Chapter (1): Sweet Bamboo Shoots
Bai Li walked along, a bamboo basket filled with bamboo shoots slung over his shoulder. As he passed by a group of villagers, the sounds of their mockery drifted into his ears.
"Look at that trash. I wonder what he's doing picking tender bamboo shoots? Is he planning to feed them to his Ge'er and the kids?"
"Heh, I bet even if he's starving, he won't feed his family. He probably picked them just for himself."
"Pah! That scoundrel still hasn't learned his lesson. It's a good thing the Bai family kicked him out. His family is going to starve to death sooner or later anyway."
"Now, he might leave his Ge'er, Xiao Han, to die, but those two children are both little Gers. You can be sure this trash is just keeping them alive until they're old enough to be sold off."
"Speaking of which, I heard his Ge'er, Xiao Han, went fishing in the river the other day. It's autumn already; that water must be freezing. And since Xiao Han is constantly being beaten and abused by him, his body is already frail. I heard he's fallen ill now."
"Hmph, Xiao Han is sick, so there's no one to feed him. That's probably why he's out here picking bamboo shoots to eat."
The villagers didn't bother lowering their voices; they clearly intended for him to hear. Although Bai Li heard every word, he kept his head down and continued walking. He even feigned ignorance when they spat on the ground near him. Only when he was a safe distance away did he allow himself a quiet sigh.
The people in this village seemed to harbor a deep-seated hatred for him, showing him no mercy whatsoever. Even so, he couldn't blame them—the original Bai Li had indeed been a truly wicked man.
When Bai Li woke up this morning, he realized he was in someone else's body and had been forced to process a flood of unfamiliar memories.
The original Bai Li shared his name and even his appearance, but their characters were worlds apart. The original was incredibly crude and cruel. Despite being twenty years old, he did nothing but live off his family. His only interests were gambling and lust, and that was where he spent all his time.
His family, the Bai family, was reasonably well-off in this small village of Nanchang, but they could no longer endure his torment. The original Bai Li would run up debts at gambling dens, and creditors—including people from brothels—would frequently show up at the Bai family's door.
The Bai family had endured this until he turned twenty, gradually realizing that their lack of prosperity, despite their hard work, was entirely due to his depravity.
Consequently, they went to the city to tell the gambling dens and brothels that they would no longer acknowledge their son or pay his debts. Because of this, the original Bai Li became the laughingstock of the entire town.
The Bai family also gave him a firm ultimatum: they would not pay another cent if creditors came again, and if he stole anything from the house, they would hand him over to the authorities. Left with no way out, the original Bai Li was fuming. Seeking a way to vent his anger, he went to the river to bathe, where he encountered Xiao Han bathing alone.
Xiao Han was a Ge'er from the Xiao family. From the original Bai Li's memories, Bai Li learned that this world consisted of three genders: men, women, and Ge'ers. Though Ge'ers were biologically male, they could conceive and bear children. Their defining characteristic was a birthmark, known as a pregnancy mole, located somewhere on their face.
Although Xiao Han was a Ge'er, he was already fifteen and not yet betrothed. In ancient times, children were betrothed at thirteen or fourteen and married off by fifteen or sixteen. However, because the original Bai Li was so notorious, no one wanted to marry him, which was why he remained unwed at twenty.
Xiao Han had his own tragic history. He lived with a stepmother who refused to marry him off only because she was waiting to sell him for a high price to some wealthy man.
Xiao Han wasn't extraordinarily beautiful, but he had clear skin and a lovely disposition. The original Bai Li had coveted him for a long time. Finding Xiao Han alone while he was in such a foul mood, he couldn't restrain his base instincts.
The only words Bai Li had for the original version of himself were: "You are an absolute scoundrel."
The original Bai Li had not only raped Xiao Han but also threatened him into silence. He had no intention of marrying him. In his mind, Xiao Han would eventually become someone's concubine anyway, so who would care about his purity?
However, the original Bai Li's luck ran out.
It was evening, and the village head's son happened to be returning after herding his buffalo. He overheard the original Bai Li threatening Xiao Han. Having spent so much time in brothels, the original's methods were brutal, and the marks of abuse on Xiao Han's body were impossible to hide.
The village head's son was a righteous man. He beat the original Bai Li on the spot, dragged him and Xiao Han to the village head's house, and demanded he take responsibility by marrying Xiao Han.
Since the matter had become public knowledge, the original Bai Li had no choice. The village head ruled that the two must marry, and neither family could object.
Xiao Han's stepmother wailed as if a pig she had raised for years had been stolen just before market day. She cursed the Bai family and demanded a large sum of money. This left the Bai family deeply resentful.
Following a hasty wedding, the Bai family cast the original Bai Li and Xiao Han out. They were given nothing but a dilapidated shack, a small plot of land, and one rice field.
The original Bai Li felt no remorse. Under his family's watchful eye, he couldn't sell the land, but he refused to work it either. He rented the fields out and never let Xiao Han see a copper of the proceeds. Even when Xiao Han became pregnant shortly after, he showed not a shred of compassion, remaining completely indifferent.
