A discarded official's daughter uses modern legal thinking and ancient political wisdom to rise from pawn to player in the palace. Alongside a prince who is her equal in every way, she begins an extraordinary romance in which they share the throne and rule the realm together.
The heroine enters the palace as a convict's slave and suffers relentless abuse in the punishment chambers. Thanks to her ability to remember everything she sees, she catches the attention of the matron in charge while sorting ancient texts and is transferred to the Palace Bureau of Ceremonies. When she deftly resolves a dispute between palace maids, her unique way of persuading people through reason makes its first impression.
A hint of romance: An injured imperial cat leads to an unexpected encounter with the hero, though they never see each other.
