Chapter 12: The Sinner and the Will (Part 2)

  Jiao Rongsen had a million reasons to believe that Qian Lao was hypocritical and deceitful, and with a mixture of anger and resentment, he flung his cigar onto the clean floor of the hospital room. The cigar bounced off the floor, spewing out sparks before rolling under the bed. Jiao Rongsen's face turned ashen, and in a low, ominous tone, he said: "If it wasn't you who decided, then who did? Are you going to have those judges and lawyers come and sentence me? Can they really sentence me, Qian Zhengsheng?"

  Qian Lao's eyes still didn't look at Feng Lin, but he smiled bleakly and said: "Feng Lin, the law can't control the wealthy, but heaven can."

  Jiao Sen looked at Qian Lao's expression, which seemed to say "let heaven condemn the world", and felt that Qian Lao on the hospital bed was particularly disgusting. He snorted in derision: "Heaven? What nonsense! Christian doctrine says we're all sinners, everyone has sins, God is just an old man, even Jesus can't save him, who else can he condemn? Ridiculous!"

  Qian Lao's eyebrows were furrowed together, and he remained silent, only emitting a weak nasal sound.

  Jiao Sen thought his words had struck a blow to Qian Lao's morale, so he sneered coldly and suddenly became stern, saying: "Seventy-three, eighty-four, Yan Wang doesn't invite himself! How old are you? You know very well yourself! As for me, I'm only fifty-seven or eight. Even if it's your turn to see Yan Wang at this age, I still have fifteen or sixteen years of good life left, and I won't worry about not being able to do what I want!"

  He sneered and said, "Qian Zhengsheng! You won't be able to hold on for many more days before you go to the underworld to see your wife! Ha ha, maybe your wife is serving as a maid for my wife's sister in the underworld! Ha ha, it's already the sixth month of the lunar calendar and you're 73 years old! 73, 73, let's see how you get through this! Who will be the first to jump into the oil pot and cross the knife mountain? Who will be the first to suffer the punishment of the underworld? Let's see who Yama will condemn first!"

  Qian Lao's body suddenly shook violently! His eyes looked at Jiao Rongsen with a complex gaze.

  Jiao Rong Sen was even more pleased, and lit another cigar. He took a deep drag, exhaled slowly, creating a large smoke ring. Then he poked the cigar at the center of the ring, stirring it vigorously, and the ring instantly transformed into a swirling cloud of smoke.

  Jiao Rong Sen's eyes were fixed on Qian Lao, his gaze filled with a chilling coldness that seemed to want to drag Qian Lao to the graves of Jiao Rong Sen's wife and sister, and then tie him up in front of the graves to atone for his sins.

  He suddenly burst into loud laughter, completely ignoring the subordinates and Longbiao who were standing at the door, speechless. After a while, he stopped, looking at his archenemy on the hospital bed with extreme pleasure.

  Qian Lao looked at Jiao Ying with a complex expression for a long time, waiting until he finished laughing before speaking in a low and solemn tone: "Are you done laughing? If you're done, I'll introduce someone to you. You might already know him." After finishing his sentence, he called out towards the door, "Xiao Long, come in!"

  Long Bao had been listening at the door, and upon hearing the sound, he calmly walked in, respectfully called out "Chairman Qian" before sitting down beside Jiao Ying Sen on the sofa, not even giving him a glance as if he didn't exist.

  Jiao Sen had actually noticed Long Bao's existence early on, and from the moment he walked into the ward, he was sizing up this tall young man who was "supposedly his arch-nemesis". He felt that the Long Bao in front of him seemed to be just a young man with a bit of personality, and no matter what, he couldn't connect him with the image in the intelligence report.

  Qian Lao pointed weakly with his hand at Long Biao, then turned to Jiao Sen and said, "Sen, this is Long Biao." He also said to Long Biao, "Little Dragon, this is..."

  Before Qian Lao finished speaking, Long Bao interrupted him and didn't even glance at Jiao Rong Sen as he smiled lightly and said: "Chairman, you don't need to introduce him, this is Jiao Rong Sen, the boss of Li Heng Group. Who in the group doesn't know him?" After finishing speaking, he also took out a cigarette and lit it without any politeness.

  Currently enjoying the thrill of verbal attacks, Jiao Sen was originally waiting for this worthy junior to show some courtesy in social etiquette. However, seeing Long Bao Lian didn't even have basic manners, he felt extremely displeased at heart, thinking that such a big shot could be looked down upon by a young whippersnapper like that!

