Sky Curtain: With a vermilion mirror, Jing travels through the modern world, shaking all dynasties.

A few trees stand out abruptly in a wide, rocky area.

Beneath the tree, a lion lay on its side in the grass, its golden-brown mane gleaming in the sunlight like a flowing crown.

Zhu Jingjing's eyes widened, her bright eyes sparkling with excitement.

She had touched the mane of the stone lions on the stone railings of the palace, and had also seen the slightly silly-looking portrait in her father's painting of lions.

But those are all lifeless objects devoid of any spirit!

And this one in front of us is moving!

It opened its gaping maw, yawned widely, lazily raised its head, and stared straight at you with its amber eyes.

Is this a real lion?

"Jingjing, that's a real lion." Jiang Chuan glanced at it and chuckled. "However, our lion king looks completely unmotivated, more like a house cat dozing off on the steps."

As if it had heard Jiang Chuan's provocation, the lion suddenly stood up.

The next second, it opened its enormous mouth—

It was no longer a scream, but rather a muffled thunder from the depths of the earth, piercing straight from the chest to the top of the head, making the car window tremble slightly, as if an invisible hand was gripping the lungs tightly, and even the heartbeat skipped a beat.

Zhu Jingjing's body trembled violently, and she instinctively threw herself into Jiang Chuan's arms: "Brother, is it angry? Will it come and eat Jingjing?"

Jiang Chuan held the steering wheel with one hand and gently patted her back with the other: "Jingjing, don't be afraid. It's just upset that we trespassed into its territory. As long as we don't get close, it won't attack us."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jingjing's tension eased slightly.

She took the binoculars Jiang Chuan handed her and carefully observed the majestic king.

"Brother, its whiskers look so soft! I really want to reach out and ruffle them!" Excitement and curiosity had completely swept away their fear, as if the creature standing against the wind wasn't a lion, but someone's big dog. "Oh dear, those whiskers under its mouth are shiny, could they be covered in saliva?"

Jiang Chuan chuckled and reminded her at the right moment, "Jingjing, don't forget, no matter how excited you are, you're not allowed to touch the car windows or open the doors."

"Brother, I know, I know! You've said it so many times!" She pouted slightly and muttered softly, "How come you're even more nagging than my father!"

The Great Ming Dynasty, Fengtian Hall.

Zhu Yuanzhang was engrossed in reading when he suddenly heard his daughter mutter something, and then coughed violently as if she had choked on her saliva.

"Chongba, are you alright?" Empress Ma was startled and quickly patted his back.

"That naughty girl Jing'er, she was clearly being mischievous!" Zhu Yuanzhang was both annoyed and amused. "I was merely giving her a few words of reprimand, and it's been called nagging!"

The Great Han Dynasty, Weiyang Palace.

Liu Che gazed at the sky, the earth-shaking lion's roar etched even deeper into his heart.

"This strange beast bears a striking resemblance to the Suanni of the Western Regions described by Zhang Qian!" Emperor Wu of Han was filled with longing and immediately issued an edict: "Summon Zhang Qian to an audience at once!"

A short while later, Zhang Qian arrived in front of the palace.

Emperor Wu of Han asked, "Zhang Qian, I ask you, have you seen the beast that appeared in the sky in the Western Regions?"

Zhang Qian looked up at the sky, nodded, and said, "Your Majesty, I indeed saw this beast in the Western Regions. It is extremely fierce and very difficult to tame!"

Sima Xiangru stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, the Erya (a classical Chinese dictionary) says in its section on beasts: 'The Suanni (狻猊) is like a leopard cat, and it eats tigers and leopards,' which shows its ferocious nature!"

Liu Che nodded and said loudly, "In that case, how can our Great Han be without such a strange beast! Order Zhang Qian to go to the Western Regions again and find the Suanni to raise in my Shanglin Garden!"

modern.

"Jingjing, how are the exotic animals here?" After leaving the predator enclosure, Jiang Chuan pulled the car over to the side of the road and asked softly, "They're much more interesting than your father's tiger enclosure, aren't they?"

Zhu Jingjing nodded vigorously, answering without hesitation, "It's a thousand times more interesting! The ferocious beasts in Father's tiger-breeding granary are just like those in paintings, lifeless and dull. They can't compare to the lively and energetic beasts we just saw!"

Her back was pressed tightly against the seat. The sightseeing trip, though not as eerie and frightening as the haunted house, was just as thrilling!

Especially that earth-shattering lion's roar, it seems to still echo in my ears, and I'm afraid I'll never forget it.

