Chapter 4

Hearing Zhao Gang's instructions, an official near the bedroom door immediately stood up and ran out of the room to find a mirror.

On the other side, Zhao Gang, still unclear about the situation, did not want to reveal any weaknesses, so he remained silent, quietly waiting—though the sight of a group of people kneeling before him made him very uncomfortable.

Feeling his strength returning, Zhao Gang did not want to lie down any longer. He gathered his strength in his arms and tried to prop himself up.

Seeing Zhao Gang's movements, the elderly official who was leading the group quickly stood up to assist him.

"It's nothing, just a temporary lack of strength. It's not a big deal," Zhao Gang said softly, finally sitting up with the help of the elderly official, leaning against the head of the bed.

The elderly official, however, did not dare to say much more and knelt before Zhao Gang again.

Seeing all these ancient officials, the youngest of whom was already over thirty, and the oldest with white hair, Zhao Gang felt a pang of sympathy and sighed, "Forget it, don't kneel anymore. All of you, stand up."

The leading elderly official did not dare to stand up, hesitating, "Thank you, sir, but... our negligence in protecting you..."

"Stand up first, we'll discuss those matters later."

Seeing Zhao Gang's firm tone, the officials finally stood up. Some of them showed signs of relief, thinking that this "Sir Zhao" would not blame them, while the leading elderly official still looked worried.

He believed he understood this "Sir Zhao" well. Though young, he was already in a high position, deeply favored by the emperor, young and impetuous, acting without restraint, and seeking revenge for any grudge. This matter would likely not end well.

In this silent and oppressive atmosphere, it wasn't long before the official who went to find the mirror returned quickly, holding a small silver mirror in his hand. Without passing it to anyone else, he pushed through the crowd and came to Zhao Gang's bedside, holding the mirror out to him with both hands in a fawning manner.

Looking at the crystal mirror being offered, Zhao Gang's face showed a moment of hesitation, but he finally took the mirror and placed it in front of himself.

Then, he finally saw his current appearance.

In the mirror, a young man of about twenty-three or twenty-four, with clear brows and bright eyes, a handsome and elegant appearance, but with a pale face, a dazed expression, and a bandaged head, as if he had just suffered a severe blow, which marred his overall image.

But this was not the key issue.

The key issue was that this was not his original appearance.

This was the appearance of the owner of those memory fragments—Zhao Junchen!

Zhao Gang finally understood where the memory fragments flooding his mind came from—these memory fragments were the memories of this body itself!

But Zhao Gang would rather not know.

He really had traveled through time! He really had returned to ancient times! He really had become another person!

Originally, Zhao Gang still harbored a glimmer of hope, thinking that the current situation might be a prank from a TV show, with a hidden camera in some corner of the room, and the show's producers laughing secretly.

Although this guess was neither reasonable nor logical, Zhao Gang still hoped it was true.

Unfortunately, the reality was the opposite. The reflection in the mirror could not be deceived.

At this moment, Zhao Gang wanted to rationally deduce the reasons and calmly plan for the future, but the truth was that after discovering everything, even though he was mentally prepared, his mind still went blank.

Seeing Zhao Junchen remain silent, just staring blankly at the crystal mirror in his hand, the surrounding officials began to worry again, thinking that Zhao Junchen might have suffered brain damage from the attack.

If that were the case, given Zhao Junchen's status in the emperor's heart, the future of all the officials present would be bleak. Being demoted to commoners would be a lenient punishment, and being stripped of their property and executed was not impossible.

Finally, after a moment of hesitation, the leading elderly official cautiously asked, "Sir Zhao, are you feeling unwell? Should I call a doctor for you?"

Hearing the elderly official's question, Zhao Gang finally recovered from his shock and confusion. Not wanting to reveal any weaknesses, he forced himself to calm down and, imitating the tone of Zhao Junchen from his memories, slowly said, "No need, I, um, this official is fine. I just feel a bit dizzy and want to be alone for a while. You can all leave now. If there's anything, I will call you."

Hearing Zhao Gang's instructions, the elderly official, though not daring to disobey, was still worried and hesitated, saying, "Sir, you just suffered an attack and should not be left alone. Besides, as an imperial envoy, there are many matters I need to discuss with you. Also, the fate of the troublemakers needs to be decided by you..."

"Leave!!"

Zhao Gang's mind was in chaos, and he did not want to argue with them. Through the memory fragments and the behavior of the officials, he knew that his current "self," though young, held a higher position and more power than the officials present. So he showed his impatience on his face, no longer being polite, and said coldly.

Hearing Zhao Gang's cold tone, the officials in the room were all startled and did not dare to delay further. They bowed and quickly left. The leading elderly official, though unwilling to leave, did not dare to disobey Zhao Gang's wishes and left with the others.

However, although forced to leave, the officials did not dare to go far and waited outside the room.

But Zhao Gang no longer cared about these things.

Once the room was empty, Zhao Gang suddenly smiled bitterly, sighed, and said to himself, "What is this? Zhuangzi's dream of the butterfly? A past life and a present life? Or a soul transfer and rebirth? Zhao Gang, you often pride yourself on being calm and composed, but now you are at a loss and don't know what to do."

