Chapter Summaries

Li Ye and Fu Hongyan slept together, and Fu Hongyan kept demanding more until she left him exhausted. The chapter ended with Qin Yuyao asking Fu Hongyan whether she had really slept with another man and no longer wanted Ye Wumian, and Fu Hongyan confirming only that she had slept with Li Ye.

• Li Ye struggled with his desire for Fu Hongyan while she hesitated over what to do next.
• Fu Hongyan remembered what to do, and she and Li Ye began their first intimate encounter.
• Over the next three days, Fu Hongyan repeatedly demanded more, leaving Li Ye exhausted.
• Li Ye reflected that he excused Fu Hongyan's violence and resented men who coveted her.
• Qin Yuyao asked Fu Hongyan whether she had slept with another man and no longer wanted Ye Wumian, and Fu Hongyan confirmed she had slept with someone without answering about Ye Wumian.

Qin Yuyao discovered that Fu Hongyan had taken Li Ye as her male favorite and considered him too weak to keep around. Fu Hongyan agreed to hide him and let Qin Yuyao deal with him once she had finished with him.

• Qin Yuyao learned that Fu Hongyan had stayed in the side residence with a man for three days and went to investigate.
• Qin Yuyao asked whether Fu Hongyan planned to marry Ye Wumian or the man inside, and Fu Hongyan insisted he was only her male favorite.
• Li Ye panicked when Qin Yuyao entered, fell off the bed, and explained that Fu Hongyan had tormented him for three days and three nights.
• Qin Yuyao judged Li Ye too weak to fend for himself and told Fu Hongyan to keep him hidden until she was done with him.
• Fu Hongyan eagerly agreed, hoping Qin Yuyao would help her kill Li Ye.

Li Ye reflected on how he had secretly protected Fu Hongyan despite being her enemy, while He Feng and Qin Yuyao joked about spending three days in bed. He Feng took Qin Yuyao’s teasing as a challenge, and the New Emperor’s public reading of his leave request left the whole capital knowing the reason for his absence.

• Li Ye recalled joining and eventually leading the organization that hunted Fu Hongyan, while secretly protecting her from serious harm.
• At Nishang Courtyard, Qin Yuyao asked He Feng whether a man could be left too weak to get out of bed after three days and nights.
• He Feng took her question as a challenge, promised to skip court, and spent the next three days in bed with her.
• He Feng wrote in his leave memorial that he wanted to teach Qin Yuyao a lesson that would leave her unable to get out of bed for three days and nights.
• The New Emperor had He Feng’s reason read aloud to the officials, making the entire capital aware of his absence.

Qin Yuyao received an invitation from Xiao Ruoyun to attend a palace banquet after Xiao Ruoyun gained control of the harem. Though Qin Yuyao expected Xiao Ruoyun to flaunt her power or trouble her rather than kill her, He Feng insisted she travel with twelve guards.

• Qin Yuyao hid in Nishang Courtyard after rumors spread about her and He Feng spending three days and nights in bed, and He Feng teased her about being embarrassed.
• Qin Yuyao received a palace banquet invitation from Xiao Ruoyun bearing the phoenix seal, indicating Xiao Ruoyun had become the woman in charge of the harem.
• He Feng urged Qin Yuyao not to attend because the palace was dangerous, but Qin Yuyao said Xiao Ruoyun would not kill her.
• He Feng arranged twelve female guards to accompany Qin Yuyao to the palace.

Qin Yuyao entered the Imperial Palace with twelve maids while the Ninth Prince’s wife remained Empress in name and Xiao Ruoyun held the phoenix seal. At the palace gates, Qin Yuyao faced Mo Weiwei’s attempt to provoke her over Xiao Ruoyun, but she felt confident that He Feng’s feelings had shifted in her favor.

• The Ninth Prince left his former consort without a clear status, while Xiao Ruoyun controlled the harem with the phoenix seal.
• Qin Yuyao arrived at the palace with twelve personal maids and encountered Mo Weiwei at the gates.
• Mo Weiwei mocked Qin Yuyao for coming to pay respects to Xiao Ruoyun and reminded her that they were on Xiao Ruoyun’s territory.
• Qin Yuyao dismissed Mo Weiwei’s provocation, confident that He Feng no longer loved Xiao Ruoyun and was seeking to kill her.

