'Schemes of a Beauty') is a 2010 Chinese television series adapted from Xiao Qiying's short story Turbulence in the Empress' Chamber (未央沉浮).

Set in Chang'an, China during the beginnings of the Han dynasty, Beauty's Rival in Palace tells a dramatised account of Empress Dou (Ruby Lin) and how her efforts and achievements in the imperial court positively influenced the reign of her husband Emperor Wen (Sammul Chan), which paved the way for the creation of the Rule of Wen and Jing.

During the early Han dynasty, young Du Yunxi's mother is drawn into a palace conflict which results in her entire family being executed.

Her intelligence impresses Empress Dowager Lü, and she is sent to Liu Heng, Prince of Dai, with a new identity as Dou Yifang, so she could spy on him.

In order to rid the world of further sufferings under the regime and at the same time earn the trust of Empress Dowager Lü, Dou Yifang suggests to her husband Liu Heng to start training his army under the guise of building his grand tomb.

To cover up a botched assassination of the young Liu Heng, Empress Lü places the blame on Yunxi's mother and wants her entire family to be executed.

Consort Bo, knowing that her servant is innocent, plans for the maid's escape but the road that was supposed to lead them to freedom is surrounded by Empress Lü's guards.

Nie Shen'er's father futilely helps Yunxi's mother to escape entrapment, but they ultimately sacrifice themselves to save their children.

She always behaves carefully and resolves crisis with her wisdom, which helps her gain the trust of the Emperor (Liu Ying) and Empress (Zhang Yan).

In the past, Liu Heng's mother, Consort Bo, mutilated her face in order to show her loyalty to Empress Dowager Lü; she rarely goes out, with the intent to hide her abilities by pretending to be weak.

Qingning eventually dies to protect Yifang's secret identity and extracts a promise from her to take care of Liu Heng.

Coupled with Consort Bo's belief that she is a calamity by being too wise for a woman, this gives Dou Yifang a restless life hounded with troubles.

Yifang helps her husband on the matters of training an army in secret by suggesting to him to order the building of a grand mausoleum to achieve immortality, which in turn tricks the Empress Dowager into believing that she has led Liu Heng stray, therefore rendering him harmless.

Yifang tolerates the negative impressions of the ministers and carries on to let the rumors against her flourish in order to further deceive Empress Dowager Lü.

Shen'er helps him to sneak out by paying a talented impersonator to disguise Liu Ying; however, they are caught by Empress Dowager Lü.

She is a woman who wishes to be as powerful as Empress Dowager Lü and is overwhelmed by the temptation of wealth, always finding ways to fulfill her own ambitions.

Shen'er goes on to play the role of a repentant and caring younger sister to Yifang, but in fact, at every step, she wants to take her place.

The imperial court is in a difficult conflict as Wu is in the frontier region – if Liu Bi starts a rebellion for this matter, the whole empire will be in disarray as they will lose a protector against foreign invaders.

The disheartened, gradually alienated Liu Qi then secretly meets Wang Zhi, his childhood acquaintance, and is deeply attracted to her.

In one of the war's decisive moments, Zhou Yafu is surrounded and requires reinforcements from Liu Wu's Liang which turns the tide back in their favor.

Liu Qi's already frail health, coupled with the exertion required by the court affairs, soon result in terminal illness.

Wanting to eliminate potential rivals to her son's position, Lady Li manipulates Empress Bo into trying to kill Consort Wang.

In the end, Lady Li's scheme is discovered; as a result, Liu Rong is stripped of his title and exiled along with his mother.

Yifang collapses in sadness and begins to cry, lamenting that she had misunderstood Liu Qi, and that all her family members are doing nothing but harming each other.

In the last scene, an old Yifang, accompanied by Empress Dowager Wang and Zhou Yafu, is reminiscing about the past as a group of ladies-in-waiting who had just entered the imperial palace is presented to them.

[5] Other notable cast members include the stunt choreography team from Zhang Yimou's Hero and music composers of Red River Valley.