The story of saiunkoku

Ko Surey, a girl of noble birth, lives with her father and brother named Seiran in a huge house. But her family went bankrupt and, by and large, the origin and the house - all that she had left. My father works in the imperial library, and Surey herself teaches at the school at the temple. Her cherished dream is to become a civil servant, but in medieval society for women this path is closed. Once, an adviser to the emperor appears in the house and makes Surei an offer - to portray the emperor’s wife for six months in exchange for a very decent amount of gold. The adviser explains to Surey that the emperor is not interested in women: in fact, the frivolous young man needs lessons in public administration. Surei agrees to do the job without asking what to do. The offered amount of money immediately turned her head. Having learned what her role is, she begins to doubt, but, despite the fact that Surei is embarrassed by this role, the desire to correct the plight of the family does not allow her to refuse.

History

Legend of the origin of the Land of Colored Clouds (Kingdom of Sayunkoku):

Once upon a time, during the bloody wars, one man resisted evil. His heart was filled with philanthropy. And the eight sages were called by his brave heart. A man who was known by many names received mysterious powers from these eight sages. His name was So Geng. Using the knowledge of the eight sages, he brought the world a new heyday, becoming the first ruler of the kingdom of Sayunokoku. After the death of Saugen, eight sages disappeared, but there are rumors that they have only been lost among people, and now they can live among us. In honor of the eight sages, a temple was built. He still stands in the capital of the kingdom. (1 h. 1 s.)

Legend of the foundation of the Hyo clan:

Emperor So Geng and his younger sister So Yoki once defeated one hundred and eight demons here and sealed them in a magic mirror. But the mirror could not stand it and broke. And then So Yoki began to play erhu. One after another, the fragments of the mirror turned into lakes. One hundred and eight demons had already been freed, but they were each sealed in their own lake. This So Yoki became the founder of the Hyo clan. (2 h. 34 p.)

Provinces and Clans

In the Land of Colored Clouds (Kingdom of Sayunkoku) 8 provinces. Each province is governed by a separate color clan, and is named accordingly. The capital is Kiyo, located in the central purple province.

Clans:

• Si ( Jap. 紫 Si , Violet) - the clan to which the ruling dynasty of the kingdom of Sayunkoku belongs. The symbol of the clan is purple iris.
• Ran ( 藍 Ran , Indigo) is the most powerful clan of the Sayunkoku along with the ruling purple clan. Not involved in the political activities of the country. The Ran family controls salt production in the country. The coat of arms of the Ran family is a double dragon in the source of the lotus on a blue background. The plate with the coat of arms of the Ran family allows you to go through the outposts without inspection. Ran Province is located on the seafront.
• Ko ( 紅 Ko:, Red) is the second most influential clan in the kingdom of Sayunkoku after the Ran clan. The clan has the greatest influence in the province of Ko. The clan specializes in trade and the production of seven-color fluorescent paint (Ko is the only clan that manages to produce it). Also, the clan is engaged in the selection and industrial cultivation of tangerines. Symbols of the Ko family - mandarin ducks (birds) on a gold background. The current head of the Ko clan is the head (chamberlain) of the civil department.
• Sa ( Jap., Sa , Brown) - known as the most troubled clan in the kingdom of Sayunkoku. Most of the clan members live in the province of Sa. Ca Province is located in a mountainous area.
• Ko ( Japanese 黄 Ko:, Yellow) - in Japanese, the pronunciation of the two provinces of Ko and Kou is the same. Only hieroglyphic spelling is different. To the Ko family belongs the head of the financial department (Kobu) - chamberlain Coe.
• Haki ( я , Green) - the clan is famous for its representatives in the creative sphere - artists, sculptors, etc.
• Koku ( 黒 , Black) is a very calm province, it has been ruled by the same person for many years (ruler Kai).
• Haku ( Japanese 白 , White)

In addition to the eight colored clans in the country, there is also a very powerful Hyo clan - representatives of the Hyo clan have a variety of magical abilities. The clan’s coat of arms is the full moon, framed by eight colorful petals.

