Chapter 1 Transmigrated as a Little Bitter Gourd 1

When Ji Huaizhi woke up, he found himself dressed in mourning clothes.

He opened his eyes and looked at the simple mourning hall, where he was being held in someone's arms.

"My grandson, my poor grandson."

The old man's rough hands touched his face.

His eyes were filled with sorrow.

The thick calluses stung Ji Huaizhi's damp face.

"Grandpa," Ji Huaizhi called out reflexively.

"Grandpa's here, it's alright. With Grandpa here, Huaizhi will definitely amount to something in the future."

The original owner, Ji Huaizhi, was born in a remote mountain village.

Like most children in the village, he was a left-behind child.

However, unlike his peers, his children were gradually taken to the city by their parents after starting elementary school.

He was the only one who grew up with his grandparents.

The original owner of this body had parents.

They work outside to earn money, just like everyone else, saying they don't have the means to bring their children with them.

The only option is for him to attend school in his hometown.

However, the original owner had a younger brother who was two years younger than him.

This younger brother has been raised by his parents since birth and also goes to school with them outside.

We only come back to our hometown together during the Chinese New Year.

Every time they went out to work, the original owner would make a scene for a long time, questioning them: Why can you take my younger brother with you, but not me? Aren't I your son too?

They would always use the same excuse to brush him off.

My younger brother is too young, and I'm worried about leaving him in our hometown.

We'll be back for Chinese New Year, and we'll take you out with us next time.

There are no spots available for studying in other places, so you should focus on your studies in your hometown for now.

You're the older brother, how can you be so insensible? Why do you always argue with your younger brother every time you come back?

The original owner did not understand.

He was very young before; I heard that he was less than a year old when they left him with his grandparents.

Why is it different when it comes to my younger brother?

Every time he comes back and sees his younger brother looking so glamorous, like a city kid, and occasionally reciting ABCD, he feels very awkward.

I am also my parents' child.

But he lived like an only child.

When they were at home, the original owner would excitedly run over to hug them, but they would always frown and push him away.

Because they disliked his dirty appearance.

He was wearing clothes that the older children in the village didn't want anymore, and his chest was covered in black soot.

The nails were full of dirt.

I think he's unclean and not nearly as lovable as my younger brother.

Grandpa and Grandma have suggested many times that they take Huaizhi with them when they go out.

There are fewer and fewer students in the mountains; a class can hardly have ten students anymore.

The original owner's schooling will only become more and more troublesome.

But they always postpone it and make excuses.

Later on, he had to teach two classes in one classroom, and Ji Huaizhi had fewer and fewer companions.

He used to be able to brag to his friends, and his parents would take him to the city.

But all his companions went to the city, only he didn't.

He spoke less and less, mostly sitting on the roof of the bungalow looking at the mountains in front of him.

He misses his parents.

One day, Grandma fell down a slope while doing farm work, and no one noticed.

When Grandpa Ji didn't return home by lunchtime, he went out to look for her and found that Grandma Ji had fallen to her death.

This incident caused the original owner to completely stop talking.

He didn't go because his grandmother asked him to go with her when she went out.

In the past, my mother would call home on Sundays.

The original owner was waiting for a phone call at home.

Although his parents rarely called after his younger brother was born, he still thought, what if they remembered to call him?

But the phone didn't come through.

Grandma fell in the field and no one noticed.

At the funeral, Mr. and Mrs. Ji said they didn't have time to get leave and might not be able to return until after the funeral.

This incident caused quite a stir in the village.

When my aunt and her family found out, they called them and gave them some really nasty insults.

Tell them to come back immediately and wear mourning clothes.

Otherwise, they should never come back. Anyway, they said all the nasty things, but in the end, they still drove back.

At that time, it seemed like you could hear Auntie's shrill voice from the opposite mountain.

Before Grandma's burial, Ji's parents returned.

This time, Grandpa insisted that they take Huaizhi with them.

They were in a difficult position, but there were many people present.

The eldest aunt immediately gave them a thorough dressing-down, accusing them of not raising their own child and demanding that they put the original owner back in.

In the end, the couple had no choice but to agree.

Grandpa Ji sewed a small pocket onto Ji Huaizhi's clothes.

That was all the money he had.

He gave it all to Ji Huaizhi, saying only, "Once you leave, they will definitely come back even less often. It's alright for me, an old man, to stay on the mountain, but you are still young and need to go out and study."

"Your parents prefer your younger brother, but they will still raise you."

"It will be better when you grow up."

"When you grow up, come back to visit Grandpa when you have time. If Grandpa is gone, you can come and burn paper money for him."

In truth, the original owner felt a secret joy deep down.

He felt that his grandmother's death had not been in vain, and that he could now go to the city.

Others don't know what he's thinking.

He didn't notice the sad and upset look in his grandfather's eyes.

On the way back, the younger brother refused to be near the original owner, thinking that he smelled bad and was unclean.

Both his father and mother told him to be patient.

The original owner huddled in the corner, clutching the small pocket sewn by her grandfather.

He lacked confidence, so when he spoke to his parents and younger brother, he always tried to please them.

I was afraid they would send me back again.

After arriving in the city, the original owner learned that her parents had already bought a house there.

The houses here are not built with mud.

Once inside the metal box, you don't need to climb stairs to get to your doorstep.

The original owner was like an outsider, ignored and excluded by the family of three.

Ji's mother found him the ugliest pair of slippers and told him to take a bath.

I gave him a set of my younger brother's old clothes.

Actually, the clothes were already too small for the original owner.

When the original owner came out after taking a cold shower, he found that all his belongings were gone.

Including the garment with the pockets that his grandfather sewed for him.

"You mean the things you brought from the mountains? Your mother thought they were unclean and threw them away; they've probably already been taken away."

The younger brother was still standing there, making the original owner take off his clothes, saying they weren't his.

Even if it's lost, I won't let him wear it.

The original owner finally cried.

Tell them that there is money from Grandpa in there.

Let them find it.

But when I went outside, the trash had already been collected. I couldn't possibly go back and rummage through the trash cans, could I?