A general who cares for all the people x a top scholar who never lets a grudge go unanswered (love and strife):
For reasons she cannot speak of, Nangong Mo has had to disguise herself as a man since childhood.
Though she has missed out on the pleasures of dressing as a woman, she has also enjoyed plenty of the privileges that come with being a man.
She can go to battle and earn promotions. At fifteen, she ventured alone into an enemy army camp, captured its commander single-handedly, and forced the enemy to retreat and sign a five-year non-aggression pact without losing a single soldier.
While earning the respect of her subordinates, the affection of the people, and the Emperor's trust, she has also won the favor of the noblewomen of the great houses. Many have declared that they would marry no one but her, yet the general never responds.
And so rumors spread that the general might prefer men.
The rumors are not baseless. Wen Yan in her army camp is a case in point. A man of unmatched beauty, in the prime of life and at the perfect age to marry, yet he insists on throwing himself at their general.
Nangong Mo knows nothing about these rumors. She only cares about two things: Have the soldiers eaten their fill? Do they all have warm clothes?
The southern kingdom has suffered a long drought this year. With the harvest reduced, the people cannot even afford a meal, much less pay their taxes. The treasury is running short, and the soldiers' wages are as elusive as the moon's reflection in water.
Many people, desperate for food, have gone up into the mountains to become bandits, robbing passing caravans and committing wanton murder and plunder.
To stabilize the border, she has no choice but to go out and raise funds for the army, taking from the rich to aid the frontier. On her way back, she is cornered by bandits. She turns the situation to her advantage and lets them capture her, taking her to their mountain stronghold.
There she meets the closest friend she will ever have, Shen Jinshu. He is cold-faced but warm-hearted, appearing to be someone who never lets a grudge go unanswered, when in fact he has a good heart, boundless compassion, and great ambitions. Like her, he wants the people of this land to suffer less.
For that reason, he is determined to pursue an official career through the examinations. He became a provincial graduate at fifteen, but later offended powerful people by helping the vulnerable, and repeatedly ran into setbacks. Even so, he never gave up his original ideals and continued helping the weak.
But Shen Jinshu wants to be more than Nangong Mo's closest friend. Nangong Mo is highly skilled in martial arts, brave and resourceful, flexible and resilient, devoted to her country and its people. He admires her deeply. Even though they are both men, he wants to be her lifelong partner.
Even if everyone scorns him, he will gladly accept it. He asks only to win one person's heart and stay together until their hair turns white.
Theme: Country, people, and working for the people's well-being
