So What If I Become the Empress's Lackey?

Guan Hui knows how to speak to people and ghosts alike. She fears neither gods nor Buddha above, and bows to no powerful nobles below. Can a woman be made a marquis or prime minister? Half the officials in the court wear hairpins. * Her mother is a county princess, her uncle is the crown prince, and her grandfather is the chancellor. As a young lady born into a household of wealth and status, she seems to have hit the jackpot from the start. In truth, Guan Hui is a lowly beggar girl who was mistakenly switched with the Lin family's daughter because she looks like the empress. Worse still, the Lin family is on the verge of being executed and its household confiscated. The elders secretly send their biological daughter away, leaving the beggar girl to bear the blame. Overnight, she takes the young lady's place and is sent to the capital to face judgment. Ding! A pre-made head delivery is on its way. * They say the empress is a wicked woman who usurps the emperor's role and acts with ruthless cruelty, killing two of her grandsons in a single day. The court officials hate the empress with all their might, yet somehow their knees keep bending against their will. "Long live our sovereign! Long live our sovereign! Long, long live!" How can a woman leave the inner quarters? (Twitches.) How can a woman meddle in state affairs? (Writhes.) How can a woman ascend the throne and become emperor? (Foams at the mouth...) Knees, why are you bending? A man's knees are worth their weight in gold. How can he kneel to a woman? What if a woman brings him to an early grave? Theme: Work hard and rise through the ranks.