Qin Yuyao punished Mo Weiwei and confronted Shen Jian at the Imperial Garden banquet, leaving after trading barbs with her. At Duke Zhenguo's Mansion, Madam Zhou prepared to risk taking medicine and set out to see He Yang, having handed household authority to Qin Yuyao.

• Qin Yuyao ordered her maids to slap Mo Weiwei fifty times, then entered the Imperial Garden banquet.
• Shen Jian and Xiao Ruoyun tried to provoke Qin Yuyao, but Qin Yuyao challenged Shen Jian's status and answered her insults by praising her marriage to He Feng.
• Madam Zhou learned from Qin Yuyao that the medicine offered a sixty to seventy percent chance of success, with a substantial risk of death.
• Madam Zhou decided to visit He Yang before taking the medicine and resolved that, if she lived another life, she would avoid becoming entangled with him.
• Madam Zhou handed Qin Yuyao control of the household before setting out.

Qin Yuyao discovered that Fu Hongyan’s male favorite was the formidable Li Ye, and was stunned when Fu asked her to wait until she was tired of him before killing him. Later, Qin received her sisters-in-law, who challenged her authority and complained about the manor’s gifts for their natal families.

• Qin Yuyao saw that Fu Hongyan’s male favorite was Li Ye, the renowned martial artist, and realized he was no ordinary captive.
• Fu Hongyan kissed Li Ye and asked Qin Yuyao to wait until she was sick of him before killing him, leaving Qin speechless.
• Li Ye took Fu Hongyan to the sleeping chambers, pleased that she seemed unwilling to kill him.
• Qin Yuyao received a crowd of sisters-in-law seeking to increase the festival gifts sent to their natal families.
• The Princess of Anyang defended their visit as proper, while Madam Gao accused Qin Yuyao of using her position to benefit herself.

Qin Yuyao’s sisters-in-law hinted that her fine furnishings and new status should bring larger Mid-Autumn gifts, but she refused to be drawn into their request. The eldest sister-in-law then offered to help manage the household if Qin Yuyao increased each branch’s allowance.

• Qin Yuyao recognized her third sister-in-law’s remarks as veiled criticism and showed no intention of indulging her sisters-in-law.
• Madam Murong praised Qin Yuyao’s beauty and status before suggesting the Mid-Autumn gifts should be adjusted.
• Qin Yuyao asked whether the sisters-in-law were dissatisfied with the gifts Madam Zhou had arranged, and they all denied it.
• Qin Yuyao had Fen’er serve tea while the conversation grew awkward.
• The eldest sister-in-law proposed that Qin Yuyao increase each branch’s Mid-Autumn allowance so the sisters-in-law could help manage the household.

Qin Yuyao outmaneuvered her sisters-in-law when they sought a share of household authority, while news of Fu Hongyan keeping a male favorite brought Ye Wumian and hired assassins to confront Li Ye. The confrontation ended with Li Ye defeating the assassins, as Fu Hongyan watched and taunted him from the wall.

• Qin Yuyao agreed to let her sisters-in-law help manage the household after making them promise to assist without expecting gifts, and she planned to assign them its troublesome duties.
• News that Fu Hongyan had kept a male favorite spread through the capital, prompting Ye Wumian to hire first-rate assassins to kill Li Ye.
• Ye Wumian arrived at Marquis Zhenguo's Manor's separate residence with the assassins and a crowd of noble young masters, while Li Ye's martial-world friends watched from afar.
• Fu Hongyan cheered Li Ye on from atop a wall and said she wanted to learn his skills so she could kill him herself, distracting him long enough for an assassin to wound his shoulder.
• Li Ye recovered and defeated all the assassins while Ye Wumian imagined that Fu Hongyan still loved him.

Li Ye realized that Fu Hongyan still deeply loved Ye Wumian after she shielded him from Li Ye’s sword, and he returned to the side courtyard despite the pain. Ye Wumian stopped him and declared that Fu Hongyan loved him too, leaving Li Ye unable to hide his heartbreak.

• Fu Hongyan leapt between Li Ye and Ye Wumian and was cut by Li Ye’s sword while protecting Ye Wumian.
• Ye Wumian shielded the wounded Fu Hongyan and told Li Ye to hurt him instead of her.
• Li Ye said he would not harm either of them because he did not want to make Fu Hongyan unhappy, then returned to the side courtyard.
• Ye Wumian stopped Li Ye and said that Fu Hongyan cared for and loved him.
• Li Ye could no longer force a smile after Ye Wumian’s words.

