The Legend of He Xi

Deng Sui had been certain that missing the selection three years earlier meant she would be free of strife from then on.

But shackled by her identity, she was forced to enter the palace a second time and won favor as a low-ranking consort.

Neither her graceful figure nor her lovely features could make Emperor Liu Zhao fall for her.

She was merely a pawn, caught between a sovereign who placed imperial power above all else and ministers who dared to act with impunity...

The moment she entered the palace, Deng Sui became a thorn in the favored consort's side, an irritant she could not ignore.

Though Deng Sui was respectful and humble, gentle in every way, she still could not quell the other's jealousy.

Mockery and humiliation, schemes and attempts on her life, only grew more relentless.

Seeing the other woman's vile tricks multiply, Deng Sui considered retreating.

But an unsheathed sword at her back forced her to fight on.

In the unseen workings of fate, their grudges and passions had been sealed from the very day she entered the palace.

How would a peerless beauty face the bloodshed and turmoil, meeting the flash of blades with a smile as lovely as a flower?

Pawn or wife? It all depended on how she turned her jade wrist and overturned the game, rising to power deep within the palace.