The Cold Cauldron's Return

Modern disaster archaeology researcher Lu Song, during a cave-in at the excavation of a shattered ancient cauldron, transmigrates into the body of a destitute clansman of the same name in the Dayong Dynasty. The original owner was a deposed prince exiled to the borderlands, bearing the stigma of treason, with all his kin murdered, himself under house arrest and liable to be put to death at any moment. With no system cheat, he survives relying only on the evidence-based logic of modern archaeology and a mindset for resource coordination. Trapped in a poor and remote border town, surrounded by powerful enemies, with treacherous court officials pressing in step by step and aristocratic clans dominating the court and the realm, Lu Song uses clues of the old dynasty hidden within a broken old cauldron—while gathering displaced border folk and retraining remnant soldiers, he maneuvers among the various factions and tears open layer after layer of the dark curtain behind the treason case of years past. He does not seek the empty throne, only to clear his clan's name and shield the common people of one region from the flames of war. In the process, he meets Yan Shu, a northern-frontier female general who carries secrets of her own; the two probe each other warily and, amid the chessboard of a chaotic age, stand shoulder to shoulder against a monstrous conspiracy. — Description from novelcodex.orgFull novel: The Cold Cauldron's Return — read the rest free on N​o⁠v​e⁠l​C⁠o​d⁠e​x⁠.​o⁠r​g⁠