During the Guangxu period, blood letters were discovered during the renovation of the Gongyuan, revealing the fraud in the imperial examination forty years ago. Lin Wenqian, a student of the Imperial College, was involved and found that the person who took the exam had become a second-rank official in the dynasty. The hunt ensues, and the secret list implicates all parties in the court. When he holds evidence that can overturn half of the officialdom, he faces not only a crisis of silence, but also a choice between conscience and survival.
