The Heirless Middle-Aged Emperor Meets a Fertile Beauty Who Enters the Palace and Bears Him Many Children

Zhou Mingyi and her elder brother Zhou Mingchong survived the death of their parents by relying on each other. Zhou Mingyi taught herself embroidery to support the household, allowing her talented brother to return to the academy. Zhou Mingchong excelled in the imperial examinations, placing third as the Tanhua Lang. However, his success attracted the attention of Princess Chaoyang, the Emperor's only daughter. The Princess forcibly detained him and coerced him into becoming her male concubine. Desperate, Zhou Mingyi sought help from her fiancé, Cen Shaoyuan. Instead of assisting her, Cen Shaoyuan handed her over to the Crown Prince. In the Eastern Palace, the Crown Prince discarded her after losing interest, and the Crown Princess falsely accused her of debauchery. Zhou Mingyi was beaten nearly to death and forced to witness her brother, flayed and stuffed with straw, hanging above the city gate. She died by smashing her head against the wall.

Reborn, Zhou Mingyi retained her memories and hatred. She bound herself to a System that promised to save her brother and grant her revenge if she entered the palace, bore the Emperor a child, and displaced Princess Chaoyang as the sole heir. The Emperor, Qianwu, had been poisoned in his youth, rendering him infertile except for the birth of his daughter. The Empress Dowager, desperate for an heir, had arranged for the Emperor to visit Hanshan Temple and consummate a union with a selected woman. Zhou Mingyi exploited this opportunity. She used a System item to enhance her beauty and swapped places with the woman the Empress Dowager had originally chosen. She entered the temple and slept with the Emperor, who was drugged by his mother.

The Empress Dowager discovered that the woman in the chamber was not her selected candidate but Zhou Mingyi, the sister of the Tanhua Lang. Despite the deception, she accepted Zhou Mingyi because the abbot had prophesied the arrival of a Heaven's Mandate Maiden. Emperor Qianwu, satisfied by the encounter and intrigued by Zhou Mingyi's beauty and demeanor, granted her the rank of Meiren. He also ordered the release of Zhou Mingchong from Princess Chaoyang's custody, citing Zhou Mingyi's plea. Zhou Mingyi used this time to formally break her engagement with Cen Shaoyuan, exposing his cowardice and betrayal to his family.

Princess Chaoyang was furious that her father and grandmother had protected Zhou Mingchong. She demanded that the Emperor force Zhou Mingchong into her mansion again. The Empress Dowager refused, citing the potential scandal and the Emperor's new favor for Zhou Mingyi. Meanwhile, Consort Chen, Princess Chaoyang's mother, felt threatened by the rise of a new concubine and the Emperor's transfer of palace management authority to Consort Rong. She continued to seek a fertility tonic to bear another child, hoping to secure her status.

Zhou Mingyi prepared to enter the palace, fully aware of the dangers. She knew that Princess Chaoyang would eventually discover her identity and seek revenge. However, she also understood that her value lay in her ability to produce an heir. By bearing the Emperor a son, she would gain power and protect her brother. She maintained a facade of innocence and fear before the Emperor, while internally plotting her path to the top. The Emperor, captivated by her, planned to elevate her rank to Jieyu upon her official entry. The court remained unaware of the true nature of her rise, viewing her merely as a lucky commoner who had caught the Emperor's eye.

As Zhou Mingyi awaited her summons, the political landscape shifted. The Cen family, realizing their mistake in betraying her, attempted to reconcile, but she rejected them. Princess Chaoyang, denied her male concubine, turned her attention to undermining the new favorite. The Empress Dowager watched closely, hoping Zhou Mingyi would fulfill the prophecy and provide the Emperor with a son. Zhou Mingyi entered the palace, ready to navigate the treacherous harem politics and execute her revenge against those who had wronged her in her past life.