Any Pure Palace-Intrigue Novels Where the Female Lead Rises Gradually, Has a Clear Role, and Neither Lead Is Chaste? 有没有纯宫斗，女主慢慢上位定位清晰不双洁的小说
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101
Life Is a Play, and the Empress Is All About Her Acting Skills 人生如戏，娘娘她纯拼演技
[Palace intrigue + witty banter + sweet, delicate beauty + calculated mind games] The leads are not each other’s only partners. If that bothers you, don’t read. Be prepared for suspicion in the early chapters, followed by affection later. The pacing is slow, so proceed with caution if you prefer fast-paced wish-fulfillment stories. As a double award-winning actress and a seasoned star of palace intrigue dramas, how could Shi Yan possibly lose her nerve after transmigrating into the imperial hare
9.6kReads9.3Score1.1kShelves
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102
The Laid-Back Consort Rises Through the Ranks 咸鱼娘娘步步高升
# Palace intrigue is out of the question. I'll eat snacks, watch the drama, and have children, that's the plan # Cui Xuejian transmigrated into the past and became a low-ranking palace consort. Powerful figures towered over her, while a few insignificant nobodies clawed at her feet. With things like this, why bother with palace intrigue? Better to just give up and coast! Cui Xuejian believed that as long as she kept out of trouble, no monsters, demons, or other ghoulish creatures would come afte
3.4kReads9.2Score225Shelves
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103
She Tried to Escape the Palace, but the Cruel Tyrant Kept Her Close 出宫失败，被狠戾暴君囚在掌心宠
After transmigrating into the palace as a maid, Qin Jianjian works diligently, flatters those above her, and deceives those below her. In the end, she becomes the top-ranked maid serving the Empress Dowager. She has undoubtedly reached the pinnacle of her profession. Money she’s openly entitled to, along with money she shouldn’t have, keeps flowing into Qin Jianjian’s pockets. Delighted, she just has to wait until she’s old enough to leave the palace and retire early. Who could have guessed the
23kReads9.4Score1.7kShelves
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104
The Willow by the Palace Wall 宫墙柳
Why must the imperial consorts compete for the emperor’s favor? A smash-hit, heart-wrenching historical romance that burst onto the scene in 2019! Recommended by countless tearful readers, this unconventional palace-intrigue novel will stay with you long after you finish. In the lightest of styles, it captures everyone’s deepest regrets. In May of the year I turned fourteen, with the pagoda trees in fragrant bloom, I sat in Yong’an Palace, propping up my head as I dozed. The man’s laughter held
60.2kReads9.7Score8.8kShelves
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105
A Concubine’s Daily Struggle to Stay Alive in the Prince’s Manor 王府侍妾的苟命日常
[Intense Household Intrigue + A Touch of Ensemble Cast + Plot-Driven + Everyone Has Eight Hundred Schemes] After transmigrating into the body of a concubine in the Prince of Jing's residence, Xie Run only wants to live in peace and, ideally, reach a hundred years old. At first, everything in the prince's residence is orderly. The prince shares his favor equally, the princess consort's position is secure, and the secondary consorts and concubines know their place. Who could have guessed that ever
23.1kReads9.1Score2.2kShelves
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I Became the Mother of the Prince's Eldest Son and Turned My Life Around 穿成王府庶长子亲娘，我咸鱼翻身
After being pushed off a cliff while trying to break up a fight, Tao Yaoyao takes her last breath and transmigrates, reborn in the vast Hao Han Dynasty in the body of a maid who has been the Princess Consort of Prince Chen's dowry for three years. A little background: On the day of their wedding, Qi Chenyuan left Fan Qianyao just after they had completed the wedding rites and headed south under imperial orders to wipe out river bandits. Three years later, Prince Chen returns victorious to the
10.2kReads8.9Score590Shelves
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107
The Empress Ran 冉后
Ran Hu was made a Jieyu concubine as soon as she entered the palace. On her very first day, she was summoned to the emperor’s bedchamber and granted the title of Chen, cherished like a rare treasure. Her peerless beauty and her younger brother’s illustrious military achievements as Marquis of Chang’an gave her the confidence to act as she pleased in the harem. The two souls who had come from a later age ultimately left a lasting mark on this strange world.
