Key plot:
1. The opening of the imperial examination fraud case exposes the scandal of the family
2. The extermination of a son from a poor family leads to the dilemma of the reformists
3. The difficult choice between the male and female protagonists between political opinions and emotions
4. Serial murders in court games
5. The tragedy of the family and country brought about by the final failure of reform
Xie Chenzhou (male protagonist): Yushi Zhongcheng, who was born in a poor family, shoulders the heavy responsibility of revitalizing the family and the ideal of reform, and implements the reform of the imperial examination system to anger the family.
Cui Lingyi (female protagonist): The direct daughter of the Cui family in Qinghe, who was forced to marry to maintain the family status.
Pei Zhongming: leader of Qingliu and core figure of the reformists
Cui Yuanqing: Head of the Cui family, defender of the interests of the traditional family
During the Yongchang period of Jingguo, aristocratic families controlled the government, making it difficult for children from poor families to find a way out. Cui Lingyi was forced to marry into the royal family, and Xie Chenzhou was demoted to the frontier and died of illness on the way.
Core settings of the new chapter:
Historical cycle: Twenty years ago, the sky ruler was measured, and twenty years later, the scales were leveled. Institutional alienation begins again and again.
Group portraits of the new generation:
Chen Yanzhou (the spiritual successor of Jiang Mosheng, the number one scholar from a poor family)
Wen Ruqing (Su Heng's close disciple, both skilled in medical investigation)
Xue Jin (descendant of the blacksmith and successor of Zhao Tiexing)
New contradiction:
1. Measurement corruption spawned by the New Deal
2. Official scale cast iron replaces the occupation of resources in the production of agricultural tools
3. The leakage of imperial examination questions and child trafficking formed a chain of interests
