You take on two husbands, I'll turn around and marry the tyrant and rule the world.

Chu Nianci knew that this matter concerned the fate of her childhood friend, Shen Lanbing.

In the previous life, the Duke of Zhenguo, who was on good terms with his maternal uncle, also sent his eldest daughter, Gu Qingmei, to participate in the imperial concubine selection.

But for some reason, Miss Gu was poisoned during the talent show and died on the spot.

The Duke and his wife only had this one daughter, whom they cherished like the apple of their eye. Upon hearing the devastating news, they fainted on the spot and fell seriously ill. Soon after, they retired and returned to their hometown.

The Empress Dowager and the Emperor were furious and ordered a thorough investigation, but they could not find the real culprit no matter how hard they tried.

This incident implicated Shen Lanbing, Chu Nianci's best friend who grew up with her.

Shen Lanbing was a year younger than him, and her father was the prefect of Yangzhou, a fifth-rank official, who happened to be Chu Nianci's father's superior.

What's remarkable is that Lan Bing never looked down on Chu Nianci's mother for coming from a merchant family. The two got along well and often played together.

Because of this relationship, Chu Nianci's father was somewhat more cautious in the inner quarters and dared not treat his mother too kindly, so his mother enjoyed a few years of peaceful life.

Later, my father was able to be promoted to prefect, which was partly due to the help of the Shen family.

In his previous life, when Chu Nianci heard that Lan Bing had been implicated in this case, he was so anxious that he wanted to submit a petition to the palace to plead for mercy.

But the Empress refused to see her.

She had no choice but to ask Lin Jingrui for help in finding out, but the news she received chilled her heart.

Shen Lanbing was the most suspicious because she was closest to Gu Qingmei during the talent show.

In order to quell the Duke of Zhenguo's anger, the Empress Dowager ordered the execution of all the palace servants involved.

To the outside world, it was only said that Shen Lanbing was "suspected of murdering the daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo." Even her father, the prefect of Yangzhou, was implicated and imprisoned, and the whole family was exiled and eventually died on the road.

Chu Nianci was heartbroken for a long time because of this.

Even after she became a first-rank imperial consort, the thought of this incident still caused her heartache.

So in this life, upon learning that Lan Bing was participating in the selection again, Chu Nianci kept looking for her.

Despite asking Tuanyuan to keep an eye out, there were simply too many women to choose from, and she still couldn't find one.

Soon, the day of the final round of the palace selection arrived.

Chu Nianci remembered clearly that the calamity in her previous life happened today.

In this life, she was determined to protect her best friend no matter what.

In fact, given her current status, she shouldn't need to get involved in these trivial matters.

But in order to help Shen Lanbing legitimately, she specifically asked Aunt Lan for a favor.

Seeing that there was indeed a shortage of manpower, Aunt Lan nodded in agreement.

Before dawn, the young women who had passed the previous rounds of selection had already gathered in a side hall next to the Xiefang Hall, each one meticulously dressed and adorned with flowers, waiting for their summons.

Chu Nianci handed a poison-preventing pill to Tuanyuan, took one herself, and said, "Let's both take this."

Tuanyuan took it, somewhat puzzled: "Miss, the palace is heavily guarded, is this really necessary?"

Chu Nianci gently tapped her forehead with his finger, smiling helplessly: "Silly girl, sometimes the inner palace is the most dangerous place."

Tuanyuan didn't ask any more questions and obediently took the pills.

Chu Nianci adjusted her makeup in front of the mirror.

She simply tucked a few plain silk flowers into her hair and changed into a moon-white pleated skirt, dressing even more simply than ordinary palace maids.

"Miss," Tuanyuan said, helping her tie her sash, "His Majesty praised your tea-making skills last time. Today is the day of the palace selection, yet you're dressed too plainly."

Chu Nianci smiled at herself in the bronze mirror: "I'm already a chosen concubine, so I don't need to participate in the selection anymore. What's the point of dressing up so extravagantly except to bring trouble?"

Tuanyuan thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "This servant understands."

Before long, she was dressed and ready.

Chu Nianci wore a moon-white dress, like a lotus emerging from the water, her dark hair loosely tied up with a plum blossom hairpin.

This hairpin was the very one Shen Lanbing gave her years ago.

