bookbashuk Chapter 1234 You walk in His ways, by the authority He has given you.
Chapter 1234 You walk in His ways, by the authority He has given you.
Inside the basement of the ranch.
Ningguang knelt on the ground, holding a rag in her hand, cleaning the dust off the floor.
After some tidying up, the room that Shen He used to hide from danger can at least be seen as habitable.
However, the standard of "livable" is far too rudimentary.
There was no wardrobe, no table or chairs, not even a carpet in the room (there used to be one, but Shao Yun had taken it away a long time ago). The only thing that could be called "furniture" was the mattress that Shen He had somehow found.
To be honest, the place was practically bare, with nothing but a mattress.
But Ningguang looked at the empty room without any disgust in her eyes. Instead, she had a kind of satisfied calm.
For her now, this kind of place might truly be fitting for her identity as a "fallen person".
She doesn't have to take up a "good spot" at home, doesn't have to cause trouble for Shao Yun and Ying, and doesn't have to worry about not being "worthy" of this treatment because she lives in a comfortable study.
Just as Ningguang was satisfied, the basement door creaked open.
Hearing the door open, she turned to look at the person at the door, and a happy smile with a hint of ingratiation instantly appeared on her face.
"Oh? Mr. Shao Yun, you've arrived."
Shao Yun stood at the doorway, looking at the scene in the basement, and his brows furrowed instantly.
This basement doesn't look like a place where people can live long-term at all. Why does Ningguang have to leave her perfectly good study and come to mess around in a place like this?
"What are you doing?" Shao Yun stared at Ning Guang irritably, waiting for her explanation.
Ningguang pointed to the bare room with only a mattress, speaking as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
"I'm tidying up my room... I just wiped the dust off and patted the mattress. I can sleep on it tonight after putting on a blanket."
"Your room?" Upon hearing this, Shao Yun's tone instantly rose several notches.
He looked around the room, which didn't even have a place to sit, and then thought of the new furniture that had just been bought in the carriage, which deepened his doubts.
"This is a basement, not a place for people to live!"
"I've already bought the furniture, and I can tidy up the study for you to live in right away. What do you mean by doing this now? Are you deliberately going against me?"
When Ningguang heard Shao Yun say, "The furniture has already been bought," she pointed to the empty corner of the basement.
"That's perfect. Take the things to the basement. You don't need to trouble yourself to tidy up the study anymore."
"You..." Shao Yun looked at Ning Guang's unyielding attitude, and the frustration that had been building up inside him exploded instantly.
"Don't make me yell at you! I kindly prepared a comfortable room for you, but you insist on squeezing into this dark place. Don't you know how to be ungrateful?"
He thought his anger would change Ningguang's mind, but to his surprise, Ningguang trembled violently upon hearing this, and then knelt down in front of him with a thud.
The sound of knees hitting the ground was exceptionally clear in the empty basement, making one's heart tighten.
“Mr. Shao Yun, please don’t be angry…” Ning Guang knelt on the ground, her head bowed low, humbly and frankly explaining her reasons.
“I know my identity. Miss Ying is trying to give me face, but I know that I am not worthy of this face at all.”
"I am now a stray dog. I had nothing when I escaped from Liyue. It is already a great blessing that I can stay on the ranch and have a way to survive. How can I be worthy of your and Miss Ying's blessings?"
As she spoke, she braced herself on the ground with both hands, leaned forward, and pressed her forehead tightly against the cold ground, expressing her submission at Shao Yun's feet in an almost prostrate posture.
She looked like a female slave who had lost all her dignity.
Looking at the scene before him, Shao Yun felt both angry and helpless, and roared in frustration.
"You... I'm saying this one last time, be serious! Pick up your dignity! My ranch doesn't need a groveling slave like you!"
But Ningguang seemed not to hear him and remained kneeling.
After a few seconds, she slowly raised her head, gently touching her neck with both hands. Her eyes were empty yet held a subservient quality as she spoke, word by word:
“I have long lost my dignity, so I have tied this invisible chain around my own neck.”
“I have no right to talk about so-called dignity, nor do I dare to ask for equality. The only thing I can do is serve the source of my power and security until the end of my life.”
“Living in the basement keeps me constantly reminded of my identity, so that I don’t forget my duty because of temporary comfort.”
Seeing Ningguang's "unresponsive" attitude, Shao Yun became furious and, in a fit of desperation, said:
"Okay! You wanted to live in the basement? Sure! I'll have Yuan Shang bring down the furniture I bought in a bit, and I'll do it exactly as you said!"
"From now on, you'll live in the basement! Don't regret it!"
Ningguang's eyes lit up instantly when she heard that Shao Yun had finally agreed.
