Gao Yiye shouted angrily, "This man refuses to speak the Emperor's name. Tianzun is displeased. Everyone, grab your weapons and teach him a lesson."
Gao Chuwu reacted first. He seized a thick wooden club without hesitation, while the other young men tightened their grip on whatever sticks and poles they had nearby. One after another, the villagers began scrambling for weapons.
Under the fading light of the setting sun, a large crowd quickly gathered. Some held earthenware pots, others raised hoes, table legs, or carrying poles. The assortment was crude and uneven, yet in such numbers, it formed a frightening sight.
San Shier's face instantly turned pale.
Before anyone could strike, he cried out in panic, "Zhu Youxiao. Zhu Youxiao. The current Emperor's name is Zhu Youxiao."
At that moment, he no longer cared about the taboo against speaking the Emperor's personal name. As the saying went, the mountains were high and the Emperor was far away. Imperial authority rarely reached remote villages like this. Survival came first. Customs and taboos meant nothing if his life was at stake. In his terror, he even forgot his usual habit of embellishing his speech with four-character idioms.
"Tsk. So it really is Zhu Youxiao."
Li Daoxuan's expression darkened slightly.
"Yiye, ask him about the state of the realm."
Gao Yiye immediately relayed the question.
Surrounded by villagers clutching crude weapons, San Shier was thoroughly terrified. He did not fully understand what she meant by the state of the realm, but in his desperation, he recalled a government notice he had seen at the county yamen and began reciting it word for word.
"On the eleventh day of the fifth month, the Manchu army besieged Jinzhou. The imperial court dispatched reinforcements. On the twenty-eighth day, the Manchu forces split and attacked Ningyuan again. Governor Yuan Chonghuan, together with Eunuch Liu Yingkun and Vice Commissioner Bi Zisu, directed the defense from the city walls. Cannons were deployed, and the enemy was repelled."
He hesitated for a moment when he saw the villagers staring at him in confusion.
His heart pounded violently in his chest. Their weapons were still raised. No one had relaxed.
He swallowed and forced himself to continue.
"General Man Gui, along with You Shilu and Zu Dashou, led troops to reinforce the city. Fierce fighting broke out beyond the walls. Both sides suffered heavy casualties. General Man Gui was struck by several arrows. The Manchu army eventually withdrew and returned to reinforce their assault on Jinzhou. However, they were unable to capture the city and later retreated due to the summer heat."
He stopped.
Cold sweat streamed down his back.
He could not remember anything else.
His thoughts spiraled into despair.
It's over. I can't remember any more. If they aren't satisfied, they'll beat me to death.
He felt like a man hanging by a thread.
In truth, what he had said was already enough.
Li Daoxuan now understood completely.
The miniature world inside the box was not some fictional realm or alternate dimension.
It was the Great Ming.
And not just any period, but the late Ming, during its most desperate and fragile years.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
The poverty of Gao Family Village. The villagers' hunger. Their fragile lives.
This was the reality of the late Ming Dynasty.
He had read about it in history books before, but words on a page could never fully convey its weight. Only by seeing it with his own eyes could he truly grasp how harsh life had been.
"That's enough," Li Daoxuan said calmly. "Stop frightening him. I've learned what I needed to know. He looks exhausted and starving. Give him something to eat."
With that, his attention shifted away from the box entirely.
He turned to his computer, opened his browser, and searched for information about the late Ming Dynasty. One page led to another. Battles, famines, political struggles, and endless turmoil filled his screen.
He sank into history without noticing the passage of time.
Meanwhile, after Gao Yiye conveyed Tianzun's will, the villagers immediately lowered their weapons. They bowed respectfully toward the sky before dispersing and returning to their homes.
San Shier finally released a shaky breath.
He had survived.
These villagers were truly strange. All of them obeyed this young girl without question. And this girl, in his eyes, looked no different from the fraudulent spirit mediums who claimed to speak on behalf of gods.
Could this be some kind of cult, like the White Lotus Society?
Such thoughts made his heart uneasy. But he did not dare show it. Survival came first. He bowed toward the sky as well, imitating the others, even though he had no idea which deity he was bowing to.
There was no shame in bowing if it meant staying alive.
"Come with me," Gao Yiye said. "I'll get you something to eat."
San Shier nodded quickly and followed behind her.
After walking a few steps, curiosity got the better of him.
"Miss... your village worships a deity, does it not? Which immortal do you serve?"
"I don't know," Gao Yiye replied simply.
San Shier froze.
"You don't know?"
He had never heard of worshippers who did not know the name of their own deity.
Gao Yiye answered calmly, "Tianzun is Tianzun. Tianzun has never revealed a divine name, and we would never dare to ask. We only know that Tianzun possesses boundless power and a benevolent heart. Tianzun has protected our village and saved our lives."
San Shier scoffed inwardly.
Ignorant villagers were easily deceived.
He had studied the classics of the sages. He would not be fooled so easily.
By then, they had already arrived at Gao Yiye's home.
She pushed open the wooden door and gestured inside.
"Please sit. I'll prepare some food."
San Shier stepped inside.
Then he froze.
In the corner of the room stood an enormous pile of white rice.
Each grain was as large as a millstone.
Beside it leaned a fragment of cabbage leaf, easily as tall as a wall.
Gao Yiye casually picked up a few broken rice grains and tore off a small piece of the massive cabbage leaf. She placed them into a bamboo basket and carried them into the kitchen.
San Shier stood there in stunned silence.
His mind struggled to comprehend what he had just seen.
What kind of rice was this?
What kind of cabbage was this?
What kind of village was this?
He was not an ignorant man.
He had read books. He understood the world.
Yet at this moment, his understanding crumbled.
He believed in the existence of gods, but he had never witnessed something like this.
After several long seconds, he rushed to the kitchen entrance.
"Which immortal bestowed this food upon you?" he asked urgently.
"I already told you," Gao Yiye replied. "I don't know."
San Shier stared at her in disbelief.
"You never asked? How can you serve as a divine messenger without even knowing the deity's name? When the time comes to build a temple, what will you enshrine?"
Gao Yiye blinked.
"You're right," she said thoughtfully. "Scholars truly think more carefully."
She tilted her head upward and called out toward the sky.
"Tianzun. Tianzun. How should we address your divine title?"
The sky remained silent.
No answer came.
Li Daoxuan was still immersed in his research, completely unaware of her voice.
After waiting for a moment, Gao Yiye lowered her head and shrugged.
"Tianzun does not wish to say."
San Shier could only stand there, stunned.
"Huh?"