«Will an ordinary NPC also be favored by the Creator?»
He Fang never expected that his NPCs would become smart enough to start actively thinking about how to successfully establish contact with the outside world, even considering the use of airplanes for aerial entry and exit from the city.
Thanks to the huge gains from opening up the new map, the entire research institute became busier than ever. The staff were divided into different groups: one started researching weapons, another focused on aircraft construction, and a third worked on analyzing and modifying all the excavated materials.
However, He Fang was somewhat troubled.
These things could have been easily done by him—he could simply search for the information online and input it into the game. Just like how the game already knew about reinforced concrete, plastic production, and the principles of electricity. It even had functional items like mobile phones and televisions within the city. All these things could be quickly researched by simply browsing the internet and then directly entering them into the game.
Normally, to save time, He Fang would have done it this way. But because of the sensory simulation pod, he had come into very realistic contact with these NPCs and was now genuinely curious about their intelligence. He decided to wait a while to see if the NPCs could actually create the things he needed and wanted.
But before that, He Fang decided to pave the roads in the newly expanded area. Moreover, constructing an Armed Forces Department and a Weapons Development Facility had become urgent. If an external invasion was really necessary, he couldn’t just send the police department to handle it.
He Fang used the game interface to lay down a simple road in the newly opened area, mapped out areas for construction, and left a large portion of land for residential zones. He marked all the divisions and then immediately began constructing the Weapons Development Facility and Armed Forces Department within the designated boundaries.
Using the game’s overview perspective, He Fang saw that many small NPCs were driving cranes and other needed resources along the road, starting construction right away. Their movements were extremely fast, almost like super acceleration. He Fang couldn’t help but chuckle. Could it be that the high attributes of all the NPCs in his city were because they had been living such accelerated lives?
This sudden thought crossed He Fang’s mind. He entered the talent exchange market and decided to select a leader for the Armed Forces Department.
The Weapons Development Facility was part of the research institute’s subsidiary operations. With its established system, it focused more on scientific research. He Fang planned to leave the management of the Weapons Development Facility to the research institute, allowing them to send a candidate to take charge once the institute was completed.
His city had an all-encompassing school system—primary, secondary, and even university education. After all, with only 20,000 people in the city, the education system didn’t need to be overly complicated. Every batch of graduates would search for jobs in the talent exchange market. Many students attempted to enter the civil service, taking exams for key departments. The students who succeeded in these exams often displayed unique qualities.
He Fang recalled that when he initially established the finance ministry, he had chosen a middle-aged man to be the minister. The man appeared mature and composed and his attributes showed a strong sensitivity to economics. Though the finance ministry had that title, most of the financial decisions were actually made by He Fang himself, so he didn’t mind the minister’s age and just placed him in the position.
Now, thinking back, He Fang suspected that the finance minister he had placed earlier might have retired and then Lu Hu, with her abilities, rose to the position.
At this point, He Fang recalled that the police chief he had set up was supposed to be a young, justice-minded individual with good combat skills and high development potential.
The more he thought about it, the more something seemed off. He clearly remembered that he had set the police chief to be Qi Jingwei, a handsome young man—but now, Qi Jingwei had grown into this burly man! Was “development potential” referring to body and face growth? After all, Qi Jingwei’s height and physique were quite large.
While He Fang thought about this, he began setting up filters for selecting NPCs in the talent market. As he added new criteria, he paused for a moment before deciding to tag the candidates with labels like “justice” and “love for peace”.
Looking at the higher-ups he had encountered, each of them was a staunch pro-war faction, while the research institute represented by Zhu Yan was a standard neutral party. He Fang felt that it was still necessary to balance things out with a justice-minded and peace-loving figure, to properly guide the army’s correct worldview.
When selecting NPCs, He Fang paid great attention to their growth potential. It didn’t matter much if their starting attributes were low; what mattered most was how long they could govern.
