Shang Sian lies just above the joining of the Sien Lio River, which flows down from the Han Torra Khang to the west, with the An-Kiu River; the An-Kiu is bridged here, the Great Western Route crossing the river on tall, massive pillars and arches of stone.

The people of this city are mostly absorbed in the intricacies of producing world-famous porcelain: mining the clay in the low hills around the city, shaping it, and firing it with wood floated down from Lyn Tirian. They are shorter than most Adantri and more solidly built; satirists from the more cosmopolitan cities say they have taken on the nature of their clay, being compact, cold, dense, and dull.

Not so; they make little outward show of their passions, but the city is constantly divided into feuding camps over one thing or another. Has the House of White Cranes dared to dig clay from a hill which the House of Three Roses considers its own? Blows will be exchanged in the taverns. Did the House of the Sleeping Dragon lure a skilled shaper of cups from the House of the Roaring Lion? Blood will flow in dark alleys. Has the head of the House of the Twin Pines declared support for a man who desires to be appointed magistrate? Straight away, the head of the House of the Dancing Sage will declare support for the man's opponent... The Empire's major warrior clans have few representatives here, but each of the Ten Houses of Shang Sian considers itself a warrior clan and as worthy of respect as any in the Empire. (The Ten Houses are: White Cranes, Three Roses, Sleeping Dragon, Roaring Lion, Twin Pines, Dancing Sage, Golden Bell, Shining Pearl, Falling Leaf, and Red Horn.)

The Lord Governor of Shang Sian is always an outsider, for no local man, however wise, would be able to tread the narrow path between the constantly warring factions of this city. The current Lord Governor of the province is Zelran ten Lahario; the Subgovernor Magistrate is Khel Zaran ten Chan-Jor.