Chapter Summaries

After learning that the new emperor’s accession might weaken Empress Gao’s position, Li Qilang considered contacting his estranged family and coming out of hiding. When Zhou Shengchen departed for the capital, Li Qilang and Wang Yue set out for Qinghe to seek news of Cui Sanniang and Li Qilang’s daughter.

• Li Qilang asked Wang Yue whether he could send a letter to Cui Sanniang and his daughter, but Wang Yue warned that it could fall into the wrong hands.
• The Mole reported that the emperor had died and Cui Guang had enthroned Consort Qi’s son, Liu Hui; Wang Yue explained that Consort Qi and the Cui Clan might move against Empress Gao.
• Wang Yue urged Li Qilang to protect his health and revealed that his Secret Guards safeguarded the merchant guild and his other interests.
• Zhou Shengchen led three thousand soldiers from Xizhou to the capital to mourn the emperor, and Li Qilang and Wang Yue watched him depart.
• Li Qilang decided to wait before appearing publicly, but he and Wang Yue rode toward Qinghe hoping to contact Cui Sanniang and catch a glimpse of her.

Wang Yue tried to deliver Li Qilang’s letter to Cui Sanniang but could not get past the guards at the temple, where he saw Cui Shiyi and learned that her marriage had been arranged with the Crown Prince. He returned with a portrait of his daughter and news that she might travel to Xizhou to become Zhou Shengchen’s disciple.

• Wang Yue and Li Qilang entered Qinghe in disguise, and Li Qilang asked him to deliver a letter to Cui Sanniang without disturbing her.
• Wang Yue infiltrated the temple disguised as a young monk but could not reach Cui Sanniang’s quarters.
• Wang Yue saw Cui Shiyi in the garden, memorized her appearance, and learned that she was expected to become the Crown Princess and might travel to Xizhou to study under Zhou Shengchen.
• Wang Yue returned to the inn, drew Cui Shiyi’s portrait for Li Qilang, and told him what he had learned.
• Li Qilang treasured the portrait and wondered why Cui Guang would send Cui Shiyi to study under Zhou Shengchen, while Wang Yue suspected Cui Guang was trying to mend relations with the Nan Chen King’s Mansion.

Wang Yue and Li Qilang learned that Li Shiyi had been betrothed to Liu Zixing and resolved to build their strength in Xizhou so they could protect her. As Wang Yue's organizations expanded under the Little Nan Chen King's assumed protection, he became renowned as the Carefree Doctor Immortal.

• Wang Yue told Li Qilang that Cui Guang had betrothed Li Shiyi to Liu Zixing, and warned that the unstable succession put her in danger.
• Wang Yue persuaded Li Qilang to return to Xizhou and build their own strength as Li Shiyi's future backing.
• Wang Yue explained that the Gao Clan's destruction and Empress Dowager Gao's death damaged the imperial family's prestige and could spur unrest.
• Li Qilang commissioned a portrait of Cui Sanniang and resumed expanding the trade caravans as Wang Yue's Youjian Inn network and forces grew.
• Wang Yue and Li Qilang realized people assumed their organizations belonged to the Little Nan Chen King's household, allowing them to grow without interference.
• After treating an injured woodcutter and local villagers, Wang Yue became known as the Carefree Doctor Immortal, and his valley was called Carefree Valley.

Wang Yue used a Qi Men Dun Jia illusion formation to bring Li Qilang together with Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi as their party traveled to Xizhou. Li Qilang reunited with his wife and daughter, and Cui Shiyi began speaking again.

• Mole told Wang Yue and Li Qilang that Cui Sanniang, Cui Shiyi, and Cui Feng were traveling toward Xizhou with three thousand Cui Clan soldiers.
• Wang Yue explained that he had prepared an illusion formation so Li Qilang could see his wife and daughter, then rode with him to the woods where it was set.
• After Cui Feng's scouts passed, Wang Yue's men activated the formation, trapping the Cui Clan troops and making soldiers vanish from view.
• Two stones startled the horses pulling Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi's carriages, sending them bolting away from the soldiers and deeper into the woods.
• Li Qilang appeared before Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi; Cui Shiyi ran into his arms and spoke to him, while Cui Sanniang asked why he had been gone so long.
• Li Qilang explained that he had fainted after leaving Qinghe City and later reached Xizhou with Wang Yue, and he reassured Cui Sanniang that he had never blamed her.

