Chapter Summaries

Su Qiao agreed to take in Qingyang after his dying Wet Nurse begged her to help him. The old woman passed away peacefully, and Qingyang resolved to stay strong as Su Qiao comforted him.

• The old woman begged Su Qiao to take Qingyang in, and Su Qiao agreed after Zhao Jingting and Uncle Ya raised no objection.
• Su Qiao explained that Qingyang's Wet Nurse was suffering and asked whether he could bear to keep her alive in pain.
• Qingyang clung to his Wet Nurse, who reassured him that she would watch over him before peacefully closing her eyes.
• Su Qiao told Qingyang that his Wet Nurse had died and comforted him as he promised to grow up strong and marry.
• Su Qiao offered Qingyang dates, and he hesitated before accepting them because his Wet Nurse had warned him not to waste food.

Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting took in Qingyang after his grandmother died, arranging for Uncle Ya to care for him while they worked. Qingyang became interested in martial arts, and Uncle Ya began training him.

• Su Qiao comforted hungry Qingyang and offered him dates, while Zhao Jingting objected to her keeping an arm around the seven-year-old boy.
• Zhao Jingting arranged for Uncle Ya to look after Qingyang, and Su Qiao promised to spend time with him during meals and whenever she was free.
• Zhao Jingting and Uncle Ya buried Qingyang's grandmother, marked her grave, and brought Qingyang back to their thatched hut.
• Su Qiao took Qingyang into the woods the next morning to gather supplies and hunt, with Zhao Jingting and Uncle Ya accompanying them.
• After watching Uncle Ya demonstrate his martial arts, Qingyang became eager to learn, and Uncle Ya started training him the following morning.

Qingyang recovered some of his spirits as Su Qiao looked after him and Zhao Jingting stayed conscious. Zhao Jingting then claimed Su Qiao belonged to him because he had paid to bury her father, leaving her bewildered and worried he might punish Uncle Ya.

• Qingyang trained hard under Uncle Ya and gradually began smiling again after grieving his loved one.
• Su Qiao kept Zhao Jingting from drinking alcohol by feeding him her pills whenever he asked for one.
• Zhao Jingting pushed Su Qiao against a bamboo table and claimed she belonged to him because he had paid thirty taels to bury her father.
• Su Qiao denied selling herself or receiving a grand burial for her father, while 444 speculated that Zhao Jingting's behavior had been triggered by Grandma Deng's death.
• Zhao Jingting insisted he had ordered his people to bury Su Qiao's father properly and vowed to punish them for failing, worrying Su Qiao that he might target Uncle Ya.

Su Qiao tried to get away from Zhao Jingting and hurry into the woods for lunch, but he kept following and teasing her. She kicked him hard and warned him to stop making shameless remarks or she would beat him worse.

• Zhao Jingting grabbed Su Qiao's hand and offered to help her vent her anger, but she refused and headed toward the woods.
• Zhao Jingting followed Su Qiao and repeatedly teased her, while she told him she did not like him and ordered him to stop following her.
• Zhao Jingting continued provoking Su Qiao, so she kicked him in the calf and left him clutching his leg.
• Su Qiao warned Zhao Jingting that she would beat him badly if he kept making insinuations and shameless remarks.

Zhao Jingting suffered a sudden headache as the false plot he had created clashed with reality, and Su Qiao worried about the effects on his mind. After he appeared to recover, Su Qiao tested him with a bottle of liquor and kept it from him, leaving him focused on getting it back.

• Zhao Jingting offered to treat Su Qiao to food, but he suddenly clutched his head in pain.
• Su Qiao helped Zhao Jingting sit by a rock while 444 warned that his fabricated plot had conflicted with reality and he might soon wake up.
• Zhao Jingting tried to act like his former self again, but Su Qiao pointed out that he had already recovered and questioned his story about her father's grave.
• Su Qiao waved a bottle of liquor before Zhao Jingting, and when he reached for it, she refused to return it.

