In countless parallel universes, there's a place that is quite similar to the world we know, yet not exactly the same.
Here, there's a dynasty called "Ming" which greatly resembles the "Ming Dynasty" we're familiar with, but the nation's fortune in this "Ming Dynasty" seems to have lasted even longer; ever since the founding of the Great Ming, it has continued for over three hundred years, with the number of Emperors surpassing twenty. In this generation, the reign has come into the hands of an Emperor named Zhu Li.
The era of Emperor Zhu Li is known as "Yong Tai," and our story begins in the early years of his reign.
Just after the New Year, rainfall began in Hangzhou Prefecture.
This rain lasted for five days, from the first day of the new year right through to the fifth day, which is 'Welcoming the God of Wealth', and it grew heavier as it fell. Peasants couldn't even step out of their doors, leading to the unusual quiet of Hangzhou Prefecture's alleyways without even the sound of firecrackers.
It was as if Heaven itself was telling the people of Hangzhou to "shut up."
There's an old saying—no ordinary child is born in ordinary circumstances.
Coincidentally, on the first day of the new year, the wife of an acclaimed gentleman from the Sun family, who had been carrying her child for twelve months without giving birth, suddenly started having stomach pains.
She agonized for five full days, which tormented everyone in the Sun Mansion, especially Mrs. Sun.
Finally, on the fifth day, after giving up on how many midwives and fainting how many maids… amidst the lighting and thunder, fierce winds, and torrential downpour outside, they only heard a "snap"—Mrs. Sun had given birth.
Incidentally, that "snap" sound was made when Mrs. Sun accidentally tore a piece of silk beside the bed.
As soon as Mr. Sun was born, the rain outside stopped, and the clouds scattered immediately, revealing a clear sky for miles around.
Even more astounding was that, after five days and nights of labour, Mrs. Sun was without major issue. She hadn't fainted from exhaustion, but instead had a hearty meal, breastfed twice, and then fell asleep with her son, leaving the midwives and wet nurses hired by the Sun family flabbergasted.
A few days later, the news had spread throughout Hangzhou City.
People in the streets and alleys were all talking about it. There were those who said the Sun family's son was a celestial being descended to earth, some claimed he was the reincarnation of the Monkey King, others even speculated he was actually Nezha, and hence the Dragon Lord wanted to drown him with rain during the days of his birth.
Of course, these rumors didn't last long and dissipated after a few days.
Long story short, Mr. Sun grew up day by day, without the outsiders noticing anything unusual. But he knew there was something wrong with himself.
This Mr. Sun was the very "Mr. Sun" from our previous mention, who had crossed over from another world.
His last memory was driving in fog, then he felt disoriented and lost consciousness; when he came to his senses again, he had already become a newborn infant crying.
When he first regained consciousness, Mr. Sun tried to speak, but no matter what he tried to say, all that came out were cries; he wanted to gesture with his hands, but his fingers remained tightly clenched and wouldn't separate... It was only half a day later when he managed to open his eyes that he roughly understood the situation.
Mr. Sun was also aware of certain tropes from transmigration stories, so he gradually gave up resisting and accepted the fact that he had transmigrated into a "newborn infant from ancient times."
As the saying goes, since he's come, he might as well settle down. After the initial shock, and calming down to think about it... Anyway, there was no knowing whether he could return to the original world, so "starting a new life" here didn't seem too bad—all things considered, it could be a good thing.
...
In a blink of an eye, Mr. Sun had grown to three or four years old.
In this world, his name was "Sun Yixie." He once asked his father, the acclaimed gentleman, "Why did you name me this? Do I have a brother named Sun Yizhuang?"
Mr. Sun told him no, but he could consider naming his brother or son Sun Yizhuang, as it was customary for prestigious families to choose generational names.
Sun Yixie asked again, generational naming is fine, but has anyone done it in reverse?
Mr. Sun didn't answer him but said that he would tell him when the time was right.
A few more years passed, and it was time for Sun Yixie to start his studies.
But he felt that he already recognized characters (simplified characters), and that the pedantic antics of traditional education were useless, so he didn't pay attention when the schoolmasters taught him and even played pranks on them.
Also, because he was the son of a great household, the schoolmasters didn't dare to punish him severely, merely leading to a squandering of two years and the departure of more than a dozen schoolmasters.
Frustrated, Mr. Sun had a talk with his son, warning him, "Though our Sun family is in business, we have a scholarly heritage. If you don't study hard and achieve some degree of academic success, not only will you tarnish the Sun family's reputation, but without achievements, you won't even be able to command servants, do you understand?"
Sun Yixie's response was, "Couldn't I just marry more wives? What do I need servants for?"
Following which, he was walloped, starved for several days, and ultimately sent to Shuren Academy.
