William Carter was left dumbfounded by this reaction—not because he lacked composure, but because eight burly men inexplicably kowtowing to you would leave anyone stunned.

Meanwhile, the poor woman who had been violated seized the moment when he raised his hand, finally squeezing out from under him. Overcome with shame and rage, she grabbed a decorative screen from the incense table and smashed it hard against his head...

===Chapter 2: Kidnapped Upon Leaving the House===

The first day of the second month, the first year of Zhaohong.

William Carter, who was originally in the jewelry business, had fallen into a deep sleep during his lunch break, only to find himself in this strange yet familiar world. He had just arrived and was already causing trouble for a respectable woman; after being knocked out by a vase, he woke up to find it was already late at night.

"Young master? Young master? Wake up and take your medicine!"

He slowly regained consciousness on a carved wooden couch, his head splitting with pain. What he had just experienced felt like a bizarre dream.

What a strange dream!

Thinking this, he looked up, only to find he was still in the same room as before. The lighting was dim, with wooden tables, beds, and furniture—simple in craftsmanship but meticulously clean. A faint herbal scent lingered in the air.

"Young master?"

A voice called out. Turning his head, he saw a woman dressed as a maid in a green robe. She was pretty, with a slender waist, holding a porcelain bowl, her eyes lowered in a gentle manner.

The green-robed maid knelt by the couch, holding the bowl, and said softly, "Young master, please take your medicine."

He was in the jewelry business and knew a bit about antiques. Everything about the house, including the woman's attire, was almost identical to Song dynasty customs. Could someone be playing a prank on him, staging such an elaborate act?

With this in mind, he took the medicine bowl and asked with a smile, "Beauty, did you graduate from the drama academy? I really can't find any flaws."

He was optimistic and easygoing by nature, and as a businessman, his manner was friendly. His smile was like a spring breeze, but to the green-robed maid, it was something else entirely. She had never seen the young master smile before and was a bit taken aback. "Young master, you..."

"Stop pretending. Is there anything going on at the shop?" He had no interest in playing along; there was still a lot to handle at the jewelry store.

"The shop?"

The green-robed maid was stunned for a moment. Sensing the young master's serious tone, she dared not slack off and answered earnestly, "A few bandits from Liangshan seem to be heading toward Bianjing. The others are out patrolling..."

"Pfft..."

He spat out the medicine he had just sipped.

Liangshan? Water Margin? Medicine feeding? Pan Jinlian?

Looking around more carefully, he noticed that outside the window, the lights were bright, but there wasn't a single skyscraper in sight. In the distance, he could see a majestic palace.

Where the hell am I!

No wonder it all felt so familiar—this was exactly like the scene in the TV drama where Pan Jinlian poisons Wu Dalang.

He lay on the couch, spitting out the medicine for a long time. A chill ran through him—could he have become Wu Dalang?

He quickly looked down at himself. His fingers were fair and slender—not his own, but at least not like Wu Dalang's.

Feeling a bit more at ease, he hurriedly asked, "Where is this?"

"Reporting to young master, this is the Marquis of Wu'an's residence."

"Who am I?"

The maid was startled. Had the young master lost his memory? But not daring to disobey, she answered seriously, "William Carter, Right Commander of the Black Feather Guard, personally appointed Marquis of Wu'an by His Majesty!"

Marquis!

William Carter's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected to possess the body of a marquis with the same name as himself.

This was a god-tier start—a dream beginning.

Unfortunately, the next day, he was no longer so happy.

The Black Feather Guard was the emperor's personal guard, essentially the emperor's private army. The original William Carter was highly skilled in martial arts and always served as the emperor's bodyguard when he traveled. When the emperor stayed in the palace, William Carter was responsible for digging up dirt on court officials.

He commanded three thousand henchmen and wielded considerable power, but his household was rather poor. Including himself, there were only four people in the marquis's residence. Besides him, there were three maids: one was a beautiful young woman of above-average looks, who had grown up with him, surnamed Zhao, given name Han. She was highly skilled in martial arts but cold in temperament, and served as his Little Assistant. The other two, named Edward Hall and Grace Green, had been bought by Lucy Frost and were responsible for serving tea, doing laundry, and cooking.

The household was small, but at least he was a marquis. He had originally wanted Lucy Frost to take him out to see the world, but instead, he was met with cold stares everywhere. Everyone avoided him, and instead of seeing any classical beauties, someone even shot a cold arrow at him in the street, nearly killing him. If not for Lucy Frost's martial prowess deflecting the arrow, he would have met the King of Hell on the spot.

After that, he didn't dare go out easily again. He spent several days in the Dian Kui Si office, diligently reading history books, and finally realized that this Great Song was vastly different from the Song dynasty he knew.

At this time, Song Jiang had just raised the banner of "acting on heaven's behalf," Fang La had yet to rise, and Yue Fei had not joined the army.

In the history of this place, the Sui dynasty even had a third emperor, and then things started to diverge. While the dynasties were mostly similar, many historical figures had vanished. In Shu, a rebel force had emerged, calling themselves the King of Shu. The emperor Zhao Jie had established the Dian Kui Si, nominally the emperor's personal guard but in reality an agency to supervise officials.

And he, William Carter Grand Marshal Carter, was the emperor's most vicious attack dog. Well... maybe "imperial hound" sounded better, but either way, he wasn't a good person.

Realizing he was a scoundrel and a villain, he naturally didn't want to accept this identity. He just wanted to be a cunning merchant, not a treacherous official. Since he couldn't go back, he planned to run far away, change his name, and live incognito.