This is a story set in a parallel timeline. Seven years later, I'm writing about the Shoucang Huo family again. -20260802 note
To avoid any gaps between updates, I'm building up a backlog before starting. I'll begin after the New Year. Thanks for adding this to your collections!
Family power broker × female information broker
Unconventional, unhinged type × ruthless drama queen
Skilled in her craft, risking her life to investigate cases × adaptable, doing whatever it takes to survive
Underworld society, eerie mysteries, 1v1, evenly matched
Synopsis
East of Hunan and Hubei, south of Guangxi and Guangdong, between the mountains of Guizhou and its winding rivers, countless legendary tales of the underworld have been written.
South of Liaodong and north of the desert frontier, deep in the land of white mountains and black waters, lie secrets that have remained unsolved for a hundred years.
She came from Guizhou's mountains and rivers and traveled eight thousand miles to become a renowned information broker in the underworld.
She crossed mountains and rivers, traveled from the city to the countryside, knocked on countless doors, and heard countless secrets.
An information broker's rules have always been simple: keep the peace and make money, stay out of other people's affairs, take money to get things done, and help people avert disaster.
He holds sway over the land of white mountains and black waters, guarding a tower built from accumulated wealth and carrying on his family's century-long prosperity.
He upholds his reputation and virtue, his words and his principles. His clan's rules and teachings demand discipline and adherence to regulations. He has always been cold, aloof, and indifferent to others.
*
An accident brings these natural enemies face-to-face. When their opposing forces collide, she thinks he's sabotaging her on behalf of a rival, while he thinks she's come looking for revenge.
They fight fiercely, both getting hurt, only for their real rival to reap the rewards while they brawl...
Zhou Qi: "Damn! We've really made an enemy of each other this time..."
Shoucang: "There won't be a next time!"
But fate has other plans. For the sake of their own goals and interests, they have no choice but to join forces and face their enemies together.
From western Hunan to Liaodong, from the mountains of Guizhou to the northern desert, they travel thousands of miles through mountain passes, sharing life and death.
When pretending turns into genuine affection and using each other becomes a way of drawing closer, perhaps fate's gift is the beginning of a fall from grace...
Zhou Qi: "Mountains connect to mountains, roads connect to roads. Without me, you're nothing!"
Shoucang: "So the guest under my roof was you all along."
*Synopsis posted on 20260802. The outline was written in late summer 2019.
Theme: A legendary tale of people of the underworld, set against a journey through mountains and passes.
