Chapter 685: Chapter 6: Pursuit (4,100 Words)

"After that, I kept following my master around, but to prevent the old man from recognizing my true identity, I had to hide my original lively personality and substitute all the knowledge and worldly wisdom in my mind with a sense of simplicity."

"I know, Ah You, you must be wondering why I didn’t find an opportune moment to confess to my master. That way I wouldn’t have to hide anymore and could also clear my father’s unjust charges."

"But you’re not in my shoes, so you definitely won’t understand my thoughts."

"The simplest reason—even if I did tell him, the teacher might not believe me."

Chen Zaikun shrugged, looked back at the moon outside the window, and said softly, "You should know that my master is fundamentally a very stubborn person. He will only stick to his own path and only believe in what he has seen with his own eyes."

"In his view, my father, Chen Fangjia, is a truly evil and extremely greedy guy, using the flesh and blood of the common people to pave his career path."

"And that is indeed the truth because that’s exactly what my father did. It’s just that... from his perspective, such sacrifices were necessary. He believed that only by standing at the top could he do something for the people."

"But aside from my father himself, my mother, and me, no one else knew this, and no one else would believe it could be the case."

"All the evidence was destroyed in that chaos."

"Without tangible proof, I had no way to convince the teacher to believe that my father was someone with similar ideals to him. That would be utterly ridiculous to him, and speaking it would only make him doubt my motives."

"Moreover... I always had a grudge against him. No matter how well he treated me, the fact that my father died at his hands is an unshakeable reality."

"So I decided to disguise myself, for only in this way could I continue to live without any worries."

"I disguised myself as a loyal dog who wouldn’t express any opinions... only obediently following orders. Overtly, I would not oppose my master, and not only that, I would fervently support him."

"I know, in doing so, he will likely not choose me as his successor. He does not like people who lack initiative, but I don’t care, because I never intended to become a leader through normal means from the beginning."

As he spoke, Chen Zaikun pinched his eye sockets and cheekbones with his hands, applying a little force. After a series of "crackling" sounds, his appearance suddenly changed.

The previously simple and honest farmer’s appearance disappeared.

In its place was a face as sharp as a sculpture.

His features didn’t change much, except the shape of his eyes slightly altered, turning from round to crescent-shaped hawk eyes, but the overall aura of the person underwent a massive transformation.

Without moving his shoulders or waist, he simply turned his head slightly, smiling as he looked at Yun You.

At that moment, the young girl truly understood what "wolf stared with hawk eyes" meant.

"To be honest, I’ve also imagined seeking revenge at one time... by lurking for a long time, allowing the teacher to trust me completely, thus providing me with the opportunity."

"But in the end, I gave up."

Chen Zaikun sighed lightly, shaking his head.

"When will revenge ever end? Revenge, unless like Ah You, you eradicate the root, will only perpetuate the hatred endlessly."

"Hence, from another perspective, I never betrayed him during his lifetime; I fulfilled a student’s duty."

"As for what happens after... that’s no longer under his control."

Upon hearing Chen Zaikun’s words, Yun You fell silent for a moment.

It took her a long while before she softly spoke, "So what do you plan to do next?"

"What to do, haven’t you already seen?"

Chen Zaikun pointed to the flourishing Nest City outside the window and said softly, "I will take over Jin and my father’s responsibilities, I will govern the organization well, and I will create an even more perfect new era than the world they dreamed of."

"I will continue to follow the master’s strategy, attempting to unite the entire planet, and do my utmost to suppress the Death God Organization and giant corporations, to create a better life for ordinary people."

"Maybe... this task is challenging, but I have inherited my father’s character; I will never give up, nor will I care about others’ opinions."

"I believe, Ah You, you will understand me, won’t you?"

"So..."

He extended his hand towards Yun You.

"Lend me a hand, I know you are the only student of my master without selfish motives, so I don’t want to take action against you."

"You can still remain as a commissar; the only change is the person you assist will now be me instead of the master."

Fairly speaking, the proposal Chen Zaikun made was quite generous for Yun You.

He inherently leans towards authoritarian rule and a Philosopher King regime, both of which emphasize centralized power.

He would gather as much power as possible, ensuring that he becomes the unique existence.

No one would be able to share his power and influence, not even relatives who once called each other brothers are exceptions.

Theoretically, this is how it is.

But now, he was willing to voluntarily share a portion of his power with Yun You.

For him, this was indeed a significant bargaining chip.

"So what do I need to do?"

Yun You didn’t immediately agree, she just looked up and silently asked, "Continue as a ’nail’, to disrupt our enemies?"