Inside the incense burner, over a hundred sticks of incense were stuck, the smoke choking.
The Emperor, for some unknown reason, insisted on worshipping.
The Celestial Master tremblingly offered the last three sticks of incense.
Yun Yi’s fingertips were stained red from the incense sticks’ red marks. She stared at Xiao Zhi, at a loss for words: “Still worshipping?”
Xiao Zhi said seriously: “Of course.”
“…” Her knees were sore from kneeling.
After worshipping the Three Pure Ones, nothing happened.
Yun Yi rubbed her knees and was fully revived.
In the blink of an eye, she was bouncing and skipping toward the statues. Xiao Zhi grabbed her by the back of her collar, frowning: “You call this sincerity?”
Yun Yi was unconvinced: “I’ve already offered a hundred sticks of incense—isn’t that pious enough?”
As they spoke, the Emperor actually started arguing with her.
The Celestial Master groaned inwardly: Why aren’t these two leaving yet?
When Helian Tu was sent back to the Northern Di, he was barely alive.
His cellmate, the Fifth Prince, broke down at the sight and cried for his mother.
And the Dowager Empress, having fasted excessively, had been claiming illness for days.
Everything was heading in a good direction.
The next day, the Imperial Workshops sent over a wooden chest.
The chest was plain on the outside, with four bronze wheels on the bottom. With time short and the deadline tight, the Imperial Workshops had only carved some clouds on the four corners.
The cloud patterns layered over each other like fish scales.
Yun Yi had seen that kind of cloud before—before rain, sheets of scale-like clouds would appear in the sky.
The chest looked like a modern suitcase—likely a style Xiao Zhi had seen after traveling to the future.
When opened, it revealed several compartments for classifying and storing gold, silver, and jade items.
Yun Yi began packing her luggage.
Xiao Zhi, who had rushed over without even changing out of his court robes, asked as soon as he entered: “Done packing?”
Yun Yi pushed the chest, her face scrunched up: “So heavy.”
If not for the fear that the gold was too heavy and might break the wheels, she really should have stuffed in more.
Xiao Zhi took the wooden chest and dragged it back and forth—it wasn’t heavy. Was this girl’s strength really this pitiful?
“If there’s a famine, this chest of gold can sustain you for five years. If villains covet this gold—” Xiao Zhi paused, about to teach her the principle of not flaunting wealth.
Yun Yi, seized by her inner drama queen, lifted the chest like a strongman.
“I’ll knock him unconscious first, then drag the chest and run. No matter how hard or tiring, I’ll bring it with me.”
Xiao Zhi’s lips curved in satisfaction: “Gold is indeed too heavy. Why not bring some famous paintings and calligraphy too.”
“That won’t work.” Yun Yi said. “Yan dynasty paintings and calligraphy—our modern era doesn’t recognize them.”
“How do you not recognize them?!” The Emperor stood up abruptly. In Yan, Southern Zhang Xun and Northern Lü Ji—even the late Emperor had to humble himself to request their works.
Wang Delan stood at the hall entrance, his face calm, but the hand behind his back was shaking violently, signaling the palace maids not to enter for now.
The sun had hidden behind the clouds at some point; the light was still adequate. In the side hall not far away, palace attendants were extending long bamboo poles to drive away the swallows nesting under the eaves.
Yun Yi straddled the wooden chest and sat down on it. The chest was sturdy—the craftsmanship of the ancestors was indeed reliable.
“There’s no Yan dynasty in history.” She replied casually without looking up.
Wang Delan was horrified, desperately signaling Yun Yi with his eyes: Miss, don’t talk nonsense!
Xiao Zhi’s breath caught—outrageous!
But meeting her clear gaze, Xiao Zhi calmed down.
His thoughts turned.
He had looked through the “history books” in Yun Yi’s study—though the entire thing told history in the form of stick-figure drawings, there was indeed no Yan dynasty in it.
The thought that she was stranded in a dynasty that didn’t even exist—she might sleep deeper and deeper, until she never woke again…
Never mind.
