Chapter 1

"Where am I?" Just waking up, Jiang Xingchen sat on a narrow bed made of broken wooden planks at the far end of the room, his face full of confusion. In his line of sight, the window was covered with broken wood, the walls were mottled, the old wooden door was closed, and a three-legged wooden table leaned against the wall at an angle... a scene of shabby and dilapidated surroundings.

Slowly turning his head, he saw a pile of charcoal more than a person's height on the other side of the room. His gaze stopped there, and a look of contemplation appeared on his face as the memories slowly surfaced.

"After graduating from university, I went drinking with my roommates, the second, third, and fourth..."

"We drank all night and eventually got drunk..."

"On the way back, I was walking in front..."

"Then I saw a dense fog like mercury... I crashed into it..."

"Boom~" Just as he thought this, a dull thunderclap suddenly echoed in Jiang Xingchen's mind. In an instant, he felt as if his head was about to explode, the pain tearing through his brain, causing him to let out a scream involuntarily.

However, this intense pain did not make him lose consciousness again; instead, it made him more alert. At that moment, he even saw clearly that a dense fog like mercury was rolling in his mind...

In just a moment, Jiang Xingchen's entire body was drenched in cold sweat, and the little strength he had left was instantly drained. His scream turned into a low moan from his throat...

Before long, the pain receded like a tide, and the strange dense fog in his mind finally disappeared. Jiang Xingchen panted heavily, his face, washed by the pain, was filled with fear: "How is this possible! How could I see inside my mind... an illusion...?"

Jiang Xingchen found it hard to believe what had just happened. The scene in his mind was not something he felt but something he actually saw, making him think he was hallucinating... or that he was in a dream!

"Bang!" The door was pushed open, the sound of the doors hitting the wall seemed to shatter the dream, making Jiang Xingchen's face twitch, and he slightly pulled his body back, then turned his head.

In his line of sight, a petite figure rushed to him like the wind, grabbing his arm, and a worried voice rang in his ear: "Brother, how are you? Are you having a headache again..."

Jiang Xingchen nodded subconsciously, his dazed gaze stopping on the person.

In front of him was a young girl, no more than twelve or thirteen years old, with a small, thin body. Her face had several stains, and her long, shoulder-length hair was slightly yellow and dusty, clearly not washed for a long time. Her eyes were red and swollen, filled with bloodshot, and her lips were tightly pressed, showing a look of anxiety.

"Brother, are you having a headache again!" Seeing Jiang Xingchen's daze, the girl spoke again, her voice somewhat hoarse.

Just as the girl asked again, Jiang Xingchen's pupils suddenly constricted, and the word "穿越" (穿越) flashed through his mind: "I... I've crossed over!"

The real touch of the girl's hand on his arm and the words she spoke, which he understood even though they were not in any language from Earth, clearly indicated that this was not an illusion or a dream!

"I... I've crossed over!" This was the only thought in Jiang Xingchen's mind. He ignored the girl, lowered his head, and with great effort, lifted his hand, spreading his palm, and his gaze stopped there.

"It's not my original body..." Jiang Xingchen's eyes constricted again. His palm was slender, with long fingers, and although it was covered in calluses, it was still delicate, definitely not his original rough hand.

"Brother! Say something!" The girl's voice became even more anxious, and she shook his arm forcefully.

"Ah!" Jiang Xingchen drew a cold breath. With the girl's shaking, an unbearable pain spread throughout his body, making him even more certain that everything that had happened was real.

Seeing that Jiang Xingchen still had no reaction, the girl's face turned from anxiety to panic and fear, and she was at a loss, not knowing what to do.

At this moment, the sound of footsteps echoed, and a middle-aged man wearing old hemp clothes and with a loyal face entered the room.

"Master Jiang!" The man stopped in front of Jiang Xingchen and called out softly.

Jiang Xingchen seemed not to hear, still staring at his palm in a daze. He was still in a state of great shock, and even with his strong psychological resilience and adaptability, it was difficult for him to quickly adapt to this legendary situation. The human instinct to fear the unknown and the unfamiliar made him close himself off, not even noticing that someone else had entered the room.

"Ah~" Seeing Jiang Xingchen's state, the man sighed, a sound of helplessness and pity. He then said, "Master Jiang, it's not that I don't want you to stay here. My second son urgently needs money to go to the Imperial Academy, so we can only sell this old house. Even the charcoal business, I have to put on hold for now..."

The girl glanced at Jiang Xingchen, then looked up and said, "Uncle Huang, we understand! We'll leave early tomorrow morning, thank you for your care these past few days!" She forced a smile and bowed to the middle-aged man.

