From Under One Person: Sincere Journey Through the Heavens

But she didn't want the other person to die in vain.

That strange man from the East possessed extraordinary strength; he had already killed several alchemists and magicians.

"If that's the case, why not just arrest him?" Jiang Liu asked.

"He bribed everyone in the police station."

Ilya spoke the truth: "Mr. Edward's power in the Municipal Council is also limited. Other directors are wary of him and even hope that he will be removed from office."

The International Settlement was managed by the Municipal Council, which included Chinese directors, but they had the least power... Edward, who dared to marry his daughter to a Chinese man, was clearly seen as a model of pro-Chinese behavior and was naturally ostracized.

Even that Chinese man was an extraordinary person!

This made other foreigners even more wary, believing that he wanted to unite with the "magicians" and "alchemists" of the East to establish a power that would control both ordinary people and cultivators in the "backward" land of China.

So when that strange man revealed his true nature, they didn't care. They even encouraged the police to cooperate with him in bullying men and women, as long as things didn't get too out of hand, in order to make the local people hate Edward even more.

"So, young man, don't be stubborn. Go home. People your age should be going to university."

Just as Ilya took a step, Jiang Liu grabbed her arm.

"Ok?"

No matter how much Ilya struggled, she couldn't break free, which made her realize that the boy in front of her was indeed an Eastern magician. "Are you really an alchemist?"

"of course."

Having cultivated "Forbidden Fruit of God: Modification" and combined it with the Eight-Nine Mysterious Techniques, he can achieve indestructibility by gathering form and invulnerability to all laws by dispersing qi. How can he not be considered an alchemist?

He was also an alchemist who was created from a human body!

"Take me to Mr. Edward. I'll help him resolve his troubles, but the price—"

At this point, Jiang Liu released Ilya's wrist, pondered for a moment, and then said with a grin, "I hope to become a director of the Municipal Council."

"it's out of the question!"

Ilya denied it.

Jiang Liu simply gave a confident smile: "I only have one request, which is that after I solve his problem, I hope he can be willful for once and invite all the influential figures in the Municipal Council and the entire city of Shanghai. I will persuade them with my own reasons!"

"As a director, Mr. Edward certainly has that right."

Ilya agreed with this, saying that even those who favored the pot had to give Edward face, "but your desire to become a board member is absolutely impossible to achieve."

"It's all about human effort. How will you know if you don't try?" Jiang Liu smiled slightly, giving Ilya a very special feeling.

confidence!

Even the leaders of the Guo faction, when facing these outsiders, outwardly presented themselves as equals, but their eyes revealed their inner unease and timidity, instinctively placing themselves on a lower level.

But the boy in front of me was different. His eyes were gentle yet confident, possessing both youthful vigor and mature composure.

Very appealing.

"OK then."

Ilya nodded and led Jiang Liu to the villa area, where they saw:

A wide avenue divides the city into east and west, with villas of similar styles lined up on both sides. They feature white walls, black tiles, balconies, pavilions, and exquisite courtyards, making them comparable to the villa districts in some second- and third-tier cities in Jiang Liu's previous life.

Following Ilya through the gate of the twelfth villa on the east side of the road, a silver-haired middle-aged man wearing a suit, a mustache, and a black top hat came into view.

"Mr. Edward, I'm back."

Ilya called out.

"Ilya!"

Edward's expression was unfriendly. "Didn't I tell you to go and invite a magician? Why are you back so soon? Did you take my money to help the beggars on the street again? If your father hadn't begged me, you wouldn't even have gotten this job!"

“Sir, I have brought the magician back.” Ilya didn’t dare to look up and quickly introduced Jiang Liu, “This young Mr. Jiang Liu is an Eastern magician.”

"is it?"

Edward's gaze then fell on Jiang Liu. After sizing him up and determining his approximate age, he frowned and said in fluent Mandarin, "Young man, are you really a magician?"

“I would prefer Mr. Edward to call me a practitioner.”

Judging from Edward's attitude towards Ilya alone, Jiang Liu is 70% certain that Edward is all bark and no bite, and that Ilya is indeed a kind maid. "Besides, I'm already an adult."

"Then let's give it a try."

Edward sighed and decided to try anything, so he invited Jiang Liu into the house and ordered Ilya to serve him some snacks and coffee.

Just as Ilya was about to make coffee for Jiang Liu, Jiang Liu took the milk instead and said to Ilya, "Thank you, but I'll do it myself."

Ilya didn't insist.

Jiang Liu's skillful movements in preparing coffee and adding sugar caught Edward's attention. Edward couldn't help but scrutinize Jiang Liu's clothes again, noticing that although they were simple, they were clean and tidy, giving off an elegant vibe.

Therefore, regardless of Jiang Liu's abilities, his elegance alone was enough to make Edward, a nobleman from England, feel a sense of goodwill towards him.

“Mr. Edward, I have already obtained the general situation from Miss Ilya, but as the saying goes, ‘know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.’ Could you tell me more about the situation of that Eastern superhuman?” Jiang Liu took a small sip of coffee and then asked Edward about the important matter.

"no problem!"

Edward suddenly realized that to deal with that guy, he had to rely on the alchemists of the East!

