Chapter Summaries

He Yang and Madam Zhou shared a tender farewell before she revealed that she had come to the borderlands to risk her life. Before leaving, Madam Zhou discussed He Yu’s failing marriage with the Su family, while He Yang pledged to support whatever decision she made.

• He Yang and Madam Zhou shared an intimate moment, and he asked why she had come to the borderlands.
• Madam Zhou said she intended to gamble with her life, and He Yang admitted he wanted to grow old with her and would never take another woman if she died.
• Madam Zhou told He Yang that He Yu had no resistance to other men and that her marriage with the Su family was unlikely to survive.
• He Yang told Madam Zhou he would support whatever arrangements she made for He Yu.
• At Qin Manor, Qin Yuyao realized that her stepmother, Madam Bian, had made a move against her second younger brother.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Ye, the CEO of Li Corporation, is furious after learning that Fu Hongyan, his subordinate, has been secretly working with their competitor, Lin Group.
• Li Ye summons Fu Hongyan to his office, accusing him of betrayal and demanding that he take responsibility for his actions.
• Fu Hongyan confesses but refuses to resign, arguing that he was only trying to protect Li Corporation from Lin Group's hostile takeover attempts.
• Li Ye, enraged by Fu Hongyan's defiance, decides to fire him and strip him of his shares in the company.

Character Developments

• Li Ye: His trust in Fu Hongyan is shattered, leading him to become more suspicious and authoritative.
• Fu Hongyan: He shows remorse for his actions but also displays a newfound determination to defend his decisions, hinting at his growing ambition and stubbornness.

Significant Themes

• Trust and Betrayal: The chapter explores the consequences of broken trust between business partners and the pain it causes.
• Ambition vs. Loyalty: Fu Hongyan's actions raise questions about where his loyalties lie and whether his ambition has clouded his judgment.

Character Interactions

• Li Ye and Fu Hongyan: Their tense confrontation reveals the deep rift between them, with Li Ye's anger clashing against Fu Hongyan's defiance.
• Li Ye and His Assistant: Li Ye's assistant is seen supporting Li Ye's decision to dismiss Fu Hongyan, highlighting the assistant's loyalty to Li Ye.

Fu Hongyan fought Li Ye in a duel, believing she owed him and was willing to repay him with her life while preserving her marriage to Ye Wumian. She repeatedly rose after Li Ye knocked her down, leaving the duel unresolved as Ye Wumian begged her to stop.

• Fu Hongyan agreed to duel Li Ye and left the capital for the martial world with Qin Yuyao.
• Ye Wumian attended the duel at the Martial Arts Alliance Leader's residence, fearing Fu Hongyan would lose and have to marry Li Ye.
• Fu Hongyan fought Li Ye head-on without poison or retreat, while Li Ye grew angry and jealous and attacked her ruthlessly.
• Li Ye knocked Fu Hongyan down, but she rose and insisted she had not lost.
• Ye Wumian begged Li Ye to stop and urged Fu Hongyan to admit defeat, but she promised him she would win.

Li Ye stopped attacking Fu Hongyan after she refused to yield, and wished her happiness in her new marriage. The author then explained that Li Ye was inspired by a former classmate whose possessive behavior had caused her years of misery.

• Fu Hongyan wiped the blood from her mouth, stood up, and vowed that Li Ye would not win unless he killed her.
• Li Ye lowered his sword and wished Fu Hongyan happiness in her new marriage.
• The author described how her former classmate Bo had bullied her while claiming he was trying to win her affection.
• Bo confessed that he liked the author, and some of their female classmates began isolating her.
• The author recalled that Bo blamed her for his failure to enter a key school and said she would rather remain single than accept that kind of love.

Fu Hongyan chose Ye Wumian after explaining how Li Ye had hurt and humiliated her, and Qin Yuyao supported her decision. On Qin Yuyao and He Feng’s first wedding anniversary, He Feng revealed that he had secretly removed the Shadow Guards and death warriors protecting Xiao Ruoyun.

• Fu Hongyan told Qin Yuyao and the others that Li Ye’s actions had made her unhappy, while Ye Wumian had treated her kindly.
• Qin Yuyao rejected the martial contest as a way to decide Fu Hongyan’s fate and affirmed Fu Hongyan’s choice of Ye Wumian.
• Qin Yuyao warned Li Ye not to claim he had suffered over Fu Hongyan, then told Ye Wumian she would support them if he kept Fu Hongyan clear of the feud involving Xiao Ruoyun.
• At Marquis Zhenguo’s Manor, He Feng reminded Qin Yuyao that it was their first wedding anniversary and asked her to hug him.
• He Feng told Qin Yuyao that he had secretly removed the Shadow Guards and death warriors the Crown Prince had assigned to Xiao Ruoyun.

