Hit drama sparks Hangzhou tourism boom

A hit TV series about a lesser-known, tumultuous era in Chinese history is inspiring curious fans to visit Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, where many of the exciting plot points took place.

Its English name, Swords into Plowshares, tells a story of violence giving way to agriculture, but the Chinese name, which translates to Peaceful Years, is bitterly ironic. The series depicts emperors being overthrown one after another, bones in the ruins of a battlefield, and starving soldiers resorting to cannibalism.