Overnight, the entire household of the Defender-General is massacred. Shen Qingci, the eldest legitimate daughter, falls from the heights into the mud and becomes a wanted criminal.
During her escape, she is unexpectedly saved by Prince Jing, Xiao Yu. This cold, ruthless prince who commands a powerful army makes her an outrageous offer: become a well-behaved dog at his side.
To clear her father’s name in the false case accusing him of colluding with the enemy and betraying the country, Shen Qingci swallows her humiliation and agrees, going undercover in Prince Jing’s manor under the name A Ci.
As she navigates the various factions, she and Xiao Yu move from mutual suspicion to a subtle affection. Yet she has no idea that a deeper conspiracy lies behind his seemingly protective gestures.
There is the relentless pressure from Li Wenxuan, son of the Prime Minister’s household; the strange behavior of Zhao Kui, a former frontier soldier; undercurrents at the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet; and the frame-up surrounding Su Wanrou’s kidnapping...
Shen Qingci struggles onward along the path of revenge and survival. As the truth gradually comes to light, she discovers she has long been caught in a vast web of political intrigue. But is Xiao Yu her salvation, or the one who will push her into an even deeper hell?
A battle of love and hatred, loyalty and treachery, begins.
