Chapter 1 Fainting

Chapter 1: A Waking Nightmare

Winter, in the first year of the Changde era.

The past few days had been either windy or snowy, but today finally brought a long-awaited sunny day.

The small shops on the street were bustling again as usual.

"Hey, have you heard? The newly appointed Court Diarist fell asleep during the morning court session!"

The woman selling wontons nudged her husband with her elbow, adding with animated excitement.

"He even bumped his forehead and got a huge lump!"

Her husband, nudged, didn't believe it, thinking his wife was just being too gossipy.

Even if the Court Diarist's official rank was low, he was still someone close to the Emperor. How could he possibly fall asleep in court? And get a huge lump?

He waved his hand, shooing her back to work: "Take this bowl to that young master over there."

The woman gave him a look and 'Hmphed,' then deftly picked up the bowl, heading toward the table against the wall. The brimming soup didn't spill a single drop.

Setting the bowl down, the woman kindly advised, "Be careful, young master, it's hot."

However, the young man sitting there didn't react, only giving a slight nod to indicate he had heard.

Once the footsteps had receded, Jiang Wang, certain the woman had left, finally raised his head.

Fine beads of sweat had already formed on his forehead, and his handsome face was flushed crimson with embarrassment.

No wonder: he was precisely that Court Diarist the woman was talking about—the one who fell asleep and got a huge lump.

He had kept his head down precisely to avoid others seeing the lump on his forehead. Who would have thought that even while eating wontons, he would hear about his own "glorious deed"? He was even more reluctant to show his face.

How could such news spread so fast!

It wasn't even dark yet; probably the whole of Zhaojing already knew...

Jiang Wang felt like crying but had no tears. He could only channel his frustration into his appetite, taking a savage bite of the steaming hot wontons.

The wontons looked plain, but their flavor was surprisingly delicious.

Not a single drop of soup remained in the bowl; it all went into Jiang Wang's stomach.

With something warm in his belly, his body finally started to warm up.

Although it was sunny today, the temperature was still low.

Places in the sun were indeed warm, but where the sun didn't reach, the cold air seeped straight into one's clothes.

Like his tiny room, which hardly saw any sunlight.

Coupled with his constitution that couldn't handle extreme temperatures, and the lack of proper heating in this ancient era, this winter was sheer torture.

On his way back to his small courtyard, Jiang Wang, refusing to give up, called out to the system again.

"System! System, come out! I know you're there!"

After several attempts, a lazy male voice, as annoyingly smug as ever, echoed in Jiang Wang's mind.

"Huh? You looking for me? What's up?"

Jiang Wang actually detected a hint of just-woken-up drowsiness in its somewhat mechanical voice.

He was here shivering from the cold, while his system was sleeping?!

Jiang Wang grew even angrier.

He remembered when he first arrived here.

On his very first day after transmigrating, while he stood dumbfounded and at a loss, soaked to the bone and nearly freezing to death, a voice had spoken in his ear.

At that moment, he felt like a traveler dying of thirst in the desert who had just stumbled upon a spring.

He thought his savior had arrived.

Instantly, countless transmigration novels flashed through his mind.

Like cannon fodder characters wielding systems to reach the pinnacle of life, or unknown actors using systems to become the hottest male lead.

Jiang Wang couldn't help but feel a flicker of excitement.

What could his system bring him?

He didn't expect to achieve anything great in this era; he just hoped to live peacefully.

Like getting a stove right now to warm himself by.

But just as he waited in eager anticipation for the system to continue speaking, all he heard was a yawn.

The system went to sleep.

Huh?

Slept... it slept?

What? Just like that?!

Countless question marks endlessly bubbled up in Jiang Wang's mind, crushing the hope that had just risen.

"System? Hey, system? Sys?"

Jiang Wang called out a few more times, unwilling to give up, but no one answered. All he got was the sound of even breathing.

What kind of catastrophic start was this!

Why did others get all-powerful golden fingers when they transmigrated, while he only got this unreliable system!

Might as well have just killed him in the crash; then he wouldn't have had to transmigrate here.

A complete newbie like him, knowing nothing, coming here—wasn't that just a slow death?!

Whether he died sooner or later, he'd still die. Might as well make it quick. Why take this detour!

A cold gust of wind blew, the chill piercing through his already soaked clothes and seeping into his very bones.

Jiang Wang peacefully closed his eyes.

Right now, he just wanted some peace and quiet.

But it seemed even this simple little wish was beyond him.

The next moment, an earth-shattering wail rang out right beside his ear.

"Young master, don't fall asleep! What will I do if you sleep?!"

Jiang Wang jumped in fright, turning his head toward the source of the voice.

A boy with eyes red from crying was kneeling beside him, tears still streaming down his face uncontrollably.

"You are..."

Jiang Wang asked, puzzled.

The boy froze in place, his tears halting for two seconds before gushing forth even more violently.

"Young master?!"

"Young master, you don't remember me?!"

"Wuwu... I'm Changle, young master!"

How wonderful, Jiang Wang thought, feeling a surge of warmth flow through his heart.

In this world, there was still someone who genuinely cared for him.

After a brief exchange, Jiang Wang gathered some basic information about "himself" from this sobbing boy.

"He" was also named Jiang Wang. Previously, he had served as an official in a small county near Zhaojing. Just two days ago, he had been transferred to the capital to serve as the new emperor's Court Diarist.

And this Changle beside him was a servant he had bought on a whim on his way to Zhaojing.

On a whim?

So it seemed his financial situation was pretty good.

If the system couldn't be relied on, having money would do just fine.

