Volume One: Dwelling in Fuchun Mountains

Chapter 0001: The First Day

The autumn rain stopped before dawn. Outside, the roosters crowed as the sky brightened, and he slowly opened his eyes.

These past few days, he had been immersed in immense shock—he discovered that he had actually become another person. Not only had his appearance changed, but there was also a set of unfamiliar memories in his mind. By today, the shock had gradually turned into numbness, and he finally accepted this absurd reality—his soul had actually traveled back six hundred years and merged with the body of a young man named Henry Walker!

‘Just being alive is a blessing…’ he sighed softly, grateful to have survived such a calamity, and thankful that he was an orphan with no wife or children to worry about, so it made no difference where he lived…

Thinking of this, he no longer felt dissatisfied that his once muscular body had become this skinny, frail frame, so weak that even his fingers could barely move.

He was pondering how to face ‘his’ family when he suddenly heard the creak of a door outside, followed by an angry voice:

“This damned rooster, the sun’s already up and you’re still not crowing! Sooner or later I’ll stew you!”

This voice belonged to a shrewish woman—none other than Henry Walker’s mother. After scolding the rooster, she started in on the people. “A bunch of lazybones, still not up? If you keep sleeping, it’ll be dark again soon!”

At his mother’s shout, Henry Walker’s elder brother Edward Walker hurriedly got dressed and out of bed, hastily wiped his face, and went to make breakfast.

“Where’s your wife?” Mother was feeding the chickens with a basket in hand. Seeing her son cooking, her face immediately darkened.

“Cuilian…” Edward Walker had thick eyelids and thick lips, looking honest at a glance. In front of his mother, he was even more like a mouse seeing a cat. He shrank his neck and said, “She’s not feeling well today…”

“A body that’s unwell fifteen days out of every month…” Mother snorted and scolded, “Who are you trying to fool!”

“Ma, I’ll go fetch water.” Edward Walker grinned sheepishly and picked up the carrying pole leaning in the corner.

“‘I’ll, I’ll’—sounds awful! Who taught you to talk like that!” Mother snorted again, finished feeding the chickens, wiped her hands on her apron, tucked a wooden basin under one arm and grabbed a bucket with the other, then headed toward the west wing. She didn’t forget to instruct the eldest, “Sweep the courtyard before breakfast!”

“Okay.” Edward Walker replied obediently.

…

Henry Walker lived in the west wing. Although he was already awake, he hadn’t figured out how to face this family, especially his angry mother, so he decided to keep his eyes closed and pretend to be unconscious.

The door was pushed open with a bang. His mother, her head wrapped in a blue scarf, came in carrying a bucket and a basin, her footsteps clattering. In fact, this mother was quite delicate-looking, with bright, lively eyes. When she wasn’t angry, she didn’t look like a tigress at all. But once she lost her temper, those bright eyes would flash coldly, sharp and intimidating!

Her sharp tongue could scold a living person until they fainted, and then scold them back to consciousness.

After entering, her first glance was at her son. Seeing that he was still lying there with his eyes closed, not moving, she habitually scolded, “You little brat, still not awake? Your mother’s going to be dragged to death by you!” As she spoke, she walked to the bed, lifted the quilt, turned him over to wash and massage him… even changed his underclothes.

To be honest, after being bedridden for so long, Henry Walker’s body was still clean as ever, not a single bedsore—quite a miracle in the hot and humid Jiangnan region.

Although it was already autumn, it was still hard work for a petite woman to turn over a sixteen-year-old boy. Halfway through, his mother was already sweating profusely. As she wiped her sweat, she grumbled, “They say marry a man for clothes and food, raise a son for care in sickness and old age. But your mother, must have owed the Wang men in a past life, working like a horse for you all!”

With that, she continued wiping his armpits. Henry Walker was ticklish and couldn’t help but shiver.

His mother immediately got excited and rushed to the head of the bed. Henry Walker tried to keep pretending, but his mother’s slaps were already raining down—she was really hitting him, and it hurt so much he couldn’t help but grimace.

“Edward Walker, Edward Walker!” Seeing the lively expression on his face, his mother cried out in delight, “Come quick!”

Edward Walker was sweeping outside. Hearing his mother call, he dropped the broom and rushed in, asking in confusion, “Ma, what’s wrong?”

“Look at your brother, he’s awake!” Mother said, flipping open Henry Walker’s eyelids, revealing his eyes darting around—no way to keep pretending now. “What did Doctor Brooks say again?”

“Doctor Brooks said…” Edward Walker scratched his head, thinking, “I forgot!”

“Go get the doctor, now!” Mother couldn’t stand his uselessness, so she kicked her eldest son out the door.

Soon, Doctor Brooks from the county medical office hurried over to examine Henry Walker. Since Henry Walker had already accepted his new identity, he took this chance to ‘wake up’.

In fact, there was no need for an examination—anyone who wasn’t blind could see that Henry Walker had slowly opened his eyes.

The whole family finally breathed a sigh of relief. The little sister jumped three feet high, laughing and dancing around the bed. Edward Walker kept wiping his tears, and even Edward Walker’s wife was delighted, asking Doctor Brooks, “Does this mean we don’t have to spend money on medicine anymore?”