The Recitation Squad Takes Me on a Tour of China's Scenic Landscapes [History Livestream]

Summer vacation had arrived, and Liu Zhiyi's mother signed her up for an extracurricular class, claiming it was a new kind of course that combined Chinese, history, and geography.

In class, the teacher took an unconventional approach, starting from a place and telling tales of strange events that had taken place on that same patch of land over thousands of years.

But in a marvelous twist, Liu Zhiyi's everyday life was transmitted to historical figures across different eras who had lived on that land, allowing them a glimpse of the flourishing age thousands of years in the future.

Teacher: [Jiujiang, Jiangxi, also known as Xunyang and Jiangzhou in ancient times, was once one of China's three great tea markets and three great rice markets. It was the hometown of the famous writers Tao Yuanming and Huang Tingjian. Wei Yingwu and Bai Juyi were both banished here. The Song of the Pipa is a representative work from this place.]

Tao Yuanming: What? The place where I lived in seclusion has become a major transportation hub and a thriving city?

Wei Yingwu: How gratifying! I never expected to earn the nickname Wei of Jiangzhou. All those years of hard work in office were worthwhile.

Bai Juyi: Xunyang is remote, with no music to be heard. I never imagined my poems would be turned into music today. Wonderful!

When the teacher moved on to Yueyang in Hunan, the great names came out in force, all admiring a masterpiece that had dazzled the ages.

Meng Haoran: Here I sit at home, yet my heart embraces the world. Chancellor, do you think I have what it takes?

Li Bai: Well, would you look at that! So this building was renamed Yueyang Tower because of me!

Du Fu: I had heard of Dongting Lake of old; now I have climbed Yueyang Tower. You can't gaze far without climbing high!

Han Yu, Fan Zhongyan, and Teng Zijing also joined the group chat.

And when they saw Liu Zhiyi's life, the poetry memorization squad couldn't help exclaiming:

How can the world have such fast means of transport? If we had these, what mountains or rivers under heaven could we not visit?

A cold could take a life, yet now there are such miraculous doctors. Even Hua Tuo himself couldn't do what they can.

So many delicacies fit for an emperor's table! To see the people living in peace and contentment is truly a blessing for the people of China!

History rolls on. Though each of us is but a drop in the ocean and our lives but a fleeting moment, so long as we have a clear conscience before heaven and earth and do our small part, becoming one brick or tile in the edifice of history, that is enough!

Theme: This ordinary land was once walked by great people