The Chang'an Chunming Gate Massacre

[Historical mystery + political intrigue + revenge + double life + corruption in the imperial examinations + compassionate female doctor] The evening drums shatter the silence, and blood stains Chunming Gate in spring. Pei Xuan, born into a poor family, witnesses his younger brother Pei Lang’s brutal death, clutching irrefutable proof of corruption in the imperial examinations. Consumed by boundless hatred, he burns away his identity, becomes “Lin Mo,” and infiltrates the empire’s most powerful aristocratic clan, posing as a trusted adviser to his enemy, Xiao Che. By day, he is the sharpest blade in Xiao Che’s hand, solving strange cases and earning his trust. By night, he is a vengeful hunter weaving a web and taking lives one by one amid the currents of aristocratic society. The compassionate heart of the physician Qin Heng is an undying glimmer of light, while the pursuit by Zhao Silang of the Bureau of Unusual Affairs follows him like a shadow. But when Pei Xuan’s blade finally reaches Xiao Che’s throat, he stumbles upon an ancestral tablet honoring his younger brother in his enemy’s secret chamber! “To kill him is to cut the line...” Xiao Che whispers as he dies, the words piercing like an icy awl. Before Pei Xuan can catch his breath, Xiao Che takes his own life in prison, and a bloodstained letter tears open the dark abyss consuming the empire. Having laid down his blade, can Pei Xuan find redemption in the school for poor children his brother cherished, and on the road home scented with medicinal herbs? Can the lingering warmth of Chang’an’s dying flames light the way back?