Chapter One

  Early summer, the autumn trees are lush and the summer flowers are fragrant. The boys' passion and sweat are splashed on the court, unknowingly enticing many young wives' spring thoughts. Short skirts and black silk beautiful legs are swaying all over the campus, unknowingly dazzling many big boys' eyes.

  On Wednesday afternoon, the school inspected dormitories for high-power electrical appliances. The college issued a notice early on, ordering students to stay in their dorms and wait for inspection. Just after 12 o'clock, leaders of various sizes from each college and student union traitors all took action, with an array comparable to the heavenly government's anti-pornography and anti-crime campaign. In an instant, people were running around like headless chickens in every dormitory building.

  While waiting for the leader to check, Wang Haitie, a senior student who was about to graduate, couldn't bear the loneliness and called out to her friends in the high-level group to play League of Legends together. Just as the game entered the 20-minute mark, Haitie's girlfriend called over, tearfully reporting some bad news.

  "I'm pregnant." The sweet voice of the little girlfriend that night was like a nightingale, which seemed to carry several tens of millions of volts of high-voltage electricity, shocking Wang Haitian, the rich and handsome guy, so much that his soul flew away, and the big heart of the otaku was beautifully shattered into pieces.

  Last month, Wang Haitian couldn't resist his girlfriend's soft and hard bubble, and went to Huangshan with his girlfriend to talk about life and ideals. As the saying goes, a house man going out is full of jokes, and indeed, when Wang Haitian was staying in the hotel, he ignored safety measures for a momentary pleasure, as a result... thinking of these things, Wang Haitian couldn't help but want to slap himself in the face.

  If Wang Haitian's father, who is an official, and his mother, who is a businesswoman and part-time provincial political consultative committee member, knew about this matter, they would definitely take him and his girlfriend to the civil affairs bureau to get married without saying another word. If the girlfriend's father, who is a judge, and her mother, who works in the discipline inspection commission, knew about this matter, they would definitely tie him up on the toilet at the girlfriend's house without giving him any chance to explain.

  "Are you sure?"; Wang Haitie was almost in tears. He was still young, he had a lot of time and energy to squander, he had greater and more lofty ideals than Lei Feng's spirit to pursue, he didn't want the titles of husband, father, son-in-law to tie him down and ruin his carefree youth.

  "Sorry, the kid's dad has a surname Wang..."; With the unique cleverness of girls, my little girlfriend spoke with a hint of implication.

  The little girlfriend's answer made Wang Haitie want to cry but have no tears. Wang Haitie's face was flushed, breathing heavily, blood pressure soaring, and she crudely hung up the phone after blurting out a sentence.

  "Honey, let's talk in 10 minutes, I need a bottle of Erguotou now."

  Wang Haitie didn't need to drink to calm down, he just squatted on the floor with his hands covering his aching head, after shouting and crying, he opened Baidu and in the few seconds it took to click the left mouse button, thousands of reasons to persuade his girlfriend to have an abortion flashed into his mind. Wang Haitie smiled smugly, let out a long sigh, rummaged through the trash and pulled out a half-empty bottle of pine nut wine, splashing some on his clothes.

  My little girlfriend is a student at the medical university nearby, and if you exit the school's main gate and cross the overpass, you'll arrive at her school. Heidi was like a revolutionary martyr on the verge of being executed, solemnly advancing towards the overpass amidst the majestic sounds of cars and horses.

  When Wang Haiting stepped onto the skybridge, he vaguely sensed something was off: the old man who usually squatted on the bridge playing the erhu and begging for food was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a disheveled old Taoist priest with a strong postmodern aura emanating from his worn grey robes.

  An old Taoist with an otherworldly air stood up a small stall on the bridge, on which was randomly placed a pirated copy of "I Ching" and a mysterious Tai Chi Bagua diagram that could also be said to be the national flag of Stick Country.

  People coming and going are like a brocade. Perhaps the Marxist atheist education of the Celestial Dynasty has taken effect, and the college students who love to hunt for novelty have not stopped to take a look. The old Taoist's business is cold and quiet, but he doesn't care at all. In the warm sunlight of early summer afternoon, the old Taoist sits leisurely on a small stool, burying his head in combing out the lice from his messy hair.

  "Daoist, come and divine for me..."; Wang Haiting thought of the possibility of ending her free life ahead of time and couldn't help but feel sad. As a psychology major with an independent personality, a new era university student armed with Marxism, Maoism, Deng Xiaoping Thought, and other ideologies, rational Wang Haiting decisively sought help from Tai Shang Lao Jun on the spot.

  "I see a dark aura surrounding your temple, and a calamity of bloodshed approaching." Such Zen-like phrases did not spew out from the old Taoist's mouth. The old Taoist slightly raised his head to size up Wang Haitian with an innocent expression: "I don't know how to read fortunes..."

  "You're going down!" Wang Haiting exclaimed in exasperation, her hopes having been dashed to the ground.

