Yang An

In the freezing pine forest,

Princess Anle's eyes gleamed with a dark crimson hue.

One foot pressed against Yang An's chest, the other crushing his neck, burying half his body into the snow beneath him.

Watching him gasp for air,

she giggled sweetly, "Such an audacious little hunter~ I almost don’t want to kill you."

Though her words were playful,

her delicate foot showed no mercy. Yang An's spine creaked under the pressure, his throat nearly crushed beneath her heel!

On the verge of meeting his ancestors across the river,

Yang An clutched Princess Anle's ankle—paler than snow—his heart seething with rage. "I just wanted to gather herbs in the mountains! Why did this damned woman have to cross my path?!"

Why?

The story began earlier that morning.

...

...

...

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

In the dead of winter, snow swirled violently under the gloomy sky.

A gang of thugs, bundled in thick coats and exhaling white mist, rushed to the Li family’s doorstep in Wanshou Lane at the crack of dawn. They hammered the door with furious fists, shouting, "Anyone alive in there? Open up and pay your debts! Keep pretending you’re dead, and we’ll break this door down!"

Inside the house,

Yang An lay in a daze, his head wrapped in bandages.

The thugs’ aggressive pounding and yelling made his skull feel like it was splitting. The musty, stale air in the room only worsened his discomfort.

Forced awake by the noise,

Yang An blinked in confusion. He found himself in a shabby room with neatly arranged wooden furniture—blackened at the edges from years of use—the source of that faint, aged odor.

On the table sat a stack of thick, brick-like books

and half a dried-up inkstick.

"Where am I?"

"Wasn’t I just celebrating graduation with my roommates at karaoke?"

"What kind of karaoke bar has antique furniture? Look at these tables, chairs, and yellowed books—older than I am!"

Clutching his throbbing head, Yang An sat up, bewildered.

Soon, another voice drifted in from outside—a woman’s, laced with unease.

"Gentlemen, why have you come so early? The contract clearly states repayment is due by the end of next month. We’re not even halfway through this one!"

The thugs snapped back, "Shut your mouth! A debt’s a debt—no such thing as ‘too early’!"

"But there’s still two months left! How am I, a mere woman, supposed to scrape together silver on such short notice?"

The woman’s voice struck a chord in Yang An’s memory.

He tried to recall, but a searing pain shot through his skull—like a steel needle churning his brain into mush!

Sweat beaded on his forehead as he curled up on the bed, writhing.

Then, like a tidal wave, memories flooded his mind.

Yang An, courtesy name Yunshen.

Eighteen years old.

A native of Yunzhou City in the Great Xia Dynasty.

A small-town scholar—orphaned young, with an elder brother who died prematurely.

But he wasn’t entirely alone.

He had an elder sister, Yang Ning, five years his senior, and her husband, Li Yan, a decade older.

The voice outside belonged to Yang Ning.

After digesting these memories,

Yang An reached an undeniable conclusion:

He had crossed over into another world.

"After waiting so long, it’s finally my turn to experience transmigration?"

Excitement warred with apprehension.

The thrill came from knowing one universal truth:

Transmigrators never ended up as nobodies. Those with the "orphaned protagonist" script were especially destined for greatness.

The best could defy heaven and earth; even the mediocre became legends.

The apprehension?

Yang An was a rookie. No experience, no cheat codes—just raw nerves.

Like a hormone-fueled teenager,

who spends 25 hours a day fantasizing about women but freezes up when actually sharing a bed, worrying about size, stamina, and technique.

Human nature, plain and simple.

Shaking it off, Yang An focused on the rest of his memories.

This world, the Great Xia Dynasty, thrived with spiritual energy.

It had mystical herbs, martial arts, and savage beasts.

His brother-in-law, Li Yan, was an eighth-rank martial artist—strong enough to lift a thousand pounds. After distinguishing himself repelling northern barbarians, he’d been rewarded with a minor post as a constable in Yunzhou City.

Though barely an official,

even a lowly position meant stability. Without his income, the Li family would’ve struggled to survive.

After all, in this era,

studying was a luxury. The paper alone for daily essays could bankrupt commoners!

Yang Ning was the epitome of traditional virtue—

beautiful, dutiful, and fiercely ambitious for her brother.

She handled every chore so Yang An could focus on his studies, praying he’d one day top the imperial exams and bring glory to their name.

Yang An had worked hard.

A child prodigy, he earned his "child scholar" title at ten.

Then... nothing.

Three consecutive failures in the biennial provincial exams shattered his confidence.

Recently, disillusioned with the system, he’d tried entering a noble family’s private academy as an alternative path to office.

Another rejection.

Rock bottom? More like a bottomless pit.

His fiancée of years abandoned him for another man.

Drunk for the first time in despair, Yang An had passed out cold.

But misfortune never travels alone.

While searching for his drunken brother-in-law that night, Li Yan stumbled upon young nobles amusing themselves by setting beasts on civilians.

Most would’ve turned a blind eye.

Not Li Yan.

