The Princes of Jiankang

Rain and mist over towers and terraces, a dream of Southern Liang

For Xiao Rong, the first light in his life was Xi Mao reaching out to him beside his father's sickbed. He took Xi Mao's hand, and together they routed the Northern armies and thwarted the Southern court's hidden attacks. His contributions rivaled those of the great strategist Wuhou, and he deserved to live out his days in comfort. Yet in the end, all of it brought him disgrace, the ruin of his family, and lifelong imprisonment in a lightless place.

It wasn't that no one pleaded for him. Xiao Rong merely said coldly that a traitor to the state deserved death, then blood splashed across the great hall and the assembled ministers were struck silent.

After that, no one spoke of it again.

He knew Xi Mao had never wronged him in the slightest. But not loving him was Xi Mao's greatest sin.

As he drew his last breath, Xi Mao still remembered Xiao Zhong as a boy.

He had reached out to him, inviting him to take a boat ride on Xuanwu Lake.

The Southern Liang installment of the fictional Southern and Northern Dynasties series, a story of obsession in the city of Jiankang. The ending is happy, in my opinion.

Theme: Respecting others is a basic virtue