Recaps

Su Qiao taunted Gu Wanting about losing Jin Moli’s favor and revealed that the Empress Dowager would blame her for his worsening health. Gu Wanting panicked and rushed at Su Qiao.

• Su Qiao mocked Gu Wanting for believing Jin Moli still loved her.
• Gu Wanting realized Jin Moli had secretly visited her residence because Su Qiao had set her up.
• Su Qiao told Gu Wanting that Jin Moli’s health had deteriorated after eating her medicinal dishes and that the Empress Dowager would never spare her.
• Gu Wanting rejected Su Qiao’s claims and lunged at her to shove her.

Su Qiao staged a miscarriage and exposed the drugged tea in Jingren Palace, while the Emperor and Imperial Physician Wang believed she had lost her child. Imperial Physician Wang reported that her injuries and the drug would leave her unable to bear children, but Su Qiao’s deception remained undiscovered.

• Su Qiao fell onto a stone and used stored blood to make it seem as though she had miscarried.
• After returning to Jingren Palace, Su Qiao drank some tea before pretending to notice that it was poisoned.
• Nanny Bai identified safflower and wisteria in the tea and ordered Jingren Palace sealed while Chunyu detained its maids and eunuchs.
• Imperial Physician Wang told Jin Moli that Su Qiao had lost the fetus and would probably never bear children again.
• Jin Moli asked about Su Qiao’s condition, and Imperial Physician Wang described her injuries and weakened body.

After Su Qiao miscarried, Imperial Physician Wang warned Jin Moli that she might never bear children again, and Jin Canghan returned to find her unconscious. Grief-stricken and convinced Jin Moli was responsible, Jin Canghan vowed to avenge her and their child as 444 urged Su Qiao to wake up.

• Imperial Physician Wang told Jin Moli that Su Qiao still needed medicine to clear remaining blood clots and residue, and Jin Moli feared she might never bear children again.
• Chief Steward Qi reported that Consort Wan was confined and demanding to see Jin Moli, who ordered him to warn her that her family would pay if anything happened to her unborn child.
• Jin Moli left Jingren Palace after ordering its staff replaced and the others detained for questioning.
• Jin Canghan returned, learned from Nanny Bai that Su Qiao had miscarried, and broke down beside her bed, blaming himself for leaving her.
• Jin Canghan swore to kill Jin Moli and avenge Su Qiao and their child, while Nanny Bai had Chunyu guard the door.
• 444 frantically urged Su Qiao to wake up before Jin Canghan did something terrible.

Su Qiao woke briefly and asked Jin Canghan to protect her before falling asleep again. Jin Canghan stayed by her side and reflected on how his family had denied him a life of his own.

• Su Qiao woke and called Jin Canghan back to her bedside.
• Jin Canghan rushed to Su Qiao, and she asked him to protect her until she recovered.
• Jin Canghan promised not to leave Su Qiao, and she fell asleep again.
• Jin Canghan reflected that he had planned to take Su Qiao away but believed he had been denied a name, a family, and a future.
• Jin Canghan recalled how Mother Empress had told him to be grateful and endure, though he had never wanted the life imposed on him.

Su Qiao recovered after a night unconscious and learned that court officials were demanding punishment for Consort Wan. As Jin Moli postponed that punishment because of her pregnancy, Su Qiao planned to stay away from the Empress Dowager for six months while preparing for Gu Wanting's childbirth.

• Jin Canghan kept watch beside the unconscious Su Qiao all night, then slept briefly on the roof beam after she threatened him.
• After recovering with chicken soup, Su Qiao named four palace attendants for arrest and planned to ask Jin Moli to release the others.
• Su Qiao learned that her grandfather and other officials had demanded Consort Wan's punishment and confronted Gu Jun in court.
• Jin Moli demoted Gu Jun and ordered him home to reflect, but postponed Consort Wan's punishment because she was pregnant.
• Jin Canghan fed Su Qiao chicken soup, and she asked him to tell the Empress Dowager she would not visit for six months.

Su Qiao learned that Jin Moli and Jin Canghan were identical twins who switched identities, and she resolved to protect her husband’s claim to the throne. Jin Canghan went to confront the Empress Dowager, who recognized him as Han’er.

