Chapter 1

In fact, Xue Xiang had been awake for a long time, but he was unwilling to open his eyes. He tried hard to fall back asleep, as if waking up would mean entering a whole new world. He calmed his mind and started counting sheep, but after more than eight thousand, he found himself becoming more and more awake. He wished so much that this was just a dream, hoping to wake up and find himself back in his original body, even though this body was younger and stronger. Xue Xiang pinched the bicep of his left arm with his right hand, clearly feeling the muscles brimming with strength. Although he hadn't stood up to measure his height, he could reach the edge of the bed with his toes, and this was a large bed, 1.8 meters wide and 2 meters long.

The light-colored window was wide open, with only a curtain to block the cold air. Through the gaps in the curtain, he gazed at the bright moon outside, and a faint fragrance of gardenia drifted from afar. The hard wooden bed pressed firmly against his back, and the ticking of the wall clock on the white wall clearly told him that this was not a dream. The moonlight outside the window shone through the thin curtain onto the clock face, and the hour hand had moved from 9 to 12. After more than three hours of contemplation, he had moved from initial shock, anxiety, and despair to a state of calm. Despite the strangeness, Xue Xiang had to accept the fact that he had been reborn.

Five hours earlier, Xue Xiang was sitting at his computer in the office, playing chess in a QQ chess room. In the heat of the game, he excitedly knocked over a cup of water next to his laptop. Water splashed everywhere, and in his panic to prevent it from seeping into the keyboard, he hastily wiped it with his hand. In the chaos, the water flowed along the desk and into the multi-port socket embedded in it.

As a result, Xue Xiang met with a tragic end!

Coincidentally, the owner of this body was also named Xue Xiang. The soul that had entered did not erase the original owner's memories but rather fused with them. To be precise, it was a fusion! Xue Xiang could clearly feel the original owner's attachment and sorrow for this world, which included a love for life, resentment towards the world, and guilt towards his younger siblings. A myriad of emotions and memories intertwined with Xue Xiang's soul, blending bit by bit until they could no longer be distinguished. Scenes from the young man's life, from childhood to the present, flashed through Xue Xiang's mind with crystal clarity.

The day Xue Xiang was reborn was March 25, 1976, in the same city where he had lived in his previous life, the capital. However, the "old-timer" in his thirties, who worked in the Party History Office of a district in the capital, had become a sixteen-year-old unemployed youth.

After fusing with the original owner's memories, Xue Xiang shivered and cursed under his breath.

Xue Xiang never imagined that at just sixteen, he would be the head of the family. His parents had passed away two years ago, and while he had an uncle and a great-uncle, they were either far away or in prison, unable to take care of him. The Xue family now consisted of four people: himself, his second sister Xue Wan, his third brother Xue Yi, and his fourth sister Xue Shi. The names of the four siblings were quite interesting, taken from an ancient poem. Xue Xiang's father, who loved Li Shangyin, named them after the line "向晚意不适" from "Ascending the Le You Plain."

Thinking about his current situation, Xue Xiang could no longer sleep. He was eager to see his family in this life. In his previous life, Xue Xiang had lost his parents at a young age and grew up in an orphanage, never experiencing family affection. He turned on the bedside lamp, picked up the cotton military uniform, and felt its thickness and warmth. It was a faded yellow military uniform with a herringbone pattern, the shoulder insignia removed, leaving only two holes. He knew this was the top-tier equipment of the era, both simple and fashionable, and not too showy.

After dressing and putting on his black ankle boots, he walked to the full-length mirror and carefully examined his appearance. His hair was short and stood up in tufts, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and fair skin. His delicate face was framed by a strong jawline, and his upturned lips were above a straight, high nose. "A rebellious and stubborn kid," Xue Xiang sighed to himself. Clearly, this face and body pleased him, no, made him secretly delighted! In his previous life, Xue Xiang had developed a big belly from sitting in the office, unlike this body, which was tall and strong, with tight muscles and robust bones. He stared at his reflection in the mirror and clenched his teeth: "This is the worst of times, but for someone with foresight, it is also the best of times. Since heaven has brought me to this world, I will make sure that the name Xue Xiang resounds across the land in this life!"

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