I'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.

Chapter 3

"Good!"

Li Feng was delighted—so easy to deceive.

The simple, honest expression on his face vanished the moment he turned away.

The realm of Daliang governed by filial piety could not afford to give anyone leverage against him.

He had to find a way to root out the source of the problem.

Otherwise, if he ever carried the stigma of unfilial conduct, forget about himself—his children would all be doomed.

Fortunately, Lady Li Wang was used to treating the second wife’s family as less than human, which made today’s plan proceed smoothly. Had it been the eldest or the third brother, others would have suspected them of abusing their birth mother at the first sign.

As for the Li family, Li Feng could only think of them as a bunch of brainless fools.

The eldest son was ruthless, the third cruel, and the second blindly devoted to filial piety.

Not a single normal one among the whole lot.

He had labored for thirty years, married the wife he chose, raised his children himself, and yet bore the burden of supporting his elderly parents, while the eldest and third sons drained him dry.

The original body still had some strength left; during the off-season, he would go up the mountain to forage, like now.

In this season of renewal, the mountains and forests offered many valuable treasures.

Over the years, the original body had learned a bit of hunting. Just yesterday, a wild boar he trapped played dead, and he wasn’t paying attention, so the boar charged and knocked him down.

That’s how he met his end.

The reason he went hunting wild boars was that the third son was about to face his fate.

In February, the third son had passed the county exam.

Now it was nearly April, and he had to prepare for the prefectural exam. The lower-level student exam was held once a year, and the third son had tried for more than twenty years without passing the prefectural exam even once.

He hadn’t even obtained the lower-level student status, let alone continue to the academy exam.

To travel to the prefectural city required money. Lady Li Wang was causing trouble at home, and the original body had no choice but to risk everything.

His luck was decent but not great: he found prey, but died at its hands.

Truly…

Li Feng shook his head. Since he had come here, supporting the whole family was impossible.

Besides, he was already thirty-five, not young.

In ancient times, many died at that age. Li Feng sighed in relief that he had several sons.

From now on, as long as he took good care of himself, even if he couldn’t make up all the debts, he should be able to live out his natural lifespan.

He walked with his hands behind his back towards the fields etched in his memory, muttering to himself.

“System, you should show up now, right?”

“The young master just won the lottery and booked a presidential suite. Before he could enjoy it, you dragged him here.”

“If you don’t give the young master an explanation, we’ll perish together!”

After his muttering, silence enveloped him.

Li Feng thought he was hearing things in his final moments. The only reason he could accept his fate was because of that voice before death.

Without this golden finger, he wouldn’t bother playing along.

Better to just die then!

【Ding! Natural, pollution-free Prunella vulgaris discovered!】

The mechanical voice sounded.

Li Feng immediately looked down. Sure enough, in the nearby field was a small patch of weeds, probably leftover from someone else’s weeding.

In an era of backward productivity, everything was a resource—even weeds.

The village chief’s family owned two oxen.

They needed large amounts of fresh grass daily.

Moreover, the Li family village had a landlord with three oxen and several tenant farmers.

Farmers with land would gather fresh grass from their fields and sell it to the landlord and village chief.

After all, it was much cheaper this way.

Just a few coins could buy a whole cartload, far more economical than hiring a herder.

Therefore, even seeing Prunella vulgaris, Li Feng carefully observed it for a while before squatting down after realizing it was his own land.

The moment he touched the Prunella vulgaris, a transparent panel appeared before him.

【Natural, pollution-free Prunella vulgaris; Pollution level: 0; Medicinal value: 100%. Fresh Prunella vulgaris: 10 wen per catty.】

Li Feng pulled up the weed, dotted with tiny purple flowers. The mechanical voice echoed in his mind again.

【Ding, 4 taels of natural, pollution-free Prunella vulgaris, value 4 wen. Would you like to sell?】

【Yes!】

Li Feng’s heart leapt silently, though his face remained expressionless.

The next moment, the bundle of Prunella vulgaris in his hand vanished, replaced by four copper coins in his palm.

The coins were square in the center and round on the outside, just like those from his time and space—symbolizing good fortune.

He sniffed them—ah, the unmistakable scent of money.

No one knew how despairing he felt when he inherited the original’s memories and found not a single copper coin.

Luckily, he had a golden finger.

The instant the transaction completed, the system panel changed.

Next to the character information, a system mall appeared.

It was brightly lit—clearly because he had completed a transaction, unlocking the mall.

Li Feng took a look inside.

Just like the group-buying app from his previous life, there were countless items, all kinds of varieties.

From tiny embroidery needles to large blades, spears, swords, and halberds—everything.

The only difference was that the currency here was copper coins.

A meat bun cost one wen.

In his world, a meat bun cost one yuan, so one wen was equivalent to one yuan.

This was a trading mall connected to his current time and space.

Li Feng put the four copper coins into the system mall and bought four meat buns.

The system came with a built-in storage space, safely keeping the money earned from transactions away from prying eyes.

After exchanging for four meat buns, Li Feng took one out. They were small steamed buns, perfect for one bite. Before long, he finished all four.

No need to call him selfish.

From the time of injury until now, he hadn’t had a drop of water or a morsel of food.

His stomach was empty. Without considering himself, if he starved to death, everything would be over!

Eating the medicinal meat buns, Li Feng glanced at the edge of the field, plucked a few blades of grass roots, and chewed them to ease the meaty taste.

After eating, Li Feng didn’t linger but headed toward the fields.

Though these wild vegetables could be sold for money, most belonged to others. Recklessly picking them would lead to endless complaints and troubles.

More importantly, there was too little; the money came too slowly—simply not worth it.

“Father, why are you here? Didn’t we tell you to rest at home? We’re here with you.”

As soon as he reached the fields and before he could speak, the big dog looked up.

His dark face showed no color, only pale lips.

Er Niu, San Niu, and Si Niu were about the same—pale lips.

Da Ya was weeding nearby with Er Ya, while Da Gou was fetching water with Er Niu; San Niu and Si Niu carried water together.

The remaining two little ones were busy too.

The whole family was as hardworking as oxen.

Seeing their father arrive, the children happily gathered around, asking with concern.

“Father, does your wound still hurt?”

Er Ya stood on tiptoe, touching Li Feng’s waist, her face tightly wrinkled with worry.

“Father is fine,” Li Feng lowered his head, looking at Er Ya, who was smaller than his waist, and felt a pang of heartache.

The child was frail, and with two older brothers born at the same time, she had even fewer resources.

For a peasant woman, raising one child was already hard, let alone three at once.

If he hadn’t been lucky enough to find a wild goat in the mountains with some milk, the triplets might not have survived.

“Father, when I grow bigger, can you sell me?” Da Ya suddenly spoke.

“With money, Father can find brides for eldest and second brothers.”

…