In the depths of winter, the fifth year of Hongxing, not long after the emperor took personal control of the government, the first snow fell on the capital.
Consort Rong, Gu Xianchun, nearly died in that blizzard.
She was kneeling outside the palace hall as punishment from the Empress Dowager when she learned the truth: she was no beloved consort, famed as the most beautiful woman in the six palaces. She was merely a pawn the emperor, Shen Zhou, used to divert attention.
To protect the woman he loved, Shen Zhou deliberately showered Gu Xianchun with boundless favor, making her the target of every open and hidden attack.
And the person lurking in the shadows was soon to be named empress.
Snow fell thick and fast. Frail and ill, Gu Xianchun could bear no more and collapsed outside the hall.
The Empress Dowager had dismissed all the palace servants. No one cared whether she lived or died.
As her consciousness began to fade, a red umbrella opened over her head.