In “Ruins Without Restart”, there is a characteristic to how NPCs are selected: the longer an NPC stays in a position, the more corresponding tags they will accumulate and the development of their area will improve. Since it’s a completely infrastructure-based game, there will be no issues of NPCs suspecting each other; all NPCs diligently complete their tasks.
However, He Fang hadn’t specifically selected NPCs before. Instead, he allowed them to develop naturally, giving them a direction to strive towards. After all, while having a good NPC manager could accelerate overall development, it couldn’t compare to the speed of expanding territory and building new cities.
This time, He Fang decided to carefully select his candidates, a decision influenced by his genuine, hands-on experience with each unique NPC personality through the sensory simulation pod. Even though he knew these might just be data, each NPC could think independently. If possible, he hoped to see his NPCs live good lives.
It was the first time He Fang so thoroughly reviewed all the data and personnel. While he had previously made detailed selections, this time was far more meticulous.
He went through the process of filtering from all aspects, conducting both first and second rounds of selections. He was so overwhelmed by the process that he even logged off for a short break, grabbed a drink, and replenished his sugar levels to soothe his overworked brain. His eyes were filled with data and tags.
Eventually, He Fang’s favorite candidate turned out to be a young man who had just graduated from university. The young man had great growth potential and solid basic attributes. He also had athletic skills and multiple commendations for doing good deeds. In the photo, his somewhat innocent and cute gaze made He Fang hesitate. After all, the boy’s appearance seemed soft and vulnerable. If he were suddenly placed in a leadership position, it might be hard to gain respect from others. But within the boy’s tags, there was one that caught He Fang’s attention: strong organizational ability.
Opening up the tag for strong organizational ability, He Fang saw a lot of instances where the young man had led classmates and peers to improve together, do charity work, or spread warmth. He looked almost like the type of social butterfly He Fang had never dared to associate with in real life.
He Fang hesitated. From every angle, the boy met the traits He Fang was looking for, and his loyalty was average. However, when he looked at the boy’s face, He Fang suddenly thought of Qi Jingwei and how much he had changed since his initial design. He resolutely pressed the selection button.
Still, even with athletic skills, it didn’t guarantee that the young man could lead an army. Suddenly, a pure black shadow flashed in He Fang’s mind. The man was serious and highly skilled, seemingly aloof and cold, with the highest attributes, and it appeared that he didn’t get along well with Qi Jingwei. If He Fang assigned Chong Xiao and Chong Ying—two brothers who were experts with various weapons and had backgrounds in the police department—to the armed forces department, they might serve as good support for the young man.
If the young man’s organizational abilities were truly strong, perhaps he could use his personal charm to influence Chong Xiao and boost his loyalty a little. The loyalty values of his NPCs really made He Fang uneasy.
He thought it was a good idea, but still, he needed to consult with Qi Jingwei before making any decisions. He couldn’t just ask for people without any consideration.
After thinking for a moment, He Fang decided not to directly assign the two brothers to the young man. Instead, he gave the young man a list of candidates for the armed forces department and allowed him to make his own decisions and recruit people. He wanted to see if the young man, with his intelligent NPC abilities, could form a powerful armed forces department on his own.
Once the armed forces department was successfully established and began to take shape, He Fang could start considering forming a navy and army, and later think about national defense.
At the moment, without money, He Fang’s defense construction plan had to be put on hold. However, after seeing the Rainbow Squad’s extraordinary combat strength and the belief value consumption of the Divine Lord, as well as receiving affirmation and shock from Min Zhizhou, and having the outer Nightmare Beast Forest as cover, He Fang felt that the defense construction plan could be temporarily set aside.
Before leaving the talent market panel, He Fang took one last look at the young man’s name on the panel: Yuan Zhiran.
After He Fang left the talent exchange market, he unconsciously glanced at the newly opened land he was developing, only to suddenly see a group of small NPCs starting to build houses in the area he had designated for the main residential buildings.