7.8kReads9.0Score779Shelves
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108
Qing Transmigration: After Raising Yongzheng, She Enjoyed a Lifetime of Glory 清穿：抚养雍正后她一世荣华
When she opened her eyes, she had become an utterly ordinary concubine in the Kangxi Emperor’s court. The one unusual thing was that she had a prince as soon as she transmigrated. With no status, no favor, and only a child to rely on, how could she survive in the murderous imperial harem? There is no decisive heroine obsessed with power, nor any sweet romance. This is simply a story about surviving and raising a child, with the goal of becoming a dowager consort and enjoying retirement. But
19.1kReads8.9Score1.3kShelves
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109
Has the Noble Consort Left Qirong Palace Today? 皇贵妃今天出栖容宫了吗？
[☆No transmigration, no rebirth, and no pristine couples] [☆The romance develops gradually] Everyone in the palace knew that the person they must never offend was neither the pampered and fiery Noble Consort Hui nor the peerlessly beautiful Consort Cen, but Noble Consort Zhe of Qirong Palace, Lady Fucha. A consort's guide to survival: If you want to get ahead, never provoke the lady of Qirong Palace. She was the emperor's first woman, his companion and confidante since their youth; the mother
20.7kReads9.3Score1.9kShelves
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110
The Useless Empress Wants to Fight for Power 废物继后要宫斗
A Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace fan novel [Strong female lead + high-IQ palace intrigue + ensemble cast] In this glittering palace, where danger lurks behind every corner, refusing to fight means a death with no grave. She has no friends or family, and can only watch the person she loves fall in love with someone else. Never mind. She'll strike first and drag her enemies into the abyss, step by step...
9Reads—Score—Shelves
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111
From Talented Lady to Empress: Your Consort Knows Court Intrigue Best 从才人到皇后，爱妃最懂宫斗
The author's first book, so please don't mind the low rating. Zhao Xiyao is a fashion designer. Maybe she'd watched too many palace-intrigue dramas, because she actually transmigrated to an ancient imperial harem and became a low-ranking concubine. The palace intrigue she faced was far crueler than anything she'd ever seen on television. A death sentence from the start, all kinds of plots against her, and endless scheming... As someone from the modern world, Zhao Xiyao could write poetry and mak
64Reads6.6Score—Shelves
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112
Transmigrated as a Bedclimbing Palace Maid in a Palace-Intrigue Novel 穿成宫斗文里的爬床宫女
No prestigious family background, no peerless beauty. After transmigrating, film queen Li Songyue finds herself cast as the most expendable bed-climbing maid in a palace intrigue novel. The transmigrated heroine is ahead of her, the reborn supporting female lead is behind her, and there’s also a demanding emperor to contend with. From bed-climbing maid to empress dowager of the realm. She won’t know how cold it is at the top until she climbs there.
327Reads—Score—Shelves
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113
A Concubine's Rise to Power in the Imperial Harem 深宫庶女上位记
She was the illegitimate daughter of a fifth-rank official, and one day she entered the palace as a consort; The struggle was not confined to men. The battles between women were always the cruelest of all; These women were intelligent, beautiful, and well-born; For love, wealth, and power beyond compare, they fought each other to the death, even turning against their own sisters and leaving their youth and beauty amid the red walls and green-tiled roofs of the palace;
2.2kReads8.4Score105Shelves
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114
Tear Apart the Harem! Win Favor! She's a Lunatic, Who Dares Cross Her? 撕后宫！得恩宠！她是疯批谁敢惹
[Palace Intrigue Only + Concubine-born Daughter + Reborn + Revenge + Everyone Is Evil + Wish-Fulfillment] [The story begins before the heroine enters the palace] [The emperor favors no one at first, and the heroine doesn’t fall in love] Jiang Shiying had died once. She died in childbirth, after her own elder sister had her killed to keep the baby. Reborn, she had made up her mind: she would enter the palace and get revenge, but she wouldn’t suffer! Not her stepmother or her elder sister, not eve
