Although Leng Zongzheng had a residence on campus, the place Zhou Wen went to wasn't on campus. Instead, he went to an inconspicuous yard in the old district of Luoyang City.
The small yard was very ordinary. As the surroundings were very humid, moss grew at the base of the walls. There were also many plants that looked like creepers on the walls.
The house inside was also a common red brick structure. Although it was very clean, it couldn't hide the traces of time. Some of the bricks on the walls were already showing signs of weathering.
"Chancellor Leng, it's me, Zhou Wen. Are you home?" Zhou Wen knocked on the door.
"Come in." Leng Zongzheng's voice sounded from inside the house. When Zhou Wen pushed the door open and entered, Leng Zongzheng was carrying a pot of cactus out of the house.
"Chancellor Leng, is this your home?" Zhou Wen looked around the house and saw that the decorations inside were very outdated, but they weren't considered old. They gave off a mediocre and dilapidated feeling.
This was very different from the feeling Leng Zongzheng gave Zhou Wen. Leng Zongzheng was a person who looked and behaved like a noble. Furthermore, his Life Soul was a Demonic Organ Throne that looked very grand. Therefore, it made people feel that Leng Zongzheng was a person who paid attention to the quality of life and details. He shouldn't live in such a mediocre home.
In this yard, Zhou Wen couldn't see anything special. No matter how he looked at it, they were all household items. There were even many stalls.
"I lived here when I was young. This is my grandfather's old mansion." Leng Zongzheng placed the cactus to the side and patted the dust off his hands before continuing, "In the past, I didn't like this place very much. I always felt that I had to stand out and live in a beautiful house. I had to live like a person. However, I don't know when, but I suddenly felt that living here was more comfortable, so I moved back. "
"You should be returning to your roots, right?" Zhou Wen asked.
Leng Zongzheng glanced at Zhou Wen and curled his lips. "What do you mean by returning to one's roots? To put it bluntly, I've eaten too much braised pork and want to eat some vegetables to relieve my boredom. I haven't reached that stage yet. There are a lot of good things that I haven't tasted yet. I'm not tired of them yet. "
With that said, Leng Zongzheng sat down on a wooden stool in the yard and continued while basking in the sun. "I've also thought about why I wanted to move back. In terms of comfort, this place definitely can't compare to any place I've lived before. In terms of convenience, this place isn't convenient either. Speaking of a quiet environment, this place couldn't compare to the villa I had bought before. He had to say that the neighbors here were good and friendly. Actually, that was not the case. There was no one here anymore. The old neighbors had already disappeared. Even if they're still around, I don't have a good impression of them. I don't like them from the bottom of my heart. "
"Then why do you like living here?" Zhou Wen asked curiously.
"I've thought about this for a long time. In the end, I confirmed that the reason I like living here is because I'm afraid," Leng Zongzheng said.
"Afraid?" Zhou Wen was even more puzzled.
In terms of safety, this place was far inferior to the school. There were no defenses at all. It was just a dilapidated old city district. Any Terror-grade creature could reduce this place to ruins with one hand.
"Yes, I'm afraid." Leng Zongzheng said, "Everyone is afraid of death, but the degree is different. Some people rank their fear of death first, while others rank their fear of death second. Therefore, when they encounter certain things, they will appear unafraid of death. But in fact, there's no one who isn't afraid of death. It's just that he has encountered something more terrifying than death, so death isn't that important. "
As Leng Zongzheng spoke, he took out a lighter and cigarettes from his chest pocket. He skillfully flicked out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth. He lit the cigarette and took a sip. He closed his eyes as though he was enjoying it.
Zhou Wen looked at Leng Zongzheng in a daze. This was too different from the impression Leng Zongzheng usually gave him. If he didn't know that this was Leng Zongzheng, he would have thought that he was a decadent middle-aged uncle who liked to gamble and drink.
After a while, Leng Zongzheng closed his eyes and continued while basking in the sun, "Later on, I thought about it carefully. My fear of death should be ranked third. Before death, there are two other things. If I encounter those two things and have a choice, I would rather choose death."
"The reason why you are here is because you are afraid that those two things will happen?" Zhou Wen asked.
To his surprise, Leng Zongzheng shook his head and said, "No, those two things have already happened."
Zhou Wen looked at Leng Zongzheng in a daze, unsure what he was trying to say.
Leng Zongzheng continued, "In the past, I was very afraid that I would become like my parents, but now, I'm no different from them in essence. In the past, I was very afraid that Grandfather would leave me. If that happened, I would be the only one left in this world, but that day still came. I live here because I'm afraid of being alone, but in fact, I've always been alone. "
Zhou Wen didn't know what to say. He occasionally had some thoughts about what Leng Zongzheng had said, but he didn't think as clearly as Leng Zongzheng.
However, looking at Leng Zongzheng, Zhou Wen felt that Chancellor Leng wasn't as difficult to get along with as he had imagined.
Leng Zongzheng took another puff of his cigarette and pressed the remaining half of it on the cement flower bed beside him. He extinguished the sparks and flicked it into the trash can.
"Living here gives me an inexplicable sense of security. I feel like this is my own little world. As long as I hide here, I don't need to worry about anything, nor do I need to worry about anything. As long as I sleep, it's as if all the bad things will disappear on their own."
At this point, Leng Zongzheng laughed self-deprecatingly. "But in fact, nothing can be resolved. It's just deceiving myself."
"You can't say that. Everyone needs a pure land in their hearts to nurture and recover. Perhaps this place won't be of any substantial help to you in resolving your problems, but it can give you peace of mind. It can allow you to face those problems calmly. This is very important, "Zhou Wen said with a serious expression.
"You're right." As Leng Zongzheng spoke, he suddenly stretched out his palm and pressed it against the wall beside him. The entire courtyard and house instantly collapsed, turning into fragments that rose into the air.
"What … What are you doing …" Standing in the ruins, the rubble around him constantly rose. Zhou Wen looked at Leng Zongzheng in confusion, unsure why he was doing this.
Amidst the rising fragments, Leng Zongzheng turned around and left. As he walked, he said, "Just as you said, everyone has a pure land in their hearts to escape from. It's a place of fear that's closer to the heart than death. If one day, you meet an enemy who doesn't fear death, then you should think about how to find the pure land that belongs to him. Kill and destroy the heart. Sometimes, destroying the heart is scarier than killing the person. You're good at everything, but you're too kind. Sometimes, kindness is a sin. "
Killing … Killing … Zhou Wen stood in the ruins and watched Leng Zongzheng's departing figure. There seemed to be some emotions surging in his heart.
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