Chapter 3

Li Jing stood at the entrance of the three-sided courtyard, lost in thought as he gazed at the village road that was not quite straight. The autumn wind stirred up the withered grass leaves by the roadside, swirling and dancing, and the dust on the dirt road was also kicked up, scattering everywhere.

The wind blew, gradually covering his clothes with dust, bringing a chill. The autumn was clear and crisp, the sky was light and the air was fresh. A few birds flying south disappeared into the sky, seeking their winter homes. At the horizon, a few clouds were tinged with a rosy hue, falling directly into his eyes, bright and clear. Wherever he looked, the village walls, built of piled stones, had high, thatched roofs, with their peaks like stacks, a light brown with a grayish tint, exuding an ancient and profound atmosphere.

Under the twilight, the village was bathed in a kaleidoscope of colors, like an ink painting, dreamlike and illusory in the dusk.

Shaking the layered robe on his body, Li Jing seemed to be enveloped in the golden sunset, amidst the swirling dust.

This was a white linen robe with a round collar and a straight hem, with a leather belt around the waist. He also wore a silk headband and black leather six-part boots. This outfit was the standard attire for a man in the Tang Dynasty.

The clothing on his body was Tang attire, and the place before his eyes was also the Tang Dynasty!

This was the Wang Li Village of the Qingning Township, Wendeng County, Dengzhou, Ziqingpinglu Town, Henan Circuit of the Tang Dynasty!

Even now, Li Jing still found it hard to believe all of this. But he had already looked at himself in the bronze mirror at home many times. Although the mirror was not very clear, it still made him realize that the body he was in was not his original one. This was a strange body, over seven feet tall, with sword-like eyebrows, bright eyes, red lips, and white teeth. His long hair was tied up in a bun, and the slight beard on his chin, along with his strong and robust physique, displayed the demeanor of a young man who had just come of age in the Tang Dynasty.

"This is the Tang Dynasty!" Li Jing silently sighed. Although he had not been in this world for long, the twenty years of memories he had received were unmistakable.

Li Jing was initially bewildered by all this, but after a night of deep reflection, he understood that although he did not know how he had come here, it was impossible to return.

Since he was here, he had to make the best of it.

This was the Tang Dynasty, a prosperous era that many people yearned for. As a Chinese person, being able to come to such an era, and as a student of the National Academy, Li Jing felt more excitement and enthusiasm after the initial confusion and panic.

However, when he organized the memories of the original body, he sighed.

He had indeed come to the Tang Dynasty, but not during its golden age. It was neither the early Tang's Zhenguan era nor the later Kaiyuan era, nor even the revival under Emperor Xianzong, or the small Zhenguan era under Emperor Xuangzong.

He had come to the Tang Dynasty, but only at the end of its glory.

This was the Tang Dynasty, the fourteenth year of Xiantong. Xiantong was the era name of Emperor Yizong, who was the seventeenth emperor of the Tang Dynasty after Wu Zetian, with the temple name Li Cui. With a temple name, Li Cui had already passed away. In July of this year, Li Cui died, and the current emperor, Li Yan, who had changed his name to Li Xuan, had officially become the eighteenth emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Jing, well-versed in Tang history, naturally understood this Li Xuan. This year, he was only twelve years old, another emperor installed by the eunuchs in late Tang. He would be the third-to-last emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and the fall of the Tang to the Later Liang was not far off.

But all of this was too distant for Li Jing. He was now just an ordinary villager in a small village by the sea in Dengzhou, Henan Circuit. His family included a fifty-year-old widowed mother, two widowed sisters-in-law, two unmarried younger sisters, and a servant girl named Wan'er, making a total of seven people. In this family of seven, only Li Jing remained as the only man.

Li Jing's father, Li Gang, was a minor official. When Li Jing was seven, Li Gang was a county clerk in Tancheng, Zhejiang. That year, the people of Yuezhou, led by Qiu Fu, rebelled in Zhejiang, breaking into Tancheng, and Li Gang died in the chaos.

