Chapter 3 returns to the Eastern Han Dynasty

In the fourth year of Zhongping, that would be 187. The Yellow Turban Army led by Zhang Jiao rebelled in 184, which is only three or four years ago from now. It truly feels like a time travel has occurred in my own life

Lu Ning pinched his thigh hard with his hand, feeling pain, realizing that he was not dreaming, yet he still could not face it. Wasn't this a tale from the Arabian Nights?

The old man saw Lu Ning's expression of helplessness, and his attire was quite strange; he looked rather young. How could he not find his way? What is going on here? "Sir, where are you planning to go?"

There were the Xianbei and the Xiongnu, wasn't the fourth year of Zhongping during the late Eastern Han period? How could this be possible? Such phenomena of time travel only appear in movies and television; they are merely fabrications by directors to deceive. How could such things occur in real life? This is too ridiculous, could it be that one really believes they have traveled through time?

The shock within Lu Ning was immense; he did not doubt the old man's words, but rather thought he was merely dreaming. After a considerable amount of time, Lu Ning managed to stabilize his emotions a little and cautiously smiled as he asked the old man, "Elder, do you mean to say that it is now the fourth year of the Zhongping era of the Han Dynasty?"

Have you heard of Yunnan Province, old man? The old man shook his head. Lu Ning then asked if the old man knew about Myitkyina. That is a metropolis in northern Myanmar, and the entire northern Myanmar is governed by Myitkyina. If they are from the Deqin Gang in northern Myanmar, they should definitely know about it

However, to Lü Ning's surprise, the old man still shook his head to indicate that he did not know. At this point, Lü Ning felt disheartened, realizing that he would not be able to ask for directions here no matter what. It seemed that he had wandered into a remote valley, perhaps this place was truly isolated from the outside world. The only option left was to continue heading east in the predetermined direction.

After listening to Lv Ning's words, the old man glanced at him, feeling that Lv Ning's question was inappropriate, or perhaps that he did not understand, wondering how he could ask such a foolish question. Nevertheless, the old man earnestly replied to Lv Ning: "Sir, it is now the third month of the fourth year of Zhongping. In our area, not only do we frequently encounter bandits coming to rob, but even the cavalry of the Xianbei and Xiongnu barbarians come to plunder. When those barbarians arrive, the people in our village can only flee to the mountains to seek refuge. As for what you mentioned about police and government, I do not understand and do not know what those things are, but no one has come to govern our county of Mayi for many years."

The old man sighed and, in great pain, said softly: "Sir, you do not know, but that is my youngest daughter, Guihua, who is crying. A few days ago, a group of bandits came to our village. My daughter, not being cautious, was spotted by one of the bandit leaders while trying to hide. He said he would marry her as his wife in three days. If we do not agree, he will kill everyone in the village. Therefore, we had no choice but to comply with the bandits' demands, but my daughter absolutely refuses, and there is no way to resolve the situation."

The old man shook his head and said, "I have never heard of a place called Shangri-La; there is no such place name near us"

Lu Ning realized that the old man had misunderstood him, and his shocked expression made the old man suspicious. Ma smiled at the old man and said: "No need, no need, plain water is quite good, and it's also quite sweet, I like it very much"

At first, Lu Ning did not pay attention when he heard the old man mention the year of Zhongping 4. However, when he later heard the terms "Xianbei barbarians" and "Xiongnu barbarians," Lu Ning was left dumbfounded, unable to speak for a long time. The shock within him was too intense; the Xiongnu and Xianbei tribes had been extinct for over a thousand years, so how could there be talk of Xiongnu cavalry and Xianbei cavalry? What kind of absurdity was this

The old man invited Lv Ning into the room, which was extremely simple and showed no signs of anything decent; it was even poorer than the depictions of impoverished families in movies and television shows about the old society. The old man poured a bowl of cold water for Lv Ning

After thanking, Lu Ning raised the bowl to take a sip. Just as he set the bowl down, Lu Ning was shocked. This bowl was made of relatively rough earthenware. Although Lu Ning was an outsider when it came to antiques, he was absolutely certain that this bowl was of extraordinary value. This made it even more unimaginable for Lu Ning to think that such a precious bowl was used to hold water, without fear of accidentally breaking it. How could one be so poor while possessing such a valuable bowl? Such an item would easily fetch a good price anywhere in the world today. This made it even more unimaginable for Lu Ning to think that such a precious bowl was used to hold water, without fear of accidentally breaking it. How could one be so poor while possessing such a valuable bowl? Such an item would easily fetch a good price anywhere in the world today.

The old man, seeing the change in Lv Ning's complexion, assumed that Lv Ning was not accustomed to drinking cold boiled water, and politely said to him: "If you are not used to cold boiled water, I can go inside and boil some more for you to drink."

After hearing this, Lv Ning felt an extreme sense of frustration. How could this be possible! How could they not know about Shangri-La? Unwilling to give up, Lv Ning asked the old man if he knew about Kunming. The old man shook his head again, indicating that he did not know.

The elderly person, hearing Lü Ning's sincere words, no longer held back and casually remarked, "Sir, are you just passing through this place?"

Lü Ning took a sip of water and casually asked the old man, "Elder, to whom does this place belong?"

Oh heavens, how did I end up in the late Eastern Han Dynasty? That was an era marked by daily deaths. Historical records indicate that during the sixty years of turmoil initiated by the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the population of the Han Dynasty plummeted from 60 million to around 10 million. Countless people perished from starvation and freezing, and various plagues and natural disasters were incessant. It was a time of chaos among the feudal lords. Following that was the period of the Five Barbarians invading China, lasting over 300 years, which was indeed a dark age for the Han people and a tremendous disaster. Countless people perished from starvation and freezing, and various plagues and natural disasters were incessant. It was a time of chaos among the feudal lords. Following that was the period of the Five Barbarians invading China, lasting over 300 years, which was indeed a dark age for the Han people and a tremendous disaster.

The elderly man listened to Lv Ning's question, glanced at him, and his expression seemed to convey the thought, "You can't be an idiot, can you? Not even knowing what era it is now? Isn't that foolish?" The old man did not show any disdain; instead, he answered earnestly: "Sir, it is indeed the fourth year of the Zhongping era of the Han Dynasty."

Lu Ning did not take Ma Yi seriously upon hearing it, after all, there are too many place names, and who could remember them all? However, he still murmured softly, "Ma Yi, Ma Yi," and thought to himself, "What kind of place is this? Why has Lu Ning never heard of it?"

Lu Ning found the old man's words quite strange. Are there still horse bandits? What era is this? Could it be a hoax? "Old man, what age are we living in? How can there still be horse bandits? Don't the local police take care of this? Doesn't the government do anything about it?"

After hearing the old man's precise answer, Lv Ning felt a tremor deep within. How could this be possible? How could he return to the late Eastern Han Dynasty two thousand years ago? This must be a joke!

Upon hearing Lv Ning's words, the old man immediately replied without a moment's thought: "This place is under the jurisdiction of Mayi."

Lü Ning sighed upon hearing the old man's question and said helplessly, "Yes, old man, I accidentally got lost. I originally came here to ask for directions, but after asking for a long time, I still couldn't get a clear answer."

Lu Ning looked at the old man and replied earnestly: "I am preparing to return to Shangri-La, but I do not know the way to go."

At this moment, Lu Ning heard a faint sound of crying coming from the old man's home, and it was evident that there was something very sorrowful behind the tears. Lu Ning casually asked, "Old man, is there something difficult to resolve in your family? It sounds like a child's cry, and it seems very sad."