Zhou Dezhang had just finished breakfast and was about to go to work at school when he heard his servants report that Zheng Yiliang was here to visit.

Soon Zheng Yiliang came over aggressively, and started yelling from a distance: "Jun Yu! Are we just going to do nothing?"

Zhou Dezhang sighed, thinking that his friend just couldn't keep his cool. He led him in and sat him down, then asked in a gentle voice, "Have you eaten? Do you want to eat more?"

Zheng Yiliang waved his hands unhappily, "I won't eat. I'm already full of anger!"

Zhou Dezhang pointed at him and said, "You have a quick temper."

Zheng Yiliang glared at him: "It's already this late, and you're still so calm!" He asked angrily: "Do you know what the newspapers are saying about Li Jingran now? The day before yesterday, the newspapers said that he was two-faced and heartless, and that he was a villain who only cared about whoever gave him milk. Yesterday, the newspapers said that he was lustful and a playboy, and that he threatened decent women, and that he was a well-known rogue in Fengtian. Those were all very detailed. If those unscrupulous tabloids continue to make up stories like this, Li Jingran's reputation will really be infamous!"

Zhou Dezhang also frowned, with a hint of disgust in his eyes, but he still said, "I sent a telegram to Li Jingran, and he said he would handle it himself and told us not to worry."

Zheng Yiliang was anxious: "He said he would solve it himself, but it's been three or four days, and the disgusting words in the newspapers are still continuing. He hasn't even published an article to clarify the matter. How can we not be anxious!"

"After so long, no one would believe him even if he clarified the matter!"

How could Zhou Dezhang not understand the truth behind this? He just said: "I believe Li Jingran knows what's going on."

Zheng Yiliang's eyes flickered slightly, and he looked at him strangely, "You don't really believe what's written in the newspaper, do you?"

Zhou Dezhang didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Who do you think I am? I know exactly what kind of person Li Jingran is."

After all, he is over forty years old. If he can't even see through a teenager, then he has lived like a dog.

Zhou Dezhang recalled his past interactions with the young man and couldn't help but sigh, "No matter what Li Jingran's past was like, the Li Jingran we know is a young genius with extraordinary talent and great ambitions. The Li Jingran we interact with is also this kind of Li Jingran. As for his past, what does it have to do with us?"

Zheng Yiliang nodded silently and bit his cheek. "Tomorrow...if Li Jingran doesn't take action tomorrow, I will take action myself! My temper is not good enough to sit back and watch my friends being splashed with dirty water and remain indifferent!"

…

…

Li Tingfang sat silently in the main seat. Below him sat two rows of people, all of whom were elders of the Li family.

When the servant came in, he saw that the master's face was so gloomy that water could drip out of it, and he was obviously suppressing his anger. The elders of the clan also had unfriendly faces and fierce eyes.

The servant shuddered, lowered his head and dared not look again, and said in a voice as thin as a mosquito: "Master, someone is coming."

Li Tingfang snorted coldly, "Tell him to get in here!"

A few breaths later, a slightly plump middle-aged man walked up. He was probably in his thirties or forties, with sharp eyes, thin lips, and a hooked nose. He looked mean and ungrateful.

He met the gloomy gazes of the two rows of elders on his left and right without changing his expression, and bowed to Li Tingfang, who was at the top, and asked in a deep voice, "I wonder why the chief called me here?"

Li Tingfang sneered: "Li Tingye, don't pretend now! You know why I called you!"

Li Tingye panicked, but a surprised expression appeared on his face, "Where did the clan leader get this from?"

Li Tingfang was too lazy to waste time talking to him and said directly: "I don't care whether you really don't understand or pretend not to understand, you should immediately publish an advertisement in the newspaper and clarify the attacks on Jing Ran in the name of Jing Ran's father and restore his reputation."

Li Tingye's face darkened. "Could it be that the newspapers are wrong? Let's not talk about how many ridiculous things he did before. It's obvious that he contradicted and slandered his stepmother, and kidnapped his sister who was engaged. It put my Li family in an unjust position. Even if I am his father, I can't go against my conscience and say that this incident didn't happen. It's normal for righteous people in the newspapers to speak out and condemn it."

Although his second son's sudden statement in the newspaper disrupted all his plans, it also created a good opportunity for him to completely control his eldest son. If that beast wants to resolve this matter, he must apologize to him before he can show mercy and let him go.

"How foolish!" This time, it was not Li Tingfang who was sitting in the first seat who spoke up, but the clan elder who was sitting on his left. He stood up and pointed at Li Tingye vigorously, his beard trembling with anger: "Do you think that because Li Jingran has a bad reputation, your reputation as a father will be good?!"