He Fang’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t constructed any houses yet. His national treasury was nearly empty, with most of the funds already spent on the weapons development facility and the armed forces department, and some money was set aside for emergencies to avoid sudden disasters or misfortunes.
But the money he had left wasn’t enough to build an entire residential district. So why were these workers already starting construction?
Confused, He Fang looked at his national treasury. The money hadn’t decreased, which made him even more puzzled. Why had these NPCs started building without any money?
Suddenly, it occurred to him. He opened the event log. Sure enough, he found the answer there.
Minister of Finance, Lu Hu, had put the new planned area up for tender, waiting for construction companies to bid.
Minister of Finance, Lu Hu, successfully assigned the first phase of the new planned area to XXX Construction Company for development.
Minister of Finance, Lu Hu, successfully assigned the second phase of the planned area to YYY Construction Company for development.
XXX Construction Company successfully signed a contract with XXX Building Company and obtained a presale permit.
Minister of Finance, Lu Hu…
He Fang stared at the series of messages in shock, unable to speak for a while.
How were these little NPCs so amazing? They even managed to figure out presale permits. He clicked on the construction company’s details and watched as their funds gradually grew. It then hit him: his city was overcrowded.
As the population of the city grew, there weren’t enough residential buildings, but the population kept increasing. As a result, housing prices were climbing as well.
Now that he had planned a large section of land for residential buildings, were these little NPCs already eager to build houses and make money off of them?
He Fang scratched his chin, suddenly thinking how hard life was for people in the real world. Who would have thought that even in a game, he would have to watch these struggling little NPCs worrying about housing?
But wait… had he paid the water and electricity bills recently?
By the time He Fang exited the game, the moon was high in the sky. He turned off the game device, feeling exhausted. It had been a mentally taxing day. Despite playing a game, it felt as though the game was playing him.
He Fang opened the window slightly. A gentle breeze swept through, and the entire city was quiet in the deep night. Although He Fang had always focused on building the city center in “Ruins Without Restart”, he actually lived on the outskirts. It was probably late at night, and everything around him was silent.
He had always lived alone, eating alone, and playing games alone. Even while gaming, he never engaged in socializing within the game. His only connection to the outside world was through the videos he made.
Even though the comments on his videos were constantly rising, He Fang didn’t feel like he was truly connecting with anyone. He knew very well that the messages online weren’t truly linked to him. In his videos, he was humorous and entertaining, but in real life, he struggled to express himself clearly. People only saw what he wanted them to see.
These viewers would leave comments saying they liked him, but then they would turn around and do the same for someone else. He Fang was happy about their comments, but he wouldn’t feel sad about their inconsistency.
He was very self-aware and knew that the real him would never be liked by others.
But—
This was the first time He Fang had felt valued in the game.
If at first, the NPCs followed his orders because of the game mechanics, now his thoughts and requests were being taken seriously by the NPCs, and they were making an effort for him. It suddenly gave He Fang the feeling that he was truly cared for, that he had something to rely on instead of fighting alone.
He Fang lay in bed, blinking his eyes as sleepiness overtook him.
He could sleep in tomorrow. The residents in his city must love their lives too, and he didn’t have to worry about defense all day. He’d wash the sheets and blankets in the morning. He had been so busy with the game lately that he had forgotten how tired he really was.
He Fang slowly closed his eyes.
The alarm clock rang early the next morning. The handsome young man reached out to turn off the alarm and sleepily scratched his soft short hair. He began groggily dressing and washing up, then immediately went out to prepare breakfast for his family.
There were four people in his family: his parents and his younger sister. The fresh-faced young man put on an apron and began preparing breakfast for the family.
“Zhiran, what do you want for breakfast?” His father, who had just woken up, came out of the bedroom, stretching as if doing his morning exercise.
“Toast, eggs, milk, and ham sausages,” Yuan Zhiran said, his hands never stopping their work.
