Chapter Summaries

Su Qiao pretended to reject the idea of becoming Empress while Jin Moli tried to persuade her that he had kept her out of the position for her own good. She explained that loving someone meant considering their well-being rather than satisfying possessive desires, leaving Jin Moli to hear her account of affection as selfless giving.

• Jin Moli told Su Qiao he had fallen for her at their first meeting and had once wanted to make her Empress, but claimed he changed his mind to protect her and the Su family.
• Su Qiao insisted she did not want to be Empress because the duties would be exhausting and leave her unable to care for Jin Moli.
• Su Qiao said her family had taught her that emperors and empresses lived difficult lives and that they wanted her to have an ordinary, happy marriage.
• Su Qiao described how her family had spoiled her and taught her more about life before she entered the palace.
• Su Qiao told Jin Moli that true affection meant considering a loved one's circumstances and giving them a good life, not possessively taking what one wanted.

Jin Moli began doubting Consort Wan’s feelings after Su Qiao urged him to consider whether love required giving, and Su Qiao strengthened his affection by presenting him with a cloak. After he left, Nanny Bai praised Su Qiao for refusing to keep him overnight, while the servants’ exchange exposed Ren Dong’s ambitions.

• Jin Moli reflected on how little Consort Wan had reciprocated his devotion and admitted Su Qiao had made him see her differently.
• Su Qiao gave Jin Moli a cloak she claimed to have sewn, and he was moved by her care for him and their unborn children.
• Ren Dong wished Jin Moli had stayed longer, but Nanny Bai reminded her that Su Qiao should not keep him overnight while pregnant.
• Nanny Bai advised Su Qiao to prioritize her pregnancy over a man’s affection, and Su Qiao suspected Consort Wan had encouraged Ren Dong’s ambitions.
• Chunyu told Ren Dong to join Nian Xia and Ran Qiu in sewing clothes for the Little Master, but Ren Dong resisted the task.

Su Qiao prepared for either a prince or a princess and asked Nanny Bai to train her palace maids for the dangers ahead. Meanwhile, the Emperor went to Minghe Palace hoping to see Wan Ting, but found her dejected.

• Su Qiao asked Ren Dong to make more clothes and accessories for both a boy and a girl.
• Nanny Bai criticized Wan Ting’s eagerness to approach the Emperor, while Su Qiao said Wan Ting would soon be useful.
• Su Qiao asked Nanny Bai to guide Chun Yu, Nian Xia, and Ran Qiu in palace affairs.
• The Emperor went to Minghe Palace to see Wan Ting and found her looking dejected.

Emperor Jin Moli tried to soothe Consort Wan, whose jealousy over his attention to pregnant Consort Ying and her own childlessness had made her resentful. She apologized after seeing his impatience, and he comforted her, while she continued to blame herself for being unable to conceive.

• Consort Wan formally greeted Jin Moli, then resisted his attempts to comfort her and questioned why he would not explain his troubles.
• Jin Moli said Consort Ying’s pregnancy and the pressure to produce an heir were weighing on him, but he could not yet tell Consort Wan everything.
• Consort Wan complained that Jin Moli favored Consort Ying and lamented that she had not been able to have a child.
• Jin Moli grew impatient, and Consort Wan feared she was losing his affection, so she apologized and said she had acted unreasonably because she loved him.
• Jin Moli embraced Consort Wan and reassured her, while she again blamed her childlessness.

Jin Moli comforted Consort Wan, but his thoughts turned to his past with Su Qiao and he began questioning whether Wan'er's affection was genuine. The chapter ended with him demanding that Chief Steward Qi tell him the truth about Consort Ying and Consort Wan.

• Consort Wan lamented that she had been unable to conceive, and Jin Moli wondered whether the child Su Qiao carried might have been his if he had consummated their marriage.
• Jin Moli comforted Consort Wan, promised to have imperial physicians examine her, and then left Minghe Palace to return to his state affairs.
• In the Imperial Garden, Jin Moli asked Chief Steward Qi whether Consort Ying or Wan'er was more genuine with him.
• Chief Steward Qi said both consorts liked and respected Jin Moli, but he avoided offering a direct opinion.
• Jin Moli threw away a flower and accused Chief Steward Qi of not daring to tell him the truth.

