Loyal to Song: An Unending Current

Set against the vast backdrop of the Song-Jin wars from the late Northern Song to the early Southern Song, this story traces the rise and fall of brothers Jiang Chuan and Jiang Liu amid the turbulent tides of their age, composing a stirring and tragic epic of love for family and country, personal enmities, and passionate ideals.

The story begins in 1116, the sixth year of the Zhenghe reign. By the banks of the Bian River in Bianjing live the Jiang brothers: the elder, Jiang Chuan, is strong and resolute, while his younger brother, Jiang Liu, is quick-witted and thoughtful. Their father, Jiang Tao, had served under Wang Shao, the Northwestern general who campaigned to open up the frontier. He fought against Western Xia during the Yuanfeng era, but was later wounded and assigned as a commander in the Fourth Army of the Right Wing of the Longwei Army, part of the Imperial Guards' Cavalry Command in Bianjing, where he served until retiring. His service earned the family Bianjing residence and household registration, and he brought them there from Xinxiang County in Henan Prefecture. He always taught his sons: "The great rivers surge ever onward, and a man's loyalty and courage must never cease." Inspired by his father's strict lessons in loyalty and service to the country, Jiang Chuan joined the Western Army at an early age and tempered himself in battles against Western Xia. In 1125, the seventh year of the Xuanhe reign, the Jin army invaded the Song for the first time, advancing straight toward Bianjing. Jiang Chuan served under Li Gang in the defense of Bianliang. During the bloody battle at Suanzao Gate, he held the gate despite being struck by several arrows so that the people could escape, and ultimately died defending his country at just twenty-nine. Before he died, he entrusted a comrade with a bloodstained wooden token engraved with the name "Jiang Chuan" for his younger brother. It became the spiritual mark that stayed with Jiang Liu for the rest of his life...

Thanks to Babi Mao Huahua [Hui Fusheng]. This work was inspired by the blogger's comic, The River Flows On.