“No way! How can he, a grown man, do nothing and give the grain we earned through hard work to others? Just one egg per day! The eats eggs faster then a hen can lay eggs!”
“What’s wrong with eating an egg? Don’t talk about giving it to others; even if he smashed it on the ground, it wouldn’t concern you! Everything in this house is earned by my labor, do you think I got it from you?”
“Mom, if you say that, I can’t agree! You speak as if my brother did nothing!”
“Have you ever worked in the field or gotten water for the house? Which part of the house didn’t your father and I build from our hard work? Have you ever given me a dime from your wages? Ye Xia, you speak up!”
A hesitant male voice chimed in, “Mom, well, I saw him take the millet cake and egg! That’s an egg! Chengcai only eats one egg a day, and now he’s taking one a day… Who knows how many he’ll take in the future?”
Ye Qiu awoke to the sounds of a heated argument outside. As he opened his eyes, he found himself lying in a brick house, and mechanical sounds echoed in his mind.
【666 System Notification: World loading, memory transmission in progress…】
“Uncle, you’re awake!” A little girl, appearing to be around seven or eight years old, exclaimed joyfully.
After the memory transmission was completed, he realized he had transmigrated into another person named Ye Qiu.
The original owner of this body was born in a poor mountain village in the north. His parents were honest farmers, having three sons, and they were the envy of the village.
The eldest, Ye Chun; the second, Ye Xia; and the youngest, Ye Qiu, the original owner.
The eldest was a taciturn farmer, somewhat foolishly filial, obediently listening to his parents since his childhood. He married a traditional rural woman and worked diligently all his life. However, because the original owner exploited him, he couldn’t even arrange his precious daughter’s marriage, ultimately marrying a widower who paid a high bride price, ruining her life.
It’s often said that with two children in a family, the second child tends to be more adaptable. Ye Xia was favoured at birth, especially since the crops had fetched good prices, allowing for some spare cash for schooling. After graduating, he found a job in a factory, which was a source of pride for the entire family, but he looked down on the villagers. He recognized early on that the original owner was unreliable, splitting from the family, and he didn’t return even when their parents passed away.
Generally, the youngest is the most spoiled, and Ye Qiu is no different. Growing up with a fair complexion and a sweet tongue, the villagers often remarked that he would surely succeed. Both Ye Father and Ye Mother shared this sentiment. The original owner received whatever he wanted with a bit of charm, and Ye Chun, influenced by their parents, considered Ye Qiu to be the family’s hope. Under their indulgence, it was no surprise that the original owner turned out poorly.
With Ye Father and Ye Mother taking care of his needs, and with Ye Chun as a free laborer, the original owner led a comfortable life in the village, filled with ambitions of marrying. However, Ye Father and Ye Mother had already depleted their savings meant for the original owner’s future bride, expecting Ye Xia to support him.
When Ye Xia suggested dividing the family, the original owner leveraged his parents’ affection to insist that Ye Father, Ye Mother, and the hardworking Ye Chun stay with him. Once it was clear that the second brother wanted to separate, Ye Xia, who didn’t care for reputation, agreed without hesitation. After some commotion, it went as the original owner wished.
Dividing the family didn’t stop the original owner’s ambitions of marrying. Although he was nothing special himself, he had high tastes, refusing to consider girls from the village, instead lingering around the youth camps.
Several female youths were terrified of him, but since he was from the village, they had no one to complain to. It was evident to onlookers what the original owner was up to—everyone knew that Ye Qiu was infamous for being a ne’er-do-well.
Yet, there were still some unaware, such as a male youth in the camp who was more beautiful than any girl. Not only was he handsome, but he was also wealthy, receiving packages from home filled with food and money monthly.
Among the female youths, there was a petty one who resented the pretty boy, hinting that there was a male youth even more handsome than the movie stars.
Ye Qiu followed the direction indicated by the female youth and indeed found someone who was more attractive than stars in magazines. If he were wealthy, perhaps he could also support himself. It didn’t matter whether they were male or female; as long as he had meat to eat every day, what was the dilemma? He found his target, surrounding the male youth daily. The male youth turned out to be an idiot, freely sharing the good things sent from home with his friends, completely unaware that these friends were actually harming him, blind to the true nature of the original owner.