A Worthy Minister Is Hard to Find

[Historical Romance + Ensemble Cast + Tormented Love + Mistaken Turns + Imperial Court and Powerful Clans + Love of Country and Family + Tearjerker + BE]

I am the empress of a nation.

Whoever sees me bows respectfully and greets me with, "May the empress be well."

Because my surname is Shen.

My father, Shen Nian, fell in battle. His body was never found, and my mother died for love.

My eldest brother led his troops against a hundred enemies and held Yumen Pass for forty-five days before giving his life for his country.

The Great Liang offered my fourth sister, Shen Zheng, as a sacrificial gift to the Jurchen commander in exchange for a five-year peace treaty. She died in the third year after being handed over.

My second brother, Shen Mu, and third brother, Shen Jun, endured five years before driving the Jurchens back to their homeland. Then my second brother was given poisoned wine and put to death, while my third brother, ill from his wounds on the battlefield, did not survive that winter.

In the fifth year of the new dynasty, my fifth sister, Shen Lin, was sent north to marry for peace. She has yet to return...

Now, I am the only one left to endure this vast capital alone.

The entire Great Liang is held up by my Shen family's flesh and bones. Though I am the only one left now, the name Shen is the faith of all Great Liang. No matter how respectfully they treat me...

I deserve it.

(The most moving tale of love for country and family. Have tissues ready.)