My Days as a God in Ancient Times
Early in the morning, Chu Qiuzhe received several packages, including the compressed seaweed he had purchased earlier.
The weight was enormous, and he couldn’t move them to the garage by himself. He also couldn’t have someone come over to help him move it.
In desperation, he ate a can of Popeye’s spinach, and immediately became incredibly strong. He directly carried the boxes to the Yuhu County government office.
"Is this seaweed strips?" Chen Cuozhi looked astonished and in disbelief, as he had chosen it with Chu Qiuzhe.
Chu Qiuzhe didn’t bother to explain.
He had someone boil a bowl of water, ripped open a small package, and put it in. In less than ten minutes, the seaweed strips had absorbed enough water and expanded, filling up an entire large basin.
If you were frugal, one package would be enough to feed a family for two or three days.
"This can be used in salads, soups, or stir-fried dishes" Chu Qiuzhe, though not a skilled cook, explained as best as he could.
Chen Cuozhi wrote down the instructions and had people move the goods out to distribute. As their idol would say, it was to help the people with their micronutrients.
"Where’s Wangye? Could he be avoiding me?" Chu Qiuzhe had been here for a while but hadn’t seen Lan An.
Chen Cuozhi chuckled awkwardly. "Wangye left last night for a neighboring county. There was an issue over there, but he should be back tomorrow"
Chu Qiuzhe pouted. Without Lan An around, he had no real business here today, so he decided to head back. He still had an appointment with the nanny for physical therapy later.
However, little did he know, as soon as he left, trouble brewed in Yuhu County.
Most of the people had received their share of seaweed strips, but greed is an insatiable thing.
After having eaten the rice sent by their idol, the people felt their strength and energy had improved. Some even concluded that the food from their idol had divine powers, promising not immortality but longevity.
Moreover, the soldiers distributing the seaweed strips had loudly explained how nutritious they were, advising everyone to eat them sparingly.
And that's when the trouble began.
A few unscrupulous troublemakers gathered, targeting the elderly, weak, and sick, not for money or rice, but for the seaweed strips.
Now that food was sufficient, they didn’t have to worry about starving. They thought they could hold out a bit longer, and soon the disaster relief supplies would arrive.
They planned to store the seaweed strips, waiting for the disaster to pass and then sell them at a high price.
After all, this came from the gods. They imagined how wealthy people would rush to buy it, and they would make a fortune.
Once people fall into greed, it’s hard to satisfy them.
An elderly woman, frail and on the brink of death, had just received the seaweed strips for her family and was about to fetch water when she was targeted.
She refused to hand over the goods, as her husband’s health was rapidly declining, and she didn’t know how much longer he could last through the disaster.
She had seen a glimmer of hope! Even the gods had sent them food!
Thinking of this, the old woman clutched the seaweed strips to her chest, refusing to let go despite the troublemakers beating and cursing at her.
Just when the situation seemed desperate, a young beggar arrived with soldiers.
So, the next morning, as Chu Qiuzhe arrived at the government office, he saw a large group of people kneeling in front of the courthouse.
At that moment, Lan An, dressed in ceremonial robes, sat in the magistrate’s chair with a look of fury, while Chen Cuozhi acted as the scribe.
Knowing that Lan An and Chen Cuozhi had serious matters to attend to, Chu Qiuzhe didn’t disturb them. Instead, he asked a clerk to explain the situation.
Chu Qiuzhe was equally shocked and angry. He had only pretended to be a divine being to have a legitimate identity in Dahan, as the belief in deities was strong, which allowed him to collect gratitude and, of course, occasionally flirt with the prince.
He never expected things to escalate like this, it was as if everything had gone horribly wrong.
As for the people’s belief that eating the rice he sent made them stronger and more energetic, it was simply because they hadn’t had enough to eat for a long time. Now that they were finally full, and with hope that the disaster would end soon, they felt revitalized.
Looking at the kneeling crowd in the courthouse, Chu Qiuzhe felt anger rise within him. How dare they steal?
One person, spotting Chu Qiuzhe, immediately crawled and rolled over to him, pleading, "Oh my God, please save us. We only wanted to take some home to eat, we didn’t mean to harm anyone."
Chu Qiuzhe looked at him coldly. "As for the truth of this matter, I trust Wangye will make his judgment. Besides, this is an internal issue of Dahan. As an outsider, what reason do I have to help you?"
The person was terrified. "B-but aren’t gods supposed to have a compassionate heart? Aren’t you supposed to spare lives? We know we were wrong! Please help us plead with Wangye to spare us this once!"
Chu Qiuzhe was almost amused. Spare lives? He wasn’t a monk, and even his divine identity was fake. He had a temper too, and it could be angered.
He had kindly provided food without asking for anything in return, and yet they were causing trouble. It was simply hopeless and stupid.
Ignoring the man, he wheeled himself up to the magistrate’s platform and said to Lan An, "Wangye, you handle this matter. I’ll stay out of it."
