Chapter Summaries

Gu Wanning visited Xu Weibei in prison and tried to draw him out of his shame and self-imposed distance. She brought him a home-cooked meal, and as he resisted her, the food and her warmth stirred his appetite.

• Gu Anwei arranged for Gu Wanning and Er Ya to visit Xu Weibei at Dali Temple, where they found him in a furnished cell writing.
• Xu Weibei initially refused to see anyone, but he looked up when Gu Wanning teased him and then urged her to leave.
• Gu Wanning persuaded the jailer to let her in, sent Er Ya outside, and reassured Xu Weibei that she had come to talk with him.
• Xu Weibei hid the memoir and last letter he was writing and insisted that he had helped Gu Wanning only because he could not tolerate the beast.
• Gu Wanning laid out the food she had cooked and ate in front of Xu Weibei, whose appetite began to return despite his resolve to stay away from her.

Gu Wanning confronted Xu Weibei about his shame and despair over his illness, confessed that she loved him, and urged him to keep living. Xu Weibei remained embarrassed and worried about her health, but their conversation left open the possibility of a future together.

• Gu Wanning offered Xu Weibei food she had prepared and tried to feed him, but he recoiled and stained his robe.
• Xu Weibei angrily ordered Gu Wanning to leave, but she calmed him by calling him by his name.
• Gu Wanning challenged Xu Weibei to stop hiding his love and reminded him that his illness did not erase his past achievements.
• Gu Wanning confessed that she liked Xu Weibei, promised to go overseas with him if necessary, and urged him to stay alive.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning not to get involved, then questioned why she had not treated her irregular periods.

Gu Wanning confessed to Xu Weibei and tried to reassure him that his physical shortcomings did not matter, but he told her to go home. He then assured her the emperor would not kill him and revealed that he feared Gu Yuanshi might oppose their reconciliation.

• Gu Wanning told Xu Weibei that she did not care about sex or his shortcomings and praised his strength and courage.
• Gu Wanning asked Xu Weibei to give their relationship a try and listed the reasons she would make a good partner.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning to go home, but asked her to leave the food and promised the emperor would not kill him.
• Gu Wanning asked whether Gu Yuanshi was helping Xu Weibei, and Xu Weibei said he was worried Gu Yuanshi would oppose their reconciliation.

Xu Weibei sent Gao Lan to investigate why Physician Bian had not returned, while arranging for Zhou Jingyuan to help protect Gu Wanning. After hearing how Zhou Jingyuan’s marriage had ruined his career, Xu Weibei angrily rejected him.

• Gu Wanning left Xu Weibei after their conversation about romance and his plans in jail.
• Xu Weibei ordered Gao Lan to find out whether an epidemic had delayed Physician Bian and to bring him back if the claim was false.
• Gao Lan suggested Zhou Jingyuan as a discreet replacement to help protect Gu Wanning.
• Gao Lan explained that Zhou Jingyuan had returned to the Capital after Li Xueyin abandoned him for another official.
• Xu Weibei called Zhou Jingyuan a fool and told Gao Lan to send him away.

Gu Wanning believed she had moved Xu Weibei and returned to her work in the fields, while Third Concubine teased her about the possibility of marriage. The chapter ended as Gu Wanning prepared to wash and change before a feast with her friends.

• Xu Weibei agreed to give Zhou Jingyuan another chance and sent him to Physician Bian, while ordering Gao Lan to keep protecting Gu Wanning.
• Gu Wanning told Third Concubine that she had made progress with Xu Weibei, then worried he might change his mind.
• Third Concubine reassured Gu Wanning and asked her to change out of her wet, dirty clothes.
• Gu Wanning discussed the promising corn and peanut harvest and asked about the medicinal meal Third Concubine was preparing.
• Er Ya reminded Gu Wanning to change before the feast, and Gu Wanning went to wash and change.

Gu Wanning learned that Gu Anfang had confessed his feelings to Third Concubine, who rejected him but still had to deal with him. She explained her brother’s reputation and the Gu family’s strict marriage expectations, leaving Third Concubine with much to consider.

