My Fair Princess (Part One)

During one of Emperor Qianlong's southern tours, he had a brief dalliance with Xia Yuhe by Daming Lake in Jinan, and she later gave birth to a daughter, Ziwei. Years later, after Xia Yuhe dies of illness, Ziwei sets out for the capital with her maid Jinsuo and the keepsake her mother left behind, traveling a thousand li to find her father. As a commoner, she has no way to gain entry to the palace to see the emperor; at her wit's end, she meets Xiaoyanzi, a girl who lives in a crowded tenement courtyard and earns a living as a street performer. The two take to each other at once and become sworn sisters. Ziwei entrusts the secret of her birth to Xiaoyanzi, who, to help deliver the keepsake, recklessly breaks into the imperial hunting grounds—but through a bizarre twist of fate, Qianlong takes her for his daughter and bestows on her the title "Huanzhu Gege" (My Fair Princess). Watching the sacrificial procession, Ziwei collapses in shock and grief and is rescued by Fukang'an, an imperial bodyguard; when the Fu family learns her story, they take her in, and romance quietly grows between Ziwei and Kang'an. Thereafter, Kang'an, Fifth Prince Yongqi, and a group of young people repeatedly take risks between court and common world to "set things right": Ziwei enters the palace as a maid and wins Qianlong's favor with her talents, thereby drawing the empress's suspicion and harassment. The mystery of the true and false princesses is revealed step by step, and the two romances—Xiaoyanzi and Yongqi, Ziwei and Kang'an—grow amid adversity. Part One closes with the reveal of identities and Qianlong's re-investiture: Ziwei is made "Mingzhu Gege" and Xiaoyanzi re-titled "Huanzhu Junzhu," and everyone finds their proper place. Written in a light, brisk style, the book depicts the collision between court and common world, and tells of family, identity, and youthful friendship.