Zhao Jingting teased Su Qiao by pretending to flirt while distracting her long enough to steal the medicine bottle. After escaping to his room, he admitted to himself that he had nearly kissed her for real.

• Su Qiao teased Zhao Jingting for pretending to be asleep, and he accused her of deliberately provoking him.
• Zhao Jingting pulled Su Qiao into his arms and flirted with her, making her flustered as he leaned closer.
• Zhao Jingting seized the medicine bottle while Su Qiao was distracted, then ran off laughing.
• Su Qiao realized he had tricked her and shouted that she would take the bottle back.
• In his room, Zhao Jingting drank cold water and confessed to himself that he had nearly kissed Su Qiao.

Zhao Jingting struggled with his dependence on wine pills and agreed to take responsibility for Su Qiao, while Uncle Ya reluctantly agreed to help him get wine. Su Qiao returned empty-handed, and 444's cry startled her as she entered her room.

• Zhao Jingting took a wine pill despite Uncle Ya's attempts to dissuade him.
• Uncle Ya gestured that Zhao Jingting should marry Su Qiao, and Zhao Jingting agreed to take responsibility because he had ruined her reputation.
• Zhao Jingting begged Uncle Ya to get him wine, and Uncle Ya reluctantly agreed to help him slip away from camp.
• Su Qiao failed to catch Su Weixue or find food, then returned to her room.
• 444 cried out as Su Qiao entered, startling her.

Su Qiao discovered that Su Weixue had planted a listening device on Zhao Jingting and overheard their conversation about his identity. Worried that Li Bingyi would act on what Su Weixue told him, Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting prepared to leave the camp.

• 444 told Su Qiao that Su Weixue had secretly planted a listening device on Zhao Jingting.
• Su Qiao found Zhao Jingting by the riverside, removed the device from his collar, and threw it into the river.
• Su Qiao told Zhao Jingting that Su Weixue had overheard them and might reveal his identity to Li Bingyi.
• Zhao Jingting took Su Qiao by the hand and decided they should leave immediately.
• Zhao Jingting explained that he had learned to read storybooks while living in the mountains behind the Taoist Temple, and Su Qiao marveled at how many roles he could play.

Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting decided to stay for now, with Zhao Jingting insisting he would follow her wherever she went. Su Qiao warned him to keep quiet and act dazed, but their plans were interrupted when they ran into Uncle Ya.

• Zhao Jingting said he would leave or stay according to Su Qiao, and admitted he wanted to follow her because she was fun.
• Su Qiao told Zhao Jingting she could not leave yet and woke Little Qingyang, placing him in Zhao Jingting's arms.
• Su Qiao warned Zhao Jingting to keep quiet and avoid saying anything he should not.
• Zhao Jingting teased Su Qiao by calling her his wife because she wore his betrothal token, and she told him to act serious later.
• Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting left the hut with Little Qingyang and ran into Uncle Ya.

Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting prepared for an approaching group, then faced Su Weixue and Li Bingyi, who accused Zhao Jingting of being the Old Emperor’s twelfth son. Su Qiao challenged Su Weixue to explain how she knew his name.

• Uncle Ya returned after spotting a group heading toward the mountain, and Zhao Jingting explained what he had seen.
• Su Qiao told Zhao Jingting to stay quiet and said they would remain until spring before leaving the army.
• Su Weixue arrived with Li Bingyi and a hostile crowd, identified Zhao Jingting as the Old Emperor’s twelfth son, and Li Bingyi questioned him.
• Su Qiao denied Zhao Jingting was a prince, but Su Weixue claimed she had heard Su Qiao call him Zhao Jingting in her room half an hour earlier.
• Su Qiao calmly asked Su Weixue where and when she had heard the name.

Su Qiao challenged Su Weixue’s accusation by exposing contradictions in her story and her past engagement to the missing Young Master Liu. She then defended her husband, arguing that his odd behavior had caused no harm and that he worked diligently with her.

