When the Empress Smiles, Heads Roll

Cold and aloof Crown Princess + loyal guard dog of a bodyguard After the young Crown Prince was murdered, Chu Qingyu, once a little princess adored by all, was named Crown Princess and thrust into the center of a storm. Faced with the ministers’ mockery and abuse, she was powerless to fight back. The tutor appointed by imperial decree shut his doors to her, and even Pei Qing, whom she adored, looked down on her. All this left her father, grieving the loss of his son, utterly disappointed in her. An imperial decree sent her away to Cang Mountain for five long years. During those years, she lived as the most pathetic of princesses, enduring humiliation and abuse, and nearly dying in an assassination attempt. Only in the end did she discover that someone in the capital had wanted her dead. When she returned five years later, she no longer wanted to be the woman the ministers said could do nothing but embroider and play the zither. She would become the rightful heir to the throne. The Grand Tutor said she was unworthy of the throne, so she stripped him of his position. Her royal uncle had tried to murder her younger brother and usurp the throne, so she would uncover all his crimes and bring him to justice. The Crown Prince of the Southern Kingdom wanted to destroy Great Chu from within, so she would turn her sword toward the South and deal him a fatal blow. Unexpectedly, in the end, the gentle and refined Pei Qing clutched her hands tightly. “Your Highness liked me once. You should like me now, too!” The Crown Prince of the Southern Kingdom gazed at her in a daze. “If I weren’t the Crown Prince, I would hold on to you with all my strength and never let go, even in death.” But her expression was cold as frost. “Those who walk different paths have no reason to join forces.” Throughout it all, only her bodyguard Qian Xuan remained at her side, never abandoning her, protecting her and helping her rise to the highest position. How could she betray such devotion?