• Gu Wanning ran into Gu Anfang at Third Concubine’s clinic and learned he had ordered a medicinal meal, though he looked healthy.
• After Gu Anfang left, Gu Wanning warned Third Concubine that he might have ulterior motives in seeking her company.
• Third Concubine revealed that Gu Anfang had confessed his feelings and that she had rejected him, but still needed his help.
• Gu Wanning described Gu Anfang’s embarrassing reputation and explained why her parents had delayed arranging his marriage.
• Gu Wanning told Third Concubine that she was not urging her to accept Gu Anfang, while noting that her past as Xu Weibei’s concubine could complicate matters.

Gu Wanning avoided visiting Xu Weibei in prison but sent him food and secretly read the love letters he sent through Gao Lan. On Er Ya’s birthday, she treated her to a meal at a new restaurant, where Gu Wanning discovered the handsome young men entertaining the guests.

• Third Concubine told Gu Wanning that she had no feelings for Gu Anfang and urged her to clear things up with Xu Weibei.
• Gu Wanning sent Xu Weibei a meal with Gao Lan but decided not to visit him again, while he sent her a love letter every day.
• Er Ya received calligraphy from Gu Anqi for her birthday, and Gu Wanning offered to treat her to a meal.
• Er Ya chose a new restaurant with music, singing, and dancing, and Gu Wanning was delighted to find its handsome young male entertainers.

Gu Wanning enjoyed a meal and performances with Er Ya, then was confronted by the Grand Princess, who blamed her for Xu Weibei’s imprisonment and ordered her to be slapped. Gu Anqi and He Shi appeared as the Grand Princess’s guards moved to act.

• Gu Wanning and Er Ya visited a restaurant to enjoy male beauty, singing, and dancing, and Gu Wanning left thinking about Xu Weibei.
• The Grand Princess blocked Gu Wanning’s path and accused her of being heartless and ungrateful toward Xu Weibei.
• Gu Wanning defended herself, saying she trusted the Emperor would recognize Xu Weibei’s righteous act and disputing the Grand Princess’s accusations.
• The Grand Princess ordered her guards to slap Gu Wanning’s mouth.
• Gu Wanning and Gu Anqi both shouted for the guards to stop, and Gu Wanning saw Gu Anqi with He Shi.

Gu Wanning confronted the Grand Princess, who tried to discourage her from marrying Xu Weibei, and nearly swore she would never join the Xu family. Gu Anqi and He Shi stopped her, and the chapter ended with Gu Anqi warning her not to let provocation distract her from her goals.

• Gu Anqi apologized to the Grand Princess for Gu Wanning bumping into her, and the Grand Princess insulted Gu Wanning and the Gu family.
• Gu Wanning retorted that the Grand Princess had once sought her hand for her grandson, and she realized the Grand Princess wanted to prevent her and Xu Weibei from reconciling.
• Gu Wanning began to swear she would never marry into the Xu family, but Gu Anqi, He Shi, and Er Ya stopped her.
• Gu Anqi suggested that the elders of both families discuss the matter privately, but the Grand Princess dismissed him and told him to keep Gu Wanning in line.
• Back at home, Gu Anqi and He Shi cautioned Gu Wanning against acting impulsively, and Gu Anqi urged her to stay focused on her goals.

Gu Wanning told Gu Anqi and He Shi that she would not marry Xu Weibei, though she would stay with him if he accepted a relationship without marriage. Gu Anqi insisted on taking her to the Gu family home to explain their father's true attitude, and Er Ya urged her to go.

• He Shi urged Gu Wanning not to reject Xu Weibei, but Gu Wanning asked what marriage was for.
• Gu Wanning said she would marry only to give her partner and any children proper status, and she refused to endure the Grand Princess as a mother-in-law.
• Gu Wanning said she would be with Xu Weibei if he accepted her terms, but would part from him if he did not.
• Gu Anqi explained that the Grand Princess had likely been testing Gu Yuanshi's attitude toward Gu Wanning.
• Gu Wanning refused to visit the Gu family home until Gu Anqi insisted he would reveal their father's true attitude, and Er Ya encouraged her to go.

Gu Wanning returned to the Gu home with Gu Anqi and hid behind a screen when Gu Yuanshi arrived. She overheard her father explain that he had severed ties to protect her future and the Gu family, leaving Gu Anqi to bear that responsibility after him.

