A Chess Game in Hard Times

On the frontier of Beiliang, a mysterious case involving military supplies leaves Li Che, a lowborn clerk, trapped in a desperate situation. After narrowly escaping death, he carries a mysterious token to the imperial capital and becomes an insignificant pawn at the Imperial College. But Luojing is a treacherous place. Black-market canal profits, secret treasures from the previous dynasty, and murderous palace intrigues keep piling up, forcing him to tread carefully amid the power struggle between the Shuo Feng Camp, the Jingping Bureau, and the mysterious organization known as the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.

From the clatter of abacuses in the Shihe County yamen to the blood-red moonlit nights of Ziwei Palace, from the soaring flames of Wolf Howl Valley to the stars hanging upside down in the Star Pivot Secret Realm, Li Che never imagined that a pawn as insignificant as himself could quietly reshape the realm amid such turbulent intrigue. When a shocking conspiracy to steal the nation’s fortune comes to light, he takes up a blade capable of reversing the star chart and faces, with a mortal body, the ancient hand manipulating fate.

This is a perilous game with the realm itself at stake, and a struggle to break free from the shackles binding the children of humble families. As the pieces fall, a star chart sealed away for a century suddenly lights up. It turns out the real game has only just begun.