Chen Qingli has been a virtuous empress for twenty years, but she has devoted herself to it but has been ignored by the emperor and favored by the prince. After the prince humiliated her in public at the wedding, she faked her death during a flash flood and fled to Bianzhou to open a tailor shop. She met the gentle wealthy businessman Xie Wangyun and the love-starved young man Xie Shao, and found equality and warmth. However, the late emperor and the prince unexpectedly reunited with her because of the troubles caused by the imperial concubine's relatives and the plague. The late emperor confessed on his deathbed, and the prince begged her to return to Beijing and stabilize the court. Chen Qingli used her body as the Queen Mother to purge the traitors. Three years later, when she saw that the new emperor had matured, she resolutely put down her honor and returned to Bianzhou. She left behind the shackles of the palace, stayed in the city with the true heart, and lived a free life.
