An Actor's Many Autumns

In the winter of the thirty-fourth year of the Dali era, snow lay knee-deep on the western slopes of Yun Capital.

Shi Mian, the celebrated actor who had captivated the capital, wore plain clothes and a simple hairpin as he crossed the snow to a remote, desolate old temple.

Beneath the green lamplight, he found his old friend, Jiang Lian.

One was an actor pretending to be someone he was not, the other a deposed prince.

Ten years ago, an imperial examination fraud case led to the Shi family perishing in a sea of flames. Shi Mian alone was left behind, spending his days singing and acting onstage.

Ten years later, after singing of every joy and sorrow under heaven, he finally stood before him.

All he got in return was: "Benefactor, please leave."

He thought this was the end.

He never imagined it was only the final move in a game Jiang Lian had spent ten years enduring humiliation to lay out for him.

Actor x Buddhist monk

A note from the author:

1. I update reliably. Please add to your collection.

2. This is a fictional dynasty. Please don't try to trace it to a real one.

3. Happy ending, reunion.

4. He loves beauty more than the throne, so Jiang Lian will not take the crown. He only wishes to live out his days with Shi Mian, free as clouds and wild cranes.

Thesis: What people call an abyss can also be a road stretching ten thousand miles into the future