He Hong, the legitimate son of the Princess Mansion, lost his mother at the age of five. He was taught restraint, silence and responsibility since he was a child. He has a frail twin brother He Lan, and a young boy Kuang Che who always stands by his side. Kuang Che came out of Bianzhen. He had a straightforward temperament and didn't know much about literacy, but he knew how to protect people better than anyone else. From the time they first met in the school field at the age of ten, the two of them grew up together, one teaching calligraphy and the other blocking swords, with bows and horses, books, palace walls, and the ups and downs of their home and country.
He Hong's life has been shaped by many partings. He learned to put away his expectations, hide the pain in his sleeves, and store the love of his relatives in an old piece of paper, a bow, a wooden horse and a bowl of bitter medicine. But Kuang Che refused to let him sink alone. He Lan also guarded this home in his own way: cooking medicine, reading books, and silently handing over a lamp.
The novel describes the friendship between teenagers, as well as the weight of kinship, family, country and destiny. It does not rush for the characters to express love, but allows love to fall into a turning hand, a waiting hand, and an outstretched hand. Before the turbulence of the mountains and rivers, they were just children drawing horses side by side on the school field; when the storm really came, those "protect you" they promised when they were young became the root for each other to cross the abyss.
Intent: "Hold the Lamp and Wait for the Dawn" mainly expresses that in the face of loss, fate and the storms of the times, people should still hold on to the light in their hearts, wait for the dawn, and become the glimmer of light that illuminates others. The story draws on the companionship between teenagers and the silent and deep love between relatives to describe how people are supported in pain and how they learn to support others. The so-called "carrying on the lantern" means inheriting the love, faith and unfulfilled wishes left by the predecessors; "waiting for the dawn" means not giving up hope in the long dark night, waiting for one person and a clearer tomorrow.