Li Qilang reunited with Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi inside Wang Yue’s formation, and the family planned to meet again at Carefree Valley. After Wang Yue helped them leave without revealing Li Qilang, Cui Sanniang warned Shiyi to keep their reunion secret.

• Li Qilang and Cui Sanniang agreed that she and Cui Shiyi would visit Carefree Valley after paying their respects at the Nan Chen King's Mansion.
• Wang Yue revealed that the formation could last two hours and warned that Cui Feng was close to panicking himself into suicide.
• Cui Sanniang explained that Li Qilang could not openly accompany them, and Wang Yue suggested that the Cui family head be told Li Qilang now represented Carefree Valley and could offer a generous betrothal gift.
• Cui Shiyi recognized Wang Yue as the little monk who had tried to deliver them a letter and asked if she could visit Carefree Valley.
• Wang Yue and Li Qilang escorted Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi near Cui Feng, then escaped as Wang Yue lifted the formation.
• Cui Sanniang told Shiyi to tell no one about the reunion and to stay silent until she had seen her father again.

Wang Yue arranged for Li Qilang and Cui Sanniang to reunite, then asked Zhou Shengchen to act as matchmaker for them. Zhou Shengchen considered the request, and Wang Yue offered valuable gifts, including a method for improving iron weapons, to persuade him.

• Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi departed with Cui Feng after their journey was delayed, while Wang Yue and Li Qilang watched them go and discussed proposing to Sanniang.
• Wang Yue learned that Zhou Shengchen and a Cui Clan party were approaching Carefree Valley, then welcomed them at the entrance.
• Zhou Shengchen introduced Shiyi as his newly accepted disciple and asked Wang Yue to treat her supposed loss of speech.
• Wang Yue revealed Li Qilang, and he, Sanniang, and Shiyi reunited, curing Shiyi's supposed illness without medicine.
• Wang Yue asked Zhou Shengchen to propose to Cui Sanniang on Li Qilang's behalf and offered health-preserving exercises and ten thousand taels of gold.
• When Zhou Shengchen declined to involve his army's injured soldiers in the bargain, Wang Yue offered a method of smelting iron to improve weapons.

Wang Yue demonstrated Carefree Valley’s superior weapons to Zhou Shengchen and negotiated a weapons deal with the Western State army. Zhou Shengchen agreed to help arrange Cui Sanniang and Li Qilang’s marriage and left their daughter in the valley while he sought news from Grand Tutor Cui.

• Wang Yue took Zhou Shengchen outside and claimed that Carefree Valley’s weapons were all divine weapons.
• Hamster sparred with Feng Qiao and cut her sword in two, after which Zhou Shengchen approved her taking Hamster’s sword.
• Hamster became infatuated with Feng Qiao, and Zhou Shengchen privately considered using a beauty trap to lure a skilled fighter from Carefree Valley.
• Wang Yue and Zhou Shengchen agreed that Carefree Valley would forge weapons for the Western State army using iron supplied by the government.
• Wang Yue said he would expand his merchant caravans or offer other concessions if needed to secure the marriage alliance for Li Qilang.
• Zhou Shengchen promised to write to Grand Tutor Cui about the marriage and asked for Li Qilang’s daughter to stay in the valley while he sought an answer.

Wang Yue welcomed the Cui family into Carefree Valley, while Zhou Shengchen helped secure Li Qilang and Cui Sanniang’s marriage and tied the valley to the Nan Chen King’s Mansion. As unrest spread, Cui Shiyi grew attached to the mansion and its people, and Wang Yue’s free clinic earned her admiration.

• Wang Yue brought Li Qilang, Cui Sanniang, Cui Shiyi, and Cui Feng from the guest courtyard to his manor in the peach grove, where the Cui family stayed for two days.
• When Feng Qiao arrived with a painter to make Cui Shiyi’s portrait, Wang Yue questioned whether she should marry into Li Qilang’s family, but Cui Shiyi agreed because she wished to repay the Cui family.
• Zhou Shengchen sent Cui Guang a letter, and Cui Guang agreed to Li Qilang and Cui Sanniang’s marriage; their wedding, attended by the Little Nan Chen King as matchmaker, formally linked Carefree Valley with the Nan Chen King’s Mansion.
• As Zhou Shengchen and his disciples campaigned amid growing unrest, Cui Shiyi often visited her parents and read in Carefree Valley’s library, while Wang Yue worried about her attachment to the mansion.
• After Cui Shiyi found Wang Yue holding a free clinic, she praised him for helping the people and said she admired him.