"But..." After savoring the moment, a faint sense of disappointment flashed across her eyes, "In the end, I can only watch from afar, unable to get close. It always feels like something's missing."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chuan's lips curled into a slight smile. "Jingjing, would you like to feed those strange beasts yourself?"

Zhu Jingjing was taken aback, her eyes filled with surprise: "Brother, didn't you say those wild beasts were dangerous? You wouldn't even let me open the car window, so how am I supposed to feed them?"

Jiang Chuan took out the fruits and vegetables he had prepared in advance and gently handed them to her, saying softly, "Of course, we can't feed those carnivorous beasts by hand, but there are some docile herbivorous beasts that you can not only feed, but you can even gently pet them."

"Brother, really!" Zhu Jingjing's eyes lit up immediately, her brows furrowed with undisguised anticipation. "Then can Jingjing feed them their favorite cotton candy?"

"No!" Jiang Chuan shook his head with a wry smile, his tone gentle yet firm. "For the health of the beasts, we can't just feed them anything! These fruits and vegetables are specially prepared by the zoo; only in this way can we ensure that they won't have any problems after eating them."

"No!" Jiang Chuan shook his head with a wry smile, his tone gentle yet firm. "For the health of the beasts, we can't just feed them anything! These fruits and vegetables are specially prepared by the zoo; only in this way can we ensure that they won't have any problems after eating them."

The Great Tang Dynasty, Taiji Palace.

"Father!" Little Si Zi stood on tiptoe before the desk, gazing up at the sky with longing in his eyes. "It sounds so interesting! Si Zi also wants to feed those strange beasts with his own hands!"

Li Shimin waved his sleeve and affectionately pulled her into his arms: "What's so difficult about that! There are many imperial cats in the palace. If you like them, I will have someone bring them to you. You can feed them or play with them; it's all fine."

The little Si Zi shook its head, its gaze never leaving the sky: "Father, those cats are too small. Si Zi wants to feed the big one!"

Li Shimin was immediately in a dilemma. The little rhinoceros was still young, and even if those enormous creatures were docile, they would still pose unpredictable dangers to her.

"Your Highness, how about this?" He chuckled, his eyes darting around. "Father, you can pretend to be that strange beast, and I'll feed you."

Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials in front of the hall were astonished.

The mighty Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, just to make his beloved daughter smile, actually lowered himself to the level of a beast!

The ministers looked at each other in bewilderment, and not one of them dared to step forward and offer any advice!

The little rhinoceros pouted and shook its head, refusing, "Father, you are the supreme ruler, how can you diminish your dignity for the sake of the rhinoceros! I won't feed it then, Father, please don't say such things again!"

Li Shimin was taken aback, then hugged the little ox tighter in his arms, sighing, "The ox is right! It was my fault, and I will never mention it again!"

modern.

Zhu Jingjing clutched a bag of fruits and vegetables tightly, nervously watching the enormous objects outside the car window.

"Brother, can Jingjing really feed these strange beasts?" Her voice trembled slightly as she hesitated. "Some of them are much larger than those carnivorous beasts!"

The Great Tang Dynasty, Taiji Palace.

"Father!" Little Si Zi stood on tiptoe before the desk, gazing up at the sky with longing in his eyes. "It sounds so interesting! Si Zi also wants to feed those strange beasts with his own hands!"

Li Shimin waved his sleeve and affectionately pulled her into his arms: "What's so difficult about that! There are many imperial cats in the palace. If you like them, I will have someone bring them to you. You can feed them or play with them; it's all fine."

The little Si Zi shook its head, its gaze never leaving the sky: "Father, those cats are too small. Si Zi wants to feed the big one!"

Li Shimin was immediately in a dilemma. The little rhinoceros was still young, and even if those enormous creatures were docile, they would still pose unpredictable dangers to her.

"Your Highness, how about this?" He chuckled, his eyes darting around. "Father, you can pretend to be that strange beast, and I'll feed you."

Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials in front of the hall were astonished.

The mighty Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, just to make his beloved daughter smile, actually lowered himself to the level of a beast!

The ministers looked at each other in bewilderment, and not one of them dared to step forward and offer any advice!

The little rhinoceros pouted and shook its head, refusing, "Father, you are the supreme ruler, how can you diminish your dignity for the sake of the rhinoceros! I won't feed it then, Father, please don't say such things again!"

Li Shimin was taken aback, then hugged the little ox tighter in his arms, sighing, "The ox is right! It was my fault, and I will never mention it again!"

modern.

Zhu Jingjing clutched a bag of fruits and vegetables tightly, nervously watching the enormous objects outside the car window.

"Brother, can Jingjing really feed these strange beasts?" Her voice trembled slightly as she hesitated. "Some of them are much larger than those carnivorous beasts!"