Chapter 3 He Is Still a Child (1)

A few seconds later, Tong Lian's legs twitched once before she went still. Dead. Chen Zhou let out a deep breath, then dragged her lifeless body into the house.

The "Record of Merits" flickered, and a new line of text appeared:

[Help Shen Mao and his wife reunite. Good deed value increased by 1.]

Chen Zhou grinned. Good. Damn good. He really liked the way this book judged things.

As the saying went: Husband and wife are birds of a feather. When disaster strikes, they shouldn't go their separate ways. How touching.

"In that case, I should do more good deeds like this."

Chen Zhou's eyes gleamed as understanding dawned on him. He had stumbled upon something truly wonderful. Brother, sister-in-law… you both died so beautifully.

"So, what should I do next?"

Chen Zhou's thoughts raced. He was now a murderer, and the laws of [Yan Country] were harsh—at least for those without power.

Unfortunately, he was just an ordinary commoner.

From a rational standpoint, the best course of action would be to escape—flee to another place, lay low, and use the Record of Merits to build his strength.

But when he thought of the people at the Han Mansion, an unbearable rage surged within him.

Before I transmigrated, I was a lowly office worker, always bullied. Now, even after transmigrating, I'm still being oppressed? What was the point of transmigrating then?!

"In my past life, I had parents who loved me, a family who cared about me—but I could only submit and accept everything. But now… I have no relatives. I am alone. And I have a golden finger in my hands. Why should I keep enduring everything?!"

Chen Zhou took a deep breath. Escape? Bullshit. This second life is just a bonus. I only know one thing—I want to kill to my heart's content!

Heaven created all things to nourish man, but man has nothing to repay Heaven!

Chen Zhou let out a cold laugh. His decision was made. Tomorrow morning, he would enter the city and attack the Han family.

...

As the rooster crowed, Chen Zhou woke up. He was the only one in the room. He was alone in the room. His brother and sister-in-law had been carelessly stuffed into the firewood shed next door.

Living next to corpses? He didn't mind. He had already been forced to this point—what was there left to be afraid of?

His resentment was heavier than a ghost's.

Chen Zhou changed into a clean blue robe that had belonged to Shen Mao, boiled a few eggs for breakfast, and searched the house thoroughly. He left with a pouch heavy with silver.

On the village path ahead, two pigtailed children played noisily. They were only a few years younger than Chen Zhou, who was just fifteen years old himself.

Upon spotting him, their faces lit up with wicked grins.

"Hey, is this fool back?"

"Hey, idiot! I'm talking to you—don't ignore me!"

"Get lost." Chen Zhou's expression remained indifferent as he strode forward.

But the two kids weren't done.

"You dare ignore us? You're asking for a beating!"

With that, they kicked at Chen Zhou's ankle.

The force was laughably weak—it didn't even register as pain. Chen Zhou glanced ahead and noticed a woman feeding chickens in her yard. She was their mother.

She had witnessed the scene but made no move to scold them. Instead, she chuckled as if enjoying the show.

Chen Zhou was a well-known fool in the village. Before he had married into the Han family, he had been the subject of endless ridicule.

No matter how much he was mocked, he would only grin foolishly and endure it all in silence.

If adults act like this, then children will naturally follow suit, and children will be even more ignorant of the severity of bullying. 

Chen Zhou lowered his head slightly and looked at the two brats. His voice was cold:

"You little devils… want to fly?"

The two kids blinked in surprise.

"Fly?"

Their eyes lit up.

"Yes! We want to fly!"

After all, what child didn't dream of flying?

"Good!"

Chen Zhou nodded. Then, in a swift motion, he grabbed each child by the back of their clothes—as easily as picking up two chickens.

Before they could react, he flung them into the air.

SPLASH!

The two children arced beautifully through the sky and crashed into the nearby pond.

Water splashed everywhere.

"You fool! What are you doing?!"

The woman, who had been laughing earlier, turned pale with rage, finally realized what was happening. Her face changed drastically, and she screamed and rushed over like crazy.

She sprinted toward Chen Zhou, arm raised to slap him.

But before her palm could land, Chen Zhou caught her wrist. His grip was cold and firm.

Facing Chen Zhou's cold gaze and feeling the strong pressure on his arm, the woman's bravado crumbled instantly. She glared at him with hatred, but there was unmistakable fear in her eyes and gritted his teeth and shouted:

"Have you no shame?!" she shrieked. "They're just kids! Why are you fighting with children?!"

"So what?" Chen Zhou's tone remained flat. "I'm a fool, aren't I?"

"If you won't discipline your own children… someone else will."

"And now… I'll discipline you in your parents' place!"

With that, he twisted his grip and threw her into the pond as well.

"AHHHHH!!!"

She shrieked as she tumbled through the air and crashed into the water beside her children.

The flapping sound suddenly became louder, but this irritating sound made Chen Zhou feel happy, a moment later, a message appeared in his mind:

[Helped two children fulfill their dream of flying. Sent their mother to reunite with them. Good deed value +3.]

Chen Zhou chuckled. Three points? Not bad.

He had heard the phrase "They're just kids!" far too many times in his past life. And every time, it had disgusted him more.

He only believed in one rule: "If no one offends me, I will not offend them. If someone offends me, I will return the favor—man, woman, young, or old. All are equal in my eyes."

This is what we call true equality of all beings!

...

After walking for about an hour, Chen Zhou reached the bustling streets of Changqing County.

He didn't head straight for the Han family—first, he needed a weapon. After all, he was here to kill people, so how could he do it without a suitable weapon?

Halfway to the weapons shop, he noticed a beggar crouched in a street corner, his face dirty and his hair disheveled.

Chen Zhou thought for a moment and tossed a silver ingot into the beggar's broken bowl.

The old beggar was stunned at first, then burst into tears of gratitude: "Thank you, young master! Thank you!"

In the past, he only get copper coins from kind people but this young man was so generous!

Chen Zhou ignored him, instead focusing on the Record of Merits in his mind.

[Showed kindness and generosity. Good deed value +1.]

He frowned slightly. What if…

He bent down, plucked the silver ingot back out of the bowl… then dropped it in again.

The smile on the old beggar's face froze. What did this mean? Did he regret it?

While the old beggar was puzzled, he repeated the action several times. Still nothing.

No response from the Record of Merits.

The beggar's expression stiffened.

Was this young master… toying with him?

This is... is this to entertain him?

The old beggar was angry but dared not say anything, while Chen Zhou still looked like he was thinking.

There is no prompt for "Record of Merits", so repeatedly brushing it won't work, so how can I get a new one?

He immediately threw a second ingot of silver into the old beggar's bowl.

However, there was still no movement in the "Record of Merits" in my mind...it seemed like it still wouldn't work.

Chen Zhou sighed.

Tsk. Looks like I can't farm merit points on the same person.

What a shame. Otherwise, he could've made this beggar immortal just by repeatedly "donating" to him.