William Brooks—this name, in my previous life, was nothing special, even quite common and ordinary, just a bit imposing, that’s all. But in this life, in a place still ruled by a feudal dynasty, it is truly a name of great rebellion! William Brooks figured that if this world were to rise like the Qing Dynasty of his previous life, his name alone would be enough to get his entire family executed.

As for the utter lack of political awareness in the old man and his father, William Brooks was left speechless...

And William Brooks gave the Ling family quite a shock! Old Mrs. Brooks had specially found two healthy and robust wet nurses for her grandson, but to her surprise, the little guy refused to eat at all! Every time the wet nurse brought her breast close, he would stubbornly turn his little head away and refuse to feed! He would rather cry from hunger than take a single mouthful! This really worried Old Mrs. Brooks.

What a joke—breastfeeding is the best way to ensure a baby’s health! What’s so good about the milk of women who have no blood relation to me? They’re basically just human dairy cows! If I have to drink their milk, I’d rather just have cow’s milk instead. Of course, William Brooks refused. Besides, William Brooks had other plans in mind.

William Brooks’s mother, Olivia Clark, felt sorry for her child and insisted on holding him in her own arms. To her surprise, as soon as he was in his mother’s embrace, he became extremely cooperative, feeding eagerly, his little face radiating happiness...

Old Mrs. Brooks was worried that her daughter-in-law was already frail, and having just given birth, she feared her body couldn’t handle it, or that she wouldn’t have enough milk and her precious grandson would go hungry. So she would come by frequently to check in. Unexpectedly, after a month, not only was Olivia Clark’s health unaffected by caring for the child, she was actually in much better shape than before her pregnancy, her spirits even more robust, which left everyone marveling in amazement.

William Brooks was secretly pleased. From the moment he was born, he had noticed his mother’s body was extremely weak, and after childbirth, she was nearly at the end of her strength.

William Brooks didn’t want to suffer the pain of losing his mother at such a young age, so while nursing, he quietly used his small reserve of innate true qi to carefully smooth her meridians and heal her bodily injuries, with excellent results! Now, barring any accidents, William Brooks was fully confident that Olivia Clark could live to a ripe old age.

Another thing about William Brooks that astonished the whole family was that, ever since he was born, William Brooks had never wet the bed! Even when his little face turned red from holding it in, he would never wet himself, and would always babble and kick his arms and legs to alert the adults nearby that he needed to pee... This was simply genius!

Every time guests came to the house, his mother and grandmother would proudly announce this fact, always drawing gasps of amazement and envy, followed by a flood of praise...

As for his mother and grandmother showing off about his not wetting the bed, William Brooks felt extremely frustrated! After all, he had the consciousness of a twenty-five-year-old—how could he possibly wet the bed? Expecting a twenty-five-year-old young man to wet the bed is like expecting all carnivores to suddenly become vegetarians!

As time passed day by day, the Ling family discovered yet another strange thing about the young master: since birth, he had never cried or fussed, and his daily routine was astonishingly regular! When it was time to sleep, he would obediently close his eyes and sleep; when it was time to feed, he would open his mouth and eat, never needing to be coaxed. When he wasn’t eating or sleeping, he was also very well-behaved—either listening with great interest to the adults around him with his big round eyes, or quietly lying to the side, playing by himself. Almost every woman who had seen the Ling family’s young master said they had never seen such an easy child!

Thus, the legend of the Ling family’s young master grew ever more exaggerated, and in a short time, almost everyone in the Cheng Tian Kingdom knew that the Ling family’s young master was a super genius...

Book One: Starry Youth

Chapter 8: The World Situation

Time passed, and William Brooks had been in this world for a year now. Tomorrow would be the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, which was also William Brooks’s birthday in this life. The Ling family had long since prepared for a grand banquet. Because tomorrow, the Ling family’s young master would have his “Zhua Zhou” (first birthday ritual). For the Ling family, this was a big day. It was said that almost all the high-ranking officials of the Cheng Tian Kingdom would come to attend, and take the opportunity to eat, drink, and curry favor.

A year was enough for William Brooks to learn quite a lot. Just from the conversations among his family, with William Brooks’s intelligence, he had already figured out most of this world. But the more he learned, the more confused he became.

This world, or rather, this planet, was very different from the Earth of William Brooks’s previous life, yet there were so many similarities. On the surface of this planet, there were three continents: Tianxing Continent, Tianyang Continent, and Tianfeng Continent. The Ling family was located on Tianxing Continent. Between the three continents stretched endless seas.