As I leaf through the book in front of me for the umpteenth time in recent days, I continue with the task I have set myself of trying to remember all the texts I have read in my previous life.

  Over the last month, I have investigated what happened to me while I was studying the text, but not only have I failed to get back into that state, but what I thought was hypermnesia is not actually that, it is something else that I cannot understand.

  I have discovered that my new memory works perfectly with the text I have read or the conversations I have heard since that day onwards. However, I have realized that little by little I am remembering the books and texts I read previously, as well as everything I have heard regardless of its source, which sometimes makes me feel strange, like when I randomly remember the voices from a movie but I am unable to recall the image of that scene, or a conversation but I can't remember who I had it with.

  And that's what I've been busy with the last few days, since the supposed education worthy of my blessing that my unreliable tutor was going to create has boiled down to giving me one book after another on character and radical comprehension for me to memorize while he devotes himself to reading one book after another at his desk.

  Bored with the book in front of me, I close it and resolve that if I want to understand more about the world I'm in, I'm going to have to take my education into my own hands. At least, considering the customs of Xueshi Wenxue , I doubt he'll mind as long as I let him read in peace.

  Looking over at Lianhua, I motion for her to come closer, so she gets up and approaches the table where I am.

  "What do you want, Zhāohuán Wen?" she asks me in the usual formal tone she always uses with me.

  "I want you to ask the librarians for a book that explains what the world is like”, I say to Lianhua in a low voice so that Xueshi Wenxue can't hear me.

  "What do you mean by that, Zhāohuán Wen?" she asks me, also in a low voice, with a confused look on her face, as if she doesn't quite understand what I mean.

  "A book that tells me, for example, where our empire is, whether we are on an island or a continent. One that tells me if there are other land masses and how big they are”, I tell Lianhua, crossing my fingers that the books I've been made to read so far will serve as an excuse for such specific questions and that any discrepancies will be attributed to my Blessing.

  Then another thought occurs to me, and I ask “And if there's a map, bring it for me to see."

  Lianhua looks at me as she narrows her eyes for a second as if thinking about something, and for a moment I worry, but then she seems to return to normal and asks me “Shouldn't you ask Xueshi Wenxue that?"

  I glance sideways at my unreliable tutor, who continues to pore over his books, and reply to Lianhua “Leave it for now. I will continue my education with whatever he assigns me to study, but I want to read other, more interesting things among his assignments."

  Lianhua also glances sideways at Xueshi Wenxue and says to me “I don't think there's a problem with the book, Zhāohuán Wen, but the maps are strictly controlled and can only be accessed by special request."

  I was hoping it would be different here, but it seems that the custom of maps being military resources is universal, whether in my old world or this one, so I reply to Lianhua “Then it doesn't matter, the book is enough."

  "Understood. I'll be right back, Zhāohuán Wen”, Lianhua replies, after which I see her heading towards one of the ubiquitous librarians who are always around us, I imagine making sure we don't damage the books.

  Looking in Lianhua's direction, I see that she seems to be arguing quietly with one of the librarians. Although I can't hear what they're saying, their gestures are quite eloquent. Lianhua points at me from time to time, as if to emphasize some important point. The librarian seems reluctant at first, but after a while, he nods and walks away. Soon after, he returns with a rather thick book, which he hands to Lianhua. She approaches me with a triumphant expression and hands me the book.

  "I hope this book will be useful to you, Zhāohuán Wen”, Lianhua says as she places the book on the table in front of me.

  "Thank you, Lianhua”, I reply, opening the book with curiosity. The title, written in elegant characters, promises a complete description of the world.

  As I begin to read, the words in the book begin to reveal the structure of this new world to me. It consists of a central continent surrounded by four other continents, which are named, with a surprising lack of originality, North, South, East, and West. Although the book mentions the existence of these continents, it does not provide much information about them, focusing instead on the Eastern continent, which is where the Tianjing Empire, where I am located, is found.

  The Tianjing Empire is located on the eastern edge of the Eastern continent, at the furthest point from the central continent. As I read this, I look up at Lianhua, who is sitting next to me. "Did you know that our empire is at the far end of the continent?" I ask her.

  "Yes, Zhāohuán Wen”, she replies seriously. "Although it's not something everyone knows. Commoners don't usually know anything beyond their place of origin and the few towns or cities around them."

  I nod and continue reading. The book describes how the Tianjing Empire is surrounded by various sects, as well as how there is only one sect called the Celestial Sun Sect within its borders, although it does not explain in detail what these sects are. The only thing it mentions is that they are an important part of the region's political and social landscape. I pause for a moment to reflect on this and ask “Lianhua, do you know what sects are exactly?"

