Begonias Bloom in the Heart of Splendor

I’m working on making this an ensemble story with episodic arcs... The rulers and ministers of Beichen’s four generations all share the same dream, one called “reform.” The first-generation Crown Prince Yizhang gave his life for his ideals, while the second-generation Crown Prince Zhaode died on the eve of dawn. By the time the baton passed to the third generation, Regent Ye Tang, he had less than ten years to live. Ye Tang: a transmigrant, a polymath, and a living legend. Raised by Crown Prince Zhaode, he was meant to be the sharpest blade under heaven. Yet he chose to become a shadow for Ye Cheng, the emperor’s eldest grandson, willingly shouldering infamy and becoming the regent who held the court in his grasp. The military examinations, land reform, border trade, disaster relief... In poor health, he took on the whole mess for Ye Cheng. The corrupt officials saw him as a thorn in their side, while the court officials called him a traitor. Ye Cheng: “Uncle, they all say you’ve taken me hostage.” Ye Tang: “And what does Your Majesty think?” Ye Cheng grasped his icy hand, eyes red-rimmed. “I think it’s the world that has taken you hostage, Uncle.” From the Jiangnan smuggling case to the false edict case, from the Li faction’s rebellion to the upheaval in Yuncheng. When the aspirations of four generations converge in one man, and Ye Tang burns through the last drop of his blood, the youth he protected from behind finally grows into a towering tree. This is the story of two souls saving one another, and of a group of people striving, one after another, to build a peaceful and prosperous age.