Chapter One, the fourth year of the Martial Virtue era

Since the end of the Sui Dynasty, wars have been incessant, and indeed many people have sought refuge in the deep mountains to cultivate their skills. Young master, why have you come down the mountain alone? Where is your master?

From the wary and scrutinizing expression of the other party, Zhang Chao felt that he had already understood everything

The battle they had just concluded was indeed the most significant conflict in the establishment and unification of the Tang Dynasty, personally commanded by His Highness Prince Qin, the second son of the Tang Emperor, in a decisive victory against Dou Jiande of Hebei and Wang Shichong of Henan in the Central Plains.

Indeed, the ordinarily unremarkable Zhang Chao feels somewhat out of place among these individuals before him

Indeed, my boy, Uncle Zhang will not let you down. When you return home with Uncle Zhang, he will introduce you to a suitable wife. Once Uncle Zhang has passed on, the estate he has accumulated will all belong to you

Such a Zhang Chao, walking in the city and blending into the crowd, would not attract a second glance from anyone

It feels as if I have just had a dream, yet when he pinched his thigh just now, it was quite painful

In the blink of an eye, the old hen turned into a duck. However, Zhang Chao believed that this was not some kind of magic, for just a moment ago he was in a bustling metropolis, and now before him lay the vast wilderness. Especially since he had just been in the midst of a scorching summer, but now it was a world of ice and snow.

Where to go? Zhang Chao has no idea; he doesn't even know where he is right now. He has over 1,000 yuan in cash in his wallet, along with several cards that together hold more than 50,000 yuan, which he has saved from his writing fees over the past few years. However, this money is useless in the Tang Dynasty. In addition, he has a watch, a mobile phone, a tablet, and a notebook, but these are also of no use in the Tang Dynasty

There are still some snacks in the bag, but it is not enough for him to eat for two days

"Excuse me, sir, what year is it now?" Zhang Chao was already shivering from the cold; he could no longer afford to fantasize about how he would dominate the world and be surrounded by beautiful women after traveling through time. What he wanted most at this moment was a cotton-padded jacket

At that moment, he immediately dismounted from the donkey and stated that he had been following his master in the mountains since childhood. Not long ago, his master passed away, and after burying him, he descended the mountain in accordance with his master's last wishes.

May I ask, what year is it now

Indeed, Zhang Chao's words are riddled with inconsistencies. For instance, why was he wearing a short-sleeved shirt while descending the mountain in heavy snow? Furthermore, the clothing he wore did not resemble the attire of this era, and the bag he carried was also quite peculiar. However, those few men seemed to overlook these details. It is evident that although these men were armed with bows and knives and appeared fierce and intimidating, they seemed to hold a great respect for the disciples of the Buddhist sect.

These individuals also have black hair and yellow skin, and at first glance, they are clearly Chinese. However, their hairstyles and clothing are somewhat peculiar. They all appear to be in their thirties or forties, yet each one is dressed in unusual attire. They all have long hair, tied up like Taoist priests. Strangely, they are not wearing Taoist robes; instead, some are clad in armor while others don long robes, and they all carry swords and blades.

The attire of the ten uncles was quite peculiar, and the ensuing conversation confirmed his suspicions. These uncles were all soldiers of the garrison, military personnel of the Tang Dynasty who combined farming with military service. In times of peace, they farmed, and in times of war, they fought. The court provided them with land and exempted them from rent and tax obligations, while they were required to supply their own armor and weapons, and to accept rotational duties or be summoned to the battlefield during wartime

At this moment, the black-faced man who was drawing his bow said, "Uncle Zhang, I think you might as well take him in as your son. After all, you are all alone, and this young sorcerer has just returned to secular life, yet he has no home and nowhere to go. You two could live together. If you take him in, he could take care of you in your old age."

This group is not a criminal gang, but rather a unit within the army of the Great Tang, consisting of ten men. The one-eyed old man who gave him a beating is the leader of this group. They are not currently engaged in battle; rather, they have just finished fighting, the army has retreated, the general has returned, and the garrison troops have returned to the government.

What is there to hesitate about? Even if you return to the secular world, you will still be alone and without family. Wouldn't it be just right to acknowledge Uncle Zhang as your father?

Zhang Chao quickly shook his head; he certainly did not want to have gone through the trouble of crossing over to the Tang Dynasty only to become a monk in a temple

"Is the young master going to which temple to stay after coming down the mountain?" the old foreman asked

"Child, do you wish to?" Old Zhang asked again with a hopeful expression.

The man with the yellow face and Tang knife nodded repeatedly, "Exactly, exactly."

Zhang Chao is an ordinary citizen of the 21st century, hailing from Shaanxi and studying in Shanghai. He comes from a very average and unremarkable family. At the age of 21, Zhang Chao is a recent university graduate who has found himself unemployed right after graduation. After spending four years at a rather ordinary university in Shanghai, he has grown accustomed to the city, yet finding a job that can sustain his living in this metropolis proves to be quite challenging.

The other men from the Guanzhong garrison also chimed in, expressing their enthusiasm, all agreeing that the proposal from the dark-faced man was a good idea. It turned out that the one-eyed old leader was a veteran of the garrison; he had not only served as a garrison soldier in the Tang Dynasty but had also been one during the Sui Dynasty. In his younger days, he had even campaigned three times in Liaodong, and later followed Yang Guang to Yangzhou. After Yu Wenhua assassinated the emperor, these Western troops returned north together.