• Su Qiao pointed out that witnesses had seen Su Weixue working in the vegetable plots shortly before the alleged incident, and the witnesses confirmed it.
• Li Bingyi questioned Su Weixue, who could not explain the contradiction.
• Su Qiao accused Su Weixue of scheming against her and warned that her past engagement to Young Master Liu could create trouble for Li Bingyi if Liu were still alive.
• Li Bingyi denied having any relationship or private dealings with Su Weixue, drawing suspicious looks from the crowd.
• Su Weixue tried to redirect the argument toward Su Qiao’s husband, and Su Qiao defended him by noting that he worked hard and had harmed no one.

Su Qiao led Zhao Jingting and Uncle Ya away from Li Bingyi’s camp after accusing him of choosing the wrong side. She intended to stay nearby and take revenge, while Li Bingyi’s followers urged him to keep the group from leaving, and one of them caught up to ask Su Qiao to wait.

• Su Qiao accused Li Bingyi of harboring bad intentions and led Zhao Jingting and Uncle Ya out of the camp.
• Su Qiao told 444 that she still planned to avenge herself and Zhao Jingting, and that Li Bingyi needed to be eliminated before he gained power.
• Li Bingyi’s followers praised Su Qiao, Zhao Jingting, and Uncle Ya as valuable members of the Rebel Army and warned that they could reveal the camp’s location.
• Li Bingyi nodded to a subordinate, who hurried after Su Qiao and asked her to wait.
• Su Qiao refused, saying they were ordinary people who wanted peaceful lives and would leave because there was no place for them in the camp.

Li Bingyi apologized to Su Qiao and urged the group to unite, while Su Qiao blamed Su Weixue for making life harder for them. Su Qiao agreed to stay with the group on the condition that Li Bingyi hear ordinary people out fairly, though she still suspected his motives.

• Li Bingyi apologized to Su Qiao for bringing so many people to question her and said he wanted the group to unite against the court.
• The camp members agreed that they had resisted because the court had left them no way to live.
• Su Qiao pointed toward Su Weixue, prompting the crowd to look at her with displeasure as Su Weixue grew angry.
• Li Bingyi suggested Su Qiao and Su Weixue settle their conflict themselves and denied having any relationship with Su Weixue.
• Su Qiao agreed to stay with the group if Li Bingyi would hear ordinary people's explanations before making decisions.
• Li Bingyi denied having feelings for Su Weixue, while Su Qiao privately suspected he wanted to help her reclaim what belonged to her.

Su Qiao and Su Weixue confronted each other over their hidden abilities after Li Bingyi warned that the imperial court might send troops. Su Weixue suspected Su Qiao had changed and threatened to expose her food supply, while fearing Su Qiao could reveal her own secret.

• Li Bingyi told the camp that the imperial court might send troops, prompting the crowd to discuss the threat before dispersing.
• Su Weixue accused Su Qiao of having anticipated her visit to Li Bingyi and asked how she had found out about it.
• Su Qiao questioned how Su Weixue had overheard their conversation from far away, and Su Weixue took this as confirmation that Su Qiao was hiding something.
• Su Qiao pointed out that Su Weixue had concealed her own abilities, including producing food while remaining in the mountains.
• Su Weixue threatened to tell Li Bingyi about Su Qiao's food, but privately worried that exposing her own secret would leave her imprisoned, exploited, or killed.

Su Qiao extorted cooked beef and meat buns from Su Weixue by threatening to expose her secret food supply. In the days that followed, Su Qiao stayed wary of Su Weixue while growing closer to Zhao Jingting, whose childish behavior made her feel as though she were raising a son.

• Su Qiao warned Su Weixue that she could expose her food supply and put her at risk of being accused of spying.
• Su Weixue gave Su Qiao cooked beef and several meat buns, then angrily left.
• Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting returned to their room with Uncle Ya and Little Qingyang and ate the food.
• Su Weixue avoided Su Qiao's family, but Su Qiao remained cautious because of her dangerous past and stored venom.
• Zhao Jingting continued taking Su Qiao's pills without changing into another character, and the two grew closer over the next several days.

