Chapter Eleven: Strive to Change What Seems Impossible!

Africa is, in truth, a land bursting with resources, often hailed as the “warehouse of the world.” Of more than one hundred and fifty known mineral resources globally, Africa is home to deposits of them all. Particularly, more than fifty rare minerals tied closely to high-tech industries are found in vast quantities here, with seventeen ranking first in the world for reserves, and gold and diamonds accounting for more than half of the world’s supply.

As the champion among a hundred tribes, the King of Africa, every tribe presents its largest and finest diamonds each year to the champion, who, acting as the messenger of the gods, delivers them to the divine to ensure the protection of the gods’ people.

As this divine messenger, Wang Zheng receives so many diamonds each year that he must carry them in bags; refusing would not be an option. Otherwise, the tribesfolk would believe the gods had abandoned them, and without faith, their hearts would be filled with fear. Wang Zheng does not wish his kindness to inadvertently spark tribal wars across Africa.

Thus, Wang Zheng accepts these diamonds on behalf of the “gods,” regarding them as protection fees. Having taken the gifts, he must defend the tribes from outside threats. This, he tells himself, is the reason he has slain so many warlord leaders over the years. Only by doing this can he accept the offerings from the “children of the gods” with a clear conscience.

...

“I am a man of considerable grace; I would never leave you stranded in this place of turmoil,” Wang Zheng said, sipping his beer and looking at Bai Bing, who was watching him intently. “Rest assured, I’ll let you know when I leave. Don’t forget to prepare a few extra dishes and heat a good bottle of wine for me.”

“So, you’ve decided to go?” Bai Bing sensed the meaning in his words—he was clearly planning to leave. Deep down, she hoped he would, but her duties forbade it. Otherwise, she would have no explanation for her organization after returning, especially after pledging herself so publicly. Remembering that moment, Bai Bing couldn’t help but say, “You could stay at my place. It’s too large for just one person, and I could take care of your daily life...”

“Could you take care of my intimate needs?” Wang Zheng interrupted with a smile. “I plan to marry, after all.”

“You have a girlfriend?” Bai Bing asked.

“Not now, but a man as outstanding as I couldn’t possibly remain single forever.”

“Then, it wouldn’t hurt to wait until you find her. Besides, housing in Jinghua City is so expensive, and you don’t have a penny to your name—you can’t sleep on the street, can you?” Bai Bing said, trying to persuade him to stay.

Wang Zheng merely smiled, saying nothing, content with his beer, his expression inscrutable as ever, leaving Bai Bing unable to decipher his thoughts.

“How about... I find you a girlfriend from the organization?” Bai Bing offered.

“What’s this? Eight years away, and now the organization finds wives for its members?” Wang Zheng teased. “I don’t want to marry a female spy. Spare me that trouble. Oh? There’s someone interesting.”

Wang Zheng’s eyes lit up, gazing at a woman not far away. Bai Bing glanced over, puzzled, and saw a woman in a black suit and stockings, her skin fair and delicate, her features stunning, sitting alone and ordering a beer. What drew attention was not just her appearance, but her gaze—tinged with melancholy and sadness, stirring a strange sorrow in the heart.

Just as the woman reached for her beer, a glass full of beer slid across the bar, gently nudging the bottle aside and taking its place. Her hand naturally settled on the glass. The beer spun in the glass, forming a tiny whirlpool at its center, without spilling a single drop—a deft display that impressed those watching.

---

The woman paused, turning her head to find a handsome man and a beautiful woman three seats away, both looking at her. The woman was coldly beautiful, the man radiated confidence and charm. He raised his beer to her with a smile. She responded by lifting her glass and drinking.

“What do you think?” Wang Zheng nudged Bai Bing with his elbow.

Bai Bing took a delicate sip of her wine. “Average.”

“Heh, if you say ‘average,’ it means she’s extraordinary!” Wang Zheng laughed, as if determined not to miss the opportunity.

“Hm?” Bai Bing was puzzled.

“Women like you are terribly jealous. If a woman’s beneath you, you’ll praise her, then secretly mock my taste. But if she poses a threat, you’ll act indifferent, say ‘average,’ and try to find faults to compare to your strengths. It’s the classic self-consolation. Am I right?”

“Would I ever be as childish as you?” Bai Bing retorted, avoiding Wang Zheng’s mischievous gaze and hiding behind her drink, a bit like protesting innocence too loudly.

In truth, her mind had just been comparing herself to the other woman, exactly as he’d said.

“Women are paragons of formal logic, yet obstacles to dialectical reasoning. Tell the truth, and they hate it; lie, and they love it.”

“Shut up, Taishan! Go back to your mountain!” Bai Bing snapped, embarrassed at having her flaws exposed.

“Taishan? Ha, you’re getting funnier!” Wang Zheng chuckled, patting her shoulder, then rose and strode toward the woman, who was already beset by admirers.

“Where are you going?”

“To survey the peaks!”

Survey the peaks? Bai Bing paused, then watched Wang Zheng approach the woman, suddenly understanding his meaning and, while cursing him, listened closely for their conversation.

Wang Zheng brushed aside the man hovering at the woman’s side and sat down smoothly, looking at her. “I’m late.”

---

The woman turned, recognized the man who’d sent her the beer, and smiled slightly, her lips parting. “Just in time.”

Seeing them talking, the would-be suitor slunk away, seeking another target.

Wang Zheng took the glass he’d slid over, emptied the beer, then called for a glass of ice water, handing it to the woman.

“No matter what happens, a woman alone should never get drunk. If you’re sad, upset, or want to vent, drink ice water—it’s a good way to calm down, and best of all, it’s free. Why not?”

“Others try everything to get me drunk and into their beds, but you offer ice water to cool off. Don’t you want me in bed?” she asked, her voice soft and mournful, like a fleeting blossom—beautiful yet sorrowful.

“The bed is just the result; the process is what matters. What I want is for a woman to willingly seek me out, again and again, not for me to chase her. I’m not noble enough for a platonic affair, nor am I the kind to bed a woman so drunk she’s barely conscious. In my eyes, sleeping with a woman that drunk is no different from defiling a corpse.”

“Defiling a corpse? Haha!” she laughed, her eyes bleak. “Some people alive are no different from the walking dead.”

“The only thing that can defeat you is yourself. Right now, you see only the shadow ahead, not the sunlight behind. Here you are, seeking ruin in such a place, enduring the torment of night. Why not go home, sleep well, and welcome the light of tomorrow?”

“Some things... cannot be changed,” she murmured, her voice thick with despair, so much so that Bai Bing, not far away, felt it too.

What could drive a woman to such hopelessness? It seemed as if tonight was her last on earth.

“Is that so? Ha, ha, ha!” Wang Zheng suddenly burst out laughing, then grew serious, looking at her intently. “I love changing the things that cannot be changed.”

She turned to him, a smile flickering at her lips—was it a sneer, mockery, or something else? Just then, she saw him extend his fist and slowly open it, revealing a pure crystal the size of a popcorn kernel.

“This is a diamond from the Premier Mine in South Africa, cut from a thousand-carat stone in Belgium, one of several, weighing ten carats. Its color, clarity, and cut are among the world’s finest. It symbolizes indestructibility, invincibility, steadfastness, and masculine resolve.” With that, he took her hand, placed the diamond in her palm, and said, “Now you possess the faith to be indestructible, invincible, steadfast, and resolute. Take it and change the world that cannot be changed.”