A green plum blossom blooms on the branch, its simplicity exuding elegance, perfectly blending purity and perseverance.

Chu Nianci looked at herself in the mirror, her lips slightly curved, her beauty as pure as a lotus emerging from clear water.

Ever since she last met His Majesty, she had had a thought in her mind.

We must find a way to transfer him to serve in the emperor's presence.

No matter what rank one can attain, there is nowhere more likely to see the emperor's face or gain his favor than being by his side.

Besides, just by looking at the tea set Duanmu Qingyu had that day, one can tell how exquisite his life is.

Being transferred to the Emperor's court meant access to the best things in the palace and the finest living.

"Let me ask you," she turned to look at Tuanyuan, "what was the first thing His Majesty noticed when he last saw me?"

"It's because of the aroma of the tea you ordered," Tuanyuan thought for a moment.

"Yes," Chu Nianci said with certainty, "His Majesty certainly appreciates beautiful women, but he values ​​women with talent even more."

Even if she doesn't participate in the selection today, she still has to leave some impression on the emperor.

She had already gained an advantage during her last audience with the emperor.

What we need to do now is to deepen this impression step by step, steadily.

At the beginning of Chen Shi (7-9 AM), all the women participating in the selection arrived at Jin Chi Garden, located next to Xie Fang Hall, under the guidance of the palace servants.

Since this was the first time selecting a concubine, Duanmu Qingyu made it clear from the beginning that the selection was limited to officials and their families with a rank of fifth grade or above.

No disturbing the residents.

Therefore, almost all the women participating in the selection were daughters of noble families and high-ranking officials; there were no women from commoner families.

The final round of the palace selection was about to begin. The young women were waiting in the side hall, ready to enter the main hall in a line at the summons officer's command.

Tuanyuan was a low-ranking palace maid and could not accompany them, so Chu Nianci followed the eunuch who was leading the way and arrived at the side hall of Xiefang Palace alone.

Inside the palace, the young women gathered together, each dressed in their finest attire and with exquisite makeup.

Those who made it to the final round were naturally all beauties chosen from thousands, but Chu Nianci's appearance still attracted a lot of attention.

There is no other reason.

Although she was dressed simply, her face was simply too eye-catching.

Although there are many beautiful women here, few are as striking as her and possess such a unique charm.

The cinnabar mole between her eyebrows, in particular, made her resemble a plum blossom in the snow, exuding a cool and elegant charm.

She simply stood there, exuding an aura that blended charm and innocence, dignity and elegance, making it impossible to look away.

The young women were secretly on guard.

However, on such a big day, no one dared to provoke them. Even if they felt jealous, they all behaved themselves properly.

Chu Nianci had been looking for someone ever since she entered the palace.

Her gaze swept across the crowd and quickly landed on a celadon plum vase... where stood a tall, graceful beauty.

A surge of joy filled her heart, and she quickly walked over, calling out, "Bing'er!"

It was Shen Lanbing.

She stood quietly by the plum vase, dressed in an elegant and graceful jade butterfly-patterned dress. The jade butterflies on her dress seemed to stop and stay in time with her tranquility.

Her jet-black hair was loosely tied up with a single white magnolia hairpin, making her resemble a magnolia in full bloom, elegant and refined, standing tall and graceful.

"Sister Ci? What are you doing here?"

Shen Lanbing also recognized Chu Nianci, and a surprised smile immediately bloomed on her usually elegant and composed face.

She walked over quickly, and even though she was happy, she still maintained the proper etiquette of a well-bred young lady.

She gently grasped Chu Nianci's hand and asked in a low voice, "I heard you married and moved to the capital. I thought I'd never see you again... What are you doing here?"

When Chu Nianci saw her again, she felt both warm and bittersweet.

Looking into Lanbing's clear eyes, she recalled the undeserved calamity of her past life... How could someone so upright and honest, who wouldn't even bother with the squabbles in the inner quarters, possibly stoop to poisoning others?

Deep within the palace, every step is fraught with danger.

You must have a helper you can completely trust.

Now, the only person she can trust is the younger sister she grew up with.

She secretly tightened her grip on Lanbing's hand, vowing once again in her heart that she would never let that tragedy repeat itself in this lifetime.