Historical setting: The early to mid-Ming Dynasty, a sensitive and turbulent period spanning the reigns of the Yingzong, Daizong, Xianzong, and Xiaozong emperors.
Major factions:
Jinyiwei: Officially the emperor’s personal guard, responsible for guarding the emperor, patrolling, and making arrests. It has Southern and Northern Commands: the Southern Command handles the agency’s internal affairs, while the Northern Command oversees the imperial prison. Its influence is deeply entrenched, especially among hereditary military officers. Its trademarks include the embroidered spring saber, the flying-fish uniform, and mounted guards.
Eastern Depot: Led by a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, known as the Director of the Eastern Depot. It wields immense power and can spy on officials, the Jinyiwei, and commoners alike. It serves as the emperor’s eyes and claws, with eunuchs at its core. Its trademarks include its agents, often tough soldiers assigned by the Jinyiwei or recruited from elsewhere, and its ruthless methods.
Western Depot: It can be established or re-established at a pivotal point in the story as a special agency meant to counterbalance the Eastern Depot and the Jinyiwei. It has enormous authority and acts with even greater arrogance and ostentation, led by a trusted eunuch favored by the emperor. It becomes a key wild card and a flashpoint for conflict.
Central conflicts: The rivalry between the depots and the guards amid imperial dependence and suspicion; battles over the balance of power; clashes of principle, whether loyalty to the emperor, defense of the state, or private ambition; control of information; framing and false accusations; and bloody turmoil in both the imperial court and the martial world. Caught between the factions, the protagonist struggles to survive, hoping to protect himself and perhaps even change the balance of power.