She quickly crawled to Shao Yun's side, carefully nuzzling his trouser leg with her neck, like a puppy receiving permission from its owner, and said gratefully:
"Thank you... Thank you, Mr. Shao Yun! I won't regret it. I will definitely work hard in the future and never cause you any trouble!"
Shao Yun felt uncomfortable with her action and took a step back to avoid her touch.
Without even glancing at Ningguang again, he turned and strode out of the basement.
Ningguang was left alone, kneeling in the empty basement room, looking in the direction of the door, her face still bearing the lingering happy smile.
……
Shao Yun and Yuan Shang moved the furniture they bought to the basement and decorated the basement room for Ning Guang.
Once all the furniture was in place, the basement finally looked a bit like a "bedroom".
A bed, clothes rack, shoe rack, everything was provided for Ningguang, and then... that was it...
Shao Yun couldn't understand why Ningguang would treat herself like this... He spent the whole day thinking about this question.
The sun was gradually setting in the west, on the back porch of the house.
Shao Yun sat in the rocking chair, his mind replaying the image of Ning Guang kneeling on the ground and rubbing her neck against his trouser leg.
Why has Tianquan, who once held sway over Liyue Harbor and valued dignity, become like this, preferring to humiliate himself by living in a basement and treating himself like a slave?
This question was like a tangled mess, swirling around in his mind, and he could never find an answer.
Unconsciously, Shao Yun leaned back on the bench and closed his eyes. He wanted the "fake" Gan Yu who often appeared in his dreams to solve this mystery for him.
When Shao Yun opened her eyes again, the familiar pasture from her dream came into view.
The vegetable garden that was originally used to grow vegetables has been transformed into a vibrant flower field, with flowers of all colors blooming in competition and the air filled with a sweet fragrance.
"Fake" Gan Yu was holding a watering can, standing by the flower field, gently watering the flowers.
Hearing footsteps, the "fake" Gan Yu turned around and looked at the suddenly appearing Shao Yun, casually teasing, "You seem to be feeling confused? Every time you have a problem you can't solve, you come to seek out a wise man."
Shao Yun walked to the edge of the flower field, his gaze sweeping over the beautiful flowers, but he had no interest in appreciating them.
He stopped and stared intently at the "fake" Gan Yu, voicing the question that had been bothering him.
"I've been thinking about why Ningguang turned out this way. You should know, right? Ningguang... Why didn't she choose a more respectable life?"
"Putting aside her work at the administrative office, let's talk about the ranch... She clearly had a spacious study to live in, but in the end, she degraded herself, treated herself like a slave, and even moved into the basement on her own initiative? I don't understand."
While watering the flowers, the "fake" Gan Yu calmly answered his questions: "It's very simple, for safety."
"Safety?" Shao Yun needed a more detailed explanation and continued, "Safety? She humiliated herself by living in a basement, and you're saying that's for safety?"
“Giving up all dignity, you say it’s for safety? That just doesn’t make sense!”
"Fake" Gan Yu looked at Shao Yun's gradually relaxing brows and continued speaking, her tone tinged with a touch of nostalgia for the past:
“As you know, Ningguang once stood at the pinnacle of power in Liyue. The business empire she built spanned every corner of Liyue Harbor and even influenced the economic landscape of the entire Liyue and Teyvat.”
"How glorious she was back then! Throughout the world, who wouldn't feel awe at the mention of Tianquan Star's name? Who would dare to rival her brilliance?"
She paused, then said regretfully, "But even someone who stood at the very top, in the end, was reduced to nothing by a single thought from the Rock God, who had poured all his heart and soul into creating this."
"Power, wealth, status—these things she once took pride in—were as fragile as a dream that could shatter at the slightest touch in the face of absolute power."
"She now understands that so-called 'decency' and 'dignity' are utterly worthless in the face of 'survival'."
"So, she, Ningguang, chose to give up her self-respect."
The "fake" Gan Yu turned around, watering the flowers with her hands, and looked at Shao Yun with her sheep-like eyes.
"It's not that she didn't know that living in the study was more comfortable, or that she didn't understand the value of a decent life, but after experiencing the despair of falling from the clouds, she dared not gamble again."
“Under your protection, even if she has to be humble to the dust, she can still enjoy that ‘luxurious’ safety… This safety is a lesson she learned from the past, and it is the only thing she wants to hold onto now.”
Then, she changed the subject, using a metaphorical tone:
"It's like the relationship between lambs and shepherds. Under the shepherd's protection, the flock no longer has to worry about being chased by wolves or struggling for food, and can graze peacefully on the grassland."
"But the price is that they have to be under the care of the shepherd, follow the shepherd's rules, and even be ready to be chosen at any time."