Seeing the girl's forced bravery, the middle-aged man felt a pang of sympathy. He reached into his pocket and took out twenty copper coins, extending them to her, "Miss Mei, no matter what, it was wrong of me to make you leave early. I won't charge you for the rent!"

"This..." The girl hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took the copper coins, bowing to the middle-aged man again, "Uncle Huang, thank you! We will definitely pay you back in the future!"

"Um!" The middle-aged man did not say more, turned to leave, but paused, then turned back to Jiang Xingchen, "Master Jiang, these past few days, Miss Mei has been taking care of you. Don't think about selling her!"

As he spoke, Jiang Xingchen slowly raised his head, finally coming out of his shock and noticing the new person in the room. He also heard what the man said. However, he did not speak; in a completely unfamiliar and unknown environment, not speaking was the best choice.

"Brother won't sell me!" Seeing that Jiang Xingchen was still dazed, Mei took a step forward and said with great certainty! However, the false bravery on her face could not hide her sadness and resentment.

"..." Uncle Huang was silent for a moment, opened his mouth to say something, but Mei spoke first, "I'm not a slave! Brother must have been lying to me before!"

Her words carried a hint of childishness, but the deep tone made one's heart chill.

"That's good!" Uncle Huang did not say more, sighed, and left.

Jiang Xingchen's blank gaze followed Uncle Huang's back as he left. In the sunset, he could see that the outside of the room was similar to ancient architecture, brick walls, mud walls, tiled roofs, and hard earth streets... until Mei closed the door, he finally收回了视线.

He had not heard the entire conversation between Uncle Huang and Mei, but from the bits and pieces and the environment in front of him, he could judge that his current situation was not good.

"What kind of world have I come to? What is the environment outside? What is my identity, and why am I so destitute..." In university, his psychological resilience and adaptability were strong. As the shock of crossing over slowly subsided, these questions came to mind, as they were crucial for his survival.

Jiang Xingchen originally thought that being able to understand the language of this world meant he should have the memories of his previous body. However, when he tried to recall, he found nothing, everything about this body was blank. The only thing that could make him think was the ancient architecture outside the door.

"Brother, are you hungry?" Mei's voice rang in his ear, snapping Jiang Xingchen out of his attempt to find his memories.

Slowly turning his head, Jiang Xingchen looked at the girl. In his brief glance earlier, he had only seen Mei's general appearance, then he was in a state of extreme shock from crossing over. Now, as he looked closely, a look of pity flashed in his eyes, and he frowned tightly.

The little girl was wearing a long hemp dress, with her arms, shoulders, waist, and the hem of the dress almost all damaged and dirty, like a bundle of rags wrapped around her body. Her shoes were black and dirty, and the material was indistinguishable; the front was already broken, and her small toes were exposed. Her small hands had red marks, clearly from being tied with ropes. Her entire appearance was worse than that of a little beggar.

Jiang Xingchen couldn't help but look down at himself. He saw that his outer shirt was light white silk, and the inner clothes were definitely not made of hemp, as he could feel the difference.

"Brother, here!" Seeing that Jiang Xingchen had reacted, Mei looked very happy and carefully took out a wrapped object from her chest, handing it to him.

Jiang Xingchen subconsciously took it.

"Brother, open it and see!"

When the leaves were opened, inside was a palm-sized, black, and dirty flatbread.

"I earned money today and bought a black flatbread! The Chunxiang Building said I can help with the garbage disposal job in the future, so I can support Brother... And Brother doesn't have to worry about having no place to stay, Uncle Huang just returned the twenty copper coins for the rent to us..." Mei said, her lips curling up into a smile, as if happy to have earned money.

Seeing Mei's smile, Jiang Xingchen immediately thought of the red marks on her small hands, feeling a deep touch in his heart. The protective shell he had built around himself was instantly cracked, and he took in this smile.

"Brother! Actually, you don't have to be discouraged. Although you didn't activate the Spirit Spring and lost the qualification to inherit the territory and the noble status, I heard that to gain noble status, you don't necessarily have to be a warrior. As long as you contribute to the empire or a major lord, you will be granted a title! Brother is only sixteen, there are plenty of opportunities..."

At this moment, Mei did not notice Jiang Xingchen's emotional fluctuations, and her mouth opened like a floodgate, talking non-stop.

"Moreover, didn't Uncle say before that practicing martial arts is very harmful to the body, and many people don't live past fifty... When we have money in the future, we can find the best mercenary group and find the guy who tricked Brother with fake medicine to activate the Spirit Spring and beat him up..."

Listening to Mei's incessant chatter, Jiang Xingchen felt a faint warmth, as if he had returned home. He found this little girl inexplicably endearing, and his expressionless face unconsciously showed a smile, and the pressure in his heart was unknowingly relieved.

