Chapter Summaries

Jiang Nuan uncovered why commoners wished Feng Ziming had died twenty years earlier: the cause was connected to his son Feng Qiuyan, who had done something good. Guagua began recounting Feng Qiuyan’s love of farming and how Feng Ziming tried to stop it.

• Xia Gaoyang and Xia Quanqiao reflected on Xia Gaoyang’s happy upbringing with his adoptive parents and the difficulty of reclaiming him.
• Jiang Nuan noticed Feng Qiuyan resembled Feng Ziming and learned he was Feng Ziming’s second son.
• Guagua found that Feng Ziming had done nothing wrong and that the curse against him stemmed from Feng Qiuyan’s actions.
• Guagua explained that Feng Qiuyan grew up loving farming with his grandparents, but Feng Ziming later forbade the hobby and watched him closely after he discovered Feng Qiuyan was secretly growing plants.

Jiang Nuan learned that Feng Qiuyan would become the Little Sage of Agriculture, but his father’s opposition would delay his farming work. Feng Ziming agreed to stop obstructing him, and Jiang Yunsheng considered supporting Feng Qiuyan’s agricultural talent.

• Guagua revealed that Feng Qiuyan would develop rice yielding thirty percent more and be honored as the Little Sage of Agriculture, with statues of his mother and wife at his temple.
• Guagua explained that commoners would place Feng Ziming’s bronze statue outside the temple as a guard because he had repeatedly stopped Feng Qiuyan from farming.
• Jiang Nuan suggested that Jiang Yunsheng talk sense into Feng Ziming, and Feng Ziming resolved to let his son pursue agriculture.
• Jiang Yunsheng considered whether Feng Ziming might also have agricultural talent, while the Agricultural Administration pressed to recruit Feng Qiuyan.
• Jiang Yunsheng privately decided Feng Qiuyan’s appointment, and Jiang Nuan thought about finding him after court.

During the Palace Examination, Jiang Nuan uncovered that Min Guangyao believed Grand Commandant Zhai Ruizhen had destroyed his family, but Guagua revealed that Min Guangyao’s master had fabricated the feud after his own schemes failed. The chapter ended with the revelation that Min Guangyao may be Zhai Ruizhen’s supposedly deceased third son, switched as a child.

• Feng Qiuyan worried that the others’ high expectations would crush him if he could not produce high-yielding rice.
• Jiang Nuan chose the inconspicuous Min Guangyao for her next gossip, and Guagua revealed that he had spent years preparing to avenge his family against Zhai Ruizhen.
• The court reacted with sympathy for Min Guangyao and alarm that Jiang Nuan had exposed his secret, while Zhai Ruizhen denied knowing of any such massacre.
• Guagua clarified that Min Guangyao’s master, Nie Jinglun, had blamed Zhai Ruizhen after his own family’s crimes led to their property being confiscated and the family exiled.
• Guagua revealed that Nie Jinglun had managed to switch children, leaving Jiang Nuan and Zhai Ruizhen to suspect that Min Guangyao was Zhai Ruizhen’s third son, who had supposedly died young.

Jiang Nuan revealed that Nie Jinglun had switched Min Guangyao with Zhai Ruizhen’s newborn son and raised him to hate his father. Min Guangyao learned how he had destroyed his family in the previous life, but realized there was still time to change his fate, while those around him recognized his newfound status as Zhai Ruizhen’s son.

• Jiang Nuan and Guagua revealed that Nie Jinglun had swapped Min Guangyao for Zhai Ruizhen’s newborn son and had manipulated Min Guangyao into hating his father.
• Guagua explained that in the previous life Min Guangyao had framed Zhai Ruizhen for rebellion, then killed Nie Jinglun and himself after learning the truth.
• Min Guangyao sank into despair over his past-life actions, but Jiang Nuan’s inner voice reminded him that those events had not happened yet.
• Zhai Ruizhen showed concern for Min Guangyao, and the two reassured each other with a look and a smile.
• The people around Min Guangyao realized that he was now the Grand Commandant’s son and that his status had risen far above theirs.

Jiang Nuan uncovered the story behind Huang Chao’s name and learned that his previous-life counterpart had fought for Great Xia before dying in battle. Huang Chao’s prospects in the current court improved as the ministers realized he had reached the Palace Examination without being obstructed.

• Jiang Nuan chose Huang Chao as the next person whose gossip she wanted Guagua to reveal.
• Guagua explained that Huang Chao had repeatedly failed the Imperial Examination but had reached the Palace Examination this time without interference.
• Jiang Nuan recalled the historical Huang Chao, whose rebellion had devastated the Tang dynasty, prompting aristocratic ministers to glare at Huang Chao.
• Guagua clarified that the two Huang Chaos shared little beyond their names and similar backgrounds, and that Huang Chao’s previous-life self had fought an enemy nation before dying in battle.
• Huang Chao felt relieved, and the ministers became friendlier after deciding he would be employed in Great Xia.

