TBR Challenge Review: Slacking Off in the Palace, with Grand Scholars Vying for My Favor (本宫摆烂，自有大儒为我争宠) by Zhai Miao (宅喵)
Historical romance [Chinese] web novel published February-October, 2025
After being framed and banished to the Cold Palace, Yu Miaohua unexpectedly awakened her transmigrator memories and was bound to a palace intrigue system.
Palace Intrigue System: Host, don’t lost heart! As long as you diligently complete the tasks I assign, you can easily punch out the Imperial Concubine (Gui Fei), kick down the Empress, and become a virtuous empress in no time!
Yu Miaohua: Fight what fight? What’s the point of palace intrigue? It’s too terrifying! The Cold Palace is so much better—a tranquil environment, a detached villa, and I can even use the system to read novels and comics. It’s the kind of stay-at-home life I’ve always dreamed of.However…
[You have completed the mission “Make the Emperor furious on account of your beauty, punishing his own uncle, and confiscating his property and titles,” reward: cotton seeds.]
[Congratulations on completing the mission “Frame the Imperial Concubine (Gui Fei) and confine her for three months,” reward: cement formula.]
[Congratulations on completing the task of going on a date the third-ranked (tan hua) imperial scholar, reward: corn seeds.]Yu Miaohua stared at the automatically completed tasks, her face paling.
Something’s wrong. How did these palace intrigue tasks become complete on their own? Is there a bug in the Palace Intrigue System?
…One day, the emperor suddenly discovered that his concubine, Yu Miaohua, who had been banished to the cold palace, was bound to a palace intrigue system.He sneered. “A palace intrigue system? What kind of evil spirit is this? It must be sent to a temple for purification.”
Until he saw the system’s mission rewards.
【Complete the quest “An unexpected encounter with the Emperor, and clear your name,” and you will be rewarded with Champa rice seeds that yield three harvests in one season.】
What? Three harvests in one season? And drought-resistant? He had to complete this mission! This wasn’t an evil spirit; it was clearly an auspicious gift from his ancestors!Dedicated to the well-being of his country, he diligently helped Yu Miaohua with her palace intrigue, only to see a new mission.
【How can a female protagonist in a palace intrigue novel not have admirers besides the emperor? Host, look at that third-ranked scholar! Wasp waist, narrow hips, looks slim in clothes, muscular underneath—he’s definitely your type!】
The emperor: ???Is he supposed to actively create opportunities for his concubine to have an affair? Such humiliation wasn’t unacceptable to him; after all, it was a crop suitable for mountain cultivation, yielding four shi per mu!
Soon, the emperor discovered that not only could he see Yu Miaohua’s palace intrigue system, but even the court officials could.
The Imperial Concubine’s Grand Tutor father, the Empress’s general uncle, the Consort De’s marquis brother… the entire court was diligently engaged in palace intrigue for Yu Miaohua.
One-sentence summary: How did the palace intrigue mission complete itself?
Theme: No matter the environment, always maintain your original self.
I’m late on my “tropetastic” TBR Challenge review for two reasons – most importantly, I had no idea which book would fit, and I only finished it this past weekend. Secondly, I hadn’t used my computer and I’m not about to try to write out a review on my phone. Anyway, the posted translation I read has the title as Slacking Off in the Palace, with Grand Scholars Vying for My Favor. Which, fitting. The tropes here became tasks for people to complete, and it was just a silly fun read. I actually hadn’t been interested in a book where the protagonist was attached to a “system” but then was like “whatever, easier reading something someone else has done.” And it was a total win!
I will say the title more should be translated as something like “I’m Going to Slack Off, Grand Scholars Will Vie for Favor On My Behalf” which yes – it’s not that scholars are vying for her favor, but are completing tasks that will make it seem like she’s favored. (Successful scholars generally became court officials.) And those not in the know think she’s the most precious beloved concubine.
Our heroine is Yu Miao Hua, and I love that she was so chill, and had a wonderful family. She’s not exactly a slacker salted fish … but kind of. She initially encounters the emperor while climbing a pear tree because she wants pear as part of her dinner, and he sees her thoughts/conversation with the system as text above her head. Miao Hua isn’t the brightest (which is a necessary component for the story to work), and normally that annoys me, but it’s well written here. Not only that, but Miao Hua is so principled that it counterbalances a lot of her silliness. Some of the tasks she’s eager to complete, but a lot of them involve some sort of (reputational) harm to others, and she wants no part of that. Miao Hua also has no interest in attempting to become the empress. For such missions, she’s like “no thank you[, you can fuck off]” but the emperor is desperate for all the rewards offered by the system. Which, granted, they’re truly excellent rewards that will benefit the people, and he’s a good emperor. There’s generally no critical thinking on Miao Hua’s part on how these tasks “magically” get completed, or why people are often staring above her head. It is addressed at times – she’s very beautiful, so both she and the system just think people are looking at her. (Granted, the system she’s bound to isn’t very bright either. In fact the times they subtly manipulate each other becomes cute.)
