Recaps

Su Qiaoqiao tried to force Xiao Jingsheng into a compromising situation by the river, prompting both families to argue over what happened. The dispute ended with Su Youqing questioning how Xiao Jingsheng could marry Qiaoqiao when he was engaged to Xiao Qiao.

• Little Bean told Su Qiao that Xiao Jingsheng was in trouble by the river, and she rushed over.
• Su Qiaoqiao clung to Xiao Jingsheng, who shook her off, and she tore open her clothes while villagers gathered.
• Yang Yue'e demanded an explanation from the Xiao Family, while Old Lady Su suggested Xiao Jingsheng marry Su Qiaoqiao.
• Old Lady Liu accused the Su Family of plotting to steal Xiao Jingsheng from Xiao Qiao, and Liu Chunfang blamed them for a scheme.
• Su Youqing questioned how Xiao Jingsheng could marry Su Qiaoqiao when he was Xiao Qiao's fiancé, angering Yang Yue'e.

Su Qiaoqiao tried to frame Xiao Jingsheng, but Su Qiao arrived and exposed her scheme in front of the villagers. The chapter ended with Su Qiao publicly accusing Su Qiaoqiao of learning to seduce men from her mother.

• Su Youqing backed Su Qiao, while Su Qiaoqiao wailed that Xiao Jingsheng had ruined her chance to marry.
• Su Qiao entered and mocked Su Qiaoqiao’s threat to die, and Old Lady Liu and Liu Chunfang reassured her they would protect her marriage.
• Su Qiao questioned Xiao Jingsheng, who said he had shut his eyes when Su Qiaoqiao pulled at her clothes and described her as a fox spirit.
• Su Qiaoqiao threatened to kill herself, but Su Qiao dismissed the threat and Xie Hui urged everyone to get to the bottom of the incident.
• Su Qiao accused Su Qiaoqiao of trying to seduce Xiao Jingsheng and said she had learned such tricks from her mother.

Su Qiao exposed Su Qiaoqiao's accusation against Xiao Jingsheng as a lie by pointing out the lack of evidence and the water buckets he had been carrying. The villagers sided with Xiao Jingsheng, leaving Su Qiaoqiao publicly disgraced.

• Su Qiaoqiao accused Xiao Jingsheng of grabbing her and trying to tug at her clothes, while Su Qiao called her out for trying to cling to him.
• Xiao Jingsheng denied wanting anything to do with Su Qiaoqiao and obediently hid behind Su Qiao when she told him to stand aside.
• Su Qiao questioned why Su Qiaoqiao had been at the river without a bucket or washing, and explained that Xiao Jingsheng came there daily to carry water and irrigate the fields.
• The villagers backed Su Qiao after one witness confirmed Xiao Jingsheng had still been carrying water buckets when the incident began.
• The villagers called Su Qiaoqiao shameless and told her to leave.

Su Qiao demanded that the village chief deal seriously with Su Qiaoqiao for trying to ruin Xiao Jingsheng, and the villagers agreed she should be sent away or sent to the Police Station. Su Qiaoqiao’s attempt to stay by pretending to faint left her in Xie Hui’s arms, while Su Qiao warned them both to stay away from her.

• Su Qiao told the old village chief that Su Qiaoqiao had tried to prevent her marriage to Xiao Jingsheng and destroy his Military Academy prospects.
• The old village chief gave Su Youqing the choice of sending Su Qiaoqiao away or taking her to the Police Station for reform through labor.
• Su Youqing decided to send Su Qiaoqiao away, and Yang Yue'e refused to protect her daughter.
• Su Qiaoqiao ran to plead with Su Youqing, then pretended to faint when she fell into Xie Hui's arms.
• Su Qiao teased Xie Hui about his feelings for Su Qiaoqiao and warned them both not to appear before her again.

Su Qiao took Xiao Jingsheng home and decided to train him harder after he failed to dodge Su Qiaoqiao. Meanwhile, Yang Yue'e asked her brother for help finding a solution before the Su Family's deadline to marry Su Qiaoqiao off.

• Su Qiao dismissed Xie Hui and led Xiao Jingsheng home, where he admitted he had been thinking about her when Su Qiaoqiao tackled him.
• Su Qiao started training Xiao Jingsheng in martial arts, and he agreed to practice so he could avoid women throwing themselves at him.
• Old Village Chief ruled that the Su Family had to find Su Qiaoqiao a husband and marry her within a week, though she was not sent away after fainting.
• Yang Yue'e visited Yang Rui and asked him to arrange temporary factory work for Su Qiaoqiao.
• Yang Rui asked whether Xie Jingsheng might marry Su Qiaoqiao, but Yang Yue'e said it was impossible and complained about Liu Chunfang and her daughter.

