In 1735, Qianlong succeeds the throne. His childhood sweetheart Ruyi enters the palace with him as his concubine. Their loving marriage slowly turn into a broken one over time. Because of her relationship with Qianlong, Ruyi becomes Consort Xian, which makes the other ladies ostracize her. The empress dowager has a feud with Ruyi's family, which also puts her in danger. At the same time, Qianlong is in a power struggle with the empress dowager and ministers. Qianlong and Ruyi support each other through their hardships, until all the obstacles are cleared. Qianlong finally manages to make Ruyi the empress, after years of hard work, so they can reign together. But after becoming the empress, Ruyi realizes Qianlong has grown up into a mature emperor from a young husband. His paranoid, fickle and selfish nature as an emperor constantly shows. The love and trust between them slowly break down. But Ruyi holds on to the happy memories, and carries out her duties as the empress until her death.
