An Insect Master from the Apocalypse Farms in Ancient Times

Xia Mingqiong awakened a nearly useless insect-controlling ability in a post-apocalyptic world full of zombies. After being bitten to death by a zombie, he took his ability with him when he transmigrated into the lazy, arrogant, difficult little uncle of the heroine in an ancient farming novel.

Sure, this was ancient times, with no phones or computers. He'd been kicked out of the family home and was drowning in gambling debts. But there were no zombies here, and there were insects everywhere. It was practically heaven!

Everyone said the youngest son of the Xia family had gone completely mad. He no longer held his chin high, keeping a cold face and spouting Confucian sayings all day. Instead, he smiled at everyone and played with bugs like a child.

Poor Old Master and Madam Xia and their sons had worked hard their whole lives, doing everything they could to educate one scholar, hoping he'd bring honor to the family. Instead, they'd raised a wastrel.

He'd taken every last bit of the family's money. Rather than study, he fell into bad company, drinking and gambling, then came home with a mountain of debt. He even tried to secretly sell his niece to pay it off, and now he'd gone mad.

But no one expected Xia Mingqiong to do more than play with insects. He started breeding them, and the more he bred, the more famous he became.

The ants he raised grew all kinds of delicious fresh mushrooms. Chickens, ducks, and fish fed with his mealworms grew huge and had tender, flavorful meat. Famous restaurants and wealthy households from near and far came to place orders.

Every cricket he raised was a champion, undefeated. The young dandies of the capital fought to pay a fortune for them, and considered it an honor to own one of his crickets.

The honey made by his bees was said to beautify the skin and prolong life. The emperor, empress dowager, and empress in the palace all loved it, and it was declared tribute. Countless high officials and nobles rushed to buy it.

The silk woven from his silkworms' thread turned out to be impervious to blades and spears. Thanks to it, the God of War general survived an assassination attempt by a traitor and went on to win a great victory. The soldiers were all deeply grateful to him.

Xia Mingqiong raised insects, made a fortune, and ate and drank well. He had all sorts of juicy gossip brought to him by his little bugs. He also often visited the beautiful, kindhearted, sickly little neighbor who, according to rumor, had been switched at birth and then returned to his family. The neighbor was so tenderhearted that even stepping on a bug made him sad for ages. They exchanged little gifts and went on romantic dates, enjoying the good life.

Xia Mingqiong even controlled 999 fireflies to form the words of a marriage proposal: "We love each other, so why don't we become sworn brothers? Don't worry, I'll treat you well and never leave you, not in this life."

The beauty, shy and bashful, nodded and accepted.

Only later did Xia Mingqiong learn that the sickly beauty was the original story's most vicious, unhinged villain, the kind who would leave the capital awash with blood. Worst of all, he hated and was disgusted by insects, fireflies included. Xia Mingqiong was so shocked that the melon in his hand fell to the ground.

Theme: Beauty is everywhere in life.