Li Tingye was silent for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said, "If a son is not well educated, it is the fault of his father. I am also responsible for the child's current state. I will call him home and discipline him properly in the future." That little bastard relied on the support of Li Tingfang, the old bastard, and dared to ignore him! He was going to let him taste the consequences of disobeying his elders!

Another elder stood up and angrily shouted, "Discipline him! His reputation will be ruined by then! We finally have a talented person in this generation of the Li family. Is it going to be ruined because of your inaction?!"

Li Tingye argued: "He was wrong in this matter, and since he did something wrong, he must accept the punishment..."

Li Tingfang finally couldn't listen any more and slammed the table hard, looking at Li Tingye with eyes that seemed to be spitting fire: "Idiot! You are so stupid! I really don't understand how an idiot like you could give birth to a son as smart as Li Jingran!"

Although Li Tingye was intimidated by Li Tingfang's former majesty and did not dare to retort, there was still a clear look of dissatisfaction in his eyes.

Li Tingfang was almost laughing out of anger. In order to avoid hitting Li Tingye's head, he turned sideways respectfully and said with a cupped hand, "Second Uncle, tell him."

The person he called his second great-uncle was the old man sitting in the first seat below his right hand. He had been keeping his eyelids drooped and did not speak, but now he lifted his eyelids and glanced at Li Tingye. The gleam in his eyes made Li Tingye dare not underestimate him.

The old man's name is Li Dehui, he is 98 years old this year, he is the oldest and the most senior person in the Li family. Although he looks old and decrepit now, he usually stays at home with his grandchildren and doesn't care about worldly affairs, but Li Tingye doesn't dare to look down on him.

Li Dehui was a Jinshi in the Qing Dynasty and held the second-rank official position. He served three emperors successively and had seen countless storms in his life. He was a wise man among men.

"I know you have always disliked the eldest son and favored the second son born to your second wife." Li Dehui drooped his eyelids and slowly rolled a walnut with his right hand: "After all, Li Jingran's previous behavior was too absurd. It seems that his future is naturally not as good as that of the hardworking and studious second son. It is normal that you don't like him."

Li Tingye breathed a sigh of relief and agreed with a smile: "Although a father should treat his children equally, how can all ten fingers be equal? My eldest son is a rogue, not only does he indulge in eating, drinking, whoring and gambling, but he also started smoking opium. I asked him to quit smoking, but he not only talked back to his stepmother, but also kidnapped his own sister and ran away from home... He was not at peace in Peking, and I don't know how many people he offended with his articles. He was previously imprisoned and became a bad writer banned by the authorities..."

Li Dehui listened silently to Li Tingye's accusation of Li Jingran's past crimes. He only raised his eyelids and glanced at Li Tingye after the last sentence fell. "Are you done? Then let me say a few words."

"If you want to teach your son a lesson and don't want to publish a clarifying article, that's fine." Li Dehui raised his eyes and met Li Tingye's overjoyed look. His cloudy eyes suddenly became sharp and intimidating: "It's the same if I lock you up and find someone to publish an article in your name."

Li Tingye was so shocked that sweat immediately broke out on his forehead. He forced a smile and said, "What are you talking about, Second Uncle? You can't make such a joke."

Li Dehui smiled and looked at him with a cold look: "Joke? I never joke."

He stood up, put his hands behind his back, and asked softly, "Why did Li Jingran, who had been a rogue for more than ten years, change his character drastically once he left you, and write such a brilliant article?"

"Do you know who Li Jingran made friends with in Peking? Do you know that he was finally bailed out by Marshal Xue after being imprisoned? Do you know how many gentlemen have written articles praising his articles? Do you know how many years it has been since my Li family has produced such a young genius?"

"I don't ask you to be the first to discover the talented horse. Now that the talented horse has shown his talent and shines brightly, can't you just quietly support him?"

"Do you think that no one can see that you are behind this? Do you think..." He chuckled, and his voice became softer: "Who do you think you are?"

Li Tingye's face was very clear and innocent, but he still tried hard to refute: "I know my own son very well. He can't write such an article. It must be..."

Li Dehui interrupted him with a smile, "Ghostwriter? Li Tingye, you are really living a dog's life at your age. If I were you, I would just strangle myself to death with a rope. How can you be so stupid as to have the courage to live to this day? Do you think you are worthy of being a stumbling block for me, Li Jiayingju? Even if you are his father, you are not worthy."