Xiao Ruoyun arranged to preside over Ye Wumian and Fu Hongyan’s wedding, intending to humiliate Fu Hongyan and Qin Yuyao. At the ceremony in Hongyuan, she interrupted the bridal chamber rites and publicly insulted Fu Hongyan by presenting her with contraceptive soup.

• Rong Ge visited Xiao Ruoyun after her deathsworn and Shadow Guards were slaughtered, then agreed to let her preside over Ye Wumian and Fu Hongyan’s wedding.
• Xiao Ruoyun was angered when Rong Ge also bestowed many gifts on the couple.
• Ye Wumian and Fu Hongyan held their grand wedding at Hongyuan, attended by the factions of Marquis Zhenguo and the new Emperor, as well as martial-world guests.
• As the couple was about to enter the bridal chamber, Xiao Ruoyun stopped the ceremony and had a matron bring Fu Hongyan contraceptive soup.
• Xiao Ruoyun insulted Fu Hongyan in front of the guests, and her loyal followers laughed.

At the Ye Family wedding, Xiao Ruoyun publicly humiliated Fu Hongyan and clashed with Qin Yuyao. Qin Yuyao invoked her rank as the Regent King's Consort and ordered her maids to slap Xiao Ruoyun, while Xiao Ruoyun realized the New Emperor would not openly stop her.

• Ye Wumian knocked over Fu Hongyan's soup and rebuked Xiao Ruoyun for meddling in the Ye Family's affairs.
• Xiao Ruoyun argued that she had helped Ye Wumian marry and called her ungrateful.
• Qin Yuyao challenged Xiao Ruoyun's right to address her by name, citing her rank as the Regent King's Consort.
• Qin Yuyao ordered her maids to give Xiao Ruoyun six slaps as wedding festivity.
• Xiao Ruoyun recognized that the New Emperor would not confront Qin Yuyao directly, but Qin Yuyao's maids began slapping her before the gathered guests.

Xiao Ruoyun devised a suicide mission to use her death to turn the New Emperor against He Feng and hurt Qin Yuyao. On their wedding night, Ye Wumian chose to accept Fu Hongyan and cherish her despite her past.

• As Qin Yuyao's people slapped Xiao Ruoyun, Xiao Ruoyun formed a plan to fight Qin Yuyao one last time, even if it cost her life.
• Xiao Ruoyun intended for her death to shock the New Emperor into avenging her and turning against He Feng, causing trouble for Qin Yuyao as well.
• In the bridal chamber, Fu Hongyan nervously asked Ye Wumian whether he minded her past.
• Ye Wumian kissed Fu Hongyan, recalling his jealousy and how she had risked her life for him.
• Ye Wumian resolved to treat Fu Hongyan well and never bully or humiliate her again.

He Feng comforted Qin Yuyao over Xiao Ruoyun and took her to watch the sunrise, fulfilling the demands she had made years earlier. Meanwhile, Ai Xin and the old Emperor’s secret guards moved to get close to He Feng through Young Master Rong.

• He Feng held Qin Yuyao and promised to deal with Xiao Ruoyun, while Qin Yuyao turned their talk into a chance to kiss him.
• He Feng gathered Qin Yuyao and her quilt into his arms and reminded her that she had once stood him up after asking him to watch the sunrise.
• Qin Yuyao recalled how she had deliberately made demands of He Feng after deciding to give up on him, and He Feng had now prepared everything she asked for.
• At Prince Rong's Mansion, Ai Xin appeared with female secret guards who served the old Emperor and were charged with avenging his death if it had been unnatural.
• Because He Feng was close to Qin Yuyao, Ai Xin planned to seduce Young Master Rong and use him to get close to He Feng.

Ai Xin abandoned her original plan and approached Rong Xiu, hoping to seduce him as part of the Imperial Family’s effort to reach He Feng. Rong Xiu fell for her at first sight, and Ai Xin openly offered herself to make amends, leaving him flustered.

