Song Xingzhi lived during the reign of Emperor Huizong

Chapter 3

She looked confused and stole a glance at him. "I don't know anything anymore... I only remember you were my brother..."

a bolt from the blue!!

Chapter 5, Patience

The promoter function is now open! What are you waiting for? Join us now!!! "Your name is He Suchen, we all call you 'Little Melon Seed,' and you're ten years old this year. My name is He Suchi, and I'm a little over five years older than you. We have an uncle and a great-uncle. Our father is the second oldest, and he and our mother are currently in Beijing. In a couple of years, we'll move to Beijing together."

"Grandma is the one who loves us the most in the family. She's in the capital now because of the Empress Dowager's birthday celebration and will be back in about twenty days. My eldest uncle and aunt have two children. The older brother is the eldest in the family. He is nineteen years old and his name is He Suyi. His sister, He Yongjiao, is three years older than you. You and she are the best friends among your cousins."

“My third uncle and aunt have two children. The older sister is named He Yuanfang, who is only two years younger than me. She has a bad temper, so you should stay away from her in the future. The younger sister is named He Yuanrou, who is the same age as Yongjiao. There is also a concubine named Su in my third uncle's house. She gave birth to an older brother who is eighteen years old this year. His name is He Suyi.”

He Su Shi sat on the edge of the bed, feeding his sister chicken soup while explaining. He saw Zhou Ge Yin—no, she should be called He Su Chen now—and seeing He Su Chen's confused expression, he could only say, "It's okay if you don't remember, it's not too important. I'll tell you about them one by one when we meet them later."

He simply couldn't forget the shock he felt half an hour earlier when she said she "didn't know anything." At first, he thought it was just temporary confusion, but then he discovered that she really didn't remember anything, not even her own name or age.

Thankfully, his life was saved. Although his mind was still a little slow, it seemed that it was definitely not damaged by the fever. Seeing that the little master was alright, Granny Sun had already been chanting "Amitabha" on the side. She also comforted him, saying that it was a great blessing that his sister could still think clearly, and that he shouldn't be too sad. If he forgot things, he could learn them again. If his brain had been damaged, he wouldn't have been able to do anything.

Now, this is all he can do to comfort himself. He Su Shi thought sadly, his younger sister has always been smart and lovely, but now she looks so haggard and listless. He doesn't know when she will recover...

He Suchen sipped the chicken soup, listening to him slowly recount the current era, the situation in the mansion, and the various events happening outside. He comforted her, saying, "No matter what you become, little sister, you will always be my dearest little sister. Don't think too much, just rest well and take good care of yourself."

As she listened, she forced herself to suppress the fear in her heart—she had actually traveled back to the era of Emperor Huizong of Song!

Her historical knowledge was limited to nine years of compulsory education plus the cramming-style teaching of "Ancient Chinese History" in high school, and unfortunately, she wasn't particularly interested in Song Dynasty history. Regarding Emperor Huizong of Song, she only knew that this emperor loved poetry and art, wrote beautiful calligraphy known as the "Slender Gold" style, and was a skilled painter; the rest was limited to a small portion she had read in "Water Margin." But even so, it didn't prevent her from understanding how terrible an emperor Huizong was and how miserable the Song Dynasty was during his reign.

In this dynasty, I know Song Jiang (did he really exist?), Li Shishi (who seems to be a famous courtesan), Gao Qiu (who is definitely a great traitor), and Fan Zhongyan, Su Shi, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Liu Yong, Zhu Shuzhen, and Li Qingzhao (are you still alive?).

To her shock, even though she was extremely bad at history, she knew that this Emperor Huizong of Song was definitely not the one in history!

He Sushi clearly admired the current emperor greatly. He recounted in detail the many legendary tales surrounding Emperor Huizong: for example, the emperor possessed extraordinary talents from a young age, often displaying unusual thoughts and ideas; he was highly capable in military and political affairs; and his literary talent was exceptional. Although he did not compose poetry or prose often, when he did, they were masterpieces. After ascending the throne, he implemented gradual reforms, governing the Song Dynasty with great efficiency over several decades. Between the twenty-first and twenty-sixth years of Huizong's reign, he waged war against foreign powers, winning all four battles and bringing peace to the entire country.

