The Luminous Pearl

The novel follows the biggest unsolved mystery of the Republic of China era, the looting of the Eastern Qing Tombs, and the struggle to steal, seize, and protect their treasures.

Who plundered the Eastern Qing Tombs? In an age of warring warlords, when the flags atop city walls changed hands overnight, all kinds of factions coveted the treasures and fought and schemed against one another, shrouding the case in mystery.

Warlords robbed tombs, antique dealers smuggled cultural relics, Nationalist officials divided the spoils, Japanese agents lusted after the treasures, and disgraced Qing courtiers sought to reclaim their ancestors' legacy. The Chinese Communist Party's secret service and progressive figures tried to keep precious relics out of Japanese and Western hands, while warlords vied for control of Beijing and Tianjin. Thus unfolded a deadly struggle between good and evil.