Ficool

My Daughter is the Empire’s Lucky Charm

Reiya_Alberich
14
chs / week
The average realized release rate over the past 30 days is 14 chs / week.
--
NOT RATINGS
508
Views
Synopsis
#NoCP === English Original Title: "Too much! Father is actually cheating" (Note: Title adapted for tone and readability while preserving the story’s core themes.) === What happens when a modern-day lottery winner gets yeeted into the body of an overlooked princess in a historical novel? For Yun Shu, the answer is simple: Keep calm and keep scrolling. After her family’s sudden windfall, Yun Shu was all set for a life of luxury—until she woke up in the body of the fifth princess of a dynasty she literally read about in a book. Good news? Her mega-mansion came with her as a cheat-like pocket dimension, complete with Wi-Fi. Bad news? The original novel did not promise her a happy ending—just a quick exit as a cannon-fodder side character. But here's the twist: Her new "dad" is the all-powerful Emperor Xuanwu, a man with a mysterious system that predicts the future… and keeps pointing to her as the key to saving the empire. Yun Shu just wants to nap and binge fried chicken, but fate (and her suddenly very attentive imperial father) has other plans. Between dodging court politics and accidentally becoming the empire’s lucky charm, can this transmigrated slacker survive—or will she end up crowned empress?
VIEW MORE

Chapter 1 - The Emperor's Call

Under the maple tree, its edges tinged gold and red with the changing season, a carved sandalwood rocking chair swayed gently in the breeze.

A young girl in pale pink palace robes reclined in it with her eyes half-closed, lips curled in a small, satisfied smile. She looked like she was simply enjoying a peaceful early autumn afternoon.

But only Yun Shu herself knew that her consciousness had long since drifted back into the villa. Right now, she was hugging a cup of milk tea and laughing her head off at the latest episode of a variety show.

"Princess, Princess, please wake up!"

Just as the show was reaching the best part, a familiar voice broke in near her ear—her personal maid, Ting Xue.

Yun Shu paused the show and set down her milk tea. When she opened her eyes, sure enough, there was Ting Xue's pretty round face, looking flustered.

"Princess, Eunuch Wang from His Majesty's side is here! He says the Emperor has summoned you to the Imperial Study!"

"Me?!"

Caught off guard by the news, Yun Shu jolted, her eyes widening: "Why would Father suddenly summon me?"

This shouldn't be happening!

Before transmigrating, she had only just started reading The Tyrant's Beloved Darling, so she still remembered some of the plot clearly. The male lead's half-sister—that is, her current identity, the Fifth Princess—was merely a cannon-fodder character mentioned in passing.

But that passing mention explicitly stated that the Fifth Princess was not favored. It wasn't until she turned fifteen and was about to undergo her coming-of-age ceremony that the Emperor remembered her existence and summoned her for the first time.

But she was only thirteen right now.

Why would the Emperor suddenly call for her now?

It couldn't be... a case of father-daughter telepathy, right? She'd just transmigrated a few days ago. There's no way the Emperor over there suddenly had a gut feeling something was off.

For a modern girl raised under the red flag (modern China), being summoned by the supreme ruler of a feudal dynasty, someone who could casually sentence a person to death with a single word... Yun Shu, a complete impostor, couldn't help but feel her nerves creeping up.

Unfortunately, Ting Xue looked just as clueless: "Eunuch Wang didn't say. He only told me to fetch you quickly so His Majesty wouldn't have to wait."

"He was in a hurry?"

Yun Shu's heart sank even further.

Anxiety gnawing at her, she allowed Ting Xue to change her into slightly more formal robes.

The entire journey from Fengyang Palace to the Imperial Study was spent racking her brain for any event around this time that might prompt the Emperor to summon her.

Perhaps due to overthinking, her nerves were stretched taut by the time she arrived.