  Jiao Sen's mouth twitched, and he let out a heavy hum, scolding Qian Lao in a stern tone: "Qian Zhengsheng! I'm giving you face by coming to see you before you meet your maker, so listen quietly to what I have to say! You're really something, calling over a young whippersnapper like this to stir up trouble! You like excitement, huh?" He turned his head towards the door and bellowed, "Everyone come in! My old friend here likes excitement!"

  Jiao Rongsen's subordinates immediately responded in unison with a "Yes!" and tried to move forward, but were blocked by Kangding Zhuang and several others. A clash was about to erupt!

  Jiao Sen's eyes slanted sideways, staring at Qian Lao with a provocative gaze. However, Qian Lao's eyes were unfathomably deep, quietly gazing into Jiao Sen's eyes as if trying to see through his very soul.

  As long as Jiao Sen is doing this, it proves that he has already lost his stable mentality and wants such a result. Long Bao looked at the crowd pushing each other, suddenly laughed twice, and said: "Haha! I used to think that the great Jiao boss was a hero! I didn't expect him to have such a petty mind and demeanor when competing with younger people! No wonder he would repeatedly suffer defeats!"

  With a "slap", Jiao Rongsen pointed at Long Bao and shouted loudly: "How dare you! Get out! You don't have the right to speak here!"

  Qian Lao carefully examined Jiao Sen, then opened his mouth and said: "Sen, children don't understand things, just forgive him." Qian Lao turned to Long Bao and said in a low voice, "Little Dragon, put out the cigarette, you should be polite in front of adults."

  Longbiao deliberately didn't speak and continued smoking as usual.

  Jiao Rong's eyebrows jumped up, and he shouted to stop the subordinates at the door. He said to Qian Lao in a gloomy tone: "Qian Zhengsheng, this kid doesn't take you seriously, not even listening to your words, treating them as nothing but rumors. This kind of disobedient and disloyal person, do you still want him? I think you're getting old and muddled!"

  Jiao Rong Sen chuckled and continued, "Qian Zhengsheng, do you know why you've lost control over your subordinates in the group these past few years? I'll give you some advice for old times' sake: it's because you're too lenient towards people who are arrogant about their achievements! Think about how many people have betrayed you!"

  "Frosty and cold, without a hint of human feeling, he said: 'If it were me, I would have kicked this kind of person out long ago. You're lucky to still treat this guy with a rebellious streak as a treasure!'"

  Long Bao smiled and continued to smoke while glancing at Jiao Sen, but Qian Lao looked back and forth between them, suddenly saying: "Sen, I've already decided to let him take on a bigger responsibility, so what do you think I should do?"

  "What's wrong?"

  Qian Lao smiled wryly, his voice low and ethereal, saying: "Group Vice President Jin Kuangning and Deputy General Manager Xue Guowei were in a car accident. Tell me, if I don't hand over the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors and Group CEO to him, who should I hand it over to?"

  Jiao Sen's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he couldn't believe it, saying: "Are you taking the wrong medicine? Can this be true? Just him, that idiot with uneven hair growth, sitting in this position? Haha! No wonder, no wonder!" Jiao Sen burst out laughing for two sentences, then sneered, "Your son Qian Zhengsheng is in jail, one son is incompetent, your eldest daughter is a waste, your youngest daughter got pregnant out of wedlock, both daughters-in-law are only good at embezzling public funds and being sluts! Your eldest son-in-law has ability but was driven away by you! Who else would you entrust all this to besides this ungrateful brat?! Haha! How interesting, really interesting!"

  It was expected that Jiao Rongsen would take the opportunity to sarcastically attack Qian Lao with his words, using verbal stimulation to infuriate the easily irritable Qian Lao and vent his own anger. However, Qian Lao remained unmoved by Jiao's words, instead nodding slightly at Long Biao.

  Longbiao extinguished the nearly burnt-out cigarette butt in the ashtray, took out a pack of cigarettes and chuckled at Jiao Sen: "Old Master Jiao, your dry tobacco smells terrible! I think you must have bought counterfeit goods! My White Sand cigarettes may only cost five yuan per pack, but they are authentic and fragrant, much better than your fake stuff, haha."

