The story begins when Xu Xiao, the sixteen-year-old heir to the King of Beiliang, returns to his estate after spending ten years as a hostage in the capital, Shengjing. As the son of the “Butcher,” the King of Beiliang who commands three hundred thousand iron cavalry, he is both a noble heir and a pawn the emperor uses to keep his father in check. For ten years, he endured and struggled to survive in the glittering yet deadly imperial capital, treated like a discarded piece. When he finally returns to the equally desolate Beiliang estate, he faces not only the servants’ disdain and surveillance by spies from every faction, but also a massive storm about to break. A secret message from the highest-level intelligence network in Beiliang, the Black Eagle Guard, reads: “Unrest in Beiliang. The king is heading to the capital.” It signals that the balance maintained for ten years is about to be shattered. In this gathering crisis, Xu Xiao must find a way to survive and rise to power.