She also discovered that the Emperor Huizong of Song, whom she mentioned, had actually written many heroic and moving poems, such as "The land is so beautiful, attracting countless heroes to bow down"—this was written during a war with a foreign power, though He Sushi did not specify which one, but the Song Dynasty won a great victory in this battle; "In my drunken stupor, I pick up my sword by lamplight, in my dreams I hear bugles echoing through the camps, eight hundred miles of roasted meat are distributed among my troops, fifty strings of music resound beyond the border"—this was written when the emperor personally led an expedition; "Since ancient times, who has not died? Let my loyal heart shine in history"—this was written during the reforms for an important court official who died from overwork due to excessive thinking about the reforms; and "I urge Heaven to rouse itself again, and send down talents without restraint"—this was written during the reforms to seek out worthy men.

All these facts demonstrate that Emperor Huizong was a wise and powerful emperor, but certainly not the real Emperor Huizong in history!

Time travel, time travel again! And this time travel predecessor not only became an emperor, but also had to take on the role of a plagiarist, a job that all time travelers inevitably have to do.

He Suchen tried to calm herself down. Now was not the time to think about this. It was more important to figure out what was going on around her. Although the emperor seemed to be a time traveler, he obviously wouldn't have any interaction with her, a little girl far away in Suzhou.

She listened attentively, learning that the He family held considerable power in the court. Her father had been exceptionally promoted to the position of Vice Chancellor, her eldest uncle was currently the Privy Councilor of Zhejiang, and her third uncle was the Vice Minister of Rites. Her grandfather, He Qufei, was a powerful minister in the Ministry of War during two reigns. He had repeatedly failed the imperial examinations, but was later appreciated by Su Shi and recommended to the emperor, leading to a smooth career path. The whole family was deeply grateful to Su Shi for this. When He Qufei was over sixty years old, he requested to resign and retire. The emperor, mindful of his great contributions, bestowed upon him a garden, which was the He Mansion where she now resided.

He Su smiled slightly and said, "Guazi is very smart and well-behaved. All the descendants of the He family in our mansion must recite the poems and articles of Su Shi. Although you were only three years old at the time, you recited them quickly and well. A few days ago, Grandma went to the capital and your brother went to school. You stayed in your room quietly by yourself and were always worried that your brother would be bullied."

"Wow...that person wasn't me!" she quickly denied, "I...I don't remember anything at all..."

Just kidding, I'm not exactly a genius, how could I possibly do what the original "He Suchen" did?!

He Su Shi's eyes darkened, and he was about to comfort her when Granny Sun saw this and hurriedly said, "Young master, don't worry. It's a blessing that the young lady has woken up. People who survive great calamities are always blessed with good fortune. Although the young lady has always been very clever, it is ultimately a blessing to be safe and sound. In a household like ours, it is truly a good thing not to stand out!"

She added, "The young lady isn't a boy, and she doesn't aspire to bring glory to the family. With a family background like this, as long as she lives an ordinary life, why should she worry about not living well?"

He Su Shi was also pleased to hear this. Dong Kui, who had been standing to the side for a while, asked, "Granny, the young lady can speak now. Should I go and tell the eldest mistress so that she can call a doctor to take a look?"

Chapter Six, Aunt

<><A><>The promotional function is now open! What are you waiting for? Join us now!!!</A><> Before Granny Sun could answer, He Su Shi said with a stern face, "Why talk to her? Can't we invite her ourselves?! Granny, go and call one or two managers to invite Manager Fu from Tianyuan Hall over."

Dongkui sighed and looked at Granny Sun, waiting for her to speak.

Granny Sun advised, "Young master, don't be stubborn. The eldest mistress is a reasonable person. We've been fortunate to have her take care of us all these years. Since the young master and the young lady's parents are not around, they still need her to look after them in everything."

Thinking that He Su Shi had gone straight back to the second house without paying respects to his two aunts, she advised, "Young man, you are well-versed in the classics, yet you don't know the meaning of filial piety? Since they are your aunts, they are elders. No matter how bad they are, they are still elders. Young man, you must pay your respects."

He Su Shi's face turned cold, and she pretended not to hear. Granny Sun continued to persuade her, "Think about how good your aunt has been to you and your sister. You can't erase all the good she's done for you just because you didn't take good care of the little girl this once. Besides, your aunt has a lot of things to do herself. She can't watch over your sister every day, can she?" Seeing that He Su Shi was softening a bit, she added, "If Granny accidentally didn't notice and you fell into the water vat, would you stop paying attention to Granny and me?"

He Su Shi couldn't help but laugh: "I'm not going to the water vat, how could I fall in?" Seeing that he was about to change his mind, Granny Sun also laughed and said: "You know now? You were so naughty when you were little. You would crawl into any dirty place, and you weren't afraid that Granny would hurt her back following behind you. Not to mention that water vat, you even fell into the lake in the garden seven or eight times."

