassed; his lie had been exposed, and he had lost face.
Ye Wan was delighted. The slight annoyance she had felt earlier had long been forgotten because of Chen Chaojiang's expression and words. He was an interesting and loving man.
Volume 4, City God Chapter 189: A Little Pastime
Time is beyond the control of anything. It flows silently and irresistibly.
As time goes by, scenes from life, big or small, monotonous or wonderful, fade away, becoming the past and remaining only in memory.
Summer vacation passed quickly, and Xu Rouyue, Ouyang Ying, and Diao Yishi were going back to Beijing. Chen Chaojiang went with them to the Beijing branch office to handle some matters.
Li Bingjie was also leaving Fuhe City at the same time.
Ye Wan had already left and returned to her hometown in Jiangnan. Li Bingjie said that Ye Wan would also go to Beijing to study after the summer vacation, attending the same school as Li Bingjie, but Ye Wan wanted to study art photography. Xu Zhengyang wasn't curious about this. For families like theirs, where they went to school and what they studied seemed to be entirely up to them, following their own preferences.
As for the development of Chen Chaojiang and Ye Wan's relationship, Xu Zhengyang was too lazy to ask or worry about it, because that was a matter of feelings. Of course, as a brother, he would still offer necessary help and convenience, such as this time he specially arranged for Chen Chaojiang to work at the Beijing branch, wasn't it because Ye Wan was studying in Beijing?
However, after Xu Rouyue and the others left for the capital, Xu Zhengyang felt increasingly lonely.
As the old saying goes, "A small temple cannot contain a great Buddha."
At this moment, Xu Zhengyang deeply understood the deeper meaning of this old saying.
Just like now, he doesn't want to stay in Fuhe City. He wants to go out and explore, see more things, experience more things, make his life more colorful, and have more challenges and novelty.
In his view, Fuhe City was definitely a tiny place, barely the size of a palm. Because everything was within his grasp.
This must be what they mean by the loneliness of a master.
The affairs of the underworld require the gradual accumulation of sufficient divine power before the various divine artifacts needed to be rebuilt, such as the Mingnie Platform, can be constructed. The underworld's ghost messengers also need to be arranged… This is an extremely time-consuming and energy-intensive process. It's not that Xu Zhengyang is unwilling to waste divine power; he believes that after rebuilding the underworld, he can enjoy far more faith power. Within the underworld under the jurisdiction of the Southeast Yama King's Palace, which ghost wouldn't obey his commands? Wouldn't they all have faith in him? That's the faith power of countless souls…
Therefore, rebuilding the underworld, no matter how much supernatural power it takes, is definitely a worthwhile investment.
Yes, Xu Zhengyang comes from a small business background. He won't get up early for nothing.
In that case, he would be able to reach his ultimate goal of immortality much faster.
However, his supernatural abilities are recovering very slowly, and he is still unsure how much supernatural power he will need to establish everything in the Southeast Underworld. Therefore, he is currently very idle, and somewhat lonely.
Therefore, after he extorted money from Deng Qingfu, the big boss of Jingniang Lake Tourism Company, and arranged for ghost messengers to set up an office in Jingniang Village, when a ghost messenger subsequently reported to Deng Qingfu that he was investigating Xu Zhengyang's background, Xu Zhengyang did not take any precautions to nip the potential incident in the bud. Because there was simply no possibility of any real danger. Within the territory of Fuhe City, whatever Deng Qingfu wanted to do, whatever he dared to do, would only result in him being frustrated, disappointed, and…extorted.
Xu Zhengyang was just making fun of him, using him as a pastime when he was lonely. Of course, if he could extort another ill-gotten gain, Xu Zhengyang would be happy to accept it.
Therefore, the City God instructed the ghost messenger captain Su Peng to ignore Deng Qingfu until he actually carried out his plan and let him make thorough arrangements. Of course, if Deng Qingfu were to harm Xu Zhengyang, Su Peng must immediately inform the City God.
The Fuhe City police's covert investigation and evidence gathering on Deng Qingfu's criminal gang is nearing completion, and they are about to make arrests.
You might be thinking, "It's been over a month, why haven't they brought Deng Qingfu and his gang to justice sooner?"
