General Fu Chongzheng spent his whole life guarding the frontier in ancient times. Within seven years, his parents, elder brother and all his soldiers perished at the border city. Though he fought tooth and nail and won the war, what awaited him was not imperial rewards, but an imperial edict ordering his death. Ten assassins ambushed him in the snow. A sword pierced his chest. As he collapsed on the stone steps, blood touched his jade pendant, which flashed with white light and transported him to the foot of a mountain in Daoxiang Village, a modern rural hamlet. Grandma Li and villagers found him while gathering herbs in the mountains and brought him home to nurse him back to health. When Fu Chongzheng woke up, everything felt alien to him: electric fans, lighters, refrigerators, electric scooters, cola and popsicles — every novelty amazed him. He could not get used to wearing short sleeves and shorts, deeming them “indecent”. When he tasted cola, he remarked that “this water bites”. The first time he tried a popsicle, Grandma Li peeled off the wrapper and put it into his mouth. Grandma Li lived alone; her son sacrificed his life saving others. Warm and gentle, she treated Fu Chongzheng like her own grandson. Xia Qihe was a young returnee building up the village, straightforward and kind to everyone. Zhou Daguang, a peer of Fu Chongzheng, was simple and honest. He took Fu Chongzheng to catch grasshoppers, fish, sing and go to village fairs, healing his deep trauma with plain, simple joys. Fu Chongzheng, who once longed for death, was gradually warmed by their kindness. He planned to slip away secretly since he had no legal identity, but Grandma Li and Xia Qihe chased him up the mountain. Grandma Li told him: “Call me Grandma, and you are my own grandson.” He settled his household registration in the village and took Grandma Li as his adoptive grandmother. It was his first birthday celebration, first paycheck, and the very first time he had a real “home”.
