Emperor of the Far East

On the vast, freezing snowfields of the northern frontier, young Zhang Wen is forced to flee into the mountains with his companions after northern invaders slaughter his people. There, they turn to banditry. With extraordinary courage and a ruthless instinct for survival, he seizes opportunities amid the chaos, unites forces through sheer force, and rises to become a regional warlord. From accepting the old dynasty’s offer of amnesty and playing the great powers against one another, to taking advantage of the moment to carve out an independent domain, Zhang Wen builds a formidable state in the north: the Far Eastern Republic. He enforces a harsh “military-first” policy, drives industrial development, and forges a fearsome modern army. Driven all his life by revenge and expansion, he leads his troops north to wage a bloody battle against the northern bear, pushing his borders all the way to the distant Lena River. Then he crosses the ocean to launch a brutal war of vengeance against his arch-enemy.

His life is an epic tale of a lone wolf: rising to power amid the great nations, carving out territory through iron-fisted rule and bloodshed, and ultimately building a mighty, isolated military empire on the frozen frontier. From an orphan of the White Mountains and Black Waters to the ruler of lands east of the Lena River, Zhang Wen’s legend is filled with the wisdom it takes to survive in troubled times, defiant resistance, cold-blooded intrigue, and an endless pursuit of power, along with reflections on its cost. This is a sweeping story of how a ruthless warlord is made, and of the endless price paid for power.