During the Palace Examination, Jiang Yunsheng asked how the candidates would handle a child left alive after a revenge killing, and Jiang Nuan’s ruthless schemes impressed him. He decided to send approved candidates to Auspicious Peace County, compensate Jiang Nuan for its false prosperity, and investigate the realm’s tax revenues.

• Jiang Yunsheng asked the candidates whether they would spare or kill a child found after taking revenge on the child’s family.
• Candidates argued for sparing the child out of mercy or killing him to prevent future revenge.
• Jiang Nuan imagined sparing the child to expose his allies before eliminating them, and joked about tricking him into lowering his guard; Guagua joined her laughter.
• Jiang Yunsheng approved of Jiang Nuan’s decisive thinking and decided she no longer needed the extra lessons he had arranged.
• Jiang Yunsheng considered sending approved candidates to Auspicious Peace County and giving Jiang Nuan another tract of land after learning its tax prosperity had been fabricated.
• Jiang Yunsheng began considering an investigation into tax revenues across Great Xia.

After Zhang Gaoyang, Wu Hongcai, and Lin Mingxu placed first, second, and third in the Palace Examination, northern scholars accused the exam of favoring southern candidates and demanded an investigation. Jiang Nuan went to the Hall of Diligent Governance, where Jiang Yunsheng asked the assembled ministers to respond to the unrest.

• Three days after the Palace Examination, Zhang Gaoyang, Wu Hongcai, and Lin Mingxu were announced as the top three, and Zhang Gaoyang reunited with his birth family while preserving ties with his adoptive parents.
• During Zhang Gaoyang’s celebratory procession, northern candidates accused the Imperial Examination of corruption because no northern scholars had passed.
• Zhang Gaoyang demanded evidence, and the candidates pointed to the all-southern list of successful scholars as proof of favoritism.
• The Capital Prefect calmed the protesters, who moved to an open square to await the emperor’s explanation.
• A young eunuch summoned Jiang Nuan to the Hall of Diligent Governance, where Jiang Yunsheng asked the ministers for their thoughts on the protest.
• The northern ministers suspected the southern ministers of bias, while the southern ministers searched among themselves for whoever might have caused the scandal.

After finding no cheating or favoritism in the Imperial Examination, Jiang Yunsheng and his ministers sought a way to address the northern scholars’ complaints. They established separate Southern and Northern Lists and ordered safeguards against candidates claiming false regional identities.

• Jiang Nuan and Guagua confirmed that no one had cheated or shown favoritism in the examination.
• Jiang Yunsheng and the ministers considered comparing essays, but Chi Hengji warned that subjective judgments could worsen tensions between northern and southern scholars.
• A southern minister proposed separate Southern and Northern Lists, and Jiang Nuan agreed that the approach could reduce disparities between regions.
• Jiang Yunsheng ordered An Laiyun to select outstanding northern candidates for a Northern List and decreed separate lists for future examinations.
• Chi Hengji warned that candidates might use false regional identities, so Jiang Yunsheng tasked him with drafting household-registration rules to prevent abuse.

Jiang Nuan inspected the crops she had brought from the modern world and showed Feng Qiuyan the high-yielding Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes. Feng Qiuyan realized they could help Great Xia overcome hunger, while Jiang Nuan noted that the small seed supply would delay widespread planting and considered seeking more seeds in the West.

• After learning the imperial examination fraud case had ended with separate northern and southern rankings, Jiang Nuan visited her farmland and doubled the workers’ wages for their thriving crops.
• Jiang Nuan admired the Potato and Sweet Potato plots and hoped their high yields would help prevent starvation in Great Xia.
• A servant brought Feng Qiuyan to meet Jiang Nuan, and he marveled at the unfamiliar crops in her fields.
• Jiang Nuan told Feng Qiuyan that Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes could yield thousands of jin per mu, with carefully tended crops producing over ten thousand jin.
• Feng Qiuyan called the crops divine gifts and hoped they would spread across Great Xia, while Jiang Nuan explained that the limited seed stock meant expansion would take years.
• Jiang Nuan wondered whether she could find more Potato and Sweet Potato seeds in the West.

Jiang Nuan gave Feng Qiuyan advice on crossbreeding beans, then learned that Goryeo’s envoys had arrived to challenge Great Xia to a contest for five cities. The chapter ended with Jiang Nuan asking Guagua to uncover the envoys’ plan before Jiang Yunsheng answered.

