Tian Wu -- Memories of the Lost Imperial Capital (Pioneering a New Era in Chinese Fantasy Fiction)

Author: Du Ru
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-11-01
Features: This novel tells a tragic story of love, power struggles, and fate. The story unfolds in a mystical world recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, where Zisheng, the prototype of Gun, who stole the Xiran soil from the heavens at the cost of his life to save the people, is both the father of the great Yu and a Chinese Prometheus; Zhen Hui, though lacking a prototype, becomes entangled in a love triangle with these two men who were written into history.
At the age of fifteen, I was sent from the Eastern Mansion to the Imperial Capital as the wife of Zhen Chun, a rebel. In my memories, the spring in the Eastern Mansion was always damp. The day I left, it was drizzling. The leaves of the mountain lotus by the mansion gate shone with rainwater, contrasting with the deep red flowers. I seemed to realize how delicate and captivating these flowers were. I thought it might be because I was about to leave that the Eastern Mansion appeared more beautiful than usual. This made me feel somewhat surprised. I had assumed I had no attachment to the Eastern Mansion, though I was born and raised there. From a young age, I knew that one day I would leave the Eastern Mansion. It wasn’t because of any prophetic ability, but simply because I was the daughter of the Eastern Emperor, so when I grew up, I would marry into a noble family, just like the girls from the Zhen family.
The story of The Dance of Heaven takes place in a mystical world recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas. Among the three protagonists, Zisheng’s prototype is the formidable Shaohao Emperor from the era of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors; Cheng Huan’s prototype is Gun, who stole the Xiran soil from the heavens at the cost of his life to save the people, the father of the great Yu, a Chinese Prometheus; Zhen Hui, though lacking a prototype, becomes entangled in a love triangle with these two men who were written into history. She severed the last strand of connection between us, ruthlessly and without reservation. As I left, her final glance back filled me with that bone-deep sorrow once more. At that moment, I was astonished to realize my own numbness. I watched her leave silently, feeling no emotion at all. I saw the last withered leaf fall silently. I heard the wild geese flap their wings in the sky. I heard the wind pass through the curtains. I heard the soft footsteps of the maids coming and going in the corridor. Everything seemed the same. Yet I knew I would never see Cheng Huan’s gentle smile again. I would never hear Cheng Huan’s calm voice again. I experienced the dry, cracking pain once more, as if something within me was shattering, yet I could not shed a single tear.
I remembered a day in the past when Hu Shan made a prophetic remark: “You are destined to be alone.” Now I truly was alone. I thought that in the underworld, my mother might find her missing piece, her soul finally whole. But what about me? What could fill the emptiness of my loss?