In the third year of the Qianyou era, Shi Jingtang sells out his land for personal gain, handing the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun over to the Khitan. The lands of Yan and Zhao are turned into a living hell.
Lin Gousheng, a rogue from Jizhou, is a master of every con and scam, and never loses out when it comes to stealing chickens or dogs. Yet when Liao soldiers massacre a village, a twist of fate leads him to save a Song intelligence agent carrying a secret, and he casually steals the agent's "Secret Letter to Secure Yan."
With the letter in hand, he tricks Wei Zhiyuan, a Han official serving the Liao, plays a refugee to fool the Khitan general Yelü Man, and matches wits with the wandering heroine Hua Sanniang, eventually talking her into becoming his "muscle."
Others defend their homeland for the greater good of country and family. Lin Gousheng does it for the perks. Others risk their lives fighting Liao soldiers to avenge their loved ones. He does it to swipe some loot and make a fortune.
Who could have guessed that this cheeky rogue, with nothing but a silver tongue and a head full of schemes, would turn the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun upside down, bringing the Khitan cavalry to heel through his own cunning?
This is a feel-good story about a scoundrel who goes from living off others to effortlessly becoming the overlord of Youyun!
