She Who Became the Sun

She Who Became the Sun (2021) by Shelley Parker-Chan is a historical and LGBTQ+ fantasy novel set during the decline of the Yuan dynasty in China. The novel is based on the premise that the founding emperor of the subsequent Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang (called Zhu Chongba in the novel), was assigned female at birth (AFAB). A 2022 Lambda Finalist for Transgender Fiction and the first Australian novel to win a Hugo award, She Who Became the Sun is Parker-Chan’s debut novel. This guide references the United States edition of the book published by Tor.

Content Warning: The book contains instances of degrading/dehumanizing language regarding gender, references/depictions of graphic executions and violent deaths, and depictions of explicit (consensual) sex.

Plot Summary

Zhu is a peasant girl in a village suffering from famine and other calamities. She is told that her brother, Chongba, is destined for greatness, while she is destined for nothing. After the deaths of her father and brother, Zhu takes on her brother’s identity and enters Wuhuang Monastery as a novice. During this time, Zhu encounters Ouyang and feels an instant connection. Ouyang returns years later and destroys the monastery, forcing Zhu to seek her fate with the Red Turbans, a group of Nanren (i.e., southern Chinese) rebels. There, Zhu meets Ma Xiuying, her future wife. Desperate to survive the upcoming battle against Ouyang, who leads the Mongol Prince of Henan’s military, and claim her new fate, Zhu causes a landslide; the resulting displaced water destroys the Mongol forces.

Ouyang is a competent general. He is also a eunuch, castrated as punishment for his father’s rebellion against the Yuan. He witnessed his family’s massacre and enslavement. Ouyang was also enslaved and given to the prince’s Mongol son, Esen. After the landslide, the prince, named Chaghan, is enraged and humiliates Ouyang. Ouyang vows vengeance for his family’s demise. Even as he strategizes for the Mongols, he gathers Nanren allies for a coup. Lord Wang Baoxiang, Esen’s cousin/adopted brother, is another victim of Chaghan’s ire—Wang, half Nanren and half Mongolian, is a bureaucrat, not a warrior; when he refuses to lead his men into battle, Chaghan punishes him by giving his land away to a rival noble.

The Red Turban leaders are impressed with Zhu. Her next task is to capture the city of Lu. On the way, Zhu reunites with her friend Xu Da, who joins her. During their infiltration of the city, Zhu makes a deal with the former governor’s widow, Lady Rui: if Rui surrenders to the Red Turbans, she can rule the city. Rui agrees as long as Zhu kills the new governor. Zhu agrees and assassinates him. She wakes imprisoned to find that Rui wants to renege on their deal. However, Zhu has a backup plan. Xu Da attacks the city, and Rui is forced to concede to their agreement. Zhu is promoted to commander.

Political in-fighting results in disagreement regarding the next target—Jiankang or Bianliang. Power-hungry Chen suggests both. Little Guo, believing himself victorious (taking Jiankang is his idea), publicly crows about his idea. Ma begs Zhu to protect Little Guo, whom Zhu dislikes. Zhu, sympathetic toward Ma, reluctantly promises to try. Jiankang is captured easily. Upon returning to the Red Turban base, the soldiers find that Chen has manipulated the Prime Minister to believe Little Guo is a traitor. Despite Little Guo’s innocence, he is executed. Later, Zhu proposes marriage to Ma, who initially refuses, but accepts after Zhu reveals her true sex.

Meanwhile, Chaghan and his sons (and Ouyang) attend the Great Khan’s Spring Hunt. At the event, Esen is dismayed at the indifference of the Khan, Ouyang allies with Zhang Shide of the Zhang merchant clan, and Lord Wang is angered by a rival noble’s insults. Wang enacts his revenge by secretly killing the noble’s gift to the Khan; a dead gift is a treasonous offense. Ouyang notes Wang’s deviousness and satisfaction with his revenge. Chaghan, however, is not amused, despite the political benefits; he verbally disowns Wang for his actions. During the hunt, Ouyang encounters Wang being attacked by wolves. Ouyang rescues him and kills a wolf to bring back to the main party. Wang is humiliated further when he publicly discovers his disownment. Chaghan’s horse is spooked by the dead wolf and throws him, and he falls off a cliff. Wang tries to rescue him but fails; when Esen arrives—too late—he believes Wang murdered Chaghan.

The three return to the family estate. Esen, now Prince of Henan, is unsuited and unprepared for the role. He considers Wang a necessary evil to run the estate but wants nothing to do with his brother, blaming him for Chaghan’s death. Ouyang is conflicted about the effects his plot has on Esen but remains committed. Esen decides to mourn his father by defeating the Red Turbans. Ouyang, who is aware of the Red Turbans’ next target, must balance revealing information with maintaining the necessary secrecy for his coup.

