Chapter 98: The Collapse of Rites and Music

Chapter 98: Chapter 98: The Collapse of Rites and Music

Inside the Wang family mansion, Wang Hu respectfully listened to the instructions from his son on the other end of the line.

Having become B City’s richest man with only a primary school education, the thing he was most proud of in his life was that, all because of a single shudder back then, he had managed to become the biological father of an Extraordinary.

If he hadn’t been lucky enough to gain this status, he never would have gone from being an ordinary office worker to the richest man in B City.

He could never repay the debt to his son in a single lifetime; this was something he, as the father, would be grateful for his entire life.

When his esteemed son’s identity as an Extraordinary was exposed, the entire city was in an uproar. Countless people wanted to ask him how on earth he had fathered such an Extraordinary master.

Many years later, when faced with everyone’s questions, Wang Hu would always think back to that night over a decade ago.

"Of course, my personal efforts were only a small part of it. Days before my son—my lord—was born, I had a faint premonition that even without me, an Extraordinary would have been born."

"At most, my personal efforts just made the birth of my son—my lord—a bit smoother."

Following Wang Hu’s "success-story" quotes, countless ordinary people who wanted to give birth to gifted children began to study his postures and imitate his diet.

Some even went so far as to directly model their and their wives’ style of dress after Wang Hu’s.

And with the bonus status of being the progenitor of an Extraordinary, all of Wang Hu’s actions were given the green light. By the time he realized it, he had already become the richest man in B City.

But over the years, Wang Hu had always lived conscientiously, sticking to his station and firmly remembering the teachings from his primary school textbooks.

First Lesson of the School Year: "The Gap Between Extraordinaries and Ordinary People"

Chapter Three: "An Extraordinary’s Duty to Challenge Their Biological Parents"

Chapter Seven: "On the Meaning of an Ordinary Person’s Existence"

...

Over the years, he had witnessed the rise and fall of countless wealthy men, but it was precisely by relying on the teachings from his school days that he had survived to this day.

First, Extraordinaries are equal among themselves, but Extraordinaries and ordinary people are absolutely not equal.

Even if you’re the parents of an Extraordinary, other Extraordinaries will kill you on a whim if they don’t like you, treating it as severing worldly ties and karmic debts for their kin.

So don’t think you can act all high and mighty just because you’re the richest man. The more money you have, the more you’ll be prancing around in front of those Extraordinaries, and the higher the chance you’ll be swatted dead like a fly.

Ordinary people must strictly fulfill their duties according to the established order. You can’t dress better than an Extraordinary when you’re outside. Dressing that well—are you trying to rebel?

But you can’t dress too shabbily either. You’re the goddamn biological father of an Extraordinary. You might as well die than be such a disgrace, dressing so pitifully.

The women you sleep with can’t be too ugly, either. That’s a disgrace.

But they can’t be too beautiful; that’s even worse. ’Your wife is so beautiful, isn’t she just trying to seduce me?’

Next thing you know, an Extraordinary will show up at your door to steal your woman and wipe out your entire family.

So, lie low!

Before the Great Cataclysm, the Confucian scholar Confucius once said that people of a certain status should wear clothes befitting their status and perform the corresponding rites; otherwise, it would be a collapse of rites and music.

In matters of etiquette, Wang Hu had always conducted himself perfectly.

And now, after so many years, his son—his lord—was calling him for the first time late at night. Wang Hu immediately realized that his doom might have arrived.

His hands trembled, terrified that the voice on the other end would say, "Dad, I’ve gotten into a conflict with another Extraordinary. He wants my entire family dead, so I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble you to die."

This was a very real possibility. Just this morning during Carnival Day, two Extraordinaries had been competing by wiping out each other’s nine generations of relatives. It was perfectly reasonable that other Extraordinaries would want to copycat the crime.

Fortunately, his son—his lord—on the other end of the line didn’t say that. Instead, he said slowly:

"Dad, my boss wants to gather all the young women and mature ladies from across the New Country with a beauty score of 90 or higher."

"According to big data analysis, my cousin’s beauty score made the cut, but getting into the top one hundred will be decided by a lottery."

"Didn’t you always teach me that Extraordinaries should help each other, not get into conflicts with other Extraordinaries, and always be considerate of them in all matters?"

"So I was thinking, if my cousin agrees, I won’t enter the lottery. I’ll just pull some strings and get her directly into the finals. As long as she passes the subsequent physical examination and has no health issues, she’ll be in," the Extraordinary on the phone said with a smile.

"There’s such a good opportunity?" Wang Hu’s eyes immediately lit up.

Although he didn’t know the specifics, they were looking for women. Those who get it, get it.

If she successfully got in, wouldn’t his family go from being in-laws with one Extraordinary to being in-laws with two?

By then, with a family backed by two Extraordinaries, how could their fortune be anything but immense?

’No, it’s a trap!’ Wang Hu frowned, feeling that something wasn’t right.

What if his family member failed to serve that Extraordinary well, and the guy got pissed off and wiped out his nine generations of relatives?

’No, I have to consider this matter carefully,’ Wang Hu thought cautiously.

"Son, I have to discuss this with your cousin and see what she thinks. What if she’s not destined for such a fate? Wouldn’t our good intentions lead to a bad outcome?" Wang Hu said in a heavy, meaningful tone.

"Fine. Then you’d better think it over quickly, Dad. I need a decision before dawn. If it’s a yes, I’ll just bump someone else off the list for you."

"Yes, yes, this little one will certainly do so. But may I be so bold as to ask, what kind of mission will your cousin be undertaking?"

"It’s a state secret. It’s better that you don’t know, Dad," the voice on the other end said flatly, then hung up with a CLICK.

Listening to the dial tone, Wang Hu hurriedly dialed his relatives.

He had to give his young relative a crash course, teaching her all the biology and etiquette lessons she’d missed over the years. He’d try to cram it all into one night, lest she screw up and cause a disaster.

At that moment, countless people like Wang Hu across the New Country, having received similar phone calls, were spending a sleepless night.

This one night condensed the countless emotions of ordinary people: excitement, elation, terror, determination, and ambition.

And all of it was for the sake of crossing the deep chasm between mortals and Extraordinaries, just to brush a fingertip against a corner of the extraordinary.

If they succeeded, they wouldn’t have to worry about their livelihood for at least several decades. But the consequences of failure were also utterly tragic.

In any case, no matter what, the hands of time would not halt for anyone, continuing their steady forward march.

The next morning, after Fang Can said goodbye to Liu Qingmeng and the others and arrived at the designated house, he saw a man smiling and extending a hand for a handshake.

"You must be Fang Can. I’m your number one fan! I watched your whole performance during Carnival Day yesterday. You’re a goddamn certified lunatic genius!"

"My name is the King of Rotten Gigs. Hope we get along!"