The future cross line

Rain fell in soft ribbons against the windowpanes, like ink spilling from the heavens. Li Mei had always felt the tug of stories faint whispers in forgotten corners of antique stores, the fragrance of old paper, the echo of phantom ink. But she never expected a story to pull her in literally, because she was a lover of ancient history and events it was much that she could spend her last money in buying them but this time, her love and interest for the history will change everything.

It began in the cluttered backroom of an old curio shop nestled in the heart of Suzhou, tucked between a dumpling stall and a shuttered teahouse. She had only ducked inside to escape the drizzle, brushing raindrops from her jacket as the scent of sandalwood and time-worn silk wrapped around her like a ghost.

Then she saw it. It was calling her.

A scroll dusty, curled at the edges sat waiting on an obsidian stand. The characters glowed faintly with a reddish hue, though the air was dim. . Scroll of Destiny. Her heart stuttered.

Drawn as if by the silk threads of fate, she reached out. The moment her fingers grazed the parchment, everything shattered.

Time bent.

Reality fractured. Everything echoes

Wind roared in her ears yet she was standing still. The floor dissolved into clouds. Her scream was swallowed by an endless void before warmth wrapped around her like a mother's arms and pulled her down, down, down.

She was screaming until,

She landed in a field of golden reeds, the sky above a wide expanse of crimson-touched blue. Dragons danced across clouds shaped like lotus blossoms. The air smelled of plum wine and peach blossoms, carried on the breath of a different era.

Li Mei rose shakily, her jeans now replaced by flowing robes of pale pink, embroidered with silver cranes. Her hair, once tied in a messy bun, now streamed like silk down her back, threaded with jade pins.

"What the actual hell," she muttered.

What's going on?

Her voice was strange here. Softer. Older.

Before she could even catch her breath, a scream shattered the silence.

It came from the nearby bamboo grove.

Instinct moved her legs. Branches slapped against her arms as she ran, silk hissing against leaves. She didn't know what she was doing only that something was wrong.

And then she saw him.

A man, barely conscious, blood staining his white robes. He was pinned beneath a fallen tree trunk, arrows embedded in the ground around him like accusations. His long black hair was tangled, lips pale, a single talisman clutched in his hand.

Zhou Wen.

Even without knowing his name, something in her soul recognized him.

"Help... me..." he rasped, eyes fluttering open.

And when his gaze met hers dark as onyx, ancient as the stars a blinding heat surged through Li Mei's chest. The scroll burned in her mind. This was the moment. This was the choice.

But before she could move.A scream of war horns erupted from the forest.

Shouts. Horses. Blades clashing.

They were coming. Whoever wanted him dead were close.

Li Mei glanced at the stranger beneath the tree.

"Li Mei..." he murmured, eyes wide with shock. "You're not supposed to be here..."

Her breath caught.

"How do you know my name?"

He coughed blood, eyes gleaming. "Because I dreamed of you... the girl who would change everything."

And then the bamboo forest exploded in flame.

She told him that they will continue their introduction later but now they need to survive first.

The scroll hums in her pocket. Zhou Wen lies dying. Enemies surround them. But time itself watches, waiting to see if the girl from the future will save the man destined to die... or seal both their fates.

Li mei please do something.....