Recaps

After realizing she had landed in the body of a condemned girl in conquered Sun Country, Shen Tang learned from Zixu that she had entered the body’s dying dream rather than traveled back in time. Zixu needed three days to recover before Shen Tang could return, leaving her to keep the body alive among the exiled prisoners.

• Shen Tang questioned the shackled prisoners and learned that Sun Country had fallen to Qu Country, ruled by Zhai Xiaofang.
• Shen Tang discovered the body was malnourished and losing its hair, then shared food with a hungry girl and heard why the prisoners had been exiled.
• Shen Tang praised Zhai Xiaofang’s appeal policy but recognized that local officials were failing to carry it out fairly.
• Zixu told Shen Tang that Kang Jishou and Gu Chi’s Way of the Scholar had trapped it in the dying body’s dream, and that the original owner had died of heatstroke and hunger.
• Zixu refused to return to the Literary Palace and told Shen Tang she would have to wait three days before she could go back.

Shen Tang traveled down the mountain with a young prisoner and encountered a red-robed girl from the State of Qu, whose arrow she caught. After Shen Tang narrowly avoided meeting her old friend Zhai Xiaofang, the girl told her father, the Sovereign of Qu, about the powerful strangers she had met.

• Shen Tang released the prisoners but kept the young man as her guide, then climbed and sang through the woods.
• Shen Tang caught an arrow marked with the character "Zhai" and met a red-robed girl with armed attendants, who apologized for mistaking her singing for strange monkey cries.
• The young man guessed that the girl was connected to the State of Qu's ruling family, and Shen Tang recognized her as the child of her old friend Zhai Xiaofang.
• Shen Tang subdued a wild boar and rode it down the mountain, avoiding the main path as she tried not to encounter Zhai Xiaofang.
• The Sovereign of Qu recalled riding a boar with a friend after hearing about Shen Tang, while his daughter described the stranger who had effortlessly caught her arrow.

The Man in tight clothes reassured his daughter that her succession was secure despite the Queen’s pregnancy, then secretly investigated Shen Tang and her companion. Shen Tang headed toward a city with the young man and planned to raise money by robbing bandits or thieves, leaving their next move undecided.

• The Man in tight clothes praised the Girl in red robe’s caution and invited her to compete with him at hunting.
• The Man in tight clothes recalled the Queen’s unexpected pregnancy, Yu Hai’s advice to let the child be born, and his public reaffirmation of the Crown Princess as heir.
• The Man in tight clothes ordered an investigation into Shen Tang and the young man after learning they had encountered his daughter.
• Shen Tang and the young man rode toward a city so they could find lodging and register their identities.
• Shen Tang proposed robbing bandits to get start-up money, and the young man warned her that bandits within a hundred li were off-limits.
• Shen Tang refused to sell Boar Number Two and suggested targeting pickpockets in town instead.

Shen Tang saved the badly beaten Zi Kuan after his closest friend You Rong begged her for help, then offered both men a place in her plans to build a business. Zi Kuan agreed to stay, and Shen Tang brought him medicine bought with money she earned by selling a secret recipe for safe contraceptives.

• A bearded man mistook Zi Kuan for a thief and beat him nearly to death, while the constables left him for dead.
• You Rong recognized Zi Kuan and begged Shen Tang to save him, offering his own life in exchange.
• Shen Tang used martial energy to stabilize Zi Kuan, then told You Rong she would look after his friend and offered them work once he recovered.
• You Rong explained that Zi Kuan had suffered Dantian Destruction Punishment and had once been the academy's most praised student.
• After waking at night, Zi Kuan heard what had happened and agreed that he and You Rong might as well stay with Shen Tang.
• Shen Tang delivered top-quality medicine and explained that she had obtained money by selling an apothecary her secret recipe for safe contraceptives.

Shen Tang treated Xiahou Yu and Gu De while trying to recruit them, and Gu De revealed how their homeland fell and how Xiahou Yu lost his Literary Heart. Xiahou Yu suspected Shen Tang was not who she appeared to be and decided to recover so he could help her and remove Gu De’s seal.