• Jiang Nuan dismissed the idea of sending people to the Western Ocean and showed Feng Qiuyan two bean varieties with contrasting strengths.
• Jiang Nuan explained a method for combining desirable traits, and Feng Qiuyan left with three plants to study.
• Jiang Nuan noticed new officials at court as an envoy from Goryeo announced a proposed friendly exchange between the two nations.
• The Goryeo leader proposed three contests, wagering five cities against Great Xia’s cities, and Jiang Nuan suspected a trap.
• Jiang Nuan asked Guagua to investigate Goryeo’s intentions while the officials waited to hear what she would reveal.

Jiang Nuan learned that Goryeo’s three challenges were the Nine-Link Puzzle, poetic couplets, and a poem about wine, and was confident Great Xia could win all three. After both sides agreed to stake five cities, the contest was about to begin.

• Guagua told Jiang Nuan that Goryeo’s prodigy Hou Hongjun and his teacher Wu Cu had proposed three challenges to win cities from Great Xia.
• Jiang Nuan judged that Great Xia could easily solve the Nine-Link Puzzle and match the couplets, and that she knew poems about wine better than Hou Hongjun’s entry.
• Great Xia’s ministers pretended to oppose the wager, then urged Jiang Yunsheng to accept after Goryeo’s delegation mocked them.
• Jiang Yunsheng agreed that Great Xia would stake five cities against the five cities offered by the King of Silla.
• The Great Xia ministers and the Goryeo delegation each believed their own scheme had succeeded as the contest was about to begin.

Wu Cu condemned Jiang Nuan’s presence in court, provoking the fury of Jiang Yunsheng and the Great Xia ministers. After Jiang Nuan asked Guagua to uncover Wu Cu’s secrets, Guagua revealed his history of resenting women and then recoiled at even more disgusting gossip, leaving everyone eager to hear what it had found.

• Wu Cu demanded that Jiang Yunsheng remove Jiang Nuan from court, calling her presence improper and predicting ruin for Great Xia.
• Jiang Yunsheng and the ministers silently grew furious while Jiang Nuan and Jiang Yunsheng let Wu Cu continue his nearly hour-long lecture.
• Jiang Nuan asked Guagua to investigate Wu Cu, and Guagua revealed that he hated women after a high-ranking official’s daughter rejected him and that he had encouraged the King of Silla to oppress women.
• Guagua cried out that its eyes hurt after finding more disgusting gossip, then reassured Jiang Nuan that it was fine.
• Jiang Nuan asked Guagua what it had discovered, while Jiang Yunsheng and the ministers waited to hear the answer.

Jiang Nuan learned that Wu Cu and Hou Hongjun shared a disgusting hemorrhoid-sucking fetish, then a Goryeo envoy’s uncontrollable fart filled the Golden Throne Hall with a foul stench. After ministers mocked Wu Cu until he nearly fainted, an Imperial Physician treated him with a thick needle, prompting a Goryeo official to accuse Emperor Jiang of trying to kill the envoy.

• Guagua told Jiang Nuan that Wu Cu and Hou Hongjun sucked each other’s hemorrhoids, leaving Jiang Nuan and the ministers disgusted.
• Guagua warned Jiang Nuan that a feathered Goryeo envoy was about to release a poison-gas bomb, and the envoy’s explosive fart made people across the hall retch.
• A Great Xia minister insulted Wu Cu and Goryeo, and another mocked Wu Cu’s illness and head until he nearly fainted.
• A young Imperial Physician used a thick silver needle on Wu Cu, making him cry out in pain.
• A Goryeo official accused Emperor Jiang of trying to kill the great scholar Wu.

Wu Cu challenged Great Xia to solve Goryeo’s Nine-Link Puzzle, but Mao Qiantao accidentally smashed it, leaving the court to argue over whether Great Xia had won. Chi Hengji pointed out that the rings had indeed been separated.

• Jiang Yunsheng and his ministers dismissed Wu Cu’s complaints about Imperial Physician Wang’s painful acupuncture and accepted Goryeo’s challenge.
• Wu Cu presented the Nine-Link Puzzle as Goryeo’s first contest, while Jiang Yunsheng passed it among the ministers and feigned uncertainty.
• Jiang Nuan thought the puzzle could be solved by smashing it and decided she would break it if no one else could.
• Mao Qiantao let the puzzle fall and shattered it, claiming his hand had slipped.
• Wu Cu objected that the broken puzzle made it unclear how to continue the contest, and Chi Hengji argued that Great Xia had already separated the rings.

After Mao Qiantao accidentally smashed Goryeo’s Nine-Link Puzzle, Great Xia claimed the first round and faced a second challenge: matching three couplets. Zhang Hui, a military officer chosen because he looked uneducated, effortlessly answered the first, leaving the Goryeo envoys furious.

