Emperor Wu of Dayu had great ambitions and wanted to break the constraints of the gentry and strengthen the imperial power. He wanted to change the official selection system as the first step. However, Lingyun's ambition failed in the short life. At the same time, the head of the Xie family, the head of the gentry, also died mysteriously. For a time, the future of the Dayu Dynasty was unclear. Since there was no new emperor to take charge of the overall situation, there were powerful enemies from outside who wanted to take advantage of the situation and annihilate Dayu in one fell swoop. In order to maintain their own power, the two noble families of Wang and Cui elected Xiao Huaijing, the ninth son of Emperor Wu, to the throne. The new emperor was eight years old at this time. At the same time, the Xie family was also in dire straits due to the death of the head of the family. The second son of the Xie family was forced to take on important responsibilities. The eldest son Xie Yanxing, who was only seventeen years old, voluntarily gave up his position as the head of the family and led the army to go on an expedition. The second son of the Xie family, Xie Xingshu, took over as the head of the family at the age of fifteen.
Dayu fought hard with the Tuoba clan in the north for five years and finally won a complete victory. Xie Yanchuan of the Xie family was granted the title of regent to assist the young emperor, and Xie Xingshu, the head of the Xie family, was appointed as the minister. In just five years, the Xie family maintained their power and even became more powerful. However, the Cui family revived their old affairs and demanded the continuation of the late emperor's new policies, but the Xie family opposed it. The news that the New Deal was revived but was opposed by the Xie family was used by people with ulterior motives to spread it into the market. Students from academies across the country became angry and caused riots. The government was ordered to arrest the rioting students, including Rong Shi, the son of the Rong family of the common people. The Xie family was criticized for this incident, and when Xie Xingshu met Rong, one of the leaders of the trouble, in order to quell the public anger, the two formed a bad bond, and the truth about the death of the late emperor and the old head of the Xie family was revealed.
Main CP: Weak and evil civil servant (Xie Xingshu) x upright and slow civil servant (Rong Shi)
Deputy CP: The dictatorial and paranoid general Gong (Xie Yanchuan) x the scheming Black Lotus Emperor Shou (Xiao Huaijing)
Note: fictional history (the background is based on the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties)
Intention: to have high ambitions