Song Xu

Song Xu is a historical time-travel web novel by the author Guan Sheng. Serialized on Qidian from 2020 and completed on April 6, 2022, it runs to roughly 1.91 million Chinese characters across more than 770 chapters. The title takes its name from Zhao Xu, Emperor Zhezong of Song. The protagonist, a former multinational executive with a doctorate in economics, dies in a rock-climbing accident and wakes up as the seventeen-year-old Emperor Zhezong in the seventh year of the Yuanyou era (1092). Zhao Xu has already reigned for seven years, but the Grand Empress Dowager Gao rules from behind the curtain, leaving the emperor a mere figurehead. The story opens with the protagonist ambushed beside an abandoned well in the palace; still shaken, he must protect himself and investigate the would-be killer while parrying moves among the emperor, the empress dowager, and the old and new factions. Beyond the borders, Liao and Western Xia watch hungrily; within the court, the factional strife left by Wang Anshi's reforms persists, with the old faction dominating the government and border threats deepening by the day—and the Jingkang catastrophe that historically changed the dynasty's fate lies only decades away. Centered on palace intrigue and court politics, the novel follows the protagonist from the late Yuanyou years through the Shaosheng era as he gradually reclaims imperial power, reforms finances and the military, promotes trusted allies, and tackles long-standing local abuses in an attempt to reverse the Northern Song's decline. The author notes a style heavy on buildup: the first volume focuses on the protagonist's rise and the many facets of Song officialdom, laying groundwork for later reforms. The pacing is steady and the characters consistently sharp.