I'm not a drama god

Li Shangfeng's expression was somewhat strange.

Triple pay in a month... that was quite a lot back then. The average salary in the Imperial Observatory wasn't low, and with triple pay, one could probably earn... well... in a year.

One-third of a gold bar?

tsk...

It doesn't seem that great.

A few days ago, Li Shangfeng would have been absolutely tempted, but the situation is different now. You see, Li Shangfeng got three gold bars from Chen Ling alone... to put it in perspective, that would have taken him almost ten years in the Imperial Observatory.

Moreover, these three gold bars were real money in Li Shangfeng's pocket, immediately usable to expand his auto repair shop and grow his business... The profits generated in this process far exceeded the value of the three gold bars. From this perspective alone, working for someone else is never as satisfying as working for yourself.

Besides, what if, ten years later, the repair shop does well, and Chen Ling generously gives him a few gold bars?

After weighing the options in his mind for a moment, Li Shangfeng tentatively asked:

"You just said not to have casual contact with the outside world... what did you mean?"

"This plan involves a great deal of people. It's best not to let too many people know about your existence... Apart from me and Lord Chong, you can't easily contact anyone else."

"Then...what about my sister?"

“We can’t see her either,” Brand said without hesitation. “However, we can help you pay for her tuition…”

Li Shangfeng silently rolled his eyes in his mind.

He knew there was no point in continuing the negotiations. If the salary issue was extremely disappointing, then not being able to see Li Wanhua would completely kill any possibility of further negotiations... His sister, whom he had raised with such care, was just going to be abandoned like that?

And you're even paying for tuition... Who cares about your paltry sum of money?

Brand was about to say something more when Li Shangfeng spoke up first:

"I'm sorry, Lord Brand. I don't have such grand ambitions. For me, taking care of my sister, running my auto repair shop well, and making a good living is enough..."

"If there are any repair requests in the future, I'd be happy to help, but..."

"I'm not considering joining the Imperial Observatory for now."

Brand's face immediately froze.

Given Li Shangfeng's personality, speaking so politely to this extent was already the limit of courtesy... If it weren't for the power of the Imperial Observatory, he might have just rolled his eyes and left, spitting on the ground before he left.

After he finished speaking, he stood up and walked towards the entrance of the Imperial Observatory.

Even He Jing, who was standing to the side, was dumbfounded...

Is Li Shangfeng really that stubborn?

The more nonchalantly Li Shangfeng left, the uglier Brand's face became. He slammed his hand on the table, his anger burning fiercely inside him... He hadn't felt so humiliated in a long time.

He Jing hesitated before speaking, "Sir... what should we do next?"

Brand took a deep breath, a ruthless glint in his eyes.

They wanted to help the Alchemists achieve immortality using the Philosopher's Stone, and Li Shangfeng was an absolutely indispensable part of that. Since persuasion hadn't worked, they had no choice but to resort to force...

"Didn't he just want to take care of his sister, run the auto repair shop well, and live a good life..." Brand sneered.

"Then destroy all of this... When he has nowhere else to go, he will naturally know where his best place is."

……

Lee Laid had a nightmare.

He dreamt of his classmates whose faces he had personally gouged out. They seemed to come back to life, becoming invincible giants who viciously kicked him, their grotesque and twisted faces resembling demons.

"heresy!!"

"His hair was curly, like seaweed, so disgusting..."

"Don't you know? Li Lai's mother is the kind of person from a Western country, just like in the textbooks!"

"I've heard that Western women get fat and swollen like pigs when they get old. Won't your mother collapse the bed when she sleeps?"

"Maybe they're already so fat they can't even walk, hahaha..."

"I have heard that many Westerners died during the Great Catastrophe, and the rest became our slaves!"

"Did you hear that, Li Laid? From now on at school, you'll call us 'Master'! Otherwise, we'll throw you and your mother out of the realm! Hahahaha..."

"..."

Li Lede was trembling all over. He wanted to resist, but he couldn't muster any strength. As the other students made way, a figure carrying a hunting knife and with a full beard grabbed him by the collar like a demon.

"Heretics should die!!"

Li Lai De was utterly desperate. He closed his eyes helplessly, letting those people trample and curse at him, and letting the hunting knife cut into his body... But the next second, all those sounds disappeared.

He opened his eyes in confusion, only to see a figure draped in a theatrical robe standing amidst the broken limbs, its scarlet eyes turning to look at him...

"I've taken care of all this trash for you."

"I have high hopes for you..."

Looking at the figure in the opera costume, Li Lai De felt an indescribable feeling rising in his heart... even his tense, beating heart gradually calmed down.

But then, the figure in the opera robe coldly uttered the last two words, shattering his heart completely:

"heresy."

boom--!

Under the silent night sky, Li Laide sat bolt upright in a cold sweat!

His heart was pounding, and in the boy's deep blue eyes, there was only terror and pain. He remained like that for a long time before he looked around blankly...

He was still at the door of his own house.

The once cracked earth has now been completely restored to its original state, and the blood and corpses scattered on the ground have disappeared as if they had evaporated from the face of the earth... The quiet light shines through the window, and everything seems to have been just a nightmare.

But Li Laid knew very well that this was not a dream, because his body was still covered in blood and wounds.

However, the more serious wounds seemed to have already been treated and were no longer bleeding...

"I'm alive?"

Lee Layde's eyes were full of confusion.

He seemed to remember something and suddenly turned his head to look...

On the empty, silent grass, a figure draped in a theatrical robe sat alone... He gazed at the brightly lit Chengtian Realm, the prosperity and flourishing of the human world seemingly irrelevant to him. He was like a detached observer, sitting alone in the darkness, lost in thought.

The vermilion-colored earrings fluttered gently in the wind, and a familiar diary lay quietly beside him.