The Ruthless Minister

A modern man, Tan Zong, dies a wrongful death—but his soul lingers.

By a twist of fate, he awakens in a distant historical era, reincarnated as Lin Fu, a timid and scorned collateral descendant of the once-prominent Lin family in Dongyang Prefecture—newly appointed as a juren (provincial exam graduate).

Before he can even begin enjoying the idle life of a scholar-gentleman—walking dogs, raising birds, and flirting with married women—Lin Fu finds himself ensnared in chaos. His infatuation with Su Mei, a devastatingly beautiful courtesan from Jiangning, drags him into a treacherous power struggle involving famous scholars, regional warlords, influential court eunuchs, separatist strongmen, and ruthless pirates from the Eastern Sea.

Unwilling to be a complacent bystander, nor to become a casualty of turbulent times, Lin Fu—armed with the mind of a modern man—begins his climb from the very bottom of the political ladder.

Through a life entangled in sensual pleasures and dangerous liaisons, where "beneath silk skirts lie deadly traps," he transforms from a loyal minister fit for times of peace into a fearsome warlord forged in chaos.