Thinking about how all his troubles started because of this microscope, Henry Clark couldn't help but feel a surge of anger. He reached out to grab the microscope's cardboard box, wanting to smash it in frustration, but after a moment's hesitation, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He tried to throw it a few times but never let go, and in the end, he gently placed it back on the bed. After all, this thing had cost him several thousand yuan, and that was only because a friend had given him the lowest price; if it were sold on the market, it would cost at least tens of thousands.

Finally, Henry Clark turned his gaze to the backpack on the bed. It was an ordinary denim bag. Unzipping it, Henry Clark dumped out all its contents: a long, portable toothbrush cup with a toothbrush and toothpaste inside, a manual razor, a bar of facial soap, and finally, a phone charger. Since the school was quite far from the county town and it was difficult to make the trip, requiring an overnight stay in the county, Henry Clark had brought these personal items with him.

In addition, there were two packs of cigarettes that fell out of the bag, one of which was already open and half-smoked. There were also two lighters, the kind that cost one yuan each and are thrown away after use. But now, they were rare treasures. If Henry Clark remembered correctly, there were probably no cigarettes in the Northern Song Dynasty yet; tobacco was still growing in the grasslands of the Americas, where the local Indians had already started smoking. Unfortunately, the Pacific Ocean separated them from the Northern Song, and with their dugout canoe technology, it was unlikely they could bring tobacco to the Song Dynasty for sale.

Looking at the pack and a half of cigarettes in front of him, Henry Clark felt his throat itch. He hadn't smoked for several days before his time travel, because he had promised his students he would quit. Henry Clark even remembered that just two days before he went to the county, the prettiest girl in his class had sneakily told him she had found a way to help him quit smoking, and then showed him a lot of information about the dangers of smoking. Although Henry Clark had acted indifferent on the surface, he had secretly decided to quit and had managed to stick with it until now.

Thinking of his mischievous yet lovable students, Henry Clark couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat. Out of habit, he took out a cigarette, lit it, and took a drag. After all, there were no cigarettes for sale in the Northern Song at this time, so once he finished this pack and a half, he wouldn't be able to smoke even if he wanted to.

"Cough, cough, cough~" Henry Clark had just taken a puff when his throat immediately burned and he started coughing violently. He had forgotten that his current body was no longer the same as before and wasn't used to the taste of cigarettes. Plus, he had the habit of taking a deep drag when in a bad mood, so naturally, he choked.

But in his previous life, Henry Clark had been a heavy smoker. After coughing a few times, he took a deep breath and then slowly took a few more puffs, quickly getting his new body used to the taste of cigarettes. The nicotine helped ease some of the anxiety and restlessness he felt after time traveling.

"Ah~! A ghost!" Before Henry Clark could finish his cigarette, a piercing scream suddenly rang out, making him jump and almost toss the cigarette onto the bed.

Chapter 3: Sweet Potatoes and Corn

A little maid with her hair in two buns and wearing a pink ruqun stood at the entrance to Henry Clark's bedroom. Her round little face and big round eyes, paired with a delicate, petite nose, made her look incredibly cute. Of course, she would have been even cuter if she could just keep her mouth shut and stop screaming.

"Stop!" Henry Clark shouted, his ears stinging from her shriek. Only then did the girl stop screaming. But when she saw the smoke swirling around Henry Clark and the glowing cigarette in his mouth, she immediately screamed again, "Fire!" and threw a basin of wash water at him.

Splash—Henry Clark felt a chill all over as a basin of cold water drenched him from head to toe. Luckily, it was already May; although it had been raining, the temperature wasn't low. If it had been winter, Henry Clark would have been frozen.

"Little Daisy, I was just smoking a cigarette! Why did you throw water on me?" Henry Clark spat out the soggy cigarette butt, shouting in frustration. Truly, when you're down on your luck, even drinking cold water gets stuck in your teeth—he couldn't even smoke a cigarette without getting doused.

"I... I..." The little maid named Little Daisy was still confused. When she came in, she saw smoke coming out of Henry Clark's mouth and nose at the same time and thought she'd seen a ghost, so she screamed. Then, seeing smoke in the room, she instinctively threw the water. Her little brain still hadn't caught up, so she could only stare at Henry Clark with wide, innocent eyes.

Just then, two women suddenly rushed in from outside. One of them, though young, was already dressed as a married woman and had a refined, elegant appearance. This woman was the first Northern Song person Henry Clark had met after time traveling, and also his current nominal wife, Emily Foster.