Shuren Academy was a distinguished private school in Hangzhou Prefecture, famous for reforming recalcitrant scions like Sun Yixie. The fees were steep, and the school was run with prison-like discipline.
The school's master was named De Luyi, over seventy with white hair, rumored to have breezed through the Metropolitan Examinations in the capital, only to be sabotaged during the Imperial Examinations by interference whispered into the Emperor's ear, causing him to be passed over for the title of top scholar in favor of a well-connected wealthy scholar. Mr. De, in a fit of anger, renounced the official post assigned by the court and returned to his hometown to open a private school, detesting wealthy scions ever since.
And so, Sun Yixie was "imprisoned" at Shuren Academy for a year.
Unexpectedly, he "graduated" after just one year.
It wasn't because he was a genius, but because after a year of study, he still couldn't write properly (traditional characters); no matter how he was taught, he simply couldn't grasp it. To put it in terms we're familiar with, he probably had a bit of "dyslexia"… Plus, he was extremely thick-skinned, resistant to both carrot and stick with a knack for stirring trouble among teachers and students. Completely different from children his age, and even more cunning and slick than some of the schoolmasters, he turned the academy upsidedown, leaving Mr. De no choice for the sake of protecting the school's reputation but to state that "everything teachable has been taught" and expelled him.
Seeing his son's "remarkable achievements," Mr. Sun was worried, thinking, well, perhaps it's fate. If academics don't suit him, then martial arts it is. If he has a knack for martial arts, at least the Sun family's "secret treasure" will have a successor.
So Mr. Sun found a fist-fighting instructor to teach Sun Yixie martial arts.
Unfortunately, since the Sun family had long been detached from the Martial Arts community and nearly lost all their connections to the true "martial artists," even though Mr. Sun had some acquaintances with high-ranking martial artists, he couldn't quickly find them, and even if he could, it would be hard to ask them to teach his child. Therefore, he could only hire local commoners to teach Sun Yixie martial arts.
The mediocre skills they could offer were barely a foundation; even if practiced for ten years to perfection, they would at most qualify for performing tricks on the streets.
Not to mention... Sun Yixie was not the type to diligently study anything.
When his Master told him to practice the horse stance, he would find every way to slack off; when he was taught forms, he would look once and boast, "I get it" or "I'm invincible," then head off to fight with other kids in the streets, often losing... After driving away more than a dozen fist-fighting masters, Mr. Sun concluded that his son was neither academically nor martially inclined, so he decided to teach him how to conduct business instead, hoping that at the very least he could preserve the family's wealth.
...
The eighteenth year of Yong Tai, summer.
Overall, this was a peaceful year. The borderlands had been free from significant battles for over a decade, no grave natural disasters had struck the Great Ming's territories in recent years, and no vile court officials of eternal infamy had appeared. Hence, the lives of the common people were relatively decent.
After this New Year, Sun Yixie was already seventeen.
As the song goes, youth is but fleeting brilliance, lasting only a moment.
The seventeen-year-old Sun Yixie, although his features were identical to the "four eyebrows" look from before transmigration, was twenty years younger and quite thin. He did not quite exude dashing charm, but at least on the street, he was "worth a second glance."
What set him apart was his bearing, which was entirely different from his peers.
Boys his age, whether brilliant scholars or exceptional in martial arts, were mostly still naïve and inexperienced—young and easily duped, impulsive, and susceptible to being taken advantage of.
But Sun Yixie only pretended to be naive when it served his purpose; in reality, he was cunning, measured in his approach, aggressive when necessary but harmoniously so - very much the sort who could sell someone out and still persuade them to help with the count.
Not just his contemporaries, but even those older than him, often referred to him as "big brother."
Certainly, the knowledge and emotional intelligence of a modern person granted him advantages, but in this world, his personal abilities were ultimately reduced to "illiterate" and "unskilled in martial arts." Plus, he was somewhat vain, prone to irritation over trifles, which stopped him from reaching the heights of a Long Aotian character.
Over the years, Sun Yixie mainly helped his father manage the fish market business, performing quite well, even better than his father had. He virtually monopolized the whole of Hangzhou's seafood trade.
Of course, this was not easily accomplished; it involved danger, deception, and cunning. Still, Sun Yixie managed it in the end.
He even earned a nickname—"The Fish Market Tycoon."
Everybody in Hangzhou knew that one had to inquire with the Sun family before purchasing fish, even "Ma Bancheng," or else he would have to go without.
Seeing his son's talent in business, Mr. Sun was relieved, thinking that in a few more years, he could gradually hand over the management of the silk shop, pawn shop, restaurants, and the rented farmland to his son, allowing himself to retire early and enjoy some tranquility at home.
However, during that summer, several guests arrived at the Sun family.
One of them had even traveled thousands of miles from Sichuan.
And it was this visit that would forever change the fate of Sun Yixie, as well as many others…