Lin Yanzhi was originally a concubine-born son of the Lin family. Though brilliant, he was oppressed by his legitimate mother, Madam Liu, and his legitimate elder brother, Lin Bowen. His birth mother was tormented to death, while he was framed for cheating, had both legs broken, and was left to freeze and starve. → Reborn at sixteen, on the eve of the examination for child students, before he has been driven to despair and while his birth mother is still alive. → He bides his time and plans carefully, earning honors through the examinations: child student, licentiate, provincial graduate, and palace graduate. → He settles accounts with his enemies one by one, including his legitimate mother, elder brother, and the clan’s cruel servants, protects his birth mother, and restores his reputation. In the end, he rises to the fifth rank and crosses into a higher social class.
