My Lord, Why Not Offer Me Your Kingdom?

[Transmigrate into a book + strong female lead + political intrigue + two powerful leads + nation-building + the fate of the realm + empress]

Ning Zhiwei transmigrates into a political-intrigue novel as the legal wife of Xie Queshan, the great villain.

In the book, Xie Queshan is a notorious traitor of a general, while she is a pitiful pawn he uses until her death to conceal his identity.

The day she arrives is the very day Xie Queshan “betrays the country and defects to the enemy,” and the Ning family is confiscated.

To survive, Ning Zhiwei tears up her script as a meek woman, marches to the palace drum, and publicly declares before the court that Xie Queshan is a double agent, and everything he has done is part of his undercover mission.

The whole court erupts in an uproar, but the emperor on the throne only smiles. “Where's your evidence?”

Ning Zhiwei puts all her transmigrator skills to work: opening shops, improving waterworks, and manufacturing firearms. In three years, she turns the place of exile into the prosperous “New Ning City.”

With the country's strength laid out for all to see, she proves to the emperor that if Xie Queshan had truly betrayed the country, why would he go to such lengths to disguise his actions? Every piece of intelligence he sends back is worth a fortune.

Three years later, Xie Queshan returns, having survived countless brushes with death. His name is cleared, and he is appointed a great general.

He finds Ning Zhiwei, now wealthier than the nation itself, and looks at her with a complicated expression. “I taught you political intrigue so you could protect yourself, and you used it to clear my name?”

Ning Zhiwei smiles. “No. I used it to negotiate with you.”

“I want every woman in this realm to be able to study, do business, and hold office. If you agree, I'll help you purge the court of the emperor's corrupt favorites and claim the throne.”

He conquers the realm, while she makes the nation rich and its armies strong.

Then, when he dons the imperial robe and offers her the phoenix seal, she turns away and takes the dragon throne he built with his own hands.

“Xie Queshan,” she says, looking down at her former teacher and ally. “We will rule this realm together.”

He thought he was raising an ally, an empress, but with his own hands he created a female emperor.