Li Ye was driven out of Fu Hongyan’s residence after Ye Wumian reconciled with her and she chose to protect him. The chapter explained how Li Ye’s unspoken affection and misguided attempts to get close had alienated Fu Hongyan, while Ye Wumian openly indulged her.

• Ye Wumian told Li Ye that Fu Hongyan had only treated him as a male favorite to spite him and ordered him to leave.
• Li Ye looked to Fu Hongyan to defend him, but she stood protectively in front of Ye Wumian and said nothing.
• Li Ye left the residence, taking his possessions with him.
• The narrator recounted how Li Ye had picked fights with Fu Hongyan and ruined her Poisonous Herbs while trying, without explaining himself, to show affection.
• The narrator contrasted Li Ye’s blundering gestures with Ye Wumian’s habit of openly buying Fu Hongyan what she wanted and sharing her interests.

Fu Hongyan asked Ye Wumian to marry her, and he finally agreed, bringing the two back together. Li Ye returned to his territory heartbroken, where he explained to his friends why he had never confessed to Fu Hongyan sooner.

• Fu Hongyan told Ye Wumian that Qin Yuyao would let them continue seeing each other if he married her, but he hesitated over the matter between their Lineages, so she shut him out.
• Ye Wumian realized he could not accept Fu Hongyan as his Main Wife, but he still wanted to be with her and pounded on the gate.
• Ye Wumian told Fu Hongyan he was willing to marry her, and she opened the gate and embraced him.
• Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian spent the afternoon laughing and talking together in the courtyard.
• Li Ye returned to his territory, drank and fought with his friends, then explained to Li Yuanba that he had not confessed because he assumed no one would pursue Fu Hongyan.
• Li Ye recalled that after learning Fu Hongyan was with Ye Wumian, he had fought with her instead of confessing.

Qin Yuyao learned that Li Ye had secretly protected Fu Hongyan and believed he was more suited to her than Ye Wumian. She confronted Fu Hongyan about Li Ye and demanded that her senior sister take responsibility for the man she had slept with, leaving Fu Hongyan to answer.

• Li Yuanba and a young gentleman surnamed Bai discussed whether Li Ye had willingly let Fu Hongyan abduct him.
• Qin Yuyao reviewed Li Ye’s history and learned that he had secretly protected Fu Hongyan despite their apparent enmity.
• Qin Yuyao summoned Fu Hongyan to Nishang Courtyard and asked what she thought of Li Ye.
• Fu Hongyan denied that Li Ye secretly loved her and said she could hardly wait for him to die.
• Qin Yuyao told Fu Hongyan that she had to take responsibility for a man she slept with and could choose only one man.

Qin Yuyao tried to persuade Fu Hongyan to give up Ye Wumian unless he could arrange a proper wedding within three months, while warning her that marriage to him would restrict her freedom. Meanwhile, Xin Wu’s shops cut deeply into Xiao Ruoyun’s business, and Xiao Ruoyun decided to help make Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian’s marriage happen to spite Qin Yuyao.

• Fu Hongyan told Qin Yuyao she wanted to be with Ye Wumian, and Qin Yuyao demanded he send betrothal gifts and hold an open wedding within three months.
• Qin Yuyao warned Fu Hongyan that marriage into Ye Wumian’s world would limit her freedom and urged her to consider Li Ye instead.
• Xin Wu’s shops took thirty percent of Xiao Ruoyun’s business, and Xiao Ruoyun angrily smashed a cup after Steward Zhou reported the losses.
• Xiao Ruoyun recalled ordering Steward Qian and his three clans killed after he blamed her support for the business decline.
• After learning about Qin Yuyao’s conversation with Fu Hongyan, Xiao Ruoyun resolved to persuade the Ye Family to support the marriage.

Xiao Ruoyun persuaded the Ye Family to accept Ye Wumian marrying Fu Hongyan, hoping to use the match against Qin Yuyao, but Ye Wumian refused to let Fu Hongyan become a political bargaining chip. After their confrontation, the New Emperor comforted Xiao Ruoyun and offered to issue an imperial decree arranging the marriage.

