Left with no other option, Chen Chaojiang had to call Li Bingjie.
At Li Bingjie's insistence, Jiang Lan did not force Chen Chaojiang and Xu Zhengyang to leave; they could still live there.
To put it bluntly, Jiang Lan wasn't after the house, so she couldn't care less whether people lived there or dogs lived there.
Li Bingjie, however, was to obey her mother's orders and go abroad, ostensibly to study, but in reality, Jiang Lan wanted her to live abroad for a while so that she might gradually forget that damned Xu Zhengyang.
Li Ruiyu was well aware of these things, but he couldn't be bothered to care. In his eyes, his wife was a madwoman, and the couple had been separated for many years.
They only maintained the status of husband and wife because of their respective family backgrounds.
Of course, Li Ruiyu also harbored doubts about what the old man had told him before he passed away. If it was true, then how did Xu Zhengyang suddenly become demented? Was it intentional?
...
Yao Chushun had no intention of letting things go with Ronghua Group so easily; who would swallow such a loss in silence?
He started working tirelessly, urging Xu Zhengyang's parents to seek compensation for their son's enormous losses. They found in their home the agreements Xu Zhengyang had previously signed with Ronghua Group, as well as information about Huayang Tourism Company's shares, and so on, and decided to file a lawsuit!
However, how could they possibly compete with such large conglomerates?
Back then, Xu Zhengyang was a complete hands-off manager at Huayang Tourism Company, not caring about anything. The financial and operational aspects were handled by Ronghua Group people who falsified accounts. Well, to be frank, those were the real accounts. They were indeed losing money and insolvent... Who could they complain to?
If Old Li were still alive, or if Xu Zhengyang were still alive, Zheng Ronghua might have advised his son. Or perhaps he wouldn't have needed to advise him, but Zheng Yaokai wouldn't have dared to do so.
But now that Old Li has passed away and Xu Zhengyang has become demented, what do they have to fear?
The results came out quickly: Xu Zhengyang's side lost the case.
Not only did they fail to recover the losses, but they also had to take responsibility for a portion of the debts owed by Huayang Tourism Company, totaling more than 5.8 million yuan.
Yao Chushun was so angry that he vomited blood in court!
Because he felt he had let Xu Zhengyang's family down!
But what can be done now?
In the end, Yao Chushun sold Gu Xiangxuan so that Xu Zhengyang's parents wouldn't have to bear the cost. The one who bought Gu Xiangxuan was Zheng Ronghua.
Zheng Ronghua felt guilty, so he begged Yao Chushun to become the manager and give him 10% of the shares.
To Zheng Ronghua's surprise, Yao Chushun readily agreed.
Zheng Ronghua, of course, had no idea why Yao Chushun would agree so readily, disregarding past grievances. The reason was that Yao Chushun had listened to Chen Chaojiang, who had told him the truth of the matter and said that Zhengyang would return.
Yao Chushun initially didn't believe it. How could Xu Zhengyang be a god? How could there be a god in this world?
Perhaps Yao Chushun had no choice but to deceive himself, or perhaps it was just a twist of fate, or perhaps he truly couldn't bear to leave Guxiangxuan? In any case, he actually agreed.
Even now that things have come to this point, Yuan Suqin and Xu Neng do not blame Yao Chushun.
Yuan Suqin said, "Our Zhengyang is back, and he won't blame you."
...
The one who felt the most guilty was Chen Chaojiang, who wished he could commit suicide to atone for his sins.
He believes that he failed in his duty, which led to the leak of Xu Zhengyang's condition, resulting in the current situation.
What does Xu Zhengyang have left? A home, oh, and his white Audi A4, and savings. If we consider rural living standards, it's enough for his family to live a happy life for the rest of their lives.
But the losses were too great.
Around 1 p.m.
It was lunchtime, and there wasn't a soul in sight outside Shuanghe Village; the sky was overcast.
A white Audi A4 stopped in front of the land temple. Xu Zhengyang got out of the car and stood at the temple entrance, staring blankly at the temple.
Because there are no festivals, the temple is not being worshipped and looks rather desolate.
The wheat seedlings were green in the fields on both sides of the road; the cold autumn wind howled and swept through the air with a chill in it...
