Palace Intrigue: A Convict Slave Wins the Concubines' Favor with Her Silver Tongue

Xie Lianyi's life shattered the day she stepped through the palace gates. The daughter of a convicted official, she was already doomed when she entered the palace as a servant. Then the Crown Prince died suddenly, making her the prime suspect. A bowl of cold porridge and a shadowy figure were her only "evidence." To stay alive, she had to tread carefully amid the palace's strict rules, the hostility closing in around her, and the emperor's inscrutable thoughts. The imperial palace was a chessboard where one wrong move meant utter ruin. She learned to read people's hearts and use the rules to her advantage. Beneath the lowly status of a maid, she spun webs with her words and navigated danger with her wits. From the icy waters of the Laundry Bureau to the lamplight before the emperor, from dust trampled by all to the hidden hand stirring up the storm. She would survive, uncover the truth, clear her name, and even tear a hole in the heavens above the ninefold palace! This was a desperate gamble with her life on the line. Freedom was the prize, and human hearts were her chips.