• Mao Qiantao took responsibility for breaking the Nine-Link Puzzle and taunted the Goryeo envoys, while Great Xia claimed the first round.
• Wu Cu announced that Goryeo’s second challenge was for Great Xia to match three opening lines for couplets.
• Great Xia’s officials pretended to struggle with the lines and chose Zhang Hui and two other rough-looking candidates to make the victory more humiliating.
• Zhang Hui matched the first couplet with a line about east and west pawnshops, shocking the Goryeo envoys and surprising Jiang Nuan.

Peng Tai answered Goryeo’s final couplet, giving Great Xia the second round and victory in the contest. Wu Cu challenged the results by changing the rules, and Jiang Yunsheng agreed to let Goryeo answer one Great Xia couplet to decide whether the second round would be a draw.

• Hong Pan answered Goryeo’s second couplet with a line about the Moon-Reflecting Well, leaving the envoys dismayed.
• Peng Tai answered the final couplet with a line about four ghosts, and Great Xia’s ministers celebrated their victory.
• Great Xia’s ministers demanded the promised five cities and mocked the Goryeo official who had proposed the contest.
• Wu Cu claimed the first two rounds were unfair and demanded that Goryeo be allowed to answer a couplet.
• Jiang Yunsheng agreed to set one couplet, saying Goryeo could make the second round a draw if they answered it.

Great Xia defeated Goryeo in the second literary contest when the Goryeo envoys failed to match the couplet “Smoke veils the willows by the pond!” Jiang Yunsheng demanded the agreed five cities, but Wu Cu proposed a final, larger wager that would put ten cities at stake.

• Jiang Yunsheng gave Goryeo the opening line “Smoke veils the willows by the pond!” after Great Xia had quickly answered Goryeo’s previous challenge.
• Wu Cu’s boastful, well-connected envoy disrupted the Goryeo envoys’ efforts, and they failed to find a matching line before the incense burned out.
• Wu Cu admitted defeat, and Jiang Yunsheng demanded the five cities stipulated by their agreement.
• Wu Cu refused to concede the cities outright and offered to void the first two rounds and wager ten cities on a final contest.
• A Great Xia minister questioned why they should accept, while Wu Cu argued that victory would give Great Xia five more cities.

Jiang Yunsheng accepted Goryeo’s offer to wager five more cities and chose wine as the theme for the final poetry contest. After Great Xia’s officials recited two celebrated works, Wu Cu conceded, leaving Goryeo to surrender ten cities.

• Jiang Yunsheng agreed to the third round and had both sides sign a written agreement.
• Jiang Yunsheng insisted that Great Xia choose the final theme and proposed composing a poem or lyric about wine.
• Qiu Cong recited “Bring in the Wine,” and a civil official recited “Slow, Slow Song,” leaving the Goryeo envoys stunned.
• Wu Cu conceded after realizing Hou Hongjun’s poem could not compete with Great Xia’s works.
• A Great Xia minister demanded that Goryeo hand over the ten cities, and Wu Cu despaired over the defeat.

Jiang Nuan met Cen Xue, her close friend from the modern world, after Cen Xue arrived in the capital and recognized the milk tea shop. They discovered that both had transmigrated, and Jiang Nuan brought Cen Xue to the back courtyard to talk privately.

• After the Goryeo envoy left, Jiang Nuan wondered whether another transmigrator had read books she had introduced, while the ministers decided not to invent one.
• Cen Xue entered the capital, recognized the modern-style milk tea and delivery service, and decided to stay at the shop rather than return to her family residence.
• Jiang Nuan arrived at the shop looking for signs of another transmigrator, and she and Cen Xue recognized each other.
• Jiang Nuan explained that she had transmigrated after dying while rescuing someone and had spent over half a year in the world running several businesses.
• Cen Xue told Jiang Nuan that she had been struck by an out-of-control car while going to buy milk tea after receiving Jiang Nuan’s message.

Jiang Nuan and Cen Xue compared how they had arrived in their new lives, and Jiang Nuan showed Cen Xue the supplies she had brought from the modern world. When Cen Xue was summoned back to her family’s residence, she asked Jiang Nuan to let her cling to her coattails.

• Jiang Nuan explained that she had lived in Great Xia, the modern world, and now her current life, while Cen Xue described starving in the countryside after her stepmother sent her away.
• Cen Xue tried to warn Jiang Nuan about the inner voice but was unable to speak, so she pretended she had choked and then forgotten what she meant to say.
• Jiang Nuan produced the box Cen Xue had given her, explaining that she had copied its books and planted its unfamiliar seeds in Great Xia.
• Jiang Nuan and Cen Xue pinky-swore to prepare supplies for each other in case they ever returned to the modern world.
• An old woman told Cen Xue that her father and stepmother were waiting at home, and Cen Xue asked Jiang Nuan to let her cling to her coattails.