Liang Xi, the only daughter of the General Who Defends the Nation, grew up in military camps. Exceptionally skilled in martial arts and spirited by nature, she smears mud on her face and disguises herself as ugly to sneak into the palace selection and avoid being pressured to marry. She plans to sabotage the selection and escape, but at her first audience, the socially anxious emperor Xiao Jue sees right through her. The aloof ruler seems to dislike commotion, yet keeps her by his side alone. Liang Xi treats the court and inner palace like a workplace to get in order: she investigates corruption, sorts out the accounts, settles court disputes, and even recruits several other candidates to form a task force. Her brother, writing from a thousand miles away, sends terrible advice on winning her heart, becoming an unintentionally hilarious wingman. As they spend time together, the emperor is healed by her vitality and sheds his icy solitude, while Liang Xi also falls for him. Together they bring down a treacherous chancellor and quell a palace revolt, then travel incognito to the frontier. As they weather one crisis after another, affection grows between them. The girl who once only wanted to escape marriage ultimately secures her place as empress and joins the emperor, once so deeply lonely, in ushering in a flourishing age.
