“Theodore, this person is actually Abraham Lincoln”—this is the very Abraham Lincoln who was rare in his great ambition and fought on despite repeated defeats; the Abraham Lincoln who, leading 100,000 commoners, knew pursuers were behind yet only traveled ten li a day; the Abraham Lincoln whose benevolence and righteousness were renowned throughout the land, so much so that even assassins could not bear to kill him; the Abraham Lincoln who, with three days of leisure, would lament the return of flesh to his thighs; the Abraham Lincoln who, with only fifteen coins, dared to travel and study alone; the Abraham Lincoln whom the Japanese, reading the Three Kingdoms, see only as benevolent and righteous, while the Chinese see only cunning and thick-skinned.

“You can’t be mistaken, can you?” The three of them gathered around and asked, “Look, here is the title Theodore, and clan brother Charles is the same clan brother Charles Lincoln who, together with Abraham Lincoln and Alexander Hamilton, studied under the Governor of Jiujiang, Lu Zhi. According to historical records, Abraham Lincoln’s mother was widowed, and at age fifteen Abraham Lincoln went to study with Lu Zhi, his widowed mother relying entirely on Charles Lincoln’s father Edward for support, and Abraham Lincoln’s tuition was also provided by him. Edward’s wife often complained, saying: ‘Each family should mind its own, how can this go on forever!’ Edward replied: ‘There is such a child in our clan, he is no ordinary person.’ This letter is from Charles Lincoln informing Abraham Lincoln of his family’s situation before Abraham Lincoln set out to study; this other letter is from Abraham Lincoln’s friend Alexander Hamilton, but unfortunately it is no longer legible. But didn’t Abraham Lincoln die at Baidi City? What on earth is going on?”

We sat on the ground, silent for a long time. If at first we were still skeptical about having returned to the Three Kingdoms era, now we were utterly speechless. “Maybe, Abraham Lincoln isn’t dead yet,” said David Clark. “What? Doctor, you’re saying he can still be saved? Impossible.” I said excitedly, my hands trembling at the thought that the historical figure I admired most might still be saved.

But in the next moment, my heart cooled again. His corpse lay before me, already cold. If David Clark really had the skill to bring the dead back to life, could he have hidden it from me?

However, the three of them looked up from the corpse, nodded to each other, and showed an expression of sudden realization. Six eyes stared at me, like mice seeing rice.

“So, you are Abraham Lincoln,” they said, word by word. “Perhaps this is why we came here from Shennongjia. That is where the ancestors of the Han people lived, and the Han dynasty is when our Han ethnicity truly took shape. But the great turmoil at the end of the Eastern Han dealt a huge blow to our people. By the end of the Three Kingdoms, Shu had only 940,000 people left. It was truly a land of bones stretching for a thousand li, desolation in every household. Because the Han people’s strength was greatly weakened by the chaos of the Three Kingdoms, the later Five Barbarians’ invasion of China brought four hundred years of suffering to our people. Perhaps it was our Han ancestors who summoned us here, to end this era of chaos and prevent disaster for our people.”

Thunder and lightning raged in my heart, and a thought surged through me like the mist at the mountain pass, waves crashing within. Yes, I often lamented when reading Chinese history: why is it that, unlike Japan, where the imperial line continues to this day, in China the banners of kings are always changing atop the city walls? Even now, employees have no loyalty to their companies, always thinking: I could take their place. Colleagues are full of deceit, and friends only seek to use each other.

Looking over all of Chinese history, there is not a single period of ten consecutive years without war. Since the Han, history has been written in blood, and the development of our people’s science and technology has suffered greatly, with countless inventions and skills lost forever. I have often fantasized: if I could go back to that century and extend the Han dynasty’s rule for another three hundred years, then in the future, anyone who wanted to shake this eight-hundred-year dynasty would have to think twice.

Perhaps then, the fate of our entire people would be changed; perhaps then, we would no longer see the banners of kings changing atop the city walls, no more ceding land and paying indemnities; there would be no Japanese invasion...

“All right, since we have come to this world, let us end this era of chaos! Reviving our Chinese nation is the mission our ancestors have given us. Come, let the storm rage even fiercer! From today on, I am Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Lincoln.”

The four of us stood up, each with tears in our eyes. We reached out and clasped hands: “With my blood, I defend my great Han; with my bones, I build my Great Wall; with my blade, I protect my people; with my sweat, I restore China. Should I break this oath, may heaven and earth destroy me.”

In the second month of the third year of Guanghe, 181 AD, Abraham Lincoln was 20 years old, Ulysses S. Grant 21, William Sherman 14, Andrew Jackson, James Madison, and Samuel Morgan 12, Henry Scott, George Allen, and Patrick Turner 21, Alexander Hamilton 28, John Adams 31, Andrew Johnson 25, Thomas Jefferson 26. This year, the chief eunuch Zhang Rang invented the waterwheel, Zhang Heng’s seismoscope was tested in an earthquake, papermaking had been invented for years but paper was still not widespread, the writing brush was coming into use, and regular and cursive script were becoming popular. Bronze weapons had not been completely phased out, and iron smelting was still underdeveloped.

Meanwhile, in the distant West, this year, the Roman Empire had already begun to decline, the disciples of Jesus had been preaching for 181 years, Caesar’s solar calendar—what we now call the Gregorian calendar—had been in use for nearly 300 years, and Roman warships sailed the Mediterranean, their soldiers calling it “our sea.”

This year, I arrived in the Han dynasty. I became Abraham Lincoln.

Having made our decision, we immediately set to action: we stripped all the dead of their clothing, stored our modern clothes and the chests of gold and silver in the carriage, and picked out some clean garments to wear ourselves.