Chu Yan came out of the manor and strolled around the capital. The capital is rectangular in structure and the Dong Manor is located in the northern part of the capital. It is divided into five parts; east, west, south, north, and central districts respectively. In the north, there are government halls for civil and military examinations. So, anyone who wants to become a government official has to take exams in these halls. There is also an Imperial Ancestral Shrine in the northern part. It is said that the Emperor would come and pay respects to his ancestors every year. There is also an inn in the north region.

After looking around the north area, he went to the eastern part. There are some ancestral shrines in this area. There is a large water pond in the middle of the district and there are some lotus flowers in the pond. There is a graveyard located at the corner of the city. There are some businesses that rent equipment for the funeral. You can hire some ritual exorcists from that place as well.

And the south of the capital is mostly made up of residential areas. There are some shrines and several Daoist abbeys as well.

The western part is the busiest part of the city. There is a West Market where you could find all the merchants from many countries including Persia, Rome, and Goguryeo. You can find all kinds of beverages, pastries, and other products from western countries. There are also high-quality ginsengs from Goguryeo. Cang’an is the eastern terminal of the Silk Road, so there is no surprise that you could find many merchants from different countries. There are several inns in this district.

Finally, he went to the central part. The central part is where the Imperial Palace is located. The high ranking officials are allowed to stay in the central part as well. There are also schools and academies in the central part. They teach law, politics, war, mathematics, calligraphy, Confucianism, Daoism, etc. He saw many young scholars coming in and out of these academies.

Then he went to take a look at the Imperial Palace. The two main palaces are called Weiyang Palace and Changle Palace. Weiyang means that “something has not reached the middle” and the meaning of Changle is “Perpetual happiness”. So when you combine the two meanings, it becomes “The perpetual happiness has not even reached the midpoint yet”. Changle Palace is also called East Palace and it is the place where the Empress Dowager resides. Weiyang Palace is the West Palace where the Emperor meets up with his ministers and generals. There is also Gui Palace where the harem of the Emperor resides. Nevertheless, the palace is off-limits to the commoners. In his previous life, Chu Yan read some facts about the Weiyang Palace that it is 11 times larger than the size of Vatican City.

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It was already noon when he finished looking around the capital. He just went to the western part of the city and then rented a room at an inn. After that, he began to think about what he needed to do next. When he was having his dinner, he heard some people in the inn are talking.

“I heard that Wang Mang has come back to the capital.”

“Oh, really? How come?”

“I heard that Wang Mang has many connections so, the Emperor is under pressure. He had no choice but to call Wang Mang back.”

Then the two men spoke quietly. But Chu Yan was near them, so he could hear what they were speaking about.

“The court might be in turmoil again.”

“Yeah, Emperor Wang was indecisive, previous Emperor Cheng is prodigal and the current Emperor is too much in love that he doesn’t really care about the state affairs.”

Chu Yan pondered about it.

‘I remembered that Wang Mang would usurp the throne later on. His rule lasted for like 10 years or so. I’m not really sure and I don’t remember much about this era.

Anyway, I don’t want to get involved in these politics. I want to take a look at how the ancient Chinese people live. I want to go to Suzhou and look at the condition of my hometown 2000 years ago.’

Chu Yan was born and raised in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province of modern China. Even though he did lead a boring life before, he still had some feelings for his hometown and he wanted to go there and see it. So, he went to the Inn Owner and inquired him.

“Are there any transports from the capital to Suzhou….oh, I mean Wu in Yangzhou?”

“If you ride a fast horse, it might take you 15 to 20 days to reach there but if you travel with the carriage, it might take twice the time of riding a horse.”

Chu Yan does not really know how to ride a horse so; he had to travel with a carriage. Then he inquired.

“Where can I rent a carriage?”

“At the end of this street, there is a place where you could rent carriages.”

“Thank you”

At that time, Chu Yan got a stomach ache so he asked the boss.

“Boss, where is the toilet?”

“Oh, it’s at the back of the inn, near the pigsty.”

When Chu Yan went there and opened the toilet door, his face became dark. He went back to the boss and asked again.

“There is only a wooden bucket in there. And it’s very smelly!”

“You just need to excrete into there. Why do I need to explain this basic stuff?”

“Huh? So, how should I wipe my butt after I finish my business?”

“Just use this.”

Then the boss handed him a stick. It was a shit stick made of bamboo!

In ancient times, people either took the excretion to feed the pig or threw them away into the river. When they go to the toilet, they use these shit sticks to clean themselves!

Chu Yan wanted to cry but had no tears. He suddenly missed the toilet bowl and toilet paper of the modern age!