Chapter 1

I was once an emperor. You might not believe it.

At first, I firmly believed it. Later, my confidence wavered. Because everyone around me said I was sick.

I knew I wasn't sick, but after so many people said it, I believed I really was sick, and not just a little.

It all stemmed from the dream I once had.

In that dream, I clearly remembered that I was at a Taoist temple called Mingdao Palace, where I accidentally lost my footing and fell into the Nine Dragon Well.

Before falling, I was Prince Kang, an emperor, fleeing south in a panic with a group of ministers, soldiers, and concubines.

Ahead was the Great River, and behind were pursuing soldiers.

Bianliang, I didn't want it, I left it behind. Huaibei, I didn't want it either, I also left it behind. Even Jiangbei, I could give it all up. As long as the Jin soldiers couldn't catch me, as long as I didn't end up like my father and brother, captured and sent north.

Fleeing was hard, but fleeing and fleeing, I got used to it after a long time.

As for the half of the country I left behind, those Song citizens who lost their homes, alas, I wanted to take them south with me, but their feet couldn't outrun the Jin cavalry. They could only pray for their own good fortune. Taking them would be a burden, it would only affect my escape speed, I might not be able to escape at all.

That wouldn't do, so, without a trace of attachment, I traveled light, discarding all baggage. I knew that as long as I escaped Huaibei, crossed the Great River, it didn't matter if I lost everything north of the river, I could still hold on in the south of the Yangtze.

Half a country was still a country.

Unfortunately, one wrong step leads to eternal regret. That damned imperial guard, that damned senior captain, were nowhere to be found when I needed them most.

With my temper, I would have beheaded that Yang something-or-other. As for that senior captain, I forgot his name. After all, it's been too long, some people, some things, are no longer as clear as they once were.

I fled during the day, and at night I fled at the slightest sign of trouble. I fled so hard, I fled in the dark for so long, the skill of fleeing had been deeply engraved in my bones, becoming a kind of instinctive reaction. I was about to escape to the south of the Yangtze, I was about to see the light of dawn –

Damn it, I fell into a well. Fate played a joke on me, a big one.

Actually, falling into a well wasn't so scary, what was scary was not having anyone around when you fell.

Not having anyone around wasn't so important, as long as the well wasn't too deep.

The well was shallow. But I felt like I was falling for a long time...

Darkness caught up with me before the Jin soldiers' iron hooves did.

I plunged into boundless darkness again before dawn arrived.

That darkness, it was really tmd dark!

Chapter 2

I just felt a splitting headache. I hadn't even opened my eyes before shouting, "Senior captain..."

But that eunuch-like, flattering voice didn't respond as it usually did.

Instead, I heard a woman's exclamation, "Son, you're finally awake, you scared Mom to death..."

I reluctantly opened my eyes. My eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness, but it was so bright, so bright that I couldn't adapt for a moment.

This must be a hallucination, yes, it must be a hallucination. I rubbed my eyes, wanting to drive away this damn hallucination.

But my left hand was being held tightly by someone.

My heart sank.

Then, a drop of warm liquid landed on my face.

I opened my eyes again, wanting to scold the audacious person who dared to hold my hand.

Then, I saw her, a middle-aged woman, slowly becoming clearer in my eyes, from blurry to clear. She looked at me with concern, her eyes full of tears.

But I was very angry, there were always troublemakers trying to harm me!

I was about to reprimand her, but I caught sight of her hairstyle, her clothes. There were no hairpins on her head, she must be a commoner. But what was with those strange clothes? At that moment, my brain went "buzz," blank.

I stared at her blankly, but my heart was churning: Who is this? Where is this? What does she want?

Everything around me was so strange, not just this strangely dressed woman.

I swallowed the suspicion that was about to come out of my mouth.

Although there were a million Ferghana horses galloping through my heart, "The Emperor's Self-Cultivation" told me that at this moment, even if Mount Tai collapsed before me, I had to pretend to be calm and collected.

The safest way to deal with this was to not respond, not refuse, not speak, and observe more.

That commoner woman was talking on and on, her lips moving constantly. But the sound disappeared from my ears.

Then, I saw a woman wearing a white hat and a white coat also standing by my bed.

They were communicating with each other, I clearly heard every word they said, but I sadly realized that I couldn't understand a single word...

But, I slowly understood.

This was no longer the Song Dynasty.

And I was no longer the emperor who only knew how to run away.

Chapter 3

A few days later, I was discharged from the hospital.

The handwriting on the discharge summary was flamboyant, like Zhang Xu's "Four Calligraphic Sketches" that I once collected. Like water stains on a wall, like hairpin scratches. I, who had practiced calligraphy and painting since I was a child, wrote in a style that, while not as good as my father, was unique. Everyone who saw it praised it.

The characters in "Four Calligraphic Sketches," though ethereal and graceful, like swimming dragons, I could barely understand, but this so-called doctor's advice, I couldn't understand at all.

The female doctor was explaining something to that commoner woman, I vaguely heard words like "mania" and "amnesia."

Before leaving, the female doctor glanced at me and said softly to the middle-aged woman: Don't forget to make your son take his medicine.

The commoner woman took me home. So, I not only gained a mom, but also a dad. They always hovered around me, taking care of me in every possible way. As for me, I always stared at them blankly, expressionless.

This world amazed me, dazzled me.

I gradually indulged in it.

Time passed day by day.

I personally sat on the toilet and learned how to go to the bathroom.

I personally took a bath, covering my body with foam, and then rinsing it off.

I personally brushed my teeth, baring my teeth and grinning.

I watched TV...

I played with my phone...

I forgot I was once an emperor.

I was happy and forgot my homeland.

Until one day, I completely integrated into this world.

Facing that commoner woman, I called out, "Mom..."

She burst into tears of joy.

Chapter 4

I always felt like someone was following me.

This made me very uncomfortable.

At first, I was a little nervous.

Sometimes, I would be walking down the street and suddenly turn around, wanting to see who was following me. But every time I came up empty.

That gaze was like a snake. I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles.

Later, I got used to that gaze, just like I got used to no longer being an emperor. Since I couldn't get rid of it, I might as well pretend it didn't exist.

But I still wanted to say goodbye to the past. It all started with that well, so let everything from the past, or rather, everything from the dream, end with that well too.

I stepped into that classical garden.

The garden was full of ancient trees, blocking out the sky and the sun.

There were few visitors, and the occasional birdsong could be heard in my ears.

I walked towards the Nine Dragon Well.

I was only a dozen meters away from the well.

Suddenly, an old Taoist in blue robes and a wooden hairpin came out from behind some tree, blocking my way.

The old Taoist had a weathered face and white hair, he didn't speak, he just turned slightly, pointing the horsetail whisk in his hand at a white sign with red characters.

It read: Men and dogs not allowed.

In the end, I couldn't stand in front of the Nine Dragon Well to mourn my past, the old Taoist followed me like a shadow, polite but stubborn.

I stepped out of the gate of the Taoist garden, and after walking a hundred or so steps, I looked back, the old Taoist bowed slightly, as if to see me off.

I never saw that old Taoist again. I never went to that Taoist garden again.

I have a grave in my heart, burying that un-dead man.