• Shen Tang bought medicine for Xiahou Yu and pressed him to recover so he could work for her, while Gu De warned her that dealing with wealthy patrons could be dangerous.
• Xiahou Yu introduced himself and Gu De, and Gu De explained how Xiahou Yu had taken responsibility for students who opposed their royal court’s alliance with Qu Country, leading to his Dantian Destruction Punishment.
• Gu De recounted how Qu Country had swallowed their homeland and described how his teacher had raised him before burning down the academy; Shen Tang gave him a flimsy false name when he asked about her past.
• After Shen Tang left to collect the balance for her appointment, Xiahou Yu told Gu De he suspected she was not the original and considered whether helping her could restore his Literary Heart.
• Xiahou Yu resolved to recover and find a way to undo Gu De’s seal, despite Gu De warning him not to risk trusting Shen Tang.

Xiahou Yu told Gu De he wanted to rebuild Quqing Academy, and Gu De was moved despite his doubts about the National Seal. Shen Tang met Zhai Le while posing as a healer with a secret contraceptive formula, and Zhai Le began investigating her and Gu De.

• Xiahou Yu admitted that hardship had changed his understanding of ordinary people's lives and proposed rebuilding Quqing Academy with Gu De.
• Shen Tang went to a pharmacy and convinced Zhai Le's subordinate that she was an Xinglin Physician's granddaughter who could provide a contraceptive formula.
• Zhai Le met Shen Tang at the training ground, where she recognized him as Silly Chun and offered a method using martial energy to prevent conception.
• Zhai Le accepted the method, promised Shen Tang double the reward she requested, and ordered an investigation after noticing she had not paid her respects.
• Zhai Le reviewed the information on Shen Tang and Gu De, recognized the name Gu You Rong, and recalled Xiahou Zi Kuan.

Zhai Le recalled how Gu De and Xiahou Yu had helped him years ago, but decided to eliminate them rather than risk leaving enemies alive. He then ordered Shen Tang’s disguised identity investigated and targeted, while Shen Tang celebrated receiving a reward that would not go toward her debts.

• Zhai Le remembered Qu Country’s past humiliations at the Mountain Sea Sacred Land and how Gu De and Xiahou Yu had intervened to calm the scholars and help him.
• Zhai Le learned that Gu De had rejected offers to serve in government and that a Qu Country envoy had once been beaten after Quqing Academy students took action.
• Zhai Le weighed his debt of gratitude to Gu De and Xiahou Yu against their political threat, then ordered his confidant to ensure they were killed cleanly.
• Zhai Le read the report about Shen Tang’s impoverished disguise and suspected Gu De and Xiahou Yu had invented her medical heritage, then ordered her identity dealt with.
• Shen Tang happily collected a double reward that would not be deducted from her debt, then worried that Zhai Le might try to take it back.

Shen Tang rescued Gu De and Xiahou Yu from assassins sent by Zhai Xiaofang, then confronted Zhai Le outside the city. She learned that Xiahou Yu and Gu De came from Quqing Academy, while Zhai Le warned her against taking them in.

• Shen Tang hurried back with the reward money, evaded street thugs, and returned to the courtyard where Gu De and Xiahou Yu were staying.
• When assassins attacked, Shen Tang defeated five of them and confronted Zhai Le, who agreed to settle their conflict outside the city.
• Shen Tang summoned her Martial Gall Totem to treat Xiahou Yu and accompany him and Gu De while she pursued Zhai Le.
• Shen Tang and Zhai Le exchanged arrows and fought, but Zhai Le recognized her and demanded an explanation for her presence in Qu Country.
• Shen Tang said she intended to take Xiahou Yu and Gu De under her wing, and Zhai Le warned that both men came from Quqing Academy.

Shen Tang and Zhai Le discussed Quqing Academy and learned how its leaders manipulated Mountain Sea Sacred Land places and built an influential academic clique. After Zhai Le revealed the academy had burned down amid his conflict with its headmaster, Shen Tang asked Xiahou Yu and Gu De what they thought, leaving their future with her uncertain.