  Jiao Sen felt that he had just been farting, with no effect at all. He suppressed his rising liver fire and growled at the young man: "Get out!"

  Long Bao smiled and pulled out a cigarette, lit it with a snap, and deliberately placed the five-yuan pack of cigarettes and the one-yuan lighter on the table in front of Jiao Sen. "Hey, Mr. Jiao, want to have a smoke?"

  Isn't this just making a fool of yourself? What kind of monster is this kid?! Gao Ren has been unconscious since last night, did this kid do something to him?! Jiao Rong's anger was uncontrollable, he slapped the cigarette and lighter on the table to the ground, and shouted loudly: "Get out!"

  Long Bao saw Jiao Rongsen so furious, knowing that his own unscrupulous tactics learned from Shi Wei had taken effect. He immediately changed his tone, put on a extremely apologetic face and said respectfully: "Sorry, sorry, Mr. Jiao, it's this junior who was impolite, didn't show enough respect to you, sir. Please don't kick me out, I'm willing to apologize sincerely!" After that, Long Bao stood up and bowed to him.

  Jiao Rongsen's facial expression slightly eased, but Long Bao wouldn't give Jiao Rongsen any chance to catch his breath and calm down. Instead, he immediately sat down, chuckled, and said: "However, Mr. Jiao is a man of great stature! How could you possibly mind the impertinent words of a nobody like me?"

  "Look at you, Focal Point Forest, with eyes that seem to bore into my soul. You've been unstoppable in your pursuit of wealth and power! At 17, you started working and making deals; by 23, you were already trading gold; at 28, you became a stockbroker; by 35, your exceptional skills had made you famous throughout the Shanghai financial world; at 42, you began to make your mark in Thailand, befriending numerous tycoons; at 50, you joined forces with Soros, using the guise of reforming the financial order to bring disaster to the entire Southeast Asian market. And now, at 56, you've leveraged this US-Iraq war to create this crude oil futures battle! Your talents are boundless, your knowledge is vast, your strategies are deep and intricate, your influence stretches far and wide... Who wouldn't fear you? Who wouldn't be intimidated by you?"

  Jiao Sen's heart skipped a beat. What did this kid mean by saying these things about him! His face darkened, and he said in a cold voice: "You know, that's good. A young man should not be arrogant..."

  Before he could finish, Long Biao suddenly became solemn and respectful, his face cold and stern, his eyes gleaming with a chilly light. His tone turned icy as he said: "Do you think I'm getting too big for my britches? Do you think I've forgotten the heights of heaven and the thickness of earth? Are you going to say that you've eaten more salt than I've eaten rice, and crossed more bridges than I've walked roads? Are you expecting me, a young whippersnapper, to kowtow to you, an elder, with all due deference and respect? And then for you to put on the airs of a senior and lecture me to show off your wisdom and intelligence? Let me tell you, get rid of that foolish idea! I showed respect to you because you share a few individual shining points with Qian Lao, which are worthy of my admiration. Speaking of which, you're also an elder, and I should respect you... but when I think of those nine crimes of yours that can't even compare to Qian Lao's, I look down on you!"

  Jiao Sen burst out laughing and said: "Kid, it seems you overheard my conversation with your master earlier. I didn't expect to have nine crimes in your mouth! I really want to hear which nine crimes they are! However, haha, you're just a dog of Qian Zhengsheng, only worthy of licking the crack of your master's ass! You're not qualified to comment on me or judge my guilt! What, Qian Zhengsheng, have you run out of tricks and can't argue with me yourself, so you've brought along a dog to bark at me wildly?! Haha!"

  Long Bao's expression didn't change, but he said to Qian Lao: "Chairman, you'd better rest well. Some people can't even recognize themselves, what's the point of talking to them? It's just a waste of saliva."

  Jiao Rong's smile suddenly stopped, and he said in a cold tone: "Young man, be careful with your words, disaster often comes from the mouth!"

  Long Bao didn't even glance at him, and said in a light tone: "You're an elder, what right do you have to hurt people with your words? If you have no guilty conscience, why don't you let me finish speaking? Qian Lao is bedridden and can't talk much, why do you keep using vicious language? I'm the CEO of Li Heng Investment Company, fully in charge of countering your stock market attacks. You're actually afraid of me and don't dare speak to me. You're worried that I'm your nemesis, but use the excuse 'I'm not worthy' to escape. What's your capability?"

