Chapter 1 (Part 1): The Culinary Tycoon

When Yu Qingze regained consciousness, he immediately noticed a warm, bitter liquid being poured into his mouth. It tasted bitter, like Chinese medicine. Subconsciously, he frowned and turned his head, allowing the excess liquid to flow from the corner of his mouth to his ear.

In the next moment, he heard a crisp voice beside his ear.

“Hey, brother, look, is he awake?”

Yu Qingze didn’t hear a response but felt his neck and cheek being wiped clean with a slightly rough cloth.

“Hey, big brother, wake up?”

His arm was shaken, and Yu Qingze opened his eyes to see the enlarged face of a young boy in front of him. The boy looked about eight or nine years old, with dark skin, round eyes, and two small buns tied on the left and right sides of his head, the traditional hairstyle of ancient boys. He was wearing a gray ancient-style garment and looked very thin.

What’s going on? Yu Qingze blinked, and the boy smiled at him.

Yu Qingze was a little confused. He remembered going back to the countryside to pay respects at his grandfather’s grave, encountering a torrential rainstorm on the mountain road, and a landslide. It seemed like he was… buried?

Buried?!

Yu Qingze sat up in shock, staring at the grayish-white short shirt and blue trousers he was wearing. He still remembered the desperate feeling of suffocating when buried under the mud. At that time, there were no vehicles passing by because of the heavy rain. He should have… died.

So, what’s happening now? Am I… alive again?

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

He assessed the condition of his body and felt a sharp pain in his left foot, which was wrapped with a cloth bandage. There were traces of herbal infusion visible at the edges, indicating a sprain. His arm had some abrasions, but other than that, there were no major injuries. He just felt weak and lacked strength.

“Oh, you startled me.” Yu Qingze suddenly sat up, startling the young boy who quickly moved back. Then, he turned to another person sitting beside him and said, “Brother, he’s really awake!”

Brother? Upon hearing the boy’s words, Yu Qingze finally noticed the presence of a young man beside the boy.

The young man appeared to be around 20 years old, slender and thin. He had long and thick bangs that almost covered his eyes. His hair was casually tied behind his head, revealing a handsome face. He slightly parted his lips and widened his eyes, looking at Yu Qingze with a pleasantly surprised expression. In his hand, he held a grayish-white cloth towel, and in the other hand, he held a bowl of medicine with only a small amount of liquid left.

Seeing Yu Qingze looking over, the young man, seemingly embarrassed, quickly averted his gaze. He pursed his lips, set down the cloth towel and medicine bowl, pointed at Yu Qingze with one hand, and then rubbed his hands together in a gesture. His dark eyes, visible through his thick, long bangs, looked at Yu Qingze with warmth and concern.

Yu Qingze blinked, looking at the young man in confusion.

“My brother is asking how you’re feeling. Is there anywhere uncomfortable?” the young boy said, turning his head.

“…Oh.” So, the young man couldn’t speak. Yu Qingze quickly suppressed his surprise and said to both of them, “I’m fine. Did you two save me? Thank you.”

The young boy quickly replied, “It was my brother who saved you. You have no idea how dangerous it was. After the heavy rain, a slope collapsed in the mountains behind. When my brother found you, you were trapped between two stones, with only your head exposed. If it weren’t for my brother’s strength in moving the stones to dig you out, you would have died!”

As he spoke, the young boy spread his hands apart to demonstrate the size of the stones, making them look really big. His hands were more than one meter apart, almost 180 degrees.

Yu Qingze now had an idea of the size of the stones. However, he couldn’t help but think, “Young boy, aren’t you exaggerating a bit? If the stones were really that big, can your brother, with his small frame, really move them?”

It was not surprising that Yu Qingze had such thoughts. The young man appeared very thin and frail, as if a gust of wind could blow him away. He couldn’t imagine him single-handedly moving two stones of the size described by the young boy.

Of course, Yu Qingze would never voice those thoughts. The debt of saving his life was unquestionable. However, he didn’t know that the young boy wasn’t exaggerating.

He turned to the young man and sincerely thanked him, “Thank you for saving me. May I ask for your names?”

The young man couldn’t answer, but the young boy naturally replied on behalf of his brother, “My brother’s name is Chang Le, and I’m Chang Hao.”

“Thank you very much,” Yu Qingze expressed his gratitude once again, bending slightly from his seated position. Then he introduced himself, “My name is Yu Qingze, with ‘Qing’ meaning clear and ‘Ze’ meaning lake or marsh.”

Chang Hao smoothly changed his address, calling him “Big Brother Yu.”

Chang Le smiled faintly, nodded in greeting, and then gestured to his younger brother. He took the cloth towel and medicine bowl and left.

Yu Qingze didn’t understand the sign language and looked at the young boy in confusion, waiting for him to translate.

Chang Hao nodded along with his brother and then said to Yu Qingze, “My brother says there’s no need to thank him. He’s gone to fetch a doctor for you. You don’t know, but you’ve been unconscious for two days and running a fever the whole time. The doctor said it would be dangerous if your temperature doesn’t come down today.”

“Thank you, but I’m fine now,” Yu Qingze touched his forehead and realized that he no longer had a fever. He then inquired about his surroundings while observing the area, “Little brother, where exactly are we?”

Above him was a gray bed curtain, beneath him was a bamboo mat and an old-fashioned wooden bed. There was an aged wooden door, mud-yellow bricks, and a thatched roof. Opposite the wall, there was a makeshift ‘bed’ constructed from two long benches with various-sized wooden planks, covered with straw and a cool mat. There were also two pillows, and four bamboo poles were tied to the legs of the bench, with two additional poles used to hang the bed curtain. In the corner, there was a simple shelf with a square-shaped box on top.

It was incredibly primitive.

Since his birth, Yu Qingze had never seen anyone living in a thatched-roof house. Looking at the attire and appearance of the two brothers, it was apparent that they belonged to an ancient time.

Everything in front of him triggered an unsettling premonition. In fact, an absurd thought even crossed Yu Qingze’s mind.

Could it be that he had traveled through time?

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