Well, the reason it's been delayed until now is out of necessity. Xu Zhengyang can't possibly solve everything with his supernatural powers; that would attract too much attention. Providing appropriate behind-the-scenes support, achieving a certain effect while remaining within the bounds of normalcy, is what a god should do. As the saying goes, if gods do everything, what will humans do? Why doesn't Xu Zhengyang just stand on a mountaintop every day and turn stones into gold, handing out gold nuggets to everyone in the world? Then nobody would have to work, no more scheming, and everyone could live a good life and enjoy happiness.
That's bullshit, isn't it?
Therefore, this case should still be handled by the police.
Solving a major case is not as simple as Xu Zhengyang had imagined. To dismantle the criminal gang in one fell swoop, sufficient evidence must be gathered, and all involved individuals must be eradicated. It's not a matter that can be resolved in a day or two. The fact that such detailed clues and evidence could be collected in just one month is thanks to the absolute assistance provided by the ghost messengers secretly arranged by Xu Zhengyang, which forced some informed villagers in Jingniang Village to secretly report him. Even two managers from the tourism company, under some powerful, eerie, and terrifying intimidation, obediently surrendered themselves, thus becoming secret informants for the police.
Inevitably, the Jingniang Lake Scenic Area was Deng Qingfu's territory, which he had been operating in for a long time. The police's covert investigation and the unusual behavior of some of the villagers' subordinates naturally aroused Deng Qingfu's vigilance.
So Deng Qingfu recently began disbanding the casinos, banning prostitution and drug sales, and instructing all his subordinates to stay away from trouble. Deng Qingfu quietly remained in his lair, observing cautiously, yet reluctantly. If it were merely his own suspicion, he would flee immediately; he simply couldn't bear to leave. Ultimately, Deng Qingfu had a deep affection for this land. He was already over fifty years old, and he believed that even if something truly went wrong this time, he, Deng Qingfu, could emerge unscathed from the storm.
Because many people, not just ordinary villagers of Jingniang Village, but also those in positions of power, do not want him to get into trouble, nor dare they let him get into trouble.
Of course, Deng Qingfu didn't know that if he really chose to temporarily hide away to avoid trouble because he sensed something was wrong... he wouldn't be able to escape. You can evade the police's covert surveillance, but you can't evade the watchful eyes of the underworld.
This unease infuriated Deng Qingfu. This local bully, coiled up and spitting out his tongue, was about to take some action to vent his anger.
Xu Zhengyang was, of course, the primary target. Deng Qingfu couldn't think of any other powerful figures he had offended recently, besides Xu Zhengyang.
This guy is untrustworthy, despicable, shameless, arrogant, and doesn't know his own limitations... He's narrow-minded, even though he didn't suffer any loss. In fact, he gained a huge advantage. Since he took the money and made peace, why did he have to use his power to try and kill someone? Otherwise, don't try to extort money from me!
Deng Qingfu didn't know what kind of background Xu Zhengyang had or how he got involved with high-ranking officials, but he did know that Xu Zhengyang was indeed a country bumpkin.
Since learning some of Xu Zhengyang's background, Deng Qingfu had been holding back for a long time. He felt that more than a month had passed, and if he took action now, the police would probably not focus their suspicions on him anymore.
Deng Qingfu always believed that human life is actually very fragile, so killing one or a few people is not a difficult thing.
So one moonlit night, two vans with their license plates removed drove into Shuanghe Village.
In the east of the village, the largest, newest, and most imposing house is Xu Zhengyang's home.
The seven or eight people in the two vans were fully prepared, with ropes, knives, and pistols... Their plan was to scale the wall and commit a horrific massacre.
It was late at night, around 2 a.m.
Inside and outside the village, all was quiet, save for the faint croaking of frogs in the distance and the low chirping of insects in the nearby grass, which made the night feel even more peaceful.
Two vans slowly drove up to the gate of the house. Seven or eight people got out and whispered among themselves about who should go in first to open the gate and what to do next. This was outside the village, which made it easier for them to do this shady business.
Just as they finished their discussion and were about to take action, a soft sound came from under the shadow of a tree on the east side of the courtyard gate: "Shh..."
Everyone felt a chill run down their spines.
But from the dark shadows of the trees, a young man wearing shorts, a vest, and slippers, with a buzz cut and a cigarette in his mouth, calmly walked out.