Both Lan An and Chen Cuozhi were surprised. They thought Chu Qiuzhe was a bit eccentric, but kind-hearted. Asking for leniency would have seemed natural.
But then Chu Qiuzhe said something that stunned not only Lan An but also scared the troublemakers.
"To me, what you did by stealing seaweed strips is no different from robbing disaster relief supplies. Whether it’s a coin or a piece of gold, theft is theft."
A stench of tension filled the room, as everyone remembered that those who had robbed food during the past disasters had all been executed on the spot by the regent.
The sounds of crying and pleading filled the air, giving Chu Qiuzhe a headache. He gave Lan An a nod, then left.
Perhaps for the first time, the two shared an understanding. Lan An realized Chu Qiuzhe’s intention: not everyone should think that this god would fulfill every wish, nor that he could be easily deceived.
It was important for people to understand that Chu Qiuzhe was not someone to be trifled with.
It could be said that he was using Lan An’s hand to assert some authority, even though he didn’t care much for status. However, at the very least respect should be shown.
In the end, these people managed to avoid the death penalty, but their punishment was still severe. They received fifty lashes each and were sentenced to three months of forced labor.
After leaving the court, Lan An entered the back hall and saw Chu Qiuzhe bent over, scribbling something on a desk.
“You came at just the right time, Wangye” Chu Qiuzhe said, putting down his pen and not addressing what had just happened. “Last time you mentioned that the paper and pens from our immortal realm are quite special, so I brought some for you.”
Lan An remembered that he had casually mentioned something about it when Chu Qiuzhe had taken out a cement formula before.
Chu Qiuzhe handed him a pen and a stack of notebooks. “Your current craftsmanship probably can’t meet the technical requirements, otherwise, I would’ve just given you the formula directly. You can try using this pen and paper for now.”
Lan An’s expression was complicated. He had only said it in passing, and yet this person had remembered it.
Seeing that Lan An hadn’t taken it, Chu Qiuzhe gently took his hand and placed the pen in it. “I’m not sure if you’ll be able to get used to it.”
As he spoke, he guided Lan An’s hand to the desk and wrote a few words on the paper — their names.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk.” Xiao En couldn’t bear to watch. “You’re taking advantage of him, aren’t you?”
Chu Qiuzhe remained unbothered and didn’t respond. It was just holding hands, nothing too excessive yet!
“Wangye, this grip isn’t quite the same as with a brush. You might need to practice a bit. If you don’t know how, let me teach you” Chu Qiuzhe said.
Lan An snapped out of his thoughts, setting the pen down and glancing at the few characters they had written together.
The strokes were delicate and precise, a style all its own!
Lan An, rubbing his fingers which still felt a bit warm, exhaled softly to calm the excitement within. “In that case, I won’t be polite.”
“Don’t be so polite with me.” Chu Qiuzhe was quite pleased; this was the first gift he had given away. Not something available to the public, but something that belonged solely to Lan An.
“By the way, could you gather the villagers for me? I have something to say to them to avoid a repeat of what happened yesterday.”
Lan An had been meaning to do just that. Although those people should have learned their lesson after the punishment, since he was the cause of the incident, it would be better for him to resolve it himself.
Chu Qiuzhe sat in a flying vehicle, stopping on a high wall. He took out the loudspeaker he had bought from the system store and began to speak.
“I’ve gathered everyone here today because there are a few things I need to address. I’m sure you’ve all heard about what happened yesterday.”
His voice was loud, enough to be heard by thousands.
The villagers, standing below, were speculating that it must be some kind of extraordinary artifact.
“First, the food I brought is just regular food. It doesn’t have any abilities like you’ve heard. It can’t heal diseases, extend life, or grant immortality. It’s just food to fill your stomach.”
“Second, although I am an immortal, I’m not omnipotent. The things I do, I don’t ask for any repayment, but I also hope you don’t take what I do for granted.”
“Third, if something like yesterday happens again, I won’t come back. Do you all understand? Do I need to repeat myself?”
They understood very clearly.
People are never satisfied. Even though they were grateful to the god for saving them from danger, their lives were still tough.
They had privately discussed more than once why the god didn’t send more food to make sure they would never go hungry, or why he didn’t seek out the legendary Thunder God to ensure eternal good weather.
No one had expected that their god would be so direct, putting everything on the table.
This was undoubtedly exposing their shame.
Almost everyone lowered their heads in embarrassment.
A few people, however, weren’t so satisfied and muttered under their breath.
“That lady over there” Chu Qiuzhe called out. “If you have something to say, just say it all at once. Don’t make things up on your own.”
The woman, who was often chatty, blushed when the god pointed her out. “I just think the rice you gave us is really delicious, nothing else.”
Chu Qiuzhe smiled. “It’s just tastier, that’s all. It doesn’t have any divine power, so please don’t believe in rumors or spread them. Of course, not all of the food from our immortal realm is better than yours.”
“That’s impossible!”
Everyone refuted him, especially those who had eaten the very first batch of food he had brought from home.
o0o