The Record of Xin Shang

The meaning of Xin: "love" and "greed," greed born of love, greed for the sake of love.

The meaning of Shang: a life lost in drunken dreams, drunk on love, drunk on hatred. Love and hate go hand in hand: without love, where would hate come from?

The meaning of Xin Shang: Love, greed, and hatred are what drive people to protect themselves, compete for favor, and fight for power.

The imperial harem is really a small society where love and hate, hatred and greed, are all tangled together. To protect themselves, the women compete for the emperor's favor and fight for power. It is an exceptionally cruel place, far beyond mere jealousy. As the saying goes, "One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand men." Here, too, "When one consort rises to power, ten thousand consorts weep." This has been true across dynasties, giving rise to one story of harem intrigue after another.

True love exists in the palace, but countless people envy and fear it. They will resort to every despicable means imaginable to keep the emperor's love from reaching her. This will also teach her that if she wants to love the emperor more deeply...

This novel and its characters are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. Do not imitate.