The bright moonlight, like silver, bathed the open space in front of the courtyard gate in a clear glow, bringing a touch of coolness to this hot summer night.
Trees, people, walls, gates, cars, moonlight, shadows.
It's very quiet.
A series of clattering sounds suddenly rang out, and the men seemed to only just realize what was happening. They hastily pulled out knives and pistols. Instead of shouting warnings, one of them whispered, "Kill him!"
Several people were about to make a move.
"Keep your voice down," the young man whispered kindly, while simultaneously giving the ghost a command in his mind.
Yes, it's ghosts, not ghost messengers. Using ghost messengers to do these things would be overkill, and ghost messengers have their own duties that are more important than this.
So the group of people obediently stood still, without saying a word or making a move.
“Let’s go outside the village and chat.” Xu Zhengyang rubbed his hands together, walked to the van first, opened the door and got in.
Seven or eight people, looking dazed, gradually boarded the bus.
The van's engine hummed slightly as it reversed, turned, and headed back along the longer route.
The two vehicles drove out of the village and traveled another two miles west before stopping on a road in the middle of nowhere.
The rice paddies on both sides of the road were filled with the croaking of frogs. Occasionally, a cicada, unable to sleep, would suddenly chirp a few times in the trees, disturbing the frogs in the grass beside the small ditch on the north side of the road, causing them to leap into the water with a splash.
The moonlight was like frost, like silver spilling onto the ground...
Xu Zhengyang got out of the car, took a few meters forward, twisted his neck, and stretched his limbs, like a Sanda fighter warming up before a match. He turned around and waited for seven or eight burly men to get out of the van one after another and line up neatly.
"Stop fighting one-on-one, you guys are no match for me, come at me all at once." Xu Zhengyang's expression was calm, showing a lot of the demeanor of a master.
However, this guy wasn't so honest. As soon as he finished speaking, he pushed off the ground with his feet and shot towards those guys like an arrow.
I had already instructed the ghosts to keep a close eye on them. They could use fists, feet, or knives, but they shouldn't even think about shooting. Anyone who dared to shoot would be immediately thrown into the ditch and drowned.
The group of men suddenly relaxed, wondering how they had ended up here. Then they heard Xu Zhengyang arrogantly telling them to attack together. Moreover, this guy had no demeanor of a master, and he launched the first attack without giving an inch.
In the chaos, the cruel and fierce men forgot their earlier doubts and began to fight with Xu Zhengyang while shouting and cursing.
Although Xu Zhengyang's fighting style wasn't very aesthetically pleasing, it was still quite efficient, even without the help of ghosts.
In no time, amidst screams and curses, all eight burly men were thrown to the ground, their broken arms and legs, bruised and swollen faces, twitching and groaning...
Two pistols and six sharp knives lay scattered on the ground.
"Keep an eye on them and don't let them touch the guns and knives on the ground," Xu Zhengyang instructed in his mind. Then he took out his phone from his underwear pocket, pulled out the business card Deng Qingfu had given him earlier, and dialed the number written on it.
The call was answered after about ten seconds of dialing. Deng Qingfu's somewhat impatient and puzzled voice came through:
"Hello, who is it?"
"I am Xu Zhengyang."
"Hmm?" Deng Qingfu paused for a few seconds. "Brother Xu, what made you think of calling me? I'm truly flattered. It's so late... Is something the matter?"
Xu Zhengyang smiled and said, "There's something I need Mr. Deng's help with."
"You speak," Deng Qingfu's voice turned somber.
"Thank you so much for remembering me every day. Next time you send someone, please send a few more capable fighters. Just a few people... that's not enough! We only have two who can still drive, the rest are all useless."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, you don't understand?" Xu Zhengyang sounded somewhat embarrassed, then said, "Alright, here's what we'll do: have someone deliver one million in cash to me before 10 a.m. tomorrow, or I'll take your two sons' lives, understand?"
"What do you mean?"
"Are you trying to scam me? Don't you understand?"
"This is outrageous..."
Xu Zhengyang smiled and said, "Good that you understand."
After hanging up the phone, Xu Zhengyang sighed. They were indeed incredibly weak. He had hoped to get a feel for martial arts masters from them, loosen up his muscles, and practice his skills, but who would have thought they were so easily defeated? Maybe he should go back and spar with Li Chengzong? Or perhaps he should fight Chen Chaojiang…