After her family is convicted of a crime, heroine Yuan Lingwei is sent to the palace as a maid. With her intelligence and resilience, she rises step by step from the Laundry Bureau to become the highest-ranking of the Four Consorts. Her childhood friend Shen Ruolian enters the palace as a candidate consort at the same time. The two go from being as close as sisters to becoming enemies. In the end, one ascends to the pinnacle of power, while the other becomes a sacrifice to it. Emperor Yongzheng is cold and suspicious, yet hides a depth of affection few know about. In the imperial harem, where the aftershocks of the struggle among the nine princes have yet to settle, every woman is a piece on the chessboard. But there are always those who want to be the ones moving the pieces.