• Gu Anqi brought Gu Wanning to Gu Yuanshi's study, where Gu Wanning offered to design bookshelves and noticed their father's agricultural books.
• When Gu Yuanshi returned, Gu Wanning hid behind a screen while Gu Anqi asked whether their father had needed to cut ties with her.
• Gu Yuanshi said he could not openly support Gu Wanning because of his position and feared her growing fame and reconciliation with Xu Weibei would unsettle the emperor.
• Gu Yuanshi told Gu Anqi that he was holding things together for now and that the future of his sisters and the Gu family would eventually rest on him.

Gu Wanning learned that Gu Yuanshi was worried about Gu Wanqing’s unhappy marriage to the Prince of Qin, while Xu Weibei struggled to understand Wanning’s wish to stay with him without marrying him. Outside his cell, Gu Yuanshi’s proposal to redistribute land to commoners had angered the emperor, and Xu Weibei remained imprisoned as the crisis unfolded.

• Gu Yuanshi told Gu Anqi that he trusted Gu Wanning to stand firm but feared for Gu Wanqing, whose imperial marriage made it difficult for the Gu family to intervene.
• Gu Wanning overheard the conversation, then returned home after Gu Anqi led Gu Yuanshi away.
• Gao Lan told Xu Weibei that Gu Wanning still wanted to be with him, though she did not want to marry him, and Xu Weibei worried that nothing would keep her from choosing another man.
• Xu Weibei learned that the emperor was preoccupied with Gu Yuanshi’s memorial proposing a land survey and redistribution of excess land held by the powerful to landless commoners.

Gu Wanning discussed wedding gifts with Third Concubine when Gu Wanqing came to see her, bringing news of the court uproar over the land survey. The chapter left Gu Wanqing seeking Gu Wanning’s help, though it did not reveal what she asked for.

• Xu Weibei learned that Gu Yuanshi’s land survey had exposed the Prince of Qin’s seizure of the most extra land, and the emperor punished him.
• Xu Weibei spoke with Gao Lan about Gu Wanqing and wondered why Physician Bian had concealed his hidden ailment from him.
• Gu Wanning discussed gifts for Second Concubine’s younger brother’s wedding with Third Concubine beneath the grape arbor.
• Gu Wanqing came to see Gu Wanning, who learned about the uproar at court.

Gu Wanqing visited Gu Wanning and told her about Gu Xiaoxiao’s troubles in the Prince of Qin’s residence. She asked about Gu Wanning and Xu Weibei’s wedding, then gave Gu Wanning two valuable property deeds as a contribution to her dowry.

• Third Concubine told Gu Wanning that she would not marry Gu Anfang, and Gu Wanning offered to arrange matchmaking meetings for him.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine laughed together as they prepared a meal of pumpkin congee and pumpkin cakes.
• Gu Wanqing visited Gu Wanning and said Gu Xiaoxiao had lost her pregnancy and was confined to the Buddhist hall after displeasing the Prince of Qin.
• Gu Wanqing asked Gu Wanning whether she and Xu Weibei would hold a grand wedding after he was released.
• Gu Wanqing gave Gu Wanning two property deeds for shops in the Capital as a contribution to her dowry.

Gu Wanqing asked Gu Wanning to help her son An-ge if she died and he ever fell into hardship, but Gu Wanning refused her valuable gifts and made no promises. Gu Wanqing left with Gu Wanning’s reassurance and advice to endure for her son, while the danger surrounding her remained unresolved.

• Gu Wanning firmly refused Gu Wanqing’s offer of two shops because she had not earned them.
• Gu Wanqing asked Gu Wanning to help An-ge if she died and he later fell into hardship, explaining that she did not want to burden her father and brothers.
• Gu Wanning said she could not promise anything, though she had helped Zhi Nu before knowing he was her nephew.
• Gu Wanning told Gu Wanqing that the Grand Princess cared chiefly that she was a daughter of the Gu family, as Gu Yuanshi’s reforms put the family at risk.
• Gu Wanning urged Gu Wanqing to endure for An-ge and keep the gifts for her own security, and Gu Wanqing accepted her counsel.

Gu Wanning and Third Concubine tended their abundant pumpkins while Zhi Nu wondered whether Xu Weibei would be released before the harvest ended. Xu Weibei received pumpkin porridge in confinement and asked for news of Zhou Jingyuan, while Gu Anqi and He Shi shared porridge at home.

