The physician Ye Shujin and the fallen young lord Bai Huaiqing first meet when their boat sinks in the freezing river. A mysterious jade pendant engraved with the character “Xuan” sets them on the trail of a wrongful case against their families. Working together, they discover that the case is linked to the imperial secret vault, the Marquis of Jing’an, and the martial-world organization known as the Netherworld Pavilion. Behind it all lie the truth about the late emperor’s death and secrets surrounding the royal bloodline.
From salt-smuggling schemes in Jiangnan to a decisive battle on the northern frontier, from palace intrigue to a vassal prince’s rebellion, Ye Shujin navigates political schemes with her skills in medicine and poison, while Bai Huaiqing protects her with his martial arts and sharp wits. Surviving one deadly trial after another, they gradually uncover the truth: the Bai family was framed for learning the secret of the imperial vault, and the masterminds were none other than the Empress Dowager and the Second Prince. The late emperor, too, was slowly poisoned with Heart-Eroding Powder.
As the investigation deepens, Ye Shujin’s origins come to light: she is descended from a collateral branch of the imperial family, and her family’s wrongful persecution is bound up with the struggle for imperial power. The two go from supporting one another to falling secretly in love. As they quell the rebellion and purge the court, Bai Huaiqing is ennobled as Duke An of the Nation, while Ye Shujin is granted the title of Protector of the Nation.
In the end, they work together to implement policies to curb the vassal princes and improve people’s livelihoods, suppressing their rebellion and bringing the floods in Jiangnan under control, before choosing to retire to the south. Their old enemies are eliminated, the imperial family is vindicated, and the two sail through the waterways of their home region, sealing away the late emperor’s edict and secrets of statecraft in an ancient pagoda. Only the “Monument to Protecting the People” remains to bear witness to their extraordinary lives. From their first meeting on the freezing river to the realm’s return to peace, they protected the people with courage and grace, and at last won a tranquil life together.
