A Powerful Minister’s Rise: From Bandit’s Son to Emperor of China

[Political Intrigue + Reincarnated in the Womb + Relentless Expansion + Diplomatic Maneuvering]

In 1853, the third year of the Xianfeng reign, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has swept across half the country, the British and French powers are watching hungrily, and the Great Qing Empire is on the brink of collapse.

Zhao Chen, a graduate student in history, is reborn in this world as the son of a former bandit chief who has been recruited into the imperial service, stationed outside Beijing. When Zhao is nineteen, his father is poisoned by treacherous court officials, leaving 38,000 of his father’s former troops in mortal danger.

Drawing on his knowledge of history from his previous life and nineteen years of secret preparations, he accomplishes the impossible in just ten days: forging an imperial edict, leading a coup to seize the capital, bathing Qianqing Palace in blood, and holding the emperor hostage to control the feudal lords. Overnight, the son of a bandit becomes the most powerful regent since the founding of the Qing.

But this is only the beginning.

Years later, a young man who once emerged from a bandit army stands on the balcony of the new imperial palace in Tianjin Harbor.

He says softly, “More than ten years ago, all I cared about was how to survive. Today, I’m thinking about how to help this country live better, grow stronger, and stand with dignity.”