This book is a historical romance novel set in the middle and late Ming Dynasty. Through the interweaving of the silence of fictional characters and real historical figures, it shows the undercurrent of change in the era from Jiajing to Wanli. The story begins with the Japanese pirate rebellion on the southeast coast, extends to court intrigues, commercial revolutions, cultural trends, and then to the war epic of aiding Korea and resisting the Japanese. It depicts a magnificent picture in which personal destiny is closely linked to the rise and fall of the country. The protagonist, Shen Mo, grows from a scholar to a figure who affects the course of history. He makes difficult choices between ideals and reality, loyalty and betrayal, change and conservatism, and ultimately witnesses and participates in the changes of an era.
