Lu Yuxiao plays Su Luowei, the daughter of a powerful prime minister’s family and the childhood sweetheart of Crown Prince Song Ling, played by Zhang Linghe. They grew up together, and for Luowei, Song Ling wasn’t just the Crown Prince. He was the person she had always believed would remain by her side. But on the Lantern Festival night of the third year of Tianshou, everything changed. During a state sacrificial ceremony, Crown Prince Song Ling was assassinated. Except his body was never found. The mysterious incident became known as the “Ci Tang Case,” and with the Crown Prince gone, chaos spread through the court. Powerful aristocratic clans rebelled and placed his younger brother, Song Lan, on the throne as a puppet emperor. Luowei had just lost the man she loved most. But instead of leaving the palace behind, she chose to protect the younger brother Song Ling had cared about. She married Song Lan and became Empress. Not because she loved him. She did it to investigate the Ci Tang Case, suppress the rebellion, and protect the person she believed Song Ling would have wanted her to protect. For years, Luowei helped Song Lan break free from the aristocratic clans and strengthen his throne. She believed every sacrifice she made was honoring the memory of the Crown Prince. Until she discovered the truth. Song Lan was not another victim of the Ci Tang Case. He was the mastermind behind it. The man she had protected, the Emperor she had helped rise to power, was the same man responsible for Crown Prince Song Ling’s downfall. Worse, Luowei realized she had unknowingly been used as part of his plan. That was when her grief turned into revenge. If she helped build Song Lan’s throne, then she would be the one to destroy it. But bringing down an Emperor was impossible without someone powerful enough to strike from inside the court. So Luowei turned to Ye Tingyan, also played by Zhang Linghe. Cold, brilliant, and deeply trusted by Song Lan, Ye Tingyan seemed like the perfect weapon. But Luowei had no idea who he really was. Ye Tingyan was Crown Prince Song Ling. He survived the Ci Tang Case. After losing his identity, position, and everything he once had, he changed his appearance and returned to court under a new name, determined to punish everyone who had betrayed him. And in his eyes, Su Luowei was one of them. Because while he was gone, the woman he had loved since childhood married his younger brother, became Empress, and helped Song Lan secure the throne that should have been his. He believed she had chosen Song Lan. He believed she had betrayed him. Until Luowei began getting closer to Ye Tingyan. She trusted him more than an Empress should. She crossed boundaries, gave him special favor, and slowly revealed that something about her loyalty to Song Lan was not what it seemed. The closer Ye Tingyan watched her, the more his hatred began to crack. Luowei wasn’t protecting Song Lan. She was secretly preparing to destroy him. One believed the man she loved was dead. The other believed the woman he loved had betrayed him. Neither knew that after all those years, they were still fighting for each other. Then one night, Luowei rested her head on Ye Tingyan’s shoulder and quietly asked, “Lord Ye, weren’t you curious about what I seek?” Then she gave him the answer he never expected. “Go and kill Song Lan.” “Avenge my Crown Prince for me.” And in that moment, Ye Tingyan finally understood. The woman he thought had betrayed him had never stopped loving Crown Prince Song Ling. She had been trying to avenge him all along. And Luowei still had no idea that the Crown Prince she had mourned for years… was sitting right beside her. #zhanglinghe #luyuxiao #tiktok #revenge #citang - @luyu912