While visiting an exhibition of artifacts from the High Tang, modern history student Qi Xiaowei is drawn to a mysterious bronze mirror. The moment he touches it, a blinding light envelops him. When he wakes, he finds himself lying on the official road outside Chang'an. A woodcutter named Wang Dachui discovers him and assumes he is a scholar who fell victim to bandits. From Wang Dachui, Qi Xiaowei learns that it is now the Kaiyuan era under Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, and decides to accompany him into the city for now. Chang'an's splendor leaves Qi Xiaowei dumbfounded. His clumsy attempts to imitate ancient etiquette lead to no shortage of laughs. That night, he lights a lamp at the inn with his lighter, terrifying the waiter, who mistakes him for a sorcerer.
