"Is there something you need? Lord Fengshen!" Sayaka asked the moment she arrived at Shen Feng's office, wondering why he had summoned her. Was it to entrust her with something important?
"Don't rush, Sayaka. It's nothing major, I just need you to answer a question truthfully," Shen Feng told her honestly.
"Whatever you wish to ask, Lord Fengshen, please do. I will answer you," Sayaka replied.
"What I want to know most is Shen Bowen's background!" Shen Feng said, his gaze sharp.
"Why do you suddenly ask about this? Don't you already know? He is the child born to Miss Lanzi. Do you still have doubts about this matter?" Sayaka asked calmly.
"Is that really true? Are you still trying to deceive me? If you don't tell me the truth, I will deal with you using my methods! I know you sent Shen Bowen to me to forge a connection. But if I issue a statement, I can have him expelled, and you will get nothing! Do you understand?" Shen Feng said sternly.
Upon hearing Shen Feng's threat, Sayaka finally told the truth. She hadn't expected Shen Feng to already know about it, so she had no choice but to say, "Actually, this wasn't Shen Bowen's idea, but the family head's. She wants to adopt Shen Bowen!"
Shen Feng's previous words were actually a bluff. If the other party truly told the truth, he would have gained something, as he had no evidence whatsoever.
As it turned out, Shen Feng discovered that he had indeed gained an unexpected reward.
"Then quickly tell me everything you know, or I won't let you off!" Shen Feng continued to intimidate her.
Sayaka took his words seriously and revealed the truth in its entirety. Shen Bowen was not Lanzi's child, but her adopted godson. His mother was a poor woman, and the child grew up in the slums, spending his entire childhood there. It was only two years ago that his true identity was revealed.
"Sugishin has always been very insecure. Even though he eventually became the future head of the Fujino family and will inherit the entire clan, he cannot be happy. He always feels like he doesn't belong to a great family. His place should still be in the slums!" Sayaka finally said.
"I really don't understand what he's thinking. The head of a great family, such a noble status, and he doesn't want it, but instead wishes to return to the slums? The slums don't offer any good living conditions!" Shen Feng said, bewildered.
"It's because he and his mother spent their lives in the slums. At that time, Shen Bowen's mother even worked in a pleasure house to earn enough food. That's how Lord Fengshen noticed her. After a night of passion, the child was born, and he spent his childhood in the slums! Therefore, for him, the place where he grew up is his hometown, and that place happens to be the slums. Thus, he likes to live in humble places because he can find the feeling of his childhood here," Sayaka explained.
"So that's how it is. There's no place like home. Now I understand the saying!" Shen Feng said.
For a person, the most important thing is to find a sense of home. Only by finding a home can one find a sense of belonging, and this sense of belonging is constructed from one's childhood. In other words, the place where a person grows up leaves an imprint on them.
Therefore, Shen Bowen, having lived in the slums since childhood, wanted to revisit those places to find his childhood memories and interact with people of lower status to feel a sense of belonging.
As for his fondness for visiting entertainment venues and interacting with the female staff there, it was likely to find a maternal connection with these people.
Hearing all this, Shen Feng began to ponder, falling into a deep thought. This silence, however, made Sayaka uneasy, as her greatest fear was that Shen Feng would dislike Shen Bowen because of his background.
"Lord Fengshen, there is something I must tell you now. If I don't say it, I will surely regret it later. So please listen to me!" Sayaka said.
Shen Feng asked, "Tell me whatever you wish to say, and I will consider it!"
"Lord Fengshen, I want to say that to measure whether a person will achieve great things in the future, one should not judge solely by their background. Shen Bowen's starting point is very low now, but his future achievements might be very high! He is very kind and has a sense of justice. When he sees injustice, he will step in to stop it. Such a person, if carefully nurtured, will surely achieve remarkable success. So please, do not dislike him because of his humble background!" Sayaka pleaded.
Shen Bowen's background was indeed very humble, a fact he himself felt. His childhood was spent in the slums, so he viewed many things from the perspective of the lower class. He never considered people of high society as his friends, yet he eventually became the adopted son of a great family, and his status changed overnight.
He wanted to accept this, but others always pointed fingers at his birth, especially because his mother had worked in a pleasure house, leaving an indelible stain on her. Thus, Shen Bowen found that he couldn't establish a foothold in so-called high society.
