Republic of China: My great warlord, many children, many blessings.

As the saying goes, justice may be delayed, but it will never be denied.

But what meaning does justice that comes too late have for Shen Hao?

A multi-billion dollar company went bankrupt, and Shen's father, mother, and aunt all died. His second uncle was crippled, and his family was torn apart.

The sole heir, Shen Hao, is also about to be executed.

Unexpectedly, when he opened his eyes again, he found himself in the early years of the Republic of China.

His current identity, also named Shen Hao, is that of a spoiled brat who has squandered his family fortune.

Their ancestors were quite wealthy, owning a large mansion with three courtyards and a shop in the capital.

As a result, he was tricked and lost everything, including his underwear, at the gambling den.

He eventually died of depression, which benefited Shen Hao, who came from the modern era.

The first thing Shen Hao did after being reborn was to figure out how to survive, so he had no choice but to do manual labor.

I thought that with my ability to speak English, I could teach at a school.

But Shen Hao was overthinking it. He couldn't afford to go to any school, and schools required degrees anyway. Only those who had studied abroad were highly sought after. Besides, all the other schools were government-run, and getting in required connections.

Without capital to do business, and facing exploitation from both the legitimate and criminal worlds, Shen Hao was powerless to resist.

It is now 1912, and Yuan Shikai has already seized power, but he has not yet announced his candidacy for president.

Previously, Shen Hao's impression of the Republican era on television was that it was a beautiful one, with the beautiful love depicted in idol dramas.

It is free, open, and has many masters.

What's shown on TV is all real, but it's a portrait of the upper class.

When Shen Hao finally arrived in the Republic of China, a time of ruthless cruelty, he discovered the harshness of the world.

The lower class where Shen Hao himself lived was actually a chaotic period of warlord infighting and widespread poverty.

The average life expectancy dropped from 55 to 35 years. During the war, countless families were torn apart, and countless couples were separated by death.

The people were living in dire straits.

Those living in high society, however, were quite content, indulging in lavish meals every day. Most of those living this lifestyle were landlords and wealthy individuals, with a smaller number being government officials.

Moreover, Shen Hao now has only one thought: to become an official.

Only those who hold official positions have the power to control life and death.

The lesson Shen Hao learned in his past life was truly too great and too tragic.

If this was the case even in peacetime, then in the warlord era when people were suffering and fighting each other, not being an official meant an even quicker death.

Fortunately, because Shen Hao was literate and knew how to get things done, he got a job at the police station.

Even though it wasn't a police officer, just a patrolman, Shen Hao was still satisfied.

In those days, patrol officers had a lowly status and were known as "stinky-footed patrolmen," which was essentially the same as urban management officers.

After all, patrol officers are different from regular police officers; their status is far lower.

Being a patrol officer is just a job; they're not some powerful government official.

Therefore, people with even a little bit of power in society won't give patrol officers much face. You're just a "stinky-footed patrol officer," and they can make you lose your job in no time!

Even those at the bottom of society who can't afford to eat look down on patrol officers.

They were called "Stinky Feet Patrolmen" because their feet would get smelly from walking around the same area every day. This nickname was a derogatory term for them, implying a lack of respect.

But those patrol officers always try to "make up the numbers among the dwarfs".

There are also some people who can be bullied by them—for example, poor people, those who have no money or power.

The rich bully them, so they bully those same people.

At least with this new skin, some people don't dare to mess with Shen Hao anymore. Although they only dare to curse him behind his back, they don't dare to do so openly, so he can at least survive.

3. Half a pancake for a wife

That's how cruel the Republic of China era was.

The courtyard where Shen Hao currently lives is now a living hell:

Here you'll find Er Gouzi pulling a rickshaw, Lao Lv running a small business, Tie Dan working as a servant, and Feng Jie working as a prostitute; everyone is starving and freezing.

Even in Tie Dan's family, there was a 14-year-old girl who didn't have pants to wear and stayed in bed all day. Whoever went out in the family would get clothes to wear.

