This was an enjoyable Chinese palace novel with many funny situations and a slow building true romance between the typical stone faced dominant emperor and his outspoken empress. There is the typical palace schemings, but, the empress is more virtuous than the rest of the harem. Her character is a bit unruly, but, she defends and never attacks unless provoked. She is visionary, willing to bring new ideas and technology to better her nation, which is not seen in the typical palace dramas. The author added enough 18+ sex scenes between the main couple to keep the storyline spicy, but not overpower the light romance. Worth reading once.