The Silly Beauty Wins by Doing Nothing After Palace Scheming

[The main story is complete. The blurb has been removed, and bonus chapters are being updated. Minor revisions may happen from time to time.]

Blurb:

Before entering the palace, Xu Shuyi and her maid wrote down the names of her rivals. She was determined to defeat every woman who tried to seduce the emperor.

The empress, a woman from a poor family with no status. How could she compare to me? My father is the current dynasty's great general!

The Noble Consort, a dancer from the Imperial Music Bureau. She must have used underhanded tricks to bewitch the emperor. How could she compare to me? My aunt is the current dynasty's empress dowager!

Consort Shu, my father's political enemy's daughter, a concubine-born girl from a military family. How could she compare to me? I'm the only legitimate daughter in my family!

All the other consorts, female officials, and palace maids are no match for me!

Xu Shuyi confidently snapped her little notebook shut.

But after entering the palace, she discovered that not a single woman in the emperor's harem was a pushover!

The empress, though from an ordinary background, was as well-read as a top scholar and could handle affairs of state and help the emperor shoulder his burdens.

The Noble Consort, despite her lowly birth, excelled at dancing, painting, and everything else.

Consort Shu, a concubine's daughter, was bold and spirited, highly skilled in martial arts, and could capture assassins and protect the palace.

So was she the only useless one in the harem? Boohoo, how was she supposed to compete with them? Xu Shuyi wept inwardly.

Later, the Xu family was implicated in a rebellion. The emperor confiscated their property, the Xu family fell, the empress dowager was imprisoned, and Xu Shuyi lost all her backers.

Imprisoned in Changfang Palace, she finally experienced the emperor's coldheartedness and vowed never to like men again!

One day, Xu Shuyi heard voices outside the palace wall. The palace maids and eunuchs were saying that the emperor had taken a new consort called Consort Yan, whom he adored and kept hidden away, so no one could see her true face.

Sitting on the palace wall, Xu Shuyi saw a gaudily dressed woman walk past her palace. Her pent-up anger surged, and an idea suddenly came to her. She shook a branch, sending a whole tree's worth of snow tumbling down.

Sheng Mianyan, who lived her life disguised as a man despite being a woman, hated when Xu Shuyi, her cousin with no blood relation to her, called her "cousin-brother" more than anything.

When she heard Xu Shuyi had sworn off men, she happily changed into a dress, dressed up in all her finery, and headed to Changfang Palace to surprise her. She would decide whether to let Xu Shuyi out after seeing her reaction.

She was about to look up when she heard a sound from the top of the wall. A tree's worth of snow came crashing down on her, knocking her hair ornaments askew and smearing her makeup.

Sheng Mianyan, makeup ruined, glared. "You want to get out? Keep waiting for another five hundred years!"

So she disguised herself as a consort to seduce that fool.

Xu Shuyi saw that the emperor's consort was captivated by her charms. She did everything she could to "bewitch" Consort Yan and persuade the emperor to let her out, only to discover that the harem had been turned upside down!

The empress had become a court official.

Consort Shu had become a great general.

Even the most inconspicuous Lady Zhen had become an imperial merchant and the richest person in the land.

Only she and "Consort Yan" were left as consorts in the palace!

At last, Xu Shuyi realized something was wrong. She barged into the emperor's bedchamber, found "Consort Yan's" clothes and jewelry, then pounced on the emperor's bed and tore off "Consort Yan's" secret identity.

Then she was overpowered.

Xu Shuyi sobbed on the imperial bed as Sheng Mianyan kissed away her tears and held something out to her, saying gently, "Haven't you always wanted to be empress? The phoenix seal is yours."

Tears of oppression fell onto the phoenix seal Xu Shuyi clutched tightly. As she took charge, she made her first move, her voice trembling. "Consort Yan, send her to the Cold Palace..."

One-on-one, both pure

The first three chapters have been extensively revised.

There is more to the confiscation of the Xu family's property.

The emperor is not the empress dowager's biological child, and the two leads are not related by blood in any way.

The emperor has no emotional or physical relationship with any of the consorts.

The emperor disguises herself as a man, but I'll try to find opportunities to have her wear women's clothes. She'll wear women's clothes throughout the later part of the story.

There are lots of bad women in this story.

A beautiful, silly, lovesick, old-fashioned straight woman who is both mean and dumb × an ambitious, stingy, vindictive, beauty-loving emperor

Upcoming story

"When an Ita Lolita Binds to a Customization System" is the next story I'll write. Take a look if you're interested!

Luo Qiao is a handmade fashion enthusiast. Running a sewing machine is part of her daily life. She's either making bows by hand or altering skirt lengths, with lace and frills always by her side.

At 8 p.m., Luo Qiao held her phone and tried to grab a deposit for a rereleased cute Lolita dress. She hesitated for just a moment over the size and skirt length, and the production queue immediately stretched all the way to 2030!

The devoted Lolita enthusiast felt as if the sky had fallen. She shouldn't have agonized over whether to get an S or an M. Who knew what size she'd be years from now!

As she lamented her terrible decision, a cute System suddenly chimed in.

"Ding dong! Your Customization System is online. Change the fabric, adjust the size and length however you like, choose from countless colors, repair flaws and damage... As long as the Host designs one finished product, the System can make unlimited copies!"

Luo Qiao wondered if she'd lost her mind and started having ridiculous fantasies. How could such a perfect System exist in the world?

Why keep making things by hand? She was going to open a Lolita shop and sell, sell, sell!

With exquisite embroidery, beautiful prints, comfortable fabrics, no disappointing products, and perfect customer service, Luo Qiao's shop won rave reviews and became a huge hit. After her carefully designed new collection went on sale, the production queue stretched all the way to 2030.

Luo Qiao, who was working her sewing machine until she could barely see straight to meet her deadlines, asked plaintively, "System, why do my customers still have to wait in the production queue?"

The System, with a bow on its head, cutely replied, "It can make unlimited copies, sure, but it never said they could be made in a second!"

Romance blurb:

Everyone knows that a Lolita shop needs good taste to make popular designs. Luo Qiao happens to have just the right person by her side to advise her.

She held out two lengths of lace to her roommate, an illustrator. "Which one do you think looks better?"

Shen Miao: ? Did her roommate figure out she's gay?

She feigned composure. "They're both pretty ordinary. I'll draw a design for you."

A few days later, Luo Qiao held up a freshly made blouse in front of Shen Miao. "Miaomiao, what do you think of this hime-sleeve blouse?"

Shen Miao: She's been dropping hints this whole time. How should I respond?

A few months later, Luo Qiao showed Shen Miao two skirts in the same design but different colors, asking for her opinion again.

Shen Miao's imagination ran wild. Blushing, she reached out. "I'll wear matching outfits with you, just this once."

Luo Qiao blinked. "Weren't we doing a twin look?"

Later, Luo Qiao stuffed Shen Miao into a Lolita dress with a huge, elaborate skirt. "It's our gorgeous new bridal style for the anniversary collection. Miaomiao, try it on first!"

Shen Miao stared at the "wedding dress" she was wearing, lost in thought. A year has gone by. Why hasn't she confessed to me yet?

A lively, nimble-fingered handmade fashion enthusiast, Luo Qiao × a naturally airheaded, sharp-tongued illustrator with a static electricity allergy, Shen Miao

Reader's guide:

One-on-one, both pure

The story focuses mainly on their careers.

Some of the Lolita dresses mentioned in the story may be based on real designs.

You don't need to know anything about Lolita fashion to enjoy the story. The author will provide a brief introduction in the afterwords.

Theme: From conflict to unity