Wang Yue divided his businesses with Li Qilang after Cui Sanniang joined the trading company, then expanded Carefree Valley and found a new source of income through glassware. Later, he went with Hamster to seek General Feng and encountered Zhou Shengchen and others near Jialan Temple, where he hinted that he was thinking of a tragic love story.

• Li Qilang told Wang Yue that Cui Sanniang wanted to join the trading company, and Wang Yue gave Li Qilang the company and soap workshop while keeping the inn and its intelligence network.
• Li Qilang accepted the separation and settled in Xizhou City, while Cui Sanniang took over the trading company and regretted the split after learning how much Wang Yue had given them.
• Wang Yue recalled the caravan guards to Carefree Valley, began building walls, barracks, and large workshops, and made a fortune producing glassware.
• Hamster told Wang Yue that General Feng had returned and wanted to see her, so Wang Yue set out with Hamster and Rat for the Little Nan Chen King's Mansion.
• Wang Yue and his companions encountered Zhou Shengchen near Jialan Temple, where they also met Feng Qiao and Cui Feng among the people gathered by the temple.
• Wang Yue said he had been thinking of a tragic love story, prompting the others to ask him to tell it.

Wang Yue told Zhou Shengchen and the others a tragic wartime love story and recited a poem about the suffering of ordinary people, then decided to help refugees by offering them work building a city near Carefree Valley. Hamster learned the song “Fireworks Are Cold” to court Feng Qiao, while Wang Yue entered the temple to watch a monk’s ordination and was surprised by what he saw.

• Wang Yue told a story about a general and the woman who waited for him, then recited a poem that moved Zhou Shengchen and the others.
• Wang Yue agreed to teach Hamster the song “Fireworks Are Cold,” and Hamster learned it so he could play it for Feng Qiao.
• Wang Yue ordered Mole to arrange for refugees to build a city near Carefree Valley in exchange for food and housing.
• Hamster rode off to find Feng Qiao, while Wang Yue and Mole walked around the temple and saw monks sheltering refugees.
• Wang Yue met Cui Shiyi and Zhou Shengchen, who went to listen to Hamster play the song for Feng Qiao.
• Wang Yue watched a monk’s head being shaved and asked why the old monk had not burned precepts onto the new monk’s scalp.

Wang Yue met the newly ordained monk Xiao Yan and learned that he had once been Southern Xiao’s Second Prince, though he was not the emperor’s biological son. After Wang Yue defeated the men pursuing Xiao Yan, the Little Nan Chen King arrived and said he could only report Xiao Yan’s case to the emperor, leaving Xiao Yan’s fate undecided.

• Wang Yue introduced himself to Xiao Yan, who recognized his resemblance to an old acquaintance and revealed that he had once been Southern Xiao’s Second Prince.
• Four men attacked Wang Yue, and he defeated them after Xiao Yan explained they had come to take him back.
• Xiao Yan told Wang Yue that the Southern Xiao Emperor had killed his father and that he sought revenge, while Wang Yue offered to help him reach the Little Nan Chen King.
• Wang Yue defeated the four men again with Lingbo Weibu, and the Little Nan Chen King arrived with his party.
• Hamster accepted a position as a Flank General under Feng Qiao and hurried after her.
• Wang Yue asked the Little Nan Chen King to spare Xiao Yan, but Zhou Shengchen said he could only report Xiao Yan’s identity to the emperor.

Wang Yue traveled to Qinghe to help Li Qilang and Cui Sanniang’s family, treating Cui Guang and offering him a chance to prolong his life. While Wang Yue searched for clues about his past, his forces helped restore order in the capital, and political maneuvering resulted in his appointment as governor of Southern Qingzhou and his betrothal to Cui Shiyi.

• Wang Yue learned that Li Qilang planned to accompany Cui Sanniang and Cui Shiyi to Qinghe, so he offered to go with them and help Cui Guang.
• Wang Yue examined Cui Guang, gave him a life-extending pill, and warned him that rest and restraint could help him live several more years.
• Wang Yue searched Qinghe for memories of his origins but found no clues.
• Hamster used Wang Yue’s warrant to coordinate with Zhou Shengchen’s army, capture Liu Yuan with Feng Qiao, and defeat the generals defending the capital.
• Cui Guang and the court arranged for Wang Yue to become governor of Southern Qingzhou, then dissolved Cui Shiyi’s betrothal to the Crown Prince and arranged her marriage to Wang Yue.