At that moment, Mother Yuan was in another room urging her daughter, who was still in bed, to wake up and get ready for school.
“Did you get any interview invitations?” Father Yuan asked.
“Yes, I have two interviews today, one in the morning and one in the afternoon,” Yuan Zhiran replied. His grades were good, his physical education scores were excellent, and he was also known for his enthusiasm in helping others. As a fresh graduate, his resume looked impressive, which gave him many opportunities. His family wasn’t worried, as his father simply asked out of curiosity; he wasn’t concerned about his talented son finding a job.
“Ah, don’t be too picky, jobs are hard to come by nowadays. The population is growing and the competition is fierce. If you get a good offer, don’t hesitate. Opportunities like this don’t come around often,” Mother Yuan interjected, urging the father and son duo, who weren’t in a rush, to hurry up.
“My brother won’t have trouble finding a job. He’ll be the one doing the choosing,” Yuan’s younger sister chimed in, laughing as she reached for Yuan Zhiran’s phone. “Maybe there’s another interview invite right now.”
“Little brat, all you do is play with your brother’s phone. What are you playing with early in the morning? Hurry up and comb your hair,” Mother Yuan scolded her daughter, but her tone was far from strict.
“Ah!” Suddenly, the rhythm of the busy household was broken by Yuan’s younger sister’s surprised cry. Yuan Zhiran immediately turned off the stove and rushed to his sister’s side. “What happened? Are you feeling unwell?”
“Brother, brother, look at this!” Yuan’s sister exclaimed excitedly, showing him her phone.
Yuan Zhiran, puzzled, took the phone and looked at the message on the screen.
“What’s going on?” Father Yuan, curious, leaned over to see the message too.
But Yuan’s sister, in absolute delight, excitedly said, “My brother got an official employment notification from the government! Tell them, tell them!”
Seeing his sister so astonished, Mother Yuan grew anxious as well and urged, “What’s there to tell? Stop making us wait!”
“They said my brother was personally chosen by the Creator to go work as the Minister of the Armed Forces Department in the newly expanded area! The Creator chose him! Ahhh, my brother was chosen by the Creator!” Yuan’s sister nearly went wild with joy.
“Really? No way, are you sure you’re not mistaken?” Mother Yuan asked, her face full of shock. She snatched the phone from Yuan Zhiran without even noticing his stunned expression and carefully checked the message several times. Then, she screamed out in astonishment, “It’s true, it’s really true!”
“Could it be a prank?” Father Yuan, equally stunned by the sudden news, asked in disbelief.
“Who would dare make a joke about the Creator?” Mother Yuan shot him a sharp look and then broke into a joyful smile. “Ah, I can’t believe our Zhiran actually caught the Creator’s attention! Our Zhiran is truly something else, to be recognized by the Creator! I think I might just start believing in the Divine Lord!”
Father Yuan, watching his wife beam with joy, turned to look at Yuan Zhiran, only to see him in a daze.
Immediately, Father Yuan’s face darkened, and he sternly scolded, “Yuan Zhiran, you don’t want to do this, do you?”
Startled by his father’s voice, Yuan Zhiran jumped up, quickly responding, “How could I not want to? Of course, I’m happy! I’m so happy! I never imagined that the Creator would value me like this! I—I can’t believe it!”
In the city, who didn’t want to work for the Creator? The Creator was a spiritual pillar to them, something ingrained in their very DNA from the moment they had memories.
Now, with this sudden joyful news, Yuan Zhiran couldn’t help but feel like he might have gone crazy thinking so much about the Creator. That was why this strange idea had come true.
“Quick, what’s for breakfast? Honey, you make it. Son, hurry up and change your clothes, we need to head to the government office right away!” Father Yuan ordered. Instantly, everyone was bustling with excitement, each one moving happily in response.
Pushed back into his bedroom, Yuan Zhiran began rummaging through his wardrobe, searching for his most formal and best-looking clothes. He wanted to present himself in the brightest and most refreshing way to accept the task given to him by the Creator.
