In a small mountain village in western Yingchuan, in Great Han.
The people here were simple and honest. Because of its remote location, even warfare rarely reached this place.
For that reason, despite the turmoil in the Great Han Dynasty over the years, this place remained peaceful and tranquil, like a paradise beyond the world.
Dawn had just broken. Wisps of cooking smoke rose from the small mountain village, and the villagers emerged from their homes one after another to begin a new day's work.
Among them was a man who looked to be in his forties. Though he wore an ordinary hemp robe and his face was covered in stubble, he was handsome and looked exceptionally refined, with an extraordinary air of transcendence.
This man had come from elsewhere and had lived here for more than twenty years. Everyone knew only that his surname was Han; no one knew his full name. Unlike the other villagers, however, he seemed knowledgeable and well-traveled, and he could read and write. Over the past twenty years, nearly every family had asked him to name their newborn children, so the villagers all called him Mister Han.
Mister Han headed to the fields with the villagers, who greeted him warmly.
"Good morning, Mister Han!"
"Good morning, Aunt Li."
"Mister Han, my wife is due in a couple of days. When the baby turns a month old, you must come over-and give our child a name while you're at it."
"Of course."
"Mister Han, my husband brought home plenty of game from the mountain yesterday. You must come to our house for a meal later."
"Wouldn't that be too much trouble, Sister-in-law Zhang?"
"Not at all, not at all! I'd be delighted to have you."
"All right, then. Sorry for the trouble."
All along the