Chief Steward Qi told Jin Moli that Consort Ying’s love seemed more genuine than Consort Wan’s, citing her simple nature and her defiance of her family to enter the palace. Jin Moli decided that choosing an empress could reveal which consort truly loved him, though he noted that Consort Ying had refused the position before.

• Jin Moli pressed Chief Steward Qi to judge whose feelings for him were more genuine.
• Chief Steward Qi said Consort Ying’s privileged upbringing made her straightforward, and that she had entered the palace despite her family’s opposition because she liked Jin Moli.
• Chief Steward Qi contrasted Consort Ying’s background with Gu Wanting’s, suggesting that Gu Wanting’s household had shaped her into someone with private schemes.
• Jin Moli reconsidered his view of the woman he had cherished and suspected she had acted in front of him.
• Chief Steward Qi suggested using the empress position to test the consorts’ feelings, and Jin Moli agreed it was time to choose an empress.
• Jin Moli recalled that Consort Ying had already refused the position, but wondered whether her words matched her true thoughts.

Su Qiao heard the Emperor and Chief Steward Qi discuss Jin Moli and asked Little Four to send a message. That night, Jin Canghan visited her while she slept, raged about Jin Moli’s betrayal, and struggled to decide how to reveal the truth to her.

• Su Qiao overheard the Emperor and Chief Steward Qi and told Little Four to find a way to send a message the next day.
• Su Qiao went to bed early and cultivated behind her bed’s gauze curtain before falling asleep.
• Jin Canghan entered Su Qiao’s room and accused Jin Moli of drugging her and plotting against the Su family.
• Jin Canghan struggled with whether to tell Su Qiao that he had replaced Jin Moli during their wedding and that he was the Emperor’s younger brother.
• Su Qiao woke enough to roll her eyes at Jin Canghan’s anguish.

Su Qiao insisted that Jin Canghan had to break free of his filial loyalty and act against Jin Moli, while Jin Canghan fled when he thought she was waking. The next morning, the Empress Dowager praised Su Qiao for sending the Emperor away but condemned Consort Wan for making him leave in anger.

• Jin Canghan sensed Su Qiao might wake and fled through the window using his Lightness Skill.
• Su Qiao told 444 she would keep pressuring Jin Canghan until he freed himself from familial loyalty, since Jin Moli threatened both their lives.
• Su Qiao reasoned that Jin Canghan had to defeat or cripple Jin Moli to end the conflict.
• The palace learned that Su Qiao had persuaded the Emperor to leave Jingren Palace the previous night.
• The Empress Dowager praised Su Qiao's consideration but denounced Consort Wan for throwing a jealous tantrum and driving the Emperor away.

Consort Wan was punished by the Empress Dowager after the Emperor left her palace, while Su Qiao made plans involving Consort Wan’s younger brother. At court, Grand Tutor Su recommended Liu Juerong as Empress, and Jin Moli grew suspicious of Gu Jun after he hesitated before supporting the proposal.

• The Empress Dowager ordered Consort Wan to copy the Women's Precepts a hundred times and remain in her palace for several days.
• Consort Wan flew into a rage, swept teacups from the table, and drove her attendants out.
• Su Qiao recalled Consort Wan’s spoiled younger brother and sent Nanny Bai back with a coded note.
• Within three days, officials began discussing the selection of an Empress, and Grand Tutor Su strongly recommended Liu Juerong.
• When Jin Moli asked Gu Jun for his opinion, Gu Jun hesitated before supporting Liu Juerong, prompting Jin Moli to suspect he had wanted his own daughter to become Empress.

Jin Moli reconsidered his trust in Gu Wanting as he weighed the candidates for Empress, while Su Qiao rejected the position and helped bring the selection to a halt. A week later, Su Qiao sat alone reading after dinner, and the system asked what she was planning.

