During the Jiaxi period of the Southern Song Dynasty, the seemingly prosperous Lin'an City was just the last calm before the storm. Although the cavalry of the Jin Kingdom has temporarily retreated, the Mongolian smoke from the north has quietly risen. In the court, the party struggle between the peace faction and the war faction has intensified. Corruption is rampant and the national power is increasingly empty. This dynasty, which was once a prosperous and prosperous dynasty, is like a faltering old man, walking towards the cliff of history step by step.
Lu Yuanzhi, a young scholar from a scholarly family in the south of the Yangtze River, should have lived a stable life along the traditional path of becoming an official through the imperial examination and honoring his ancestors. He was familiar with the classics and history, had a heart for the world, and firmly believed in the sage's teachings of "cultivating one's moral character, managing one's family, governing the country, and bringing peace to the world." However, an accidental trip to Lin'an and an encounter with a strange person from the world allowed him to witness with his own eyes the corruption under the prosperity and the suffering of the people. He realized that the sages' books in the study could no longer answer the torture of this era.
When ideals collide with reality, when benevolence and justice encounter intrigues, when personal destiny is closely linked to the rise and fall of the country, Lu Yuanzhi faces difficult choices one after another. Is it to benefit oneself alone, or to benefit the world? Should we stick to the bottom line of morality, or choose pragmatism by any means necessary? He wanted to gain a foothold in the turbulent court struggle, carry out reforms in the long-standing military and political system, and find a glimmer of hope for the Song Dynasty in the desperate situation of internal and external troubles.
This is not only the growth history of a hero, but also the elegy of an era. You will see:
Real historical picture: from the street life in Lin'an City to the power game in the court, from the bloody battle in Xiangyang City to fishing