He did not give Li Tingye a chance to refute. He looked at him with deep eyes that were particularly powerful. "It's fine if you're stupid, but you still want to drag the entire Li family into the abyss. Why don't you think about why your eldest son is so different now?"

He took a breath and continued to question, "You favor your concubine over your wife, and your second wife is vicious. Li Jingran is so young, but he can think of ways to defile himself to protect himself. Even I couldn't do this when I was young, with such a strong mind to endure humiliation."

"Why don't you think about this? With this boy's character and methods, if he really offended the Li family because of you, there are still decades to go. How can we know that he won't destroy the Li family?"

Li Tingye sneered: "Just him?"

Li Dehui smiled: "Just him. When I was an official, there was a family under my command who treated their illegitimate son harshly. Do you know what happened to that family in the end?"

Li Tingye swallowed: "...what?"

"Later, the bastard endured humiliation for twenty years and finally became the top scholar in the imperial examination. He entered the court and rose rapidly to become an official. The legitimate family's path to the imperial examination was cut off, and the whole family had to rely on the bastard for their livelihood." Li Dehui looked at him kindly: "Do you want my Li family to be like this?"

Li Tingye's face turned pale, but he still stubbornly retorted: "Second uncle thinks too highly of him! He is just a kid writing a few articles for fun, and it is still unknown whether he will become a dragon or a worm in the future!"

For the first time, there was no smile on Li Dehui's face.

It was also the first time that I stopped grinding walnuts.

He opened his eyelids and slowly scanned Li Tingye and the other elders, finally stopping at Li Tingfang. "Although Li Jingran is young, with his talent and character, he will surely become a great man! The most important thing is that he has a burning desire to serve his country, so no matter what happens, our Li family must protect him!"

Li Tingfang nodded slightly, and Li Dehui smiled with satisfaction.

He glanced at Li Tingye, who was confused and somewhat unconvinced, and a deep disgust flashed in his eyes.

He waved his hand as if swatting away a fly, and said to the servants guarding the door: "Lock your Master Yewu in the room and let him sober up. When he figures things out, let him out."

Li Tingye opened his eyes wide in disbelief, "No! You can't do this to me! I am Li Tingye! I don't know how much income my grain shop brings to my family..." The servant covered his mouth and forcefully pulled the struggling man out.

Li Tingfang and other elders watched this farce coldly without saying a word to dissuade them. This was the result they had agreed on before. As for the grain store under Li Tingye, it was originally the ancestral property of the Li family. Since Li Tingye was useless, the clan could take it back and distribute it to other people.

If Li Tingye had been obedient, the matter would have been settled peacefully without damaging the relationship. But he just refused to accept and understand... Then this person is useless, there is no need to waste words, just lock him up and reflect on himself.

Li Dehui sighed, his eyes filled with incomprehension and confusion: "Li Jingran is his eldest son. He will have a promising future. He will be a face to his father. Why is he so eager to push his son to the opposite side?"

Li Tingfang said: "I think he is using this incident to threaten Jingran to be obedient."

Li Dehui shook his head: "How foolish." He looked at Li Tingfang with a hint of admiration in his eyes: "Fortunately, you acted decisively and won over Li Jingran early. The blessing that Li Tingye could not enjoy will definitely be returned to the clan in the future."

Li Tingfang's eyes also flashed with a hint of sarcasm, "There are very few people in this world as stupid as Li Tingye."

"Such an idiot could actually give birth to a son as brilliant as Li Jingran. What a trick of fate." He said to himself, "If it was a bastard's son, it would be fine. But he has to be the eldest son. He is so stupid."

Li Dehui sat back in his seat and said to Li Tingfang calmly, "You will publish an article in the newspaper in the name of Li Tingye to help Li Jingran restore his reputation. Wang will let her guard the ancestral hall and burn incense and pray for future generations." He paused, as if talking to himself, "How could a person like Li Jingran have such a foolish father? If this continues, it will bring disaster to our Li family."

Li Tingfang's eyebrows moved, "Second Uncle, what do you mean...?"

Li Dehui thought for a few seconds and made a prompt decision: "Doesn't the Tingxuan family still have no heir? Just adopt Li Jingran and her sister into their family."

Li Tingxuan is Li Tingfang's youngest brother and also his legitimate son. Because he was injured in his early years, he has not had many children. Now he has no one to rely on, so he has recently considered adopting a child.

Li Tingfang was a little surprised.

