Chapter 1: Reborn as the Foolish Young Pillar

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Chapter 1: Reborn as the Foolish Young Shaozhu

December 2022, City S

The final frenzy of the COVID pandemic: nationwide immunity. He Chendong ventured out to deliver ibuprofen to his feverish girlfriend, and by the next day, he felt a fever coming on himself.

Staring at the test kit in his hand, the result was positive.

“Well, this isn’t so bad. I don’t have to go to work, I can rest at home—just treat it as a holiday,” he thought, quickly calling his supervisor to report in.

With the call done, He Chendong found himself with nothing to do at home, so he opened his laptop and continued binge-watching his series. “Full Courtyard of Affection”—though online, it was often mockingly called “Courtyard Full of Beasts.” He played it at double speed. By the end of the day, he’d finally finished. “Sigh, this Shaozhu really has it rough! Though, he is exasperating at times.”

After dinner, He Chendong went straight to bed. In his sleep, his illness worsened: a high fever, his throat felt as if it were being cut with knives. His consciousness began to blur.

Parallel Universe, 1952

Red Star Courtyard, Luogu Lane, South City

“Cough, cough, cough—” A bout of coughing jolted a young man awake from his sleep.

Spotting a kettle on the table, he hurried over, poured a cup of water, and drank, soothing the dryness in his throat.

After drinking, the youth stood up and surveyed the unfamiliar surroundings: a shabby room, furnished with old tables and chairs. “Am I dreaming? Has my fever muddled my mind?” He Chendong scratched his head, something about his hand felt off. He looked at the unfamiliar hand.

Suddenly, a stabbing pain seized his mind. A surge of consciousness collided with his own, intertwining and devouring each other.

Flashes of He Chendong’s memories alternated with those of He Yuzhu, the two sets flickering back and forth.

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He Chendong gritted his teeth, clutching his head as he sat by the table. Only after a long while did the pain subside. Wiping cold sweat from his brow, he poured another glass of water and drank, finally recovering his composure.

“I’ve transmigrated? And to ‘Full Courtyard of Affection’ at that, becoming Shaozhu. So many transmigrators every year, and now it’s finally my turn? But couldn’t I have landed in a better era—like the eighties or nineties? Government bonds, stock subscription certificates, trading canned goods for airplanes, looting the Soviet Union—any of those would do. After all, I’ve been a diehard reader for years. But you drop me at the dawn of the new republic—how am I supposed to survive here, knowing nothing?” His mind raced wildly. “Still, since I’m here, I’ll make do.”

“Since I’ve taken over this body, I’ll look after your sister, He Yushui.”

“From now on, I am He Yuzhu!”

“Oh right, since I’ve transmigrated, there should be a transmigrator’s perk—a golden finger, so to speak.”

“System!”

“Hello? System?”

“Are you there?”

No response.

Just as He Yuzhu was feeling disappointed, a space suddenly appeared in his mind, pulling his whole being inside. The furnishings before him were different from the previous room. Instantly, He Yuzhu was overjoyed. The tales of the predecessors didn’t lie—there was indeed a transmigrator’s perk!

He Yuzhu stood up to look around. The house was a thatched cottage, with three rooms: a bedroom with a bed, a living room with an Eight Immortals table and stools, and a study with an empty bookshelf, a desk, and a chair. On the desk sat brush, ink, paper, inkstone, and a jade paperweight engraved with “Jade Purity Method.”

As soon as He Yuzhu picked up the paperweight, it turned into a streak of light and disappeared into his forehead. Instantly, the cultivation method for the Jade Purity Method appeared in his mind.

After touring the rooms, He Yuzhu opened the living room door. The first sight was a small courtyard fenced in with wicker. On the left were two more thatched huts; on the right, some empty sheds. In the center was a stone well, its springwater overflowing and trickling towards a small lake just beyond the courtyard. Surrounding the house were over ten acres of fallow land. Beyond that, a stretch of mist. So, this was a spiritual spring space.

He Yuzhu checked the two huts on the left. One was a kitchen, fully equipped with pots and pans; the other was a storeroom, stacked with firewood, as well as fishing rods, nets, and other odds and ends.

He Yuzhu went to the spring, knelt down, and drank greedily. As expected of a spiritual spring—the water was sweet and pure. After drinking, his whole body felt invigorated; the Jade Purity Method began to work automatically, expelling impurities, making his body stronger, filled with power, his senses sharper. With his eyes shut, he felt as if he had merged with the space itself, everything within his grasp.

He Yuzhu tried to remove the grime from his body with a thought, and instantly, the impurities vanished, leaving him refreshed. Overjoyed, he realized he could control things with his mind. That meant, just like in the novels, he could control time in the space, plant, raise livestock, store and retrieve items at will. Thinking of this, he silently said, “Exit,” and sure enough, he returned to the outside world.

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By now, the sky was still dark, but He Yuzhu could see everything in the room with perfect clarity. He closed his eyes, attempting to extend his awareness outward, just as in the space—and it worked! He could sense everything within a five-meter radius, though walls dampened it somewhat. With a thought, he brought a brick from the courtyard into the space, then with another thought, had the brick appear in his hand. Ecstatic, he marveled at this ability to manipulate objects at will—surely this was the path to fortune!

Everyone knew that beneath the old capital lay countless hidden treasures. After years of war, many warlords and wealthy families had either fled or perished, leaving behind fortunes stashed in secret chambers, now ownerless. If he could find a few, accumulate some capital, and lay low until the reforms, he could soar to the top, become a CEO, marry a rich and beautiful woman, and reach the pinnacle of life.

“Shaozhu, what are you doing sitting there?”

Just as He Yuzhu was fantasizing about his future happiness, a voice startled him.

It was He Daqing, who’d gotten up to use the bathroom and was startled to see He Yuzhu grinning foolishly at the table.

“Nothing, just thirsty—came to get a drink,” He Yuzhu replied.

“All right, then go to bed after you’ve had some water,” He Daqing said. “I’m off to the bathroom.”

“I will—going to bed now,” He Yuzhu replied, heading toward his bed.

Not long after lying down, He Yuzhu drifted off to sleep.