  "Sects are very influential organizations that come together to pursue certain goals”, Lianhua explains. "They are very influential and have their own system of government and internal rules. Some are peaceful and focus on study and meditation, while others can be quite belligerent."

  "Interesting”, I murmur, turning my attention back to the book. It goes on to describe the empire closest to ours, the Zhao Empire, which lies south of the Tianjing Empire. However, it doesn't provide much information beyond its existence and a brief mention of a few border towns.

  After reading the entire book, two things strike me. The first is the scale of distances. If the measurements are the same as those in my old world's China, this continent alone is as large as all of Eurasia. And there are three other similar continents and an even larger central continent, not including the oceans. This means that this world could be four or five times larger than Earth.

  I pause for a moment to process this, and it makes me wonder if the gravity is the same as in my old world, since I have nothing to compare it to and my new body is surely acclimated to this world.

  I look at Lianhua and ask her to clarify the distances a little more "Lianhua, how long does it take to walk from one city to another?"

  Lianhua seems to think for a moment before answering “From the capital to the city of Xining, which is the closest, if someone without cultivation walks, it can easily take about seven days."

  That surprises me. In a society without fast transportation methods, cities tend to be closer together, both for smooth trade and due to the scarcity of unclaimed land. But the fact that it is so far away implies that there is not much competition for land with the other empire or with the sects, so the size of the world and the distances may not be so far from my guesses.

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  But something Lianhua said catches my attention, so I ask her “You said uncultivated. Could someone take less time to get there on foot?"

  "Someone with the right level of cultivation would take much less time, obviously”, Lianhua replies, but seeing that I'm about to ask something else, she guesses what I'm going to ask and hastens to continue. "But I can't tell you anything else at the moment as I don't have permission, Zhāohuán Wen, even what I'm telling you could get me into trouble."

  I stare at Lianhua and ask “Does this have anything to do with what I sometimes hear about Tempering of the Body or Skin Tempering?"

  Lianhua seems to hesitate for a moment but answers my question “Yes, Zhāohuán Wen, but I really can't tell you any more on your mother's orders."

  I sigh loudly to complain about such a blatant concealment of information and reflect for a moment on the second thing that caught my attention when reading the book, which is the repeated mention of the density of Qi on the continents. The book indicates that the location of the Tianjing Empire is a place of low Qi due to its distance from the central continent, and this seems to be related to something called the Celestial Rift.

  "What do you know about the Celestial Rift and Qi?" I ask Lianhua. "Or is it something related to cultivation, and you can't tell me anything at the moment unless my mother gives you permission?"

  Lianhua nods as she replies regretfully “Yes, Zhāohuán Wen, I'm sorry."

  I nod, taking in all this new information. This world is much bigger and more complex than I had imagined. As I close the book, I decide that I need to learn more about Qi, cultivation, and how it affects this world, especially so that what happened to my stepbrother doesn't happen to me.

  "Thank you for getting me this book, Lianhua”, I say. "It has been very enlightening."

  "It's my pleasure, Zhāohuán Wen”, she replies with a nod. "I'm here to help you with anything you need."

  "I know”, I say with a smile. "And I appreciate it very much."

  "But you shouldn't have asked her, Zhāohuán”, a voice suddenly says behind me.

  I turn my head to see Xueshi Wenxue looking at me seriously.

  "Ehhhh”, I exclaim, not quite sure what to say, as I look alternately at Xueshi Wenxue and Lianhua, feeling like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

  "Don't blame your nanny, Zhāohuán. While you were concentrating on reading the book, I let her know to continue with your requests”, Xueshi Wenxue tells me, with a slight smile on the corner of his lips. "Although I would like to know why you didn't ask me for the book, considering that I am your tutor."

  I look at Lianhua for a moment, feeling betrayed for a moment, even though I know I had no choice but to obey Xueshi Wenxue before answering “You were so focused on reading that I didn't want to disturb you, dear tutor."

  "But wasn't it because you wanted to leave me aside for the moment while I continued my education with whatever you sent me while you read more interesting things?" Xueshi Wenxue replies, suddenly revealing that he had heard my entire conversation with Lianhua.

  I start to turn pale as my mind begins to race about the possible consequences of what I had done while Xueshi Wenxue continues to speak “I know it seemed like I wasn't paying attention to what was going on, but you shouldn't make those kinds of assumptions, especially since someone with my level of cultivation can hear you talking as if you were right next to him."

  I start to sweat when I hear the damn word, cultivation, again. I'm missing too much information, and as I've just been shown, because of damn cultivation, any guess I make about anything could be completely wrong.

  "And now that we've finished educating you about a part of cultivation, something that according to your esteemed mother you can't know and no one has told you, why don't you tell me what you expect from me and what kind of education you want to have, since you seem to be so clear about it?" he says as he sits down next to me, staring at me with a smile that sends shivers down my spine.

