Here is the complete story of the Legend of the Yellow Millet Dream (黄粱梦), adapted from traditional Chinese texts:
During the Tang Dynasty, a young scholar named Lü Yan (who would later become the immortal Lü Dongbin) traveled to the capital city of Chang’an to take the prestigious imperial civil service examinations. He was highly ambitious and dreamed of achieving great wealth, high political rank, and eternal fame.
Along his journey, he stopped at a small tavern in Handan to rest. There, he sat down next to an old, eccentric man with a long beard. Unknown to Lü, this man was actually the Daoist immortal Zhongli Quan, who was searching for a worthy disciple.
The two men began to talk. Lü spoke passionately about his grand ambitions, his desire to pass the exams, and his hunger for worldly success. Zhongli Quan listened quietly, smiling, and noticed that the tavern keeper had just put a pot of yellow millet on the stove to boil.
Complaining of sudden exhaustion, Lü stretched out to rest. Zhongli Quan handed him a smooth, green porcelain pillow. “Sleep on this,” the old man said. “It will give you everything your heart desires.”
As soon as Lü rested his head on the pillow, the small opening at the side of the porcelain began to grow larger and brighter. Intrigued, Lü stepped inside the pillow—and found himself in a completely different world.
The Dream of a Lifetime
In this new reality, Lü easily passed the imperial examinations with the highest honors. He was appointed to a prominent government office, and his brilliant mind quickly caught the attention of the Emperor.
He married a beautiful woman from a wealthy, noble family who bore him several successful children. Over the next few decades, Lü’s power grew immensely. He rose through the ranks until he was appointed Prime Minister, the highest office in the land. He lived in a sprawling mansion, owned vast estates, and was surrounded by luxury, servants, and constant flattery.
However, his immense success bred bitter envy among other high-ranking officials.
When Lü reached old age, a group of political rivals framed him for high treason. The Emperor, fueled by suspicion, stripped Lü of his titles, confiscated his wealth, and banished his family to the far edges of the empire.
Lü found himself standing in the freezing rain, dressed in rags, separated from his children, and facing a lonely, agonizing death in exile. As he felt the final breath of life leaving his frail body, he groaned in deep despair and opened his eyes.
The Awakening
Lü blinked against the dim light of the tavern. He looked around, completely disoriented.
He was still sitting at the wooden table. The old man, Zhongli Quan, was still sitting right next to him. Lü looked toward the stove, expecting decades to have passed, but the pot of yellow millet was still boiling, not yet ready to eat. His entire 50-year lifetime of triumph and tragedy had taken place in the span of just a few minutes.
Zhongli Quan smiled at the stunned young scholar and whispered, “Before the millet is even cooked, you have already lived a full life.”
Lü was shaken to his core. He realized that the old man was a divine being who had given him a profound lesson. He saw clearly that human life, worldly glory, wealth, and power were as fleeting and empty as a brief dream.
Renouncing his ambitions to become a government official, Lü dropped out of the imperial exams on the spot. He begged Zhongli Quan to take him as a student, left the material world behind, and dedicated the rest of his life to studying the Dao, eventually becoming one of China’s most revered immortals.
