Sisters

Ancient China: 1926 to 1905 BCE. The era of the Longshan city-states is ending. Environmental issues have come to a head, exacerbated by the farming of marginal lands, overhunting, and massive flooding to the south; these factors contribute to mass migrations. There is a persistence amongst the ruling elite in their failure to recognise the needs of the peasantry, treating people as if they were chattels. Sporadic resistance occurs, but the Sisterhood, in league with the Xia, set in motion an epoch-defining plan to overturn the Longshan rulers and replace them with an equalitarian society. As the Xia establish themselves in the Yellow River valley, frictions between them and the Longshan grow, eventually culminating in a violent confrontation, the war to end all wars. The story commences in the city-state of Taosi, in Shanxi, where the local warlord, King Chiyou, is attempting to retain his throne. His capture, torture, and imprisonment of Houtu, one of the Sisterhood’s representatives, have temporarily bought him time but not a great deal of comfort. Groups of migrants, most from the south, the land of the Yangtze, coagulate around a common purpose and the changing geography, making their way north. Amongst them, Tushanshi and Yu lead the Xia and are guided by the steering hands of the Sisterhood, channelled through Líng, one of the few with access to the organisation’s secrets. The Sisterhood are ready for a confrontation and see Taosi as the softest point in the underbelly of the Longshan. Chiyou's incompetent underlings contribute to his fall at the hands of the Xia, and a new form of governance emerges in Taosi, recognising equalitarian rights regardless of sex or previous status. Taosi is only a stepping stone; the Sisterhood want to right wrongs across the Yellow River basin and to do so, only a head-on confrontation will suffice. The Xia power base moves to Erlitou, and they take steps to implement the destruction of the Longshan and their way of life. At the customary parley before the final battle, the Longshan elite, to their immense confusion, are faced only by Xia females.