As a child Ko Sing entered the Qing court to act as a whipping boy to the Qianlong Emperor and continues to live at court as a hanger on. However unknown to all, the Qianlong Emperor is not the literate and able ruler of history but a foolish and incompetent one, only with the aid of Ko Sing is he able to protect his reputation and the reputation of the Qing court. Playing the role of a layabout with no official titles or duties, Ko Sing acts as a trouble shooter within the palace, allowing plotters and malcontents to underestimate him until it is too late.