• Before leaving Su Qiao’s bedside, Jin Canghan ordered Nanny Bai not to leave her alone or accept drinks from anyone.
• Su Qiao told Nanny Bai that Jin Moli and Jin Canghan were twins who often exchanged identities, and revealed that she had married Jin Canghan.
• Su Qiao declared that the Black Obsidian Nation needed only one Emperor and that it was her husband, and she planned to inform her grandfather.
• Jin Canghan barged into Yonghe Palace, drove off the guards, and ordered everyone except Nanny Qin to leave.
• The Empress Dowager approached Jin Canghan and asked if he was Han’er.

Jin Canghan confronted the Empress Dowager over her role in harming Su Qiao and killing their child, declaring that he would no longer tolerate her interference. Their relationship was severed as he warned her he would protect his wife at any cost.

• Jin Canghan accused the Empress Dowager of using Gu Wanting and sending poison to harm Su Qiao and cause their child's death.
• Jin Canghan revealed that the Empress Dowager had made him infertile with Secret Medicine when he was twelve and accused her of favoring Jin Moli.
• The Empress Dowager insisted that her actions had been for Jin Canghan's own good and that she had wanted to keep him alive.
• Jin Canghan rejected her justification and said he would rather die than let Su Qiao or their child be harmed.
• Jin Canghan vowed that he would no longer tolerate the Empress Dowager's actions against his wife, even if they all perished.

Jin Canghan confronted the Empress Dowager over Su Qiao and warned her to keep Jin Moli away from his wife. At Jingren Palace, Su Qiao sent a secret letter to her family, and Jin Moli apologized before leaving her with rewards.

• Jin Canghan told the Empress Dowager that Su Qiao would not visit for six months and threatened to help Jin Moli lose the throne if he pursued her.
• Nanny Qin explained that Su Qiao’s pregnancy was Jin Canghan’s only chance to have a child and that he felt guilty over her inability to have more children.
• The Empress Dowager defended her actions, saying she had feared Jin Moli would kill Jin Canghan and would never allow him to leave with a child.
• Su Qiao wrote a secret letter to her family and had Nanny Bai send it home, calming the Su family.
• Jin Moli apologized to Su Qiao, who moved away when he reached for her, and he left after giving her rewards.

After recovering, Su Qiao lived in Jingren Palace with Jin Canghan disguised as a eunuch while Jin Moli continued visiting her. As Gu Wanting’s delivery and their plan drew near, Jin Canghan urged Su Qiao to leave the palace.

• Su Qiao learned that Jin Canghan had evidence Jin Moli murdered his brothers, poisoned the Former Emperor, forged an Imperial Decree, and eliminated opposing ministers.
• Su Qiao practiced dancing in Jingren Palace, and Jin Canghan cared for her and advised her to stop exercising until spring.
• Su Qiao agreed to stop dancing because Gu Wanting would give birth in about a month and their plan was approaching.
• Jin Canghan took Su Qiao’s hand and told her they should leave the palace.

Jin Canghan confessed that he wanted Su Qiao to leave the palace with him, then admitted his jealousy over her relationship with Jin Moli. Su Qiao teased him for being timid and challenged him to act like her husband.

• Jin Canghan asked Su Qiao to leave with him and promised to provide for her, even suggesting they adopt children.
• Su Qiao asked 444 to investigate whether anything had happened recently, then pressed Jin Canghan to explain himself.
• Jin Canghan said he had married Su Qiao and claimed she belonged with him, not Jin Moli, whom he blamed for their child's death.
• Jin Canghan confessed that seeing Su Qiao accept Jin Moli's gifts and spend time with him made him jealous.
• Jin Canghan said he wanted to throw Su Qiao onto the bed and make her recognize him as her man, but Su Qiao mocked his timidity and reminded him she had never stopped him.

Su Qiao refused to flee with Jin Canghan because Jin Moli could use their escape to target her family, and she argued they needed to remain in the palace. She proposed that Jin Canghan take Jin Moli’s place as emperor, leaving him to consider whether the Empress Dowager would oppose it.

