Chapter 1: Chaotic Times

The sky was pale, with not a cloud in sight.

Dayuan · Yunzhou · Feiye City.

Chirp!

A bird with white feathers and a black beak flapped its wings across the land, swooping downward.

Passing through the thick, ancient city walls and towers, the bird slowed and gently landed atop the tallest dark-red tower in the city. It preened its feathers while gazing down.

Clusters of gray buildings filled the city, with pavilions of all shapes and sizes.

Pale yellow houses and lofts rose and fell, and grand courtyards with upturned eaves could be seen everywhere.

At the very center, on a vast square—

The ground of the square was paved with stone bricks over a meter wide, and there were huge, strange beast patterns, exceptionally clear.

This was the open space where markets and fairs were usually held.

At this moment, it was packed with a sea of people, crowded with citizens who had come to watch and listen.

In the center of the square, atop a simple wooden platform, an old Daoist in white with crane-like hair held a horsetail whisk, speaking loudly.

"Those who pursue the highest learning, recite it ten times, and the Five Emperors will guard you, the Three Realms will bow their heads..."

"You scholars, your foul aura has not dissipated, your bodies have not attained true understanding..."

"Oh! Here they come!!" someone whispered in the crowd.

Soon, a Daoist holding a wooden basin took out handfuls of copper coins, walked a bit, then stopped and tossed the coins down from the platform.

He didn't throw many, but it still made the crowd below bend down to pick them up.

Henry Webb squeezed through the crowd, glancing from afar at the old Daoist expounding on the platform.

He was about 1.7 meters tall, with a faint mustache, a young and ordinary face, wearing a gray linen short shirt and fairly decent black cloth shoes.

Looking at the old Daoist on the platform.

He paused only briefly, then carried the fried dough cake he had bought and headed home.

As he pushed through the crowd, he had to endure all sorts of unpleasant smells from around him.

The stench of sweat, feet, saliva, and even faint traces of excrement and urine.

Henry Webb glanced down and saw a squashed pile of dog feces on the right, quickening his pace.

He crossed the square, turned into the alleys, and passed through several lanes full of yellow dust and garbage.

Henry Webb soon returned to his only home in this city.

Home was in a small alley, one of a row of dilapidated single-story houses.

Outside the door hung some old clothes drying, with subtle differences in color between men's and women's.

Henry Webb moved aside a broken wooden stool blocking the door and entered the dim house.

"Second Sister, I'm back," he called out loudly.

In the corner of the room, a thin woman stood up.

She was rolling up her sleeves, washing clothes. Her hands were wet, and she brushed her hair back with her forearm, smiling at Henry Webb.

"Why are you back so early today, Xiao He?"

"Work ended early, so I came back first," Henry Webb explained.

"Is the work repairing the Mu family's main house finished?" She walked to the window, the faint light shining on her, revealing a somewhat delicate face. Though her skin was rough and her complexion poor, her figure was curvy and quite attractive.

Her name was Emily Webb, Henry Webb's second sister.

Henry Webb also had an elder sister named Charles Webb, who was now the pillar of the family, working with the Blackwater Gang in the city.

This was also the key reason why the The Webb Family could maintain relative stability in the area.

"Finished long ago. I even helped repair a few guest rooms next door," Henry Webb replied.

He had been in this world for several months now, from initial confusion to later acceptance.

And now, hustling for a living, it had only taken him three months.

Three months—really, it was already fast.

The Webb Family's parents were alive, and he had two older sisters.

Eldest sister Charles Webb treated him extremely well, second sister Emily Webb was also very good to him, and his parents saved all the best things for him.

Because of the preference for sons and the family's poverty, they couldn't afford birth control, so The Webb Family's parents had two daughters before finally having Henry Webb, the only son.

This made the whole family value Henry Webb greatly.

"Elder sister isn't back yet. Little brother, be careful when you go out these days. When I went out looking for sewing work, I heard another family got robbed in the middle of the night," Emily Webb lowered her voice, her eyes a bit anxious.

"Still not back? How much did that family lose?" Henry Webb's expression changed.

"They just got paid, and I heard they lost half of it. The rest isn't enough for them to get by... And in Rat Alley across the way, someone got robbed yesterday too. They resisted a little and lost a finger."