Su Qiao found Zhao Jingting hiding a jar of wine and made him reveal it by pretending to be hurt. She confiscated the wine and gave him a new medicine to take, leaving him under orders to avoid drinking and follow the dosage.

• Su Qiao searched for Zhao Jingting and found him hiding something in a crack behind a rock by the river.
• Zhao Jingting tried to conceal the item, but Su Qiao pretended to cry until he showed her the jar of wine Uncle Ya had brought him.
• Su Qiao took the heavy jar and scolded Zhao Jingting for secretly keeping wine despite losing control when he drank.
• Zhao Jingting promised to drink only three sips a day, but Su Qiao forbade even that and gave him a new medicine for his damaged brain.
• Su Qiao ordered Zhao Jingting to take one pill three times a day.

Su Qiao urged Zhao Jingting to keep taking his medicine and refuse alcohol so he could recover from his illness. When she asked about his past and future, Zhao Jingting explained how wine had become his remedy and said he had no plans to return to the capital.

• Zhao Jingting promised Su Qiao he would take his medicine and try to stay clearheaded, then pleaded for a daily sip of wine.
• Su Qiao refused to let Zhao Jingting drink, insisting he endure his cravings so he could overcome his addiction.
• Zhao Jingting told Su Qiao he had started drinking as a child to ease his headaches and that the Temple Master had brewed him rice wine because his Medical Skills could not cure him.
• Zhao Jingting recalled that bandits had wounded the Temple Master during a drought, and the Temple Master later died.
• Su Qiao asked whether Zhao Jingting planned to return to the capital, and he said there was nothing there worth returning for.
• Su Qiao asked where Zhao Jingting wanted to go next, but he had no particular destination.

Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting decided to leave Zhao Kingdom and go overseas together, where they could avoid the kingdom’s political turmoil and live freely. Zhao Jingting agreed to follow her, embracing their relationship and the plan to elope.

• Zhao Jingting said he would follow Su Qiao, first explaining that she could treat his illness and then insisting she was his wife because he had given her a betrothal gift.
• Zhao Jingting promised to work hard, earn silver, and buy Su Qiao whatever she wanted.
• Su Qiao agreed to take Zhao Jingting with her and suggested they elope overseas to escape Zhao Kingdom’s turmoil and avoid trouble over his identity.
• Zhao Jingting readily agreed to go overseas with Su Qiao, despite knowing little about it.

Su Qiao told Zhao Jingting she wanted to travel overseas to find medicinal herbs and cure his illness, then admitted she liked him. The chapter ended with Zhao Jingting happily drinking the small portion of wine she allowed him.

• Su Qiao explained that rare overseas herbs might help repair the damage to Zhao Jingting's brain and nerves.
• Zhao Jingting asked why Su Qiao was so good to him, and she explained that she was grateful he had brought her father back alive.
• Su Qiao told Zhao Jingting she liked him, making him blush.
• Zhao Jingting asked for wine, and Su Qiao poured him only half a small bamboo cup.
• Zhao Jingting drank the wine in one gulp and savored the aftertaste.

Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting went hunting to stock food before the expected rain and brought two wild boars back to camp. Li Bingyi then assigned them and Uncle Ya to hunt instead of fetching water or chopping firewood.

• Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting retrieved their gear and headed into the woods to hunt, leaving Uncle Ya and Little Qingyang at camp.
• Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting tracked down a herd of wild boars and killed two animals.
• Zhao Jingting struggled to carry his boar, so Su Qiao quietly helped him lift it as they returned to camp.
• The camp residents cheered when Su Qiao and Zhao Jingting brought back the boars, which would help feed them through the coming rain.
• Li Bingyi excused Su Qiao, Zhao Jingting, and Uncle Ya from fetching water and chopping firewood and assigned them to hunting.