Chapter 13: Doing Good

"Once, I was a scavenger!"

Li Xie repeated, before shouting, "Once, I dreamed that one day I could become wealthy, driving a car, having money, and going back to the places I roamed, tossing money to those who roamed with me!"

"Yes, I'm not here to help them, I'm here to let them know that even those they once looked down upon can be envied by them one day!"

"Yes, it's to satisfy my vanity!"

"Today, fate has brought me here, and I thought I could find satisfaction in you!"

"But when I see you, it's like seeing myself a few days ago! I even feel a sense of kinship!"

"I suddenly realized how shameful and despicable it is to seek satisfaction from you out of vanity!"

"Today, I'm here not because of fate, but because of the call of the gods! I'm here to help you sincerely!"

"Kano! Pour the money on the ground!"

The crowd of poor people initially regarded Li Xie's words as some sort of nonsensical speech from a deranged lunatic, but when they saw Kano pouring nearly a thousand gold coins onto the ground, shining brightly in the sunlight, representing wealth, a shiver ran down their spines. They finally realized that the bald man was not just a lunatic, but a complete madman!

However, the poor people only showed greedy looks, but none dared to come forward and snatch them. They knew that if they did, none of them would be able to escape, and they might all be killed, as the empire did not allow a lowly beggar to seize the property of a nobleman!

"This money! Will be given to you!"

Li Xie's words undoubtedly dropped a bombshell among the poor people! The shock of hundreds of gold coins!

They had never seen so much money in their lives, and this madman actually said he was going to give these gold coins to them! It was the craziest thing they had ever heard of!

Naturally, the poor people began to discuss it.

Li Xie didn't continue speaking, giving them time to discuss and accept the sudden impact of hundreds of gold coins!

At this moment, there was an angry voice from a nearby carriage. "Is he here to flaunt his wealth?"

The door of the carriage moved slightly, as if it was about to open.

"Everyone, calm down!" Li Xie raised his hands and shouted loudly. "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime!"

The carriage door opened a crack, revealing a white figure inside, accompanied by a sigh of admiration. "What a profound saying!"

"This is nothing but nonsense!" Li Xie shouted again, "We're all starving here! Giving people fish instead of teaching them to fish? I've begged and wandered before, and it's not because we want to live this kind of life, it's because we were born unlucky! We don't have money, we don't have wealthy families. Otherwise, who would be willing to sleep on the streets and beg all day, lowering themselves like this? It's not that we don't have survival skills, or that we're lazy, it's that we can't enter society! Who will give us land to farm? Who will give us jobs? Our image makes us only able to deal with scrap! We want to change our lives, but we don't have the capital! Isn't that right?"

"Yes!"

"This nobleman seems to have really experienced wandering!"

"Certainly, otherwise how could he understand us so well?"

"It seems he's here to help us. He's not crazy, he's speaking the truth!"

"May the Earth God forgive me for doubting this sincere man."

"Alright, everyone, calm down and listen to me," Li Xie's words, based on his own experiences, had successfully integrated him into the midst of these poor people. Finally, all the poor people were paying attention to his words, and now they were all silent, waiting for Li Xie to continue speaking.

Li Xie nodded and continued, "I'm giving you capital to change your lives! But remember, money is the root of all evil. Of course, the person who said that nonsense must be very wealthy, otherwise how would he know about the evil?"

This remark elicited laughter from the crowd of poor people.

Li Xie chuckled along, "But seriously, everyone must remember that getting money may lead to corruption. Those who forget kindness and turn their backs on their benefactors are often those who were once poor and later became wealthy. We must remember to be grateful and stay true to ourselves! You can take as much money as you want from here, but remember, you must earn an equal amount of gold coins in your life to repay me. I don't need you to write IOUs; just keep it in your hearts. One day, when you have the ability, return the same amount of gold coins you take today. If you feel you don't have the ability, then your family can only take one gold coin, which will be my gift to you. Those who have the ability to repay me in the future can take as much as they want, but I don't want to see your inner greed driving you to take more than you need. I want you to take according to your conscience! Believe me, listen to your heart. Otherwise, greed will curse you, and your soul will never find peace!"

After Li Xie finished speaking, the current poor people looked at him with complex expressions, then glanced at the pile of gleaming gold coins. It was hundreds of gold coins, which was a considerable fortune even for a minor noble. Was he really giving it to them?