• Jin Canghan carried Su Qiao toward the bed, but she stopped him because spies were watching Jingren Palace.
• Su Qiao explained that Jin Moli would pursue them and threaten the Su family if they fled the palace.
• Jin Canghan offered to destroy his face so Jin Moli would no longer see him as a rival, but Su Qiao rejected the idea.
• Su Qiao suggested they destroy Jin Moli’s face and have Jin Canghan replace him.
• Jin Canghan worried that the Empress Dowager would object, and Su Qiao argued that she would accept either son becoming emperor.

Su Qiao explained how she had recognized Jin Canghan beneath Jin Moli’s identity, and Jin Canghan began mobilizing his followers to seize the throne. The chapter ended with Jin Canghan rushing into Su Qiao’s bedroom, where she warned him that the incense contained a sedative.

• Su Qiao told Jin Canghan she had suspected his identity after their wedding night and became mostly certain when he approached her disguised as a eunuch.
• Su Qiao described the differences between Jin Canghan and Jin Moli, including their auras, expressions, a mole behind Jin Canghan’s ear, and their builds.
• After the truth was laid bare, Su Qiao avoided Jin Moli, while Jin Canghan secretly mobilized his followers to seize the throne.
• Jin Moli noticed Jin Canghan’s actions, and Su Qiao sensed something was wrong when she entered her bedroom that evening.
• Jin Canghan rushed in through the window to help Su Qiao, who told him the incense contained a sedative and caught him as he staggered.

Su Qiao escaped Jingren Palace with Jin Canghan after learning Jin Moli planned to kill him and imprison her. In the Imperial Garden, Jin Moli admitted to the Empress Dowager that he loved Su Qiao and could not let her go.

• Su Qiao gave Jin Canghan an antidote and learned from 444 that Jin Moli was coming to catch them together and kill him.
• Su Qiao and Jin Canghan escaped through a window, and Su Qiao carried him with her Lightness Skill.
• Su Qiao and Jin Canghan stopped in the Imperial Garden after learning the Empress Dowager had intercepted Jin Moli there.
• The Empress Dowager urged Jin Moli not to harm Su Qiao or his younger brother, but Jin Moli said he would rather destroy Su Qiao than lose her.
• Jin Moli told the Empress Dowager that he loved Su Qiao and would regret letting her go.

Jin Moli confirmed that he would accept Su Qiao despite her past, while the Empress Dowager pleaded for him to spare Jin Canghan. Su Qiao and Jin Canghan visited the Su family home to reveal what had happened and ask for help, leaving Grand Tutor Su and the old madam devastated.

• Jin Moli told the Empress Dowager he would bear the consequences of what he had done and continued to Jingren Palace.
• The Empress Dowager asked Jin Moli to spare Jin Canghan, but Jin Moli left without answering.
• Su Qiao reassured Jin Canghan that he did not need anyone else, and he resolved to live for himself and protect her.
• Su Qiao and Jin Canghan went to the Su family home, where Su Qiao removed his Human Skin Mask and explained the truth and her plans to Grand Tutor Su and the old madam.
• The old madam begged Grand Tutor Su to help Su Qiao, grieving over the deception surrounding her marriage.

After the Su family decided to protect themselves from Jin Moli, Su Qiao and Jin Canghan returned to Jingren Palace, where Jin Moli confronted them. Jin Canghan revealed his disguise, and Jin Moli demanded that Su Qiao choose between them.

• Su Qiao’s family condemned Jin Moli, and Grand Tutor Su agreed that they had to protect the Su family.
• Jin Moli waited for Su Qiao and Jin Canghan at Jingren Palace and asked where they had gone.
• Jin Moli offered to let Su Qiao raise Consort Wan’s child, but Su Qiao refused and asked him to leave.
• Jin Moli said he wanted to stay the night, so Jin Canghan removed his Human Skin Mask and challenged him.
• Jin Moli accepted the confrontation and demanded that Su Qiao choose between him and Jin Canghan.

Jin Moli offered to make Su Qiao Empress and spare the Su family, but she rejected his attempt to confine her and reassured Jin Canghan that she had not hesitated. Jin Moli later learned from Imperial Physician Wang that his health had recovered, though he had taken no medicine.

