1. Tough Winter

沙沙沙...

沙沙沙...

Li Xiu heard a rhythmic sound, like someone shaking a bamboo sieve.

In the sieve, something was rolling.

There were clumps, granules, and twigs.

They collided with each other, each becoming an independent sound source, expanding ripple-like sounds.

Not far away, there was the rustling sound of a bag blowing in the wind, yet the bag didn't fly away but remained fixed. Perhaps a child was playing with it in the wind, or maybe it was stuck in a field to scare away birds and beasts.

Further away, there were footsteps and voices, but the sounds were very vague, like through water mist, completely inaudible.

Suddenly, a sharp piercing pain came over him.

Li Xiu subconsciously grabbed his hair, his whole body tensing up.

Memories, like a floodgate being opened, roared into his mind.

Vaguely, he heard the sound of the bamboo sieve being dropped, hurried footsteps running toward him, the door creaking open, and a figure mixed with the smell of medicine pouncing on him.

"Brother Cheng, Brother Cheng!"

It was a woman's voice.

Who was she calling?

Li Xiu flashed a moment of confusion, but slowly... his head throbbed less and less.

The memories were absorbed.

The woman was calling him.

He had crossed over.

His name was Song Cheng.

The woman's name was Tong Jia, owner of Rejuvenation Hall, as well as the resident physician and herb-picking servant.

Song Cheng was a frail and pitiful little blind boy. Ever since he was taken in by Rejuvenation Hall, he had been helping with laundry, sweeping, and other odd jobs. Being blind, he had grown accustomed to it, and he could still manage tasks at hand.

And so it had been for three years.

During those three years, the little blind boy had witnessed the decline of Rejuvenation Hall.

The decline was mainly due to war.

The old physician had been taken to serve as a military doctor, leaving only Tong Jia and him to keep Rejuvenation Hall going. Later... a few days ago, Tong Jia heard rumors that the army had been defeated, and soon news of the old physician's death came back.

Yesterday, his previous self had gone with Tong Jia to build a memorial tomb, and on the way back, he was filled with grief and fell hard, then lay down on the bed and never woke up...

And then, he had arrived.

...

"Brother Cheng, Brother Cheng."

Tong Jia cried uncontrollably, as if there were countless grievances and fears, "You're all I have left, you'll be alright, you'll be alright!"

Li Xiu also had grievances.

He had become blind...

He couldn't see anything.

Thankfully, the "blind" experience from his predecessor hadn't completely plunged him into utter darkness and despair.

His hearing, smell, and touch had become much sharper.

He could feel the softness of the girl's cheeks and the cold wind slicing through the window like a knife.

Li Xiu had become the person from his past life.

'From now on, I am Song Cheng.'

The rustle of the sound landed on the black tiles of the eaves, like a fish knife scraping scales in the wind, hesitatingly.

Song Cheng discerned the object making the sound and then said, "Owner, it's snowing, collect the herbs."

Tong Jia hurriedly got up, "When it rains, snows, or blows, we have to collect the herbs drying outside," which had become an instinct embedded in her, requiring no thought, as she would unconsciously go to do it.

If there were a God's perspective, one would see the young lady with slightly yellowish-black skin, her hips shaped by blue pants with white flowers, a short jacket binding a petite body, her long black hair simply tied atop her forehead, and years of herb picking imparting an agile and dexterous air to her...

Tong Jia pushed the door open and ran to the small courtyard, sobbing while holding the bamboo sieve as she ran back.

The shop hadn't seen business for a long time.

Families with their men taken weren't unique to "Rejuvenation Hall" alone; almost all of Tang River Village had no strong men left. There were either the old or the young, women or the disabled.

No money...

Couldn't afford any doctor.

For Rejuvenation Hall, during the chaotic world... for a girl to maintain the medicine source by going to the mountains for herbs was a matter of life and death.

Bandits, wild beasts, the weather, steep cliffs, and those inexplicable, only existing in cryptic legends—were all significantly life-threatening.

Therefore, every bit of medicine in the pharmacy was exceptionally precious.

The door creaked several times, the wind blew in and was blocked.

After a few rounds, Tong Jia moved all the herbs being dried inside, carefully placing them on the medicine rack.