Who is this nobleman exactly? Is he really giving out gold coins unconditionally? Could it be a trick to lure them into taking the coins, only to have ulterior motives later? Or perhaps, when they take the coins, they'll be accused of theft?

Finally, a young man squeezed out from the crowd, his eyes filled with apprehension as he approached Li Xie. He kept his gaze fixed on Li Xie, even when he stooped to pick up the coins. Until he had two coins in his hand!

Taking one coin signifies that Li Xie gave it to him, while taking two means the young man owes Li Xie two coins. This was the young man's affirmation of his own ability. Whether he could repay them or not, Li Xie didn't seem to care.

With two coins in hand, the young man seemed to have won a victory, excitedly waving his arms as he ran back to the crowd.

People tend to follow the crowd, especially the weaker ones among them.

After the first person took the coins without incident, the rest of the three hundred or so poor people began to take their coins one by one. Perhaps it was due to Li Xie's "curse," or maybe they were just too honest and sincere. Not only did they not rush to grab the coins, but the vast majority of them only took one coin each!

Only a few young people took more, but it was only two or three coins at most. Out of the three hundred plus people, only one girl of about fourteen took ten coins! This immediately caught Li Xie's attention.

"What's your name?" Li Xie asked the girl, looking at her dirty face and disheveled hair.

"Qiya," the girl replied with a slightly shy smile. "My name is Qiya."

"Qiya, hmm, remember, you owe me ten coins."

"Sir, Qiya will definitely repay you! Definitely!"

The poor people quickly took their allotted coins, and any remaining ones were collected by Carano. With the coins in their hands, the hearts of the poor people were at ease. Even if it was just one coin, it was the most wealth they had ever possessed! This single coin could at least provide them with a good life for a year, or even longer!

"Remember, you must be united and friendly with each other. No one is allowed to steal from others. You must supervise each other, and don't let me catch wind of anything like that happening! Alright, remember, if someone among you owes me coins, I hope that one day you will be able to return the coins you took today, and maybe even give me a few more! Goodbye!"

As Li Xie was about to turn away, all the poor people knelt down.

"May the God of the Earth shine upon you! May the divine light of the Lord always illuminate you!"

"Sir, please forgive the humble people's earlier suspicions. Sir, you are the divine grace that has descended upon us!"

"Sir..."

"Sir, may I ask how we should address you?"

Li Xie turned and left, leaving his back to the crowd of poor people, only letting the breeze carry four words to them: "Earl Xie Li!"

Amidst the thanks and praises from the poor people, Li Xie and Carano strode away from the impoverished area without paying attention to the carriage parked not far away. Carano had noticed it earlier but didn't bother acknowledging it, knowing who was inside.

Carano couldn't understand Li Xie's actions at all! Why give these poor people gold coins for no reason? It must have been over four hundred coins given out, and even Carano felt a twinge of heartache!

Before they had even left the impoverished area, Carano couldn't help but ask, "My lord, why did you give them gold coins for no reason?"

"For their gratitude," Li Xie smiled.

"Just for that?" Carano was taken aback. Giving money to others just so they would thank you, what kind of purpose was that?

"Hehe, Master Mian once said: if you do good deeds and don't even want others' gratitude, then it's not a good deed, it's just charity to those you look down upon! I dare not look down upon them, so I want their gratitude," Li Xie said, tilting his head back and raising his hands upward at a forty-five-degree angle. "Master Mian above! Helping those who have suffered the same fate as me is my wish!"

"Master Mian above!" Carano mimicked Li Xie's movements. "My lord, your heart is truly as pure as the moonlight!"

"Get lost! I want thugs, not flatterers!"

"Hehe..."

"Earl, please wait."

A voice with a gentle and sweet tone made Li Xie and Carano turn around. Carano looked somewhat surprised that the person he knew would actually greet them proactively!

But Li Xie was stunned!

In the fading sunlight, there were two figures ahead, but Li Xie's eyes only saw one—the woman!

The woman was dressed in a pure white dress, with a white scarf draped over her head, soft and translucent, falling to her shoulders. The setting sun's rays filtered through the fine holes of the scarf, casting colorful rays of light, illuminating her exquisite face. A faint smile graced her lips, exuding feminine softness and radiating a sacred glow, an indescribable feeling!

All Li Xie knew was that even the sunset's glow paled in comparison to her smile!

All he felt was a chill running through his body, his heart pounding, blood rushing towards it, to the point where Li Xie couldn't see the sky, the sunset, or anyone else around—only the pure white figure!