• Jin Moli promised Su Qiao the throne and the Su family's safety, then left hidden guards around Jingren Palace after warning her not to get close to Jin Canghan.
• Su Qiao knocked out the hidden guards with a fire and powder, then told Jin Canghan she could not break with Jin Moli yet because of her plan.
• Jin Canghan worried that Su Qiao might choose Jin Moli, but she called him into the inner room and reassured him.
• Jin Canghan grew angry at the mention of Jin Moli and tore off his clothes.
• Jin Moli secretly asked Imperial Physician Wang to examine him, and Wang confirmed that his health had recovered despite his taking no medicine.

Imperial Physician Wang told Jin Moli that his impotence came from a psychological barrier and that his feelings for one woman showed he could accept her. As Gu Wanting went into labor, Su Qiao prepared to expose Jin Moli and put her family’s plan into motion.

• Imperial Physician Wang explained that Jin Moli’s illness had likely stemmed from emotional trauma, and Jin Moli wondered whether he had misunderstood Su Qiao.
• Su Qiao confirmed that a storm was expected that night, disguised herself as a palace maid, added powder to incense, and installed lightning rods on the roofs of Mingren Palace and Qian Yuan Hall.
• Su Qiao said she had given Gu Wanting labor-inducing medicine because Gu Wanting wanted to give birth sooner, and she learned that Gu Wanting had gone into labor.
• Su Qiao confirmed that the Su family was ready, including her father returning from the border with troops, and told Jin Canghan to hide men outside Minghe Palace.
• Jin Canghan left to mobilize the men while Su Qiao stayed behind, and the Empress Dowager, Jin Moli, and the imperial concubines went to Minghe Palace for Gu Wanting’s labor.

Su Qiao arrived at Minghe Palace as Consort Wan was expected to give birth, but a violent storm and apparent earthquake sent everyone fleeing. The chapter ended as a baby cried from the side hall and an Old Wet Nurse announced that Consort Wan had given birth to a Prince.

• Jin Canghan escorted Su Qiao to Minghe Palace, where she ignored the Empress Dowager and waited for the hour of the Boar.
• Su Qiao left the hall, and the palace began to tremble as a fierce storm struck Minghe Palace.
• The Empress Dowager, Jin Moli, and the Imperial Concubines fled outside as lightning repeatedly hit the palace roof.
• A baby's cry came from the side hall, and an Old Wet Nurse announced that Consort Wan had given birth to a Prince before lightning frightened her to the ground.

After lightning struck both Consort Wan’s residence and Qian Yuan Hall, palace witnesses called Consort Wan and her child demons and questioned Jin Moli’s legitimacy. Su Qiao and the ministers stopped him from ordering a massacre, while Jin Moli realized the night’s events were a conspiracy against him.

• Palace servants blamed the lightning strikes at Minghe Palace and Qian Yuan Hall on Consort Wan and her child, then questioned whether Jin Moli was the true Son of Heaven.
• Jin Moli ordered the guards to kill anyone spreading such rumors, but Su Qiao warned him that more violence could bring Heaven’s wrath upon the Black Obsidian Nation.
• Su Qiao rejected Jin Moli’s demand for an answer, and Jin Canghan stepped in front of her as the two men faced off.
• Grand Tutor Su and the senior ministers arrived, and Su Qiao asked them to stop Jin Moli from executing the witnesses.
• The ministers urged Jin Moli not to provoke Heaven further, and he accused them of conspiring against him before ordering the guards to kill a remonstrating official.

Grand Tutor Su accused Jin Moli of usurping the throne and demanded that he restore it to Jin Canghan. Su Qiao revealed that she had known Jin Moli was an impostor from the start and hinted that the Former Emperor had also known about the Empress Dowager’s schemes.

• Grand Tutor Su blamed Heaven’s wrath on the palace and petitioned Jin Moli to abdicate in favor of Jin Canghan.
• Jin Moli ordered the guards to seize Grand Tutor Su, but they hesitated after witnessing Heaven’s wrath.
• Jin Moli summoned hidden guards as Su Qiao accused him of imprisoning Jin Canghan and forging the succession decree.
• Su Qiao said she had pretended to be ill since her wedding because she knew Jin Moli was an impostor.
• Su Qiao told the Empress Dowager that the Former Emperor had seen through her scheme, leaving the Empress Dowager pale and shaken.

