The Rise of Madam Shen

One-sentence blurb: An unscientific tale about a housewife who enters government for the civil servant benefits and keeps rising through the ranks until she becomes prime minister. Serious blurb: Shen Yun, a wife and mother, takes the imperial examinations solely for the sixteen strings of cash a month paid to a ninth-rank proofreader. Yet the shifting currents of officialdom awaken her ambition to rise to greatness. Should she be a virtuous wife and loving mother, or a worthy minister? Where will Madam Shen's path lead? An alternate-history setting: The Great Zhou Dynasty, founded by Wu Zetian, endured for centuries and became the legitimate ruling dynasty. The Li Tang dynasty never made a comeback and faded away. Women can serve as officials, though it is not the norm.