In the Lotus Palace of Helterd Imperial Palace, where the ten empress candidates reside, in the 11th villa’s bedroom:

“What is this?”

The elderly housekeeper showed the maids a speck of dust she had found on top of the wardrobe.

Three young women swallowed nervously, glancing at each other. It was a barely visible speck of dust, but they didn’t dare speak hastily in front of the meticulous housekeeper.

“Have you forgotten that cleaning is required twice daily, both in the morning and evening?”

“No, not at all. We definitely cleaned both in the morning and evening today,” one maid bravely answered.

The housekeeper, gripping the chin of the youngest looking maid, asked coldly, “Let me ask again. Did you also clean the bedroom this evening? If you’re lying, you’ll be dismissed from the palace.”

Milly nodded firmly, but two other maids quickly knelt and confessed, “We’re sorry, housekeeper. The room isn’t used yet, so we only cleaned it this morning… please forgive us.”

Betrayed by her colleagues, Milly’s face turned pale, but she didn’t beg for forgiveness.

“What should we do?” asked Loren, overseeing the empress candidates’ chambers.

“Dismiss them immediately,” the housekeeper said concisely.

This wasn’t just a demotion; it was a complete dismissal. The two kneeling maids burst into tears. Milly, with a stiff head and clenched fist, walked out of the room on her own, knowing pleading was useless.

The housekeeper was a no-nonsense, principled perfectionist and ascetic. She never tolerated lies from the maids. This allowed her to maintain her position for over 40 years, through changes in emperors and empresses.

After the maids left, the housekeeper quietly instructed Loren, her most trusted aide, “Don’t dismiss Milly. Bring her to me this evening.”

“Are you going to use her for this task?”

The housekeeper nodded in response to Loren’s discreet question. “Milly is cunning and quick-witted, but very stubborn and proud. As you saw, she lies without discrimination. She’s not the type to obediently follow orders.”

“I know. That’s why she’s suitable for the maid of the eleventh empress candidate. People like her, who can do anything for their own benefit and betray anyone, are well-known to me.”

“It’s surprising. I didn’t expect you to heed the duchess’s request,” Loren commented, having served the housekeeper for over 25 years.

The housekeeper was known to be a principled, strict individual, not someone who engaged in political scheming for power or wealth. Despite her influential position, she lived modestly and planned to retire to a rural convent, donating her earnings. The senior housekeeper, responsible for overseeing the palace’s internal affairs and staff, held a position equivalent to a duke.
Bridget, the chief housekeeper, who had been dedicating her salary to a countryside convent, planned to retire there and spend the rest of her life. Equivalent in rank to a duke, she was responsible for assisting the empress, managing the imperial household affairs, and overseeing the royal employees. However, she always operated strictly according to the imperial laws and customs, never meddling in matters beyond her domain.

Now, near retirement, she unexpectedly entered the palace’s covert struggles, driven by a cause she deeply cared about.

“This competition is between two families, but it’s also about the honor of the late empress. I will not allow a second empress from the Sebil Kingdom in the Helterd Empire. I swear it on my life,” Bridget declared while cleaning the furniture.

“I can no longer stand Natalia, the Empress Dowager, tarnishing the reputation of the late Empress Catherine. If her niece, Princess Lilibeth, becomes empress, what remains of Empress Catherine’s legacy will vanish.”

Empress Catherine, who had chosen Bridget, then a nine-year-old laundry maid from a count’s house, as her playmate and later promoted her to her chief maid, was Bridget’s mentor and close friend.

“Duchess LeSang, Empress Catherine’s only daughter, promised me that if Lady Grace becomes empress, she will reveal the secret of Empress Catherine’s death.”

This was why Bridget, always principled, had agreed to collaborate with Duchess LeSang, known for her bottomless ambition.

After a pleasant dinner, Empress Catherine had died in her sleep the following morning. The emperor, not on good terms with his wife, remarried Princess Natalia from the Sebil Kingdom six months after Catherine’s death. The young new empress, Natalia, not only erased Catherine’s achievements but also posthumously defamed her.

Bridget, who was close to the late empress, was nearly expelled but managed to save the life of the young Empress Natalia during an epidemic. Gaining Natalia’s trust, Bridget rose to the position of chief housekeeper.

“Why not just disrupt Princess Lilibeth, Grace’s main competitor? Why bother with the eleventh candidate, who is relatively unknown from a fallen house?” inquired Loren.

An Indifferent Woman is the One Men Desire the Most

One-line summary: The female lead is actually cold-hearted and extremely rational. She has stage-by-stage relationships and won’t two-time, but there will always be someone who secretly likes her.

This novel has the following triggers, so if you’re sensitive to these, please don’t read:

1. The female lead has had many relationships, but she treated each one seriously and broke up properly.

It’s just that the men unilaterally pestered her incessantly. For the female lead, when she doesn’t like someone anymore, she simply doesn’t like them.

(This applies to her relationships with Male Lead 1, 2, 3, and 4 as well, but she’s loyal in each 1-on-1 relationship!)

2. In this novel, Male Lead 2 and the female lead kiss in a car, and Male Lead 1 sees it and beats up Male Lead 2.

The female lead calls the police and sends both Male Lead 1 and 2 to the police station! Male Lead 1 begs the female lead not to break up with him.

3. Male Lead 1 has a gentle appearance but an obsessive personality.

Male Lead 2 has a delicate and soft appearance, slightly green tea-like (two-faced).

Male Lead 3 is a youthful college student and a smart person who has secretly liked the female lead for a long time.

Male Lead 4 is the female lead’s father’s special assistant, a business elite with deep, hidden thoughts.

4. At the beginning of this novel, the female lead has already broken up with Male Lead 1 (Chapter 4) and gotten back together with Male Lead 2 (ex-boyfriend).

5. Enter with caution if you have triggers!!!