In the twelfth year of Yong'an, Shen Lan entered the palace as a maidservant, thinking that her life would be just a waste of time among the red walls and green tiles. Until the queen chose her and asked her to play a secret chess game next to the imperial concubine.
The imperial concubine treated her like a sister and taught her to understand the rules of cannibalism in this deep palace. The queen tied her up with kindness, blackmailed her with her family, and forced her to hand over a fatal secret in the dark night.
She stood in the center of the chessboard, with a mountain of knives on her left and a sea of fire on her right.
Shen Lan knew very well that in this deep palace, once the chess pieces were of no use, they would only end up being discarded.
So she decided to be the chess player herself.
The queen asked her to kill the concubine, but she insisted on saving her.
The imperial concubine wants her loyalty, but she wants freedom.
But when everyone thought she was going to compete for the highest position, Shen Lan opened the palace door.
It turns out that this deep palace was never her destination, it was just a chess game she passed by.
