The Farmer Ger is a Little Sweet

Song Xuechuan, a twenty-eight-year-old man from modern-day China, dies after slipping on a banana peel and falling down a flight of stairs. He awakens in the body of a boy with the same name in an ancient world called Great An. The original owner was the son of a farming family in Songjia Village who lost both parents within a short span of time. His father died falling from a cliff while gathering wild produce to pay debts, and his mother subsequently died of grief. The new Song Xuechuan inherits a dilapidated mud-brick house, a malnourished ten-year-old younger brother named Song Chunyu, and a mountain of debt. He also discovers a shocking biological reality of this world: women do not exist. Instead, a class of people called gers, who are biologically male but possess female reproductive capabilities and delicate features, bear children. Song Xuechuan himself has the rarest and reddest birthmark in the village, indicating high fertility, which terrifies him as he struggles to accept his new gender role.

Initially, Song Xuechuan is overwhelmed by poverty and hunger. The Song family has sold off their land to pay for medical bills and funeral costs, leaving them with only three mu of barren land that yields almost nothing. They are on the verge of starvation, surviving on thin porridge and wild vegetables. Song Xuechuan relies on the kindness of his uncle, Song Quanyou, a skilled bricklayer, and his aunt, Lü Yan, who provide food and support. Determined to survive, Song Xuechuan uses his modern knowledge and childhood skills to improve their situation. He catches fish in the nearby Clear Water River and builds a modern-style squat toilet with a septic tank, a innovation that shocks the villagers and earns him a degree of social standing and curiosity.

A significant turning point occurs when Song Xuechuan ventures deeper into Luoxia Mountain to gather medicinal herbs. While picking herbs, he slips and falls down a steep slope. Miraculously, he lands near a large, previously unknown patch of wild honeysuckle. Recognizing its value as a medicinal herb, he spends days harvesting and processing the honeysuckle by stir-frying it to preserve it. This discovery provides the Song family with their first source of income. He and his brother sell the processed herbs in Yong’an Town, earning enough silver to buy food and basic necessities, lifting them out of immediate starvation.

As Song Xuechuan adapts to his new life, he navigates the social dynamics of the village. He encounters Song Xiangger, a flamboyant and vain ger who was once his rival in childhood beauty contests. Song Xiangger becomes an unlikely companion, seeking Song Xuechuan’s attention and offering unsolicited advice on grooming and appearance. Despite his initial reluctance to engage with the ger-centric social norms, Song Xuechuan maintains a pragmatic approach to his new identity. He focuses on stabilizing his family’s economic situation, planning to expand his herbal gathering business and eventually start a small trade. The story follows his gradual integration into ancient society, balancing his modern sensibilities with the harsh realities of survival in a pre-industrial world where he must protect his younger brother and secure a future for himself.