Big trouble: not one of the three princes of the Xu Dynasty wants to be emperor!
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"Southern Chanyi, Northern Congrong."
Qu Congrong, eldest daughter of the Qu family, one of the four great families of the Xu Dynasty, astonished the world with her peerless beauty at the age of thirteen.
Ten years ago, Haizhou wanted to forge a marriage alliance with the Xu Dynasty. Qu Congrong was granted the title of princess and sent away to marry. Not long afterward, the Qu family was slaughtered in a single night, and Qu Congrong perished in a sea of flames.
A family that had endured for seventy years was wiped out, becoming nothing more than a topic of idle gossip in history.
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Jun Chanyi, the Jun Prince of Zhennan's daughter, has known since childhood that she is destined to become the Crown Princess and future empress.
Must women be judged by their looks and temperament, even treated like commodities to be traded for profit? Why can't women study at academies, take the civil service exams, do business, and serve in government like men?
She once met a man named Qu Yu, who told her: One day, women will be able to do what they want just like men, make their own choices, and even build great careers...
Qu Yu's words moved her. After witnessing the fates of countless girls of different backgrounds and social standing, she wants to start changing all of this...
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Ten years later, Pei Siyu, a junior official at the Court of Judicial Review, rises to fame as a genius at solving cold cases. People call her "Pei the Investigator."
Concealing her identity, she secretly searches for the truth behind the massacre of the Qu family. Though she uncovers the past piece by piece, she becomes increasingly entangled in it.
As she pursues the truth, she meets three princes and gradually realizes she is heading into a whirlpool from which there is no turning back.
Ji Yunting has known since childhood that his father was forced to make him Crown Prince, yet being designated heir from birth has placed an invisible burden on his shoulders.
Then one day, he accidentally discovers that Pei Siyu, the woman who oversees the Court of Judicial Review and solves cases with uncanny skill, is actually a woman.
Gradually, his curiosity turns to love, and he begins secretly protecting her identity.
But Ji Yunting knows that his father is hale and hearty, with decades of life still ahead of him. Is he supposed to wait for his father to die of old age before he can fulfill his duty and become emperor?
Ji Yunting has no desire to rebel, but under pressure from his eldest brother's rapidly growing power and the emperor's favoritism toward his tenth brother, he is swept onto the unwilling path to the throne.
Theme: Grow through experience and make progress amid conflict.