• Jin Moli questioned people about the Empress selection, grew wary of Gu Jun's family, and postponed his decision.
• Rumors spread that Consort Ying or Consort Wan might become Empress, while both consorts closed their doors to visitors.
• Jin Moli visited Su Qiao and Gu Wanting; Su Qiao firmly refused the position, while Gu Wanting's hesitation disappointed him.
• The Empress selection ended after the Grand Tutor's granddaughter, Liu Juerong, suddenly fell ill, as Su Qiao had anticipated.
• A week later, Su Qiao dismissed her attendants and read alone after dinner, prompting the system to ask what she planned to do.

Su Qiao used the poison being slipped into her meals to provoke an investigation after Jin Canghan avoided her for seven days. When she collapsed from the poison, Jin Canghan accused the Empress Dowager of targeting her and their unborn child, then vowed to protect them.

• Su Qiao swallowed another pill and said she was turning the scheme of whoever had been drugging her meals against them.
• After dinner, Consort Ying vomited black blood and fainted, and the imperial physicians diagnosed her with poisoning that had endangered her fetus.
• The Emperor ordered an investigation at Jingren Palace, while the Empress Dowager began investigating the imperial concubines.
• Jin Canghan confronted the Empress Dowager and accused her of trying to harm Su Qiao and their child.
• Jin Canghan vowed to protect Su Qiao and the child and warned that anyone who harmed them would not be spared.

Jin Canghan confronted the Empress Dowager about his right to love the woman and have a child, then secretly went to Jingren Palace to watch over her. He left her bedside remorseful and jealous, questioning whether she could tell him apart from Jin Moli.

• Jin Canghan told the Empress Dowager that Jin Moli had arranged the substitute marriage and wedding night, and demanded to know why he could not have the woman and his own child.
• Jin Canghan left Yonghe Palace and hurried toward Jingren Palace.
• Jin Canghan entered through a window and knocked Chunyu unconscious before approaching the woman’s bedside.
• Jin Canghan apologized for failing to protect the woman and their child, then admitted he had been angry that she cared for Jin Moli.
• Jin Canghan asked whether the woman saw him and Jin Moli as the same man.

Jin Canghan lamented that Su Qiao loved Jin Moli and that he could not openly pursue her or have a family with her. He confessed how meeting her had brought warmth to his lonely life, then mourned the life they might have shared if she had never entered the palace.

• Jin Canghan blamed Su Qiao for never noticing him or understanding his feelings.
• Jin Canghan described his jealousy of Jin Moli and his despair at living without an identity in the Underground Palace.
• Jin Canghan recalled seeing Su Qiao awaken and said that meeting her had made his dark, cold world feel warm.
• Jin Canghan confessed that he wanted to be with Su Qiao but knew others would not let him have her.
• Jin Canghan imagined escaping with Su Qiao to build a home and raise children before returning to the reality that she was Jin Moli's woman.

Jin Canghan agonized over Su Qiao’s feelings for Jin Moli, while Su Qiao decided she could not flee and needed to force Jin Canghan to act. She pretended to wake and made him believe she had mistaken him for Jin Moli, leaving him hidden and listening.

• Jin Canghan questioned why Su Qiao chose Jin Moli and lamented that she could see nothing in him.
• Su Qiao decided she would not elope because she had to protect her family and would not live as a fugitive.
• Su Qiao remembered Jin Canghan’s Darkening Value was already 8/10 and continued with her plan.
• Su Qiao pretended to wake and called for Chunyu, prompting Jin Canghan to hide behind a cabinet.
• Su Qiao claimed the familiar scent belonged to Brother Li and said she believed he had secretly come to see her.

Su Qiao explained to 444 why the original host had devoted herself to dancing and entered the palace: she had mistaken Jin Moli for the boy who once saved her, Jin Canghan. After wondering whether Jin Canghan had recognized her in her previous life, Su Qiao prepared to purge the remaining poison and cultivate.

• Su Qiao pretended to fall asleep, then opened her eyes after the man left and called him an idiot.
• Su Qiao told 444 that the original host had entered the palace for reasons beyond falling in love with the emperor.
• Su Qiao recalled how Jin Canghan had rescued the original host when she was six and comforted her by giving her candied hawthorn.
• Su Qiao explained that the original host had studied and practiced dancing so she could make Jin Canghan happy.
• 444 realized the original host had mistaken Jin Moli for Jin Canghan, and Su Qiao wondered whether Jin Canghan had recognized her in the previous life.
• Su Qiao told 444 she would use Internal Energy to expel the remaining poison and cultivate while he watched outside.

