Great Zhou Empress Xiao Mingyu and Noble Consort Lu Changlan were originally mortal enemies in the inner court. Bai Caiwei, who entered the palace from Jiangnan, feigned weakness, used a fake pregnancy to win imperial favor, and secretly colluded with rebellious factions in an attempt to subvert the imperial court. Seeing through the conspiracy, the two laid aside their old grievances, publicly exposed her true face at the Double Ninth banquet, and deployed defenses in advance to suppress the palace coup. The muddled emperor suffered a stroke and fell ill due to the shock. The two faithfully guarded the Huo ancestral temple and supported a young member of the imperial clan to ascend the throne. Xiao Mingyu took charge of the imperial court while Lu Changlan commanded the imperial guard, supporting the government with one mind in both civil and military affairs, reforming the administration, pacifying the frontiers, and joining hands to protect the rivers and mountains of the Great Zhou.