Li Jing's eldest brother, Li Yan, became the pillar of the family. However, four years ago, Pang Xun led the Guilin garrison to rebel, killing their way back to Xuzhou. Li Yan was conscripted by the government to transport grain to Xuzhou, but he never returned, dying at the age of twenty-two.

Li Jing's second brother, Li Yu, was only one year older than Li Jing. Recently, the blacksmith Wang's family planned to build a thatched house next year, and his son invited Li Jing and Li Yu to go to the seaside to collect seaweed. They encountered a group of government salt officials chasing a group of private salt traders. Whether it was a genuine accident or the officials intended to kill and claim credit, four out of the five young men from Wang Li Village who went that day were killed. Li Jing survived only because his brother covered him, allowing him to jump into the sea and escape.

Li Yu and the other three young men were thus gone. Although Li Jing escaped with his life, he later suffered from knife wounds and a high fever, and the doctor had given up on him. Just as the family was preparing his coffin, Li Jing woke up. However, no one knew that the Li Jing who woke up was no longer the original Li Jing.

The Li Jing from the future was a student at the National Academy, about to graduate after six years of undergraduate and graduate studies, a gentle and refined student. This Li Jing, although he had a strong and robust body, had been educated from a young age by his father, Li Gang, and after his father's death at the age of seven, he continued to study literature and calligraphy with his mother, who also had a high level of literary accomplishment.

By the time his eldest brother died, he had already received a recommendation from the local government, becoming a candidate for the imperial examinations. However, after his brother's death, Li Jing, who was just sixteen, chose to stay and handle his brother's funeral, and from then on, he and his second brother took on the responsibility of supporting the entire family.

In the following years, while he and his second brother supported the family, he also began to learn martial arts. Although Li Jing's father, Li Gang, was a scholar, his ancestors for generations were military officers in the Ziqingpinglu Army. It was only after an incident that the family moved from Qingzhou to the Shandong Peninsula by the sea.

Unfortunately, misfortunes never came alone. In just a few short years, the Li family lost three of its main men, a devastating blow.

Now, the newly-crowned Li Jing had become the pillar of this family that had endured so much hardship.

As the sun set, wisps of smoke rose from the village, and the sounds of barking dogs and crying children filled the air. The villagers who had been working outside began to return home.

"Third Brother, it's time for dinner."

Footsteps approached from the back of the courtyard. Li Jing turned around, and a young woman in a gray robe appeared before him. She was slender, with a slightly pale oval face, clear eyebrows, and bright eyes. She was quite pretty, but unfortunately, she was too frail. Li Jing knew this was due to her being in the growth stage, lacking proper nutrition, and having to work hard.

Li Jing nodded and smiled at the young woman. She was Wan'er. Nine years ago, her family had crossed the sea from Silla to seek relatives in Dengzhou. With ten people in her family, including eight children and their parents, and no money, they could not survive. Her father eventually sent the younger sisters, including Wan'er, to work as maids, a way to survive. However, life was hard for everyone, and even free maids were hard to feed. In the end, Wan'er's family, knowing that the Li family was relatively well-off, begged them to take in Wan'er to save her life. Li Jing's mother, being kind-hearted, took her in.

Although Wan'er was nominally a servant, Li Jing's mother treated her like a daughter, providing her with the same clothes and food as her own daughters. However, life for the Li family was also difficult, especially this year, with drought followed by locusts, leaving everyone with no harvest. It was already a blessing to have a meal.

"Let's go inside," Li Jing said to the young woman. They returned to the house, with Li Jing leading the way and Wan'er following two steps behind. Looking back at the frail young woman, Li Jing felt a mix of emotions.

This was the Tang Dynasty, a Tang Dynasty where even a meal was hard to come by!

Ps: New book uploaded, looking forward to everyone's support, clicks, recommendations, and collections, none of which can be missing!~

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