Back at the Red Turbans’ base, Zhu and Ma are married. With a factional coup brewing, Ma urges Zhu to avoid involvement. Zhu uses her ghosts to secretly poison her wedding feast. (Ghosts are manifestations of people’s traumas, but only some characters can see and interact with them.) Her men fall ill and are forcibly quarantined. Ma also falls ill, and Zhu nurses her back to health. Zhu’s plan is a success—illness prevents her from participating in the attempted coup, from which Chen emerges victorious. The coup’s leaders are executed. Chen then restyles himself as chancellor of state. The remaining Red Turban leaders discuss Bianliang’s capture. As a loyalty test, Chen decides to accompany one of his commanders in taking Bianliang; Zhu, meanwhile, must lead a decoy force and distract Ouyang. This plan forces Zhu to rely on Chen for survival.

Zhu’s forces notice flammable gas leaking from abandoned coal mines. Once Ouyang arrives, Zhu uses this to her advantage. Ouyang, irritated, has very little interest in the battle. To save her troops, Zhu challenges Ouyang to single combat and reveals the Red Turbans’ true target. Zhu learns that Ouyang has known their tactics all along and purposely played along because doing so benefits his goals. However, Ouyang also exacts his revenge for his grudge against Zhu, stabbing her in the abdomen and cutting off her right hand—for Ouyang, mutilation and the accompanying humiliation are worse than death.

Afterward, Ouyang returns to Esen’s estate and receives permission to seek military assistance from the Zhangs. Ouyang then travels to Yangzhou, where he meets the Zhangs and succeeds in acquiring reinforcements. Upon Ouyang’s return to Henan, Lord Wang’s attitude toward him worsens. Wang is suspicious of Ouyang’s uncharacteristically successful diplomatic mission, declaring that he will accompany Ouyang and Esen on their next battle, much to their consternation. Esen tires of the logistical delays caused by Wang’s retinue and punishes Wang by burning his books, irrevocably damaging their relationship. Esen also increasingly depends on Ouyang, making him vulnerable to Ouyang’s manipulations. Ouyang grows more conflicted.

At the Red Turban base, Zhu convalesces and her relationship with Ma grows more intimate. Though Zhu must adapt to the loss of her hand, she is unhindered by psychological damage from her wounds. Once she recovers, she takes control of the Red Turbans and observes Jiao Yu’s chauvinistic attitude toward her. Chen requests Zhu’s aid in betraying the Prime Minister so Chen can become king.

Ouyang’s forces arrive at Bianliang first. Zhu sneaks into his ger to request a temporary alliance—if Ouyang sends Chen’s note to the Prime Minister and allows the Prime Minister and the Prince of Radiance to go free, Zhu will retreat. Ouyang agrees, but once his reinforcements arrive, she is on her own. Zhu accepts and realizes Ouyang wants vengeance. The next day, the armies prepare for battle. Noon comes and goes. The Prime Minister appears with the Prince of Radiance; Zhu’s forces rescue them and retreat. Ouyang’s army recaptures Bianliang; Chen escapes. Once Zhu’s forces stop to rest, the Prime Minister praises her loyalty; she then kills him.

Esen is unimpressed by Bianliang’s faded splendor. Only Wang seems to appreciate its significance. As he tells Esen its history, Ouyang and his allies stage their coup. Esen realizes it too late. Esen finally understands Ouyang’s desire for revenge; Ouyang, meanwhile, realizes Wang’s involvement. Wang convinces Ouyang to spare his life by severing blood ties to Esen. Wang is released and disappears, but Esen remains captive. Ouyang gives Esen a sword and demands single combat. Esen refuses, throwing away both weapon and armor. Ouyang kills him. Ouyang grieves openly and then leaves to lead his forces to the Yuan capital.

Zhu, meanwhile, briefly returns to the Red Turbans’ base, giving the Prince of Radiance into Ma’s care. Zhu then moves to retake Jiankang and brings the prince with her, secretly killing him to eliminate competition. She also returns her borrowed identity to her brother’s hungry ghost. After Zhu captures Jiankang, she summons Ma and gives her an ultimatum: stay with Zhu and accept the subsequent sacrifices on the path to the throne, or leave. Undecided, Ma exits. The novel ends during the ceremony where Zhu declares her intention to become emperor. She gives herself a new name, Zhu Yuanzhang. Ma decides to remain by Zhu’s side. Zhu rejoices as she finally claims her fate.