An astonishing DEBUT novel inspired by the life of the legendary Qing dynasty courtesan, Sai Jinhua. The year is 1881, the era of China's humiliation at the hands of imperialist Europe. 7-year-old Jinhua is left alone and unprotected, her life transformed after her mandarin father's summary execution for the crime of speaking the truth. As an orphan, she endures the brutal logic of a brothel-keeper, who puts her to work as a so-called money tree, and she survives the worst of human nature with the friendship and wisdom of the crippled brothel maid.