  His heart was like being heavily hammered, and his mind suddenly flashed back to the high person's confused words last night: "Dragon, blood dragon, don't eat me!", and he also remembered the high person's previous words about his nemesis, and a chill ran up his spine. He stared at Long Bao, and then thought that this was just a big kid, if he was afraid of him, wouldn't it be laughable? So with a complicated mood, he laughed strangely and said: "Good! Since you want to come and compare me with your master, I'll give you the opportunity. It's been a long time since I've heard someone speak ill of me, let's see what kind of flowers you can make me say! Kid, speak!"

  Long Bao had carefully studied all the intelligence materials about Jiao Ying Sen and knew that he was not a ruthless person, but rather someone who valued emotions deeply. However, due to his vengeful nature, his emotions were somewhat twisted. It could be said that this twisted emotion was the root of Jiao Ying Sen's actions, and in order to thoroughly defeat him, one had to attack him emotionally and destroy his foundation!

  Long Bao stood up, walked slowly in the room, and didn't speak immediately. Jiao Rong Sen was a bit impatient, coughed heavily, and lit a cigar.

  "Dragon looked at De Lao, then glanced outside the door. He vaguely saw Jing'er's encouraging eyes from the crowd, and smiled slightly, saying in a low voice: 'Boss Jiao, first, your filial piety to your parents is just like Qian Lao's, which I admire; second, your affection for your wife was so deep that you never remarried after she left, your loyalty is admirable; third, you brought your less-than-one-year-old daughter to a foreign land, enduring countless hardships, your perseverance and paternal love are admirable; fourth, your relationship with your sister is unparalleled, even Qian Lao acknowledges that you surpass his siblings who fought against each other, this also makes me admire you; fifth, after experiencing so many ups and downs, your determination remains unwavering, a true man's strong will, which I admire; sixth, your wisdom surpasses others, through self-study and exploration, you became an international master, many masters and experts are inferior to you, your aura is also admirable; seventh, the world you have today was fought for with your own two hands in the business world, this too makes me involuntarily admire you!"

  Long Bao paused for a moment, then sincerely said: "I bow to you with seven points of respect for making me admire you!" After finishing speaking, Long Bao stood respectfully in front of Jiao Rongsen and bowed to him.

  These emotions, which had been secretly hidden for many years, were suddenly stirred up by Long Bao's words and actions, causing a huge wave of grief to surge up in his heart. He suddenly remembered his strict father, kind mother, and wife who had passed away, as well as his 22-year-old daughter living in secret at a university in England. The flames of emotion scorched his stone-like heart, causing him to feel an intense, bitter sadness that he couldn't understand. Even though he hadn't cried in years, two tears suddenly rolled down his face!

  Jiao Rong Sen was completely unaware that he had already entered the thought space of Long Bao's induction, and his mouth murmured a vague "oh". Seeing this scene, Long Bao immediately flashed a cold light in his eyes, pointed at Jiao Rong Sen with his fingers, and sneered in an extremely gloomy and somber tone: "You can also shed tears? What a huge joke! You claim to be filial to your parents, but you risked everything for money and embezzled public funds. Do you know that your old father was heartbroken and cried because of your mistakes, hating you as an unfilial son? You claim to love your wife, but you indulged in a life of debauchery, using money to seduce rich women. Where is the loyalty to your loving wife? You claim to have a deep bond with your sister, but do you still remember that she was forced into prostitution to pay off your debts? You claim to be a man with yang energy, but you only dare to hide your name and escape far away, even when seeking revenge. When have you ever been open and aboveboard? You claim to love children, but you never dare to bring them along with you. What are you afraid of?"

  Jiao Rong's sorrow was not yet exhausted, but he was suddenly pierced by Long Bao's sharp and severe rebuke, his heart bleeding from the bottom. These hidden grievances he had never dared to think deeply about, always considering Qian Lao as the cause of his blood feud. His face turned pale, his heart racing wildly, he weakly shouted: "Nonsense!"

  Long Bao looked at Jiao Rongsen's trembling hands and feet, and mercilessly pressed on: "Haha, I'd rather hope this is slander! If this is a baseless rumor, then you wouldn't need to be so tormented, would you? Why are you tense? Why cry? I expected you didn't have the guts to hear me out! You're afraid! You fear me! You're deeply afraid of me! Your lawyer is right outside, call him in! Tell your lawyer to sue me!"

