Beneath the vermilion palace walls, he was the crown prince, cruelly deposed within the Forbidden Palace.
Rumors outside the palace painted the deposed prince as violent and sensitive, his moods unpredictable.
When she first entered the palace, she became his personal maid. Even in his most miserable and destitute days, she alone stayed by his side, never abandoning him.
In the dead of night, he held her close again and again, swearing to Heaven and the moon that he would make her his wife for life.
But one day, the fallen prince who had once been bullied at every turn in the Cold Palace was suddenly restored to his position as The Outcast, second only to the emperor and above all others.
And she became a prisoner, watching him draw another woman into his arms and speak to her in tender whispers.
A single letter of divorce severed their five years of love. His vow to make her his wife for life became the shackle that locked around her heart.
She languished in the palace, struggling with every step, cautious and wary as she dodged open attacks and hidden schemes, and watched him climb ever higher until he ruled the world.
"Your Highness, please let this servant leave the palace."
In the great hall, she knelt with tears streaming down her face. The young emperor's expression darkened as he pinned her to the imperial bed.
"If you want to leave the palace, kill me first!"
