Chapter 1: Becoming a Wife

Daxia Province, Hongtu County!

Outside Hanging Sword Mountain, it had been snowing heavily for more than two days.

The snow had piled up to half a meter thick.

The entire world was a vast expanse of white.

As far as the eye could see, nothing but snow.

Lu Chuan exhaled a cloud of misty breath and suddenly hunched his neck.

He slipped his hand inside his collar to warm it slightly, then carefully picked up a hemp rope beside him again.

He was going to make a bow—one capable of hunting!

As a mercenary, Lu Chuan had inadvertently arrived in this world, inhabiting the body of a man who had just frozen to death.

With the bitter cold and scant food and clothing, in this era, death by freezing or starvation was nothing unusual.

Outside the city walls of Bingzhou, bones were scattered, worn down by wind and snow.

Such was the Daxia Dynasty now—

Fractured and torn apart, plagued by constant wars and internal strife from the chaos of the Eight Princes.

Externally, enemies like the Turks, Xiongnu, and Uighurs encircled them.

After years of continuous warfare, the people were already struggling to survive.

So the first thing upon awakening was to find a way to live.

In his past life, moving through the rainforests of Southeast Asia, he had been invincible.

But now, with wheat just sown and no stored grain at home, borrowing food was out of the question—every household was barely scraping by.

To survive, one had to rely on the mountain.

Fortunately, the skills he had learned as a mercenary hadn’t faded. Making a bow and hunting in the mountains could at least stave off hunger this winter. In a little while, it would be time to pay the annual grain tax.

Yet his granary was empty; he had to find a way to buy some food.

Since he had crossed over, he had to find a way to survive—and thrive.

Busy with his preparations, a loud, rough voice echoed up from the foot of the mountain.

“Is Lu Chuan home?”

“The officials are here to select wives at the village threshing ground! Hurry up! If you’re late, all the able-bodied ones will be taken!”

The voice belonged to the village chief of Shuangshui Village.

Though he had no real power and was merely a scholar by education, he had spent his life in poverty. Now as village chief, he was responsible for relaying government orders. An honest, hardworking old man, harmless to both people and animals.

As for this “selecting wives” he mentioned, it was a long story.

After years of warfare, male laborers were scarce; many were disabled.

Not only was tax collection difficult, but with the dwindling population, it would take years to recover.

And this was no good for anyone.

In short, the officials wanted both taxes and population.

These women, officials’ wives, could hardly produce much tax revenue—they couldn’t carry loads or farm effectively.

But if married off, through the population tax, two taxes could be collected legitimately.

If they bore one or two children, then both people and money would be secured.

“Coming!” Lu Chuan finished soaking the hemp rope in tung oil and shouted down the mountain, “I’m coming right now!”

Escape was impossible.

The provincial government in Bingzhou had already investigated their backgrounds thoroughly. And don’t think it was easy to run away.

Wherever you went, you needed official papers.

Without them, you lost your basic human rights.

No one would care about you; anyone could kill you without consequence.

Commoners under the feudal dynasty were far less human than many imagined.

Lu Chuan changed into simpler clothes and descended the rugged mountain path to the village threshing ground.

There, a neat line of officials guarded a group of women dressed in tattered clothes.

Though their clothes were ragged, their faces were clean—clearly washed before being brought here, but little else had been cared for.

Nearby, villagers watched with glee.

Most had arrived early; the strong, able-bodied women suitable for farm work had mostly been picked.

Left were fragile, delicate-looking official daughters.

They stood dejectedly, heads bowed. If no one chose them, most would be sent to the brothel or even sold north to the Xiongnu as livestock—a fate worse than death.

“Here? Hurry up and choose!”

The leader tapped the sheath of his sword on Lu Chuan’s back with a smile.

Lu Chuan staggered, quickly stepping forward to steady himself.

“Damn it!”

Goodness was met with cruelty, kindness with exploitation!

He turned to look at the man.

The corner of that man’s mouth curled into a smirk.

“What? You don’t accept it? Daring to glare at me?”

“Then today, you pick two women to take. Otherwise, don’t blame me for being merciless with my blade!”

Those around burst into raucous laughter, their arrogance palpable.

Lu Chuan’s mouth twitched fiercely—this was outright targeting.

He wondered what he had done to offend this man. Could it be that his looks were a threat?

With no choice, he forced himself forward.

He looked up at the first girl, momentarily distracted.

She was slender and frail-looking, about seventeen or eighteen years old, not tall but well-shaped.

Curvaceous, with long, slender legs, just standing there exuding a delicate charm.

Clearly a lady from an official family.

Her eyes filled with despair, and as she met Lu Chuan’s gaze, tears welled up.

“Please… take me…”

Her voice was a heartfelt plea.

If no one chose her, she would be sent to the brothel—she would rather die.

Lu Chuan looked at her again, regaining focus. In his previous world, she would have been an online goddess.

Above her head, a panel appeared:

Name: Su Ruan

Age: 17

Beauty: 89

Affinity: 10

Currently available upon recruitment: Portable space of 3 cubic meters

Lu Chuan stared at the information in astonishment.

Portable space?

The moment he snapped back to reality, excitement surged.

Damn!

He had thought, after crossing over, he’d have to start from zero relying only on his own skills.

But unexpectedly, this came as aI'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.