  The lawyer who had arrived with him darted forward, shouting in a self-congratulatory tone: "Chairman, this is already slander! If I don't..."

  His trembling hand picked up the ashtray and hurled it at the lawyer, shouting "Get out!" The lawyer hastily retreated to the corridor, then turned back to Long Bing and said, "I... let you... finish speaking!"

  Long Bao quickly went through all the information in his mind, smiled coldly, and increased his attack: "You are proud of your experience in the world, but you don't know what kindness is! You are proud of your extensive knowledge, but you don't recognize the word 'forgiveness'! You are proud of your loyal subordinates, but you can't win people over with virtue! You claim to value relationships, but you only love yourself! You boast about your clever strategies and changes, but you don't know what it means to be a frog in a well! You are arrogant about your intelligence surpassing others, but you don't know how foolish it is to spend thirty years of your life seeking revenge for a nonexistent grudge! You are cunning and sinister, knowing that Qian Lao's body is weak, yet intentionally issuing a challenge at Qian Lao's birthday banquet! You rely on your wealth and power to do all sorts of evil, spying, eavesdropping, plotting, arson, poisoning, contract traps, disrupting production and business, manufacturing car accidents, spreading rumors, confusing people's minds... what kind of hero are you? You also have a daughter, but for the sake of satisfying your so-called superior's lust, you use every means to coerce that young girl who is just like your daughter. When have you ever done something good to accumulate virtue? Don't you fear that others will use the same methods to retaliate against your daughter in the future? Have you forgotten how your wife died? Have you forgotten the hatred those people brought upon you after they raped your wife?"

  The icy sword flew swiftly over Jiao Rongsen's heart, his face turned deathly pale and he was speechless. The burning cigar fell from his trembling fingers, and he mechanically bent down to pick it up. Long Bao's cold hum stopped him, using his foot to extinguish the fallen ash, saying disdainfully: "Mr. Jiao, exchange this five-yuan pack of White Sand cigarettes for a smoke, the flavor is much better than your Cuban cigars! How about it, Mr. Jiao?"

  Staring blankly at the hospital floor, staring at the cigar on the floor, his mind was filled with the image of his wife's death. Was she raped to death by someone else or did she commit suicide? Was it Qian Zhengsheng who harmed her?

  Long Bao won't let go of any opportunity to strike, and said in a gloomy tone: "Jiao Dage, the fortune teller who read my fortune yesterday was really accurate, just like how you arranged for your subordinates to cause a car accident on the airport road. It's also as accurate as how you took revenge on those gangsters who raped your wife, and even more so, it's as accurate as how you tried every means to make Lao Zhong have a stroke! You can be satisfied now, after all, only two or three of your subordinates betrayed you, and haven't you already dealt with them?"

  Many of these things were inferred by Long Biao and Qian Lao, but they are undoubtedly accurate daggers!

  "Hah! A person who doesn't even dare to look straight at his opponent, a person who doesn't even dare to admit his own revenge tactics - how pathetic! What face do you have to meet your ancestors, what face do you have to meet your parents and siblings? What face do you have to meet your wife?! Laughable! Hah!"

  Jiao Sen felt a sharp pain in his chest, and in the midst of the pain, he couldn't let Long Bao erase his glorious revenge experience, which would be his capital when he went to the underworld to see his relatives! He saw him speaking intermittently, refuting with difficulty: "Who said I... don't have... dignity? I... killed those... people... fed their... flesh... to sharks... avenged my wife... you... little boy... are lucky... didn't die in a car accident... don't be smug... I... and you... still have a lot to play!"

  Boom! Outside the door exploded! Everyone heard Jiao Rongsen say out loud the criminal facts.

  The lawyer in the corridor hastily shouted: "Chairman, don't talk nonsense!"

  Jiao Rongsen seemed to have sobered up, those few underworld figures' deaths had long been closed as a case of underworld vendetta and hadn't implicated himself at all! Moreover, hadn't he just admitted that the car accident was his doing?!

  "Listen up, Focal Master. Let me tell you something as a junior. A person should not forget their shape whether they are proud or disappointed! No need to wait for heaven's judgment, I can determine your guilt right now. Your murder charge is established and on the mainland, you would be sentenced to death by firing squad! The three-dollar bullet, I'll generously provide it for you. Hope in your next life, you'll become a person who forgives others."

