Tonight we step quietly onto the observation platform of the Imperial Astronomical Office in Tang Dynasty Chang'an, nearly 1,300 years ago, on a clear winter night above the sleeping capital.

In this gentle sleep story, a senior observer stands beside the bronze armillary sphere, the instrument whose interlocking rings help measure the paths of the heavens. Beneath the stone platform, the water clock keeps official time with a steady drip, while above the city the winter stars return to their familiar places. Through the coldest hours before dawn, he warms his hands over a small brazier, records the Joining Three stars on bamboo slips, and watches the sky slowly withdraw into morning.

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Chapters

00:00 Welcome

01:45 Sleep story begins

22:30 Goodnight

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