Shen Feng then said, "I do not dislike him because of this. Speaking of which, people who emphasize bloodlines are not common in China. We have an old saying, 'Do kings and generals have a special lineage?' Therefore, no one can choose their birth conditions, but through hard work, they can change their destiny. It's not like your island nation where classes are already solidified!"
Hearing Shen Feng's words, Sayaka felt much relieved. However, she then said, "Actually, I find that in China, there is also a phenomenon of class solidification. There is very little mobility between strata, which is similar to your island nation. However, the stratification in your island nation is more rigid, with strict hierarchical relationships. In China, however, there are many moralistic justifications."
Shen Feng pondered, and indeed, the situation was as she described. However, he had new questions.
"If the mother and son were living well in the slums, why did they later become the adopted son of a great family?" Shen Feng continued to ask.
Upon hearing this question, Sayaka paused before replying, "Actually, they would have preferred to continue living in the slums rather than be subjected to more restrictions. But an accident occurred. Because the place where they lived was by the sea, their usual food was seafood. The ocean contains many radioactive elements, which eventually entered their bodies. Shen Bowen didn't eat that much, but his mother contracted cancer. If she didn't receive treatment, she would die!"
Shen Feng heard this and couldn't help but shake his head helplessly, saying, "Self-inflicted suffering is unavoidable. Who told you to discharge wastewater indiscriminately? Now you are reaping the consequences!"
All in all, Shen Bowen's decision to reveal his identity was to save his mother. He couldn't bear to watch his mother die in pain, so he revealed his true circumstances. Lanzi then took notice of him. Since Shen Feng held a high position and was the nominal leader of China, Lanzi thought of using this illegitimate son to forge a connection with Shen Feng.
To achieve this goal, she had specially trained the child for two years, teaching him various academic subjects and having him learn Chinese.
It was a pity that Shen Bowen had lived in the slums for many years. Even though the education he received in the past two years made him feel that he no longer belonged to the slums, when he arrived in a new environment, he still felt uneasy. Thus, he returned to the place he was most familiar with. Wandering through the streets and alleys, looking at the places where sewage flowed, he suddenly felt a sense of peace.
Shen Feng felt a pang of pity for the child. His childhood was spent in the slums, so his life must have been very poor. In such circumstances, his feelings must have been very humble. Yet, later, he entered high society, becoming the future head of a great family, and even potentially governing a city. This change in destiny undoubtedly represented a leap in his social status. Unfortunately, he felt out of place in this new society.
Later, Shen Bowen came to China. When he met Shen Feng, he yearned for paternal love, even just a little.
However, there was no place for him in Yuzhou either. Shen Feng couldn't keep him, so he had to grit his teeth and let him leave. Nevertheless, he provided him with some support, enabling him to become a supernatural being. With such an identity, no one could ignore his existence wherever he went.
Even now that Shen Feng knew the truth, it was of no use because he couldn't change his previous decision. Therefore, he could only ask Sayaka to leave.
Meanwhile, Shen Bowen was currently conversing with a beggar about life. He had many snacks in his hand, and as he sat beside the beggar, he offered the snacks to him.
Even though Shen Bowen was dressed in luxurious clothes and appeared very polite, with his speech and actions revealing a noble bearing, he still wanted to interact with ordinary people of the lower class. This was because doing so made him feel grounded.
"I see you are a young master. Why would you interact with someone like me? I am a beggar with no skills, a physical disability, unable to work or move normally, and can only rely on the charity of others. By rights, I am the lowest person. Yet, you insist on talking to me and even giving me snacks. This touches me greatly!" the disabled old beggar said to the young man beside him, not knowing what else to say.
The old beggar felt a special feeling from the young man beside him – the feeling of being respected. In normal times, people he encountered might say a few words, but it would mostly be from a condescending attitude, and they wouldn't sit with him.
However, Shen Bowen said, "Actually, I've always believed that all people in the world are equal. Everyone has only one life, and there won't be a second. Therefore, everyone should sit down and talk as equals, not be divided by so-called class or other things. I know that my views might not be accepted by others, but I still have to say them!"
Upon hearing this, the old beggar replied, "Young man, what you say might have fooled others before, but even this old man cannot be fooled now. When has there ever been true equality in this world?"
Shen Bowen shrugged and said nothing.
Afterward, Shen Bowen prepared to leave. In times of chaos, many good virtues are not recognized by others, which is a very unfortunate reality because everyone is too utilitarian, always thinking about what benefits they can gain from doing something, rather than doing it for the sake of truth, goodness, and beauty in the world.