The Bai family was so furious they wanted to beat him whenever they saw him. They wanted to wash their hands of him entirely, but knowing the child in Xiao Han's womb was of Bai blood, they helped enough to ensure Xiao Han could give birth. Xiao Han gave birth to twin Ge'ers. Though the children were precious, the original Bai Li was a piece of trash who loved no one but himself.
No matter how much Xiao Han and the children struggled to find even one meal a day, he remained indifferent. Worse, he continued to physically abuse Xiao Han. Two days ago, the original Bai Li ran out of money and couldn't buy food. Yet, craving fish, he ignored the weather and forced Xiao Han to go catch some.
Over the past three years, Xiao Han's health had deteriorated due to the constant abuse. While fishing, he fell into the river. Though he didn't drown, he developed a severe fever. Despite this, the original Bai Li ate the fish all by himself and slept soundly.
It was into the body of this infamous scoundrel that Bai Li had awakened, and the weight of these horrific memories left him shaken.
As soon as Bai Li accepted these memories, he felt like strangling the original owner of this body out of sheer rage. But since he was now the one inhabiting it, what could he do?
He thought his own previous life had been miserable, but he realized that the lives of Xiao Han and the children were far worse.
Bai Li was a man from the 21st century. His parents were so traditional that he had hidden his identity as a gay man his whole life, deciding to remain alone forever. However, his family unexpectedly found out and beat him severely. Whether his father and brother had actually beaten him to death, he didn't know—all he knew was that he had ended up here, in another man's body.
Bai Li felt this situation might actually be better. He hoped his parents were happy now that they no longer had a "shameful and disgusting" son like him.
He pushed thoughts of his past life aside and looked toward his current reality. Xiao Han was deathly ill, burning up like a furnace, with two tiny figures huddled close to him. If Xiao Han died, it looked as though they wouldn't survive either.
When he realized from his memories that the three of them hadn't eaten for nearly two days, Bai Li grew worried. Xiao Han was gravely ill and the children were only two years old. If this continued, they would all die.
So, Bai Li grabbed a bamboo basket and a knife and went to harvest bamboo shoots. From his memories, he knew this was an ancient era. Food was scarce, and bamboo shoots weren't even considered a proper food source by the locals.
He wanted to feed Xiao Han and the children something better, but with nothing to his name, bamboo shoots were his only option.
Upon returning home, Bai Li sliced the shoots and put them on to boil. He gently moved the little ones away from Xiao Han and applied cold compresses to his forehead until his temperature dropped slightly. Then, he ran to the Bai family home.
Though they were this body's biological family, as soon as they saw him coming, they bolted the door and refused to open it. Bai Li didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
It wasn't just the villagers; even his own family despised the original Bai Li.
As Bai Li hovered indecisively, wondering if he should just turn back, a teenage girl with her hair in two small buns approached him.
"Second Brother."
The original Bai Li was the second son of the Bai family. According to his memories, this girl was the youngest daughter, Bai Mei.
The original Bai Li had doted on Bai Mei and would bring her treats whenever he went to the city. Even though those snacks were bought on credit, Bai Mei still believed her Second Brother had bought them for her. She was the only family member who still held any affection for him.
Mimicking the original's tone, Bai Li asked, "Mei'er, did you sneak out the back way again?"
In the original's memory, Bai Mei did this every time he visited.
"Yes. I heard Mother say you were here. Take this. If I stay too long, Mother will get suspicious. I have to go!"
Bai Li watched the girl run off and then looked at the small bundle in his hand. He found a small amount of coarse rice inside. His memories revealed that the original Bai Li would often make Bai Mei steal food like this whenever he ran out, which made him chuckle wryly.
Bai Li had actually come to borrow some rice. He knew from his memories that the Bai family had been very patient with the original; he assumed that if he spoke to them reasonably, they might lend him some.
Looking at the still-closed door, Bai Li realized that Bai Mei couldn't have given him this rice without her parents' tacit permission. He felt a flicker of warmth, realizing that while the Bai family pretended to hate their wayward son, they couldn't truly turn their backs on him.
Clutching the bundle, he returned home, cooked some congee, and simply stir-fried the bamboo shoots. He served the two children first. However, they wouldn't come near him, hiding far away instead. Helpless, he simply placed the food on the table for them.
"I'll leave this here. Eat up."
Then, he woke the feverish Xiao Han and said softly, "You haven't eaten in a long time. Get up and have some congee."
Xiao Han's vision was blurred by fever. He couldn't believe the person feeding him congee was Bai Li. The voice was so gentle that he thought it must be someone else entirely.
After feeding the sick man, Bai Li saw that the little ones had finished eating and were already washing the dishes. His heart ached seeing children so young doing such chores, but he knew he couldn't stop them just yet.
Feigning ignorance, he sat down to his own bowl of congee and stir-fried bamboo shoots. The rice was very coarse, but the bamboo shoots were sweet. It wasn't as bad as he had expected.