Saiunkoku is a world of eight provinces or houses, each named after a different colour. The new Emperor, Shi Ryuuki, has gained for a reputation for being uninterested in courtly matters and for flaunting his love for men. Shuurei, although born of the important Kou family, has difficulty making ends meet. She easily accepts an invitation to be the Emperor's concubine in order to turn him into a good ruler. The mysterious Seiran, a young man who was adopted by her father, goes with her as Ryuuki's bodyguard. Entering the imperial palace revives Shuurei's dream of being a court official, and, together with the many companions she meets along the way, continues moving bravely forward while trying to fend off the Emperor's advances.
You can now watch The Story of Saiunkoku online on the following streaming providers in the United States.
| Title | Air Date | Duration | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | Episode 1 | Every Good Story Has a Hidden Side | 2006-04-08 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 2 | A Frog in a Well Does Not Know the Great Ocean | 2006-04-15 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 3 | The Talented Hawk Hides Its Talons | 2006-04-22 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 4 | Casting Pearls Before Swine | 2006-04-29 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 5 | There is No Genius Without Hard Work | 2006-05-06 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 6 | Lacking the Finishing Touch | 2006-05-13 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 7 | Even the Strongest Swimmer May Drown | 2006-05-20 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 8 | Wanting to Borrow a Cat's Paws | 2006-05-27 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 9 | The Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins with a Single Step | 2006-06-03 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 10 | Good Things Come to Those Who Wait | 2006-06-10 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 11 | There is No Cure for Lovesickness | 2006-06-17 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 12 | Discretion is the Better Part of Valour | 2006-06-24 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 13 | From a Gourd Comes a Horse | 2006-07-01 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 14 | On a Rock for Three Years | 2006-07-08 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 15 | Children Do Not Know Their Parents' Hearts | 2006-07-15 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 16 | There Are No Devils in the World | 2006-07-22 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 17 | Let Sleeping Dogs Lie or Poking a Bush Draws Out Snakes | 2006-08-26 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 18 | You Can't Hide by Burying Your Head in the Sand | 2006-09-02 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 19 | If You Love Your Child, Send Her on a Journey | 2006-09-09 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 20 | Flowers Blooming from Dead Wood | 2006-09-16 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 21 | The Wise Know When to Approach Danger | 2006-09-23 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 22 | Where There is Life, There is Hope | 2006-09-30 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 23 | It's the Company That Makes Travel Unpleasant | 2006-10-07 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 24 | Water on a Sleeping Ear | 2006-10-14 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 25 | An Accidental Resemblance | 2006-10-21 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 26 | Ravens in the Moonless Night | 2006-10-28 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 27 | The Prettier the Flower, the Higher the Branch | 2006-11-18 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 28 | Worry Gives Small Things Large Shadows | 2006-11-25 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 29 | Many Years' Worth of Thoughts in a Single Day | 2006-12-09 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 30 | Women Are Brave | 2006-12-16 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 31 | A Diamond in the Rough | 2006-12-23 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 32 | A Woman's Word is Her Bond | 2007-01-06 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 33 | No Use Crying Over Spilt Milk | 2007-01-13 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 34 | Poison Gets the Better of Poison | 2007-01-20 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 35 | Meeting is the Beginning of Parting | 2007-01-27 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 36 | All is Right in the World | 2007-02-03 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 37 | Tears Fall Like Rain from Heaven | 2007-02-10 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 38 | There is No Today After Today | 2007-02-17 | 25 min |
| Season 1 | Episode 39 | Fate is an Inscrutable and Interesting Thing | 2007-02-24 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 1 | There's No Place Like Home | 2007-04-07 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 2 | Doesn't Matter Whether You're Laughing or Crying | 2007-04-14 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 3 | Birds of a Feather Flock Together | 2007-04-21 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 4 | If Winter Comes, Can Spring Be Far Behind? | 2007-04-28 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 5 | Love is Not Stingy in Giving | 2007-05-05 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 6 | A Peal of Thunder in the Blue Sky | 2007-05-12 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 7 | Wholeheartedness Penetrates Stone | 2007-05-19 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 8 | Exhausting Human Abilities, One Waits for Heaven's Will | 2007-05-26 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 9 | Meeting the Buddha in Hell | 2007-06-02 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 10 | The Awaited Person Finally Comes | 2007-06-09 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 11 | The Husband is Always the Last to Know | 2007-06-16 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 12 | If Justice is Not Allowed to Be Seen, There Will Be No Heroism | 2007-06-30 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 13 | Hastiness Will Lead to Failure | 2007-07-07 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 14 | Enter the Lion's Den | 2007-07-14 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 15 | A Short Amount of Time | 2007-07-21 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 16 | Flames Before the Wind | 2007-07-28 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 17 | Up and Down Seven Times | 2007-08-04 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 18 | The Road is Distant After Dark | 2007-09-15 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 19 | Counting Your Chickens Before They Hatch | 2007-09-22 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 20 | All is Lost That is Given to a Fool | 2007-09-29 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 21 | A Frog's Child is a Frog | 2007-10-06 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 22 | An Insect in a Lion's Body | 2007-10-13 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 23 | Misery Loves Company | 2007-10-20 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 24 | One Good Turn Deserves Another | 2007-10-27 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 25 | Even with Trouble, Youth is Sufficient Enough to Pay | 2007-11-03 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 26 | Even the Wisest Will Flee When They Are Fools | 2007-11-10 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 27 | Better to Be the One Who Waits Than the One Waited For | 2007-11-17 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 28 | The Story of Saiunkoku | 2007-11-24 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 29 | The Further You Are, the More I Think About You | 2007-12-01 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 30 | The Silent Firefly's Body Consumed by Love | 2007-12-12 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 31 | One Reaps What One Sows | 2008-01-05 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 32 | A Painful Reluctance | 2008-01-12 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 33 | As the Seasons Change, So Does the Mind | 2008-01-26 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 34 | Bluer Than Indigo | 2008-02-02 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 35 | Crossing a Dangerous Bridge | 2008-02-09 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 36 | Fortune is Where One Finds It | 2008-02-16 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 37 | The Eyes Are the Mirror of the Soul | 2008-02-23 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 38 | Close Friendship | 2008-03-01 | 25 min |
| Season 2 | Episode 39 | Destined Partners Cannot Be Separated | 2008-03-08 | 25 min |
| Visual Effects | Miwa Oshima | Character Designer |