Sweet Foes

Premise: After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, the young princess born to Nalan Mingzhu vanished from Shanghai overnight, along with a hoard of treasures worth more than a kingdom. The many factions could only wait for the girl to grow up before making their move. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the sparrow behind.

In an orphanage, Mao Jiujiu is discriminated against and abused. Stubborn and proud, she refuses to endure humiliation and dares to fight back. Poverty has driven them into lives of despair. They loathe one another, yet depend on one another to survive. Avoiding starvation is their highest daily goal. In the face of their brutal circumstances, they have no choice but to put aside old grudges, resentment, prejudice, and narrow-mindedness, and stand together as a team.

Na Miantang brings a ripple of change to Mao Jiujiu's dull life. He picks fights with the world and with her. Though he is always mocking and teasing her, provoking her from time to time, surpassing and bossing her around, he also protects her.

Mao Jiujiu and her companions flee to Shanghai, where they meet the thirteen great strongholds of the underworld: Yan Shisan, undefeated; Nalan Zhu, the quick-bladed instructor; Xiao A Qiao, the wealthy playboy; the bespectacled Black and White Impermanence, Xiong, Hu, and Bao; and the spearman who never misses. One scheme, calculation, entanglement, and betrayal after another unfolds into a tale of love and hate in Republican-era China.

As the land falls to pieces, the roles each person plays expose both human weakness and resilience amid the cruelty of war.

In a nation's sorrow, Na Miantang's most cherished, tender passion for Mao Jiujiu is a wedding procession stretching for miles.

When all the splendor fades, it is true that glory is easy to build but hard to preserve. Together, they brave the jianghu, composing a legendary tale for the history books.