He ignored the glaring sunlight, glaring angrily with wide-open eyes, and cursed indignantly, “Even the sun wants to torment me—this is just too much!”

It turned out his name was not Michael Bolton; his real name was William Bolton, and he was not a man of the Northern Song Dynasty, but rather an intern lawyer from a thousand years in the future.

He still remembered that afternoon when he went to the countryside for work. On his way back, he unfortunately encountered a flash flood. Both he and his car were swept away. He struggled desperately inside the car, and although he managed to escape, he still couldn’t withstand the raging torrent. He felt his body growing heavier and his consciousness fading. But when he surfaced again, he found himself nestled in the arms of a young girl.

That woman saved him and brought him ashore, then hurriedly left.

In a daze, he noticed the woman was dressed in ancient clothing, which made him very curious, but he didn’t think much of it.

After more than half a day, he finally recovered from nearly drowning. He searched himself and found nothing on him—his phone and everything else had been left in the car, even his newly bought sneakers were gone. Just as he was about to ask someone to borrow a phone, a few men dressed as ancient constables suddenly appeared and seized him.

William Bolton was dumbfounded. Who were these lunatics? He struggled desperately and even threatened them, telling them to go home and wait for a court summons. As a result, he was beaten so badly he vomited bile and was tied up tightly.

To make matters worse, he couldn’t really understand what they were saying, and everyone he met along the way avoided him. All the passersby were also dressed in ancient clothing.

It was only when he saw the ancient city gate that he gradually realized he might have traveled through time.

But things got even more bizarre—he seemed to have gotten involved in a murder case.

However, due to language differences, communication was extremely difficult. He couldn’t even clearly state his own name.

Before he could figure anything out, he was thrown into prison.

It was only after communicating with other prisoners in jail that he gradually learned the local language and finally understood what had happened.

It turned out he had traveled to the Xining era of the Northern Song Dynasty.

The woman who saved him that day was named John, a native of Penglai County, Dengzhou. Her mother had died a year earlier, and her uncle had arranged for her to marry a farmer from the neighboring village named Henry Walker.

This man was said to be extremely ugly and was famous for it, while John was said to be a stunning beauty, also renowned far and wide.

Naturally, John was unwilling, but this was a feudal society—marriage was not something a woman could decide for herself. Most women would just grit their teeth and get through it. After all, even the ugliest person doesn’t seem so ugly after a while, and even the most handsome man becomes ordinary if you see him every day.

The more strong-willed women might even take their own lives.

But John was not an ordinary woman. That night, under cover of darkness, she took a knife and snuck into the neighboring village, attempting to assassinate Henry Walker as he kept watch by the fields. But after more than ten slashes, she failed to hit any vital spots—she only managed to sever one of Henry Walker’s fingers.

Frightened and seeing Henry Walker covered in blood, John thought she had killed him and hurriedly fled. On her way home, she happened to encounter William Bolton, who may or may not have just drowned, and saved him.

Coincidentally, a passing woodcutter saw John and William Bolton embracing, so when the authorities investigated John’s motive for murder, they suspected her of having an affair with William Bolton and conspiring to kill Henry Walker together.

To make matters worse, at the time William Bolton couldn’t understand what they were saying and was unable to explain himself, so he was immediately imprisoned.

And that imprisonment lasted for three whole months.

Faced with this disaster out of nowhere, William Bolton was once in utter despair.

In a feudal era, once you’re thrown in jail, there’s little chance of getting out. However, after he learned some of the local language, he immediately tried to explain himself. During this time, because he didn’t know how to pronounce the character “斐,” he reported his name as Michael Bolton.

Fortunately, the prefect was not muddle-headed. Now that John had confessed and, after repeated investigations, it was finally determined that her account was true and that William Bolton was not her lover.

As for the story William Bolton made up about his background, since commerce was flourishing in the Song Dynasty and there were many traveling merchants, it was common for people to hide their household registration. The authorities didn’t bother to investigate further, as it would have been a very tedious task.

Besides, it had nothing to do with the case.

So today, William Bolton was released.

But for William Bolton, the more he thought about it, the more he felt he had suffered a huge loss!

The more he tried to let it go, the angrier he became!

His chest was about to burst with pent-up anger and frustration—he desperately needed a place to vent.

After leaving the government prison, he detoured to the front of the government office. Staring at the imposing main gate, he first took a deep breath, then strode straight toward it.

But after all, this was the prefectural office of a whole region, not a small county yamen. There were constables on guard at all times. When they suddenly saw a disheveled man rushing over, they immediately stepped forward to block him.

One of the constables shouted sternly, “Stop! This is government property—no unauthorized entry!”

The hostility on William Bolton’s face faded, but he still spoke with righteous indignation: “I’m here to file a complaint.”

As he spoke, he took out a blood-written letter he had prepared in prison and handed it over.

He had previously specialized in studying ancient law and had read a large number of books, so he could write most traditional Chinese characters.