  The lawyer shouted loudly outside the door: "This is extortion! There is no legal basis!"

  "Confess your crime! Old Master Jiao!" Long Bao Sen shouted sternly.

  He glanced at the cold and stern Long Bao, then at the silent Qian Lao, and finally at the people by the door. He shook his head, feeling that it was packed with countless characters and events from this life, almost bursting his brain. He became more and more dizzy and numb, and for a moment, the heartache seemed to disappear. He remembered that this pain had been there since long ago, when he learned of his wife's suicide, and it didn't go away until after her funeral. It hadn't recurred in twenty years. How good was that? This allowed him to calm down and think clearly about everything related to his wife.

  In the midst of a dimly lit forest, he felt as if he had already arrived at the windswept mountain slope where his parents, sister, and beloved wife were buried. The surroundings were shrouded in gloom, yet he vaguely saw people's silhouettes moving at different speeds, wielding hoes, iron shovels, and pickaxes to dig graves. Some were digging with their hands, others with their mouths. Some stood inside the graves, some on the edge, some lay down while digging, and some were digging sideways. Oh, and there were also those who were asking others to dig for them.

  However, surprisingly, there were still a few people digging holes upside down!

  Yes, these pits were deep and shallow, the deep ones had already disappeared from view, only to hear the sound of diligent digging coming from afar. The shallow ones just reached the waist and the back of the feet. Jiao Sen felt that he had walked to a large pit, and suddenly saw himself standing in this pit. There were already several people in the pit, and that self was holding a hoe and iron shovel, diligently digging. In the vast pit, there were horizontal and vertical rows of dead men's bones, overlapping each other, fresh and old, emitting a pale white glow. He clearly saw that self smile at him, then continuously wielded the shiny iron shovel to scoop up those dry bones. With a swing of his arm towards the sky, those bones floated up, falling to the ground with a dull thud. Every time this self used the iron shovel to scoop up the bones and swung it upwards, he would listen to the sound of the bones hitting the ground, then smile at him again.

  In the blink of an eye, a mountain of white bones piled up, and in no time, a forest of human bones stood at the edge of the pit. But beneath the ground, there were still countless white bones. Seeing this, he began to feel indignant and furious, and he started gnawing on a few bones with blood and flesh still attached, grinning savagely at him: "Feng Da Ye, you're here, are you hungry? Want some?"

  Suddenly, a gust of icy hellish wind blew, causing his heart to ache sharply! The white mountain collapsed with a loud crash, and all the human bones fell into the pit like stones, burying him inside, only exposing his disheveled head, his hands wildly waving in the pit, billions of maggots drilling in and out of his face, shouting in unison: "Feng Dage! Feng Dage! Feng Dage..."

  He was extremely frightened, extremely terrified, and suddenly turned around, but just in time to see his sister and his beloved wife walking towards him. He rushed forward with a mix of surprise, panic, and fear, asking: "Wife, sister, where are you coming from?"

  His sister and his beloved wife said to him: "Jiao Dage... Jiao Dage... you're back..."

  He felt a sharp pain in his heart, and he opened his mouth to speak, but had no words to say. At this moment, suddenly his sister and his beloved wife's clothes were torn into shreds, turned into scraps of paper ash, like black butterflies fluttering in the dark wind. He only heard his sister's lewd cries amidst the black butterflies: "Master Jiao, Master Jiao, come on, I guarantee to serve you comfortably, no need for more, just thirty cents will do!" He also heard his beloved wife's painful and moaning cries: "Master Jiao, come to me, come on, gently, gently!"

  He was terrified and heartbroken, a fit of violent vomiting, he found that his heart had sprayed out from his throat and fallen to the ground. He hurriedly picked it up and took a look, is this his heart? It's clearly just a blood clot emitting an unbearable stench! This blood clot with an unbearable stench was still jumping!

  He let go of his hand in fright, staring at his sister and wife who were twisting and turning on the ground in terror, muttering: "Is this my heart? Is this my heart?"

  All of a sudden, her sister sprang up from the ground and rushed to his face, shouting sharply: "Master Jiao, Master Jiao! Why isn't it your heart? Why isn't it your heart? I became a dancing girl and sold my body just to help you find back this heart of yours! Why don't you want it?!

  Only to see his wife rolling on the ground with difficulty, her body covered in bruises from being abused, crying out in a sorrowful voice: "Feng Da Ye, Feng Da Ye, why isn't it your heart? Why isn't it your heart? I'm killing myself just to help you find back this heart of yours! How can you not want it?!

