Volume One, Chapter Two: Can a Scroll Connect Two Different Dimensions?

This scroll is so spiteful!

Su Jin thought bitterly but couldn’t bring herself to burn it.

This scroll was the only piece of evidence proving the existence of the Great Yue Dynasty.

Whether the Great Yue Dynasty truly existed would determine if Su Jin’s academic field would be abolished, and if she could graduate smoothly.

She was already the last student left in this major.

She had chosen this field after failing the college entrance exam, aiming for a top university.

But once classes began, her professor tearfully begged her to study hard.

“If the Great Yue Dynasty really existed, then the five-thousand-year civilization of China would have concrete proof, and Western scholars would have no grounds to criticize!”

Who in China doesn’t have some patriotic passion?

Su Jin was instantly inspired!

Then the professor added, “Well… the official history doesn’t record the Great Yue Dynasty.”

“It’s all because of that treacherous minister in the unofficial histories!”

“At such a young age, he meddled in politics, deposed five emperors, and caused the Great Yue Dynasty’s rapid downfall.”

“But I have a scroll here with the words ‘Great Yue’ written on it. If we can restore it, we’ll have direct evidence!”

That was easy to say, but the characters were so faded, and the painting so ancient.

The pigments, brush techniques, and craftsmanship had long been lost.

For three full years, Su Jin’s professor struggled, and even on his sickbed, tearfully entrusted her, “The scroll is yours, my dear disciple. You must study it well!”

Su Jin was speechless.

Just thinking about it made her angry!

She treated the scroll like a treasure, but it had actually come to life and was stealing her things!

When she tried to get her things back, it retaliated by shattering her cup.

“You broke my cup!”

Su Jin shook the scroll in frustration.

I’ll shake you dizzy, shake you dead!

After a few vigorous shakes, the scroll finally spat out a note.

The note twirled through the air and landed on the floor.

Su Jin picked it up and saw that it was written in traditional characters: “Who are you?”

A scroll writing a note? And it actually asked her who she was?

Had it not heard the professor call her name?

Wait!

Even if the scroll had come to life, it couldn’t have written the note with a brush, could it?

Su Jin’s gaze shifted to the wooden pillow on the floor.

She had seen such wooden pillows before at the provincial museum; only ancient people used these.

A wooden pillow.

Brush calligraphy.

Traditional characters.

An absurd thought rose in Su Jin’s mind.

Could it be that this note was written by the owner of the wooden pillow, and that the scroll connected different dimensions?

If the scroll could steal her things, it could surely steal things from people in other times as well.

Su Jin’s pupils contracted sharply, and she covered her mouth, nearly gasping aloud.

To verify her theory, she gathered everything on the floor into her arms and rushed back to her dorm.

She grabbed her notebook from the drawer, tore off a page, and wrote with a gel pen: “My name is Su Jin, I am from the 21st century. Who are you? Which dynasty are you from?”

She placed the note on the open scroll. The paper vanished instantly.

...

A peasant courtyard.

Outside, a sharp female voice rang out: “What kind of wealthy family are we that we can just throw money away?”

Followed by Mrs. Luo’s low pleading.

Shen Yubai couldn’t hear clearly but could imagine his mother bowing her head submissively.

His fingers clenched tightly on the blanket, a cold aura radiating from him.

“And you still mention his monthly allowance? The clan only gives 100 big coins a month, barely enough for you two to eat and drink!”

Zheng’s voice rose a few decibels, as if afraid no one inside could hear.

Shen Yubai sneered.

When his father was alive, his grandmother was kind.

After his father’s death, grandmother’s attitude changed, though she did not treat his mother harshly because of his talents.

He had been bedridden for three years, and without anyone to support his mother, life grew harder.

Today, they even came deliberately to his window to provoke him. If he were to suffer harm from anger, his mother would be utterly destroyed by that family.

He was already seventeen. The clan’s subsidies would cease at eighteen. Then there would be no monthly allowance.

One more year. Could this family not hold back any longer?

Outside, Mrs. Luo’s sobbing sounded, but Shen Yubai couldn’t make out her words.

The two voices slowly faded away.

Shen Yubai lay back, staring at the darkened beams, lost in thought.

When Mrs. Luo returned, her eyes were swollen.

She forced a smile, tucked the blanket around Shen Yubai, and chattered about trivial things, avoiding any mention of what had just happened.

Shen Yubai listened quietly for a while, then said, “Mother, after I die, you should remarry.”

Mrs. Luo’s words stopped abruptly.

After a moment of shock, tears welled in her eyes: “You won’t die. You are the smartest child in our clan. The teachers at the clan school all praise you as having the potential to become a scholar. You’re just ill for now. When you recover, you will take the imperial exams and become a high official!”

Shen Yubai waited until she finished, then continued: “Chen, the hunter in the village, has no land and can’t find a wife, but his hunting skills are real. If you go with him, you won’t lack food or worry about in-laws.”

Outsiders in the village were often looked down upon, but Chen lived halfway up the mountain, somewhat apart from the villagers.

Moreover, Chen was capable; he always caught game to sell in the village and had a healthy complexion.

An old bachelor’s life was one of no future, with indulgence and no savings to buy land.

If he married, he would find ways to save money, live frugally, and buy a few acres of farmland, and life would improve.

Originally, Shen Yubai was supposed to find Chen himself, but being weak and helpless, he could only ask his mother to handle it.

He knew his days were numbered and wanted to plan a future for his mother.

Mrs. Luo collapsed on her son, sobbing bitterly.

After some time, she sat up and wiped her tears: “I won’t let you die. I will find a way to get medicine for you. If you die, I will die with you!”

Shen Yubai’s inner bitterness grew harder to suppress.

“Grandmother won’t give you money.”

Since he fell ill, the clan school’s monthly stipend had been collected by his eldest uncle.

The money never reached the hands of the widow and orphan.

His mother had already spent her dowry on medicine to prolong his life, and now she had not a single big coin left.

“I’ll go to your maternal grandmother’s house tomorrow to borrow money. When you get better, I’ll find a way to earn and repay them.”

Shen Yubai knew his mother would never give up.

Even if he spoke, it wouldn’t make a difference.

Perhaps he should stop being a burden to her.

She had suffered enough these years.

Mrs. Luo didn’t stay long; there were many chores waiting for her.

Only Shen Yubai remained in the room.

He propped himself up and fixed his gaze on the scroll.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a piece of pure, fine white paper.

His pale, slender fingers gently lifted it, and as he read the words, his brow furrowed ever so slightly.

Why did these characters look incomplete and broken?

Such a fine piece of paper, wasted.

For some reason, Shen Yubai felt a pang of sorrow.

He pieced together the sentence with effort.

The other side was someone named Su Jin.

But what was 21?

And what was century?

His curiosity was piqued, and surprisingly, he wasn’t upset that the person on the other side wasn’t his father.