By a twist of fate, she entered the state of Cheng through a marriage alliance, marrying into the imperial family and becoming the wife of the ruler of all under heaven. By another twist of fate, she and the emperor fell deeply in love, their devotion to each other leaving everyone astonished. Yet this seemingly perfect marriage, born of one twist of fate after another, also cost her dearly. Though she enjoyed the emperor's favor and gave birth to his heir just one year after entering the palace, she was consequently rendered unable to bear children again for the rest of her life. Though she and the emperor loved each other deeply, he still distrusted her because of her foreign heritage. He doted on her but gave her no real power; he loved her, but never intended to make her his principal wife. They all thought that with only one child and a need to rely on the emperor, she was shortsighted and incapable, fit only to be a favored concubine, never an empress. Then she would do just that: stand at his side and tell the world that she was the mother of all under heaven!
