Chapter 1

Under the dark night sky, a quaint garden was dotted with lights, and outside its main gate was a street. Across the street, all the houses were dark and silent, while a few street lamps stood listlessly, casting a dim yellow glow.

Chen Jiayao walked quickly along the street, her flat leather shoes tapping crisply on the stone slabs—this sound, in the quiet of the night, was particularly grating.

The street lamps seemed like a group of clowns, stretching and shortening her shadow, passing it back and forth.

The garden was a university—Yanjing University, where Chen Jiayao studied. The deeper the night, the more the silence grew terrifying. Chen Jiayao was a timid girl—though she had wandered alone at this hour before, for some reason, this time she felt an especially severe sense of unease, even recalling the ghostly events in the abandoned courtyard. This thought intensified her fear, making her steps quicken, her breathing heavier, and her panting gradually echoing in her ears, alternating with the sound of her footsteps, further heightening her unease. It wasn't until she saw the gate not far ahead that she felt a bit better—

Shortly after, she understood the true cause of her unease. The roar of a car engine came from behind her, and she instinctively moved aside, turning—

With a screech, the car stopped abruptly just beside her, the sudden noise causing her heart to tremble violently—then, with a bang, the back door opened, and two burly men emerged, grabbing her arms without a word—

"Ah!" she instinctively screamed, "You—"

Only "you," no more. A handkerchief was pressed to her mouth, and she felt a sweet scent at her nose before the world plunged into darkness.

The two burly men were named Hu San and Zhao Si. In the front seat of the car were their sworn brothers, Zhang Da and Chen Er. The four of them were known in Beiping as the "Four Tigers of Beiping."

The "Four Tigers of Beiping" had a good reputation, but in reality, they were thorough ruffians, specializing in robbery, kidnapping, and extortion. So, in the mouths of most people, they were the "Four Evils of Beiping."

They had been watching Chen Jiayao for over two months, with a simple motive: to kidnap her and extort money from the Chen family. The Chen family owned several shops in Beiping and a textile factory in Hebei, making them quite wealthy.

"This girl is pretty good," Hu San said, leering as he pinched Chen Jiayao's face. The smoothness of her skin sent a shiver down his spine, and a wave of heat rose in his body. He always had this reaction when he saw a beautiful woman, a wonderful feeling.

"Hurry up!" Zhang Da, familiar with his subordinate's nature, spat and shouted.

Hu San smiled, a lecherous smile, and was about to push the girl into the car with Zhao Si when suddenly, a bolt of lightning descended—

Stepping into the metal frame, Ouyang Yun never thought he would come out alive. What a joke, this so-called time travel—putting it bluntly, it was a death sentence. The time travel experiment had been conducted seven times, and seven of his comrades had disappeared, but none had returned.

Before joining the special training unit, Ouyang Yun was very excited and honored, but now, he was only bewildered and angry.

The most famous and handsome Zhao Zilong was the first, followed by the most skilled martial artist, Zhao Jun, and then the oldest, Huang Lin... Among the seven former comrades, the most tragic was Zhang Jiahui. Though it was a rumor, Ouyang Yun believed it was true—he didn't even have the chance to disappear; he was directly disintegrated by an ultra-strong magnetic field, turning a good man into a pile of powder.

There were eight people in their group, and now, it was finally the turn of the youngest, Ouyang Yun.

In the moment before the beam of light from above hit him, he thought: If I had been content to be a medic, if I—

There are no such things as "ifs" in the world, just as there is no such thing as a regret pill. Precisely two minutes later, Ouyang Yun's thoughts were cut off, just like his body. He lost all sensation, physically indistinguishable from death.

His body was decomposed into countless black particles, disappearing before everyone's eyes.

These "everyone" were the people in front of the computer screens in the time travel laboratory. Among them, a man in his sixties excitedly shouted, "Success!" and then led the applause.

Two minutes later, the countless particles that had disappeared before "everyone" recombined into Ouyang Yun, appearing before another group of people with a bolt of lightning.

This "other group" consisted of only five people: the Four Tigers of Beiping and Chen Jiayao.

Compared to the Four Tigers of Beiping, Chen Jiayao was undoubtedly lucky; she fainted and didn't see this ghostly scene.

The Four Tigers of Beiping were even luckier, as not everyone could witness such a scene. If they had lived in the same time as Ouyang Yun and been more modern, they might have shouted, "O! My God!" Unfortunately, they were born decades too early, and with their guilty consciences, they were even more terrified. The ghost, escorted by the lightning, had jumped out.