• Shen Tang asked Zhai Le about Quqing Academy, and they joked over wine and his proposal to arrange a marriage between their children.
• Zhai Le explained that Quqing Academy received fifty Mountain Sea Sacred Land places and had used its influence to reserve opportunities for its students and royal heirs.
• Shen Tang recognized Quqing Academy as a powerful academic clique and suggested that bringing it under a royal court could address its control of the places.
• Zhai Le admitted that the academy's headmaster had set fire to Quqing Academy and died there after Zhai Le threatened to absorb it into Qu.
• Zhai Le warned Xiahou Yu and Gu De that Quqing Academy's students could face hostility, then cautioned Shen Tang not to repeat the academy's mistakes by taking them in.

Shen Tang and Zhai Le reunited and argued over Quqing Academy, while Zhai Le warned that it could not be rebuilt in the Southeast Continent. Shen Tang’s group decided to head for the central region, but after three days her incarnation was pulled away and Zixu regained control of the body.

• Shen Tang rejected Zhai Le’s attempt to sow discord, and Zhai Le explained why Quqing Academy had become a target of the Southeast Continent’s countries.
• Zhai Le and Xiahou Yu clashed over the use of power, but Shen Tang calmed Zhai Le and sent him off with wine.
• Gu De recognized Shen Tang as Shen Youli despite never having heard of her, and Shen Tang’s group chose to travel to the central part of the continent.
• Jimò Qiu suggested Qi Country, then revealed that its former source of strength had died because of his [Anointing].
• On the third day, Shen Tang suffered World Spinning, so Jimò Qiu released the summons and Zixu resumed control while Benevolent Thought said Shen Tang had probably been intercepted.

Chu Yao and Gu Chi learned that Shen Tang had apparently found several new people, while a report from Shang Nan called for help after Qi Zhongshu fell ill. Shen Tang awakened in a slave market in another body, killed her captors, and stopped a Cui convoy after recognizing its markings, where a familiar woman's voice intervened.

• Kind Intent told Chu Yao and Gu Chi that Shen Tang had found people resembling Chu Yao, Qi Yuanliang, and Gu Chi, leaving the group bewildered.
• An envoy from Shang Nan reported that Qi Zhongshu had fallen into a river and developed a high fever, then asked Chu Yao to send help.
• Shen Tang awakened in a slave market, learned that the body she inhabited had been abused, and killed the old woman and old man who had tormented her.
• Shen Tang killed the slave market's thugs, left its money for the other captives, and traveled out of town to learn about the surrounding war.
• Shen Tang recognized Cui Kewu's carriage markings and deliberately obstructed the Cui convoy, but a literary qi barrier stopped her before she could reach the central carriage.
• A familiar woman's voice called for the guard to wait as he moved to seize Shen Tang.

Shen Tang joined the Cui family’s traveling party under the name Shen Zhongli and reached a city with them. The young man learned his father had deceived him about his mother’s departure, while the tense reunion ended with a palace attendant summoning Lord Cui to see the Sovereign.

• A woman invited Shen Tang to work as a maid for her daughter, and Shen Tang joined the party traveling to Cheng County’s neighboring city.
• The woman reunited with her eldest son, who recalled believing his father had caused her death before learning that she had left by choice.
• The woman revealed that Lord Cui had pretended to be drunk and claimed she still loved someone else, leaving her son shocked that he had believed the story for years.
• The woman explained that she had returned to investigate her son’s prospective bride and visit her mother, then criticized Lord Cui for spending time with the Sovereign.
• Shen Tang gave the name Shen Zhongli, prompting Lord Cui to question her surname and the woman to mock his suspicions.
• A palace attendant met the party and told Lord Cui that the Sovereign requested his presence.

Cui Hui reunited with Shen Tang in Qi Country, while Shen Tang learned that Cui Hui’s former husband and the Sovereign of Qi Country might be at odds. The Cui clan Patriarch was summoned to a tense meeting with the Sovereign, who confronted him with an unexplained scroll.

• The eunuch summoned the Cui clan Patriarch to the Sovereign, and he left after warning the eunuch against insulting his wife, Cui Hui.
• After the Patriarch departed, his son ordered a hidden guard to kill the eunuch, while Cui Hui and Shen Tang secretly overheard him.
• Cui Hui explained that she had mistaken Shen Tang for Miao Ne and believed her former husband was keeping her in Qi Country because the Sovereign might use her as leverage.
• Shen Tang revealed that she was Shen Youli, and Cui Hui warned her that she was in danger among the Cui clan.
• At the Sovereign’s meeting, a general accused the Cui clan Patriarch of secretly defying the Sovereign, and the Sovereign silenced them before presenting him with a scroll.

