Lin Jinyue stood rooted to the spot, her heart racing so fast she nearly let out a scream, almost drawing the attention of the nearby villagers from Lin Family Village.
Was this… her Golden Finger from crossing over?
Unable to contain her excitement, Lin Jinyue hid behind a large rock, making sure no one could see her. With a single thought, she suddenly found herself transported to another world.
Before her stretched an endless grassland, and not far away stood a familiar villa.
Wasn’t this their family’s Farm System?
It had actually come along with them!
Lin Jinyue’s heart swelled with excitement.
Just as she was about to go check if there was any food, she noticed that apart from the small farmhouse where she stood, all other areas were marked as Unlock.
They required upgrading to be unlocked.
Lin Jinyue looked at the farmhouse—it had been built by her grandmother. The old lady had loved raising chickens and ducks, so she had set up this small farmhouse. Beside her was a chicken, and in the nest were two eggs.
The unlocked area wasn’t small, but Lin Jinyue decided to leave first and return later to avoid worrying her father.
As she left, she casually took the eggs with her, unsure whether items from the Farm System could be brought outside.
With another thought, she quickly reappeared in the real world. Seeing the two eggs in her hand, Lin Jinyue’s eyes lit up—items from the Farm System could indeed be taken out!
Looking up, she met Lin Shucheng’s astonished gaze.
Lin Shucheng had been watching over his wife and son when, in the blink of an eye, his daughter disappeared. Frantically searching for her, he was shocked to see her reappear out of thin air.
Lin Jinyue shoved the two eggs into his hands and whispered, “I just bound a Golden Finger. I’ll show you later once they’ve left. For now, boil these eggs. I’ll prepare medicine for Mom and Brother.”
Though curious, Lin Shucheng held back his questions, aware of the many people around.
By noon, the group from Lin Family Village had departed.
They had only been foraging for food in these woods. The journey north was still long, and with rebel forces closing in, they couldn’t afford to delay.
As the Lin family left, they hurled insults their way.
Lin Er even shouted, “Third Brother, you fool! Defying Father for the sake of a worthless girl—I’ll see how long it takes for your family to starve to death!”
With those words, the Lin family strutted away arrogantly, their gazes as if looking upon the already dead.
In contrast, the other villagers, despite having little food or clothing to spare, pooled together some coarse grains and scraps of cloth to offer them.
They weren’t valuable items, and most were dirty, but for people struggling to survive themselves, sharing such life-saving resources was no small gesture.
Lin Shucheng thanked each of them sincerely, promising to repay their kindness if fate allowed them to meet again.
Lin Jinyue felt a slight stir in her heart.
Once the others were far enough away, Lin Jinyue finally told Lin Shucheng about her Golden Finger.
Lin Jinyue said, “Dad, when we crossed over, our family’s Farm System came along too. My sudden disappearance earlier was because I entered the Farm System.”
As she spoke, she brewed medicine in a chipped coarse porcelain bowl, briefly explaining the situation with the Farm System.
Seeing that the two unconscious figures on the ground were about to wake, she immediately fell silent.
Lin Jinyue grew restless, fearing that these two might not be her mother and brother after all.
Jiang Yun was the first to wake up. Seeing her husband and a miniaturized version of her daughter, she hadn’t fully processed the situation yet and blurted out, “Old Lin, we’re not dead?”
Lin Jinyue breathed a sigh of relief. Her mother had also transmigrated.
The family of three stared at Lin Xueqing. When they saw him rubbing his head and calling out for his parents, all three relaxed.
Although they had transmigrated to an ancient era lacking food and clothing, fortunately, the entire family of four was together.
Jiang Yun and Lin Xueqing recovered quickly. The family prepared to head north. With so few of them, they needed to reach the county town early to find a group of refugees to join.
Just as they were about to leave, Lin Xueqing stopped them.
As the only scholar in the Lin family, the original “Lin Xueqing” had studied in town and often listened to his classmates discussing current affairs, giving him some understanding of the present situation.
Recalling the original body’s memories, Lin Xueqing’s expression turned grave. “Mom, Dad, I feel like the current situation isn’t right. We can’t run with them.”
“The place we’ve transmigrated to is the Daqian Dynasty, currently in the midst of war. The entire Daqian is split into three parts: Prince Jing occupies Yangzhou, Prince Ning occupies Bashu, and we’re in a region that’s neither north nor south. Prince Jing is about to attack here, but he’s particularly brutal. Those who got wind of it early have already fled north toward the capital.”
“But… the capital is precisely the most dangerous place.”
With treacherous officials in power, the emperor of Daqian cared only for pleasure instead of quelling the rebellion. His sons were even more absurd, focusing on internal strife rather than uniting against external threats.
Before the family could fully process their transmigration to ancient times, another heavy blow struck them.
Jiang Yun grew anxious, murmuring, “What do we do then?”
The whole family was at a loss. They had suddenly transmigrated to ancient times, and it was a hellish start.
Lin Jinyue, a history graduate student, had a general understanding of various dynasties and immediately concluded, “Let’s go to Lingnan. It’s desolate, filled with Miasma, and the roads are difficult, making it troublesome to attack. But our family is different. We have the Farm System, so we won’t worry about food, and Mom’s medical skills can protect us from the Miasma. Going to Lingnan is the safest option.”
Lin Shucheng asked, “Yueyue, is Lingnan absolutely necessary? We’re probably in the Henan area now. Walking to Lingnan on foot would ruin our legs.”
Lin Jinyue’s expression turned serious. “We must go to Lingnan. If war breaks out, refugees like us are the most likely to be conscripted—thrown to the front lines without armor or weapons, purely as cannon fodder. Dad, if we don’t flee, you and brother will be forcibly conscripted.”
“And Prince Jing… Prince Jing eats people! Let me tell you, in ancient times, there were brutal generals like the cannibal of the Northern Song Dynasty, who sliced human flesh piece by piece to eat… Some even said that the meat of women and children was the most delicious. If we’re caught, Mom and I might become reserve rations.”
“And…”
The family shuddered.
Before she could continue, Lin Shucheng interrupted, “Alright, alright, stop. I’m feeling sick. Let’s go to Lingnan.”
Living in a peaceful era, they were experiencing the cruelty of ancient times for the first time, especially in such a war-torn period.
They hardly needed to think it over and immediately decided to head to Lingnan.
The four of them hurried toward the nearest Nan’an County.
Jiang Yun's current body was in poor condition; she would become breathless after walking just a short while. She kept chattering, "When we get to Nan'an County, we need to buy more supplies. Do you have any silver on hand? And surely we don’t only have those scraps of cloth and coarse grains, right? What are we going to eat these next few days?"
Lin Jinyue: "Mom, we have no money…"
Lin Xueqing added, "Let’s not worry about food and clothing for now—we’re about to lose our lives! Who knows what dynasty this is or whether the territory is the same? The most urgent thing is to get a map or find someone who knows the way."