Chapter 1

Liu Jun slowly woke up.

In the darkness, a voice was calling out, soft and unfamiliar. He reached out to turn on the bedside lamp but found nothing after a few fumbles. He then tried to find his phone on the bedside table, but it was also nowhere to be found.

"Second Master Jun, you're awake. Do you want some tea?" The soft voice became clearer, and then the room lit up with a burst of light.

Liu Jun squinted his eyes and looked around. The first thing he noticed was a bedroom filled with Ming and Qing style furniture, including a bed with a canopy and a door frame. Next to the bed was a bamboo basket for clothes and a tall washstand, with a towel on top. There was also a floor-standing clothes rack and a large wardrobe on a low cabinet.

Beside the bed, against the wall, stood a four-piece cabinet, a small table, and two high-back southern official hats chairs. A square table was placed nearby, with a set of tea ware on it, and a few stools scattered around.

The room had few pieces of furniture, but the few that were there made the bedroom appear spacious and open, exuding a simple, grand, and dignified atmosphere.

"Where am I exactly?"

Liu Jun was puzzled that when he saw the furniture, their names automatically came to mind—bed with a canopy and door frame, tall washstand, four-piece cabinet, and southern official hats chairs. He knew he shouldn't know these names. He might have seen these ancient-style furniture in TV shows or movies, but he certainly shouldn't know their names so clearly.

"Second Master Jun, of course you're at home." This time, the voice was clear and real, right by his ear.

Liu Jun turned his head and suddenly realized that there was someone else in the room he hadn't noticed before. It was a young girl, slender and not fully grown, with a fresh and slightly immature appearance. She had a double braid hairstyle, wore a blue jacket, and had clear features and a small cherry mouth, looking completely natural without any makeup.

She stood by the bed, which was surrounded by a screen and had a canopy, making it look like a room within a room. Liu Jun hadn't noticed her earlier.

Seeing such a pure and beautiful young girl, Liu Jun became even more confused. Where was he?

"Who are you?" He looked at her, completely unfamiliar.

"Second Master Jun, you were really drunk yesterday. How could you not remember me? I'm A-Bao, who else would be here to serve you all night?" The girl's voice was soft, but her words were sharp. "Do you want some tea? I'll get it for you."

Liu Jun nodded at her and then scanned the bedroom again with his sleepy eyes. A lamp in the room was lit, but it was pitch black outside, as if it was the middle of the night. Was this a dream?

He was completely baffled. How did he end up in a bedroom full of Ming dynasty furniture, with a sharp-tongued, clear-featured, and pure young girl by his side?

At this moment, his gaze fell on a crumpled piece of paper on the bedside table. There was a portrait on it, depicting a man in his thirties, tall and lean, wearing a white pointed old felt hat, with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a beard. He wore a green cloth over a sheepskin robe, carried a bow on his back, and had a sword at his waist, looking very fierce.

Below the well-drawn portrait was a poem: "This is the rebel from Gu Cheng, now his dog life is about to end. He roamed through Xing'an and Pingli, but was caught by the heavenly army. He changed his name and fled alone in the dark of night. The people bound him and brought him in, and he was rewarded with a jade belt and fine clothes." Below the poem was a larger line: "A reward of ten thousand gold for capturing Zhang Xianzhong, and the title of a marquis."

Liu Jun's brows furrowed. Zhang Xianzhong?

As soon as he muttered this name, a flood of memories came to his mind.

"Zhang Xianzhong, a leader of the peasant uprising at the end of the Ming dynasty, who established the Daxi regime. He was as famous as Li Zicheng. Later, when the Qing army moved south, Zhang Xianzhong led his troops to resist but was defeated and died. It is said that he was from Shaanxi and was a fellow townsman of Li Zicheng. He had read books in his youth, worked as a constable, but was dismissed for a crime and joined the army. He was later dismissed again for a crime and became a leader of the peasant army."

"Damn!" Liu Jun couldn't help but mutter. Zhang Xianzhong, a notorious figure from the end of the Ming dynasty, as famous as Li Zicheng, how could the wanted notice in his hand be for Zhang Xianzhong? He must be dreaming. Everything was too strange and inexplicable—the strange bedroom, the peculiar girl, and the bizarre wanted notice for Zhang Xianzhong.

Liu Jun reached out to take the crumpled paper and was once again stunned. His hand looked different.

