Yangzhoun turned out to be the largest city he had seen so far. Although, he hadn’t seen many.

Once the carriage arrived at its customary spot near the stables, the riders stepped out of the carriage. Dahe looked around, a smile on his face. He didn’t care if he looked like a bumpkin, he was enjoying the new sights.

Dahe decided to spend some time in Yangzhoun before reporting to the prince. His travel time had taken him only about a week, plus the week he spent tidying up his affairs, so he still had a month left to report. He’d take a look around and see what interesting things were available. Perhaps he’d start a few trends here.

By word of mouth, he found a quiet, calm boarding house that was actually well-kept, clean and beautiful. It seemed like it was used by men of high status who wanted to be away from people.

Dahe went up to the clerk and asked for a room.

The clerk bowed to him. “We do have rooms available sir. And how long would you like to stay?”

“Well, I suppose I’ll start with a week. I might extend, or not.”

“Understood sir. Would you mind signing our register?”

“Of course not.”

And with a flowing hand he had practiced quite often, in his mind if not in reality, he wrote out Dahe Feng Ji. Not thinking of hiding himself, no one was looking for him. Not even the prince knew his name. For that he carried a letter from the Sect Leader.

“That’s an interesting name sir. What may I ask about sir's profession?”

Dahe paused, tilting his head back and forth. Saving the world wouldn’t be an appropriate answer. “Well, weaver, really.” It was true. He made most of his money from his tapestries. The light flickered in the clerk’s eyes.

“Are you the Dahe Feng Ji who makes tapestries?”

“Well, I do make tapestries.” The clerk rushed around to greet him. “Oh sir. It is a great honor to meet you. I have managed to see a few of your works. Such vision. Such beauty. I was overwhelmed.”

“Thank you.” Dahe felt a bit puzzled, “but I may not be the Dahe you’re talking about.”

Then again, Dahe certainly was a unique name. He would know, he’d made it up.

“Did you not weave the tapestry ‘Lower View of Trees’?”

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Dahe nodded. He had laid down in the forest one day, thought the canopy looked interesting and decided to weave it.

It turned out to be a bit of a hit. “Ah, Sir Dahe, your influence has started a revolution among tapestries. There have even been people referring to this style as the Dahe style.”

Dahe nodded, uncomfortable about starting a new art phase. However, it wasn’t really technology so it should get a pass. Plus the goddess probably knew about this before him, so if she hasn’t mentioned it before now, then it should be fine.

“Thank you.” He nodded politely to the clerk.

“Oh it is my pleasure. I don’t often get to meet an Artist of your stature. Perhaps, you are here to create another work?”

“Ah, not quite. I am here to relax and take in the sights. But I suppose one never knows when inspiration will strike.”

The clerk who was previously looking disappointed, now had a smile on his face. “Don’t worry Sir Dahe. This place is beautiful. I’m sure you’ll have inspiration in no time.”

The clerk asked about his preference for a room, and Dahe responded that he would prefer quiet with a view of greenery. The clerk was able to arrange such a room, deeper into the complex.

Arriving the clerk held the door open for him, bowing, smiling and gesturing for him to enter first. The suite looked comfortable, not overly large, but big enough. There were tall trees at the edge, forming a border between inside and outside. Plenty of grass and flowers were around and there was even a nice pond with colorful fish.

Dahe gave the clerk a small bow, who was obviously delighted by this, and thanked the clerk. The clerk reminded him to call should there be anything he needed or desired, and shut the door. He sat down on the small porch looking out at the flowers. The complex was planned quite well. After looking closely, Dahe noticed there were other porches, but they seemed to hide from sight.

He walked back into the small central room, sat on the floor and propped himself up into a position that suggested energy gathering. After moving into his mental palace, he went to his office and started to make a list of where he wanted to go, what he wanted to see, and what he wanted to buy.

After considering his lists, he considered and then added ‘game’ to the top of the to-do list. He’d need to find a carpenter to help him.

Then it was break time. He went to his library. All the books he had bought previously were here. He was able to scan them into his mind by looking at each page for less than a second. He even wound up donating most of the books to the sect library, which had earned him plenty of sect points.

Stretching out on a lounger, he selected a book and began reading about a kingdom that was now lost. With his job, he might have to go there in the future. So it was better to have some knowledge.

Later, Dahe looked up at the window hovering by his side. It showed the time of day of the real world. It seemed it was getting dark. He left his mind, and went to the dining area to see what they had for dinner. He was pleasantly surprised by the variety. It was better than he was expecting. The cooking emphasized natural flavors. While eating, he was able to question the staff about a local carpenter. They were even able to provide a map of shops and stores similar to the one from Binyi.

He could tell some of the other guests wanted to talk to him but none did so. Even though they were glancing at him occasionally, he was grateful no one introduced themself to him. It was surprising to find out he’d become somewhat well-known.

After returning to his room, he put his body to bed and spent the night reading.

The next morning, after a satisfactory breakfast, he headed on his way to the carpenter.