Chapter 158: Even the Houses Are Built Brand New

When all the supplies had been distributed, the villagers rushed over to thank Gu Zhiheng, and some even offered him money to pay for the goods.

Gu Zhiheng accepted their kind intentions, but he politely refused the money. He was not short of such a sum; rather, what he lacked was peace of mind and a stable place to settle down.

For the most part, his future days would be divided between his work and this village. Therefore, the village's future prosperity would ultimately benefit him as well.

"Village Chief, I’ve given it some thought. Building a single house costs one hundred and fifty thousand yuan, and there are currently twenty houses in the village, right?"

"Counting mine and the village committee office, that makes twenty-four sets in total. Building brand-new houses for all of them will cost three million six hundred thousand yuan. I intend to cover this expense, so let's have the entire village rebuilt with new houses!"

"Don't tell me it's not feasible. I simply want to live here with absolute peace of mind, and I hope you can live just as comfortably as I do. Don't worry about the money—I have plenty of it."

"I know what you're about to say, Village Chief. I will only go this far. Once the village roads and houses are built, I won't spend another single penny; the rest will depend on all of you."

"This is also a form of security for my integration into the village. In case you ever get displeased with me one day and try to chase me out, you're bound to spare me just because of these favors."

Gu Zhiheng could be utterly brazen at times. In order to secure his stay here permanently, he would stop at nothing, and even now, he didn't forget to sweet-talk and persuade the village chief.

Listening to Gu Zhiheng, the village chief completely lost his capacity to judge objectively. Gritting his teeth, he agreed, "Alright then, let's settle it this way. First thing tomorrow morning, I'll submit your documents to the town mayor so you can complete your residency registration in the village as soon as possible."

With those words, he took the architectural floor plans, detail drawings, and all of Gu Zhiheng's personal documents, turned around, and headed back home.

Heaven had shown mercy to them, and they had no reason to decline any further. Ye Zheng was the benefactor of Shanning Village.

The boy had only been here for two days, yet he was willing to spend millions for the village—something they wouldn't even dare to dream of.

However, since it had already happened, all they could do was accept it with gratitude. In the days to come, they would certainly take good care of this young man, Ye Zheng.

He wondered what kind of family could raise such an exceptional child, perfect in every conceivable aspect.

After bidding farewell to the village chief, Gu Zhiheng returned to the town. He still had a job interview early the next morning!

Oh right, from this moment on, he was going back to his former name.

Gu Zhiheng—this name would not appear for a long time, because he was currently doing all of this under the identity of Ye Zheng.

As his car drove away from the village, the village chief gathered all the villagers and informed everyone of Ye Zheng's intentions.

As expected, the villagers' initial reaction was identical to the village chief's. They found the matter utterly unbelievable and surreal.

Millions of yuan!

What an astronomical sum of money! Having lived in the village their entire lives, they wouldn't even dare to imagine it, yet someone was now willing to spend such a fortune just to pave their roads and build them new houses.

It was true—Shanning Village still relied on muddy dirt tracks, and the houses were still old-fashioned earthen dwellings. Everything appeared destitute and impoverished.

No wonder that boy Ye Zheng had offered to help them rebuild their homes; this place was simply too backward and impoverished, yet the cost of all this was truly staggering.

"Don't worry, that young man Ye Zheng has already finalized the matter. Once dawn breaks, work can officially begin."

"Everyone should accept this reality. Ye Zheng is the blessing of our village, our benefactor, and we must be grateful to him for the rest of our lives."

"It's getting late. Go back early and get some rest. First thing tomorrow morning, pack up your things, and the construction crew will start working directly upon arrival."

Around ten o'clock in the evening, the grand meeting finally came to an end. Everyone had, to varying degrees, come to terms with the reality of the situation.

It all felt like a dream, yet it was undeniably real—every single bit of it was real.

From now on, their village would no longer be the poorest one in the surrounding area. They, too, would be people living in brand-new houses, and their village would have a paved cement road leading straight to Wuzhen.

Ye Zheng returned to the town, washed up briefly, and lay down on the bed. He picked up his phone to send a message home to let them know he had arrived safely, and then texted Ye Fanghe.

Ye Zheng: [I'm doing great here. Go ahead and enjoy yourself, and come visit me for a drink when you have time.]

Ye Zheng: [This place is wonderful; it's the kind of place I love, and the villagers are very nice to me. I plan to stay here for a long time. Let my parents know so they won't worry.]

Ye Fanghe: [Got it, got it. Aunt and Uncle don't have time to bother with you; they just brought your sister's son back because her husband's family didn't want him anymore.]

Ye Fanghe: [The two children have changed their names. The girl is called Gu Qing, and the boy is called Gu Nian.]

Ye Fanghe: [I've got my eye on a young woman recently, and I plan to pursue her. I'm going to settle down and live a normal life in the mortal world too.]

Ye Zheng: [Good. Keep an eye on the family for me when you have time; I won't shortchange you on the rewards.]

Ye Fanghe: [Alright, get some rest early. As soon as I win your future sister-in-law's heart, I'll bring her over to visit you.]

Putting away his phone, he listened to the profound silence outside. A place far away from the city possessed a unique, soothing comfort.

He hoped that when he woke up, everything would proceed smoothly and the construction of Shanning Village could be put on the fast track without delay.

Compared to living in a hotel, he preferred having a place of his own. Only then would it feel like a home, bringing true freedom and peace of mind.

Gradually, the night grew as dark as ink, and Ye Zheng drifted into a deep sleep.

Naturally, because of Ye Zheng's presence, a radius of ten miles around had grown exceptionally quiet.

The wild spirits and fiends who usually loved to roam and stir up trouble at night had fled the very moment Ye Zheng set foot in this place.

They possessed an acute sense of self-preservation; going against the Red Spirit Lord was tantamount to courting death, so they figured running as far away as possible was the only safe option.

Ye Zheng remained entirely unaware of this; he simply assumed that the area was sparsely populated, which was why there were no ghosts or monsters around.

It seemed that everything had turned out quite differently from his expectations!

He slept reasonably well through the night—at least no one disturbed him while he was sleeping soundly, and nothing foolhardy came to bother him.

Thinking about how he was going to work the next day—living just like an ordinary person with a regular job—Ye Zheng felt a thrill of excitement even in his dreams.

He was full of anticipation for the prospect of living as an ordinary human being. At any rate, it was far more anticipated than being the lofty Red Spirit Lord; at the very least, it offered true freedom.

If he truly had a choice, he would spend this entire lifetime in the mortal world right here, until this mortal life came to an end.

If he could, he would rather be an ordinary mortal instead of that revered and haughty Divine Lord worshipped by all.

The night was still long, and Ye Zheng was sleeping soundly. Everything was moving in the direction of his aspirations, and he would eventually realize the life he desired.

He hoped that the people he cared about would live well, and likewise hoped that those around him would find happiness. He hoped his arrival could bring a miraculous new birth to a poverty-stricken little village.