Rebirth of a Farmer's Dad

Luo Feng, 28 years old, is a newly appointed head chef at an international hotel in Shanghai. Today happens to be his first day on the job. After work, he drank and ate barbecue with a group of colleagues to build camaraderie. Unexpectedly, he got extremely drunk and lost consciousness, blacking out. Even more unbelievably, he found himself transported to another world.

The 1990s, a nostalgic era, were a time Luo Feng never imagined he would have the chance to relive, especially since he looked to be only in his early twenties. It was the prime of his life, a time of great opportunity compared to the fierce competition of the 21st century. Besides, he had been an orphan, working his way up to head chef in the kitchen—a process that took him a full ten years. Just when he thought he'd finally made it, he found himself back where he started, forced to begin all over again.

Despite his overwhelming helplessness, Luo Feng had no choice but to accept reality. Lying in bed, he slowly sorted through the fragmented memories in his mind. The young man before him was also named Luo Feng, a native of Luo Family Village. He was only 22 years old this year. His parents had died early, and the honest and simple man met his wife, Li Xiulan, who was three years older than him, through an introduction. After their marriage, they had a daughter named Luo Xinghua. Unfortunately, his wife, Li Xiulan, died of illness shortly after giving birth. The premature birth of their daughter had exhausted his hard-earned savings, and the medical treatment for his wife, along with the subsequent funeral expenses, had plunged the family into debt, totaling nearly 2000 yuan. Keep in mind that this was 1992, and in this small mountain village, this was already considered a huge debt. To pay off the debt, everything that could be sold had been sold, leaving the family practically destitute. Yet, the remaining debt was still unpaid, and after his wife's death, he became increasingly depressed, making repayment seem even more distant. Now that his daughter is four years old, the villagers have gradually distanced themselves from him. After a heated argument with the village chief, he was so disillusioned that he hanged himself. But unexpectedly, he has now been possessed by Luo Feng, a time-traveling character...

Just as Luo Feng had sorted out his thoughts, a soft, sweet voice came from beside him, "Daddy, you're awake." Slowly opening his eyes, a dark-skinned, thin little girl appeared before Luo Feng. She had a pair of bright, lively eyes and an endearing appearance. This must be his daughter! Before he could speak, he heard another voice, "Daddy, are you hungry? There's some apricot blossom in the pot to heat up for you." After saying that, she took a small stool and went to the stove.

Luo Feng slowly got up and began to survey the room. The old-fashioned house looked quite old; several large holes in the roof let in blinding sunlight. The earthen walls also had numerous holes of varying sizes. The furnishings inside were very simple: a kang (heated brick bed), an old-fashioned bedside table, an old wooden table, and a few small stools—nothing else. Luo Feng stood up, staring blankly at his surroundings. Although everyone was struggling financially these days, his own conditions were far too poor!

Good heavens! Everyone else who transmigrates comes with a system and has the protagonist's halo at its peak, but why do I have nothing and even have to bring a daughter with me?!

Before Luo Feng could calm himself down, Xinghua ran over with a bowl. "Daddy, it's time to eat!" Seeing the yellowish-brown porridge in the bowl, Luo Feng had no appetite, but he still took it and picked up the chopsticks on the table to start eating. He spat it out after just one bite. He looked at Xinghua, about to ask what it was, when Xinghua suddenly burst into tears: "Daddy, I'm sorry, Xinghua knows she was wrong, please don't sell me!"

"Looks like this guy's no good. He's even planning to sell his own daughter." After mentally cursing this heartless man, Luo Feng said to Xinghua, who was crying even louder, "Don't worry, Daddy would never sell Xinghua. Daddy will work hard to earn money so Xinghua can live a good life."

"Really?" Xinghua stopped crying and asked with tears in her eyes.

"Really, I swear," Luo Feng said, looking at Xinghua and enunciating each word clearly.

After saying that, he put the bowl in Xinghua's hands and said, "Come and eat with your father." After the father and daughter finished eating, Xinghua fell asleep. It was clear that she was sleeping very soundly, probably because she hadn't had a good night's sleep in a while.

Without disturbing the sleeping Xinghua, Luo Feng, relying on his memory, retrieved his only ten yuan from the stove hole and headed straight for Butcher Liu's house. "Hey, Brother Liu, sunbathing?" Luo Feng greeted Butcher Liu, who was sitting against the wall, as soon as he reached the door. "Oh, it's you? Out of food again, here to borrow some grain?" Butcher Liu glanced at Luo Feng and said irritably. Luo Feng smiled sheepishly, "Look at you, I'm here to buy bones." "Huh?" Butcher Liu thought he misheard, "Give me three yuan's worth of bones," Luo Feng said again. "You still want to eat meat? Still half asleep?"

"What do you mean by that? You sell, I buy? What, you're not doing door-to-door business anymore?" Luo Feng stared at Butcher Liu and asked. Butcher Liu gave him a forced smile and pulled Luo Feng into the house to pick out bones. Carrying several bones without a single piece of meat on them, Luo Feng left Butcher Liu's house and bought 20 jin of flour, some bowls and chopsticks, and also found a large pot and two sets of tables and chairs. With everything ready, Luo Feng set up the pot at the front door and began to simmer the bone broth.

As dusk fell, the aroma of bone broth attracted a group of village children. Xinghua was also drawn by the fragrance and woke up early, standing by and refusing to leave.

Seeing this, Luo Feng set up a table in the yard and served each of them half a bowl to try. Amidst the children's laughter, Luo Feng made preparations for his departure, planning to go to the market the next day. This family couldn't afford to wait any longer; he needed to find some means of livelihood as soon as possible.