Edward Thompson felt that if he could write a book about his experiences, it would definitely be a bestseller. But right now, even if he had ten times the courage, he wouldn’t dare write it. With such strange, bizarre, and fantastical thoughts in his head, if others found out, they definitely wouldn’t praise him for his imagination and creativity—he’d probably end up being roasted over a fire...

Forget it, better not to think about these things—it's exhausting.

The most urgent thing now is to figure out what dynasty and what place this is, and then make other plans.

His mind was completely blank, with no memories about any of these things. Other than this body, the original owner hadn’t left him anything at all. Edward Thompson felt a deep sense of resentment.

But still, shouldn’t a transmigrator at least have some kind of protagonist’s halo?

With so much knowledge in his head that’s hundreds or even thousands of years ahead of this world, relying on his own intelligence, how could he not do well?

Not to mention being made a marquis or prime minister, at the very least, becoming a high official should be easy, right?

By then, when he’s made it big, he could lead a few lackeys, flirt with respectable women on the street when he’s bored, and live a carefree, unrestrained life—how enjoyable...

He lowered his head and thought for a moment. After a while, Edward Thompson's eyes grew a little moist.

The imperial examination?

He was an engineering student—he couldn’t write the eight-legged essay, couldn’t recite the Four Books and Five Classics, his major didn’t match at all. The path of the imperial exam was definitely a dead end...

Invent gunpowder?

Sure, in the modern world, you could easily look up the formula for gunpowder online, but who the hell would ever bother to do that for fun?

Rely on advanced scientific knowledge?

Astronomy, geography, bioengineering—even if Edward Thompson knew these things inside out, he couldn’t explain them. Before transmigrating, he hadn’t even managed to convince his mom to stop pushing him into blind dates, let alone dream of changing the minds of ancient people.

Chances are, he’d be more likely to end up as roast meat.

Edward Thompson sadly realized that he seemed unable to change anything, and didn’t even dare to try.

Just this morning, he’d still been worrying about what he’d eat in the future. There wasn’t a single grain of rice at home—truly nothing but bare walls, dirt poor... Edward Thompson even suspected the original owner of this body had starved to death.

Maybe because he was in no mood, he didn’t really feel hungry right now, but sooner or later he’d have to face the problem of lacking food.

Looking up at the dilapidated roof, Edward Thompson let out a long sigh.

It was one thing not to have transmigrated into a wealthy family, but at least he shouldn’t have to worry about food and clothing, right? But now, he couldn’t even return to the village, and even his place to live...

Huh!

Suddenly, Edward Thompson flipped up from the bed like a carp.

A place to live?

Isn’t this it right now? Though it’s a bit shabby, it’s still much better than his previous house.

Food?

Come on, is that even a problem? Would bandits ever lack food? Since that beauty still needed his help, she certainly wouldn’t let him starve.

A wife?

No need for his mom to force him into blind dates, no need to buy a house or a car. Even though he’d married into the family, his nominal wife was more beautiful than any celebrity in the modern world. Thinking about it this way, being a bandit chief’s husband didn’t seem... like such a bad deal?

No need to work himself to death, exhausted like a dog every day, only to come home and count his meager salary on his fingers, wondering how many more years it would take to buy a place of his own...

A house?

His wife was the bandit chief—he owned the whole mountain outside!

At this thought, Edward Thompson suddenly felt enlightened.

A top-ranking official? So what?

A marquis or prime minister? Boring!

I’m going to be the man of the Bandit King!

Chapter 5: A Different World

Bang!

The young man slammed his fist against the willow tree beside him. The trunk, as thick as an adult’s arm, shook violently, and leaves rustled down.

“Wretch, how dare she treat me like this!”

Under the night sky, the man’s face was flushed purple, veins bulging on his forehead, looking quite ferocious and terrifying.

The middle-aged woman beside him sighed and said, “Grace has been stubborn since she was a child. Once she sets her mind on something, no one can change it... Tomorrow I’ll ask Second Great-Uncle to have a word with her. His words should carry some weight.”

“If that still doesn’t work, then let’s just drop the matter... I think Emily is a good girl too. If you’re interested in her...”

As the middle-aged woman spoke and mentioned this name, she seemed to recall something. Her expression instantly became a bit unnatural. She coughed twice and said nothing more.

Hearing the name “Emily,” the young man’s mind also conjured up a face no less beautiful than the stunning woman from before. He was slightly tempted, but the feeling only lasted a moment before it vanished, his face turning a bit pale, and he stopped thinking about it.

“If I’d known, I should have taken things slowly. Grace isn’t that young anymore—she’ll have to get married eventually. If we’d joined forces with a few others to put some pressure on her, maybe it could have worked.” The middle-aged woman’s face was full of regret. “Who would have thought, by pushing too hard, she’d actually do something like this—sending people down the mountain to snatch a husband for herself. For a woman... this is simply a disgrace to womanly virtue!”