The Four Tigers of Beiping were once atheists, and they had all arrogantly told their victims, "I'm not afraid of gods, let alone your ghosts!"

But now, they all thought in unison: Could it be that the heavens have finally become angry and sent down celestial soldiers and generals?!

Hu San, the most lecherous and greedy, had done the most evil deeds and was the most afraid of ghosts and gods. His legs turned to jelly, and he stammered, "Ghost, there's a ghost!" His eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

Zhao Si also began to tremble, his heart clenching in fear.

Zhang Da, being the leader, was more experienced. Though he was equally terrified, he made a quick decision, instinctively drawing his gun, opening the car door, and firing, shouting, "Whether you're a god or a ghost, I'll take your life!"

Three gunshots shattered the silence of the night, startling Ouyang Yun, who was still thinking, "If I—"

"Terrorists?!" Wearing a bulletproof vest, the three bullets hitting his chest and abdomen only made him take two steps back. Having participated in the training for the East Turkestan terrorist base, he thought, his spirits lifted. He no longer wanted a regret pill, and he didn't know where he had "traveled" to. He quickly drew his gun from the holster on his thigh, turned on the safety, and a red line shot out, hitting Zhang Da's forehead. He shouted, "Surrender—no killing!"

Chen Jiayao woke up from the pain. After Hu San and Zhao Si fainted, she hit her head on the car, forming a bump on her forehead. She woke up to the sound of gunfire, startled, thinking the rescuer must have died, and almost fainted again.

At this moment, Zhang Da and Chen Er also fainted. The infrared line from Ouyang Yun's gun was beyond their comprehension, and they fainted, thinking it was a power only gods and ghosts could possess.

Ouyang Yun was somewhat disappointed by these cowardly "terrorists," regretting that they didn't give him a chance to show his skills. Soon, he felt strange—the car in front of him looked old-fashioned, and the four men's clothing was peculiar. Looking at the girl, she was dressed in a style he had only seen on TV, with a jacket on top and a long skirt below—were these people acting? He looked around, seeing old buildings that looked like the old hutongs in Beijing.

At this moment, the sound of whistles, running, and voices came from a distance. He remembered his mission and began to suspect that he had indeed traveled through time. Meeting Chen Jiayao's surprised gaze, he stepped forward and whispered, "Don't make a sound." He picked her up and carried her on his shoulder, sprinting towards the wall on the right. As he approached, he leaped, rising about half a meter, and then kicked off the wall, rising another half meter. He extended his left hand to the top of the wall, pulled himself up, and with a final push, he and Chen Jiayao were on the wall. He crouched slightly and then jumped down.

Chen Jiayao had never experienced such a thing, feeling both excited and scared, and she screamed repeatedly. Ouyang Yun, fearing she would make noise, said, "I'm not a bad person," and gently placed her on the ground, turning to say, "You should lose some weight," and smiled.

Chen Jiayao, unfamiliar with postmodern humor, felt her face heat up, a mix of embarrassment and anger. She thought, "I'm not fat," and huffed.

The sound of running and the light from flashlights grew louder outside the wall. Some of the military police and police recognized the Four Tigers of Beiping and shouted, "It's the Four Evils of Beiping!"

"Bind them, bind them!"

"Damn it, let me go—don't you recognize me?"

"Smack!" "Damn, Four Dogs of Beiping, you have this coming?"

...

The Four Tigers of Beiping and their car were taken away by the police and military police, and the night gradually returned to its previous silence. Chen Jiayao's eyes had fully adjusted to the darkness, and by the light of the street lamps, she saw the face in front of her. It was clearly a young man, with a chiseled face, large bright eyes, and slightly upturned lips. His teeth were as white as ivory. His clothes were peculiar, green mixed with other colors, and there was a hole in his chest and abdomen—where the bullets had hit—but he was unharmed! Could he be invulnerable, as the legends said? She wanted to ask but saw him put a finger to his lips and held back, clenching her teeth.

Ouyang Yun looked through the lattice on the wall, listened for a while, and confirmed that everyone had left. He sat down, muttering, "Yanjing University? I've never heard of such a school. Could I really have traveled through time?" He looked at the sky, his expression strange.

Chen Jiayao, confused, stood up and whispered, "Thank you."

Ouyang Yun noticed her, remembering his mission, and stood up. "Sorry, I forgot about you." He asked, "Miss, what year is it now?"

