The Tale of Yuli

The Tale of Yuli: A Han Chinese Lady in Changchun Palace

Within the Forbidden City's high walls, how can a Han woman move an emperor's heart with her sincerity and break down the barriers between the Manchu and Han peoples?

In the fifth year of the Yongzheng reign, an imperial decree for the selection of consorts broke the palace's silence.

Yu Qinli Lang, born into the Han Chinese Banner, catches Yongzheng's attention with her fluent Manchu. Selected for the imperial harem as an exception, this Han Chinese lady, unfamiliar with Manchu customs but well versed in poetry and the classics, enters Changchun Palace carrying the grace and medicinal fragrances of a Jiangnan woman. She immediately becomes a target. Heseheli Ronghui, a noblewoman of the Manchu Banner, sees her as a thorn in her side. Empress Ulanara hides murderous intent behind a gentle facade, and even Emperor Yongzheng's favor is entangled with political tests from the court.

Danger lurks everywhere in the inner palace, but she faces every crisis with sincerity:

▶ She commits a breach of etiquette before the emperor, yet wins his favor. A clumsy fall opens the door to his guarded heart.

▶ She risks using Han medicine to treat the emperor, and the lingering scent of herbs touches Yongzheng's most deeply hidden vulnerability.

▶ At the Mid-Autumn banquet, her dazzling sword dance dispels the divide between Manchu and Han culture as her water sleeves whirl.

When conspiracy engulfs Changchun Palace:

✧ A cursed doll appears in the bedchamber ✧ She saves a life with acupuncture, only to be accused of regicide ✧ Her childhood friend, now a palace guard, appears to testify

"I wronged you..." Yongzheng's trembling hand brushes the burn scar over her collarbone.

"But Your Majesty has never misjudged the Han people." She gently returns the bloodstained Comprehensive History of the Manchu and Han to the desk.

Final Chapter: The Unyielding Brush of History

In the first year of the Qianlong reign, the new emperor issues an edict: "The Dowager Consort Yu promoted harmony between the Manchu and Han peoples. Let future generations follow her example."