  "This humble Taoist may not be able to calculate fortunes, but I can fulfill your dream." The old Taoist shrugged his shoulders and pointed at the two lines of crooked and twisted brush characters on the broken wooden board, responding with a very arrogant tone.

  The Taoist priest had a small stool under his lame leg, on which was placed a broken wooden board with eight large chalk characters scribbled in a crooked and twisted manner: "Party A and Party B, fulfilling your dream".

  "Oh? That's a good feeling..." Wang Haiting simply and stubbornly believed that a Taoist who didn't calculate fortunes wasn't a good Taoist. However, since the Taoist had spoken up, Wang Haiting put aside her date with her little girlfriend and said excitedly: "Taoist, I have a dream, I dream that I can land on Mars, or let my little girlfriend go to Mars..."

  Wang Haitian blurted out, and for a moment, Heidi even thought he was the Martin Luther King of American imperialism. Mars is a good place, according to the CCTV Science and Education Channel's Exploration Discovery column, it's a desolate land that produces aliens, and there's absolutely no one who will interfere with his decadent and corrupt life.

  "It depends on NASA's manned Mars landing plan." An old Taoist who had watched several seasons of "News Broadcast" shrugged and said seriously.

  "Hmm..." The old Taoist's words were astonishing, and Wang Haitie was almost certain that he was a swindler. Since he was a swindler, as the son-in-law of a judge and a discipline inspection officer, Wang Haitie naturally dared to straighten his back and sneer with a condescending tone. "By the time Americans land on Mars, I'm afraid my children will be 70 or 80 years old!"

  "I've never been one to deceive or cheat, only helping those with fate to fulfill a dream. One hand takes the money, the other hand fulfills the dream, no deception for young or old."

  Wang Haiting's sarcastic remark enraged the old Taoist priest, who shook his gray robes and said solemnly:

  "Young man, I see that your heavenly court is full of good fortune, with a rare and excellent root bone structure. You will definitely be a great hero among millions in the future. I had intended to help you fulfill your dream since we have fate, but unfortunately, you've doubted me several times. Never mind, I've decided to help you fulfill one dream without taking a single penny from you. Speak now."

  "Huh?"; Wang Haiting restrained the urge to summon the quasi-military forces of China - the Urban Management Bureau, and scratched the white head of the otaku with a nonchalant tone: "Alright, my wish is to cross over... I want to cross over..."

  The crossover on Jiayuan website is like a fish in the river, Mango TV's Qing Palace crossover drama is overwhelming, 7-Up's crossover advertisement is full of cute moments, and with Wang Haitian recently watching Da Tailai's Oscar-winning crossover stream-of-consciousness, Wang Haitian can't help but be moved by crossovers.

  "What's this 'crossing over' nonsense?" Wang Haitun's trendy wish left the old Taoist priest somewhat at a loss. To cover up his unfamiliarity with popular culture, the old priest forced himself to calm down and said: "Why not boundless wealth, uncountable power, and endless romance?"

  "Daoist, aren't you just helping people fulfill one dream? If I follow your method of making wishes, it's nothing but choosing one of three things: wealth, beauty, or power. Unfortunately, I want all three." Wang Haitian, with the air of a cunning merchant and the self-satisfied expression of a petty urbanite, loudly declared: "As the ancient poem says: 'Why not wear a Wu hook, take in hand the fifty states of Guanzhong?' Time-traveling is great! Not only can I get rid of my clingy girlfriend, my strict father who advocates for corporal punishment, and my nagging mother, but it also won't hinder me from achieving greatness on the battlefield, sleeping with beautiful women, and grasping imperial power. It will even allow me to punch Japan, trample America, conquer the North Pole bears, slaughter Indonesian monkeys, and unify the rivers and lakes for all eternity..."

  Wang Haitie grew more and more excited, unable to help but imagine a picture of Zhu Yin by his side, wearing golden armor and riding on a five-colored auspicious cloud, surrounded by withered chrysanthemums and an army of millions of mechanized troops, galloping freely across the battlefield in a breathtakingly beautiful scene. At this thought, Wang Haitie's blood seemed to boil over, his hands dancing wildly as he spat out saliva everywhere.

  "As you wish..." Wang Haiting steeled herself to cross over, the old man in grey robes with a face that looked very ethereal and otherworldly twitched slightly, gritting his teeth in resignation.

  The old Taoist's words had just fallen when the earth shook and strange phenomena suddenly appeared. The concrete blocks of the sky bridge began to peel off wildly, the asphalt road instantly turned into a black river, the clear sky darkened again, and the new flowers on the ancient trees withered and bloomed repeatedly. Wang Haiting, who was rough around the edges, finally reacted, realizing that the old Taoist had not lied, and time-space travel was just Einstein's fantasy.

  Wang Haitie suddenly remembered something, he hugged the iron railing of the sky bridge, looking around for the old Taoist's figure, shouting loudly: "Hey, hey, Taoist, wait, don't rush to pass through yet, I haven't said which dynasty I want to go to..."