At this moment, Mei stopped and looked at him curiously, "Brother, why aren't you eating? You've been alternating between unconsciousness and consciousness for the past two days and haven't eaten properly. Aren't you hungry?"

"Ah!" Jiang Xingchen was startled, only then did he think about eating. He immediately felt a spasm-like contraction in his stomach, as if a large hand was squeezing it.

Hunger was more unbearable than pain. Jiang Xingchen looked at the black flatbread in his hand and immediately wanted to swallow it whole. Without even responding to Mei's question, he raised his hand and brought the flatbread to his mouth.

"Swallow!" Just as Jiang Xingchen opened his mouth to bite, a voice suddenly reached his ears, and he paused, looking up at Mei. He saw the little girl lower her head, not meeting his gaze, and turn around, saying, "It's dark, I'll start a fire... Uncle Huang is very kind, he lets us use the charcoal freely, just be careful not to set the pile on fire!"

However, Mei did not leave. Jiang Xingchen had already grabbed her sleeve.

"Haven't you eaten anything either?" As soon as the words came out, Jiang Xingchen realized he was speaking the same language as Mei! However, he didn't have time to think about it, and he pulled her back, tearing the flatbread in half and offering one half to her. He had seen her swallow saliva quickly.

Mei looked at Jiang Xingchen in surprise, her mouth slightly open, her face showing disbelief. Then her eyes misted over. In her memory, since she met Jiang Xingchen at the age of six, he had never shared anything with her.

Jiang Xingchen's heart was also a bit uneasy, "Is this little girl's expression because she saw something?"

"Thank you, Brother!" Before Jiang Xingchen could finish his thought, the little girl had already grabbed the half flatbread and bit into it fiercely.

"How long has this girl been hungry!" Jiang Xingchen thought to himself, watching Mei devour the flatbread.

"Slow down, don't choke!" Jiang Xingchen forced himself to endure the discomfort in his stomach, advised her, and did not eat the flatbread in his hand. The little girl had endured hunger to bring the entire flatbread back and had hidden her injuries, which touched his heart again.

"Uh-huh~" The little girl puffed out her cheeks and nodded forcefully.

The palm-sized black flatbread, split in half, was even smaller. In a few bites, it was gone. The little girl struggled to swallow the food in her mouth, wiped her lips, and didn't miss any crumbs. Just as she was about to look up, she saw another half of the flatbread in front of her.

"Here, eat this half too!"

Mei looked up, seeing Jiang Xingchen extending his arm with a smile, and her eyes, already misty, welled up with tears.

She wiped her eyes and quickly grabbed the half flatbread from Jiang Xingchen, asking loudly, "Why are you being so nice to me today, Brother?"

"Uh!" Jiang Xingchen was taken aback, not knowing how to answer.

"Brother, are you really going to sell me? Is this the last meal you're giving me before you sell me?" The little girl took a step forward, her head close to Jiang Xingchen, staring into his eyes.

"No way! You're my sister, how could I bear to sell you!" Jiang Xingchen laughed dryly and said, "I'm counting on you to support me!"

"Ha ha!" The little girl burst into laughter, suddenly reaching out and pinching Jiang Xingchen's cheeks, stuffing the flatbread into his mouth, "Eat quickly, I'm already full! If you're hungry, how will we leave tomorrow!"

Jiang Xingchen never expected the little girl to have this side. Unprepared, a quarter of the flatbread was stuffed into his mouth.

"Let go, I'll eat it myself! Little girl, are you bullying me because I'm weak now, uh-huh~" Jiang Xingchen shook his head and struggled, his words muffled.

"Don't move, it's wasteful if you do. I'll let go!" The little girl said and let go of his cheeks.

Jiang Xingchen glared at the little girl and reached out to pinch the small piece of flatbread sticking out of his mouth.

"Really, it's so bad, what kind of taste is this, it's full of crumbs, worse than a stale bun left for days! They say hunger makes porridge as sweet as honey, but it's not true!" Jiang Xingchen frowned, and if it weren't for the intense hunger in his stomach, he would have spit out the food in his mouth.

"Brother, is Mei really a slave?" As Jiang Xingchen swallowed the food, Mei suddenly asked.

Jiang Xingchen paused, looking at Mei. He saw the little girl's serious face, staring at him anxiously.

"Of course..." Jiang Xingchen was about to say "of course not," but he suddenly stopped. He felt a warm current surge from his stomach, which had just become a bit more comfortable, to the top of his head, followed by a dull thunderclap in his mind, and the mercury-like fog appeared in his eyes again.