Su Qiao felt she needed to grow stronger in case she had to change the dynasty herself. In the Cold Palace, Jin Canghan remembered meeting her as a child and realized she had mistaken him for Jin Moli when she entered the palace.

• Su Qiao covered the sleeping Chunyu with a quilt, then cultivated because she might need martial strength to change the dynasty.
• Jin Canghan wandered through the Cold Palace and recalled leaving the palace at twelve after being poisoned.
• Jin Canghan remembered rescuing a little girl from abductors and giving her a candied hawthorn skewer to stop her crying.
• Jin Canghan realized the girl had been Su Qiao and that she had entered the palace hoping to find him, not Jin Moli.
• Jin Canghan recalled Su Qiao promising to dance for him when they met again and celebrated the realization.

Jin Canghan rejoiced that Su Qiao loved him and hurried back to protect her and their child. The next day, he secretly followed her everywhere and caught her when she pretended to stumble in the Imperial Garden.

• Jin Canghan celebrated in the Cold Palace, believing Su Qiao had realized Jin Moli was an impostor and that she loved him.
• 444 warned Su Qiao that Jin Canghan was returning, so she pretended to be asleep when he entered her bedroom.
• Jin Canghan promised to protect Su Qiao and their child and take them somewhere safe after the child was born.
• Su Qiao recalled that Jin Canghan’s mistaken trust in the Empress Dowager and Jin Moli had cost him his life in her previous life, and resolved to protect him.
• The next day, Jin Canghan silently followed Su Qiao and caught her when she deliberately missed a step in the Imperial Garden.

Su Qiao let Little Yu care for her and agreed that he could remove insincere people from Jingren Palace, while ordering him to spare those close to her. When Ren Dong announced that Jin Moli had arrived, Su Qiao rebuked her and threatened to have her sent out of the palace.

• Su Qiao asked Little Yu where he had been, and he said he had stayed away because he was ill and feared infecting her.
• Jin Canghan wrapped Su Qiao in a cloak, supported her into the pavilion, and promised to clear out disloyal people.
• Su Qiao told Jin Canghan not to touch the few people beside her, and he agreed.
• Ren Dong announced Jin Moli's arrival, and Su Qiao scolded her for making a fuss.
• Su Qiao warned Ren Dong that she might ask the Emperor to send her out of the palace.

Su Qiao confronted Ren Dong about staying in the palace, then spoke with Jin Moli about the attack on her pregnancy and learned he had blamed Imperial Concubine Yu. Jin Moli reassured her, but Su Qiao’s description of a twisted person left him wondering whether he was twisted too.

• Su Qiao told Ren Dong she did not want harm to come to her, and Ren Dong fell to her knees and begged to remain in the palace.
• Jin Canghan left to avoid Jin Moli, while Nian Xia pulled Ren Dong away as the Emperor approached Su Qiao.
• Jin Moli told Su Qiao that Imperial Concubine Yu had harmed her and had been sent to the Cold Palace.
• Su Qiao asked why Imperial Concubine Yu had targeted her, and Jin Moli said jealousy over her pregnancy had driven her.
• Su Qiao explained that a twisted person could not have something and refused to let anyone else have it, making Jin Moli wonder if he was twisted too.

Jin Moli regretted how he had treated Su Qiao and tried to offer her younger brother Zimo a rapid rise in the Ministry of Revenue. Su Qiao rejected the favor as improper, leaving Jin Moli to realize that she was not seeking power for her family.

• Jin Moli reflected on his past mistrust of Su Qiao and regretted sending her away on their wedding night.
• Su Qiao noticed Jin Moli staring at her, and he claimed he had been thinking about state affairs.
• Jin Moli asked whether Zimo was leaving the Imperial Academy and offered him a Ministry of Revenue post followed by promotion to Right Vice Minister.
• Su Qiao refused, arguing that Zimo was unqualified and that the promotion would violate regulations and harm Jin Moli’s reputation.
• Jin Moli recalled Su Qiao’s earlier refusal to become Empress and realized she had not wanted power for her family.