  I look suspiciously at the wooden board divided into squares and a box full of small rods that Xueshi Wenxue places in front of me as he says “Zhāohuán, as I indicated the other day, I am going to teach you the basics that students at the Guozijian learn when they enter, even though you are still young for that. Since you no longer need to be taught vocabulary or reading, today I'm going to teach you how to count, and depending on how quickly you learn, I can teach you basic arithmetic."

  After his introduction, he starts pointing to the tablet and chopsticks, but as soon as he starts explaining how to count and numbers, I can't help but tune out what he's saying and think I've made a mistake.

  When he caught me studying behind his back a couple of days ago and asked me what I wanted to study, I obviously told him what all children learn when they start school, although he told me that children enter Guozijian at the age of five, but now I'm starting to think that was a mistake. No matter how much I pretend that I learn at an extremely fast pace, I'm going to be stuck taking lessons in math, writing, and probably philosophy if the education is similar to what was given in imperial China.

  I blink as Xueshi Wenxue continues his explanation of how to use the counting rod system, and I can't help but shudder inside. Okay, math in ancient China was very advanced, but come on, they have books, so at least here they could have invented the abacus and not be using the primitive counting rod system.

  "Zhāohuán, are you paying attention?" Xueshi Wenxue suddenly asks me, pulling me out of my thoughts.

  "Yes, Xueshi Wenxue, I was paying attention to your lesson”, I reply, turning my attention back to him.

  He hands me the box of sticks and says “Then start counting to ten, Zhāohuán."

  With resignation, I begin to pick up the rods and place them on the wooden board.

  I sigh as I throw some rice to the ducks in the garden pond in front of our pavilion. It's a place I like to be when I leave my classes at the imperial library to de-stress, so much so that they have long since put a chair here just so I can sit down when I come. Even the ducks are starting to recognize me and come over to beg for some food.

  I'm really starting to get tired of classes. No one who has had to spend almost two years attending classes that teach me practically nothing can understand what I've been through. And the worst part is that I can only speed through all those classes to a certain extent. It's one thing to pretend that I learn abnormally quickly, and another to tell Xueshi Wenxue that he doesn't need to explain anything to me, that I already know almost everything he wants to teach me. I doubt that the explanation of being Blessed by the Heavens can cover that.

  And on top of that, not only are many of the things superfluous to me, but it's even worse for someone who has gone to school in a modern education system, and especially a Western one. Mathematical counting systems with rods, Chinese imperial measurements of both distance and weight, and basic writing. Well, the latter may not be so bad, as it allows me to better analyze the language of this world.

  But the worst part is the texts that are similar to Confucianism and are based on filial piety and respect for elders, where they try to brainwash you into always being loyal to your family and clan, obeying everything the elders tell you, no matter how irrational it may be. If you grow up in this kind of environment, it's something that comes naturally to you and you accept it without question, but for someone like me, all that talk is nothing short of torture.

  My only relief is the history classes about the glorious Tianjing Empire and the Celestial Sun Sect, who created the empire in the first place. Xueshi Wenxue hides things from me, and when I ask him about them, he tells me that because I am so far ahead in my studies, there are things he will not tell me, but at least he tells me things like when the sect was established in these lands, it was little more than a desert wasteland full of beasts. But it grew and grew until the sect's form of management was no longer adequate, and they had to create a kingdom with a ruling family belonging to the sect in order to manage all the lands.

  I wonder how they became an empire, but I haven't gotten to that part yet, so I'll just have to wait.

  And to make matters worse, I have confirmed something that I considered anecdotal at first but has become clearer over time, and that is my tendency toward genuinely childish behavior, beyond when I pretend it on purpose.

  I can only think that my body really affects my mind, like when I was a baby and my instincts drove me to drink from my mother's breast and sleep. And that, although it doesn't worry me right now, since behaving like a child from time to time is not worrying in itself, it is something that is expected of me and means I don't have to be so careful about pretending, presents a terrifying future for me just because of one word.

  Adolescence.

  Just the thought that I'll probably have to go through it again terrifies me, as I only have bad memories of what I now suppose I have to call my first time going through it. I can only hope that being more mature this time around will allow me to make better decisions in the face of the teenage impulses that are sure to come my way.

  I sigh wearily at my depressing thoughts and shake the last grains of rice from my hands as I call Lianhua to pick me up and take me to the room they have set up for me to use as my study, where I plan to take the next step toward improving my quality of life, even if it's only with mathematics. Coming up with a new number system like the Arabic one out of thin air may not be the best idea, but inventing the abacus is still within my capabilities and age.