Government structures

Ministries:

• External Relations
• Internal Affairs
• Central ministry
• Ministry of Education

Departments:

• Official (in another translation - government, department of public projects, without translation - Reibu)
• Tax (in another translation - the Department of Finance, without translation - Kobu)
• Social (in another translation - the Department of Civil Affairs, without translation - Ribu)
• Military
• Law enforcement
• Building
• Centosho - Department of the Immortals

Other structures:

• The imperial council is a council under the emperor consisting of representatives of the nobility. Without the approval of the council, the emperor does not make key decisions in the country.
• Goshidai ( 御史台 ) - Imperial censorship. Punitive structure in the kingdom of Sayunkoku.
• The trade guild is a commercial structure that allows more freedom to carry out the movement of goods and technologies in the country.
• The Kiyo Gang Alliance is an unofficial structure in the capital that controls the financial and social aspects of the life of citizens. Collaborates with the government.
• Kanrinin - Imperial Academy in charge of calligraphy, paintings and manuscripts. Perhaps the equivalent of the Hanling Chinese Imperial Academy (Tang Dynasty)

• Ko Surei ( 紅 秀麗 Ko: Shu: rei ) is the only daughter of Ko Shoki from the Ko clan, one of the most powerful Colored Clouds in the country. At the beginning of the story, she is 16 years old. Despite the high social status, childhood Surey was not easy. Father's work brought very little money, which they usually gave to those in need. There are no servants in the Ko house, so Surey knows how to housekeeping: clean, cook, etc. Due to the poverty in which Surey grew up, she is very thrifty and does not tolerate wastefulness. Suray's dream is to become a civil servant.

Seiyu - Kuwashima Hoko .

• Shi Ryuki ( 紫 劉輝 劉輝 Shi Ryu: ki ) is the reigning emperor Sayunkoku. At the beginning of the story, he is 19 years old. As the youngest of six brothers, he was always the least likely candidate for the throne. But four of his older brothers died and one was expelled. Ryuki secretly hoped that his older brother would return and take the place of the Emperor, so he pretended to be frivolous and left the government. But it ended after meeting with Surey, who told him about her dream to make life in the country better. As emperor, he often makes far-sighted and wise decisions, but in matters not related to politics, he behaves like a child. Likes Surey.

Seiyu - Seki Tomokazu .

• Si Seiran ( 茈 静 蘭 Si Seiran ) is a young man admitted to the Ko family thirteen years ago. He took an oath to devote his life to repaying Shoke and Surey for their kindness. Seyran is a skilled fighter and swordsman, which helps him defend Surey, who often gets into trouble. It is later revealed that Seyran is the exiled Emperor's early elder brother, Seyen.

Seiyu - Hikaru Midorikawa .

Series

The series was shot by Madhouse , directed by Jun Shishido. The first season went on the NHK channel from April 8, 2006 to February 24, 2007 (39 episodes) on Saturday morning. The second, also from 39 episodes, went from April 7, 2007 to March 8, 2008. The opening song for both the first and second season is the song “Hajimari no Kaze” ( は じ ま り の 風 ““ The Wind Begins ”” ) , performed by Ayaka Hirahara . Ending of the first season “Saikō no Kataomoi” ( Jap. 最高 の 片 想 い , “ Uninvited Feeling ”) , is sung by Sati Tainak , the second is “Asu e” ( Jap. 明日 へ , “ Tomorrow ”) , performed by Teruya Miho.

Soundtrack

Three anime music CDs released by Geneon Entertainment (彩雲 国 物語 オ リ ジ ナ ル サ ウ ン ド ト ラ ッ ク 1 ( jap. ) ) August 4, 2008 (38 tracks, including the televersion of opening and ending. The second (彩雲 国 物語 セ カ ン ド シ リ ー ズ 」オ リ ジ ナ ル サ ウ ン ド ト ラ ッ ク?), January 12, 2007) contains 30 more tracks. The third album was released on December 7, 2007 (彩雲 国 物語 セ カ ン ド シ リ ー ズ 」オ リ ジ ナ ル サ ウ ン ド ト ラ ッ ク( я. ) ) with musical themes of the second season of anime (23 tracks). Full versions of the ending were released on hotel singles (August 30, 2006 and June 6, 2007). On March 7, 2008, simultaneously with the end of the series, an additional album, 彩雲 国 物語 Song of Memory, was released with 10 character songs.

• Anime page (Japanese) on NHK website.

• Anime "The Story of Saiunkoku" in the encyclopedia of Anime News Network
• Anime "The Story of Saiunkoku" in the AniDB database