However, once at the government office, it was all about handling paperwork—signing documents, with everyone working methodically and efficiently, like emotionless machines. Yuan Zhiran, in perfect harmony with the atmosphere, made sure not to cause any inconvenience to anyone. Once his paperwork was processed, the staff members would smile at him and congratulate him for being chosen by the Creator.
Yuan Zhiran felt a bit embarrassed. Although he didn’t understand why the Creator had suddenly chosen him, he knew that since it was a task from the Creator, he would give his best effort.
The only disappointment was that he didn’t get to see the Creator in person.
In fact, Yuan Zhiran had a little secret, one that no one knew—not even his parents. He was always eager to help others and was enthusiastic about charity work. The reason behind it was the Creator.
When he was still a child, he had once seen the Creator. Back then, the Creator hadn’t truly descended to the city yet. The Creator’s model had been sitting alone on a bench at the side of the street, quietly watching everyone around. It looked calm and peaceful.
Everyone else ignored the Creator, but even as a young child, Yuan Zhiran knew that it wasn’t the Creator itself, but rather the Creator’s eyes—those eyes were placed there to watch over them.
The people were all NPCs, functioning in a fixed pattern. The adults were very skilled at concealing their curiosity and desire to approach the Creator, always following a set routine with precise steps, even measuring the distance between their strides.
Yet, despite knowing what he was supposed to do, young Yuan Zhiran couldn’t help but be fascinated by the Creator. So, he came up with a plan: using his young age as an advantage, he began playing with a ball near the Creator.
He stood across the street from the Creator, holding the ball. He wasn’t good at soccer, so he was awkward in his movements. As the ball rolled around, he kept glancing at the Creator.
The Creator was mesmerizing in a way that was hard to explain. Just sitting there quietly, Yuan Zhiran found himself involuntarily drawn to look in the Creator’s direction.
It seemed like the Creator noticed him, turning to look at him, continuously observing him.
This made the young Yuan Zhiran feel flustered. In his panic, he accidentally kicked the ball into the street, where it rolled right into the middle of the road.
He became frantic. That ball had been a special gift from his parents, who had only just agreed to buy it for him. Now, he had done something out of line in front of the Creator. The fear and guilt overwhelmed him.
His mind was clouded. Without thinking, he instinctively rushed towards the street to retrieve the ball. But then, he heard the sound of oncoming vehicles.
At that moment, he panicked. In the city, all the vehicles moved in a fixed pattern. Accidents were impossible. NPCs never crossed the street. Since it wasn’t a red light, the cars wouldn’t stop. There was a real possibility that a bug would appear right in front of the Creator—something that shouldn’t happen.
In that instant, Yuan Zhiran regretted his actions. Why had he let his curiosity about the Creator get him into this dangerous situation?
But then, he saw the Creator stand up.
The Creator stood up, carefully watched the vehicles, and crossed the street to pick up his ball. Then, with even more care, the Creator approached him.
The Creator placed the ball on the ground. Just at that moment, Yuan Zhiran saw a few lines of text appear above the Creator.
“Is this a task? I don’t see a task icon.”
“Is this a random little Easter egg? This kind of Easter egg isn’t good, is it? If I didn’t see it, wouldn’t that have caused an accident?”
“Can the game stop making these creepy Easter eggs? If I hadn’t seen it, my resident might have disappeared. Every resident is precious, okay?”
At that moment, Yuan Zhiran suddenly realized that all those lines of text were words from the Creator. His unusual actions had been interpreted as a random task by the Creator.
Immediately, Yuan Zhiran took advantage of the situation. He pulled out a chocolate candy that he had just received earlier that day and hadn’t been able to eat. He opened his hand, intending to offer his only possession to the Creator, whom he respected most.
“Task reward: a piece of candy.” Text appeared above the Creator’s head again. “So cute.”
