Chapter 1: Beginning (1/4)

The cold wind felt like a bone-chilling knife, making the streets appear somewhat desolate in this cold winter.

Only a few vendors were huddled on the roadside, wrapped in their clothes.

Looking at the scene on the street, Luo Hao's eyes also revealed a trace of helplessness.

The cold wind permeating the air made Luo Hao shiver, and he walked into a restaurant with a bundle of firewood on his back.

Having been in this world for two years now, Luo Hao had gone from being unable to accept it to being completely integrated into it.

In this world where the ambiance of ancient China is evident everywhere, one could say that it has achieved a basic level of stability. [1]

After entering the restaurant, Luo Hao made his way to the courtyard.

This was currently Luo Hao's job in this world, a low-level woodcutter who would go to the mountains every day to cut firewood and sell it to these restaurants for some copper coins.

"With the firewood you delivered these past few days, the boss is not very satisfied with it."

"There are always some deerwood logs, and the kitchen is full of complaints." [2]

As Luo Hao walked into the courtyard, an old man dressed like a servant came out and spoke with an unhappy tone to Luo Hao.

"What can I do, Uncle He? It's winter, and there isn't much dry wood on the mountain."

"Deerwood logs are the best we can get at this time."

Luo Hao also looked a bit helpless. Deerwood was much worse than ordinary dry wood, but there was really no other choice.

After all, it was nearly impossible to find dry wood in such a damp winter.

"Anyway, if it's deerwood logs again tomorrow, the price will definitely be lowered."

"Xiaohao, you have to figure it out yourself. This is all I can do to help," Uncle He sighed deeply, took out a few copper coins from his purse, and handed them to Luo Hao.

"I understand, Uncle He. I'll go back now."

Luo Hao smiled slightly at the old man, not blaming him for what he said.

This job was introduced by Uncle He. Otherwise, as a 14-year-old boy, Luo Hao would not be able to find employment easily in this town.

Finding a stable job in this town was very difficult.

Looking at the copper coins in his hand, Luo Hao smiled slightly and walked towards the steamed bun shop across the street.

"Boss, give me four white steamed buns, please. Thank you."

"Okay, little brother, you're a regular customer. Three copper coins will do."

For the steamed bun shop owner, Luo Hao was no longer a stranger. He would come here to buy steamed buns every other day.

With pleasant business experience, Luo Hao smiled and thanked the owner, counting three copper coins and handing them over.

The steamed buns wrapped in oil paper were just out of the steamer and still had some heat, which gave Luo Hao, who was wearing a thin jacket, a warm feeling. It slightly warmed his body, which was already freezing.

Holding the steamed buns in his arms, Luo Hao walked quickly towards his home.

Along the way, he walked through dirty and messy alleys, finally arriving at a street full of shanty houses made of flat wooden boards.

The street was filled with a stench of rotten food, body odor, and various odors mixed together. It was just like the smell of a sewer, and most people would feel nauseous when they smelled it.

This place was the slum area of this town, where poor people and beggars lived. Of course, there were more beggars than poor people.

Many people died of starvation and freezing in this place every winter, and they were only discovered by others when spring arrived.

Carrying the steamed buns in his arms, Luo Hao walked directly into a courtyard and gently knocked on the old wooden door in front of him.

"Who's there?"

A childish voice came from the other side of the door.

A childish voice came from the other side of the door.

"It's me, Xiaoying. Open the door quickly."

Hearing this childish voice, Luo Hao

On the face that had turned blue because of the cold wind, there gradually emerged a smile.

"Squeak~"

After the wooden door slowly opened, a little head peeked out from the gap.

With a chubby little face and crystal-clear big eyes, Xiaoying would have been a typical doll-faced loli in Luo Hao's previous life.

After she saw that it was Luo Hao, she gradually opened the wooden door.

"Brother, why did you come back so early today?"

Xiaoying obediently took the bamboo basket and sickle from Luo Hao's back and turned her head to look at him.

This girl was a little beggar that Luo Hao encountered in the slums not long after he arrived in this world.

As he had lost his parents and had no life skills when he arrived in this world, Luo Hao had fainted from hunger in the slums. But Xiaoying had shared half of her begged steamed buns with Luo Hao.

Without that half bun, Luo Hao probably would have frozen to death on the street.

"The fog on the mountain hasn't cleared yet today, so I didn't stay long."

"I bought some steamed buns; let's eat them while they're still hot."

Luo Hao looked at the obedient girl in front of him, smiled slightly, and took out the steamed buns from his arms.

Since they had been held by Luo Hao all the way, the steamed buns were still warm. Xiaoying didn't hurry to eat after seeing them.

After looking at the quantity of buns in the oiled paper, she just tore off more than half of one bun, then put the rest back into Luo Hao's hand.

"Brother has been busy all day, eat more."

"Xiaoying didn't do anything today, half a bun is enough."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

[1]-"In this world where the ambiance of ancient China is evident everywhere, one could say that it has achieved a basic level of stability." -The sentence means that the world being described is one where the culture and style of ancient China can be seen throughout, and that this world has reached a state of relative stability. In other words, things are relatively calm and peaceful in this world, despite the cultural influences of ancient China being prominent.

[2]-"There are always some deerwood, and the kitchen is full of complaints." -This sentence means that the firewood that Luo Hao delivered had a lot of deerwood in it, and the people in the kitchen were complaining about it. Deerwood is a type of firewood that is less desirable than ordinary dry wood because it burns less efficiently and produces more smoke.