The moment she stepped past the threshold of the Imperial Study, an overwhelming aura of imperial majesty and solemnity pressed down on her. Not daring to look around too brazenly, she kept her head slightly lowered, stealing only furtive glances at her surroundings as she performed an awkward greeting:

"Your daughter pays respects to Father Emperor. May Father Emperor be blessed with boundless peace."

"Rise."

The deep, authoritative voice carried an innate pressure—the kind only someone who had wielded absolute power for years could possess, a far cry from the emperors portrayed in dramas.

Yun Shu stood straight as a rod, staring at her nose and pretending to be invisible. She didn't dare fidget.

For a moment, silence filled the Imperial Study.

Yun Shu wasn't sure if she was supposed to say something else. Emperor Xuanwu sat behind the dragon desk, quietly observing the daughter he had rarely paid attention to.

Thirteen years old.

Though she had inherited the Yun family's famously fine features, she was still young, her cheeks round with the last traces of baby fat. Her frame was delicate, her posture straight. But no matter how he looked at her, she didn't seem like someone capable of shouldering any great responsibility.

And yet...

Today, he had been fretting over the growing number of noble-born candidates in the civil service exams. Education was costly, and children from poor families rarely made it to the top. Even if a few brilliant ones reached the final imperial exam, they were often outclassed by the resources and grooming of the nobility.

As he struggled with this conundrum, the Simulation Life Selection System unexpectedly presented a solution:

[If Yun Shu is allowed to resume studies in the Imperial Academy, the number of scholars from common backgrounds will increase dramatically.]

Thoughts swirled through Emperor Xuanwu's mind, but not a trace showed on his face.

"We heard that you and the Fourth Prince recently completed your studies at the Imperial Academy?"

"Replying to Father Emperor, your daughter has indeed concluded her studies."

Yun Shu's mind raced. She hadn't yet figured out why the Emperor cared about her academic status when his calm, deep voice came again—

"Fufei miguang—how would you interpret this?"

Yun Shu: "?"

What fee? What light?

Was he calling her a waste of space?

"You don't know?"

Perhaps the sheer stupidity on her face was too obvious, that the Emperor didn't even wait for her answer. His cold snort echoed through the room.

"No wonder the Grand Preceptors only praised the Fourth Prince during their recent reports and couldn't be bothered to mention your progress!"

"Your daughter is dull-witted."

What else could Yun Shu say?

She was a STEM major! She felt bad too, okay?

Besides, it wasn't entirely the original Fifth Princess's fault.

Though this dynasty was relatively progressive due to its history of having had an empress regnant, and princesses were allowed to study the same curriculum as princes in the Imperial Study—

At the end of the day, the Grand Preceptors, as high-ranking officials, couldn't care less about an unfavored princess's academic performance.

In their eyes, their only true student was the Fourth Prince. The Fifth Princess was just an extra.

Even the original Yun Shu probably believed that. Still, no one could have expected the Emperor to suddenly take an interest in this forgotten background character's education.

Yun Shu had a sinking feeling her lazy, carefree days were about to end. And sure enough, in the next breath, she heard the Emperor say:

"Since your studies are lacking, you will return to the Academy starting tomorrow. Study together with your Sixth Brother."

"This daughter obeys."

===

The phrase "浮费弥广" (fú fèi mí guǎng) is a classical Chinese expression that critiques excessive or wasteful spending.

浮 (fú) – "Floating," but here it means superficial, excessive, or unnecessary.

费 (fèi) – "Expenses" or "spending."

弥 (mí) – "Increasingly" or "more and more."

广 (guǎng) – "Widespread" or "extensive."

Combined: "Extravagant spending grows ever more widespread."

Or more loosely: "Wasteful expenses are expanding uncontrollably."

Yun Shu mishears it as "废得迷惑" (fèi de mí huò)—a modern-sounding jab meaning "so useless it's bewildering."

-

"STEM major" refers to someone who studied a field within STEM, which stands for:

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics