Reborn as a capitalist's young master in the 1970s, he starts his life by being blocked at the

This jade pendant is carved with dragons and phoenixes, and is completely transparent, so it is obviously very valuable.

It feels cool to the touch and smooth to the touch, with some intricate patterns engraved on it, like some kind of ancient script.

Although Chen Jianming himself didn't know much about antiques, the original owner, as a capitalist's son, had seen many antiques and jade artifacts with his parents, and had many other hobbies of the wealthy.

With these skills, one could make a living anywhere in a big city, but it's a pity that they can't be put to good use in this small, run-down village.

Judging from its color, this ancestral jade pendant, which resembles Hetian jade, has a long history. It is bright white and translucent, and is at least from the Tang Dynasty.

Chen Jianming suddenly remembered that this jade pendant seemed to have been coveted by many people.

When the original owner's family was down on their luck, his uncle kept subtly inquiring about the whereabouts of the jade pendant, but the original owner insisted that he didn't know, which is how the jade pendant was kept.

Now that I think about it, their family's downfall seems to have a sinister undertone.

"I'm so hungry..." Chen Jianming's stomach was growling. He was so hungry that he felt anxious and didn't have the mind to think about anything else. He could only lie down and sleep to save some energy.

Before going to sleep, he hung the jade pendant around his neck and pondered in his mind.

"Maybe tomorrow I can go to town and find someone knowledgeable to sell the jade pendant and get some money to buy some food."

Anyway, this jade pendant was passed down from the original owner's ancestors, so what does it have to do with him? He wouldn't feel any guilt about selling it.

Whether he fell asleep or fainted from hunger, Chen Jianming soon lost consciousness.

The village was very quiet. There were no cars in the village at that time, and apart from the occasional bark of a dog, you could hardly hear anything.

The moonlight, like water, streamed down through the hole in the roof, finally landing on Chen Jianming's chest.

Bathed in moonlight, the jade pendant became even more translucent, emitting faint glows, and the ancient inscriptions on it flowed like water...

He was completely unaware that his body had been enveloped in a layer of white mist.

"Roast chicken... braised pig's trotters..."

As Chen Jianming was talking in his sleep, he licked the corner of his mouth. While he was sleeping soundly, he suddenly felt his body lighten and a white mist rose in front of his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself on a patch of black earth.

Looking up, the area is quite open, covering about twenty acres. In the very center of the land, there is a spring, from which clear water gushes forth.

"Where am I? Am I dreaming? Or have I traveled through time again?"

Chen Jianming said in surprise, feeling a little confused about whether it was reality or a dream.

"What the heck? What's going on?" He looked down and realized that he was floating in mid-air, more than two meters above the black soil beneath his feet.

Then, he tried to control his body and actually flew forward a distance.

"It must be a dream. How could a person possibly fly?"

"What bad luck! Even in my dreams I end up in this godforsaken place. Wasn't it supposed to be that dreams have everything?"

"Where's my roast chicken? Where's my pig's trotter?" Chen Jianming still felt extremely hungry, and even felt like crying. He never expected that there would be no food in his dream either.

He pinched himself, trying to wake up, but it didn't work.

"This dream feels pretty real." Only then did Chen Jianming notice the spring in the center of the black soil, so he controlled his body to fly over there.

What kind of situation is this? I can only drink water when I'm awake, and even in my dreams I can only drink cold water!

"Let's drink it, it's better than nothing."

Chen Jianming comforted himself and went to the spring to drink from it.

"It seems pretty good!"

The spring water was very clear and sparkling, and it tasted surprisingly sweet, making Chen Jianming feel like he couldn't stop drinking it.

He didn't stop until his stomach felt so full.

"What's going on? I can drink water until I'm stuffed in my dream?" Chen Jianming was completely bewildered. The experience here felt incredibly real to him.

He found that after drinking the spring water, he not only felt no hunger, but also felt a burning sensation in his lower abdomen.

All the fatigue disappeared, and I felt energetic and vigorous. Even my brothers seemed more energetic.

"Sure enough, anything is possible in dreams... This water is much more effective than braised pork trotters or chicken. If this kind of water existed in reality, why would I need to take any tonics?"

If he were to meet another rich woman, he felt that in his current state, he could take on ten of them!

"Clang clang clang!"

The next morning, Chen Jianming was awakened by the sound of metal clanging.

He knew that this was the bell that signaled the start of work for people in Huai Shu Village every day.

Lifting the fertilizer bags on the broken window, I saw villagers carrying hoes, shovels, and other tools, walking in groups of three or five on their way to work.

"That's the downside of living in a village; people get up earlier than the chickens." Chen Jianming rubbed his temples, turned over, and decided to go back to sleep.

As for going to work?

Come on, he's one of those "black five categories" people. Not only does he do the hardest work, but he also owes the team money.

It's a thankless task, so it's better not to go.

"boom--"

With a loud crash, the already rickety wooden door was kicked open.

Chen Jianming suddenly sat up on the kang (a heated brick bed), his heart pounding.

Good heavens, who's so rude? Why are they forcibly conscripting men if they don't want to work?

"Hmph—Pah!"

A short, stout figure blocked the doorway, took two steps into the house, tilted his head, and spat a mouthful of thick phlegm mixed with vegetable leaves stuck to his yellow teeth onto the ground in front of Chen Jianming's kang (heated brick bed).

Liu Neng.

The brigade accountant of Huai Shu Village.

Before Chen Jianming could fully clear his mind, his gaze turned cold.

"What a damn bad luck." Liu Neng wiped his mouth with his sleeve, looking at Chen Jianming as if he were a pile of garbage.

He was carrying a coarse cloth bag, which he casually tossed onto the ground. The bag tipped over, and cornmeal mixed with sand spilled out of the opening, spreading out in a dusty mess.

"Same as always, here's five jin of cornmeal." Liu Neng clapped his hands, as if there was something dirty on the bag. "I'll take the other ten jin."

Five jin?

Chen Jianming stared at the spot on the ground mixed with sand, his brows furrowed in worry.

In a month, five catties of cornmeal were consumed, which averaged less than two ounces a day.

Besides, even if you include the sand, this small bag doesn't seem to weigh five pounds.

This is going to starve him to death!

The original owner's memories surged into his mind.

With the current policy, even someone like him who was sent to the countryside would receive 15 jin of coarse grains per month, but this short, fat Liu Neng had 10 jin of grains deducted from his rations.

"This portion... isn't right?" Chen Jianming asked in a hoarse voice.

"Wrong?" Liu Neng's voice rose sharply, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "What's wrong? You capitalist's son, you dare to talk to someone who knows how to keep accounts?"

He gets angry just thinking about it. He thought that even if Chen Jianming, a young capitalist from the provincial capital, fell on hard times, he would still have some valuable things in his hands.

In Liu Neng's view, the twenty catties of cornmeal were just bait, waiting for Chen Jianming to be unable to repay the debt and to offer something in return.

Who would have thought that after searching back and forth countless times, they couldn't find a single hair?

Is it true that they don't have it, or are they hiding it well? In any case, I'm not saying they gave it away for nothing!

"Have you forgotten how you gained those thirty pounds a few months ago? It was because I, your Uncle Liu, was kind-hearted and afraid you'd starve to death and no one would take the blame for your parents!"

He took a step forward, his spittle almost landing on Chen Jianming's face.

"You really think that's your food? You owe me that!"

Chen Jianming's mind went blank.

He remembered that when the original owner first arrived in Huai Shu Village, Liu Neng had indeed taken special care of him, giving him thirty-five catties of rations directly.

The original owner thought she had met a good person and was extremely grateful to him, but there is no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

"I've already inquired," Chen Jianming said coldly, suppressing his anger. "The extra grain they gave us in the past few months totaled about twenty extra jin of rations. What you took back is more than enough."

"Enough?" Liu Neng laughed as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, baring his big yellow teeth, his face trembling with laughter.

"Young Master Chen, are you genuinely ignorant or just pretending? Haven't you heard of the 'nine out, thirteen back' rule?"

He stretched out his short, stubby fingers and broke them off one by one for Chen Jianming to hear.

"You borrowed one jin, and you have to return thirteen jin. That's with monthly interest. You've owed me for several months, and with the interest compounding... do the math yourself. What can you even do with that little bit of weight? It's not even enough to fill a tooth gap!"

"I'll live off you for the rest of my life!"