: The Alternation of Modern and Ancient Times – I, Song Jiang, Am Truly Tragic

In a luxurious manor, a young man was pacing back and forth in a state of anxiety. Judging from his tired yet anxious appearance, something bad had clearly happened!

The young man appeared to be in his early twenties, of average height and build, neither handsome nor ugly; he was simply an ordinary passerby in the crowd.

"Alright, there's no use in being impatient!" A dignified voice rang out from the young man's right, spoken by an elderly man holding a cane. His tone wasn't exactly harsh, but it exuded an air of unyielding authority!

When the old man spoke, the young man stopped moving, but the expression on his face seemed to tell everyone that he had not listened to what the old man said!

Outside, dark clouds quietly arrived, and the sky was as gloomy as if a blank sheet of paper had been smeared with ink!

The rain started quickly, pattering and pattering. It had only been a short time since the Lantern Festival, but the weather was still as cold as winter. This spring rain did not bring life to the earth, but instead added endless energy to the "cruel" weather, making the already cold village even worse!

The rain outside grew heavier and heavier. The raindrops fell on the stone tiles, displaying their final brilliance before disappearing into the cracks, joining their brothers as they headed towards the fate of the water pipes!

The old man walked to the window and watched the torrential rain pour down. He sighed and said, "Go check on your brother in his room again. I feel he should be waking up soon!" The old man couldn't explain why he had this feeling; perhaps it was the bond between father and son.

The young man hurried to the front of the house, disregarding etiquette, and pushed open the door to enter the room!

Inside the room, a young man lay on the bed with his eyes closed, seemingly dead, but the faint breathing indicated that things were not so simple!

The young man sighed, walked closer to the bedside, and looked at the person on the bed. The person was still lying quietly on the bed!

The young man shook his head, turned around, and prepared to leave the room!

Suddenly, a barely perceptible sound seemed to come from beside the bed. The young man's eyes widened, and a look of joy appeared on his face. His hands, which were about to open the door to the room, froze in mid-air!

He was afraid he had misheard, so he listened carefully again, and sure enough, the faint sound came through again!

Without further hesitation, he strode to the bedside!

The person on the bed had already woken up, his eyes wide open with a hint of confusion, as if he had woken up but his soul had not yet returned to its place!

The man groaned, "Where am I? What happened to me?" His voice was so faint it was barely audible unless you listened carefully.

The young man exclaimed joyfully, "Brother, you've finally woken up! It's been three days! You've been unconscious for a full three days!"

The man squinted at the young man and muttered, "Thirsty!"

The young man hurriedly poured a glass of water on the table and handed it to the man, who took the glass and drank the fountain of life in one gulp!

The young man quickly poured another glass of water and handed it to the man. This time, the man drank it slowly, finishing the water sip by sip.

After drinking the water, the man felt a little better. His eyes brightened, and he slowly sat up, supporting himself on the bed frame with his hands.

The surroundings were completely unfamiliar. The room was clean and tidy, with nothing but a wooden cabinet, a wooden table, and two chairs. After sleeping on the wooden bed for a while, I found it a bit uncomfortable. The pillow was ceramic, which was also very uncomfortable. My neck even felt a bit stiff!

A young man was staring at him, his eyes filled with surprise and hope. The young man wore a blue scarf on his head and a light blue robe. Although he looked ordinary, he had a good temperament and should not be from an ordinary family!

The person on the bed touched their head, which was throbbing with pain, as if someone was causing a ruckus inside their head.

The young man dared not disturb him, but only watched his older brother cautiously!

After a while, the person on the bed no longer felt the pain in their head, but their consciousness was not particularly clear. Looking at the young man who had been standing beside them for a long time, they slowly asked, "Who are you? Where is this?"

Upon hearing this question, the young man's eyes widened in disbelief, as if he were looking at a complete stranger. He exclaimed in surprise, "Brother, don't you really recognize me? This is Song Family Village, and I'm your younger brother, Song Qing!"

"Song Qing? That name sounds familiar!" The person on the bed pondered.

After a while, the person on the bed quietly asked, "Am I Song Jiang?"

Song Qing nodded hurriedly and said, "You're Song Jiang! Brother, it seems you remember me!"

The person on the bed murmured, "I am Song Jiang, I am Song Jiang..."

Seeing her brother's somewhat delirious state, Song Qing stepped forward to support him and whispered, "Brother, are you alright? Something's not right with you!"

The person on the bed broke free from Song Qing's grasp, sighed, and said, "You can leave now! I'm going to rest!"

Song Qing hesitated for a moment, then the person on the bed yelled, "Get out!"