• Ai Xin decided to approach Rong Xiu after Xiao Ruoyun failed to keep Qin Yuyao occupied, while other female secret guards targeted He Feng’s close friends.
• Rong Xiu went shopping with his bird and reflected on how He Feng’s position as Regent Prince had secured his place as heir and made Qin Yuyao’s marriage seem fortunate.
• Ai Xin deliberately crashed into Rong Xiu, and he recognized that she had trained for the move but immediately found her beautiful.
• Ai Xin apologized, then leaned against Rong Xiu and offered to make amends with herself, leaving him embarrassed.

Qin Yuyao attended Prince Rong's matchmaking banquet while rejecting Prince Rong's renewed attempt to acknowledge her. Young Master Rong's departure was delayed when Ai Xin appeared in his courtyard, drenched and aware of his interest.

• Princess Rong arranged a matchmaking banquet for Young Master Rong as Prince Rong's Mansion shifted closer to Duke Zhenguo's Mansion.
• Qin Yuyao refused to recognize Prince Rong as her father because he had never raised or acknowledged her when she needed him.
• Qin Yuyao arrived at the banquet, where the noble young ladies treated her with deference.
• Ai Xin appeared in Young Master Rong's courtyard soaked from head to toe, and Young Master Rong stared at her figure with interest.

Ai Xin failed to win Rong Xiu over at the matchmaking banquet and instead targeted Li Meier, whose promising match with Young Master Rong made her a rival. Ai Xin poisoned Li Meier, and the chapter ended with Li Meier found dead at her family’s gates.

• Rong Xiu rejected Ai Xin’s advances and left to attend the matchmaking banquet.
• Ai Xin decided to follow him and used her respectable family background to enter the banquet.
• Qin Yuyao and Princess Rong approved of Li Meier, though Young Master Rong showed no particular interest in her.
• Ai Xin chose Li Meier as her target and secretly poisoned her with a deadly powder.
• Li Meier’s carriage reached the Li Residence, where her family found that she had died.

Rong Xiu confronted Ai Xin over Li Meier’s death, but her seduction left him flustered instead of getting answers. At Marquis Zhenguo’s Manor, Qin Yuyao successfully brought Madam Zhou through the most dangerous stage of detoxification, and the family waited for her to wake.

• Rong Xiu suspected Ai Xin had caused Li Meier’s death and slipped into her room to question her.
• Ai Xin implied she might have killed Li Meier, and Rong Xiu slapped her before she resumed seducing him.
• Qin Yuyao managed Marquis Zhenguo’s Manor’s household affairs while Madam Zhou prepared for detoxification.
• Qin Yuyao performed Madam Zhou’s detoxification with Fu Hongyan assisting as the manor’s concubines hoped Madam Zhou would die.
• After the procedure, Qin Yuyao told He Feng, He Yan, and the others that Madam Zhou had passed the most dangerous hurdle and only needed to wake.

Xiao Ruoyun, convinced that He Feng would soon destroy her last line of defense, planned to use a pregnancy and Jin An to turn Rong Ge against He Feng and Marquis Zhenguo's Manor. She visited Jin An and asked whose side he would take if He Feng sent assassins after her.

• Xiao Ruoyun felt increasingly powerless as He Feng moved against her personal guards after eliminating her Shadow Guards and death warriors.
• Xiao Ruoyun planned to risk her health with a secret medicine to become pregnant and use the child to make Rong Ge oppose He Feng and Marquis Zhenguo's Manor.
• Xiao Ruoyun decided to use Jin An, knowing He Feng still cared for his longtime companion despite Qin Yuyao's dislike of him.
• Xiao Ruoyun arrived in disguise at Jin An's courtyard, and Jin An recognized and welcomed her.
• Xiao Ruoyun told Jin An that He Feng might be trying to kill her and asked whom he would help; Jin An declared that he would help her.

Xiao Ruoyun seduced Jin An and vowed to use her death to turn powerful forces against Qin Yuyao. One month later, she staged an assassination in the capital, where Qin Yuyao ordered her death warriors to kill Xiao Ruoyun’s guards and confronted Xiao Ruoyun herself as reinforcements arrived.

