In the waning years of the Song dynasty and the early Yuan, the realm was in turmoil. To meet the needs of economic development and the times, the court issued paper currency and introduced regulations governing its use. To prevent counterfeit notes from spreading, the court secretly developed a cinnabar-red seal. Cinnabar was mixed into the paper, and a hidden pattern was printed in a specific location, becoming visible only under ultraviolet light. Young Wei An was born with an absolute sense of color. After an accident, he improved the cinnabar formula and created a vermilion that could not be replicated. But he never expected to become entangled in a shocking conspiracy over the monopoly on paper currency. To protect himself, he was forced to join forces with Huang Hao, his childhood friend, to investigate the case. As they pursued the truth, the two uncovered the political turmoil and power struggles lurking behind it.
In this contest, with the livelihood of the people and the fate of the state at stake, they must face not only the threat of a counterfeiting syndicate, but also the court's internal intrigues and betrayals. Wei An's improved cinnabar printing technique has become the prize everyone is fighting over. It can not only eliminate counterfeit currency, but also control the source of all the wealth in the realm!
In this struggle for power and profit, can Wei An and Huang Hao hold fast to their sense of justice? And how will they survive amid the chaos?
