A slow, calm 3 hour storybook sleep story to help you fall asleep and stay asleep. Tonight the storyteller opens the old book to the Ballad of Mulan, the short poem from the Northern Wei dynasty that began the whole legend, told long and slow. A daughter at her loom hears the army lists calling her father's name, so she buys a horse at one market, a saddle at another, a bridle at a third, a long whip at the fourth, and rides north in his place. Twelve years she serves, and her comrades never know. When the emperor offers her any reward she can name, she asks only for a swift horse home, and the ballad closes with its famous gentle riddle, two hares running side by side through the grass.
Settle in, close your eyes, and let it drift over you. The pacing is slow, the voice is soft, and the music never spikes. There is a war at the far edges of it, but it stays at the edges; the story keeps its eyes on the loom, the river, the mountain road, and the long ride home. There is nothing here to fear. You do not have to watch. You do not have to remember any of it in the morning.
Episode 9 of 12 · The Storybook Season
Where this sits: Part 9 of 12 in The Storybook Season, one storyteller, one lantern, and one complete famous tale each night, each told from its original source. Tonight, the daughter who rode twelve years in her father's place. Every episode stands on its own, and any night is a fine night to begin.
Chapters:
0:00 Welcome
3:20 The Loom That Faced the Door
8:57 Twelve Scrolls of Paper
15:51 The Four Markets
26:19 The Yellow River Nights
34:56 The Horses of the Black Mountain
41:55 Ten Thousand Miles Like Flying
50:39 Twelve Winters, Twelve Springs
58:30 The Hall of Light
1:04:54 The Road Home
1:12:39 The Dress by the Window
1:20:19 The Two Hares
1:27:58 Goodnight. And the Lamp at the Edge of Morning
Watch the illustrated version on YouTube: add the link after the YouTube upload.
New episodes every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.
🕯 Sleep stories from history, Kingdoms at Dusk: https://kingdomsatdusk.com
📜 All our worlds: https://gildenmyth.com
🕊 Goddess sleep meditations, The Tender Hour: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTenderHourChannel
🎙 David's interview podcast, Conversations That Count: https://www.youtube.com/@ConversationsThatCount-CTC
🎧 Also on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3J6lZ10GvK07qCv3aQxnkR and Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/conversations-that-count-a31f16a6-3131-4c8f-982f-19d52407e8eb/id1890348796
This show uses AI tools (research, narration, visuals) under human editorial direction. Every episode is reviewed before release.
Settle in, close your eyes, and let it drift over you. The pacing is slow, the voice is soft, and the music never spikes. There is a war at the far edges of it, but it stays at the edges; the story keeps its eyes on the loom, the river, the mountain road, and the long ride home. There is nothing here to fear. You do not have to watch. You do not have to remember any of it in the morning.
Episode 9 of 12 · The Storybook Season
Where this sits: Part 9 of 12 in The Storybook Season, one storyteller, one lantern, and one complete famous tale each night, each told from its original source. Tonight, the daughter who rode twelve years in her father's place. Every episode stands on its own, and any night is a fine night to begin.
Chapters:
0:00 Welcome
3:20 The Loom That Faced the Door
8:57 Twelve Scrolls of Paper
15:51 The Four Markets
26:19 The Yellow River Nights
34:56 The Horses of the Black Mountain
41:55 Ten Thousand Miles Like Flying
50:39 Twelve Winters, Twelve Springs
58:30 The Hall of Light
1:04:54 The Road Home
1:12:39 The Dress by the Window
1:20:19 The Two Hares
1:27:58 Goodnight. And the Lamp at the Edge of Morning
Watch the illustrated version on YouTube: add the link after the YouTube upload.
New episodes every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.
🕯 Sleep stories from history, Kingdoms at Dusk: https://kingdomsatdusk.com
📜 All our worlds: https://gildenmyth.com
🕊 Goddess sleep meditations, The Tender Hour: https://www.youtube.com/@TheTenderHourChannel
🎙 David's interview podcast, Conversations That Count: https://www.youtube.com/@ConversationsThatCount-CTC
🎧 Also on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3J6lZ10GvK07qCv3aQxnkR and Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/conversations-that-count-a31f16a6-3131-4c8f-982f-19d52407e8eb/id1890348796
This show uses AI tools (research, narration, visuals) under human editorial direction. Every episode is reviewed before release.