Chapter 1 Weariness

Slightly tired, and feeling lost, he tossed away his cigarette butt, draped his coat over his shoulders, and walked along the dimly lit path, guided by the streetlights.

His shadow stretched out long behind him.

At the park exit stood an elderly man with white hair. He wore a crisp, well-tailored suit, standing ramrod straight, meticulous, like an old poplar standing firm in the desert.

A mere glance was enough to tell that the old man was the type who demanded extreme, even perverse, attention to his appearance.

Zhou Ze didn't look at him, but continued on his way.

The air was filled with the scent of watermelon sand, somewhat sweet, somewhat cloying, a smell that made Zhou Ze uncomfortable, because watermelon flesh was red, which reminded Zhou Ze of many unpleasant scenes.

"Sir, are you feeling down?"

The old man took the initiative to match Zhou Ze's pace, slightly behind by half a step, just right.

"A little," Zhou Ze replied.

The two continued to walk forward, step by step, creating a strange synchronicity.

"Sir, is it because of that monkey?

Or is it for the sake of that contaminated infant?" the old man asked.

Zhou Ze didn't answer, but continued to walk slowly forward.

He didn't stop until they reached the traffic lights, waiting for the green light.

The old man also stopped.

"There's no right or wrong in this matter," Zhou Ze replied.

"No right or wrong?" the old man repeated, then asked, "But everything has two sides, so it's natural to be able to distinguish right from wrong.

The monkey was a good monkey, it even did more good deeds than the so-called good people in the crowd.

You admit that too, don't you, sir?"

"So, what do you mean?" Zhou Ze took out another cigarette, shielded it from the wind with his hand, and lit it. "I was wrong?"

"Several metamorphoses, several bitter cultivations, and in the end, it all fell apart because of the person it saved. If you were in its place, sir, what would you think?" the old man asked.

"I would be very angry," Zhou Ze replied straightforwardly, without needing to think about it at all.

"And after anger?"

"If I had the chance, I would kill his entire family," Zhou Ze exhaled a smoke ring.

"Sir, your logic is sound," the old man commented, "But you stopped it from taking revenge, even after you learned the course of events and the truth from its mouth, you still ended its life with your own hands."

"Yes."

"Do you think you did the right thing?" the old man asked again.

"I said, there is no right or wrong in this matter," Zhou Ze flicked his cigarette ash. "To take a step back, the child is innocent."

"According to you, if the monkey had only chosen to take revenge on the husband, you could have understood;

You probably wouldn't have stopped it, would you, sir?"

Zhou Ze was silent.

"But the reason the husband killed the monkey and took its brains was because he wanted his wife to eat them to cure her infertility problem," the old man reminded. "So, cause and effect, seemingly calculated on the monkey and the husband, but the real source lies with the monkey and that infant."

"Can karma be calculated like that?" Zhou Ze asked.

"If I calculate it, is there no reason?" the old man asked back.

"According to your algorithm, we can calculate that because a meteorite hit the earth, the dinosaurs went extinct, and new species appeared, and then hominids, and then humans and monkeys, and then this tragedy.

So, the cause and effect should be calculated on the meteorite."

"You're equivocating, sir," the old man's tone didn't seem to change, very calm, as if he was purely discussing the issue with you.

"I am human," Zhou Ze pointed to his head, "I stand from a human point of view, I don't think I can allow an alien to harm humans in a hospital."

"You are not human, you are a ghost," the old man reminded again.

"Now, it's your turn to equivocate."

"Heh." The old man smiled.

The light turned green.

Zhou Ze stepped forward, and the old man continued to follow.

A young man with tattered clothes,

An elderly man dressed meticulously,

The two left only a single shadow on the ground.

"In the end, the child still had problems," the old man continued, speaking with a calm tone that made one want to stab him, "It seems that at this time, one can sigh: the way of heaven revolves, and it spares no one?"

"I never believe that adults' wrongdoings should be borne by the child in swaddling clothes."

"Ancient times had laws of collective punishment, which means it had its reasons for existing," the old man said.

"Now it has been abolished, which means it is better that it does not exist than it exists."

"Sir, you pity that child, but who will pity that monkey?"

"You can go to Huaguo Mountain and ask its ancestors."

"So, in the final analysis, it's still the theory of species supremacy, it's just that it has an extra layer of protection compared to regional discrimination and racial discrimination."

"I have a loaf of bread in my hand, which is my dinner today." Zhou Ze spread out one hand to show that he was holding a loaf of bread.

"And then?"

"Then, when I was about to eat this loaf of bread, I suddenly remembered that in some poor areas of the earth, there are still people who don't have enough to eat, and are so hungry that they are skin and bones.

So I can't bear to eat this loaf of bread, and I'm willing to starve with them, even starve to death together."

"Sir, I don't think your irony is very appropriate," the old man shook his head. "Can you consider the monkey as livestock? What it has done in these three Jiazi (a period of sixty years), it is more like a person than most so-called people."

