Turbulence in Northern Wei: Empress Zhao’ai

A conspiracy led the emperor to accuse her family of treason. Having narrowly escaped death, she set out to clear her father’s name and find the real culprit behind it all.

From finding a way into Prince Qi’s residence to search for a token, to meeting Prince Qi, becoming his secondary consort, and helping him ascend the throne, her life was filled with extraordinary twists and turns.

She bravely rescued Imperial Consort Liu at Yunxia Abbey, cleverly saved Prince Qi in the woods, devised a plan at Qiao Mountain to free the heir Liu from danger, rescued a princess by the Fen River, battled the princess consort in Prince Qi’s residence, and plotted to save her husband, Prince Qi…

For certain reasons, she was always unwilling to become empress. Her husband, however, insisted on making her empress, telling her, “As long as you do not become empress, I will never appoint another empress in this life.”

She was never empress while alive, yet always received the treatment of one. After her death, she was posthumously named Empress Zhao'ai.