The Sovereign used Zhao’s death and a private letter to pressure the Cui family head into helping fund her plans, while he accused her of harming his friend and manipulating him. After he left, Shen Tang told Cui Hui that the Sovereign had sent him a pile of cosmetics, which Cui Hui recognized as another reminder that her ex-husband remained youthful.

• The general and Mei Jinghe accused the Cui family head of aiding Zhao and obstructing the Sovereign’s land survey and seed-lending plans, while he denied the charges.
• The Sovereign warned the Cui family head that she could punish him, then asked him to persuade the great clans to lend money; he agreed to do his best.
• The Sovereign revealed she knew he had visited Cui Hui, and later asked him whether he resented her for bringing Cui Hui back and for Zhao’s death.
• The Cui family head accused the Sovereign of using the same underhanded tactics she had once used to seize power, then left after saying he resented her.
• The Sovereign sent the Cui family head a pile of rouge and face powder, and Cui Hui told Shen Tang that he would use it because he was obsessed with cosmetics.

Cui Hui explained why she had left her marriage and why she had returned to Qi Country, while Shen Tang listened. The Cui clan head revealed that Zhao Jun had been sacrificed and that Qi Yuanliang had once searched for Cui Hui, ending with Cui Hui reminding her ex-husband that they had divorced.

• Cui Hui told Shen Tang that the Cui clan’s prejudice and pressure to make room for the Sovereign had driven her to leave her marriage, though she had feared she could not survive outside the household.
• Cui Hui explained that she accepted the dangerous assignment to pursue her own cultivation and independence rather than rely on her ex-husband or anyone else.
• The Cui clan head carried the apparently drunk Cui Hui inside, where she revealed she had only pretended to be drunk and threw a jade pillow at him.
• The Cui clan head told Cui Hui that Zhao Jun had been abandoned and killed after the Zhao clan’s collateral branch prevailed with the Sovereign’s backing.
• The Cui clan head revealed that Qi Yuanliang had searched for Cui Hui years earlier, and Cui Hui admitted they had history while insisting he had owed her.
• Cui Hui accused the Cui clan head of testing her, but he said he had only been concerned about her and Qi Yuanliang; she reminded him they were divorced.

Cui Hui reunited with her sons and learned that Cui Zhishan was quietly protecting them, while the Sovereign considered a marriage alliance with the Cui family. The Sovereign joked about spreading a rumor that her unborn child belonged to Cui Zhishan, then turned her attention to Mei Jinghe’s poor health.

• Cui Hui challenged Cui Zhishan over his jealousy and insisted that their divorce gave him no right to control her life.
• Cui Hui’s sons visited to discuss matchmaking, and she learned that Cui Zhishan had been interfering to protect them from failed marriage arrangements.
• Cui Hui questioned her sons about their preferences and discovered that her younger son dreamed of a woman rescuing him from his family.
• The Sovereign learned that Cui Zhishan’s younger son had killed a eunuch who had summoned his father, and ordered Mei Jinghe to preserve the evidence for possible future use.
• The Sovereign discussed marrying one of her daughters to a Cui son, joked about claiming her unborn child was Cui Zhishan’s, and asked Mei Jinghe why her hands were cold.

The Sovereign worried that Mei Meng was hiding something about her repeated attempts to perfect the Way of the Scholar, while a male favorite sought royal approval for his niece to marry Cui Zhishan’s eldest son. Meanwhile, Cui Zhishan investigated Shen Tang and discovered that Cui Hui had slipped away with her and his younger son, who had become enamored with Shen Tang.

• The Sovereign urged Mei Meng to recover and questioned her resolve to attempt the Perfection Ritual again, but Mei Meng insisted she would pursue it despite the danger.
• A male favorite asked the Sovereign to arrange his niece’s marriage to Cui Zhishan’s eldest son, and she ordered the niece to come to the palace for an audience after striking him.
• Cui Zhishan questioned his eldest son, then read secret reports about Shen Tang, Mei Jinghe, and Qi Yuanliang before destroying the intelligence.
• Cui Zhishan learned that Cui Hui and her party had disappeared after his informants lost track of them.
• Cui Hui’s younger son asked Shen Tang to persuade his mother to return, while Cui Hui wondered why he had suddenly grown so attached to Shen Tang.

