Consort Ning entered the palace with her heart set only on lying flat and retiring, surviving quietly in the rear palace with her son. When the two favored consorts fought and both suffered, she was unexpectedly appointed as Noble Consort to take charge of complex palace affairs. Disliking power struggles, she forged a new path, using worldly joys to resolve conflicts in the rear palace and seeing through the emperor's balancing acts and calculations. Until the new emperor ascended the throne, she reaped a free and complete ending.