The Lone Soul of Qingya's Calamity

I. Story Overview

Su Li, a white fox from Qingya Mountain, saves Lin Yanqiu, a scholar who falls ill while traveling to take the imperial examinations. The two fall in love, but are torn apart by Gu Yanzhi, a powerful noble from the capital. Lin Yanqiu is forced into marriage with the Gu family, goes mad on his wedding night, and is abandoned with all his ribs broken. Su Li searches the human world for her beloved, brings him back to Qingya Mountain, and gives birth to their son, Lin Wangshu.

Eighteen years later, Lin Wangshu, half human and half fox, descends the mountain to take the examinations and uncover his parents' old grievances, only to follow in his father's footsteps. He falls in love with Qingwu, a young fox from Qingya Mountain, but Gu Yanzhi schemes to force them apart and arrange a marriage. His heritage as the “offspring of a demon fox” also makes him a target for assassins. From the maelstrom of power in the capital to the secret history of the fox clan on Qingya Mountain, two generations' love, hatred, sacrifice, and redemption cross the boundary between humans and foxes, ultimately composing a fated answer to the question of “family and bonds” beneath the moonlight and amid a sea of longing flowers.

II. Detailed Outline

Volume One: First Meeting on Qingya Mountain, Dreams Shattered in the Capital (Lin Yanqiu x Su Li)

1. Rescued on a Perilous Journey: Scholar Lin Yanqiu falls ill while traveling to take the imperial examinations. White fox Su Li rescues him in a ruined temple. A dance beneath the moon sparks their feelings for each other, and Su Li uses a fox-clan elixir to help him recover.

2. Defeated in the Capital: Lin Yanqiu places first in the imperial examinations, but Gu Yanzhi, Minister of Personnel, forces him to marry his daughter, Shen Yuwei. On their wedding night, Lin Yanqiu goes mad, consumed by thoughts of Su Li, and flees. Gu Yanzhi breaks his ribs and abandons him in a mass grave.

3. Together on Fox Mountain: Sensing that her beloved is in danger, Su Li uses her spiritual power to find Lin Yanqiu and takes him back to Qingya Mountain. His madness gradually subsides. The two overcome the divide between humans and foxes and build a life together, with a son, Lin Wangshu.

4. A Hope Entrusted at Parting: To protect Wangshu from human conflicts and the fox clan's rejection, Su Li and Lin Yanqiu painfully send their young son to be raised by Lin Yanqiu's aunt. With a fox