"Why, you didn't expect me to do such a ruthless thing?" Li Dehui said with a smile, "Do you think I should make a big deal out of a small matter and try to persuade Li Tingye to atone for his sins and not hurt the harmony between father and son?"

Li Tingfang smiled a little embarrassedly: "After all, they are father and son. Broken bones are connected by tendons. How can father and son hold grudges overnight? What you did is equivalent to completely severing the blood relationship between the two. If it gets out in the future, it may be detrimental to your reputation."

Although Li Tingfang did not say it, Li Dehui understood what he meant.

How could one adopt out the eldest son?

"I am already this old, what else can I not see clearly? Even if it means sacrificing my whole life, I must solve this matter thoroughly now." Li Dehui said calmly: "Only in this way can we show kindness to Li Jingran and make him owe us a favor."

Li Tingfang was deeply moved, "I didn't expect that my second great-uncle would be so optimistic about Li Jingran. It seems that this boy will be extraordinary in the future." Second great-uncle Li Dehui is the wisest person in their Li family. His decades of experience in officialdom have convinced the whole family.

The fact that Li Jingran was supported so strongly by his second great uncle only proved that his future was limitless. Li Tingye, that idiot, would not cherish the talented young man of the Li family, so there were others who would do so.

Unexpectedly, Li Dehui smiled and shook his head, "I don't know what the future of that child will be...but I'm willing to take a chance."

His cloudy old eyes seemed to be filled with the clear color of youth, and deep in his eyes was a fire that had never been extinguished. "I read light from that child's article, so I am willing to take a gamble."

"If we win the bet, the light of the young man may illuminate the eternal night of decay and bring some changes to this country. Our Li family can also take the opportunity to leave a mark in the history books. If we lose the bet," he winked cunningly, "it's no loss to win over a young genius, right?"

Li Tingfang smiled and nodded.

…

…

Li Dehui walked out of the house and squinted at the dazzling sun above his head.

Suddenly I remembered that day, under such a bright sun, the young man in exile in Japan wrote an impassioned speech in the newspaper, angrily denouncing: "The old China today is the result of the injustice of the old Chinese. The young China of the future is the responsibility of the young Chinese. The old China is not worth mentioning, as the day when he will bid farewell to this world is not far away, while we young people have just arrived and have a connection with the world."

They failed to defend this beautiful land and allowed foreign armies to show off their power on this land that has existed for 5,000 years. This is the fault of these old people. In the history books of later generations, we scholars will be nailed to the pillar of shame and suffer endless infamy in later generations.

Although Li Zhongtang had prepared himself mentally, he could not help but write a suicide poem when he was seriously ill: "I have been working hard in the carriage, but now I know how hard it is to die. The past three hundred years have hurt the country, and I am eight thousand miles away from the suffering people. The autumn wind blows the sword and the tears of the lonely minister, the setting sun holds the flag and the general's altar. The dust overseas is still raging, so don't take it lightly."

Zhongtang died with endless infamy, but while he was still alive, he lived a mediocre and useless life.

However,

Fallen petals are not heartless things, they turn into spring mud to protect the flowers.

Let him use this broken body to pave the way for his Li family's talented horse.

The young man also said: "If the youth are strong, the country will be strong; if the youth are smart, the country will be smart; if the youth are rich, the country will be rich; if the youth are independent, the country will be independent; if the youth are free, the country will be free; if the youth are progressive, the country will be progressive; if the youth are better than Europe, the country will be better than Europe; if the youth are the most powerful on the earth, the country will be the most powerful on the earth."

What a shame. He won't be able to see this.

…

…

Chu Jin is the librarian of Kaiming Middle School and also a fan of Night Watch.

Ever since Mr. Night Watchman was banned, he hasn't heard any news about him in the newspapers, nor has he read any of his articles, which made him quite angry and depressed.

A few days ago, a report was suddenly published in the newspaper that Wheat Field is actually Mr. Night Watchman’s new pen name!

He had also read "The Adventures of a Wanderer" and was concerned about the plight of Da Mao in the book, so he also began to give away leftovers from his home to the street kid. He never thought that "The Adventures of a Wanderer" was also written by the night watchman!

After knowing this, he liked Night Watch even more!

Then, a few days later, the newspapers revealed the true identity of the night watchman: Li Jingran, a native of Fengtian, a person who indulges in drinking, whoring, gambling and drugs, unfilial and disregarding human ethics...

All these things combined made Chu Jin dumbfounded and at a loss.

Mr. Night Watchman is actually such a person? How could he be such a person? !

Wait, why does the name Li Jingran sound so familiar? He seemed to have heard of it somewhere...