Jiang Wang felt a flicker of hope about life here again.

"Young master, you spent your entire fortune to buy me from that scoundrel, sparing me from a beating. You are my savior!"

Huh?

Wait.

E-Entire fortune?!

Any chill Jiang Wang felt vanished instantly. He scrambled to his feet and grabbed Changle's hand, desperate to know just how much his "entire fortune" amounted to.

"It was that jade bracelet... you said it was left to you by your late mother..."

Jiang Wang's grip tightened. "It was that jade bracelet..." Changle's voice grew softer as the pain increased.

*What's wrong with the young master? Why is he so agitated?*

"Young master, y-you're hurting me."

Jiang Wang snapped back to reality and released his hand.

Forget it. No money, no money.

At least he saved a life, so it wasn't a total loss.

Moreover, Changle's worried expression earlier seemed genuine, and he appeared to be an honest person.

Two people getting by together has to be easier than one, right?

"Young master, let's go home." Changle tugged at Jiang Wang's sleeve. "Your clothes are soaked through. If you don't change soon, your body won't be able to take it."

He hadn't noticed until Changle mentioned it. Now, Jiang Wang felt as if his whole body had frozen solid, with cold air rising from the soles of his feet.

He stood up and looked at Changle beside him, whose clothes were also drenched.

Putting together the nearby pond and their soaked garments, Jiang Wang reached a conclusion.

"You fished me out?"

Changle nodded.

"Just now, for some reason, two burly men rushed past and knocked you into it."

Jiang Wang looked at the path, easily wide enough for four people to walk side-by-side, and mentally cursed those two men.

Fortunately, the small courtyard wasn't far. The two hurried home, changed their clothes, and huddled around the stove to warm up.

The firelight emanating from the stove became the only source of warmth in this chilly room.

After the earlier rollercoaster of emotions, Jiang Wang could now calmly accept this dilapidated little courtyard and the sunless, cramped room.

Finally, he could collect his thoughts to consider his current situation and what to do next.

The original owner had drowned, and he had crossed over at that moment, taking over the body to live on.

He had transmigrated into a penniless minor official. He had a system, but it might as well not exist.

Now, his only hope lay in his identity as the Court Diarist.

Just because he had no money now didn't mean he wouldn't have any in the future.

*A Court Diarist serves by the emperor's side! How could he not make money?!*

But the facts proved him wrong. Indeed, he didn't.

Not only did he not make money, but he also made a fool of himself in front of all the officials, ending up with a huge bump on his head.

It was true he was by the emperor's side, but who could have imagined it would be so exhausting...

He had to get up before 5 AM (Mao hour) every day and couldn't return until after 7 PM (Xu hour), working fourteen or fifteen hours a day, day in and day out, without a break.

The emperor sat while he stood; the emperor ate while he watched.

For him, this was pure torture.

Before transmigrating, he was a young master from a wealthy family, waited on hand and foot, and had never suffered such hardship.

But the other party was the emperor, who held the power of life and death. Making someone disappear was as easy as blinking.

Jiang Wang endured it.

He endured this for half a month.

Until today, in the imperial court, under the watchful eyes of hundreds of civil and military officials, he saw black and fainted right then and there.

He was utterly exhausted.

He wasn't eating well, and he wasn't sleeping enough either.

Even as he fainted, his thought was of when he could finally get some proper sleep.

By the time he woke up, three hours had already passed.

Jiang Wang stretched with a lazy satisfaction, feeling this sleep had been truly comfortable.

The room was warm, the bed was soft, and there was a faint fragrance in the air.

If he hadn't remembered where he had fainted, he would have wanted to go back to sleep for another round.

The young eunuch in attendance saw that Jiang Wang was awake and quickly stepped forward.

"Lord Jiang, His Majesty said that once you wake up, you are to leave and are excused from duty for the day." The eunuch paused before continuing, "As for this Bruise-Dispersing Ointment on the table, His Majesty instructed you to take it back, so as not to mar the royal family's dignity."

He understood being excused from duty, but the part about 'the dignity of the royal family'? He wasn't quite getting that.

Since transmigrating, Jiang Wang had carefully examined his current appearance, which was quite similar to his original self.

Not to boast, but his looks had been considered among the best in his previous social circle, and even here, he was far from ugly.

Jiang Wang cupped his hands respectfully and said, "Please enlighten me, Eunuch Wu."

Seeing Jiang Wang's confused expression, Wu Zhong directly handed him the bronze mirror by the window.

Jiang Wang was shocked at what he saw.

Staring back at him from his forehead was a large, swollen bump, rivaling that of the Antarctic Immortal.

No wonder His Majesty had seen fit to give him a jar of ointment.

He hadn't felt a thing before, but now that he knew about the bump on his forehead, he actually started to feel a bit of pain.

Wu Zhong had initially taken two steps toward the door but then turned back.

"Lord Jiang, His Majesty also said you should take this plate of pastries with you."

Huh?

Jiang Wang didn't dare to take them. He couldn't believe His Majesty would show such kindness twice.

With Xiao Yan's arrogant and domineering personality, not punishing him was already a blessing—how could he possibly give him pastries?

Was this perhaps an attempt to poison him to preserve the dignity of the royal family?

Wu Zhong sighed helplessly and offered a further explanation.

"After you fainted with a 'thud,' you lay there whimpering in your sleep in the hall, crying softly that you were hungry. His Majesty's orders were for you to go home and eat more."

Author's Note:

Launching a new story! Welcome, dear readers, to like, comment, and bookmark.