  All I could hear was the self buried in the pile of human bones, laughing maniacally and shouting: "Feng Da Ye, my Feng Da Ye, don't worry, I want it, I want it! Give it to me quickly, give it to me quickly! With this heart, I won't have to dig graves anymore! And I won't have to eat these human bones anymore! Hahaha!"

  He felt an extreme emptiness and hollowness in his heart, the flickering of the wild fires everywhere was devoid of warmth, and the cold wind blew freely. Looking at his beloved sister and wife, he felt like dying on the spot, and tears streamed down his face!

  Tears streaming down, dripping into the blood clot that was still twitching and emitting an unbearable stench, suddenly became bright red. He was overjoyed to see all of this, overjoyed as he picked up the heart that was no longer a blood clot with both hands, overjoyed as he shouted at his naked sister and wife: "This is my heart! This is my heart! Sister, wife, look, this is my heart! This is my heart!"

  His naked sister and loving wife suddenly smiled at him and said: "Then just put it back, okay?!"

  At this time, the self in the grave shouted loudly: "Don't be at peace, don't be at peace! If you are at peace, I won't be able to call you Master Jiao!"

  He flew into a rage and shouted loudly: "Shut up! I won't let you call me Focal Elder! My name is Focal Forest!"

  At that moment, his sister and loving wife smiled at him with relief, saying: "Rong Sen, now that you're calm, go back!"

  He let out a sorrowful smile, rushed over and tightly hugged the two icy bodies, wailing in unbearable pain: "Sister, wife! I'm not going back, I'll stay here with you!"

  He swallowed the bright heart in one gulp!

  Everything was eerily silent, all the illusory reflections vanished into thin air. After a startling wake-up call, he opened his eyes to find himself lying on the cold floor of the hospital room. The ceiling and several blurry heads entered his field of vision. He felt his heart beating in fits and starts. With great difficulty, he rotated his eyeballs, trying to locate Long Bao, the first person who dared to call him "Master Jiao", but none of these people were him.

  He gathered his last bit of strength, wanting to open his mouth and shout loudly, wanting to tell everyone, especially Long Bao, but he could only make a faint, trembling sound in his dry throat: "Long...Bao...Long...Bao..."

  Long Bao stood there coldly, watching Jiao Rongsen slowly fall to the ground, clutching his chest in agony. He felt extremely relieved! Seeing Jiao Rongsen collapse and writhe in pain, someone went to call a doctor. Now Long Bao was standing behind Jiao Rongsen's back again, watching him. When Jiao Rongsen called out to him, he heard it, but he didn't want to respond. Since his goal had been achieved, Long Bao wouldn't say another word! Anyone who knew the bitterness in his heart would also remain silent like him!

  Jiao Rongsen did not hear Long Bao's response, perhaps he couldn't hear any responses at all. He muttered a few sentences and just as the doctor arrived, he walked towards a realm that was either heaven or hell. Only one of his subordinates who leaned in close to his ear heard these final words.

  The doctor's rescue was just a formality, and when the rescue was declared ineffective, the few subordinates under Jiao Ying's command turned pale. They had never thought that their high-and-mighty boss, who made them tremble with fear, would be scolded to death by this young man!

  Kang Tie quickly passed the message to Qian Lao's ward, and the atmosphere immediately became as quiet as darkness. Qian Lao lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, then fixedly looking at Long Bao who was guarding beside him, feeling that this grandson was like a mysterious and unpredictable piece of iron, flashing with mysterious light. He muttered from time to time: "Is this true? Is he dead? Is this true? Is he dead? Is this true? Is he dead..."

  The subordinate who heard Jiao Rong's last words came to his senses and rushed into Qian Lao's ward, shouting at Long Bao and Qian Lao: "Are you satisfied now? The person you hated has been driven to death by you! Are you satisfied now?"

  Qian Lao was stunned for a while before he hastily asked: "Tell me, did he leave any last words? Quickly!"

  This subordinate is also a high-quality talent, with a miserable face, pointing at Long Bao, and sobbing: "The boss said that this person should no longer be called 'Jiao Dage', he is not Jiao Dage, he is Jiao Rongsen! The boss finally said 'I've already found his heart'!"