Wang Yue accepted Cui Guang’s plan to marry him to Cui Shiyi and considered how to build his influence while governing Qinghe Commandery. After Cui Shiyi challenged him to stop wasting his abilities, he promised to make Southern Qingzhou prosperous and admitted he was willing to give up his carefree life for her.

• Cui Guang explained that he had ended Cui Shiyi’s engagement to the Crown Prince and wanted her to marry Wang Yue, citing Wang Yue’s abilities and loyalty to those who helped him.
• Wang Yue and Cui Guang discussed Zhou Shengchen, Northern Chen’s stability, and Wang Yue’s plans to train troops and govern Qinghe Commandery.
• Wang Yue recalled the strategy of building strength gradually and hinted to Cui Guang that he might eventually seek greater power; Cui Guang offered his support.
• Cui Shiyi visited Wang Yue and asked whether he was willing to marry her, then urged him to use his abilities to protect the people.
• Cui Shiyi challenged Wang Yue to make Southern Qingzhou as prosperous as Western State before coming to fetch her, and Wang Yue promised to do so.
• Wang Yue told Cui Shiyi he understood Cui Guang’s marriage arrangement was meant to secure the Cui family’s future, and admitted he was willing to accept the trap for her.

Wang Yue unified Southern Qingzhou under his command and brought the province peace and prosperity. After Cui Shiyi sent him a love letter, he prepared to travel to Xizhou to marry her and visit Li Qilang.

• Cui Shiyi agreed to marry Wang Yue if he made Southern Qingzhou peaceful and prosperous, with her brothers sending her regular reports.
• Wang Yue brought in troops from Xizhou, defeated the city lords who resisted his authority, and unified Southern Qingzhou.
• Wang Yue's disciplined army won the people's support, and Cui Guang's health improved as the Cui Clan's standing rose.
• Cui Shiyi sent Wang Yue a love letter, and he learned she had been visiting the library in Carefree Valley.
• Wang Yue ordered Hamster to prepare five thousand troops to travel to Xizhou and bring Cui Shiyi back, despite Hamster's objections.
• Wang Yue also resolved to visit Li Qilang, whose health had suffered after Cui Shiyi postponed the wedding.

Wang Yue led his wedding procession toward Western State, rescued Yongzhou from rebels, and continued west with an enlarged army. He reached Carefree City, where he met Feng Qiao and Hamster, and learned the Little Nan Chen King was still away on campaign.

• Hamster took five thousand elite soldiers with Wang Yue toward Western State, and the city lords along their route feared Southern Qingzhou might join forces with Western State.
• A bloodied officer asked Wang Yue to save Yongzhou, so Wang Yue ordered his troops to remove their wedding silks and prepare for battle.
• Wang Yue charged the rebels’ command center, killed their commander, and broke the siege; his army gathered surrendering soldiers afterward.
• Zhou Tianxing and General Yang Shao thanked Wang Yue for saving Yongzhou, and Wang Yue explained he was traveling to bring Cui Shiyi to Qinghe for their wedding.
• Wang Yue continued west with the surrendered troops, and his force grew to more than ten thousand before reaching Carefree City.
• Feng Qiao and Hamster met Wang Yue outside Carefree City, and Feng Qiao said the Little Nan Chen King was still on campaign but should return soon.

Wang Yue reunited with Cui Shiyi in Xiaoyao City, then went to negotiate for Zhou Tianxing, whom Yang Shao had taken hostage. Wang Yue rescued Zhou Tianxing and captured Yang Shao, though Cui Feng questioned the risk he had taken.

• Feng Qiao explained that Cui Shiyi was in Xiaoyao City, and Wang Yue rode there with her and Hamster.
• Wang Yue and Cui Shiyi reunited atop the city wall, shared their feelings, and toured Xiaoyao City as he met with officials.
• Cui Feng and Hong Xiaoyu told Wang Yue that Yang Shao had taken Zhou Tianxing hostage in exchange for Liu Changshan, and Wang Yue agreed to intervene.
• At the river, Yang Shao refused Wang Yue's offer and said he wanted to join Southern Xiao to repay Liu Changshan.
• Wang Yue attacked, forcing Yang Shao to release Zhou Tianxing, then pursued and captured him.
• Cui Feng complained that Wang Yue had acted too hastily, while Mole argued Yang Shao would not have harmed Zhou Tianxing.