• Gu Wanqing bowed to Gu Wanning and said she would always be An Ge'er's only maternal aunt, and Gu Wanning saw her out.
• Gu Wanning and Third Concubine returned to tending their pumpkins, while Zhi Nu guarded the growing crop and asked when Xu Weibei would be released.
• Xu Weibei drank pumpkin porridge and asked Gao Lan whether Zhou Jingyuan had found Physician Bian; Gao Lan said Zhou had found him but had sent no new letter.
• Gu Anqi shared pumpkin porridge with He Shi, while He Ge quietly kept his younger brothers from interrupting them.

Wei Shi and Gu Yuanshi discussed the successful corn harvest and the risks facing Gu Yuanshi over the reforms, while Gu Wanning worried about Xu Weibei’s imprisonment. Fang Tingxiu exposed the Zheng Duke’s Residence’s past betrayal of the emperor, leading the emperor to exile the family and release Xu Weibei after docking his salary for three years.

• Wei Shi kept her fears about the reforms to herself, then asked Gu Yuanshi about the corn harvest, and he said the yields were meeting or exceeding expectations.
• Gu Wanning celebrated the abundant harvest but grew anxious as Xu Weibei remained imprisoned and winter approached.
• Zheng Ke pressured Fang Tingxiu to help avenge Zheng Jian, threatening that the Zheng Duke’s Residence could ruin Fang Tingxiu’s future.
• Fang Tingxiu gave the emperor evidence that the Zheng Duke’s Residence had secretly supported his rival during the struggle for the throne.
• The emperor exiled everyone in the Zheng Duke’s Residence and reduced Xu Weibei’s punishment to three years’ salary docked, then released him.

Gu Yuanshi deflected the emperor’s attempts to arrange a marriage between his daughter and the Marquis of Yingchuan, while the emperor reflected on his friendship with Xu Weibei’s late father, Xu Huan. The emperor recalled how Xu Huan defied his order to marry the Southern Border King’s daughter and how he later died from a minor wound.

• The emperor teased Gu Yuanshi about a possible marriage between his daughter and the Marquis of Yingchuan, but Gu Yuanshi asked him to leave the couple alone.
• The emperor assured Gu Yuanshi that he welcomed a marriage joining their families and asked him to explain his hesitation.
• Gu Yuanshi said his daughter had only recently begun dealing with their family again, so he avoided interfering in her affairs to prevent another rift.
• The emperor said he would trust the Marquis of Yingchuan as Gu Yuanshi’s son-in-law and explained that Xu Weibei reminded him of his father, Xu Huan.
• The emperor recalled that Xu Huan had defied his order by bringing home the Southern Border King’s daughter, and that he had arranged a false identity for her.
• The emperor remembered that Xu Huan later died from an insignificant wound despite having left his wife and son in the Capital.

The emperor and Gu Yuanshi discussed Xu Weibei’s release, Gu Wanning’s relationship with him, and the reforms, then ordered Gu Wanning to meet Xu Weibei openly. Xu Weibei learned of his release and hurried to wash and change so he could see her.

• The emperor told Gu Yuanshi that he feared Xu Weibei might still resent the past, but felt reassured by his love for Gu Wanning.
• The emperor promised to share responsibility for the reforms and told Gu Yuanshi to have Gu Wanning meet Xu Weibei when he was released.
• Villagers gathered at Gu Wanning’s home to thank her for their successful corn harvest, delaying her departure.
• A messenger told Gu Wanning that Xu Weibei would be released and that the emperor wanted her to meet him.
• Xu Weibei learned he would be released after having his salary docked for three years, and hurried to wash and change so he could see Gu Wanning.

Xu Weibei reunited with Gu Wanning after leaving prison and joined her in welcoming villagers who came to thank her for their harvest. As they headed to her home, he rejected her suggestion that they stay together without marrying and insisted on a proper marriage contract.

• Xu Weibei mistook the villagers gathered around Gu Wanning for people who had come to welcome him, then invited them to the Marquis's Residence after Gao Lan explained they had come to thank her for the corn seeds.
• Xu Weibei followed Gu Wanning toward her home, saying he would visit the Grand Princess the next day and wanted to have dinner with Gu Wanning.
• Xu Weibei told Gu Wanning not to let her conflict with the Grand Princess drive them apart, and said he would keep the two women from having to meet.
• Gu Wanning proposed that they remain together without a marriage contract, but Xu Weibei refused and said he wanted a proper place as her husband.