Dongkui also smiled and said, "That's right. Although I've only been in the manor for six or seven years, I've heard about how the young master was naughty when he was little."

Seeing his younger sister listening to the conversation with a smile, He Su Shi felt a little happier. He wiped his face and went to greet his two aunts, with Dong Kui following to serve them.

Granny Sun took a towel and wiped Su Chen's face, her eyes red as she said, "Miss, you probably don't remember me either." He Su Chen looked at her for a while and realized that Granny Sun cared for her and her brother and was sensible and reasonable. She didn't want to be estranged from her, so she whispered, "I don't remember her very well, but I just feel close to you, Granny."

Granny Sun felt a weight lifted from her heart. Yes, she had raised her for so many years, how could she just forget? Even if she forgot the events, there would still be a close emotional bond. So she relaxed and talked to her about things in the manor. Just as she was talking about the tempers of the eldest master and mistress, Dongkui stormed into the room in a huff. Granny Sun hurriedly asked what was wrong, why the young master hadn't come back with them, and whether he had been wronged somewhere.

She said angrily, "Young Master, please step back a little. Granny, this Third Mistress is going too far!! What right does she have!! If she acts like this every day, how can we live like this?!"

Granny Sun, sensing something amiss in her words, scolded, "Young lady, how dare you speak so carelessly about your master's affairs? Shut up and close the door!" Dongkui was indignant, but knowing she was in the wrong, she quickly went to close the door.

He Su Shi returned shortly after, drank some tea, and didn't mention the matter. Instead, he went to talk to his sister. Granny Sun had no choice but to question Dong Kui in detail.

It turned out that the young master had just gone to pay his respects to the eldest mistress. When the eldest mistress saw that her nephew had returned, she was relieved. She asked about his situation outside, gave him many things to send over by servants, and comforted him by asking about his sister's condition. When she learned that she could speak, she was even more delighted and told him to come back first. She said she would send someone to fetch a doctor and that she and Yongjiao would come over to check on her after she finished taking care of some things. There was nothing wrong with this place. On the contrary, He Su Shi felt that he had been petty in taking his anger out on his aunt.

But when they arrived at Third Madam's room, several sharp-tongued old women were guarding the door. They said that Third Madam was looking after the eldest daughter, who had caught typhoid fever while playing with Third Madam and was now resting and taking medicine. Third Madam didn't have time for other matters and asked Young Master to come back in a few days. They spoke as if their own daughter was so pitiful, having been caused such a serious illness by Third Madam.

How could He Su Shi listen to such words? He was about to explode on the spot. Dong Kui knew the truth of the matter and was even more furious, her face turning pale. At this moment, the Third Madam inside the door spoke up, scolding the old woman for not knowing how to speak, and saying that she couldn't get away, and that it was not good for her sick child to see strangers. She told Shi Ge'er to go back first and come back in a couple of days—she didn't even open the door before trying to send her nephew away.

He Su Shi was so angry that he laughed instead. He didn't say anything else, nor did he make a fuss or get angry. He just said, "Nephew takes his leave." Then he took Dong Kui, who was so angry that she was about to curse, back to her room.

Although He Suchen appeared to be listening to his brother, half of his mind was already focused on Dongkui's angry rant. After listening, Granny Sun laughed and said, "I wondered what it was about. Young master, don't be angry. Always leave some face for others. Even ordinary families don't treat relatives like this, let alone our two branches of the family. I think Third Madam is confused."

He Su Shi didn't really care about that third aunt. He was usually impatient with her and just felt that he had lost face. Now that he heard Dong Kui scold him so thoroughly, he had already let it go.

Then Granny Sun continued, "Now that the old lady is not in the mansion, the eldest mistress is too busy to deal with her, so the third mistress has become even more unscrupulous. If she continues like this when the old lady returns, I'm afraid we'll be furious with her." She took a sip of the tea that Dongkui had poured for her. "Young master, there's nothing to be angry about. We're not the same kind of people. Getting angry will only harm your health. Granny, I'll laugh at you for being so petty with the third mistress."

He Su Shi laughed upon hearing her mixed praise and criticism, while He Su Chen was inwardly surprised—what kind of nanny would so openly speak ill of her master? Judging from Dong Kui and He Su Shi's expressions, they seemed quite used to it. Just who exactly was this Granny Sun?!

She didn't say anything, only whispered, "Brother, I don't like that third aunt..."