"Okay, then let's change the example.

I have a luxury car by my side, and there is expensive red wine and caviar in front of me, and I think of people on earth who are starving, and I can't bear to eat it, and I decide to starve with them, and starve to death with them.

If you eat such good things, if you drive such a good car, someone will point at your nose and scold you, scolding you for giving the money you use for enjoyment to people in poor areas."

The old man stopped, as if thinking.

Zhou Ze didn't stop and continued to walk forward.

Finally, the old man caught up.

"I'm still very curious, why did you stop it?"

"What do you think I should do?"

"Pretend you didn't see it," the old man replied. "You are a ghost servant, a guardian of the rules of the underworld in the mortal world. The reason why referees are respected is because of their neutrality. Once they are both referees and athletes, the game collapses."

"I don't understand what you mean," Zhou Ze stopped and looked at the old man, this old thing who was dressed so meticulously that he couldn't help but want to tear his suit wrinkled.

"The meaning is very simple. The two examples you gave before just wanted to show that you were just making your own choices at that time, and the words I just came up to ask were just the noise of outsiders."

"I thought you didn't understand."

"I understand, you are a good person," the old man repeated, "A good 'person'."

Standing from the perspective of a 'person', that's indeed the case.

"So, you deliberately came up just to give me a definition?" Zhou Ze looked at the old man, his ten fingers were still burning hot, "I didn't know that trouble would come so quickly after picking up that thing."

Before, the little loli said that she was a bright light in the dark night, but now Zhou Ze felt like he was a burning bomb in the dark night.

The old man shook his head and said, "I am not your trouble. In fact, I am a servant left by the master, and you have just inherited the master's identity card.

Therefore, my seal was lifted, I woke up, and then I found you. By the way, I observed you for a while."

"Picked up a good thing, and then sent an old grandpa?"

A smile appeared on the corner of Zhou Ze's mouth,

"Should I say another sentence:

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river, don't bully a young man for being poor?

And then sigh, how terrifying?

That seems more appropriate."

"I don't understand, sir," the old man said frankly.

"You need to read more," Zhou Ze reminded.

"Okay." The old man nodded solemnly, "I've been taught."

Ahead, they encountered another red light, and the two stopped again.

"Sir, you have inherited the master's identity card, so naturally you have become my new master." The old man said, and at the same time, he bowed and saluted Zhou Ze.

Zhou Ze stood there, looking at the old man.

Today has been a really rich day,

He picked up a certificate, killed a monkey, and even an old grandpa popped up, saying he wanted to recognize him as his master.

Zhou Ze wasn't overjoyed, but just felt a little troubled. He couldn't see clearly what the purpose of this suddenly emerging old man was.

"The master once gave an instruction, asking me to tell his successor." The old man said again, "Of course, this sentence is left for you, and it is also left for me, this servant.

"Speak."

"If his successor is a good person, then..."

"Puff!"

The sound of a sharp object piercing the body came out,

Zhou Ze lowered his head in astonishment,

He saw the old man's hand directly piercing his chest,

So decisively,

So abruptly,

He didn't even have the slightest mental preparation.

Slowly, Zhou Ze's feet left the ground, the old man raised his arm, and Zhou Ze was also lifted up by him.

Under the dim streetlights, Zhou Ze could clearly see the blood on his body flowing down the old man's arm, staining half of the old man's suit red.

"The master said, if his successor is a good person, then kill him and wait for the next one."

The old man still said these words very calmly,

He wasn't killing someone,

As if he was throwing garbage,

Like a picky chef choosing his side dishes, discarding them and replacing them with new ones if they didn't suit him.

And Zhou Ze was the garbage that was inexplicably thrown away.

Blood kept flowing, and Zhou Ze's broken fingernails grew out, but before Zhou Ze could make his next move, the old man's hand that pierced Zhou Ze's palm suddenly exerted force,

For a moment,

Zhou Ze felt huge pain coming from all his limbs and bones, and Zhou Ze's body also convulsed, unable to fight back at all.

"I'm sorry, sir, a minute ago, you might have thought that today was your lucky day, because you got something you really wanted.

I don't know if you noticed the blurred white spots under the name and position columns of the certificate.

You might think that what is hidden under the white spots is the master's name and position;

In fact, that's indeed the case.

But there's more than just that,

There are also the names and positions of the eight successors before you."

The old man continued to say calmly.

"They...they...they...were...all...good people?"

Zhou Ze opened his mouth, and blood kept overflowing from the corners of his mouth. He felt like a salted fish being hung on a tree branch,

Slowly, waiting to dry in the wind.

"No, sir, you are the only good person among these nine people," the old man replied.

"Then...why...they...also...died..."

"Because when I asked them if they were a good person, they all felt that answering 'yes' seemed more beneficial."

The old man tilted his head slightly, revealing a hint of helplessness,

"And then,

They all died."