“Ningguang is that lamb, and you are the shepherd she found.”
The "fake" Gan Yu spoke with a detached indifference, as if she had seen through the ways of the world, and continued:
"If you can give her the security she craves most, she will naturally try her best to please you, her 'master,' just like a dog that needs to be loved."
"She will set aside all her pride and fawn over you, showing you her most vulnerable side—just like now, willingly moving into the basement and bowing down to you."
Then, she smiled gently and continued, "What you put in and what you get out is always proportional."
"She acts like a little puppy, showing you her unguarded belly and entrusting her fate entirely to you."
"Would you have the heart to throw such a docile and obedient 'pet' out? No, you wouldn't."
"So, Ningguang's strategy was successful, it's that simple."
After hearing the "fake" Gan Yu's blunt and sharp description, Shao Yun stood there stunned for a long time, then suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly, feeling it was too absurd:
"Ningguang was willing to humbly grovel at my feet, abandoning all dignity, just for that pitiful sense of security."
“I’m a ranch-owning murderer, a fugitive! It’s ridiculous that she pinned her hopes on me.”
"A murderer? Is your opinion of yourself that shallow?" The "fake" Gan Yu saw through Shao Yun's inner turmoil and teased him with a touch of theology:
"Before Inazuma, you might have been bound by so-called 'good and evil' and 'right and wrong,' and it's normal to have such emotional burdens. But why do you still have such burdens now?"
“You released and tamed the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. You are the judge, the one who decides right and wrong. Between a person and death, you have the power to decide who can live and who should die.”
“Just like God.” The voice of the “fake” Gan Yu carried an almost seductive power as he continued, “God will send down floods, plagues, and other disasters to select those created and see who is truly loyal to Him.”
"And you, too, have that power. You can decide who is qualified to stay on your ranch, and who is qualified to receive your protection."
After listening to the "fake" Gan Yu's statement comparing himself to "God," Shao Yun decided that it simply didn't make sense.
He wasn't a devout believer, but based on his fragmented past experiences, he instinctively retorted, "But without love, isn't this just pure violence?"
Upon hearing the word "love," a subtle glint flashed in the eyes of the "fake" Gan Yu, followed by a meaningful smile as she countered with a question:
"So what do you think love is? And what do you think God's love for humanity should look like?"
This question stumped Shao Yun.
He opened his mouth, wanting to answer "it is shelter," "it is inclusion," "it is giving."
But when the words came out, they felt that these answers were too superficial and could not fully explain the situation.
He had never thought about this question in depth before, and now, when asked by the "fake" Gan Yu, he felt dizzy and his thoughts became confused.
"I'm not sure..." Shao Yun rubbed his throbbing temples and honestly expressed his confusion.
"I, I'm a stupid person... I can't understand such complicated things at all."
Looking at Shao Yun's bewildered and helpless appearance, the "fake" Gan Yu gently shook her head, her tone less teasing and more serious and warning.
"Hehe, it seems you still have a lot to do, but your time is running out."
"Let me give you some guidance, remember?"
Before Shao Yun could respond, the "fake" Gan Yu began to recite a prayer-like phrase.
"When the Lamb opened the sixth seal, I saw a great earthquake, and the sun became as black as a black cloth, and the whole moon turned blood red. All the stars in the sky fell down like unripe figs blown away by a strong wind."
"The sky was like a scroll rolled up, and all the mountains and islands were moved from their places. The kings, nobles, generals, the rich, the powerful, all slaves and free people on earth hid in caves and grottoes."
“They cried out to the mountains and the rocks, ‘Come down and cover us, hide us! We dare not face the One on the throne and the fierce wrath of the Lamb!’”
As Shao Yun listened to the "fake" Gan Yu recount the story of the sixth seal in Revelation, he had a vague feeling that the scene seemed somewhat familiar...
"Why does the scene you just described seem a little familiar?"
Seeing Shao Yun deep in thought, the "fake" Gan Yu didn't beat around the bush any longer and directly stated, "Because this is something that will be fulfilled in Sumeru."
"It seems you still don't understand." "Fake" Gan Yu gently shook her head and said regretfully, "But it's okay, you will understand everything when the last moment comes."
She paused, her gaze falling on Shao Yun, and said, "But now, what I want to say is: plague, war, famine, death. You already had all of these back in Inazuma."
At this point, "fake" Gan Yu put down the watering can and stopped watering the Dream Garden.
“You walk in His ways, by the authority He has given you… Why do you hesitate…”
Shao Yun felt uncomfortable under the gaze of the "fake" Gan Yu and subconsciously took a half step back.
“Jesus…”