- The emperor has married twice. Current empress is his 2nd wife, and Shuli looks like his deceased 1st wife.
- Nora's dad, Johannes and the emperor were all in love with Ludovica (the 1st empress) until emperor made his move 1st.
- 2nd empress used to be emperor's original fiancee, but got dumped in favour of the 1st. After 1st died, emperor married 2nd empress out of political duty, not love. So 2nd empress hates 1st empress for making her the replacement (and likely target of ridicule in social circles).
- Nora's dad is biased towards prince Theo because Theo looks a lot like 1st empress when he's sad. Plus Theo's outwardly charming and perfect.
- Theo is so charming, even 2nd empress is taken over to his side as well. Plus his capable behaviour makes him a more suitable public figure and future heir.
-1st empress died giving birth to Theo.