After Song Qing left, the person on the bed stood up. He had been lying down for three days and felt a little weak. He almost fell back onto the bed!

He chuckled self-deprecatingly. His body was really weak. His field of vision was more than 20 centimeters lower than before. Looking at his skin, which was as black as charcoal, he figured his appearance couldn't be much better!

It's often said that women care about their appearance, but aren't men just as concerned?

After sitting down, the person on the bed began to think. His real name was Ouyang Heng, and he was a graduate student in the history department of a prestigious university in China.

He has a happy family, a good family background, and his parents and grandparents have very high expectations for him!

My grandfather was a proud soldier in the army during that era, and had a brilliant military career. From a young age, he loved to sit next to his grandfather and have his grandfather tell him one story after another.

Whenever his grandfather tells him stories of marshals, generals, and great men, he gets excited and admires their fighting spirit for the rise of China!

After graduating from university, he chose to join the army, simply to fulfill his childhood dream!

The five years he spent in the army were completely different from his previous life under the care of his family, but it allowed him to find his true self, and he did not receive any special treatment because of his grandfather!

Five years later, he reluctantly bid farewell to the army and was admitted to the history department for graduate studies. This was another goal in his life, a yearning for Chinese history!

I remember my mentor, Professor Zheng, was also a member of the national archaeological team. The night before the time travel, Professor Zheng told his students that the country had discovered an ancient tomb from the Northern Song Dynasty, but this tomb was not recorded in any documents. This excited many people, as discovering history was their goal!

The next day, Professor Zheng planned to take them to the outer perimeter of the ancient tomb to do some research. So that evening, Ouyang Heng found a historical book from the Northern Song Dynasty to read. But as he was reading, he suddenly couldn't control his upper and lower eyelids and they actually closed up together!

I woke up to find myself transported to another world! This is so damn cheesy!

Ouyang Heng took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down! But even his five years of military service couldn't completely quell his current turmoil!

Did he want to time travel? To be honest, no! The later China was prosperous and technologically advanced, but what did ancient China have? Not to mention the Northern Song Dynasty, one of the weakest dynasties in history! In ancient times, transportation was extremely inconvenient, and medical care was not very good. A simple cold could be fatal. As for the rest, he didn't want to complain about them one by one!

Of course, most importantly, in modern times, I'm 1.85 meters tall, with regular features—a standard handsome guy. But now? Let's not even talk about Song Jiang's appearance. Even if I were to transmigrate, I should have inhabited a more reliable person! Like Lu Junyi, Chai Jin, or even Wu Song! But instead, I'm Song Jiang, the one most criticized by later generations. What bad luck I had!

Ouyang Heng thought for a moment and prepared to end his own life so that he could return to the modern world. He hesitated for a while but couldn't make up his mind. If he didn't travel back in time, he would have died in vain and there would probably be no such person in the world!

Ouyang Heng sighed and looked out the window. The rain had stopped, but it was still a bit chilly. He saw a big tree sprouting new buds and the grass on the ground slowly emerging, as if welcoming the reborn earth. Ouyang Heng's mood calmed down a lot!

Fine, Song Jiang it is! Perhaps Heaven sent me back to ancient times so that I could save the Chinese people from suffering? Although I don't know what Emperor Huizong or what era it is now, if I'm not mistaken, it won't be long before the Jurchens launch a major invasion, leaving behind the infamous Jingkang Incident, a humiliation that is considered a great disgrace in history!

After calming himself down, Ouyang Heng looked out the window and thought of his parents and family, and then of his girlfriend Qianqian. She was so beautiful and virtuous. They had planned to get married after the New Year, but now, everything had become an illusion!

Perhaps Ouyang Heng will never exist again, and he will never see his family again. It would be a lie to say that he doesn't miss them!

With a sigh, Ouyang Heng muttered to himself, "Farewell, Ouyang Heng, farewell, my past!" From now on, there will be no more Ouyang Heng in this world, only Song Jiang, the timely rain Song Jiang!

Sitting in the chair, Song Jiang took a sip of water, trying to process his previous memories. Before his transmigration, he was a knowledgeable and capable man. Although this kind of transmigration seemed unbelievable, since it had actually happened, he could only accept it calmly. However, Song Jiang's body was really too weak. He was in his twenties, but he felt like he was in his thirties or forties. He couldn't lift heavy things or raise his arms. It seemed that he still needed to set a goal for himself and exercise more. Otherwise, without a good body, how could he conquer the chaotic world that was about to come?

Not long after they sat down, there was a knock on the door! Song Qing's voice came from outside the door!

"Brother, are you feeling better? Chief Chao, Chief Zhu, and Chief Lei have also come to the manor to visit you. Would you like to see them?"