The Mantis Stalks the Cicada

[Alternate universe, Purple Gauze] Murong Ziying x Han Lingsha. An alternate universe featuring court intrigue and a treacherous political landscape, where all four leads love and fight each other! The court is a chessboard. Everyone thinks they’re the clever oriole lying in wait, unaware that someone else is already watching them. They may be no more than a praying mantis, or even the cicada at the very bottom of the food chain. Murong Ziying, the late emperor’s seventh son, left the palace as a child to cultivate because of his frail health, thus avoiding the brutal struggle for the throne. By the time he returns to the capital, the peace of the past has been swallowed by the whirlpool of power, and his elder brother, Murong Yan, has taken the throne. To appease the people and silence public criticism, Murong Yan not only makes Murong Ziying a prince, but also entrusts him with the important post of Privy Council commissioner. Within the capital, rival factions vie with one another in secret. General Yun Tianqing, the Protector of the State, and Han Beikuang, the current chancellor, plan to unite their powerful houses through the marriage of their children, Yun Tianhe and Han Lingsha. To secure the throne, the emperor plays a game of checks and balances, issuing an imperial edict to betroth Han Lingsha to Murong Ziying. Who could have guessed this would ignite a fuse between the Yun and Han families? They begin working together and secretly plotting. Murong Ziying appears to have been dragged into the power struggle for no reason, but he, too, is quietly making his own moves. He cleverly binds Liu Mengli, daughter of Minister Liu Shifeng, to Yun Tianhe. Outwardly, he remains loyal to Murong Yan and helps keep the Yun family in check, but he has another purpose in mind. Everyone treats me like a chess piece. Today, I’ll be the one moving the pieces! As the factions scheme and vie for power in this bloodless battle, the situation shifts with every passing moment. A gripping, covert struggle for power is about to unfold.