Outside the door, the initially mild wind suddenly increased, first as endless locusts at the far horizon, then transforming into a tsunami close to the ear, as if the deity of wind and snow was angry, dancing and drunkenly hysterical in the rolling iron-grey clouds, intent on destroying this already despairing village.

Tong Jia moved closer to Song Cheng.

Song Cheng felt the side of the bed sink slightly; he knew the owner had sat down.

Calling her owner was really just a reflection of his predecessor's self-abasement, while in truth was a love he dared not speak of. He was blind, yet the owner was so kind, so beautiful, deserving of a better match, and he would be content just to silently do odd jobs for the owner a lifetime, quietly guarding her.

This was the clear and foolish "life plan" of his predecessor.

But soon, Song Cheng's thoughts drifted away.

'Since I'm here, I have to survive.'

He clenched his fist, planning quickly in his heart to nurse his body to health, get a quick understanding of the situation outside during this winter, and then persuade the owner to relocate the pharmacy to a safer place by spring.

However, regardless of what the future held, he had to get through the upcoming winter first. He definitely couldn't survive winter on just grain alone, so he had to go into the mountains to forage for food, find wild vegetables. When the time came, the owner would find food, and he would carry it.

Just as he was thinking about it, suddenly a voice came to his ear.

Tong Jia said, "Brother Cheng, I'll go get something to eat."

He instinctively tried to get up.

"I'll chop wood."

Tong Jia pressed him back down, saying gently, "In your condition, how are you going to chop wood? Rest until you're better."

In no time, outside under the eaves, there came a "thock, thock" sound, the round cylindrical firewood being chopped.

Tong Jia held the firewood and threw it into a small stove.

The stove was small, and it consumed less firewood.

The earthen stove in the pharmacy's backyard hadn't been used in a long time.

After a while, the door opened again, and Tong Jia came in.

A plate of fragrance mixed with the scent of wild grass and noodles drifted into Song Cheng's nose.

From the predecessor's memory, Song Cheng knew that it was coarse grain noodles mixed with some edible plant roots.

His stomach was hungry, and he gobbled up the food.

Tong Jia ate in small bites too, watching Song Cheng quietly as she seemed to make a decision.

Outside, the cold snow was like a raging tide, as if it wanted to drown the entire world, leaving only this small house like a deserted island.

Darkness fell quickly.

To save resources, the pharmacy didn't even light a lamp grass, let alone a lantern.

It was pitch black, everything was black.

Luckily, this didn't impact the blind duo.

Not knowing how much time had passed, Song Cheng suddenly heard rustling sounds, a belt being undone, clothes and pants hung on an apparel rod, the bed sinking, and then a ball of soft fragrance rolling into the quilt.

With a mixture of shyness and deliberately disguised brazen voice in Song Cheng's ear.

"It's too cold and dark, I don't want to sleep back there!"

Song Cheng had a dry mouth and tongue, unable to speak.

"Brother Cheng, will you marry me?" came a more direct, more brazen voice.

"Own—"

Before "er" could come out, the quilt was pulled up, muffling the woman's vague voice.

"Namby-pamby, what kind of man are you?!"

As soon as the words fell, calm blankets turned into waves, and the night... became fiery.

After a while, as time stretched, Tong Jia and Song Cheng embraced and slept, their breaths gradually calming.

Song Cheng just wanted to speak.

Tong Jia gently nudged him and said, "I told you, didn't I? Isn't it much warmer like this? No need for coal anymore!"

Song Cheng couldn't help but laugh.

...

A night went by.

The next day.

Song Cheng felt the warm, soft fragrance in his arms rise and dress. Much of his strength had returned, allowing him to get up and work.

At this moment, he suddenly froze.

Lines of information appeared.

[You and Tong Jia had a harmonious night, gaining 5 remaining points].

Then, another panel manifested in the darkness.

[Name: Song Cheng]

[Talent: Longevity]

[Points: 5]

[Realm: Unranked]

[Cultivation Technique: None]

[Skills: Heart's Eye (Uninitiated) (0/1)]

[Taboo: Unlocked]

He saw the "[Points]" flashing and looked again, then two lines of information popped up:

[Can enhance cultivation techniques and skills or derive new techniques and skills]

[Enhance?]