Sun Jian, a takeout deliveryman from modern Earth, dies in a car accident and wakes up in the body of a penniless scholar in the war-torn Great Qian Empire. The original host was weak, orphaned, abandoned by his fiancée, and nearly starved to death. Immediately after taking over, Sun Jian is forced by imperial decree to participate in a wife distribution for war widows. Every eligible man must take at least one wife or be conscripted into the army, and each wife costs an extra fifty catties of grain per month in tax.When Sun Jian hesitates over which women to choose, a favorability system activates in his mind. It detects three women with latent high potential: Zhou Wan'er, the disguised third princess of the enemy Great Zhou kingdom; Gu Zijian, a female general of the rebel army; and Chu Qingcheng, a fallen young lady from a wealthy family framed by corrupt officials. The system rewards Sun Jian with points and items when their favorability toward him increases, but if favorability drops to negative, they may attack or flee.Ignoring the mockery of fellow villagers led by his old bully Sun Hao, Sun Jian claims all three as his wives. Zhou Wan'er's favorability initially drops from 1 to 0 due to her disgust, but Chu Qingcheng's rises to 6 out of gratitude for being saved from a worse fate. Back at his decrepit home, Sun Jian uses his first system reward—ordered toward grain—to obtain instant noodles, rice, and oil. He cooks a pot of noodles for the starving women, impressing them. Chu Qingcheng's favorability reaches 10, unlocking another reward. Zhou Wan'er and Gu Zijian also begin to show curiosity about Sun Jian's strange abilities.That night, Sun Hao arrives at the door with a bag of moldy millet, demanding to spend the night with Zhou Wan'er. Sun Jian refuses and drives him off. Sun Hao tries to attack him with a stick, but Gu Zijian, hiding behind the door, intervenes and humiliates Sun Hao. Sun Hao flees, threatening that his older brother Sun Hu, a yamen runner leader, will retaliate.Later, Chu Qingcheng sneaks to Sun Jian's floor bed. She confesses her tragic past: her family of over a hundred people in the silk business was framed by corrupt local officials and killed, and she was the only survivor saved by a mysterious person. Sun Jian comforts her and promises to avenge her. Touched, Chu Qingcheng's favorability jumps by 10.The next morning, an old villager named Jiang pounds on the door, panicked. He reports that Sun Hao, out of revenge, deliberately rammed and then stabbed Sun Jian's family's old ox—the last asset inherited from his parents—to the heart. The ox is dying, and Jiang urges Sun Jian to salvage the meat before others take it. Sun Jian is furious. The memory of the previous owner's lifelong abuse by Sun Hao and his brother surfaces. He decides he will not back down.Before leaving, Sun Jian uses his accumulated favorability points for an ordinary lottery directed toward strength. He obtains the martial skill Tongbei Fist, implanted into his mind, and gains an 18-point boost to his strength attribute. His total strength reaches 58, well above a normal adult standard. He sets off to confront Sun Hao.Inside the house, Zhou Wan'er overhears the confrontation and mutters approval. Her favorability toward Sun Jian increases by 2. She decides to follow and help if needed, because Sun Jian's meal saved her life. Gu Zijian also watches from the shadows, realizing Zhou Wan'er is not an ordinary woman. Their true identities remain hidden for now, but the stage is set for escalating conflict with the local bullies and the corrupt county officials backing them. Sun Jian must rely on his system, his three wives' growing trust, and his own newfound courage to survive and eventually rise in a world of war, famine, and political intrigue.