• Xiao Ruoyun convinced most of the Ye Family that marrying Fu Hongyan would protect them amid a future conflict between the Imperial Family and Marquis Zhenguo's Manor.
• Ye Wumian told Xiao Ruoyun he wanted to marry Fu Hongyan for love, not as a way to threaten Qin Yuyao.
• Xiao Ruoyun insulted Fu Hongyan, and Ye Wumian threatened to defect to Marquis Zhenguo's Manor if she continued using Fu Hongyan against him.
• Xiao Ruoyun threatened Ye Wumian's parents and his position as heir, but he challenged her to try harming them, and she left in anger.
• The New Emperor heard what happened, offered to decree Ye Wumian's marriage to Fu Hongyan, and comforted Xiao Ruoyun.

After Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian were bestowed in marriage, Qin Yuyao sought He Feng’s help to stop their union. He Feng indulged her demands, but the chapter ended before they decided what to do about the marriage.

• The New Emperor sent marriage decrees for Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian to the Ye Family and Marquis Zhenguo's Manor, signaling a warning to both households.
• Qin Yuyao angrily asked He Feng to think of a way to prevent Ah Yan from marrying Ye Wumian.
• He Feng teased Qin Yuyao for beating him, then agreed not to yell at her and to praise her beauty every day.
• He Feng had used his position as Regent King to benefit Qin Yuyao’s relatives and family.
• Qin Yuyao asked He Feng whether she should break up Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian and stop the marriage.

He Feng advised Qin Yuyao that Fu Hongyan and Ye Wumian were a better match than Fu Hongyan and Li Ye, and she reconsidered their marriage. At the frontier, Madam Zhou finally had a chance to meet He Yang on his day off.

• He Feng told Qin Yuyao that Fu Hongyan's feelings for Ye Wumian showed they were a better match.
• Qin Yuyao challenged He Feng about his past coldness, and he explained how his feelings for her differed from his youthful feelings for Xiao Ruoyun.
• He Feng warned Qin Yuyao that Li Ye beat Fu Hongyan during their sparring matches, prompting her to reconsider Ye Wumian as a husband for her senior sister.
• Madam Zhou explored the frontier by wheelchair while waiting to meet He Yang, who could not leave his military post at will.
• He Yang's day off arrived, giving him and Madam Zhou a chance to meet.

Madam Zhou waited near Exotic Pavilion to see whether He Yang had truly stopped visiting brothels, believing his recent behavior showed he had changed. The chapter ended with He Yang arriving at Exotic Pavilion and going inside, devastating her.

• Madam Zhou recalled that He Yang had once spent his leave at Exotic Pavilion and entertained many women there.
• Madam Zhou took comfort in the fact that He Yang had not visited the brothel during his last three leaves.
• Madam Zhou waited across from Exotic Pavilion while Granny Zhou watched He Yang’s separate residence.
• He Yang arrived at Exotic Pavilion and went inside, leaving Madam Zhou heartbroken.

Madam Zhou suspected He Yang had gone to a brothel and struggled to decide whether to trust him. When He Yang returned and reassured her with affection, she let him flirt with her at the restaurant.

• Madam Zhou saw He Yang leave Exotic Pavilion carrying two food packages and wondered whether he had been unfaithful.
• Madam Zhou returned to her table and considered whether to confront He Yang or leave for the capital.
• He Yang surprised Madam Zhou from behind, kissed her, and teased her for doubting him.
• He Yang insisted he had abstained for her and flirted with her despite her protests that they were in a restaurant.
• Madam Zhou let He Yang have his way as he declared that he still could not resist her, even though they were an old married couple.

He Yang comforted Madam Zhou after she mocked his past with women, insisting he had gone to Exotic Pavilion only to buy food. They put aside their argument and spent three days together, though his romantic description of purple flowers turned suggestive.

• Madam Zhou accused He Yang of being unable to resist any woman, and he reassured her that his former conquests had meant nothing to him.
• He Yang claimed he had gone to Exotic Pavilion to buy beggar’s chicken, while privately admitting he had also wanted to look at the women there.
• Madam Zhou accepted his explanation and ate some of the chicken he offered her, choosing not to question him further.
• He Yang arranged two extra days off and took Madam Zhou around the frontier, showing her places she had not seen during her travels.
• He Yang compared purple flowers to Fei Fei and made a suggestive remark about lying among and stroking them.