Cui Mi revealed his unusual ability to Cui Hui and became infatuated with Shen Tang, while a carriage encounter led Shen Tang to reunite with Miao Ne in disguise. Shen Tang instructed Miao Ne to use her new identity to gain the Sovereign of Qi Country’s trust and replace Mei Jinghe, leaving Miao Ne worried that her planned marriage alliance would harm a colleague’s grandson.

• Cui Hui discovered that Cui Mi could see fragmentary images through people’s auras, and he confessed that he had seen Shen Tang’s violent prowess and wanted to pursue her.
• Cui Mi defended Shen Tang and Cui Hui when a carriage nearly struck them, then a young noblewoman apologized and left behind a Jade Pendant.
• Shen Tang followed the Jade Pendant to the noblewoman’s residence and learned that the woman was Miao Ne, who had borrowed an identity in order to approach the Sovereign of Qi Country.
• Miao Ne explained that her assumed identity was the niece of the Sovereign’s favorite male companion and was meant to pursue a marriage alliance with Cui Xiong.
• Shen Tang warned Miao Ne to avoid Cui Mi and instructed her to pledge allegiance to the Sovereign, restrain the Cui clan, and replace Mei Jinghe.
• Miao Ne worried that forming a marriage alliance with the Cui clan would mean harming her colleague’s grandson.

Shen Tang tasked Miao Ne with undermining Qi Country’s influence in the Southwest while urging her to protect her identity and life. After Miao Ne won the Sovereign’s favor and became a female official, Shen Tang was exposed by Cui Zhi, then claimed she served Qi Shan and provoked him over his attentions to Cui Hui.

• Shen Tang told Miao Ne that Kang Country could take the Southwest within three years and explained that her mission was to hinder Qi Country’s expansion and divide its allies.
• Shen Tang warned Miao Ne to retreat and stay alive if exposed, and arranged for her to contact the avatar Non-Self or Liao Jia for support.
• Miao Ne met her uncle and persuaded the Sovereign with her bold views on women and her ambition to marry Cui Houbai; the Sovereign kept her at court as a female official.
• Cui Zhi privately confronted Shen Tang, accusing her of being a northern spy, and Shen Tang claimed she was escorting Cui Hui under orders from her patriarch, Qi Shan.
• Shen Tang provoked Cui Zhi by defending Qi Shan’s interest in Cui Hui and criticizing Cui Zhi for failing to protect his former wife.

Shen Tang deflected Cui Zhi’s suspicions and rejected Cui Mi’s romantic advances while Cui Hui dealt with her family’s tangled relationships. The chapter ended with Shen Tang waking in the former Gao Country’s Capital City, relieved to have returned to her own identity.

• Shen Tang provoked Cui Zhi and claimed Cui Hui might settle in Kang Country, easing his suspicions by presenting herself as a suitor’s bodyguard rather than a spy.
• Cui Mi proposed eloping with Shen Tang, but she rejected him by explaining that she was devoted to supporting an indebted old man.
• Cui Hui heard Shen Tang turn down Cui Mi, then visited her mother, who said she had no intention of reconciling with Cui Hui’s father.
• Cui Mi told Cui Xiong he suspected Shen Tang’s identity and chose not to tell their father, then agreed to go fishing with him.
• Shen Tang woke in a military tent in the former Gao Country’s Capital City and rejoiced that she was back.

Shen Tang discovered she could remotely connect to Zixu and Wuyou, learning what her avatars were doing and hearing Cui Mi describe how his visions of the future had changed. The chapter left Cui Mi wondering whether his own fate had changed as well.

• Shen Tang woke after You Li had controlled her body for several days, then discovered she could hear and see through Zixu at a distant riverside.
• Shen Tang learned that Zixu, Xiahou Yu, and Gu De had been traveling, defeating bandits, rescuing captives, and gathering supplies.
• Shen Tang switched to Wuyou and spoke with Cui Mi at the Cui family's matchmaking banquet, where Miao Ne was talking with Cui Xiong.
• Cui Mi told Shen Tang that fortune-tellers had predicted his early death and that he had long seen visions of the catastrophe that would kill him and his family.
• Cui Mi explained that his actions had altered the future he saw for Cui Xiong, and he wondered whether his own fate was changing too.

