The Great Zhou dynasty has stood for over a century. Beneath its peaceful golden age, the court is rife with undercurrents, factional strife, and hidden dangers. The emperor is a master of balancing power, setting Grand Secretary Shen Chongwen and Jin Yiwei Commander Lu Chenzhou against each other. Yet, troubled by his own suspicions and the fact that he has no heir, he binds these sworn enemies together as in-laws with an imperial marriage edict. Shen Qingyi, the Shen family’s legitimate daughter, is frail and sickly but clear-eyed and aloof, hiding her sharpness behind her illness. Lu Yanzhi, son of Lu Chenzhou and heir to his title, is cold and decisive, with a deep understanding of political intrigue. This marriage, seemingly a humiliation and a test, binds two strangers together. They are both pawns in the emperor’s efforts to control the court and bargaining chips in the power struggle between the Shen and Lu factions. Danger lurks within the manor, and the court is treacherous. The “fox” who feigns illness and the cold-faced “wolf” must hide their true feelings and tread carefully at every turn in this deadly game. Only then can they escape the fate of being pawns and become the ones moving the pieces.
