It was just falling ill that supposedly doomed His Majesty; if he were to die, who knows how many people would be doomed with him? And as for those like Brian Clark who tried to kill Andrew Bennett, they’d probably be killed themselves and then have their corpses flogged ten thousand times.

Brian Clark's legs felt weak; he thought he had made a terrible mistake.

Those strong men were still shoveling in dirt. Brian Clark scrambled over, half-rolling, half-crawling, shouting, “Stop!”

The dirt inside had already reached Andrew Bennett’s chest. He was struggling to breathe, looking up.

Is this it for me?

“Stop right now!” One of the men was still shoveling dirt, so Brian Clark kicked him aside, then leaned over the edge of the pit, shouting, “Andrew, Andrew!”

Andrew Bennett felt a bit dazed. He looked up and gave Brian Clark a smile.

Let me ask you—are you scared now?

David Clark’s face appeared at the edge of the pit, delighted. “Andrew, don’t be afraid. Later, you’ll doom them all.”

This cousin seems a bit off!

Andrew Bennett was exasperated. “Hurry up and get me out of here!”

“Hey, hey, hey…”

Just then, David Clark slipped and tumbled right down, bringing a load of dirt with him.

Crap!

The pit… collapsed!

Chapter 2: This Unlucky Guy

The villagers of Yangjiawu had panicked earlier, first because they were afraid of being doomed by Andrew Bennett, the jinx; second, they worried that the Crown Prince in Chang’an might send soldiers to hack Andrew Bennett to death, and they’d get caught up in the misfortune too.

When people panic, they lose their heads and become extreme, forgetting what would happen if Andrew Bennett actually died.

“Andrew Bennett can’t die! If he dies, who knows who else will be doomed!”

Hundreds of people were in a frenzy, all rushing over. After a chaotic scramble, they finally managed to dig Andrew Bennett out.

Andrew Bennett was brought home and rested for half a day. After listening to his cousin David Clark mutter for a long time, he finally understood the situation.

The villagers weren’t wrong at all—his predecessor really was a walking disaster. From his grandfather to his maternal grandfather, then to his own parents—all wiped out.

Back when his maternal grandfather’s family was wiped out, only David Clark was left. Andrew Bennett’s mother took pity on him and brought him home to care for him.

But four years ago, the old Jia family was wiped out too, leaving only Andrew Bennett. So these two cousins ended up relying on each other.

Andrew Bennett sighed. “How pitiful! How pitiful!”

When he was young, both grandfathers died, then the village schoolteacher died, and then his parents…

The kicker was, even the hour of his birth coincided with Li Yuan’s death, and the hour he fell ill matched Li Shimin’s death. That’s some luck.

David Clark looked at him, eyes brimming with tears. “Andrew, when you were little, you’d trip when you went out, walk into trees, choke while eating, and when you were five, you fell off a cow and almost got trampled to death… When you studied, the village teacher came to our house several times, saying you hadn’t learned a thing. Uncle and aunt were afraid you’d starve in the future, so they had you learn farming, but you nearly broke your own foot with a hoe and were bedridden for a month!”

He really was a complete jinx!

Studying made the teacher despair, farming made his parents despair.

He was unlucky even just leaving the house—no, even at home he was unlucky.

In short, the original Andrew Bennett failed at everything and was always unlucky. Plus, all sorts of misfortunes in the village were blamed on him.

That’s nothing, though—the real issue is… both emperors of the Li family were rumored to have been doomed by him.

For someone like that to still be alive, Andrew Bennett couldn’t help but feel a deep respect.

You’re truly tough!

With a jinx like this, what girl would dare marry in?

“We’re so poor…” David Clark looked around; the place was practically bare.

“There’s only enough rice left for three days. After that, we’ll have to go up the mountain to forage and hunt.”

Seeing Andrew Bennett lost in thought, David Clark asked, “Andrew, did getting buried make you stupid?”

Andrew Bennett shook his head. “I was just thinking… what do we call our current situation?”

“What do we call it?” David Clark felt his cousin was a bit different, but couldn’t put his finger on it.

“Dirt poor!”

Andrew Bennett got up and went outside.

Yangjiawu was peaceful under the protection of its walls. Inside the fort, houses were scattered about, and now and then smoke rose from a chimney, attracting a few sparrows to chirp noisily.

Two dogs were fighting up ahead. Andrew Bennett found it amusing and walked closer, but the two dogs whimpered and ran off with their tails between their legs.

Even dogs avoid me?

Andrew Bennett was honestly speechless.

A bit further on, a few young girls came by carrying baskets full of pig feed, which they’d later give to the family’s fattening pigs.

The girls were innocent—not particularly pretty, but full of life.

They were whispering among themselves when one looked up and spotted Andrew Bennett, exclaiming, “Jinx!”

In an instant, the girls all ran off.

Their light steps were like startled deer, just a bit panicked.

“So graceful!” Andrew Bennett praised.

“The jinx is out!” Amid panicked shouts, a few villagers carrying loads up ahead ran off at top speed, yelling as they went, “Wife, quick! Get home!”