Schemes of a Beauty

During the early Western Han Dynasty, the young Dou YiFang's mother was drawn into a palace conflict which resulted in her entire family being executed. When she grew up, she unexpectedly entered the palace as a maid. She displayed extraordinary talents when she arranged for Consort Li's child to be swapped under the care of the Empress. Her intellects impressed the Empress Dowager, and she was ordered to marry the King of Dai so she could spy on them. In order to rid the world of further sufferings under the regime, but at the same time earn the trust of Empress Dowager Lu, she suggested to her husband Liu Heng to start training his army under the guise of building his grand ceremonial tomb. People, believing that she was bringing downfall to the kingdom, pleaded for her to be put to death. But none the less, Liu Heng trusted her completely and subsequently made her his queen. Their alliance finally led them to ascend to the throne of the glorious empire. But at the pinnacle of her power, she realized that her personal life was slipping away from her. In order to regain the love of her husband, in order to stop her children from killing one another, she weaved her womanly tactics to overcome every obstacle, and forged one of the golden ages in Chinese history known as the Rule of Wen and Jing. Her name is recorded in history, for us to marvel; she is Empress Dou of Wen.

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