Lu Zaiyang is the great-grandson of the founding general Duke of Wei, while Qiu Wuchen is the nephew of Feng Jinyu, the powerful chief eunuch of the Eastern Depot.
They seem destined to be natural enemies, constantly at odds and unable to get along at Nanzhu Academy.
But one late summer afternoon, their relationship suddenly began to change, so quietly that no one noticed.
Qiu Wuchen's brush snapped, and a black wolf-hair brush decorated with golden tiger stripes landed on his desk.
Qiu Wuchen's food box was knocked over, and a packet of still-warm pastries came flying at him.
For a long time, Qiu Wuchen couldn't figure out why. Eventually, he asked Lu Zaiyang.
Lu Zaiyang stammered, “Th-that day, didn't I... make you cry?”
Qiu Wuchen usually carried a veil whenever he went out, but that day someone splashed the water from the brush washer onto its white gauze, leaving it a filthy mess.
Lu Zaiyang hadn't done it, but he still felt uncomfortable about it.
He ran after Qiu Wuchen and grabbed him by the shoulder. When Qiu Wuchen turned around, his face was as cold as frost and moonlight, with a single tear on it.
Finally understanding, Qiu Wuchen blinked his moist eyes, popped the pastries Lu Zaiyang had given him into his mouth in a couple of bites, and then said
“I may have given you the wrong idea. I've had an eye condition since I was little. If I don't wear a veil to cover my face, the wind makes my eyes water.”
Lu Zaiyang: “...”
In their youth, they knew nothing of sorrow. Three years later, Lu Zaiyang went to war with his father. The army was annihilated, and he never returned.
Three more years passed. Qiu Wuchen had become the Crown Prince's tutor, yet still refused to marry.
At year's end, a scar-faced general whose name had risen to fame at the border returned to the capital for the first time. No one knew his family or background; they all assumed he came from humble origins.
The Crown Prince rewarded the troops. On the training grounds, Qiu Wuchen stood in pale moon-white robes beside the exceptionally tall general.
A cold wind blew. Before Qiu Wuchen could close his eyes, a broad black sleeve shielded them...
Theme: Hold fast to your ideals, and serve your country and its people
