News reporter Shen Jingran accidentally transmigrates to Great Yan and becomes Shen Peiyun, the miserable Empress of Emperor Li Kai of the Yan Dynasty.
Born into a humble family, Shen Peiyun puts up with the emperor's unpredictable moods and serves him dutifully. Just as she finally becomes pregnant with the imperial heir and is about to give birth, Li Kai takes a fancy to her personal maid and fondles her hand right in front of her. Unable to bear it any longer, Shen Peiyun smashes a teacup and gets to her feet, only to bring disaster down upon herself.
In a fit of humiliation and rage, Li Kai kicks Shen Peiyun in her swollen belly. She struggles in agony for two days before miscarrying and dying. The cruel and heartless Li Kai feels no remorse whatsoever. He buries her with the honors due a noblewoman and gives her a vile posthumous title: You, meaning “Gloom.”
Confronted with this wretched fate, Shen Peiyun reflects on her suffering and resolves to take revenge. She becomes exceptionally virtuous and proper, quickly earning a reputation at court and throughout the land. She doesn't care whether Li Kai womanizes. What she wants is the life of the damn emperor.
As fate would have it, after three years of lying low, a palace maid can no longer endure Li Kai's brutality. She waits until he falls asleep and assassinates him, striking a vital spot with her knife. The eunuchs rush to inform Shen Peiyun, who leisurely takes a sip of tea and says in an unhurried manner, “What's the rush? Send for the imperial physician.”
The imperial physician, who has long been in league with Shen Peiyun, not only fails to save Li Kai, but gives him a lethal dose of medicine that sends him to the afterlife. As the mother of the three-year-old Crown Prince, Shen Peiyun smoothly begins her regency from behind the curtain. As it happens, the newly appointed chancellor is also a transmigrator. So what are they waiting for? They should join forces to abolish corrupt policies and bring about a revival.
Bonus Scene
Shen Peiyun grabs Chancellor Xiao Siyuan excitedly: “You're Vegetable Stalk!”
Xiao Siyuan is so startled he grabs the wall for support. “Bean Sprout, h-how did you figure it out?”
Shen Peiyun smiles. “Old classmate, you bite your nails whenever you get excited.”
Xiao Siyuan hesitates for a moment, then makes up his mind. “Since we've successfully recognized each other, shouldn't we take our relationship a step further?”
Reader's Guide
1. The male lead is Xiao Siyuan, the transmigrated man. The damn emperor is a supporting character.
2. The damn emperor is loosely based on the Jiajing Emperor. All other characters and events are fictional.
3. This is a fictional setting, so don't nitpick the historical details.
Theme: Opposing feudalism, oppression, and tyranny