Yuan Zhiran tried hard not to blush, hoping the Creator wouldn’t find any flaw in his actions.
Suddenly, the Creator spoke, “Don’t play ball near the road in the future. It’s dangerous. Go play in a park farther from the street. If something happens to you, your parents will be really worried.”
Yuan Zhiran knew that the Creator was typing, but he wasn’t sure whether he should respond.
Then, more text appeared above the Creator’s head, “What am I even typing with an NPC here?”
The Creator eventually left with the chocolate. Yuan Zhiran could see the Creator’s back as text continued to float above his head.
“This candy seems like it’s from the game development company… Do they also make candy?”
All the NPCs knew that the Creator’s eyes could randomly appear in certain places to observe them with kindness.
At that time, Yuan Zhiran, while holding his ball, couldn’t understand why, even though the Creator treated him like an NPC, he still helped him by picking up the ball and returning it to him. There wasn’t any task icon floating above his head.
Afterward, he asked his parents about it. His parents scolded him for not listening and for wandering around in front of the Creator. He cried, still not understanding.
Over time, he always remembered that moment.
He engaged in charity work, hoping that when he helped, the Creator would notice him, to become a part of the Creator’s vision.
He also wondered if the Creator would remember that task that wasn’t a task and if the Creator would remember the candy he had given—a candy that meant so much to him.
Now, as an adult, and upon hearing that the Creator had successfully descended into the city, Yuan Zhiran finally understood what he had always wanted to discover. It was probably the feeling of awe from that moment when the Creator appeared before him.
The Creator knew clearly that they were NPCs. They were equally aware of it.
But the Creator he admired cherished the life of every NPC.
If the Creator could help an NPC, then as an NPC, how could he not help his fellow NPCs?
When Yuan Zhiran left, he saw the vehicle assigned to him. Now, he was someone who needed a car.
The driver was a temporary deputy minister assigned by the government, who would assist him with some tasks. After all, he was a complete newcomer with no experience, suddenly entrusted with such a heavy responsibility. He would need time to learn.
“Where is the Armed Forces Department?” Yuan Zhiran suddenly remembered this detail.
“It’s in the newly developed area. Still under construction, so it will take some time,” the deputy minister answered.
“Oh,” Yuan Zhiran thought of the recent miraculous events. It seemed that the Creator was preparing for future events.
Once the Armed Forces Department was completed, he would begin recruiting for the army city-wide. According to the government, the Creator seemed to want to expand the city’s borders and invade other cities.
Regarding this matter, Yuan Zhiran remained cautious. The city was developing well and the population was increasing. He didn’t understand why the Creator would need to invade other cities.
Moreover, the Creator had given him the files for two people and instructed him to win them over.
In Yuan Zhiran’s mind, the Creator was an incredibly gentle being. As for something like an invasion, which could bring about casualties and despair, the Creator must have more considerations in mind.
“I heard that someone from outside the city managed to obtain resident status. Do you know where he is?”
Yuan Zhiran received a surprising piece of information from the deputy minister: A person named Min Zhizhou, an outsider, was in the hospital.
Yuan Zhiran heard that Min Zhizhou had been severely injured during the last military exercise and was now recovering in the hospital. He bought some supplements at the supermarket near the hospital and decided to visit him to learn about the current situation of the outsiders and the Creator’s potential plan to invade.
As soon as he entered the hospital room, Yuan Zhiran noticed the variety of supplements stacked high by the window of Min Zhizhou’s bed, many of which were the same as the ones he had brought.
There was only Min Zhizhou in the room—a man who looked mature and steady but with a fragile and weak body. After glancing at him, he kindly said, “Put the stuff aside. Where are you from? Are you a researcher needing a sample?”
“Hello, Mr. Min. I’m the newly appointed head of the Armed Forces Department. My name is Yuan Zhiran,” Yuan Zhiran quickly introduced himself. Min Zhizhou appeared to have dealt with many departments before, making Yuan Zhiran feel like a naive rookie in comparison.