Since his resurrection, Xu Zhengyang has learned everything that has happened through the city scroll.
He felt guilty. How could he face his parents when he got home? He had made his family and friends worry about him for so long, just because he was a god, the only god? Was it a blessing or a curse?
“Zhengyang…” Chen Chaojiang called softly.
Xu Zhengyang suddenly waved his hand to stop Chen Chaojiang from continuing. He knew that Chen Chaojiang was trying to persuade him.
Xu Zhengyang pointed at the temple's plaque, his eyes narrowed, his expression cold, and he almost growled in a low voice: "As the Imperial Censor of the Eastern Heavenly Court, the only deity in the Three Realms, I can rule the heavens and the underworld with a single hand. In this mortal world, I can command countless ghost messengers and hold the life and death of anyone in my hands. I can go anywhere in the world. What is there to fear?"
"I don't want to let anyone down, but I won't allow anyone to let me down! How can the majesty of God be blasphemed by mortals!"
Then, Xu Zhengyang pointed at Chen Chaojiang, glared at him, and said in an extremely stern tone, "Don't try to persuade me!"
After saying that, Xu Zhengyang turned and walked towards the village. After taking a few steps, he suddenly turned back, pointed at Chen Chaojiang, and said, "Don't try to persuade me!"
His voice was loud, drawn out, and rough.
Chen Chaojiang watched Xu Zhengyang stride into the village with a blank expression, a chill creeping into his heart. He suddenly felt he didn't recognize Xu Zhengyang anymore. Was this still the same Xu Zhengyang?
He's changed, he's really changed!
At this moment, the violent energy in Xu Zhengyang's heart had completely overwhelmed his original nature.
Because he knew better than Chen Chaojiang what had happened behind the scenes, what those people thought of Xu Zhengyang, his parents, and his friends, and what they had said about him!
As he walked home, Xu Zhengyang's face was extremely gloomy, terrifyingly so.
In Shuanghe Village, some villagers who occasionally walked by on the street stopped in surprise and looked at Xu Zhengyang. Perhaps they couldn't believe that Xu Zhengyang had returned. Wasn't he sick? Wasn't he in a vegetative state? Perhaps the villagers wanted to greet him, but because of Xu Zhengyang's cold and frightening expression and the invisible pressure emanating from his body, they were forced not to speak to him.
When he arrived at his doorstep, Xu Zhengyang paused for a moment, took out his phone, and dialed a number.
Looking out through the gate, the spacious courtyard was quiet.
The phone was ringing, but the call hadn't been connected yet.
On the other end of the phone, Li Ruiyu frowned deeply as he looked at the caller ID. He had saved this number in his phone for over two and a half years, but it had never received a call, nor had he ever called it. This time, however, it appeared out of nowhere.
Could it be that, just as his daughter Li Bingjie said, Xu Zhengyang has returned?
Li Ruiyu recalled the words his father had spoken to him before his death, all the things that had happened to Xu Zhengyang, and his analysis of Xu Zhengyang's character; he also thought about everything his wife Jiang Lan had done in the past two years.
Yuan Suqin lifted the curtain and walked out of the main room. She took two steps along the platform towards the east room, but suddenly froze, staring blankly at the courtyard gate.
She saw her son. It was her son, standing there, holding a cell phone to his ear in his right hand, seemingly making a call.
Yuan Suqin thought she was seeing things, so she rubbed her eyes hard. Sure enough, her son came in and entered the yard.
"Mother, I'm back!" Xu Zhengyang called out, his eyes filled with tears.
Yuan Suqin opened her mouth, but couldn't speak. Tears streamed down her face.
The call finally connected on the other end of the phone.
"Hello, this is Lee Seo-yuk."
"I am Xu Zhengyang, I'm back!"
After speaking calmly, Xu Zhengyang hung up the phone, strode onto the platform, hugged his mother, and choked out in her ear, "Mom, it's me. I'm late..."
Volume 5, Spirit Official, Chapter 216: You did a great job, I'm very satisfied!
The first snow of this winter arrived much earlier than usual.
