The series, spanning over 70 years, romanticises the life of
Kublai Khan and the events leading to the establishment of the
Mongol-led
Yuan dynasty in China. Kublai was born in 1215 as a son of
Tolui, the fourth son of
Genghis Khan. At the time,
Töregene, the wife of
Ögedei (Genghis Khan's third son), sees Tolui as a potential threat to her husband. As Tolui gains more glory from his victories in battle, Töregene frets that Genghis Khan will choose Tolui instead of Ögedei to be his successor. She also feels uneasy because the young Kublai is highly favoured by his grandfather. Ögedei eventually succeeds his father as the
Great Khan of the
Mongol Empire. After Töregene secretly poisons Tolui to death, Tolui's eldest son
Möngke gathers his brothers to discuss avenging their father. Töregene plans to use this opportunity to accuse Möngke and his brothers of plotting treason against Ögedei, and thereby get rid of Tolui's descendants. At this critical juncture, Kublai and his mother,
Sorghaghtani, manage to convince Möngke and the others not to do anything rash. Instead, they would secretly build up their forces, lie low, and wait until the time is ripe to take revenge. Following Ögedei's death, Töregene becomes the Regent of the Mongol Empire for some years until her son
Güyük is elected as the new Great Khan. When Güyük dies in a conflict against his cousin
Batu, his wife
Qaimish takes over as the Regent for a brief period of time until Möngke becomes the new Great Khan. A few years later, after Möngke dies in a battle against the
Song Empire, Kublai and his younger brother
Ariq Böke get into
a power struggle over the succession. Kublai eventually overcomes his brother, and secures his position as the Great Khan after defeating all his rivals. He conquers the rest of China and establishes the Yuan dynasty, becoming its founding emperor. ==Cast==