Yang Rui warned Yang Yue'e not to provoke the Su family or the Lin Family, then proposed marrying Su Qiaoqiao to Director Wang's brain-damaged son to secure Wang Quan's support during the factory's rectification. Yang Yue'e hesitated but considered the proposal as Yang Rui promised her a factory job after she gave birth.

• Yang Rui told Yang Yue'e that Fu Gui was still serving time because of her and urged her not to act recklessly.
• Yang Yue'e worried that Old Lady Su might harm her unborn baby and blamed Su Qiao's family for Fu Gui's imprisonment.
• Yang Rui warned that the Lin Family was powerful and said Su Qiao should not be provoked.
• Yang Rui proposed that Su Qiao marry Director Wang's son so he could win Wang Quan's support and improve his chances of promotion.
• Yang Yue'e objected that Wang's son was an idiot, but Yang Rui argued that marriage would provide for Su Qiao and promised Yang Yue'e a factory job after childbirth.

Yang Yue'e agreed to her brother's plan to marry Su Qiaoqiao into the Wang Family, but Su Qiaoqiao refused and blamed Su Qiao for her troubles. The chapter ended after Su Qiaoqiao watched Su Qiao and Xiao Jingsheng leave, then the riverbank emptied as night fell.

• Yang Yue'e agreed to marry Su Qiaoqiao into the Wang Family after her brother promised jobs and protection.
• Su Qiaoqiao angrily refused the marriage, while Yang Yue'e insisted it would give her a secure life.
• Su Qiaoqiao threatened to jump into the river, and Yang Yue'e warned that she had nowhere else to go.
• Xiao Jingsheng ran to Su Qiao for protection after claiming there was a monster, then recognized Su Qiaoqiao and left with Su Qiao and Little Bean.
• Su Qiaoqiao blamed Su Qiao for her predicament and vowed not to let her live well.
• Night fell, and the exhausted villagers went home, leaving no one by the river.

Su Qiao foiled Su Qiaoqiao and her mother's plan to send her to the Wang Family, then exposed her maternal uncle's corrupt dealings. She returned home late at night, where her worried grandmother and mother questioned her disappearance.

• Su Qiaoqiao and her mother planned to drug Su Qiao and send her to the Wang Family, but Su Qiao heard them from inside the hemp sack.
• Su Qiao knocked the two women unconscious, put Su Qiaoqiao in the sack, and left her for the man who came to take her away.
• Su Qiao followed the tricycle to town and saw Su Qiaoqiao delivered through the Wang Family's gate.
• Su Qiao retrieved evidence of her maternal uncle selling jobs and taking bribes, copied it, and delivered copies to the Police Station, an investigating official, and the town chief.
• Su Qiao returned home after nearly three hours, and her grandmother and mother anxiously asked where she had been.

Su Qiao revealed that Yang Yue'e had tried to send her to the Wang Family, but she had switched places with the person meant to go there. The next morning, Xiao Jingsheng and Lin Bingkun arrived at Su Qiao's home with a man and a woman.

• Su Qiao told her family she had followed a strange three-wheeled vehicle and asked her grandmother to heat up food.
• Yang Yue'e confronted Su Qiao, who said she knew about the plan to send her to the Wang Family and warned Yang Yue'e not to complain or risk going to jail.
• Su Qiao went to the hillside while a black car arrived in Xiaohe Village and drew the villagers' attention.
• Xiao Jingsheng and Lin Bingkun arrived at Su Qiao's home with a man and a woman, and Xiao Jingsheng took Su Qiao's back basket from her.

Su Qiao showed Lin Bingkun, Li Guixiang, and Old Hong her soilless vegetable-growing method and explained that suitable conditions could also speed up the growth of medicinal plants. The visitors were impressed by her work, and Old Hong questioned whether cultivated ginseng would retain its medicinal efficacy.

