The Daily Life of a Vegetable Farmer’s Son Preparing for the Imperial Exams

This is not a wish-fulfillment story! This is not a wish-fulfillment story! The body of seven-year-old invalid Zhao Sanxing houses the soul of a modern delivery driver. When he opens his eyes, he finds a family so poor they own almost nothing, and he is so weak he cannot even chop firewood. His parents are about to send him to a monastery to become a little monk, hoping he can “find a way to survive.” He is at a loss: transmigrating as a sickly boy at the bottom of society in ancient times is about as hellish a start as it gets! The monastery is no pure sanctuary. It is a living hell. Bullied by cruel monks and mistreated by his fellow novices, he is at death's door when he uses his memories of a previous life to make allicin by hand. He saves a life and unexpectedly earns his first fortune. But his sudden wealth from selling medicine attracts a pack of wolves: the county magistrate frames him, powerful gentry try to seize his formula, and his family suffers. After being beaten bloody three times, Zhao Sanxing finally understands: in this predatory world, making a fortune with a skill only turns you into a fat lamb. Only by holding power can he truly protect his family and uphold the justice in his heart! He abandons his medicine chest and takes up books. He studies under a renowned teacher and enters Baiyuan Academy, investigating the principles of things. Traveling south to observe the world, he sees the suffering of salt workers and the tears of salt-boiling households, and witnesses a loyal minister die unjustly while the people endure hardship. On the road to the imperial examinations, he turns modern thinking into a weapon to break through obstacles. He makes a name for himself in the provincial exams, then astounds the emperor with his policy essay at the palace examination! From a beggar boy born into poverty to a rising star at court, he takes on corrupt officials, exposes the salt trade's abuses, and quells popular unrest. He enriches the nation and its people through the cotton-spinning industry, and challenges vested interests with tax reform. Yet he does not know he has already been swept into a maelstrom of princes vying for the throne and frontier generals consumed by suspicion. Beside the Dragon Throne, the Empress Dowager hands him a cold command token: spy on his closest friend and keep the meritorious officials in check, or his entire family will die. On one side are the favor that raised him up and his family's survival. On the other are a friend who would die for him and the integrity of a man of true worth. Zhao Sanxing stands in court, holding a memorial, his gaze blazing: “Your Majesty, I come from humble origins…”