They were two horses, their hoofbeats urgent yet rhythmic—these were not wild horses running. Edward Carter felt blood rush to his head, grabbed his entrenching tool, and dashed like the wind toward the woods, hacking through weeds, chopping down shrubs, startling countless birds into flight. Buddy stayed far away, unable to understand what madness had seized his master and big brother.

By the time Edward Carter, panting heavily, chopped down the last shrub, the sound of hooves had already faded into the distance. Watching the dust settle on the yellow earth road, Edward Carter burst out laughing. Tears and snot smeared his face, but he didn’t care at all. He threw himself onto the yellow earth and began to cry loudly.

This was the trace of human civilization, winding into the distance, running parallel to the Yellow River. Edward Carter was certain this was the main road connecting to Lanzhou—now perhaps called the Chidao. Just now, two ancient people had ridden past on horseback. Edward Carter felt strange; though he had seen many ancients before, they were mummies and dried corpses—even the famous Lady Xin Zhui from Mawangdui was nothing special!

The afternoon sunlight shone on the deserted ancient road, making it seem tranquil and desolate. To Edward Carter, it was a road leading to the unknown—one step to heaven, one step to hell.

Edward Carter found signs of human habitation. Yet, at the moment of returning to the world of people, he hesitated. Heaven or hell? Should he take this step? In this world, he was a person who did not exist, like a pool of water—if a stone were thrown in, would the ripples drown him? The unknown was terrifying. Knowing nothing about this world, he felt a great fear arise within him.

Sweat poured down his face, dripping from his chin. Buddy stretched his head over and licked the sweat from him, as if to comfort him.

Standing by the river, he carefully washed away the filth from his body with river water. His clothes were tattered beyond repair after nearly a month of crawling and rolling about, now barely enough to cover himself. Still, he cleaned them and tied them to his body. Fortunately, his backpack was made of soft cowhide and was undamaged. Seeing Buddy covered in mud, he washed him as well. The icy river water poured over them, and Buddy neighed happily.

Striding along the yellow earth road, it no longer mattered where he was going—following this main road, he would eventually see signs of people. The footprints, hoofprints, and wheel ruts on the road grew denser and denser; he believed he was getting closer to a village or city. The panic in his heart was long gone—when the time comes, one must be bold.

Turning past a meadow, he heard the noise of people. Looking in the direction of the sound, he saw a dozen or so ox carts forming a circle by the roadside, each cart flying a flag with a large Tang character fluttering in the wind. Edward Carter's heart skipped a beat. As expected, he had returned to the Tang Dynasty, but had no idea who the emperor was.

Edward Carter watched these ancients with great interest. Their blue robes reached the knees, with hemp trousers, ox-ear hemp shoes on their feet, and their hair tied high in a bun, temporarily fixed with a wooden stick. Was this the attire of commoners? A few wore leather armor, sabers at their waists, looking imposing. The bearded man in the lead saw Edward Carter peeking from the side and strode toward him, gripping his saber.

“You little Qiang brat, daring to rob a grain cart—what nerve!” As he spoke, the gleaming saber was drawn, ready to strike.

Great! A familiar Guanzhong accent. Edward Carter quickly backed away, waving his hands wildly, and blurted out in Shaanxi dialect, “Brave sir, who are you calling a Qiang? You’ve got the wrong person!”

The man didn’t let go of his saber, holding it in midair, his eyes full of suspicion. “Huh, a Guanzhong kid—how did you end up in Longyou? Where are your elders?”

“No elders. My master passed away. I came out of the mountains alone—just me.”

The man sheathed his saber, scrutinized Edward Carter from head to toe, even came up close to sniff him. “No smell of sheep—he’s from Guanzhong. What’s a kid like you running around for?”

“What if you run into wolves?”

Buddy, seeing the man grabbing onto Edward Carter, wouldn’t have it. He opened his mouth to bite. The man let go, dodged with his left hand, and with lightning speed grabbed Buddy's jaw with his right. Buddy yelped in pain. The man laughed heartily, let go, patted Buddy on the back, and called out, “Good horse!”

The other men, seeing Edward Carter and Buddy in such a sorry state, also burst out laughing. Buddy, afraid of strangers, hid behind Edward Carter and peeked at them. The bearded man also looked at Edward Carter. Seeing his clothes torn to rags by branches and thorns—though tattered, they were finely made, of a strange style, the material neither quite hemp nor not, definitely not ordinary. Noticing Edward Carter's delicate features, fair skin, and slender hands, it was obvious he was not from a common family. The leather boots on his feet looked odd, but fit well. The man couldn’t help but regret his earlier rudeness, so he softened his tone: “Young master, where are you headed?”

“Since childhood, I lived deep in the mountains with my mentor. Not long ago, my master passed away. After keeping vigil for three months, a flash flood destroyed my home, so I had no choice but to come down the mountain. Unexpectedly, I ran into a pack of wolves at the foot, barely escaped, and ended up like this. I’ve decided to head for Chang’an. I hope, sir, you can tell me how far it is to Lanzhou.”

“Lanzhou is less than sixty li from here. With your build and an injured horse, it’ll take you two days.”

“Brothers, where are you transporting grain to? What year is it now? I lost track of time in the mountains—please tell me.”

“Foolish master, foolish disciple—don’t even know His Majesty ascended the throne last year. Remember, it’s the second year of Zhenguan now. As for where the grain is going, that’s military business.” The man answered Edward Carter's question with disdain, as if everyone in the world should know that his great emperor, Li Er, ascended the throne last year.