The urgent task at hand is to clarify what era this is; it appears to be ancient China, which is a good start

The old veteran has spent half his life in the tumult of war, having fought battles for decades. He has also married and had children, but during the chaos at the end of the Sui dynasty, his family was shattered. After aligning with the Li Tang, he acquired land and established a new household, yet he remains all alone. With age catching up to him, he has lost the desire to remarry.

Fortunately, he encountered these few uncles; otherwise, he would have been doomed as soon as he crossed over

This group of palace guards is hurrying home, as the battle has already concluded and it is not their turn to be on duty, thus they are returning to their hometown together

The master said that I have no affinity with the Buddhist teachings and advised me to return to secular life after descending the mountain

"Why don't you come home with me first?" said the one-eyed old leader

"This little brother, looking at your short hair, could it be that you are a monk?" a black man holding a bow asked.

Fortunately, he began serializing his novels online from his sophomore year. Initially, it was merely a hobby, but later he surprisingly started earning some manuscript fees. Although his novels were not very popular, they were still better than the meager earnings from an internship. Therefore, during his senior year, he didn't even seriously look for an internship. Before he knew it, his senior year had passed, and he received his diploma, stepping out of campus, and immediately became a free man

Without waiting for Zhang Chao, the one-eyed old man in shining armor pulled a robe out of his backpack. It was unclear what animal's skin it was made from, and the craftsmanship was quite rough, even carrying a strange odor and looking dirty. However, at that moment, Zhang Chao could not afford to be picky; he immediately took the robe and wrapped it around himself. Fortunately, although the skin was dirty, it was large enough, and Zhang Chao wrapped himself tightly, feeling much warmer right away

Fortunately, the ten men across from me, although armed with swords and knives, are clearly not robbers

Child, are you willing?

In the fourth year of the Wude era, Zhang Chao immediately thought of the corresponding dynasty. Isn't this the early period of the Tang Dynasty? The Tang Dynasty, he had actually arrived in the Tang Dynasty. He then looked at the several men, wearing Mingguang armor, holding broad swords, and long bows. Indeed, the Mingguang armor is one of the thirteen armors of the Tang Dynasty, which he was aware of.

Zhang Chao hunched his waist and shrank his neck, tightly hugging his arms in an attempt to preserve the rapidly dissipating body heat. However, the thin short-sleeve shirt he wore provided little insulation. In just a short while, Zhang Chao's teeth were already chattering.

This year is the fourth year of the Wude era

Zhang Chao found the armor worn by the armored figure somewhat familiar. Although it appeared somewhat simple, the two large round plates on the chest were quite eye-catching, leading him to believe it was Mingguang armor. The person wearing this armor had a single eye, and some were holding bows while others wielded knives, the straight blades seemingly resembling broadswords.

And these ten uncles are a group.

However, now, the group of people across from Zhang Chao looked as if they had seen a giant panda walking down the street

I never expected that after writing time-travel novels, I would end up traveling through time myself

Later, Yu Wenji was defeated by Li Mi of the Wagang Army, and the old leader was captured, thus he joined the Wagang Army again. Subsequently, after Li Mi was defeated by Wang Shichong, he became one of Wang Shichong's subordinates. Later, he followed several Wagang generals to leave Wang Shichong and joined the Li Tang, becoming a soldier of the Tang Dynasty.

In front of Zhang Chao, there stood a group of people, to be precise, ten individuals

It is so cold today

So where are you planning to go after leaving the monastic life

Zhang Chao did not expect that these people had assigned him an identity. However, upon reflection, this identity is indeed quite good; as a young monk following his master to practice in seclusion in the deep mountains, this way, he is no longer of unknown origin

Zhang Chao is an ordinary young man, just as his name suggests. It is said that in China, there are over 300,000 people named Zhang Wei, and there are certainly not fewer people named Zhang Chao. Zhang Chao is of average height, neither tall nor short, with neat short hair, no nearsightedness, and dressed in a plain short-sleeved shirt paired with jeans and casual shoes, utterly ordinary.

It seems that the other side has understood clearly now

These triumphant soldiers are all from Guanzhong. At this time, the army of the Tang Dynasty is primarily stationed in Guanzhong, which is divided into twelve circuits, each with its own military establishment, and under each military establishment are the Cavalry Command and the Charioteer Command.

I have nowhere to go" Zhang Chao could only speak the truth

The battle of the Tang Dynasty decisively established their victory in unifying the realm. Although there were still many local warlords in regions such as Jiangnan and Hebei, they were no longer a cause for concern

Looking at these men who clearly do not resemble those engaged in cosplay, along with the various anomalies that had occurred previously, Zhang Chao was convinced that he had traveled through time.

A yellow-faced man next to him, holding a Tang knife, immediately said, "This goes without saying; it is clearly a young monk who has just come down from the mountain. It seems he has been following his master in deep mountain training for quite some time."

The situation is so bizarre, yet so real

I cannot go back either, the faces of my parents flashed through Zhang Chao's mind, and perhaps I will never see them again

Hearing his companions suggest that he take Zhang Chao as his son, Zhang Tiejian was indeed moved. Although Zhang Chao is quite ordinary in later generations, in this era, he appears very tall, robust, and sturdy, with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and his teeth are also well-aligned, especially his graceful demeanor in his gestures.