  Suddenly, Qian Lao felt an icy yet warm air flow that was both refreshing and soothing, spreading all over the sky. Qian Lao's whole body relaxed, and he chuckled with a low, aged voice that was surprisingly clear to everyone's ears: "Good! He has found his... heart! He has found his heart! I have also found my heart! Haha!"

  After a burst of laughter, Qian Lao smiled and passed away!

  The dragon's scales are still unaware, and he is still in the midst of the dense forest. The sentence "I have found his heart!" and Grandpa Wai's sentence "Wisdom is the heart, it is all hearts, it is the heart that contains all hearts from ancient times to the present" come together, and suddenly I recall Qian Lao's last words: "I have also found my heart!"

  This subordinate did not realize, resentfully accusing Longbiao: "Longbiao, you are so cruel! The boss called you at that time, and you clearly heard it but deliberately didn't respond! Don't you know 'When a bird is about to die, its cry is mournful; when a person is about to die, their words are kind'? Longbiao, your heart is so cruel!"

  The breath of death finally disregarded the scorching heat of July, ruthlessly dispersing all temperatures, leading the hellish dark troops and cold generals to invade and kill with a chill. Accompanying it was the sudden arrival of a violent summer thunderstorm!

  The sky was a dull grey, with loud raindrops everywhere. The light in the hospital room was very dim. Longbiao stared blankly at the doctor, who was bustling around Qianlao's bed just like he did when his grandfather was ill.

  A fierce lightning cut through the endless rain clouds, followed by a thunder that shook the sky and earth!

  Long Wanquan's entire body seemed to have been struck by this flash of lightning and the deafening thunder, and in an instant, he was like a withered tree that had been set ablaze!

  Everything in his field of vision erupted with volcanic lava, scorching his eyes with intense heat. The terrifying light and flames spun wildly at the bottom of his pupils, spinning mystery, spinning distance, spinning past, spinning future, spinning joy, and spinning sorrow!

  Long Bao's eyes were completely crimson, helpless and stagnant, without any flow. They carried silence, numbness, simplicity, and complexity all at once. His eyes were not his limbs, but his soul; not his body, but his spirit. In this state, he walked to the front of Qian Lao's lifeless body, facing the bed where Qian Lao lay still smiling despite having no signs of life.

  Qian Lao seems to have fallen asleep, sleeping so soundly, lying quietly, with a childlike smile still on his thin face. Qian Lao's eyes are closed, his lips are shut, Qian Lao has gone to sleep, but this sleep is an eternal departure, just like how Qi Ye and Wai Gong went to sleep, it's an eternal departure, never to return again.

  These three grandfathers all have faces full of wrinkles, each wrinkle on Qi grandfather's face is etched with the hardships and vicissitudes of life, each wrinkle on my maternal grandfather's face is etched with the pursuit of literature and the long nostalgia for kinship, each wrinkle on Qian grandfather's face is etched with the turbulent years and his disgust at the cunning and deceit of human nature.

  Actually, Jing'er's grandfather and Jiao Rongsen's faces were also full of wrinkles. Every wrinkle on Jing'er's grandfather's face was etched with unfathomable mystery, while every wrinkle on Jiao Rongsen's face was etched with so-called hatred.

  Yes, Lao Qian is also a grandfather, a dry grandfather.

  I remember that on the day Uncle Jing's grandfather came, Grandfather Qian made a declaration in front of Uncle Jing's grandfather, Uncle Jing and Kangding Village: "Xiaolong, I have officially established the 'Qian Zhengsheng Asset Custody Center'. You are my good grandson, the one I am proud of, and of course, my natural heir. Those assets that have been transferred to this center under my name will be handled by you from now on. Hehe, child, do whatever you want with them, Grandfather trusts that you won't do anything wrong. Grandfather has already written his will! But just one thing, don't let those unfilial sons and grandsons of mine cheat you out of the money! Hehe."

  Those words and that laughter are still in my ears! Even Long Bao still clearly remembers Grandpa Qian instructing him: "Good grandson, you're now simply complex, but in the future, you must become complexly simple! Remember?"

  The unrelenting flames finally detonated the soul's bomb, and Long Bao suddenly felt a sharp pain in his brain like needles. He struggled to control the explosion, but from his hoarse throat came a heart-wrenching, repeatedly muttered voice: "Remember, how could I not remember?"

  A new book is being created, urban theme, please support it when the time comes.