As he extended his hand, the wide sleeve slipped down to his elbow, revealing a strong, tanned arm. It was clearly not his own. His own arms were also strong, but they were very white. This arm was thick and dark. He pinched it, and a red mark appeared, sending a painful sensation back to him. It really hurt.

Liu Jun was truly confused. Something was very wrong.

"Second Master Jun, your tea is ready." A-Bao's voice sounded again.

"Put it there, I don't want to drink it now." Liu Jun said.

"Are you just teasing me because you can't sleep? Don't play with me like this. You want it, and then you don't want it." A-Bao pouted, not lowering her voice at all, speaking without any restraint in front of Liu Jun. "You really are a master."

"A-Bao, do you know this Zhang Xianzhong?" Liu Jun waved the wanted notice in his hand.

A-Bao pursed her lips, looking at him with a hint of disdain.

"Who doesn't know 'Great King' Zhang Xianzhong? It's said that he read books in his youth and worked as a constable in Yan'an Prefecture, but was dismissed for a crime and joined the army. He was sentenced to death for breaking military rules, but the commander spared him because of his unusual appearance, giving him a hundred lashes and dismissing him from the army.

Later, he rebelled and called himself 'Great King.' The rebels also called him 'Yellow Tiger.' He led the strongest camp among the thirty-six camps when Wang Ziyong was the leader of the rebel army. Later, when Gao Yingxiang became the leader, he was one of the thirteen leaders.

Four years ago, he led his troops into Fengyang, cutting down tens of thousands of pine trees in the imperial mausoleum, demolishing the Longxing Temple where the First Emperor had become a monk, and digging up the emperor's tomb. He then killed all the wealthy families in Fengyang.

At the beginning of this month, Zhang Xianzhong, who had been pardoned by the court, rebelled again in Gu Cheng. The court has already sent Premier Xiong and General Yang to mobilize troops to suppress him. The notice in your hand is the court's reward for capturing Zhang Xianzhong. If you can kill him, you will receive ten thousand gold and the title of marquis."

Listening to A-Bao's long speech, Liu Jun was almost in awe. A-Bao looked to be only thirteen or fourteen, probably a middle school student, yet she knew so much. No, something was off. A-Bao had mentioned that Zhang Xianzhong rebelled again at the beginning of this month. Zhang Xianzhong was a rebel leader at the end of the Ming dynasty. So, what year was it now?

"A-Bao, what year is it now?"

"Ji Mao, the year of the rabbit."

"What is the era name?" Liu Jun asked, hardening his resolve. Ji Mao, who knew which year it was, with the sexagenary cycle repeating every sixty years.

"Since Second Master Jun is still drunk, you should lie down a bit more. Don't tease A-Bao." A-Bao seemed a bit unhappy, thinking that the question was a deliberate tease. Did Second Master think she was so stupid that she couldn't remember the year?

"You definitely don't remember." Liu Jun tried a different approach. Sure enough, A-Bao huffed and raised her head. "It's May of the twelfth year of Chongzhen. The Ming dynasty has been in power for 271 years since the First Emperor founded it. Master, do you think A-Bao is right?"

Liu Jun tried to keep his voice calm. "A-Bao is really smart. Ah, I'm a bit sleepy again. Can you let me lie down alone for a while?"

"Sure, I'll wait outside. Call me if you need anything." A-Bao nodded, helped Liu Jun lie down, and carefully covered him with a blanket. Then she turned and picked up the oil lamp and left the bedroom.

After A-Bao left, Liu Jun sat up and picked up the wanted notice again, frowning at the portrait of the bearded rebel leader, Zhang Xianzhong.

He was almost certain that this was not a prank or a dream. Although it was stranger than a dream, his rational mind told him that everything was real. This was no longer the world he knew, but the twelfth year of Chongzhen, the end of the Ming dynasty.

Heaven, what kind of joke is this?

"Twelfth year of Chongzhen!" Liu Jun shook his head, muttering bitterly. "More than three hundred years ago?"

"Damn!" He couldn't help but curse again. As he thought about the twelfth year of Chongzhen, a flood of memories came to his mind.

"The twelfth year of Chongzhen, 1639 AD. This year is five years before the fall of the Ming dynasty. Five years later, in the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, Li Zicheng captured Beijing, and Emperor Chongzhen hanged himself on Coal Hill. The last Han Chinese dynasty to rule Central China fell, having lasted for twelve generations and sixteen emperors, a total of 276 years..."

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