• Lin Bingkun introduced Li Guixiang and Old Hong to Su Qiao, explaining that they had come specifically to see her.
• Su Qiao led the visitors to the backyard, where they saw leafy vegetables growing in water-filled troughs without soil.
• Lin Bingkun explained that Su Qiao had developed the method to help her grandmother, mother, and his older sister grow vegetables and earn income after moving to the city.
• Su Qiao showed them ginseng seedlings that had sprouted after half a month and said suitable conditions could make precious medicinal herbs grow faster.
• Old Hong was astonished that ginseng could be cultivated, and Li Guixiang asked whether cultivated plants would retain their medicinal efficacy.

Li Guixiang invited Su Qiao to join the Agricultural Bureau as a research member, and Su Qiao agreed while continuing her university studies. On the way home, Su Qiaoqiao attacked her, but Xiao Jingsheng knocked her down, and Su Qiao told her that her mother and First Uncle were the people she should confront.

• Li Guixiang told Su Qiao that her cultivated ginseng could reach 60–80% of wild ginseng’s medicinal effectiveness and invited her to join the Agricultural Bureau.
• Su Qiao agreed to become a research partner while studying architecture at university.
• Su Qiao gave Li Guixiang and Old Hong vegetables and bottles of Nutrient Fluid to show their superiors before they left.
• Su Qiaoqiao ambushed Su Qiao on the way home, and Xiao Jingsheng kicked her away.
• Su Qiao told Su Qiaoqiao that Yang Yue'e and her First Uncle, who wanted to sell her, were the ones she should target.

Su Qiao told Yang Yue'e that her brother had been arrested for corruption, while Su Qiaoqiao begged not to be sent back to the Wang Family. Yang Yue'e tried to leave to help her brother, but Old Lady Su and Su Youqing stopped her as the family argued over whether to get involved.

• Su Qiao told Yang Yue'e that her brother was likely in jail and accused him of selling jobs and taking bribes.
• Su Qiaoqiao begged Yang Yue'e not to send her back to the Wang Family, saying they had mistreated her.
• Yang Yue'e tried to pull away and slapped Su Qiaoqiao, who declared that she no longer wanted to acknowledge her mother.
• Old Lady Su arrived and threatened to expel Yang Yue'e from the Su Family if she went to town.
• Su Youqing and Old Lady Su urged Yang Yue'e not to get involved, but Yang Yue'e cried that she could not ignore her brother.

Old Lady Su demanded that Yang Yue'e divorce Su Youqing if she interfered in the family, and accused her unborn child of being a girl and possibly another man's. After Su Youqing sided with his mother, Yang Yue'e stormed away, and Su Qiao left with Xiao Jingsheng.

• Old Lady Su told Yang Yue'e to divorce Su Youqing before meddling in his elder brother's affairs and claimed her unborn child was not a boy.
• Yang Yue'e challenged Old Lady Su's claim, but Su Youqing pulled away from her and said his mother should know better.
• Yang Yue'e called Su Youqing a useless loser and ran off angrily.
• Old Lady Su stopped Su Youqing from chasing Yang Yue'e and accused her of carrying another man's child and ruining the Su family's fortunes.
• 444 condemned Old Lady Su's motives, while Su Qiao took Xiao Jingsheng by the hand and left.

Su Qiao’s appointment at the Agricultural Bureau brought pride to Xiaohe Village and regret to the Xie family, while Old Lady Su discovered her hidden jewelry was missing and accused Yang Yue'e. As Su Qiao packed to leave, 444 asked whether she wanted to see how the Su family was doing, but she had no time.

• Su Youqing asked Old Lady Su to let him reconcile with Liu Chunfang, but she refused and promised to find him another wife.
• News spread that Su Qiao had become a regular employee of the Agricultural Bureau, delighting the village and leaving the Xie family regretful and ashamed.
• Old Lady Su and Su Youqing dug around the banyan tree but could not find her jar of jewelry.
• Old Lady Su accused Yang Yue'e of stealing the jewelry, while Su Youqing questioned why she had hidden it outside.
• Su Qiao spent two days packing, and she told 444 she had no time to watch the Su family.

Su Qiao and Xiao Jingsheng prepared to leave for Beijing as their families made new lives, while her agricultural achievements brought prosperity to Xiaohe Village. Years later, Su Qiao encountered Su Qiaoqiao and saw how differently their lives had turned out.

