Chapter 1

The heavens played a joke on Qi Feng. A college sophomore who had been living a life of idleness and waiting for death suddenly, for some unknown reason, gained superpowers. It might have been because a lightning bolt struck his computer, or perhaps the pirated system he bought for five yuan had a problem. In any case, the reality was that Qi Feng's laptop was dead, and he could now "time-travel."

The first time he discovered his ability was right after his laptop had honorably died. Qi Feng, who was playing a game alone in his dorm room, was startled by his suddenly smoking laptop. He quickly unplugged it and, holding the laptop, rushed downstairs to find a small computer repair shop nearby to save it. However, as soon as he pushed the door open, he was stunned by the scene before him.

Blue sky, white clouds, green mountains, and trees, a wide dirt road, and Qi Feng found himself standing by the roadside. In front of him was a typical three-story ancient Chinese wooden structure with red lacquer and blue tiles. A flagpole stood beside it, with a yellow flag bearing the words: "Yue Lai Inn!"

What was going on! Qi Feng still remembered that his dorm room was on the fifth floor, and this clearly wasn't a floor issue. Within a ten-kilometer radius of his school, there was no way such a "wilderness" could exist! The passing horse-drawn carriages and people in ancient attire further indicated the severe temporal dislocation. Qi Feng turned around and saw a small, dilapidated wooden door of what seemed to be a stable, slightly ajar, from which he seemed to have just emerged.

"I've time-traveled!" Qi Feng's heart skipped a beat, and he felt no joy at all. His first thought was, "I won't be able to return, will I?" He hurriedly pulled the wooden door but only saw a small room piled with firewood, which instantly chilled him. Qi Feng, not giving up, stepped into the stable. As soon as the wooden door closed, the light flickered, and he found himself back in his dorm room.

Qi Feng breathed a sigh of relief upon his safe return. Time-traveling sounded fun, but diving into a different world without any mental or material preparation was a scary prospect. After all, Qi Feng, who studied electrical engineering, would be half-disabled in ancient times. In high school, he thought he knew everything about the world, but after more than a year of college, he had forgotten most of what he learned. Now, he only knew about transistors and Fourier transforms. However, since he could return, there was nothing to fear!

He calmed down and wondered if everything that happened was just an illusion. He cautiously pushed the dorm room door again, but outside was just the empty dormitory corridor.

"Huh? It doesn't work anymore? Was it really an illusion?" Qi Feng rubbed his temples, trying to recall the scene. "Or did I just open it the wrong way?" Unable to figure it out, he decided to focus on fixing his laptop first. He picked up the laptop and headed to the repair shop. A laptop that had smoked definitely needed parts replaced, and although he studied electrical engineering, he didn't have the skills to replace parts.

However, as soon as he pushed the door, he time-traveled again!

It was the same place, the Yue Lai Inn, and Qi Feng emerged from the same dilapidated stable. Since he could come and go, he wasn't as worried. After all, familiarity breeds comfort, and the shock of time-traveling wasn't as intense as the first time. He walked straight into the inn, as there was no other choice. The inn stood alone on a deserted road, and it was best to go inside to get a feel for the ancient customs and culture.

As soon as he entered, a waiter greeted him. The waiter found Qi Feng's appearance strange: messy but clean hair (medium-length, tousled), odd clothing but of good quality (a set of jeans), and expensive boots (mid-calf Martin boots). The waiter, skilled at reading people, saw that Qi Feng's fair skin indicated he wasn't from a poor family. He immediately put on a professional smile, "Sir, please come in! Would you like to rest or stay overnight?"

Qi Feng was delighted. He didn't need to stay, but trying ancient cuisine and experiencing classical Chinese culinary culture would be both interesting and meaningful. He asked, "How much for a meal?"

The waiter enthusiastically introduced, "We have freshly slaughtered old ox, tender beef like flower cakes. Sir, you can try it. A pot of wine and a few dishes will cost you only one tael of silver."

Qi Feng inwardly cursed, having forgotten that he had no money and that the soft currency in his pocket wouldn't be usable here. However, he didn't show it and waved his hand, "Bring the best wine and dishes quickly. Hmm, I need to use the restroom." He turned and left the inn, pushed the stable door, and returned to the present.

"Silver, silver..." Qi Feng rummaged through his drawer and found a box. It was a set of zodiac commemorative silver bars his aunt had sent him for his last birthday. Each bar had a different zodiac animal engraved on it, weighing 100 grams, and the entire set was worth 5,000 yuan, a significant gift. Although it was a collection, it didn't have much value, and he usually kept it at the bottom of his drawer. He wouldn't be so poor as to pawn the silver bars, but now they could be useful, and he wouldn't hesitate to use them.

