Time-Traveling Love

“Her attire is strange, she doesn’t look like she’s from our dynasty,” Yue’er’s grandfather concluded, waving his hand to quiet everyone down. “My dynasty? This place is called my dynasty?” Xu Caitong asked in astonishment. “No, this place is called Moon Village, named after the Moon River. Moon Village is just a small corner of the vast royal land.” “Royal land?” Xu Caitong asked, puzzled. “Exactly. It is now the first year of Guangshun.” “First year of Guangshun? The first year of Guangshun of the Later Zhou Dynasty?” Xu Caitong jumped up. She had studied history and knew that the first year of Guangshun was when Guo Wei usurped the throne during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. Xu Caitong stood there, mouth agape, as if struck dumb. Had she traveled back over a thousand years in time? How did she end up here? In the Five Dynasties, over a thousand years ago, heavens! Xu Caitong remembered standing on her balcony at home, gazing at the moon. That night, the moonlight was beautiful, so beautiful it inspired countless thoughts. Suddenly, a beam of light from the moon shone upon Xu Caitong, so bright it almost blinded her. When she adjusted to the light, she saw a path within it, winding all the way up to the moon. The surrounding houses had all receded, leaving only this luminous path before her. Was this a celestial anomaly? Without thinking, Xu Caitong shook her head, rubbed her eyes, and gently slapped her face to confirm it wasn’t just a hallucination; she was dumbfounded. She saw a valiant general on the moon, sword in hand, clad in armor, riding a sleek black horse, disappearing into the distance. Who was he? Were there people on the moon? What was she witnessing? Why was tonight’s moon so strange, with a general on it? Was the path of light really a path? Could she walk that path to meet that general? Driven by curiosity, Xu Caitong decided to find out for herself and stepped onto the path to the moon. Standing on that path, she no longer doubted it was her imagination; it was indeed a path, one that felt solid under her feet. She knew that by following this path, she could reach the full moon and find the general. Without hesitation, she began to walk forward slowly. Eventually, she stood high upon the full moon but did not see the general. The moonlight enveloped Xu Caitong, and as she looked around, a river shimmering with silver light suddenly appeared before her. The Moon River! She was now standing by the Moon River, having traveled back over a thousand years to the Five Dynasties. She was lost in the time tunnel, convinced she was indeed lost in time. Time tunnels, a topic many scientists were researching, but who had truly experienced one? Although scientists believed in the existence of time tunnels and presented evidence, further research was still needed…