In Mengchun, the tenth year of Yuanhe, in the official residence on the west side of the Chang'an County Prison, Li Huan woke up from chaos. The candle on the desk flickered, reflecting the shadows of criminal names and laws on the wall - he had become the most humble warden in this land of the capital of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, inheriting the life trajectory of the original owner for twenty-three years: the glory of his ancestors had long faded, and now there were only the prison administration documents in the county office day after day, the various grievances of the prisoners in the prison, and the evening drum and morning bell coming from the corner tower of Chang'an City Square.
As a low-level official of the ninth rank in the stream, he must check the names of prisoners according to the regulations of "Liu Dian of the Tang Dynasty", record the number of shackles according to the "Prison Officer's Order", and maintain the operation of the county jail amid the scolding of the canon and the dealings of the jailers. When the blood stains of the merchant brawl case in Chengxi City have not yet dried, and the file of the violent death of the owner of the Chengdongfangdi store is on his desk, Li Huan has to rely on his fragmented memory and careful thinking to find a balance between laws and regulations and the world's sophistication.
This is a Chang'an without golden fingers. All that is left is the dust from the streets stained on the soles of the officials' boots, the morning dew condensing on the moss on the prison walls, and the scent of ink soaking in the yellow papers of the files. As a warden, Li Huan will stumble among the official gears of the three provinces and six ministries, discern the direction in the smoke and smoke of the streets and alleys, and touch the texture of the prosperous Tang Dynasty among the clues of each criminal case. His story is a snapshot of the lives of millions of grassroots officials and a microscopic history of Chang'an in the mid-Tang Dynasty.
Reader comments
In fact, the writing is not bad, the ideas are pretty good, but it may be a bit scattered and occasionally a bit difficult to pronounce, so I encourage you with four stars.
In fact, the writing is not bad, the ideas are pretty good, but it may be a bit scattered and occasionally a bit difficult to pronounce, so I encourage you with four stars.