7.7kReads9.2Score988Shelves
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115
The Sweet and Gentle Consort Is Obsessed with Palace Intrigue, and the Emperor Can't Stop Spoiling His Wife 娇软娘娘沉迷宫斗，皇上宠妻成瘾
[Not mutually exclusive + sweet romance + alternate history] Qin Lexuan, the legitimate daughter of a family of generals, enters the palace for the honor of her clan, willing to do whatever it takes to rise to power. He says, “I will never touch you in this lifetime.” How could a daughter of a family of generals back down? She has no illusions about winning the emperor’s love and keeps a clear head. She focuses on palace intrigue, seeking the supreme power that will protect the entire General’s
28Reads—Score—Shelves
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Memoirs of Palace Intrigue 宫斗回忆录
The leads are not each other’s firsts. Later, after the heroine wins the emperor’s favor, he will not dismiss his harem for her. If that bothers you, don’t read! The heroine enters the palace at a very low rank and rises through palace intrigue and childbirth. In this story, low-ranking consorts are promoted one rank when they become pregnant and another after giving birth; high-ranking consorts are promoted after giving birth. Consorts of the Pin rank and above can raise their own children. Tho
13Reads—Score—Shelves
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Schemes of the Imperial Harem 后宫谋
As a concubine-born daughter, she was destined to become someone else's pawn and enter the palace selection in another woman's place. She made careful plans and entered the palace as a consort, relying on her unremarkable appearance. Once she gained favor and captured the emperor's heart, she faced open and covert struggles and struck back at her powerful rivals. With each step carefully planned, she rose higher and higher, becoming a legendary woman!
142Reads5.3Score—Shelves
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118
Your Majesty, A Glorious Journey 娘娘，一路光华
Shen Yanke was a legitimate daughter who should have been cherished by everyone, yet she was like a withered flower forgotten in a corner. From childhood, she never once basked in the warm sunlight of her father's love. Her world lost its color when her mother died young, and her father's heart was firmly in the grasp of his bewitching concubine. All that remained for her was endless coldness and loneliness. The concubine's children were like a pack of greedy wolves, often taking pleasure in bul
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119
The Concubine’s Daughter Rises Through the Ranks After Entering the Palace 进宫后庶女一路高升
After a car accident, Chen Zhirou unexpectedly transmigrates and becomes the beautiful, timid Seventh Miss of the Yong'an Marquis Household. Rather than let her father give her away as a concubine, Chen Zhirou chooses to risk everything by entering the palace. On the day of the selection, she is about to be rejected when she calls out to the emperor, earning herself the rank of Good Lady. But that is nowhere near enough. The harem is filled with three thousand beauties, each extraordinary in he
833Reads8.2Score100Shelves
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120
The Rise of Consort Zhao 昭贵妃上位记
Chu Yun is the illegitimate daughter of Chu Xiong'an, Minister of Rites. After the legitimate daughter, Chu Yunxi, entered the palace and became pregnant, she sent Chu Yun to the palace to secure the emperor's favor. Knowing how beautiful Chu Yun was, Chu Yunxi had her mother force several large bowls of safflower tea down Chu Yun's throat before she entered the palace. After narrowly escaping death, Chu Yun took part in the selection and was chosen as a palace maid. A palace maid? Perfect! Now
82Reads—Score—Shelves
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121
Floating Clouds in the Deep Palace 深宫浮云