The Son of Heaven arguing with a girl? If word got out, the whole realm would laugh.
When Yun Yi looked up again, out of the corner of her eye she caught a pair of swallows circling back and forth around the eaves.
“Ah, don’t destroy the swallows’ nest!”
She was about to get up from the wooden chest when Xiao Zhi suddenly pushed her back—she slid out, chest and all.
In the gray corridor, two vivid figures—one in yellow, one in green.
The Emperor changed from pushing to leading. The girl on the wooden chest clutched his sleeve tightly, like a kindergartener holding a teacher’s hand.
The chest’s wheels made a guh-guh-guh sound. Palace attendants in the distance turned at the noise, and the bamboo pole fell to the ground.
—”This servant pays respects to Your Majesty!” The attendant knelt.
“Shh, don’t scare away the swallows.” Yun Yi shook Xiao Zhi’s sleeve.
“Who told you to poke at the swallows’ nest?” The Emperor said displeased.
The attendant: “This…” Nearly scared witless.
Driving away nesting swallows every spring was a palace tradition.
Xiao Zhi looked up. The pair of swallows cautiously flew to the palace wall ten meters away, chirping and twittering—scolding filthily.
The palace attendant’s soul had scattered. He kowtowed repeatedly: “Your Majesty, spare this servant’s life!”
The Emperor was displeased: “No one wants your life. Make one more sound, and I won’t spare you.”
Pat. A twig from the swallow’s nest fell by his feet.
The young Emperor picked it up, twirling it once between his fingertips. The tip of the twig still bore a tiny green sprout.
“Look—a pear twig the swallows carried from behind my bedchamber.” He said with keen interest.
The attendant’s eyes darted backward, then shrank back. He mumbled in agreement: “Your Majesty… this servant will go break off a few pear twigs right now to add to the swallow masters’ nest.”
“I wasn’t talking to you.” Xiao Zhi’s gaze swept behind him, searching for the girl.
The wooden chest sat several zhang away, all alone.
The person on the chest had vanished.
The tender twig in his hand silently fell to the ground.
Xiao Zhi smoothed his expression, his voice very soft: “Bad thing.”
She left without even saying goodbye.
.
Yun Yi had a very long dream.
When she woke, she was at home. The time was four in the afternoon. This afternoon nap had lasted a full four hours.
She rubbed her shoulder and slowly sat up. On the bedside table lay Daoist Xiao’s notebook.
The latest entry was written with two words: “IOU.”
[Xiao Zhi must repay 280 taels of gold within one year]
[Signature ( )]
She remembered now—Xiao Zhi’s dragon robe was in a bank safe deposit box, with an annual fee of 280 yuan.
Yun Yi picked up a pen and changed the words “gold” to “silver.”
After writing, her fingertip repeatedly brushed over the blank signature line.
Someone would never have the chance to sign his name there again.
The moment she transmigrated back, Yun Yi had only been thinking about the swallow’s nest.
She hadn’t even had time to say a word of farewell.
At the time, she had thought it was just an ordinary moment…
From downstairs came the beep-beep of the door lock unlocking.
“Xiao—” Yun Yi’s eyes lit up. She ran downstairs on weak legs.
She came face to face with the “wild man” at the door.
Yun Guoqiang’s face was covered in black mud, his clothes streaked with dried mud stains. The left pant leg was torn open in a long gash, dragging by his foot.
As bedraggled as if he’d fallen into a mud pit.
“Dad, what happened to you…”
“Yun Bao,” Yun Guoqiang’s filthy hand grabbed his daughter’s arm, “there really is something under Xiao Family Village!”
Yun Yi had heard this a hundred times.
“Not just Xiao Family Village—even the mountain behind it, Emperor Ridge, has something.” Yun Guoqiang pulled out his phone and showed her an on-site photo. “Digging down from the mountainside, we hit ruins! Old Yu’s assessment—this is very likely a Tang-Song period palace!”
