Eastern Tang

Where am I? Why am I not in the hospital?

Li Xi found himself lying on the side of a bustling street. The sky was heavy, the cold wind biting, and all he had to cover himself was a filthy burlap sack reeking of kitchen refuse. Under the sack, he was completely bare—no clothes, no shoes, not even his wallet.

Was I robbed? But I remember I was driving. Where’s my car?

Li Xi looked around in confusion. There was no car, no asphalt road, no billboards, no high-rises, and none of the noise of city life. There wasn’t a trace of modern civilization. All he could see was a dusty dirt road, dilapidated earthen and wooden houses, oddly dressed passersby, and squeaking oxcarts.

Are they filming a period drama, dressed so strangely? No, perhaps I’ve traveled through time.

Strangely enough, Li Xi accepted the fact of his transmigration in a split second. Maybe it was all the time travel novels he’d read in his previous life. He smiled wryly. Who says web novels are just mindless entertainment? For a transmigrator, they can at least help you get through those initial moments of panic and confusion—otherwise, the shock of shifting through time might just break your spirit and send you fleeing naked through the streets.

His clothes, he mused, might have dissolved in the wormhole or been stripped off him while he was unconscious. The shirt had been a gift from a wealthy friend returning from a shopping spree in Hong Kong; the belt was a birthday present from his wife. Oh well, every transmigrator faces awkward moments at first—stay calm.

Tang Dyn