Cui Hui confronted Cui Zhi over Cui Xiong’s betrothal to a daughter of the You family, then privately gave Miao Ne something to help her gain the Sovereign’s trust. Shen Tang returned to camp, found Gongxi Chou collecting strange bugs, and learned they had come out of someone’s anus.

• Cui Hui staged an angry confrontation with Cui Zhi over Cui Xiong’s proposed betrothal to a daughter of the You family, and Cui Zhi explained the alliance was a political delaying tactic.
• Cui Xiong promised to protect the You family’s daughter if they proved incompatible, while Cui Mi stayed silent about the dangerous future he had foreseen.
• Cui Hui met Miao Ne privately and gave her something connected to the Cui family to help her rise in the Sovereign’s favor.
• Cui Hui asked Miao Ne to spare Cui Xiong’s life while teaching him how cruel people could be.
• Shen Tang woke, got lost on her way to the dining hall, and found Gongxi Chou gathering bugs on the High Priest’s orders.
• Gongxi Chou told Shen Tang the bugs had come out of someone’s anus.

Qi Miao investigated worm infestations among refugees and began researching a treatment for roundworms, with Shen Tang supporting her efforts. Shen Tang learned that wormwood grew on the Gongxi Clan Land, where the High Priest had gone with a thousand people to retrieve an inheritance for her.

• Gongxi Chou told Shen Tang that Qi Miao had bought and dissected eight children’s bodies, finding worms in nearly all of them.
• Qi Miao explained that contaminated water, especially water containing river-snail eggs, likely caused many infestations, and she asked Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu to help investigate.
• Shen Tang supported Qi Miao’s research and offered funding through the Medical Bureau, while Qi Miao sought wormwood to improve a roundworm treatment.
• Shen Tang said wormwood might grow in the Northern Desert and suggested Qi Miao ask Wei Yuanyuan if needed.
• Gongxi Chou revealed that the High Priest had found wormwood on the Gongxi Clan Land and had gone there with a thousand people to retrieve an inheritance for Shen Tang.

Shen Tang learned that Jimò Qiu would give her the Gongxi Clan’s wealth, mugwort seeds for deworming medicine, and help producing diamonds, then began planning how to turn the opportunities into revenue for Kang Country. The chapter left her and Xun Zhen discussing whether to use the clan estate to address the kingdom’s debts and expenses.

• Gongxi Chou and Jimò Qiu discussed giving Shen Tang the Gongxi Clan’s ancestral wealth, including its diamonds, while Gongxi Chou asked to keep some shiny stones.
• Shen Tang became excited about making diamonds and selling deworming medicine, but said the clan estate should not be used to repay Han Zhang’s loans.
• Shen Tang went to find Xun Zhen and announced that a chance to make a fortune had arrived.
• Xun Zhen explained that Gao Country’s damaged records and the costs of war, reconstruction, military pay, and rewards had left Kang Country facing a major financial shortfall.
• Shen Tang told Xun Zhen about the clan estate, diamond production, and mugwort medicine, and he urged her to use the inherited wealth to cover debts and replenish the treasury.

Shen Tang agreed to seek funding for Kang Country and planned to turn diamonds into a profitable luxury by giving them to officials and featuring them in an illustrated book about eminent figures. She and Chu Yao began shaping the book’s contents and production plan.

• Xun Zhen urged Shen Tang to accept Jimò Qiu’s ancestral fortune, then suggested she reward Jimò Qiu with a title; Shen Tang rejected the idea of being offered as part of the bargain.
• Shen Tang explained to Chu Yao that Jimò Qiu wanted nothing in return for his fortune, then showed him a diamond ring and gave it to him.
• Shen Tang told Chu Yao she planned to create a Kang Country edition of Biographies of Famous Ministers and Scholars, with portraits of her officials wearing diamonds.
• Shen Tang and Chu Yao proposed including civil and military officials, Mohist and medical practitioners, interviews, life stories, and battle records in the book.
• Shen Tang planned to use half of the paper workshop’s output over the next two years to print the lavishly illustrated books and promote diamonds.