Zhao Gang was originally just an unremarkable civil servant in the government, with no outstanding abilities but also no obvious flaws. He neither knew how to scheme nor was willing to spend time plotting for power and profit. His only hobby was reading. He had always thought he would live a simple and peaceful life, but he never expected to encounter such an incredible situation.

It was understandable that he was at a loss for a moment.

After a long silence, Zhao Gang finally calmed his panic and unease, shook his head, and said to himself, "Forget it, even though I have changed bodies and traveled through time, I have no real attachments. This strange situation, though bizarre, has not truly cost me anything."

Before the穿越, Zhao Gang's parents had already passed away, and he had neither fallen in love nor married. At this time, he was more open-minded than most people, as he had fewer attachments.

After talking to himself, Zhao Gang stopped speaking and thought to himself, "In any case, whether it's a soul transfer or a body swap, since I have come to this era, I can only accept my fate. The most important thing now is to understand the dynasty and environment I am in, as well as the character of the original owner of this body, Zhao Junchen, to avoid making mistakes..."

"Although I have received some of Zhao Junchen's memories, they were just a quick overview, not very deep. Moreover, these memories are not only disorganized but also incomplete, mostly just the most profound parts of Zhao Junchen's memories. They are mostly about his own affairs and experiences, leaving me clueless about which dynasty I am in. In a feudal society with strict hierarchy, if I accidentally offend someone I shouldn't, I might not even know how I die. I can't be careless."

Thinking about this, Zhao Gang subconsciously looked at himself in the mirror and laughed bitterly to himself, "No matter what, even though I have traveled through time, the heavens have not been too unkind to me. My current appearance is much more handsome than my original one... though it may not meet the aesthetic standards of the future. And in this era, I am a high-ranking official... yes, a Deputy Minister of Revenue, Chief of the Inner Transport Treasury, a third-rank official. I wonder how Zhao Junchen, at such a young age, managed to reach such a high position, but I would rather nothing had happened..."

Even if Zhao Gang had become an emperor after traveling to ancient times, what could he do? Whether in terms of material enjoyment or spiritual nourishment, ancient times were far inferior to modern times.

But Zhao Gang did not want to dwell on these depressing thoughts. Instead, he closed his eyes and carefully absorbed, organized, and deeply analyzed the memory fragments left by Zhao Junchen.

Although Zhao Junchen's memory fragments were incomplete in many places, after organizing and analyzing them, Zhao Gang found many useful clues and drew many useful conclusions.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhao Gang slowly opened his eyes, having finally organized the memory fragments left by Zhao Junchen. Many things that were previously unclear now had a general outline, and based on various details, Zhao Gang deduced the dynasty and approximate year he was in.

However, at this moment, Zhao Gang's eyes were full of shock and helplessness.

Logically, after experiencing "soul transfer" and "returning to the past," there should be nothing that could shock Zhao Gang anymore.

But now, Zhao Gang was indeed shocked again.

If there was something more bizarre than traveling to ancient times and a soul transfer, it was traveling to a completely different historical timeline.

China was still China, and the Han people were still the Han people, but the history was different. A dynasty that should have fallen still existed.

However, Zhao Gang did not want to jump to conclusions. After frowning and thinking for a moment, Zhao Gang suddenly called out, "Someone."

In an instant, the leading elderly official pushed the door open and entered, clearly having been waiting outside for Zhao Gang's call.

"Sir, what are your instructions?"

"Bring the local gazetteer and let me review it."

Zhao Gang instructed.

Zhao Gang knew that in ancient China, every prefecture, state, and county had a gazetteer recording major events over the years, including history, geography, customs, people, culture, and even the changes in local officials.

In these gazetteers, the way years were referred to, such as Zhengde third year or Kangxi tenth year, could determine the succession of emperors and dynasties.

Hearing Zhao Gang's instructions, the elderly official, though puzzled, did not dare to delay. A moment later, he brought the local gazetteer to Zhao Gang and left after Zhao Gang waved him off.

While flipping through the gazetteer, Zhao Gang learned many things. For example, he was currently in Luan Prefecture, Shanxi Province, and this place was experiencing a once-in-a-century locust disaster, with famine widespread. He also learned the identity and name of the leading elderly official outside the room—Luan Prefecture's Prefect, Liu Chang'an.

However, Zhao Gang was not interested in these details. He focused intently on the year table at the beginning.

Jiajing, Longqing, Wanli, Tianqi, Chongzhen... Chongzhen twentieth year, Chongzhen twenty-second year... Chongzhen twenty-third year!!

Zhao Gang finally confirmed his suspicions!!

He was now in the Ming Dynasty.

Actually, Zhao Gang had already guessed this. The room's decoration style was consistent with the Ming and Qing dynasties, and none of the officials in Luan Prefecture, including Zhao Gang himself, had braids.

However, Chongzhen twenty-third year!!

Although Zhao Gang's knowledge of Chinese history was not deep, he had