He intervened—and paid the price.

Though he survived, his hips were crippled. Without rare medicine, he’d never walk again.

By rights, a hero’s deed deserved rewards and compensation.

But the attackers were nobles’ sons.

Instead of justice, Li Yan was fined for killing their prized beast!

Years of Yang An’s education had drained the family coffers.

To save Li Yan, the siblings mortgaged their ancestral home.

With the silver, they paid off the nobles and rushed to Yunzhou’s finest apothecary, Huichun Hall, for healing pills.

Yet fate loved to twist the knife.

The medicine was fake.

Not only did Li Yan’s condition worsen—his legs now numb—but he fell into a coma!

Furious, Yang An stormed back to Huichun Hall to demand answers.

The outcome was all too predictable—what could a frail scholar like him possibly achieve? Instead, he was branded a swindler by the manager of the Hui Chun Pharmacy, who then called in a gang of thugs to beat him half to death!

The money was gone.

And now, so was he—nearly.

On the brink of losing everything, Yang An felt he had failed his elder sister and brother-in-law. In utter despair, he smashed his head against a stone wall...

When he awoke, it was now.

Zhuang Zhou dreamed of a butterfly, or was it the butterfly dreaming of Zhuang Zhou?

Having fully merged with the memories of his past life, he could vividly feel the desperate rage simmering in his heart. The two Yang Ans were now indistinguishable.

No.

There had only ever been one Yang An.

The current him had simply been reborn, shattering the veil of oblivion that shrouded his past life—reclaiming the memories from before his reincarnation!

"Wh-what are you doing?! Stay back!"

"Heh, what else? Just showing Madam Li a way out. If she can't pay with money, she'll have to repay with something else—like her body."

"Let go of me! Don't come any closer!"

"Why fight it? Madam Li’s a pretty one. Put in some hard work on her back for a year or so, and not only will the debt be cleared, she might even earn some extra! Hahaha!"

"Ah! Get away from me!!"

The shrill, terrified scream of a woman rang out in the courtyard.

Yang An knew exactly who it belonged to.

Yang Ning.

His sister!!

He flung the blanket aside, leaped off the bed, and shoved the door open. In the snow-covered courtyard, he saw several thugs dragging Yang Ning toward the gate.

Their faces were all too familiar. The moment Yang An laid eyes on them, his pupils dilated—these were the same thugs who had beaten him outside Hui Chun Pharmacy!

Especially the one manhandling Yang Ning.

Yang An remembered him clearly.

His name was Chen San, the leader of this pack of ruffians. Outside Hui Chun Pharmacy, he had been the one who struck Yang An the hardest!

Why would Hui Chun Pharmacy’s men be helping a moneylender collect debts?!

And the loan had only been taken two days ago, with repayment due in two and a half months. Yet here they were, forcing repayment after just a few days!

Could it be that Hui Chun Pharmacy and the Wang Family’s moneylending business were in cahoots?!

Was this all an elaborate trap?!

First, the moneylenders loaned them money. Then the pharmacy swindled them with fake medicine, leaving them penniless. Finally, the debt collectors came to squeeze them dry—bone by bone, marrow by marrow?!

I was so consumed by regret I wanted to kill myself.

Only to find out it was you beasts who set me up!

The frigid air filled his lungs.

Clad only in thin robes, Yang An felt no cold. Instead, his blood boiled with unspent fury, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"Don’t touch me!!"

Yang Ning’s panicked cry rang out again.

Under the thugs’ rough handling, her sleeves had torn, revealing snow-white arms now marred with ugly red scratches.

Yang An roared, "Let go of my sister!!"

The thugs whipped around at the shout. Through the swirling snow, they saw a young man—his head wrapped in bandages, his face strikingly handsome, even more so than the prettiest courtesans in the brothels.

But his eyes were terrifying!

Bloodshot, filled with a hunger for violence—as if he wanted to tear them apart!!

These cowardly ruffians, confronted with Yang An’s glare, actually flinched, stumbling back a few steps.

"Look at you spineless worms."

"Scared of a damn scholar."

Chen San kicked them in the rear, unfazed. Still gripping Yang Ning’s wrist, he shook it mockingly at Yang An. "Well, well, if it isn’t Yang the Second? Healed up already? Ready for another beating? Hahaha!"

With Chen San leading the charge, the thugs quickly regained their bravado.

They burst into laughter.

Fearing they would harm Yang An, Yang Ning pleaded, "I’m fine, little brother! Go back inside, don’t come out!"

The thugs only laughed harder.

Chen San smirked. "You hear that? Your sister says she’s fine. Run along now, go read your books. We’ll return her in a few days."

Yang An stepped out from under the eaves.

Snowflakes dusted his raven-black hair, accentuating his gaunt, ethereal beauty.

Barefoot in the snow, his steps crunched softly.

He advanced toward them, one slow step at a time. "I said, let go of my sister."

Chen San sneered. "And what if I don’t?"

What if?

Then none of you will walk out of here alive!!