In the past, the magicians and alchemists he hired were either French, American, or Japanese. They would arrive at his house and attack without asking any questions, resulting in their defeat or death. Afterwards, he would have to find someone to dispose of the bodies…

"According to the Eastern naming convention, his surname is Gao and his given name is Zhuang. He is over two meters tall. He wandered to Shanghai. I saw that he was tall and strong, so I let him work in the cannery I opened. He did not disappoint me. He worked diligently and soon rose to the position of manager."

My daughter, Nice, also liked his good looks, so I made him her bodyguard and eventually married her to him.

On his wedding day, however, he drank too much, and his handsome appearance turned ugly, while his once strong body became bloated.

That moment!

Everyone knows he's an alchemist from the East! They've developed awe towards him, which has damaged the reputation of my Tucker family!

From then on, others had less contact with me, and many even became suspicious of me… The fact that he could still mingle with the police after revealing his true appearance wasn't because they wanted to befriend someone as ugly as Calimodo, but because the rest of the Municipal Council ordered them to do so to damage my reputation!

Jiang Liu listened quietly without offering any opinion.

Judging people by their appearance is not advisable.

This principle is recognized by both the East and the West.

However, without cultivating a state of non-discrimination, it is probably impossible to fully achieve this.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Calimodo, is a prime example; he was kind at heart, but his ugly appearance made him difficult for ordinary people to understand.

At present, Jiang Liu believes that "Gao Zhuang" is in a similar situation, except that unlike Kalimodo, the other party has crossed the line.

Based on Edward's account at least, Gao Zhuang initially chose to deceive by disguising his appearance, only giving up when he was exposed due to drunkenness.

[Why does this plot sound so familiar?]

As Jiang Liu pondered, he suddenly remembered the "Gao Village" storyline from "Journey to the West." Gao Village, Gao Village... Could this be a pseudonym?

"More importantly, since that guy revealed his true nature, he has become an enormous eater. He used to eat relatively little while working, but now he eats as much rice as a washbasin in one meal, accompanied by all kinds of fine wine and dishes. He even invites everyone in the police station to go out for drinks, gambling, and prostitution! The police even turn a blind eye to him forcing women into alleys on the street, only taking him to jail after he's done... and releasing him an hour later."

Edward gritted his teeth, "If this continues, my entire family's assets will be squandered! The reputation of the Tucker family will be completely ruined!"

Because he made it, he ate it...

Such words—

Jiang Liu couldn't bring himself to say it.

Gao Zhuang's situation is different from Zhu Bajie's. Instead of cultivating fields and doing farm work, he works in a cannery... This is not something that can be achieved by his strength and diligence alone.

Even though Jiang Liu knew that foreigners like Edward, who were friendly towards Chinese people, made money by exploiting Chinese labor, they must have had enough wealth to afford to go abroad.

Furthermore, Gao Zhuang not only indulged in drinking, gambling, and prostitution, but also forced women into prostitution in the streets…

what is this?

If you just don't like foreigners, just target foreigners; why force others to do the same?

Jiang Liu was certain that Gao Zhuang had forced local Chinese women; otherwise, even if the rest of the Municipal Council disliked Edward, they would not have been able to sit still and would have targeted Gao Zhuang.

As for why Edward didn't choose to let Nice divorce Gao Zhuang—

Even if Gao Zhuang were a tall and strong man, or even a tyrant and bandit, how many ordinary people would dare to say "no" to him?

Especially considering that Gao Zhuang had killed the magician and alchemist Edward had hired right in front of Edward...

Compromise is the norm.

“I have a general understanding of the situation, but besides his ability to disguise himself, what other abilities does Gao Zhuang have?” Jiang Liu inquired about Gao Zhuang’s abilities.

“I don’t know. Those alchemists and magicians we hired before were all killed by his fists or slaps. He’s incredibly strong.” Speaking of this, Edward looked at Jiang Liu’s physique and became worried. “You probably can’t beat him.”

“Mr. Edward, don’t let my physique fool you. I may not be as strong as those soldiers, but in a real fight, even ten thousand of them couldn’t beat me,” Jiang Liu chuckled.

Edward shook his head, assuming Jiang Liu was exaggerating, but he could only hope and asked, "What weapons do you need? I can prepare pistols and grenades for you."

"unnecessary."

Jiang Liu shook his head.

“Sigh, other magicians and alchemists say the same thing,” Edward sighed.

“Mr. Edward, if pistols and grenades were useful, you would have used them yourself, wouldn’t you?” Jiang Liu asked with a smile.

"Ordinary pistols were indeed useless against him, and grenades couldn't be used on the street either... The other directors of the Municipal Council were all targeting me, the police were putting on an act, and the Chinese directors were also persuaded by them to secretly target me together."

Jiang Liu wasn't curious about the fact that the Chinese directors were also joining the other foreigners in targeting Edward; it was simply a matter of promising to add another Chinese director to the board.

Can adding one more Chinese director really change the Municipal Council?

Just indulge in your dreams while you sleep!

on the contrary!

A foreigner who is willing to befriend the Chinese is far more valuable than three or five Chinese directors!

The current reality is that Edward, who is willing to befriend the Chinese, has been captured and tormented by an Eastern alien, constantly eroding Edward's goodwill towards the Chinese.

Both logically and emotionally.

He only saw a strange person whose behavior and manner were similar to those of the Quanxing sect stirring up trouble.

and so--

"Mr. Edward, please rest assured, now that I've taken action, I will certainly resolve that trouble for you," Jiang Liu said with a smile.