The hero … well honestly I’d say there isn’t one, but I suppose if we were to name one, it wouldn’t be the emperor, but the crown prince Pei Chi Yan. He’s the one Miao Hua ends up having the closest relationship with, and in fact he becomes one of her “divine consorts.” He’s definitely in love with her – willing to give up twenty years of his life for her health.
I believe he’s actually older than her, though I can’t recall his age ever being explicitly stated. Also definitely what I read was a machine translation, and there were some errors. He’s a bit of a sly fox, and woos our heroine subtly. It also definitely takes a while, because our heroine starts out with the identity of the emperor’s concubine, so technically his father’s woman. The emperor of course never touches her – thank god, especially since ew the emperor is 39 when the book starts, and our heroine is 16. The emperor quickly views Miao Hua as a divine maiden. Chi Yan’s parents and grandmother are the ones who keep pushing him to spend time with Miao Hua, and he has no designs on her whatsoever at the beginning. In fact he’s quite suspicious and uncomfortable with the fact that he’s pushed to spend time with his generational senior, especially as it’s deeply against the rules. But the more he sees of her, the more he likes her – and “hidden” in there is also the fact that they met as children.
Essentially, Yu Miao Hua is bound to a “system” – kind of like she’s in a living video game … but for this book specifically, it almost becomes like she’s the video game everyone else is playing, for real life rewards. The emperor of course wouldn’t know what a system is, but takes the words to be the identity of a god. I believe the first offering was high yield rice. There are other things like sweet potatoes, corn, cotton, how to cultivate it, crop mitigation, water works, cement and glass making, (unfortunately) weapons, so on and so forth. Basically a lot of things that would be developed hundreds of years later, or elsewhere. It would significantly increase the quality of living for the people, so the emperor is basically like “let’s goooo.”
As more tasks are completed, more people are able to see the system tasks. First it’s the emperor, then the Empress Dowager, the Empress (thank god), and then high ranking court officials. At one point the grand tutor helps the emperor frame his own daughter (who is also an imperial concubine) in order to complete a task. The empress does a lot of things that would otherwise be ridiculous in order to complete tasks as well. The fact that she can see Miao Hua converse with the system helps, and reassures her Miao Hua has no interest in taking her place as empress. It’s funny, throughout the story the Emperor comes “last” in terms of Miao Hua’s estimation. Definitely with the “if two of us fell into the river, who would you save first?” it’s never the emperor. And both the Empress Dowager and the Empress know it.
There’s a slight reverse harem – in that it happens, although there’s no romance. Miao Hua has essentially no interest in it. In fact she and Chi Yan have twins … but I’m not sure they even have sex. “How does that work, Lime?” you ask? Well, one of the system rewards is an artificial womb, and the system extracts their DNA and the babies are born of the artificial womb/a lotus. (Of course that works as another auspicious sign – that the “divine maiden” manifests children for the dynasty.) She can literally call rain and lightning (though for a limited number of times), guarantee good weather, gets treasure maps from the previous dynasty … and the tasks are ridiculous. “Have the emperor publicly declare he loves you most,” “get the emperor to confine the empress for you,” so on and so forth. Just thinking about one of the “auspicious signs” just now made me snort laugh. “Hundred(s) birds paying homage to the phoenix” is one of the major signs in the empress, but the book turns it into “hundred(s) birds pooping” because someone had tried to create a sign to cause problems for the Empress (and Miao Hua). The author is gifted at turning tropes on their head.
There’s a problematic foreign princess that enters the harem, rumors abound, scheming in the harem, a bunch of the usual harem issues – but the fact that people are able to see some of Miao Hua’s thoughts render them moot. In fact the other characters are often laughing to themselves at the secret conversations. Miao Hua also is quite lively mentally, but especially after establishing herself as the “divine maiden” she presents a stately “otherworldly” appearance.
There was a last chapter that wasn’t translated that I couldn’t find anywhere when I looked, so I’m going to pretend that offers all the sweetness between the “couple” and closure for the romance. But even as a not romance, it’s a very fun, lighthearted, delightful story. I literally laughed out loud nearly ever chapter. There’s very little angst, and it’s so satisfying to read the “bad” characters punished. I also loved that the heroine, Empress, and Empress Dowager all got along so well. Plus the heroine and her little sister. In fact Yu Miao Ping became a valiant female general. (Yes! Another trope!) It’s not a serious read, and sometimes you just need that. I definitely recommend this book, and I need to look for more by this author.
Grade: B+