The palace gates are deep as the sea, and the imperial household is rich beyond measure. The triennial selection of palace maidens had come around again. The court was choosing candidates, and the emperor would choose his consort. That year, Yun Ying, the daughter of General Yun Yi, was at the perfect age and among those selected. “Ying’er, be careful today. I hear the palace ladies are all formidable. Don’t make any mistakes.” “Second Mother, don’t worry. The worst that can happen is I don’t ge
85Reads6.3Score—Shelves
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The Consort Rises in the Palace by Mastering a Special Sleeping Technique 凭借特殊睡觉技巧，娘娘宫斗上位
Not a faithful-couple romance! Not a faithful-couple romance! She doesn't love the Emperor! Entertainment-industry superstar Liu Qianqian transmigrates one day into the body of an unfavored palace concubine, only for a reborn, unknown supporting character to make it her mission to kill her! To stay alive, she has no choice but to fight for the Emperor's favor and climb the ranks. What to do about the reborn supporting character? No need to panic. Her Highness has a knack for sleeping: men can't
70Reads—Score—Shelves
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Mother of the Nation? No, I Want to Rule the World! 母仪天下？不，我要权倾天下！
[Alternate-World Palace Intrigue + No Romance + Raising Children + Never Falls for the Emperor] Content warning: The male lead is not chaste. Palace intrigue runs throughout, and the emperor never favors just one consort. After a car accident, Chu Ningzhi was pulled into the alternate world of Great Zhou. She had to become Empress Dowager to survive. To stay alive, she entered the palace through the selection and gave birth to a child. She planned every move carefully and defeated all her enemie
141Reads8.8Score—Shelves
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124
The Empress Is Exquisitely Charming: Winning the Palace Battles and Raising a Child to Become Empress 娘娘千娇百媚，宫斗养崽坐后位
[Transmigration + Pure Palace Intrigue + Raising a Child + Clear-Headed Heroine + Focused on Her Career + Light Ensemble Cast] Xie Zhao transmigrates to the state of Beiqi, a country that has never existed in recorded history. When she learns she is to take part in the selection two years later, she begins diligently practicing all kinds of skills. After successfully being selected, her goal is to safely give birth to a prince, raise him into an outstanding crown prince, put him on the throne, a
878Reads7.3Score—Shelves
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125
The Reborn Take the Stage: A Lowly Concubine's Daughter 重生者当道，卑微庶女
[Angsty + reborn + multiple male leads + no romance + no stupid characters + no love-brained heroine + taking by force] The heroine is a frail, innocent beauty of humble origins whose fate is full of misfortune. In every life, she is repeatedly tormented by a person who keeps being reborn. Yet each time the wicked reborn tormentor starts over, they ultimately fall at the heroine’s hands. And in every life, the more they torment her, the more horribly they die! In the first life after the rebirth
1kReads8.1Score—Shelves
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126
The Rise of Consort Yu in the Qing Dynasty 清穿之瑜贵妃升职日常
The pampered Ji Ning was in a plane crash! When she opened her eyes again, she had become a low-ranking concubine in the Kangxi Emperor's harem in the Qing Dynasty. Her predecessor had been frail, lived in a shabby room, and came from a humble family. Her rank was so low that anyone could step on her. In the palace, the previous champion of palace intrigue, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, was still alive. Above her was Kangxi's childhood friend and cousin, Noble Consort Tong Jia, and below her was t
760Reads5.6Score106Shelves
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127
Am I Dead? No, I'm Alive Again 我死了？不我又活了
After dying, a modern middle-aged woman was reborn in ancient times as the young lady of a general’s household. She’s adored by everyone, there’s no angst, and the story is simple and lighthearted. There’s a love interest, and no misunderstandings. Even a middle-aged woman deserves to give herself a youthful makeover and have a loving family. She’ll have a dear friend who understands her, and a partner who stays by her side through it all!