Wang Yue prepared to move his army from Xizhou to Southern Qingzhou, arranged for Carefree Valley’s defense and supplies, and secretly marched toward Central Prefecture. Near the Yellow River, scouts spotted an enemy ambush, and Wang Yue set a plan to attack it from both sides.

• Wang Yue agreed that Cui Feng and Hong Xiaoyu would travel with his army, while he planned to take over forty thousand soldiers and make room for their families in Southern Qingzhou or Xizhou.
• Wang Yue ordered Carefree Valley’s mountain approaches fortified and told Mole to secure enough grain for fifty thousand people for more than two years.
• Wang Yue, Mole, Cui Feng, Hong Xiaoyu, Xiao Yan, the Li family, and their troops set off for Central Prefecture with Yang Shao under guard.
• Wang Yue’s army secretly crossed Yongzhou and approached the Yellow River, where a scout reported a possible ambush of up to fifty or sixty thousand troops on the eastern bank.
• Wang Yue ordered Mole to take thirty thousand troops upstream, cross the river, and flank the enemy while Wang Yue engaged them.

Wang Yue’s army defeated an ambush on the Yellow River and traced the attackers to Jin Rong, prompting suspicions of a palace conspiracy. Yang Shao admitted his ties to the Jin family and asked Hong Xiaoyu to release Liu Changshan; the group decided to return to Xizhou to consult the Nan Chen King.

• Wang Yue led his cavalry across the Yellow River, killed the enemy commander, and surrounded the attackers while Hamster cut off their reinforcements and pursued the fleeing infantry.
• Hong Xiaoyu, Cui Feng, and Wang Yue discussed possible motives for the ambush, including an attempt to seize Yang Shao and Liu Changshan and provoke conflict between Southern Qingzhou and Xizhou.
• Wang Yue’s informants identified the attackers as troops belonging to Jin Rong, and Wang Yue and Cui Feng suspected the Crown Prince and Consort Jin had joined forces against them.
• Yang Shao admitted that he had joined Jin Rong’s side and had sought Liu Changshan’s military tally, then asked to have Liu released so he could repay his debt.
• Wang Yue deferred the decision to Hong Xiaoyu, and Cui Feng proposed returning to Xizhou to consult the Nan Chen King before continuing to Southern Qingzhou.

Wang Yue and Shiyi married despite the Empress Dowager’s attempt to annul their engagement, while news of a palace crisis sharpened the threat to their plans. An imperial decree later ordered Wang Yue to divorce Shiyi, giving him an unexpected excuse to expand his power.

• Cui Feng promised Shiyi he would attend her wedding, then left for Xizhou with Hong Xiaoyu while Wang Yue explained why he would not defend Yang Shao.
• Wang Yue warned Shiyi that the Empress Dowager was dangerous, and Cui Guang revealed the emperor might be under house arrest, General Qin had defected, and Advisor Xie had been imprisoned.
• Cui Guang urged Wang Yue and Shiyi to marry quickly, and Wang Yue agreed to remain in Southern Qingzhou as long as Zhou Shengchen lived.
• Wang Yue’s wedding procession crossed paths with riders carrying an imperial decree, and he arranged for them to be delayed so he could marry Shiyi without disruption.
• After the wedding, a messenger delivered a decree ordering Wang Yue to divorce Shiyi, and Wang Yue saw it as a convenient excuse to pursue greater power.

Wang Yue used the Empress Dowager’s edict to conquer the former Qingzhou lands, build up his army, and establish himself as King of Qingzhou. As the court descended into crisis and Zhou Shengchen’s next move remained uncertain, Wang Yue told Cui Shiyi he could avoid fighting her master by marching against Southern Xiao.

• Wang Yue detained the edict-bearing eunuch, conquered the former Qingzhou lands, and circulated the edict to justify taking the post of Qingzhou Prefect.
• The Empress Dowager learned that Xie Chong had died in prison, killed the imprisoned Emperor, and arranged for Consort Jiang to give birth to a prince; Qin Yan escaped toward Western Prefecture.
• Wang Yue absorbed surrendered troops, expanded his army to nearly five hundred thousand, prepared Qingzhou for war, and spread his policies through the newly acquired territory.
• Cui Shiyi worried that Zhou Shengchen might be sent to attack Qingzhou, and Wang Yue explained that a standoff could keep her master safer amid the struggle for Central Prefecture.
• Wang Yue proposed marching south under Xiao Yan’s banner and using Qingzhou’s fleet and land forces to seize Southern Xiao’s Yan prefectures, with Jiankang as a possible target.