"Here's ten million, take it. If it's not enough, come back for more anytime!"
The man who came over promptly transformed it into a card and placed it on the altar of the God of Wealth.
Jia Shuqing was overjoyed. This was the God of Wealth's money, wasn't it? He could have as much as he wanted!
The man who came over was so generous not out of sympathy for the woman before him, but because he had recently visited the Great God of Grains, Gu Siyu. Gu Siyu had inadvertently revealed that when seeking the Fruit of Fortune, whether it was a Merit Manual or a Spiritual Root, one's subjective will was crucial.
Although one could forcibly obtain the Fruit of Fortune, if one truly believed in their heart that it was theirs, the refining effect would increase manifold.
The man who came over sought to maximize his profit. With a manifold increase in effectiveness, why would he bother to improve step by step?
He devised a plan: as long as he made them feel indebted to him, that they owed him a debt that should be repaid, wouldn't that be equivalent to them having a subjective will?
"Ten million!"
Upon hearing the figure, Jia Shuqing immediately perked up.
This was enough to help her escape her current crisis. As for what the God of Wealth wanted, he could take whatever he pleased.
"Thank you, God of Wealth, thank you, God of Wealth!" Jia Shuqing kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude.
At this moment, Liu Sandao's Merit Manual showed unusual activity. He took it out and saw two names flickering in and out of visibility: one was Jia Shuqing, and the other was Wu Guozheng.
The last time this happened was when Fang Huairan was in trouble. Liu Sandao had a bad premonition.
Given what Jia Shuqing and Wu Guozheng had done, he wouldn't pity them even if they died. However, for the Merit Manual, a divine artifact of the Heavenly Court, to behave so erratically, something abnormal must be about to happen.
Liu Sandao's heart tensed again. This was just like the time with Fang Huairan. It seemed that he and Fu Ruhai would be very busy in the coming period.
Bai Suxiang had been very busy these days, but she was happy because there was good news: the matter in Huaihua Village had taken a significant turn.
The authorities had decided to thoroughly investigate the problems in Huaihua Village. This time, even if someone tried to bribe the harmed villagers with money, it wouldn't work. Because their "glorious deeds" had already made it onto the blacklist.
Within the next day or two, the higher-ups were going to cast their net.
Wu Guozheng was in his office, looking smugly at the newspaper. His secretary had informed him that there would be a meeting at two o'clock, a special seminar on the protective umbrellas for organized crime in Sandong City.
As a key leader, he had to attend this meeting to give a speech, which would also be broadcast live on Sandong City Television.
Good news had come from Jia Shuqing's end; the people at the small supermarket had all been dealt with, and they had signed letters of understanding.
With these in hand, after a few days of organizing a charity donation or something similar, and going through the motions to improve their image, they would have nothing to worry about.
"Director Wu, we should be heading to the venue!"
"Alright, let's go!"
Wu Guozheng put down the newspaper, stood up, straightened his white shirt, and, under the gaze of his secretary, strode towards the venue.
The distance from his office to the venue was about three minutes. Wu Guozheng walked with a slow, steady pace, step by step.
He had attended countless meetings, and he could precisely gauge the time it took to walk this distance, down to each step. In China, attending meetings was indeed a matter of protocol.
Those who made their grand entrance last were always the most important figures at the meeting. Clearly, the protagonist today was him, Wu Guozheng!
As he entered the venue, many people were already seated below the rostrum, filling approximately four to five rows.
In the first row, third seat from the entrance, sat Jia Zhengqing. Wu Guozheng remembered him clearly; his seat seemed to have remained the same for years.
The moment Wu Guozheng entered, the bustling murmur in the venue fell silent.
On the rostrum, there were five or six deputy directors from the Investigation Bureau. The central seat was reserved for Wu Guozheng.
Without even looking, he directly took his seat and gestured, indicating that the meeting should commence immediately.
The meeting was presided over by a deputy director, who briefly introduced the main theme of the day. Next was the leader's speech, which naturally transitioned to Wu Guozheng.
Wu Guozheng picked up his prepared speech and began speaking into the microphone. The words were plain and unadorned, his tone firm and powerful.
At appropriate pauses, the audience offered enthusiastic applause.
Several cameras positioned on the sides of the rostrum panned up, down, left, and right, while reporters milled about.
In this venue, they were clearly the busiest!
"Alright, comrades! I have finished my remarks. I welcome any criticism or correction!"
Just then, there was a "Clang!" sound.
Two men in sharp suits, both with buzz cuts, entered. Judging by their ages, they were only around thirty.
"Excuse me, who is Wu Guozheng?" one of them asked.
A slight stir rippled through the venue. Wu Guozheng stood up and pressed his hands down to signal everyone to remain quiet.
"That's me. Who are you?"
"We are from the Investigation Bureau of Wu Kuai City. We have been ordered to ask you to come with us!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the venue erupted into immediate commotion.
"Cut it! Quick, cut it!"
This was presumably the voice of the person managing the cameras. Such a scene certainly couldn't be broadcast live.
"Holy cow, what department is this?" someone whispered incredulously.
"The Investigation Bureau of Wu Kuai City, what are they doing in Sandong City?" someone said indignantly.
"Shush, don't you see they're from the provincial level? This must be a big problem!"
The crowd chattered amongst themselves, their voices low but still creating a noisy hubbub.
Wu Guozheng's smile had vanished. The moment he heard the words "come with us," his face instantly turned somber.
Jia Zhengqing, seated below the rostrum, appeared unfazed. Although he knew Wu Guozheng would eventually be taken away, he hadn't expected it to happen on such an occasion.
"Let's go!" the man in the suit said.
Wu Guozheng slowly turned around and walked down.
At the doorway stood two or three young men, all in uniform. It was clear they were there in case he tried to escape.
Wu Guozheng's face was devoid of smiles. He was calculating:
He couldn't be taken away like this. Once inside, his future would be ruined. The most terrifying prospect was prison; that was a place of no return. He heard that many people went in and never came out until they died. He had thought he had a few more years to retire steadily, but he hadn't managed to hold on until then.
All these thoughts were useless. The only way now was to escape!
Having made up his mind, he couldn't help but look at the young men ahead. This was the Sandong City Investigation Bureau building. He had worked here for many years and was familiar with every path, even every stairwell.
As he exited the venue, two young men immediately stepped in front of him, preparing to grab his arms.
Wu Guozheng waved his hand, "Hmph! I can walk myself, you don't need to trouble yourselves!"