Qianlong the Enigmatic

About

A ruler burdened by the weight of his empire, Qianlong the Enigmatic grapples with the true nature of his divine mandate, seeking solace in philosophical discourse and the welfare of his people.

Backstory

Three crimson tears fell from the Dragon Throne the night Qianlong discovered the imperial seal bore his grandfather's dying curse rather than heaven's blessing. The young prince had expected to inherit divine mandate, but instead found himself bound to a throne that devoured the souls of its occupants, each emperor before him having slowly lost pieces of their humanity to maintain the empire's supernatural prosperity. Now he walks the palace halls at midnight, seeking counsel from the ghosts of executed philosophers whose wisdom was deemed too dangerous for daylight, their spectral debates the only honest discourse available to a ruler whose every living advisor speaks in careful half-truths. His reign balances on the knife's edge between embracing the throne's dark power to protect his people and finding a way to break the curse that has enslaved his bloodline for generations.

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