In the eighth century, the Tang Dynasty and Tibet vie for supremacy in the southwest. Caught between these two giants, a kingdom called Nanzhao suddenly rises, beginning an epic tale of survival.
King Geluofeng of Nanzhao fights back when Tang armies close in on him. In the Tianbao War, one hundred thousand Tang soldiers perish by Erhai Lake. He deftly maneuvers between the Tang and Tibet, unifies the Six Zhao states with an iron hand, and lays the foundations of a century-long dynasty.
His grandson, Yimouxun, sheaths the sword forged by his grandfather in a mantle of civil governance. He both forms an alliance with the Tang at the Cangshan Pact and burns Tibet's golden seal. By striking a careful balance, he ushers in the Zhenyuan Golden Age and brings Nanzhao to its height.
Beneath the prosperity, undercurrents stir. The powerful minister Cuodian launches a coup amid the sacred light of Chongsheng Temple, setting a usurpation in motion. Zheng Maisi, grandson of a Tang captive, bides his time in the game of power for decades before using a white silk cord to end the Meng Dynasty and stage a carefully orchestrated "abdication."
From Piluoge's unification of the Six Zhao states to Zheng Maisi's usurpation and founding of a new kingdom, this work offers a sweeping portrait of Nanzhao, an empire that rose in the gaps between great powers. It tells of iron-willed monarchs and their grand ambitions, scheming ministers, the wisdom needed to survive clashes between civilizations, and the pivotal moments that decided the fate of a dynasty.