• Su Qiao learned that Yang Yue'e had given birth prematurely to a girl after arguing with Old Lady Su.
• Su Qiao and Xiao Jingsheng headed toward their futures in Beijing, where she received a courtyard house from the state and he received one from Lin Yu.
• Su Qiao supported Lin Yu and Lin Yan with scripts and a business plan, and her family grew close to the Lin and Liu Families.
• Su Qiao's successful greenhouse experiment helped Xiaohe Village prosper and improve its roads and homes.
• Years later, Su Qiao encountered an exhausted Su Qiaoqiao tending a vegetable stall, while Xie Hui lived an ordinary life with his wife.

Su Qiao awoke in the imperial court as a disgraced former noblewoman whose mind was impaired by a Marrow-Devouring Gu. As she pieced together her family’s downfall and her half-sister Empress Su Yue’s supposed kindness, she remained trapped in a miserable palace life.

• Su Qiao woke in a grand hall, noticed her lowly place and whip marks, and secretly ate a chicken leg.
• Su Qiao learned from 444 that a Marrow-Devouring Gu in her brain caused her headaches and impaired thinking, and that the Reinforcement Agent had not killed it.
• Su Qiao recalled that her half-sister, Empress Su Yue, had put the Gu inside her and vowed to retaliate.
• Su Qiao remembered that her father, Su Ruihe, had been imprisoned after corruption accusations and died in prison, while the family was exiled or executed.
• Su Yue had persuaded the emperor to spare Su Qiao and bring her into the palace, where Su Qiao lived in a poor courtyard beside the Cold Palace and often went hungry.

Su Qiao learned that the Marrow-Devouring Gu in her brain caused her pain whenever she thought, and that a Gu manual hidden in the Prime Minister's Estate might help her remove it. At the Young Emperor's birthday banquet, she recalled how Su Yue had humiliated her before and resolved to settle the score.

• Su Qiao asked Xiao Si about her headaches, and Xiao Si suspected the Reinforcement Agent had awakened the Marrow-Devouring Gu.
• Xiao Si told Su Qiao that she had hidden a copy of Myriad Poison Gu Scripture in the Prime Minister's Estate, which she could retrieve after the banquet.
• Su Qiao suspected Su Yue had sent her to the Imperial Palace to search for the Gu Manual and remembered that Su Yue had destroyed the Su family.
• Su Qiao recalled that at this birthday banquet in her previous life, she had been dragged out and beaten thirty times after the Bloodthirsty Gu made her act out.
• Su Qiao looked toward Su Yue and vowed to remember the public beating and repay the grudge.

At the Little Emperor’s birthday celebration, Su Qiao interrupted Daoist Priest He’s presentation of a Longevity Pill and warned that the pills contained her blood. The Regent, Ye Jinghua, questioned her claim that the pills could make people live like immortals, leaving Su Qiao captivated by his appearance and suspecting he was poisoned.

• Daoist Priest He presented the Longevity Pill, and the Empress praised its effects as ministers congratulated the Little Emperor.
• Su Qiao rushed out with a roast chicken and interrupted the celebration, prompting the Little Emperor to question what was happening.
• Su Qiao said she knew the pills could make people soar through the clouds and revealed that they contained her blood.
• Ye Jinghua entered the hall and asked Su Qiao how the pills let people live like immortals.
• Su Qiao admired Ye Jinghua’s appearance and wondered whether his pale face and red lips meant he was poisoned.

Ye Jinghua stopped the Emperor and Empress from silencing Su Qiao and invited her to explain what the Black Pills were, offering her roast chicken as a reward. Su Qiao bargained for three chickens and, reassured that the Regent would protect her, prepared to say more.

• Ye Jinghua interrupted the Emperor and ministers as they were about to reprimand Su Qiao, then asked whether the Emperor wanted to learn what the Black Pills did.
• Ye Beiyao agreed to hear Su Qiao's explanation, while Su Yue warned her not to speak nonsense.
• Ye Jinghua offered Su Qiao a roast chicken for explaining, and she bargained for three.
• Ye Jinghua rebuked Su Yue for trying to stop Su Qiao and said he would not punish her if her explanation was poor.
• Su Qiao called Ye Jinghua a good person and resolved that she could safely say more because he would protect her.

Su Qiao explained the dangers of the Black Pills to Ye Jinghua and exposed Su Yue’s attempt to dismiss her as mentally unwell. The chapter ended with Su Yue angrily correcting Su Qiao after she called her “Auntie.”

