In the forty-seventh year of the Wanli reign of the Great Ming, the realm was in turmoil, the court was rife with infighting, the Donglin faction and the eunuch faction fought for power, and smoke from war clouds filled Liaodong. Zhu Changluo, the good-for-nothing eldest imperial son mocked as the "One-Month Emperor," had been neglected by his father, the Wanli Emperor, for nearly twenty years. The Eastern Palace was little more than an empty shell, he had no trusted followers, his mother had died in sorrow, and every official in court saw him as a discarded pawn.
But tonight, a cold breeze swept into the dilapidated Eastern Palace, and a burst of golden light erupted from within his sea of consciousness. "All under heaven belongs to the sovereign. System beginning Host binding. Objective: ascend the throne and restore the realm."
If the emperor refuses to acknowledge me as his son, then I'll become emperor without relying on his decree. Govern the realm, manage finances, train troops, crush factions, pacify the world: everything ordinary people witness can earn points, and every enemy of my claim to the throne can be turned into merit points. From possessing a broken palace and not a single soldier, to sweeping away the monopoly on imperial manufactures and taxes, reorganizing the defenses of the two capitals, wiping out the White Lotus heresy, and suppressing conservative civil officials; from having no one celebrate his birthday to making officials prostrate themselves and bow in allegiance, his name resounded across the nine frontier regions.
But the more dazzling he became, the more his enemies climbed toward him over a bed of fire. The imperial princes and Consort Zheng laid trap after trap with beautiful women, powerful eunuchs plotted to seize power in the shadows, and Mongol cavalry stood ready to storm the passes. He could neither retreat nor lose: this was a life-or-death game for the deposed crown prince. With the System at his side, how hard could it be to turn the tables? He dazzled at every step in court, his armies obeyed his every command, and he would have both the women and the power. If Heaven would not grant him the throne, he would build with his own hands an enduring empire founded on order and justice!
