The History of the Shi Family: A Chronicle of Virtue

Huai De, a poor-born young man, finds an opportunity to enter the Shi household. With Steward Wu's backing, he becomes a purchasing clerk in the kitchen.

The vast Shi household is full of schemes. Head Chef Jia has held sway for years, lining his pockets and abusing his position. You Er is consumed by jealousy and repeatedly frames Huai De. And Second Madam is a master of plots and manipulation.

Huai De has no supernatural powers or powerful backers, and he never acts on a moment's hotheaded impulse. He relies on a keen eye for reading people and a careful mind for weighing gains and losses. Caught between competing factions, he patiently maneuvers, builds goodwill, and quietly gathers leverage.

One trap follows another, and schemes pile upon schemes. Rather than charge headlong into a deadly predicament, he looks for his opponents' weaknesses and uses their own power to keep them in check, protecting himself at every turn.

This is no legend of a nobody rising to the top overnight. It is the story of an ordinary man at the bottom, finding ways to survive and make his own path amid the turmoil of a grand household. Through the shifting seasons of fortune, he holds fast to his principles and searches for a safe way forward.