Recaps

Zhu Ying destroyed Northern Yuan’s Royal Court, returned to Yingtian with the captured emperor, and received high honors while securing rewards for his soldiers. His reunion with the Zhu family stirred memories of Zhu Xiongying, and Zhu Ying left the Eastern Palace after Zhu Yunteng mistook him for his lost elder brother.

• Lu Ben warned the Lu clan that her attempts to ally with the Marquis of Victory and control Zhu Yunteng could draw Zhu Yuanzhang’s suspicion.
• Liu Lei reported that Zhu Ying had defeated Northern Yuan, captured its emperor, and achieved Fenglangjuxu, and Zhu Ying led his battered army and the fallen soldiers’ remains back to the Great Wall.
• Chen Heng revealed that Northern Yuan had received Ming military intelligence, and Zhu Ying recognized that Zhu Di had leaked the campaign’s plans.
• Zhu Ying escorted Zhu Quan to Daning, accepted the Daning generals’ loyalty, and ordered trade with Zhu Di’s domain stopped after the Black Guard killed Shen Wang.
• Zhu Ying stopped Zhu Shuang from seizing Northern Yuan captives, sent him back to Yingtian in custody, and Zhu Yuanzhang approved Zhu Shuang’s secret imprisonment and loss of title.
• Zhu Biao and the citizens welcomed Zhu Ying into Yingtian, and Zhu Yuanzhang made him a hereditary marquis and Commander of the Gendarmerie after learning he was only eighteen.
• Zhu Ying proposed using Northern Yuan’s seized wealth to compensate fallen soldiers, and Zhu Yuanzhang approved setting aside half the treasure for them.
• Zhu Yuanzhang noticed Zhu Ying’s resemblance to Zhu Xiongying, while Zhu Ying declined Lu clan’s invitation and left after Zhu Yunteng tearfully mistook him for his elder brother.

Zhu Ying’s resemblance to Zhu Xiongying led Lan Yu, Zhu Biao, and Zhu Yuanzhang to investigate the prince’s disappearance. After finding Xiongying’s coffin empty, Zhu Yuanzhang concluded that his grandson might still be alive and summoned Zhu Ying to the palace.

• Zhu Ying returned to Yingtian, reunited with Shen Yu'er and Lin Fu, and told Shen Yu'er about her Liu family ancestry and his retaliation against the Shen Family.
• Zhu Yunteng told Lan Yu that Zhu Ying was his elder brother, Zhu Xiongying, and asked him to investigate.
• Lan Yu and Chang Mao opened Zhu Xiongying’s tomb and found the coffin empty, with two jade pieces missing.
• Lan Yu grew convinced Zhu Ying was Xiongying after seeing his resemblance to Wen Xi and testing his reaction to an imitation jade pendant.
• Lan Yu told Zhu Biao about the empty tomb and his suspicions, and Zhu Biao agreed to investigate Xiongying’s disappearance and the smallpox incident.
• Zhu Yuanzhang secretly ordered Jiang Yan to investigate Zhu Ying’s origins and check Xiongying’s tomb, where Jiang Yan also found no remains.
• Jiang Yan argued that Empress Ma had sent Xiongying away to protect him, and Zhu Yuanzhang ordered a secret inquiry into the smallpox outbreak and those involved.
• Zhu Yuanzhang thanked Empress Ma at her memorial tablet and ordered Yun Qi to summon Zhu Ying to the palace the next morning.

Zhu Yunteng exposed Lu clan’s abuses, while evidence confirmed that Zhu Ying was Zhu Xiongying, the grandson long believed dead. Zhu Ying’s identity remained a secret from much of the court as Ming invested Yi Seong-gye as Joseon’s king and Zhu Di sought to make peace.

• Zhu Yuanzhang summoned Zhu Ying, discussed the Northern Yuan and Goryeo, and decided to recognize Yi Seong-gye’s new state as Joseon while arranging the Joseon princess’s marriage to Zhu Ying.
• Zhu Yunteng challenged Lu clan’s authority, accused her of years of mistreatment, and asked Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao to uphold justice.
• Zhu Yuanzhang ordered an investigation into Lu clan and the Eastern Palace, while Zhu Yunteng’s accusations prompted inquiries into Chang clan’s death and the smallpox outbreak.
• Xu Miaojin, Mu Ya, Xu Huizu, and Mu Ying presented evidence linking Zhu Ying to Zhu Xiongying, and Zhu Yuanzhang confirmed the identity while ordering them to keep it secret.
• Zhu Yunteng purged Lu clan’s appointees from the Eastern Palace, and Zhu Biao sent Lu clan to the Cold Palace as the investigation continued.
• At court, Zhu Ying proposed relief and resettlement for the Northern Frontier, accepted the Joseon princess as his concubine, and helped reveal that Shen Yu'er was Liu Bowen’s granddaughter.
• Zhu Di and Yao Guangxiao feared that Zhu Ying’s identity would threaten them, while Zhu Di sent gifts and a letter to seek an end to hostilities.
• Zheng Yi invested Yi Seong-gye as Joseon’s king, and Zhu Ying agreed to meet Zhu Di’s envoy as Zhu Yuanzhang urged Zhu Biao to protect Zhu Wenxi.

Zhu Ying’s identity as Zhu Xiongying was confirmed, and the court exposed the Lü Family’s crimes while restoring him as Prince Yuhuai. The truth spread through Yingtian as his household and the city learned who he was.

• Zhu Wenxi confirmed Zhu Ying’s identity with the Huai character jade, while Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao maneuvered to expose Lu Ben and the Lü Family.
• Zhu Biao betrothed Xu Miaojin and Mu Ya to Zhu Ying, and Zhu Ying survived an assassination attempt that led the court to arrest the Shen Family.
• The Shen Family confessed to plotting against Zhu Ying, and Zhu Ying rejected Shen Wansan’s offer to spare part of his family in exchange for hidden wealth.
• Zhu Ying married Xu Miaojin and Mu Ya, and Imperial Guard investigators traced his past to Nanny Ma, Chen Yi, and Empress Ma’s decree.
• At court, the decree and Zhu Ying’s jade pendant confirmed that he was Zhu Xiongying, and Lu Ben admitted that the Lü Family had caused the smallpox outbreak and other deaths.
• Zhu Ying seized Lu Ben, accepted the title of Prince Yuhuai, and said he could not yet call Zhu Yuanzhang Grandfather or Zhu Biao Father.
• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao explained how they had recognized Zhu Ying, while the court punished the Lu clan and prepared for Zhu Ying’s return to the imperial family.
• Imperial envoys revealed Zhu Ying’s identity and new princely residence to his household, while Lan Yu and the Huai West generals tormented the Lü Family in prison and Lan Yu told Shen Wansan that Zhu Ying was his grandnephew.