Tigers and Wolves

Huang Shi, Marquis of Zhendong, lured his rebellious sworn brother Kong Youde into a trap and killed him. Kong Youde’s generals, including Ji Tuisi, then rebelled. Xu Ping and his companions had only just joined the new army when they took part in the defense of Dezhou as volunteers. In an emergency, Xu Ping impersonated the adopted son of a fallen general and led the soldiers of the Dongsen Battalion into Dezhou. After a bitter struggle, Xu Ping was decorated for his service and became friends with Jin Shentong, who had arrived in time to bring reinforcements. Jin Shentong was the son of a prominent family. Xu Ping, born of humble origins, knew a little about his delicate relationship with Huang Shi’s two sons, but did not understand what lay behind it. When Xu Ping learned that the woman he had met at a teahouse and fallen for was Huang Ziyun, Huang Shi’s daughter, he was more troubled than ever. As the army set out to suppress the Shandong rebels, Xu Ping resolved to earn a hereditary post through military merit, hoping to win the right to ask for his beloved’s hand. In the army, he overruled the objections of others, revised the battle plan, and won the vanguard’s command seal. Huang Shi believed the new army’s practice of appointing officials mainly from the families of decorated soldiers was unsustainable. Xu Ping, talented and ambitious, was just the remedy the army needed to change course. But this time, the civil officials and the new army’s generals once again struck a delicate balance of power, and Xu Ping was forced to kill civilians to claim a military victory. Missteps in command plunged the new army into a bitter fight. After the court mistakenly believed Xu Ping had died, it saddled him with a host of charges on behalf of those still alive. Just then, Xu Ping received news that Huang Ziyun was to be married... Why was the Changqing Battalion, led by Xu Ping, crushed by the rebels? Why was he buried under layer upon layer of false accusations? Where will his life lead from here? Meanwhile, another hero of this chaotic age, Li Zicheng, had already launched a devastating attack on Xu Ping’s heart!