This question was even more confusing. Chen Jiayao blinked, carefully examined his clothes, and saw the strange backpack he carried. She thought, "Could he be a wild man from a remote mountain, isolated from the world for many years? Yes, that's possible, otherwise, how could he be invulnerable?" She thought to herself and answered seriously, "The 24th year of the Republic of China."

"The 24th year of the Republic of China? Heaven, what year is that in the Gregorian calendar?" Now it was Ouyang Yun's turn to blink.

"1935."

"1935." His eyes stopped blinking, started to roll, and his body began to sway.

Chen Jiayao was startled, thinking he was injured, and asked anxiously, "Hey, are you okay?"

"Thud!" Ouyang Yun fell backward, a standard military fall. Then, he sprang up, startling Chen Jiayao again. "So, where are we?"

Chen Jiayao, covering her chest, thought, "This man knows the Gregorian calendar, so he's not from a secluded place. The more I think, the more confused I get." She gave up and said irritably, "Why do you keep startling me? This is Beiping, and we're at Yanjing University. I study here."

Beiping is just Beijing, isn't it? What a good choice for a time travel location—1935, that's during the Anti-Japanese War, right? Is Beijing occupied by the Japanese now? Ouyang Yun thought, regretting not studying harder during the special training, especially the history lessons.

Chen Jiayao, seeing his fixed gaze, remembered it was late at night. As a girl, being alone with a man who seemed strange, if he had ill intentions... She didn't dare think about it and just wanted to leave. "Thank you for saving me, I'm going back to my dorm." She looked at him, got no response, and turned to leave, then remembered he had saved her and she didn't know his name. She stopped and said, "Sir, thank you again for saving me. May I ask your name?"

Ouyang Yun's mind was a mess—no wonder, he had been prepared to die, but now he was alive and in a special era, feeling a mix of joy and worry. Hearing her question, he said, "I'm Ouyang Yun." Suddenly, he remembered the scene from the party the night before, the words he had said after drinking, and a surge of passion rose in him. He asked, "So, is Beiping occupied by the Japanese now?"

"Not yet, but—" Talking about this, the timid Chen Jiayao suddenly became as brave as a man, indignant, and said loudly, "It's probably just a matter of time. The three northeastern provinces have already fallen, and the central government is消极抗日 (negatively resisting the Japanese). Oh, the crisis in North China, the crisis in China! By the way, Mr. Ouyang, thank you again for saving me. I'm Chen Jiayao—please come to me if you need any help—"

"The crisis in North China, the crisis in China." Ouyang Yun looked at the young girl, who was actually his senior, and though her expression was sincere, he felt the eight words were dramatic, a smile forming on his face.

"Sir." Chen Jiayao, seeing he wasn't speaking, mustered the courage to nudge him and said, "Mr. Ouyang, thank you so much today. I'll go back to my dorm now."

"Okay." Ouyang Yun's lips curled, a bitter smile appearing. Remembering he had figured out the year and completed his mission, he said, "Alright, see you."

"See you?!" Chen Jiayao, puzzled by the strange word, slowly walked away, a bit confused.

Watching her disappear into the darkness, Ouyang Yun looked around, confirmed no one was around, took off his backpack, and took out a flashlight, turning it on. He then began to rummage through the bag.

Soon, he found the "spatial coordinates." The "spatial coordinates" were rod-shaped, about two feet long and five to six centimeters thick, made of an unknown material, and felt quite heavy in his hands. He held one end in each hand and, as he had practiced, gently twisted it, thinking he was the first to complete a time travel mission. He wondered what would be added to his shoulder insignia, and if—

He had high hopes, but unfortunately, reality often differs from expectations. When he twisted it, he didn't summon the strong magnetic field of the time travel machine; instead, he just broke the "spatial coordinates" into two pieces—connected by a thin chain, it looked like a nunchaku.

So, the beautiful "if" had no continuation, leaving him three parts angry and seven parts amused.

He was angry at being tricked, and amused at remembering the old man with two stars on his shoulder, who had said, "Ouyang, I like you. Yes, I'll give you a gift—what it is, you'll know when you get there. I promise you'll like it."

Now it seemed the gift was a nunchaku?!

Yes, he liked playing with nunchakus, but only in peacetime. In this chaotic era, he didn't think a nunchaku could stand up to the Japanese rifles.

"Phew!" He suddenly felt like spitting blood, opened his mouth wide, and ended up spitting out a mouthful of saliva!

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