IPW Chapter 8: Book Pavilion

 “You want to read?!” Sima Lie exclaimed, nearly choking on his food. He started coughing violently and stared at Sima Youyue in disbelief. 

His outburst drew the attention of everyone in the kitchen. The staff paused what they were doing, craning their necks and stealing glances at their Young Master, curiosity piqued. 

Honestly, no one could blame them. After all, the name ‘Sima Youyue’ was synonymous with ‘trash.’ He had only attended the Academy for two days and barely recognized a few words. A book had never once graced his hands—let alone an entire reading session. So to suddenly hear him say he wanted to ‘go to the Book Pavilion’ and ‘read a book’ was nothing short of shocking. 

 Cough, cough. Sima Lie cleared his throat, reining in his emotions. Once composed, he gave a calm nod. 

“Alright then. If you want to read, I’ll take you there.” 

With that, he turned on his heel and strode out of the kitchen. Sima Youyue quickly followed, trailing behind him to a large courtyard where a three-story building stood. 

From the outside, the building looked ordinary—plain, almost modest. No one would ever guess that this was the prestigious Book Pavilion. 

“We’re here,” Sima Lie announced. With a wave of his hand, a large key appeared in his palm. He pulled it from his interspatial ring, unlocked the door, and pushed it open. A musty scent of old books drifted out to greet them. 

This was the first time he’d ever been here. Although the Book Pavilion was located between his courtyard and the main gate, the old Sima Youyue had never even stepped inside. 

“Here. This key is yours now.” Sima Lie summoned a second key and handed it to her. 

His four brothers each had their own key, but since he had never shown any interest in reading, no one had bothered giving him one before. They’d been afraid he’d lose it. 

He tucked the key into her pocket—she had no spiritual power and couldn’t use an interspatial ring like the others. 

“Alright, take your time. Read whatever you like,” Sima Lie said with a smile. “I’ve got matters to attend to. I’ll be in my study—come find me if you need anything.” 

Sima Youyue nodded and watched him disappear into the distance before turning to properly examine the place. 

Though he suspected his body had some internal problems, he also knew that the herbs and materials in this world were different from those in his previous one. At least, he hoped it was just the names. He needed to understand those differences clearly—and this was the first step towards curing himself and getting rid of that “trash” label on his head. 

As he stepped inside, his jaw dropped. 

The outside of the pavilion had been unassuming, but the inside was anything but. At the center stood a magnificent spiral staircase connecting all three floors, and each level was lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. The space was enormous! 

Even stranger, the inside was much larger than the outside. The first floor alone was the size of a soccer field. The upper floors gradually got smaller, but even the top level was bigger than a basketball court. 

“What kind of sorcery is this?!” he gasped in awe. “This place is insane!” 

This completely defied all logic. Everything in this world continued to blow his mind. The memories he’d inherited from the original Sima Youyue gave him glimpses, but experiencing it firsthand was an entirely different thing. His adventurous spirit was fully awakened, and his eyes sparkled with curiosity. 

Eventually, he calmed himself and faced a more pressing question: 

“With this many books… where do I even begin?” 

He sighed. “I should’ve asked Grandpa for a recommendation.” 

He wandered through the shelves, scanning titles. After some time, he realized the books were organized by category. One entire row focused on a single topic, followed by several more shelves in the same genre. 

“Got it!” he exclaimed in relief. 

After searching for over two hours, he finally found the section on medicine. He began poring through the books, carefully inspecting each one. 

Eventually, he found a book detailing medicinal herbs and materials. To his delight, the entire shelf seemed to house similar titles. 

Jackpot. 

As he reached for another book, his stomach growled loudly. Defeated, he pulled out a stack of books, hugged them to his chest, and made his way out. He locked the door behind him as the sky darkened—it was already night. 

When he returned to his courtyard, Yun Yue and Chun Jian immediately noticed the armful of books he was carrying. They rushed over to help. 

“Young Master, would you like dinner now?” Yun Yue asked. 

“Yes! I’m starving. Bring it straight to my room. Oh, and Yun Yue, let Grandpa know I’ll be eating in my room for the next two days. I won’t be joining the others.” 

Clutching his hunger-stricken belly, Sima Youyue turned and headed inside. 

Chun Jian went off to prepare his meal, while Yun Yue set the books down neatly on the table and passed along his message to Sima Lie. 

Sima Youyue picked up a book and began to read. The ones he had chosen were basic texts—introductions to the herbs and materials unique to this world. His goal was to identify differences between them and the ones from his old world. 

He had always been highly intelligent, learning faster than most. On top of that, he’d majored in Traditional Chinese Medicine in his past life. Familiar herbs, their properties, and their uses were second nature to him. Since he was only cross-referencing, his reading speed was impressively fast. 

By the time dinner arrived, he was already halfway through the first book. When Chun Jian entered and saw how casually he was flipping through the pages, she couldn’t help but shake her head. It looked like her Young Master was just skimming. 

“Young Master, dinner is ready.” 

Sima Youyue put the book down and turned to the table. The food was hot, flavorful, and beautifully presented—completely different from the bland meals he had suffered before. 

“Now this is a proper meal!” he grinned.

He dug in with gusto, finishing everything in no time. When he was done, he called the maids to clear the table and returned to his books. 

After finishing the first one, he made several discoveries. Most medicinal materials were similar to those in her past life, but there were notable differences—some had different names, some had slight changes in properties, and others were completely unfamiliar. 

Luckily, the books he had taken all belonged to the same series. They were sorted by material type and effect. He began cross-referencing each name and studying them carefully. 

“Good thing I started with these. Nearly half the names are different…” 

He stretched and yawned, then glanced at the list he had compiled. Before he knew it, the sky outside was already starting to brighten. 

He hadn’t slept properly the night before and had worked through the entire night. Now that he was finally relaxed, his body gave in. His eyelids drooped, and he crawled into bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, he was out cold. 

For the first time in days, he didn’t dream. 

By the time she woke up, it was already noon. As she opened her eyes and stared at the intricate pattern on the mosquito net above her, for a second, she thought she was still dreaming. 

Rumble— 

Her stomach growled, dragging her fully awake. She pressed a hand to her forehead, still dazed. 

“So… it wasn’t a dream after all.” 

He rolled out of bed, washed up, and changed. Chun Jian brought lunch promptly, and once he’d eaten, Sima Youyue took the prescription he had written the night before and made his way to Sima Lie’s study. 

Sima Lie was surprised to see him. 

Hadn’t he said just last night that he’d be holed up in her room reading for two days? Now he couldn’t even make it to a day? Or… did something happen? 

“Youyue, what is it?” Sima Lie asked, waving the guards away when he saw his serious expression. 

Sima Youyue sat down across from him, back straight, and said, 

“Grandfather, I want to ask you something important.” 

“What is it?” he asked, now equally serious. 

He took a deep breath. 

“Grandfather… do you know why I can’t cultivate?”