Record of Golden Hairpins in a Mortal World

Beneath the finery of a prosperous age lie the shifting tides of desire. Driven by poverty, Shen Yunshang, the daughter of a fallen official's family, enters the household of Jiangnan tycoon Jia as a concubine. This mansion, with its carved beams and painted rafters, is in truth a battlefield without smoke: a calculating principal wife, a smiling concubine with a knife behind her back, servants each with their own schemes... Amid all that splendor, everyone weaves a web of profit and desire. Shen Yunshang is caught in its midst, treading on thin ice. She uses her wit to navigate the dangers, even as she struggles amid flirtation and power struggles. From innocence to clear-eyed understanding, she glimpses the subtleties of human nature and the coldness of the world between gold hairpins and jade pendants. When a sudden fire burns the Jia family's century-old fortune and countless secrets to ashes, the women are scattered, each drifting away alone. The splendor of yesterday vanishes in an instant. In this great dream of a fleeting world, can they find peace within the ruins? Can they recover the selves obscured by desire? With delicate prose, this book portrays a gallery of women in feudal society, offering not only romance but also compassion and a sobering reflection on the world.