• Ye Jinghua questioned Su Qiao about the Black Pills while the ministers feared for her safety.
• Su Qiao explained that the pills eased pain but were poisonous and addictive, and could destroy a person’s will.
• Su Yue tried to silence Su Qiao and told Ye Jinghua that her younger sister was not right in the head.
• Su Qiao called Su Yue “Auntie,” and Su Yue angrily insisted that she was her older sister.

At the King’s birthday banquet, Su Qiao accused Su Yue of being her mother’s former maid and claimed she used bugs to stay young. Her warning that the bugs caused infertility left the court questioning why Su Yue had not conceived.

• Su Qiao identified Su Yue as Aunt Lian, her mother’s former maid, and described her black mole and jars of bugs.
• Su Yue blamed Su Qiao’s illness and asked that she be taken away, while Ye Jinghua invited Su Qiao to sit beside him and speak.
• Su Qiao asked Ye Jinghua to promise no one would beat her with a paddle, then called him a good person.
• Su Qiao said Su Yue must have eaten bugs that kept people young and warned they harmed the body and prevented children.
• The ministers exchanged glances and murmured about the bugs as Su Yue’s childlessness became a subject of suspicion.

Su Qiao derailed Su Yue’s attempt to portray her as insane, and Ye Jinghua stopped the palace maids from taking her away. After Su Qiao denied knowing whether the Black Pills were addictive, Ye Jinghua ordered three roast chickens for her.

• Su Yue blamed herself for failing to discipline Su Qiao and persuaded the Emperor to believe her while ordering her maids to take Su Qiao for an examination.
• Ye Jinghua intervened and insisted that Su Qiao’s behavior be treated as entertainment for the Emperor’s birthday.
• Ye Jinghua asked Su Qiao whether the Black Pills were addictive, and she said her mother had told her not to touch them.
• Su Qiao asked for roast chicken, and Ye Jinghua ordered the Imperial Kitchen to make her three.

At the banquet, Su Qiao suffered a sudden attack of agonizing head pain, and Ye Jinghua carried her out to summon an imperial physician. The Emperor let the Empress go after them and accepted Daoist Priest He's gift, while Su Yue failed to stop Ye Jinghua.

• Ye Jinghua asked Su Qiao if she could eat more, and she insisted she would not waste the roast chicken.
• Su Qiao recalled that someone had told her not to waste food, then suffered a severe headache that she believed Su Yue had triggered with the gu in her head.
• Ye Jinghua noticed Su Qiao's pain, ordered Xun Feng to summon the imperial physician, and carried her out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
• Su Yue and Ye Jinghua's eunuch tried to persuade him to let someone else carry Su Qiao, but Ye Jinghua ignored them and left with her.
• The Emperor concealed his displeasure, allowed the Empress to go after Su Qiao, and accepted Daoist Priest He's gift.

Su Qiao suffered severe pain from a gu in her head, but Chief Physician Yu could not identify or treat it. Ye Jinghua suspected the Empress Dowager had sent the gu that afflicted him years ago, and the chapter left him preparing to confront the danger.

• Su Yue asked Ye Beiyao whether the ministers' daughters should perform, choosing not to pursue Su Qiao herself.
• Chief Physician Yu examined Su Qiao and found signs of weakness and poor nourishment, but could not explain the burrowing sensation in her head.
• Su Qiao realized she would need to investigate the gu herself and asked Ye Jinghua for her roast chicken.
• Ye Jinghua comforted Su Qiao, confirmed her roast chickens were safe, and watched her fall asleep.
• Xun Feng reported that Su Qiao appeared to have been afflicted with a gu, and Ye Jinghua suspected the Empress Dowager had caused it.

Ye Jinghua refused to let Su Qiao treat him yet, and Ye Beiyao secretly ordered an investigation into the Empress. Back in her shabby courtyard, Su Qiao learned that removing the Gu in her head required rare ingredients and a Gu King she could not currently obtain.

• Ye Jinghua told Xun Feng to wait before seeking treatment, explaining that the poison he had taken had mutated the Gu and that he did not trust Su Qiao with his life.
• Ye Jinghua ordered Xun Feng to send the sleeping Su Qiao back to her courtyard with her three roast chickens.
• Ye Beiyao summoned a hidden guard and secretly ordered an investigation into the Empress's background.
• Su Qiao woke in her shabby room, lit an oil lamp with 444's guidance, and found that she had no water.
• Su Qiao cultivated for two hours, then told 444 that removing the Gu required medicinal ingredients and a Gu King she could not access, so she needed to strengthen her martial arts.