• Xiao Ruoyun embraced Jin An, then used his concern to draw him into a passionate encounter.
• Jin An swore to protect Xiao Ruoyun and eliminate Qin Yuyao, while Xiao Ruoyun privately resolved to make Qin Yuyao pay even if she died.
• One month later, Xiao Ruoyun put her suicide mission into action, planning to die at Qin Yuyao’s hands while carrying a one-month pregnancy.
• Xiao Ruoyun led several hundred guards in a public attack on Qin Yuyao in the capital.
• Qin Yuyao ordered her death warriors to kill Xiao Ruoyun’s guards and prepared to deal with Xiao Ruoyun herself.
• A large force arrived to support Qin Yuyao as the battle against the Former Crown Prince’s guards raged.

Qin Yuyao captured Xiao Ruoyun after her failed assassination attempt and poisoned her, while Xiao Ruoyun used her final moments to accuse Qin Yuyao before the onlookers. As Xiao Ruoyun neared death, Qin Yuyao wondered why the new Emperor and other officials had not arrived.

• Marquis Zhenguo's Guards and the Shadow Guard death warriors defeated Xiao Ruoyun's men and brought her before Qin Yuyao.
• Qin Yuyao forced a cruel poison pill on Xiao Ruoyun and demanded to know what she was plotting.
• Xiao Ruoyun accused Qin Yuyao of harming her child with the Crown Prince and being connected to his death, then collapsed after claiming she had tried to kill Qin Yuyao for the Crown Prince and her unborn child.
• Xiao Ruoyun's accusations made the onlookers regard Qin Yuyao strangely, but Qin Yuyao remained unconcerned as poisonous insects and snakes approached Xiao Ruoyun.
• Qin Yuyao wondered why He Feng, the new Emperor, and officials from the Capital Prefecture and Court of Judicial Review had not appeared.

After Xiao Ruoyun’s attempted assassination of Qin Yuyao, Jin An vowed to avenge Xiao Ruoyun and the child he believed was his. Returning to Duke Zhenguo’s Mansion, Qin Yuyao recalled how she first met He Feng on a bridge years earlier, just as the memory began to unfold.

• Jin An watched Xiao Ruoyun’s suffering and vowed to avenge her and their child.
• Qin Yuyao ordered her dead soldiers to remain and ensure Xiao Ruoyun died, then led most of her men back to Duke Zhenguo’s Mansion.
• Crossing a bridge, Qin Yuyao remembered arriving in the capital at thirteen and meeting He Feng there.
• Qin Yuyao recalled that He Feng had saved her when she slipped from the crowded bridge during a lantern festival.

Qin Yuyao met He Feng after he saved her and decided she wanted to pursue him, but he rejected her invitations. She went to Sihai Restaurant hoping to see him, where her zither performance failed to impress the crowd.

• He Feng caught Qin Yuyao and introduced himself as the man from Duke Zhenguo's Mansion.
• Qin Yuyao invited He Feng to dinner, but he refused and said he would never be free to meet her.
• Qin Yuyao became more determined to pursue He Feng because he had not been swayed by her beauty.
• Qin Yuyao went to Sihai Restaurant, where visitors had to pass an artistic assessment to enter.
• Qin Yuyao played the zither, but the audience responded with disapproval rather than praise.

Qin Yuyao failed Sihai Restaurant’s assessment and accused He Feng of deliberately sabotaging her, but he had her passed instead. She left admiring him even more, while those around them assumed she had caught his eye.

• The Sihai Restaurant assessor told Qin Yuyao she had failed and would not be allowed to enter or leave freely.
• Qin Yuyao confronted He Feng and accused him of arranging for her to fail.
• He Feng told the assessor to let Qin Yuyao pass, prompting his companions to tease him.
• Young Master Ouyang teased He Feng about getting over Xiao Ruoyun, and He Feng remarked on Qin Yuyao’s beauty.
• The restaurant staff and onlookers decided Qin Yuyao had caught He Feng’s eye, while Qin Yuyao left admiring his tolerance.

Qin Yuyao went to Qingyu Forest to gather fresh medicinal herbs and ran into He Feng, who let her enter because his friend Young Master Su owned the forest and mountain. She began picking herbs while He Feng mistakenly believed she had come there just to see him.

• Qin Yuyao went to the outskirts of Qingyu Forest to gather medicinal herbs but hesitated to enter the privately owned grounds.
• He Feng arrived and invited Qin Yuyao into the forest, claiming he was effectively its master because Young Master Su rarely visited.
• Qin Yuyao asked whether she could return to gather herbs, while He Feng interpreted her request as a sign of devotion to him.
• Qin Yuyao hurried to the fresh herbs and asked He Feng if she could pick them, and he gave her permission.