1Reads—Score—Shelves
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128
Transmigrated, I Became Empress and Conquered the Central Plains 穿越后，称霸中原当女皇了
Transmigration + empress + rival suitors + nation-building Xie Yuliang transmigrates to ancient times with a pocket dimension. Mistaken for a man, she goes from being pitied and despised to joining the struggle for supremacy among the feudal lords and ascending the throne as emperor. From a minor landholder to an emperor. From promoting sweet potatoes and potatoes to manufacturing weapons and medicines. What, you want to be the male empress? There’s the one who’s like a moonlit white moon, and n
1Reads—Score—Shelves
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129
Spoiled as Empress 盛宠为后
In her previous life, the Three Princes rebelled, and Jiang Wan was forced to drink poison by her elder half-sister, the empress dowager, dying in the arms of the man she loved. In this life, just as she was wondering how to avoid repeating the past, Xiao Ruixuan, who had also been reborn, married her and spoiled her beyond measure. “The promises I made to you in my previous life, I will fulfill every one of them in this life…”
120Reads7.2Score—Shelves
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130
The Discarded Daughter 嫡女弃后
In her previous life, she poured everything her family had into helping her husband seize the throne. Once one of the two most celebrated beauties in the capital, she thought she had defeated her rival. But just as her husband reached the height of power and success, he joined forces with that woman to destroy her family. He even had her bound atop the city wall so she would have to watch her brother arrive to save her, only to be pierced by a rain of arrows. What hurt most was that the man will
853Reads8.6Score102Shelves
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131
Commandery Princess Xuanping 宣平郡主
Princess Xuanping and the Crown Prince grew up together. Everyone thought she would become the future Crown Princess. But the Crown Prince fell for the princess's delicate, innocent-looking cousin instead. He forgot his promise that they would spend their lives together, and even risked angering the Emperor so he could marry her cousin. When danger struck, he abandoned the princess without hesitation. After Prince An rescues her, the princess comes to her senses. Some people simply aren't meant
7.3kReads8.8Score736Shelves
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132
The Imperial Harem: The Story of Consort Qin 后宫：勤妃传
Chen Wenxin is lazy and loves good food. After transmigrating into the Qing dynasty as a low-ranking palace maid, all she wants is to live a quiet, comfortable life doing nothing. But after one night serving the emperor, she discovers she is exactly his type! He even uncovers her secret laziness and gives her the title of Consort Qin! QAQ I feel like the emperor just hit me with a massive dose of sarcasm. I’m falling apart inside... Am I really going to have to embark on a life of bearing and ra
2.7kReads9.0Score321Shelves
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133
After the Concubine’s Daughter Is Reborn, She Marries the Scheming Crown Prince Instead 庶女重生后，改嫁腹黑太子爷
A concubine-born daughter of the Ye family, she was infatuated with Prince Yu. She even took an arrow for the emperor, all for the chance to marry him. But in the end, all her devotion was misplaced. After he conquered the realm, his first act was to slaughter the entire Ye family. Ye Gujin never imagined that beneath his gentle, refined facade lurked such a vicious monster! Reborn at the age of thirteen, with her family still alive, she still had time to change everything. In this life, she wou
1.6kReads9.0Score169Shelves
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134
The Reborn Empress Is Not to Be Trifled With 重生皇后不好惹
This book was originally titled The Empress Is Reborn to Plot Her Revenge. The short drama adaptation is titled The Reborn Empress Is Not to Be Trifled With. In her previous life, she used her medical skills to win people over for him, and her maternal grandfather lent him troops to help him seize the throne. In return, her entire family was massacred, and she met a tragic end. Given a second life, she will never let herself become a laughingstock again. With five years' worth of memories and he
4kReads9.2Score1.2kShelves
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The Side Consort’s Memoir of Becoming Empress 侧妃为后记
[Household Intrigue + Palace Intrigue] Not a one-on-one romance. The male lead has a wife and concubines early on, but later dotes on the heroine alone. No suspicion or misunderstandings. A little angst, but mostly sweet. The heroine falls for him first, but she isn't completely ruled by love. Her experiences have shaped her, and she's usually quite level-headed. (Though perhaps she is a little taken by his looks.) The male lead doesn't realize his own feelings, but he's been good to the heroine
4.6kReads9.0Score420Shelves
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136
Dominating the Harem Through Childbearing 靠生子称霸后宫
In her previous life, Huameng's childhood sweetheart, the boy next door, betrayed her before their wedding. After watching him marry the daughter of a princess, she put on the bright red wedding dress she had spent two years embroidering and hanged herself. But her soul drifted through the world for twenty years after her death before she learned the truth: her childhood sweetheart had broken off their engagement after accidentally hearing that the childless emperor intended to adopt the princes
5kReads8.9Score551Shelves
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137
A Qing Dynasty Side Consort’s Struggle 清穿之侧福晋奋斗史
The modern girl Yu Mu went to sleep at home and woke up having transmigrated to the Qing dynasty. The Qing dynasty! An era when girls married at thirteen and had to start having babies at fourteen or fifteen. Give birth early enough, and you could be a grandma by thirty. Just thinking about it made Yu Mu want to die. But she valued her life too much to give it up. The girl had done well in the selection, was pretty, and came from a good family, so she'd already been promised to the Crown Prince.
9.5kReads9.1Score533Shelves