[Imperial examinations + court politics + intrigue + daily life + alternate history + lighthearted + farming + comedy]
“Wenqian, your father fainted!”
“Wenqian, your father set fire to someone else’s ancestral grave while burning offerings!”
After being caught in an affair, he transmigrates into the body of a five-year-old tenant farmer’s son.
His family has nothing but the four walls of their house, and debts are piling up. His elder brother is about to sell himself into service for his sake.
He gets the whole family up before dawn and keeps them working until dark, saving every last hard-earned coin. Just as life starts to improve, the landlord sets his sights on his family. Should he swallow his anger, or fight back against all odds?
By a stroke of luck, he gets into a school he never could have hoped to attend.
Many years later, he stands at the pinnacle of power, above ten thousand people.
“My dear minister, spare me. I’ll abdicate and give you the throne.”
“Good grief…”
The writing is really good and down to earth, the details are spot on, the character descriptions are great, and the content is historically verifiable.