Min Zhizhou raised an eyebrow. “The Armed Forces Department is starting to recruit for the army?”
“Yes, yes,” Yuan Zhiran immediately confirmed. He was certain that Min Zhizhou must know a lot. After all, before the concept of a military force was written into their lives by the Creator, they had no idea what an army was for. Min Zhizhou hadn’t been written into this, but he still knew about the army. “I’ve heard that the army is being formed in preparation for an external invasion. I have a lot of questions.”
Min Zhizhou’s eyes showed understanding. He nodded, patted the bed, and said, “Come, come, I’ll tell you.”
“Thank you, thank you!” Yuan Zhiran was overjoyed, not expecting Min Zhizhou to be so approachable.
“No need to thank me.” Min Zhizhou’s smile didn’t fade.
After listening to Min Zhizhou’s introduction about the outside world, Yuan Zhiran’s expression was one of shock.
“Do people outside live so hard?” Yuan Zhiran asked.
Min Zhizhou seemed surprised. “You’re the first person to ask if it’s hard. It’s hard, of course. Living feels like being dead. Every day when you open your eyes, you have to start running again. The world is so big, but you don’t know where to escape to. Despair and pain are always spreading, and pain follows you like a shadow every day.”
Yuan Zhiran had watched He Fang’s live stream about the Nightmare Beasts, but he didn’t truly understand the torment caused by the Nightmare Beast Seed to ordinary humans. Once infected, it meant death. The person would completely lose themselves, becoming a carrier for spreading the seeds.
“This is the apocalypse,” Yuan Zhiran couldn’t imagine such a world. “What would the Creator do if he saw us being infected by Nightmare Beast Seeds and turning into Nightmare Beasts?”
“He would be very sad,” Min Zhizhou answered directly. “Since the moment he learned how terrifying the Nightmare Beast Seed is, he’s been constantly thinking about how to protect the residents inside the city. During that time, I was by his side. He looked very panicked and exhausted.”
Yuan Zhiran’s heart sank. He lowered his head. He suddenly realized that even though he had always admired the Creator, he hadn’t known how much the Creator truly valued them all.
“I don’t know if building the army for an invasion is the right thing to do. An invasion will surely bring war, and war will bring death. The Creator must have struggled deeply with this decision,” Yuan Zhiran said, his tone thoughtful. Before knowing about the outside world, he had believed the Creator was gentle, but now, after hearing about the situation outside, he wondered if the Creator’s gentle nature was what caused him so much pain.
“Do you not want to do it?” Min Zhizhou asked.
“I do,” Yuan Zhiran answered seriously, “I’m just thinking.”
“What are you thinking about?” Min Zhizhou asked.
“I’m thinking about why the Creator chose me. There are many people better than me in this world, yet the Creator still chose me. I want to repay the Creator’s expectations,” Yuan Zhiran didn’t understand, but he was trying hard to find an answer, to understand the reason the Creator chose him.
Min Zhizhou quietly sat by the bed, looking at the young man with a face full of innocence and an inability to conceal his emotions. He appeared naive and unacquainted with the hardships of the world. He hadn’t experienced much pain and still held unrealistic heroic fantasies. Such a rookie was clearly not fit to be a leader.
“Good luck,” Min Zhizhou muttered, not believing in this young man’s ability to lead the army. A leader of an army needs the right methods and abilities. While he didn’t know what others were thinking, he certainly didn’t think Yuan Zhiran was up to the task. He seemed like someone who was easily manipulated and overly naive.
“Ah, by the way, the Creator gave me two names, hoping I could recruit them to the Armed Forces Department.” Yuan Zhiran suddenly said, “Do you know anything about these two brothers, Chong Xiao and Chong Ying?”
“Pfft!” Min Zhizhou, who had been enjoying some milk from a gift, suddenly blew it all out.