  The bright sky bridge was gone, the old Taoist in gray robes was also gone, the towering street lamp pole crashed down, and the exquisite Chao Wang Haitie smashed over. Wang Haitie's eyes turned black and she didn't know anything anymore.

  ****

  "Heidi, will you go out with me?"

  Like a distant and endless dream, the dream has children's songs, sailors' stories, warships' taps and thunderous coastal artillery; The dream has a quiet Baltic Sea, wild chrysanthemums and dense pine forests; The dream has white St. Nicholas Church, noisy steam trains and shuttling city trams; The dream has an old naval father who is strong in character and never gives up, a mother with poor health; The dream has the sweet kiss of a girl under the old oak tree, and the poverty that cannot be shaken off in the lower district's shanty house.

  Innumerable fragmented memories flooded into Heidi's mind, with memories of her past life and present life intertwined and tangled together, making it impossible for Heidi to distinguish which ones were dreams and which ones were reality.

  "Did I just cross over like that? Am I a lone wolf like Zhuang Wen-ge, or an official second-generation from Beiyang; am I a potential stock from Guan Shang, or a rich second-generation from Sheng Shi Guan Shang?" The strange and fantastical experience of crossing over, the unfamiliar and unknown environment, the grand era within reach, all of this made Wang Haitian's blood boil with excitement.

  The bright sky bridge was gone, and the old Taoist in gray robes was also nowhere to be seen. Wang Haiting, who had finally calmed down, had time to examine her surroundings. In front of her was a small wooden shed with a area of less than 30 square meters, with wind leaking from all sides. Inside the shed, there was an old bed that creaked and groaned with every movement, a thin quilt that seemed to have not been aired for a long time, a small dining table with a calendar and bandages, a charcoal fire burning in a small stove, and a kerosene lamp without oil. The cold wind raged inside the small shed, spreading the strong smell of medicine and the biting chill.

  "The owner of this body seems to have a poor family background, and it's likely that the plot of 'The Ugly Husband' can be referenced. Not being the child of a high-ranking official or a wealthy family means that Wang Haitian's struggle in this alternate world will be even more arduous, which makes Wang Haitian, who is used to a life of ease and comfort, feel somewhat unwell. Wang Haitian rubbed her slightly aching head, clenched her fist and cheered herself on."

  The stifling stove fire not only failed to bring warmth, but even choked the affected Wang Haidi half to death. Wang Haidi tightened the slightly thin quilt, leaned over and grabbed a German calendar from the small dining table. The displayed date was January 9th, 1894.

  January 9, 1894, the Donghak Peasant Revolution was imminent in Korea, on the eve of the First Sino-Japanese War. What a great opportunity for us to show off our skills and get good grades! Wang Haitian was busy imagining his historic meeting with Li Zhongtang and Deng Yingxiong, while trying to recall the major events of that year and the plot of "Dragon Flag" with his bandaged head. He didn't even notice the surprising fact that he could read German. After all, Wang Haitian was a foreign language idiot who couldn't even pass the English level 4 exam in four years of college.

  Wang Haitie rummaged through his memories of history lessons, only to embarrassingly discover that he had long forgotten those basic historical facts in Java. The wasted three years of high school and the barren four years of university left Wang Haitie's knowledge base pale and empty, with only a few sentences of "Elegant Butterfly" remaining.

  "A bit of trouble, a bit of trouble..." Wang Haiting vaguely felt that crossing over wasn't something that the careless and sloppy him could handle. Flustered and panicked, Wang Haiting scrambled to get up, wanting to determine if the place he was in was safe or not. Late Qing China was notorious for its turmoil. If a man hadn't established his name yet, he'd be kidnapped by those heartless human traffickers from Guangdong and Fujian and sold to America as a coolie - that would be the biggest joke among the fashionable cross-dressing crowd.

  Wang Haitie stumbled out the door, and behind the long coat rack at the entrance of the wooden shed, a floor mirror was placed. Wang Haitie's line of sight paused slightly on the floor mirror, and then instantly froze.

  "What?! You've changed even the color of my skin after crossing over?! History was already bad enough, and now I've crossed over to a foreign country. You stinky Taoist, aren't you playing a trick on me?!" The white boy in the mirror with a head of flowing golden blonde hair and sapphire-like blue eyes, wrapped in thick bandages, pinched his face hard, looking like he had seen a ghost in broad daylight.

  "Oh, God..." A woman's voice was heard from outside the door, sobbing with joy. The next second, a middle-aged woman wearing a floral dress and looking pale and thin as a stick rushed in through the door, embracing Wang Haitian without regard. "Haitian, my child, you've finally woken up..."

  Wang Haitie, at a loss, hid in the arms of the middle-aged woman. He suddenly thought of a very practical problem: crossing over was indeed an exciting thing, but it seemed that the old Taoist had forgotten to explain how to return...

  PS: New book, seeking clicks, attention, recommendations and collections, thank you...

  Starting point welcomes readers to visit, the latest, fastest and most popular serialized works are all on the starting point of original!