How can I justify myself as a Magnate if I don't indulge myself?

Actually, according to Gu Heng's personality, he really detested dealing with social niceties, and if it had been up to him, he would have cut corners wherever possible, let alone show excessive respect to these "fellow villagers" he had only met a few times...

But there was no helping it...

Today was Xu Hong's 50th birthday.

His role as a son came before that of a super-rich tycoon...

For the sake of his dear mother...

It was okay to suffer a little indignity, after all, how many such significant birthdays could his parents have in their lifetime?

"That must be Gu Heng, right? The young man is indeed handsome, and capable too! Old Gu, you're going to enjoy endless blessings from now on!"

"I held Gu Heng when he was a wee one, and I knew right then that this kid would make something of himself, hefty he was, heavier than the average child! But he looked just like any other kid, it wasn't until a fortune-teller said two years ago that I understood that's called a 'heavy fate'! It's wealth pressing down!"

"There's such a saying? Which fortune-teller was that? Someday I'll take my grandson to see them too, not expecting him to be as rich and successful as Gu Heng, but I'd be satisfied with a little wealth in his fate..."

Listening to the two old men he didn't recognize spinning yarns before him, the smile on Gu Heng's face remained unchanged, but inwardly he couldn't help but pull a face...

The countryside has its downsides...

People don't know how to give compliments...

Unlike Mr. He, who smoothly spouts things like "youthful achiever, young talent"...

Faced with excellence beyond their understanding, they resort to superstition to explain it...

For instance, if someone excels in studies, it's because they're the reincarnation of the God of Literature...

If one becomes an official, then it's because they're destined for greatness...

If they make money, it's as though the God of Wealth has taken up residence in their home...

In the case of someone exceedingly wealthy like Gu Heng, saying the God of Wealth lives in his home doesn't cut it, he's simply "heavy with fate," crushed by the weight of wealth, directly projecting from the spiritual realm into the material world, imagine the magnitude of that fortune...

Though it was quite gratifying to hear, the awkwardness was real, so much so that Gu Heng didn't know how to respond...

Luckily, Gu Jianguo had his ways with such situations, chuckling as he walked over to offer cigarettes and make conversation with the two men...

Although the two weren't from their village, as a rural elder who had lived in the countryside for a long time like Gu Jianguo, there were hardly a few people within a ten-mile radius he didn't know. While not exactly friends, a bit of chitchat was no problem...

As he ushered batch after batch of people arriving to celebrate the birthday into the village committee compound, Old Gu looked at Gu Heng, now drenched in sweat, with extreme satisfaction in his eyes, then handed one of the last two cigarettes from his pack to Gu Heng and put the other one in his own mouth.

This ordinary and plain life of his, altogether, wasn't as exciting as this one year had been.

First, he built a villa, then a new ancestral hall, and now he could have people from all around the area come to celebrate his wife's birthday...

Being someone who cared about face, it's no exaggeration to say that with all the face Gu Heng had brought him this year, even if he were to pass away now, he'd probably go with a smile.

Gu Heng took the cigarette from Old Gu, hesitated for a moment, said nothing, and just placed it between his lips, instructed a few bodyguards to take over the reception, and then sat down with Old Gu in a shady spot nearby...

An old man and a young one, if you ignored the custom-made luxury clothing on Gu Heng valued at several hundred thousand, and the 650,000 traditional Chinese garment on Old Gu, against the backdrop of the village committee compound filled with the essence of rural life, they looked just like ordinary peasants, devoid of any pretense...

After lighting the cigarette in Old Gu's mouth first, Gu Heng leisurely lit his own, took a deep drag, and exhaled a long plume of smoke. Turning his head, he looked at Old Gu's wrinkled face and teased, "Jealous, aren't you?"

Old Gu didn't catch on right away, and asked, puzzled, "Jealous of what?"

"Jealous of the grand birthday celebration I threw for my mom? Don't worry, you won't miss out, when your birthday comes around, I'll throw you an even bigger one!

I know you like to save face, so it'll be bigger than today's event. Today we've got a thousand tables, for your birthday I'll set up five thousand!

If that's still not enough, we can make it an annual event!"

When Gu Heng said this, there wasn't a hint of jest in his tone, it was truly how he felt...

Just a birthday celebration, how much could it cost?

This time it cost roughly eight million, even if the scale were ten times larger, it would only be eighty million.

To say nothing of eighty million, even if it were a few hundred million a year, as long as it made his old folks happy, Gu Heng felt it was money well spent, given it all came from the "system" anyway—might as well be generous on its behalf...

But that was just a joke, of course...

Even if the money wasn't provided by the system, as long as he was capable of earning that much, he was just as willing to spend it on his parents.

A few hundred million could help many families who struggle with hunger, could allow numerous children who are unable to attend school to get an education, and could create countless job opportunities that aid in the development of society, none of which Gu Heng cared about.

To Gu Heng, he was just an ordinary little guy, ingrained with the mindset of caring for his own family before worrying about the larger community, a mentality deeply rooted in the village.

Even if one day he really did become the richest man in the world thanks to the system, he would still retain this mindset, unwilling and unable to change.

Who knew Gu Heng the best in this world?

Apart from himself, it was Old Gu and Xu Hong.

That's why Gu Jianguo knew very well that Gu Heng wasn't joking, and he quickly said, "Alright, alright, once is enough for this kind of thing. Just the thousand tables today cost seven or eight million, if you were to set up five thousand, how much would that cost?

You don't make money easily, your mom and I understand your intentions, and that's enough."