The handsome face of a young man suddenly appeared in his mind.

This young man also worked in the library before, but Chu Jin looked down on him because of his low education. The young man was only in his teens, and his age matched that of Li Jingran written in the newspaper...

All the clues were connected together and eventually pointed to the most unlikely truth.

His young colleague turned out to be the night watchman!

Thinking of how he had ordered him around in the past, he could not help but feel a suffocating sense of embarrassment and shame, but when he thought of the evidence of his crimes published in the newspapers, he felt justified again.

A scoundrel like him who is unfilial, two-faced and treacherous does not deserve the respect of others!

He was really blind to fall in love with this kind of author!

He was really upset for a few days. He was so angry that he didn't bother to read the newspaper and had no appetite for food.

Then one morning, a horn suddenly sounded in the school.

Principal Zhou Dezhang shouted through the loudspeaker to ask them to read today's "Literature Newspaper", which contained the night watchman's self-defense statement, and said that as long as they read it, they would definitely believe in the night watchman's innocence!

Chu Jin, who had already lost hope in the Night Watchmen, couldn't help but rekindle his hope for them after hearing what Mr. Zhou Dezhang said.

Maybe... he was wronged?

Chu Jin, who hadn't read the Literary Newspaper for many days, borrowed the newspaper from his colleague and prepared to read it carefully.

He wanted to see how the night watchman would defend himself.

The night watchman's self-defense book was published on the front page, so he found it quickly. But the title was a bit strange, called "The Animal Path". What a strange name!

[I was born in a wealthy family in Northeast China and was a strange child since childhood.

"You must study hard and be filial to us in the future." The face of my mother who said this has long been blurred in my memory. I haven't thought of her for a long time since she died.

The so-called parental love is something I have never been able to understand. Or rather, I have always had an inexplicable fear of the word "filial piety".

What is filial piety? Is it to obey your parents? No, right? What if your parents are wrong?

Is it to serve parents well? Then what is the standard of serving parents well? Who defines it?

Isn't the purpose of studying to gain knowledge? Isn't it to serve the country? Why is it related to filial piety?

I tossed and turned, thinking about this question all night long, but I only became more confused.

"People who are not filial are beasts!" I forgot who said this, but it must be what my parents said. I trembled at this obscure sentence. If you are not filial, you will lose the qualification to be a human being and can only be reduced to livestock like pigs and dogs?

My mother committed suicide because my father over-loved my stepmother, who was a concubine at the time. So my stepmother became my new mother.

My stepmother is a lovely yet scary woman, and I always keep my distance from her.

Admittedly, she was my mother's enemy, but when she became my new mother, she also became the person to whom I must legally "be filial."

"You must study hard so that you can be filial to us in the future." This time it was my father who said something similar to my mother. His smile was strange and profound that I could not decipher.

Who are “we”? Him and his stepmother?

In this way, my stepmother is my mother's enemy, but not my enemy. I should be "filial" to her, which is what my father wants to see.

I didn't understand, but I didn't dare not understand. A huge fear weighed heavily on my stomach, making me retch.

How can I be considered "filial"?

So I began to observe my stepmother's son.

…

…

Then this word suddenly popped into my mind - "pretend".

The so-called filial piety is nothing but "pretending". "Pretending" to listen to parents and make them happy. As for my thoughts and will, they are horrible products that should not appear. Once this horrible product emerges, I will become an unfilial "beast". In other words, I will no longer be called a human being.

…

…

My father got angry and said that if I wanted to be filial, I must quit smoking.

I was agonizing over this for a few nights. If I quit smoking, I would be disobedient to my stepmother. If I didn’t quit smoking, I would be disobedient to my father.

…

I was lying on the bed, and vaguely seemed to see the steam rising around me, and it was turning into my body like insects.

My mind recalled the benefits of smoking in the past, but it felt like maggots were crawling in the cracks between my bones, making me very itchy.

…

…

The stepmother sent someone over, and there was a lot of opium in the mezzanine under the tonic.

The servant smiled at me again, saying, "Master, let me help you smoke, okay?"

I almost started to tremble.

I'm going to be eaten by Xiaoshun!

……】

The author has something to say:

I guess it’s wrong. I haven’t finished writing 7,000 words yet…

I’ll wrap it up tomorrow and write about the response to “The Animal Realm”.

This chapter imitates Dazai's writing style in "No Longer Human". It is very rough and only imitates the form. Because I was in a hurry, it feels a bit rough. I have only written half of the content of "Animal Realm". It is not finished yet. I will continue writing tomorrow.