In her previous life, she was a humble little cook who, desperate to make ends meet, willingly became a tool for the empress to compete for the emperor's favor in exchange for a salary.
Her excellent cooking won the emperor's favor, but she devoted herself to supporting the empress from behind the scenes, quietly paving the way and taking the blows for her. In the end, the empress gave birth to a legitimate heir as she had wished.
Yuan Zhi thought the empress would keep her promise. Instead, the empress saw her as a menace, sold her to a brothel, and made a fortune from her, wringing out the last of her strength.
Reborn, Yuan Zhi casts off her former meek and steady demeanor. She makes the most of the empress's claim that she has some beauty, and takes the initiative to approach and seduce the emperor.
If she's going to make an enemy of the empress, she has to take away the thing the empress loves most.
Rank, legitimate heir, family... She wants the empress to watch her lose everything with her own eyes.