According to the season, it wasn't even winter yet, just late autumn. Xu Zhengyang recovered from his illness—well, to be precise, the evening he returned—when the snow began to fall heavily, growing heavier and heavier...
During dinner, no one in the family said much.
Xu Zhengyang knew everything. He felt no joy at the thought of reuniting with his family; only a burning rage resided within him. Yuan Suqin and Xu Neng, however, dared not ask anything. They truly dared not ask anything. First, they knew that heavenly secrets could not be revealed; their son had been away for over two years, working with the gods. Second, they sensed that their son had changed; he exuded a terrifying aura. They couldn't see or touch it, yet they could feel it clearly.
After the meal, Xu Zhengyang simply said to his parents, "Dad, Mom, everything will be alright, don't worry."
After saying that, Xu Zhengyang returned to his bedroom in the west room.
Now that things have come to this, Xu Zhengyang is not in a hurry to take revenge. He will deal with them one by one, and he will personally take action against each of them!
What about the mundane world, what about heavenly rules and regulations, what about social laws...?
Don't you like to abuse your power and money to do whatever you want? Don't you like to get away with anything and disregard the law? Fine! Come on!
At 8:30, Chen Chaojiang arrived despite the wind and snow.
Inside, the electric heater was on. The snow came suddenly, so the heating in the house was still working.
Xu Zhengyang sat calmly on the sofa in the outer room of the bedroom, smoking. Listening to Chen Chaojiang stamping his feet and shaking off the snow in the corridor outside, Xu Zhengyang took a deep breath. Brother! In this realistic world, where can he find another brother as loyal, righteous…and foolish as Chen Chaojiang?
"Zhengyang." Chen Chaojiang lifted the thick curtain and walked in.
"Sit down." Xu Zhengyang tossed him a cigarette.
Chen Chaojiang took the cigarette and put it in his mouth, but didn't sit down. Instead, he took out four sharp daggers from his coat pocket and placed them one by one on the coffee table, each dagger making a soft click. "Zhengyang, you tell me, who should we attack first?"
Xu Zhengyang leaned back on the sofa, squinted, tilted his head back and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, and said, "You've done the right thing all this time, without acting rashly... Now that I'm back, I'll help you get back the edges that have been worn down in the last two years. Tomorrow, we'll go to Fuhe City."
"Okay." Chen Chaojiang nodded, his answer simple and straightforward, his voice still cold as ever.
"What are you standing for? Sit down!"
Chen Chaojiang paused for a moment, then said "Oh," and dragged a chair to sit opposite Xu Zhengyang.
In the past, Chen Chaojiang would have sat next to Xu Zhengyang on the sofa, but today, Chen Chaojiang didn't want to. Or rather, he was a little... afraid.
Xu Zhengyang seemed to have noticed this as well. After hesitating for a moment, he still didn't say anything to ask Chen Chaojiang to sit down.
The room fell silent for a moment; the two young people didn't know what to say, or perhaps they had nothing to say at all.
The curtain was lifted, and Yuan Suqin and Xu Neng walked in somewhat nervously and reservedly.
Xu Zhengyang moved closer to the sofa, a slight smile on his face, and patted the sofa, saying, "Dad, Mom, sit here."
The couple didn't sit down; they noticed the four daggers on the coffee table, gleaming coldly under the light.
“Zhengyang…” Xu Neng glanced at his wife and finally said softly, “We’re family, don’t, don’t go too far.”
"Yes, yes, Zhengyang, don't be too impulsive." Yuan Suqin's eyes were filled with tears.
Xu Zhengyang raised an eyebrow, suppressing the words that almost slipped out, and nodded, saying, "I know what I'm doing."
“Zhengyang…” Xu Neng wanted to say something more, but his wife tugged at his clothes to signal him to stop, and then said to Xu Zhengyang, “Alright, as long as you know what’s going on, you and Chaojiang can sit and chat, we’re going back to the room, oh, get some rest.”
"Okay, I understand." Xu Zhengyang nodded.
The couple hesitated for a moment before going out. Then, Yuan Suqin said through the curtain outside the door, "Zhengyang, call Rouyue in a bit. She just called to ask about you."
"Okay," Xu Zhengyang replied.