Qi Feng casually took one bar, weighed it in his hand, and thought it would be enough to pay for the meal. He pushed the door and returned to the Yue Lai Inn.

He wasn't sure if the time flow at both ends of the "time portal" was the same. When he returned to the table, the wine and dishes were already served. The waiter stood by, ready to serve. Qi Feng sat down and casually placed the silver bar on the table.

The waiter quickly took it, looked at it, and was surprised by the brightness of Qi Feng's silver. Silver oxidizes, and most people's silver is gray or even black. The purity of silver in circulation was low, and the quality was poor. Qi Feng's silver bar, polished and smooth, was as bright as a mirror, many times brighter than a copper mirror. It had a carved image of a tiger descending a mountain and two rows of text on the back (which the waiter couldn't read). It was clearly a valuable silver ornament, not ordinary silver. Could it be that some noble family was so extravagant as to use such silver ingots as currency?

Qi Feng didn't think much about it and asked, "Is this enough?"

The waiter hurriedly smiled, "Enough! Definitely enough! This is at least two taels. I'll go weigh it for you." He went to the counter.

Qi Feng saw a large plate of beef and a pot of wine on the table, along with four other dishes. Just the beef alone, he estimated, was more than he could finish. Were the ancients particularly good eaters? After all, the old general Lian Po claimed he could eat a bushel of rice and ten pounds of meat a day, even if it was exaggerated, the food on the table wouldn't be enough for him. Qi Feng, lost in thought, took a piece of beef and put it in his mouth.

"Mm! Delicious!" Qi Feng, who had been tortured by the school cafeteria, was immediately impressed by the Yue Lai Inn's cuisine. No wonder it was the first ancient chain restaurant! The ordinary-looking braised beef was incredibly fresh, fragrant, and tender, almost making him bite his tongue. He quickly tried each dish, and they were so good that he almost cried.

The waiter returned, smiling, "Sir, your silver is two taels and five mace, of excellent quality! The wine and dishes cost only one tael, so I'll give you two taels and some silver coins back." He placed a small pile of silver coins on the table.

Qi Feng, realizing that the quality of silver mattered in ancient times, casually took the change, picked up a piece of silver, and tossed it to the waiter, smiling, "You're a honest man, little brother."

The waiter quickly thanked him, "Our inn always operates honestly and treats all customers fairly. I hope the wine and dishes meet your expectations. Our small inn can only offer these, and I apologize for any inconvenience." The waiter saw that the silver bar was no ordinary item, and this customer must be someone important. He was also generous with the tip, so he was afraid of not serving him well.

"Ah? Delicious, very delicious. You don't know, the food in the university cafeteria is like pig feed compared to this! Not only is the taste bad, but I often find new species in the food..." Qi Feng couldn't help but complain about the school cafeteria.

The waiter, though not fully understanding Qi Feng's words, got the gist and replied, suppressing a laugh, "Then, sir, you should come often."

"Ah, right! I will come often! I must come often!" Qi Feng nodded vigorously while stuffing beef into his mouth.

"Sir, please enjoy your meal. If you need anything, just call me."

The waiter was about to leave when Qi Feng stopped him, "Wait, little brother, bring some takeaway boxes."

"Takeaway boxes? What are those?" The waiter was confused.

Qi Feng slapped his forehead, realizing there were no takeaway boxes in ancient times. He stood up and said to the waiter, "Don't clear the table yet. I haven't finished eating. I'll be back soon." He rushed out of the inn, pushed the stable door, and returned to his dorm. He found two lunch boxes and several clean plastic food bags, ran back to the table, and packed all the food.

"Sir, what are you doing?"

Qi Feng, while packing the food into the lunch boxes, said, "I have something to do and am in a hurry. I'll take the food and eat it on the go." He didn't forget to take the wine pot, saying, "Little brother, I'll return the wine pot next time."

"Sir, you're joking. A wine pot is worth nothing. Take it."

Back in the dorm, Qi Feng dragged out the table he usually used for playing cards and laid out the wine and food. It was almost mealtime, so he quickly called the dorm leader.

"Leader, where are you? Haven't eaten yet? Don't wait in line at the cafeteria. Come back to the dorm and call the others. I ordered takeout today and will treat you to a feast. Ah, by the way, leader, you can continue waiting in line. I only remembered to order the food, so bring some rice back."

The dorm leader called the other roommates one by one. Hearing about the feast, everyone was excited and quickly gathered in the dorm. The dorm leader, who had been waiting in line at the cafeteria, arrived last, carrying a plastic bag with a few pounds of rice and a small container of pickles.

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