本小说塑造了李远平一个出身贫寒、仅有小学文化程度的农家女，变为国家工作人员，进而凭借其女人特有的"资本"，加上自身的"努力"，最终成为炙手可热的国土规划局长的人物形象。以其一步步走向腐败为线索，为读者揭开了其大肆进行权钱交易、权色交易、男盗女娼、坑害国家的种种劣迹，揭露了一幕幕鲜为人知的官场黑幕，表现了人性在情感与道德、欲望与情爱上的纠葛，反映了在金钱与诱惑面前，主人公李远平的沉沦经过。The novel tells a story of Li Yuanping, who was an impoverished famer's daughter with only primary school education. She became national staff, and later by virtue of women-specific "capital" and her own efforts, she eventually became a well-known Director General of the Land Planning Bureau. Based on the clue of how she stepped toward corruption, the book discloses the readers the misdeeds including trade power for money, trade between power and sex, theft and prostitute, and other wrong doings that harm the country; exposes the little-known official shady deals; shows the entanglement of humanity between emotion and morality, and between desire and love; and reflects how the protagonist Li Yuanping was depraved by money and temptation.