Yun Yi glanced at the photo. Several fragments of memory flashed through her mind.
Yun Guoqiang flipped through several more on-site survey maps.
“Old Yu says this area is…”
Those scattered memory fragments strung together, forming vivid memories.
Yun Yi’s very breath burned.
Emperor Ridge… Fuyun Ridge?
Seeing his daughter’s soul had flown to the ninth heaven, Yun Guoqiang grew anxious: “Are you feeling unwell?”
Yun Yi: “Dad, give me a moment—I need to think.”
Yun Guoqiang followed his daughter down to the garage. A long, narrow tool cabinet was built into the wall. Yun Yi opened the cabinet door.
Sounding rods, shovels, hand trowels, hoes… These tools were handy. Yun Guoqiang had taken quite a few from his workplace to use for gardening in the backyard.
Yun Yi loaded the tools into the car trunk and secured them.
“What are you taking these for?”
“Dad,” Yun Yi wiped her face, “is your workplace still hiring?”
Yun Guoqiang’s expression shifted slightly. He sighed: “I wanted you to study archaeology for your bachelor’s, but you insisted on studying communications. This year’s recruitment is already over. I can’t exactly brazenly pull strings and stuff my own daughter into the workplace, can I? Even the director’s son hasn’t gotten a permanent position yet.”
Yun Yi didn’t even look up: “I’m asking about the excavation workers at the site—the kind paid by the day. I’m applying!”
Slam—she got into the driver’s seat.
This trip, Yun Guoqiang only stayed home for ten minutes before being dragged into the passenger seat by his daughter.
He was somewhat dazed: “Why would a fine young woman become a laborer? Are you gathering material for something?”
“Dad, what’s wrong with being a laborer? We’re all working people!”
Beneath the ground, they had dug up water channels, foundations, hall bricks, and quite a bit of broken porcelain and bronze ware. Based on preliminary survey results, the experts were unanimous: this site was extraordinary.
The archaeology institute’s staff were fired up. They had suffered plenty of disdain from the Xiao Family Village villagers recently, and even been beaten—but it was all worth it.
The mountain road was no longer potholed. The district government had sent a road crew, and the mountain path was quickly leveled.
The last time she had driven this road, Xiao Zhi had sat in the passenger seat.
“How’s that?” A head tilted over from the passenger seat. “Think your dad’s too old and ugly? Not as handsome as your boy—friend?”
“…”
It would have been better if old Yun hadn’t mentioned Xiao Zhi.
The moment he did, Yun Yi’s tongue unconsciously pressed against her palate, resisting the sour softness welling up in her heart.
The drive from home to here took only forty minutes.
Yun Yi sniffled, unconsciously converting it to Yan dynasty time. By her calculation, a full day had already passed for Xiao Zhi in Yan.
What was he thinking? Had he finished morning court? Finished reviewing memorials? When he sat in the carriage, would he think of her?
She parked the car and hauled a large sounding rod from the trunk.
Xiao Liu was talking to two laborer brothers: “Masters, dig gently—there’s a lot of broken porcelain down there.”
The other one made exorbitant demands: “Young comrade, is this a tomb? I heard there are unclean things inside—we need more money!”
Xiao Liu facepalmed: “Masters! We agreed on the wages!”
Shing—A silver glint flashed not far away.
A short-statured girl strode over with a swagger that acknowledged no one, circled the pit once, raised her shovel, and drove it fiercely into the soil.
Her hair was tied in a neat, large bun. Her face was bare. A strange light gleamed in her dark, thick eyes.
Xiao Liu jerked his chin up: “Masters, see that? If you won’t do it, someone else will.”
The two laborers stared at the girl’s figure in confusion: She looks like a university student—is the job market really this brutal?
“We’ll do it, we’ll do it!” The two began digging fervently in the spots marked by the archaeology team.
Yun Yi dug while wailing: “The chest… my chest!”
She wasn’t thinking about Xiao Zhi.
She was desperately missing that wooden chest full of gold, silver, and jade!
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