Su Qiao presented evidence that the Former Emperor had known Jin Canghan was his son and had secretly chosen him to inherit the throne. Jin Canghan learned that his existence had been accepted by his father, and he broke down in tears.

• Su Qiao told the Empress Dowager that the Former Emperor had known about Jin Canghan and had issued a decree naming him heir.
• Jin Moli demanded proof, and Su Qiao presented an Imperial Decree and a white jade seal for the officials to examine.
• Su Qiao gave Jin Canghan secret records showing that the Former Emperor had known about him and had not intended to kill him.
• Jin Canghan realized that his father had silently watched him grow and that he had never been unwanted.
• Su Qiao told the tearful Jin Canghan to have some dignity.

Jin Canghan revealed his identity and exposed Jin Moli’s crimes, including forging the succession decree and poisoning the Former Emperor. After Su Qiao defeated Jin Moli, the ministers asked Jin Canghan to ascend the throne.

• Jin Canghan removed his Human Skin Mask and showed the ministers that he looked exactly like Jin Moli.
• Jin Canghan gave Grand Tutor Su evidence of Jin Moli’s crimes and the Former Emperor’s notes, along with the succession decree and white jade seal.
• Jin Moli realized he had lost and tried to attack Su Qiao, but she kicked him away and slashed his face with a guard’s sword.
• Jin Canghan took the sword from Su Qiao and led her aside, telling her not to charge ahead next time.
• Grand Tutor Su and Grand Tutor Liu knelt and asked Jin Canghan to follow the Former Emperor’s wishes and ascend the throne, and the other ministers joined them.

Jin Canghan learned that Su Qiao had cured his infertility and that she might be pregnant, while Su Qiao exposed Jin Moli’s past schemes. Jin Canghan ordered the Empress Dowager to guard the Former Emperor’s mausoleum and sent Jin Moli to death row, then announced his enthronement and Su Qiao’s appointment as empress.

• Su Qiao accused Jin Moli of deceiving her, manipulating her wedding, and trying to destroy the child she had conceived with Jin Canghan.
• Jin Canghan wondered whether Su Qiao was truly pregnant, and she told him she had cured the poison and Secret Medicine that had made him infertile.
• At Grand Tutor Su’s urging, Jin Canghan addressed the crisis and ordered the Empress Dowager to guard the Former Emperor’s mausoleum.
• Jin Canghan sent Jin Moli to death row pending discussion with the ministers.
• Jin Canghan announced that he would ascend the throne in three days and confer the title of empress on Su Qiao at the same ceremony.

After Jin Canghan ascended the throne and Su Qiao became Empress, they dealt with the fallen court and visited Jin Moli in prison. The story ended with Su Qiao and Jin Canghan ruling peacefully with their two children as the Black Obsidian Nation grew stronger and secured lasting peace with its neighbors.

• Gu Jun was arrested and his household was confiscated, while Gu Wanting learned that Jin Canghan had taken the throne and Su Qiao had become Empress; she later went insane and was sent back to her family.
• Su Qiao arranged for Gu Wanting's son to be raised by a childless philanthropist and allowed the other Imperial Concubines to return to their families.
• Su Qiao visited Jin Moli in prison, where he asked whether she had ever sincerely meant her past words to him, and she said no.
• Jin Moli hanged himself in prison before Jin Canghan and the ministers could judge him.
• The Empress Dowager was sent to guard the Imperial Mausoleum, and Old Grand Tutor Su retired; Su Qiao's younger brother later founded a kingdom overseas and was beaten back when he tried to take her away.
• Su Qiao and Jin Canghan had a son and a daughter, and their prosperous nation later secured alliances and a hundred-year peace treaty with the surrounding great nations.

Su Qiao regained consciousness in the body of another clone after her previous body was shot and killed, and learned that this plane had two Soul Fragments. She found herself at a press conference in Hai City, where she was the second female lead in the film “Peerless Beauty.”

• Su Qiao woke while falling from a cliff after being shot, and 444 warned her that she was about to die.
• Su Qiao regained consciousness in another clone and learned that 444 had collected the Soul Fragment from her dead body.
• Su Qiao examined her new body and surroundings as 444 told her to deal with the situation in front of her.
• Su Qiao recognized the gathering as a press conference, and 444 confirmed she was the second female lead in “Peerless Beauty.”