This situation is not limited to one household; it affects many large courtyards.

Their fates were similar; almost all of them, once they grew up, either became someone's concubine or were sent to the Eight Great Hutongs to work as prostitutes.

Even pregnant women had to do hard labor.

An old man died without a coffin.

Women who are less attractive spend their lives doing hard labor, often going hungry and having no time to rest.

Women in this era are truly living a miserable life.

After enduring such misery and hardship, it took Shen Hao half a month to recover from his ordeal in this Republic of China era.

He couldn't even make a living himself, so Shen Hao had no ability to care about others. Besides, after killing someone, Shen Hao's state of mind was no longer that of an ordinary person.

It is now the early years of the Republic of China, the middle period of the Beiyang government's rule. Although Yuan Shikai has not yet taken office as president, he will die in a few years.

Once Yuan Shikai died, it would mean that the Beiyang warlords would soon begin to split.

This foreshadows the end of a relatively orderly period and the beginning of a chaotic and disorderly one.

In this chaotic world, you really will die if you don't have strength.

This put an invisible pressure on Shen Hao.

Even though they were newlyweds, they weren't in a very good mood.

Looking at the bride with her head covered by a red veil, Shen Hao took a deep breath, finally feeling somewhat relieved.

He lived a life of renting, but married a stunning beauty. He made a profit.

Shen Hao carefully lifted the red veil.

Suddenly, a face that could be both angry and shy appeared before my eyes.

With her naturally beautiful appearance, perfectly proportioned oval face, a few wisps of bangs framing her forehead, and a pair of willow-leaf eyebrows, she exudes a captivating charm.

Her skin was fair, and her watery eyes blinked repeatedly, as if they held a thousand tender feelings.

With her curvaceous figure, she's definitely a stunning beauty.

Shen Hao liked his scholarly air even more.

If this woman were alive today, she would definitely be considered a goddess.

To be honest, Shen Hao picked up this woman.

Her surname is Bao, her given name is Shuang, she is 17 years old this year, and she is incredibly young.

They fled from Liaodong Province, and their family was relatively well-off.

Unfortunately, Bao Shuang's outstanding looks attracted the attention of bandits from nearby mountain strongholds.

The whole family suffered.

Fortunately, Bao Shuang escaped the ordeal that night while she was at her grandmother's house.

In order not to implicate others, Bao Shuang had no choice but to deliberately disguise herself as ugly and flee to the capital.

Finally, he fainted from hunger by the roadside and was saved by Shen Hao with a bowl of water and half a pancake.

Perhaps it was out of gratitude for Shen Hao saving her life, or perhaps she was attracted by Shen Hao's appearance.

The very next day, Bao Shuang arranged for Shen Hao to marry her.

Thinking that he married such a beautiful woman with only half a pancake, Shen Hao couldn't help but sigh inwardly:

Indeed, "In prosperous times, a woman is worth ten thousand taels of gold; in chaotic times, a beauty is worth half a pancake."

Looking at the beautiful and shy woman before him, Shen Hao felt a little apologetic.

He's really too poor right now.

A woman like this is born to be pampered.

"Bao Shuang, I'm so sorry you had to suffer here. The conditions are terrible."

Bao Shuang's eyes reddened, and she shook her head happily, saying, "I don't mind being blind or rotten, as long as I have you... I'm willing to eat coarse food and wild vegetables, just please don't abandon me."

What a wonderful woman.

Imagine what the future holds: a man spends all his wealth to marry a wife, and then immediately demands a divorce once he can no longer earn money.

She even used PUA tactics, saying that men are worthless, without even looking at herself.

In modern society, sharing happiness is possible, but sharing hardship is a thing of the past.

Women these days are so much better—clean and considerate. Moved, Shen Hao put his arm around Bao Shuang.

"Don't worry, I will never let you suffer even the slightest bit in this lifetime."