Chapter 2796: I Am Just Smelling

Xu Huo didn’t answer; he simply smiled, stopped the street vendor, and after negotiating with the owner, turned around with a sugar figure.

"Thank you, Uncle!" The little girl ran over happily, only to see him put the sugar figure into his own mouth and bite off the head with a crunch.

The little girl was shocked and puzzled, but still managed to remain calm without causing too much commotion. She sneaked a glance toward her parents, trying to furtively communicate with the vendor.

"Xiao Qing!" A voice called out from ahead, and the little girl immediately backed away, loudly defending herself: "I was just smelling it!"

Her words embarrassed the adults, and the other kids ran over, seemingly quite tempted.

Xu Huo took five more sugar figures from the vendor and distributed them, saying, "Vegetable version sugar figures, worth tasting."

The children, seeing the variously shaped vegetable leaves inside the thin sugar coating, suddenly lost their appetite for snacks, righteously refusing and claiming they weren’t hungry at all.

The adults were amused but still had them take the sugar figures and express their thanks.

Unlike the other children’s frowning faces, the little girl happily chewed on her sugar figure, saying, "I like vegetables, and I like sugar figures too."

"Then help me eat mine." Her brother turned around and said, but his attempt was quickly quashed by their parents.

The children were disappointed, while the adults started laughing playfully.

The little girl was enjoying her sugar figure and whispered, "When I grow up, I can buy as many sugar figures as I want."

After pausing, she looked at Xu Huo, "Then I’ll trick kids like you do."

Xu Huo chuckled, casually bought a small trinket, "I’ll give you this—will you forgive me?"

The little girl grinned joyfully, "I forgive you!"

Saying that, she sped up to catch up with her peers, sharing the toy she’d just acquired.

"Your way of educating children isn’t good," a middle-aged man who had been walking nearby suddenly said seriously to Xu Huo, "When she asked you to help her lie to adults, you should have refused instead of rewarding her afterward. That might make her think this method isn’t wrong and brings benefits."

Xu Huo glanced at him, nodded, "You’re right."

Seeing that Xu Huo wasn’t too bothered, the middle-aged man continued, "Children are the future of the zone, especially the very young ones who might become players in the future. If they’re bad from the root, gaining more power will make them like wild horses out of control, possibly leading to serious consequences."

"I trust her parents will educate her well." Xu Huo smiled.

The middle-aged man looked at him with skepticism, "So, you’re aware that your behavior is leading children astray?"

"Not exactly." Xu Huo said calmly, "I just think being a bit clever when growing up means less likely to suffer losses."

"This doesn’t set a good example." The middle-aged man persisted without stopping, saying solemnly, "Only those grounded in virtue can associate with bad things without easily being influenced. Even facing setbacks, they can maintain a kind nature. Getting exposed to the dark side too early could blur the lines between good and evil, without understanding their opposition."

"Are you a teacher?" Xu Huo asked.

The middle-aged man handed over a business card, on which were the words "Righteousness Teaching, Bo Chunfeng, Evangelist."

"Aren’t you afraid of getting beaten up preaching like that?" Xu Huo returned the card.

"Only those without reason resort to violence. If what I say lacks reason, you can refute me verbally. If you argue logically, I naturally concede." Bo Chunfeng replied.

"Though I don’t entirely agree with that statement, I do find some sense in your earlier points." Xu Huo said, "Children’s education is indeed important."

He paused then added, "But what if the child is accustomed to doing bad from a young age, what then?"

"That’s the adults’ fault." Bo Chunfeng stated categorically, "I partly don’t oppose gene theory; some genes are so strong they can’t be altered by education later. Those genes come from the parents; if the parents realize the child’s genes are bad, they should stop loss timely rather than creating a bad child."

"Zone 022 has strict laws against preemptive gene screening by parents." Xu Huo said.

"That’s true, but certain identified disease genes are included in screening items, which can block some poor gene inheritances." Bo Chunfeng said, "But I think this gene screening should be widened, severing many issues from the root."

"Righteousness Teaching members must be few." Xu Huo said with a smile; legal clarity on prohibitions has broad acceptance, publicly advocating gene screening surely isn’t feasible.

However, Bo Chunfeng shook his head, "The focus isn’t on gene screening but stopping bad deeds. Most children can be taught well; if all were like that, would they recklessly commit evil after becoming players?"

"You’re talking about two different matters." Xu Huo said. "Players who don’t commit evil wantonly also kill people, and quite a few; the resulting causal chains won’t break unless humans go extinct or saints emerge."

"Education through a mere few years of childhood and adolescence cannot decide their entire life."

He gave Bo Chunfeng a sidelong glance, "I think you might consider widening the scope of your sect’s educational focus from children to lifelong. After all, some people need education their whole life."

Surprisingly, Bo Chunfeng seriously considered this, but after a moment’s reflection, he still believed, "Receiving sufficient positive education during childhood prevents major mistakes in adulthood; educating adults then requires forceful measures because by growing up, their thinking has set."

After hearing this, Xu Huo asked further, "When did you join Righteousness Teaching?"

Bo Chunfeng understood his implication and promptly said, "Righteousness Teaching is my creation. I conceived the idea in childhood, executed it upon growing up, and have practiced my belief for the past thirty years."

"So, have you done anything wrong?" Xu Huo asked again, "Things not explicitly prohibited by law but considered wrong by others."

Bo Chunfeng was evidently an honest person; he first showed difficulty, then admitted with some shame, "No one is perfect; it was my mistake in my youth, and I’ve been actively atoning for it over the years."

"Back then, I burned my family’s flower garden out of spite, and in these years while preaching, I’ve continuously planted flowers and plants, naturally calming myself."

He gazed toward the vast forest ahead, uttering a heartfelt sigh, "If only the human heart could unfold like vegetation."