A Dream of a Thousand Years

"Tut, tut, I really hadn't noticed before that Brother Shen was this handsome. You'd better be careful. These days, there are more men than women; once you step outside, who knows how many young ladies will set their sights on you." Yu Meng had already been waiting outside. He circled Shen Luo once and clicked his tongue.

Shen Luo chuckled, paying no mind to Yu Meng's teasing.

"Dinner will take a while longer. Come, I'll show you around the estate." Yu Meng threw an arm around Shen Luo's shoulders and dragged him outside without waiting for an answer.

This was an immortal master's residence. Shen Luo was eager to see more of it, so naturally he did not refuse.

The Yu Residence covered a considerable area, some twenty or thirty mu. It had over a dozen large buildings, as well as a sizable garden and a large pond. Aside from being somewhat run-down, the scenery was quite pleasant.

There was also a large martial training ground, laid out with all kinds of weapons, including sabers, spears, swords, and halberds.

Yu Meng was a hospitable man. He led Shen Luo around nearly the entire estate, introducing everything as they went.

"Brother Yu, that place looks rather unusual. What is it?" Shen Luo asked, pointing at a solitary, ancient-looking pavilion beside the pond.

"That is my father's study. Not to boast, but it has the largest collection of books in the entire county seat. Come, I'll take you inside. You might find something you like." Yu Meng patted his chest.

"Wouldn't that be inappropriate?" Shen Luo hesitated.

"It's fine, you're only taking a look. He asks me to go in there all the time, but I never want to." Yu Meng did not care in the least and pulled Shen Luo into the study.

Seeing this, Shen Luo could only follow him inside.

The study was quite large, about fifty paces square. Bookshelves taller than a man lined all four walls, packed with volumes. In the center stood an Eight Treasures Auspicious Table, upon which rested a white jade paperweight, a green jade brush holder, and a square-foot black stone inkstone, all of the finest quality.

"With so many books, Uncle Yu must be widely read and deeply learned. No wonder he has cultivated the Talisman Arts to such a profound level," Shen Luo praised.

"It's nothing special," Yu Meng said, curling his lip.

Shen Luo caught the change in Yu Meng's expression from the corner of his eye. He smiled faintly and began browsing the shelves.

There were numerous books in the study, far more than at Spring Autumn Temple. However, they had been placed in complete disarray, without any proper sorting. It looked more like a nouveau riche man had bought a large number of books merely to put on an air of refinement and decorate his home.

Recalling Yu Yan's nouveau riche attire, Shen Luo smiled knowingly and quickly pulled a geographical record from a shelf.

This dream world seemed quite different from the world he had lived in. He suspected it might not even be within Great Tang's territory. To investigate, the most convenient thing was to consult a geographical record.

"Cloud-Climbing Prefecture, Qing Prefecture, Redwater... Donglai County." Seeing those familiar place names, Shen Luo's doubts deepened.

He searched through the geographical record for a while and soon found the location of Donglai County. It was quite far from Chunhua County, separated by several prefectures, exactly as he remembered!

"The geographical locations all match. That's right, this is Donglai County," Shen Luo confirmed inwardly.

But this place was so far from Spring Autumn Temple. How had he come here?

"Hm!"

Shen Luo gave a soft cry. His gaze fell on the geographical record's entry on Chunhua County. Some of the place names there were slightly different from what he knew.

For example, a great river in Chunhua County had been called the White Silk River for as long as he could remember. He had often gone there to play as a child, yet this book called it the Uncut Jade River.

Also, Tianping County, which lay east of Chunhua County and which he had visited countless times, was called Abundance County in this book.

"What's going on?" he pondered silently.

"Brother Shen, are you interested in geographical records? What is there to study in these things? In times like these, even the imperial court no longer concerns itself with such matters. That book was printed in the twentieth year of Guanghua, more than a century ago. Rather than that, why don't you take a look at this saber manual?" Yu Meng glanced at the book in Shen Luo's hands and shook his head. Then he handed over a thin blue volume.

Shen Luo acknowledged him, set down the geographical record, and accepted the saber manual. Then his movements suddenly froze.

"Brother Yu, when did you say this book was printed?" Shen Luo picked up the geographical record again and stared at Yu Meng.

"The twentieth year of Guanghua. The printing date is written on the back of the book. What's wrong?" Yu Meng asked curiously, pointing to the back of the geographical record.

Shen Luo hurriedly turned the geographical record over. Sure enough, he saw the words "Printed in the twentieth year of Guanghua" on the back.

Shen Luo stood there stunned for a moment. He set down both books, then strode forward and began searching rapidly through the shelves.

"Brother, what are you looking for? Do you want me to help?" Yu Meng asked in surprise.

Shen Luo ignored him and continued searching through the shelves. After a while, he finally stopped, holding a thick imperial calendar in his hand.

"So you were looking for an imperial calendar. What do you need that for?" Yu Meng walked over with a smile.

Shen Luo's expression was grave as he began from the last page, flipping forward with a rustle. He turned through nearly half of it before finally stopping.

The calendar on that page was for the twenty-ninth year of Kaiyuan.

Shen Luo stared at the page before him, his mind churning like a storm.

The twenty-ninth year of Kaiyuan was precisely the era he lived in. According to this imperial calendar, nearly a thousand years separated it from the twentieth year of Guanghua that Yu Meng had mentioned.

"Could it be that my dream brought me to a thousand years in the future?" Shen Luo thought to himself.

If so, then the changes in some of the place names in the geographical record, the architectural styles in the city, and people's clothing and appearances all made perfect sense.

Seeing Shen Luo's shifting expression, Yu Meng scratched the back of his head, unable to make sense of it. Still, he did not interrupt.

"Young Master, dinner is ready. Master asks you and Young Master Shen to come over." At that moment, Xiao Shunzi came to the study door and called through the windows.

"Got it. We'll be right there," Yu Meng replied, turning around.

"My apologies. I suddenly thought of something, so I looked through this imperial calendar to check the date. It seems I held things up a little." Shen Luo set down the calendar, his composure restored as he spoke apologetically.

"What are you saying? Brother Shen, I'm downright envious that you can settle down and read. My father is always forcing me to study and draw talismans, but I'm a rough man. I only like wielding spears and swinging staves. If I had your interests, I wouldn't have suffered so much growing up." Yu Meng laughed heartily.

Shen Luo smiled as well but did not respond.

"Enough of that. We fought all day today, so let's go have a proper meal. Father seems to like you quite a bit. There should be plenty of good food today." Yu Meng rubbed his hands together.

Only after Shen Luo returned each book to its proper place did he leave the study under Yu Meng's urging.