A Shot to the King's Shoulder

Lin Chuan, a graduate student in history, transmigrates to the state of Zheng in 744 BC and becomes the newly enthroned Duke Zhuang of Zheng, a fourteen-year-old ruler despised by his mother, coveted by his younger brother, and looked down on by his ministers. Lin Chuan knows that the body he now occupies will belong to the first man in the Spring and Autumn period bold enough to challenge the Son of Heaven, a minor hegemon of the age.

From a feckless ruler nearly forced from the throne by his own brother to a hegemon who commands the respect of the feudal lords, he knows the historical script by heart. All he can do is make every move more masterfully.

He intends to rewrite more than his own fate. He will raise the banner of “honor the king and expel the barbarians” before Duke Huan of Qi, use the military strategies and institutions of later ages to establish a foothold in this era of collapsing rites and music, and make Zheng the true hegemon of all under heaven.