Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• The wounded stronghold leader tries to trick Song Yaoyao into approaching by offering a “treasure,” hoping to take her hostage and escape. She sees through the plan, taunts him, and kills him with her transforming firearm.
• Song Yaoyao, Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng finish off the remaining wounded. Guagua confirms that nobody in the stronghold survived.
• The trio loot the compound, collecting 300,000 taels in silver notes and medicinal herbs. Song Yaoyao splits the money three ways, persuading both men to accept their shares.
• Guagua reveals that 900 puppets are hidden beneath the medicine room. Rather than use the entrance, Song Yaoyao blasts open the ground and destroys them, then demolishes the rooms and equipment used to harm people.
• The three dispose of the bodies with Corpse Dissolving Powder, check that nothing has been left behind, and leave the valley.

Character development and interactions

• Song Yaoyao’s caution and confidence are clear: she immediately identifies the leader’s hostage scheme and refuses to be drawn into danger. She uses humor and taunting to unsettle him before killing him.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng understand Song Yaoyao’s intentions without her needing to explain, showing how closely they have come to know her. They cooperate in looting and help her complete the cleanup.
• Song Yaoyao treats the two men generously, insisting they share the money. She frames Liu Zheheng’s portion as useful for marrying her sister and Song Qinghui’s as future money for a wife; both eventually accept.

Significant themes

• Caution and cunning: Song Yaoyao defeats the leader’s deception by anticipating his motives.
• Justice and eradication of harm: The group kills the stronghold’s surviving perpetrators and destroys the puppets and facilities associated with their cruelty.
• Trust and family-like closeness: The trio work in sync and share the spoils, reflecting their strong bonds.
• Practical thoroughness: They destroy the site’s dangerous resources and carefully dispose of the bodies before leaving.

Key plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao, Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng reach Illusion City, capital of the Night Central Kingdom, before curfew and spend the night at an inn.
• The next day, they explore the bustling capital, which appears calm despite the war at the frontier and the fall of Frost City. Guagua explains that Emperor Qi Yanzhen has concealed the loss from most officials and the public to prevent panic.
• Song Yaoyao condemns the cover-up and hints that she intends to stir up trouble—but only after taking care of other plans.
• A commotion draws the trio to a crowd gathered outside a household. Onlookers say a wife caught her husband with a mistress, but the situation has ended in a death. A corpse is carried out, and the crowd speculates nervously about what happened.
• Unable to piece together the story from the gossip, Song Yaoyao asks Guagua for the full account. Guagua identifies the dead man as Xiang Haidong, a forty-five-year-old Principal Fourth Rank Left Remonstrance Councillor. The chapter ends as his image appears.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Yaoyao remains curious, bold, and eager to expose wrongdoing. She is troubled by the emperor’s secrecy and instantly pursues the street gossip, even though the incident involves a death.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng support her and quietly look forward to the political disruption she might cause. They follow her into the crowd, amused by her enthusiasm.
• Guagua provides information about the government’s cover-up and begins revealing the details of the household scandal at Song Yaoyao’s insistence.
• The onlookers trade rumors about the wife, the husband, and the mistress, but caution one another not to make unsupported accusations after the corpse appears.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and public knowledge: The emperor withholds news of a military defeat, raising the question of whether people have a right to know.
• Rumor and evidence: The crowd eagerly speculates about a death, while some recognize the danger of accusing others without proof.
• Gossip as entertainment and inquiry: Song Yaoyao treats gossip as a source of excitement, but her curiosity also leads her toward hidden events and possible scandals.

Key plot points and events

• Bai Chuen, the only survivor of the Bai ducal family after her father, brothers, sister-in-law, and mother die, is adopted by the Empress Dowager and raised as a princess.
• At fifteen, she tells the Empress Dowager she loves Xiang Haidong, a handsome scholar whom the emperor has named Top Graduate. Though the Empress Dowager considers his poor family background an unsuitable match, she agrees after investigating him.
• Bai Chuen marries Xiang Haidong, bringing her family fortune and a substantial imperial dowry. Her influence helps him remain in the capital and advance to a fourth-rank post.
• Xiang Haidong is mocked as a man who relies on his wife for success. After fighting one of his critics, he becomes discouraged and turns increasingly to drink.
• Bai Chuen runs the household efficiently and treats her mother-in-law and sister-in-law well, but they fear her status and worry that any mistake might jeopardize Xiang Haidong’s career. Xiang resents the household dynamic and regrets the marriage.
• His frequent visits to a tavern lead him to meet its proprietress, Ziyuan; the chapter ends as this connection begins.

Character developments and interactions

Bai Chuen moves from a beloved orphan to a powerful, devoted wife who supports Xiang Haidong and manages his household. Xiang benefits from her connections but grows ashamed of being seen as dependent on her, turning his frustration into resentment rather than acknowledging what she has done for him. His mother and sister are intimidated by Bai Chuen despite her considerate treatment of them. The Empress Dowager acts protectively toward Bai Chuen, while also making the marriage possible.

Significant themes

• The costs of social status and unequal power within a marriage
• Gendered judgment: Xiang Haidong accepts his wife’s advantages but resents the stigma attached to receiving them
• The gap between good intentions and others’ fear or interpretation
• Reputation, ambition, and the temptation to blame a benefactor for one’s own insecurity

• Ziyuan becomes Xiang Haidong’s mistress: Ziyuan, who has long admired Xiang, takes advantage of a night when he is drunk and alone. When he wakes, she tells him she will keep their encounter secret and even offers to leave the Capital. Moved by her apparent selflessness—and resentful of years of ridicule for remaining faithful to Bai Chuen—Xiang agrees to support her secretly, buys her a courtyard residence, and asks her to call him “husband.” The residence is the place where Song Yaoyao and her companions are now observing the events.
• Bai Chuen discovers the affair: Xiang’s unexplained outings and the scent of a woman’s cosmetics make Bai suspicious. He lies that he has been drinking at the Moon-Pointing Tower; she later confirms he has not visited it. Though devastated, she keeps her suspicions to herself. She spends a day watching Ziyuan’s tavern, then learns months later that Ziyuan is pregnant.
• Bai Chuen prepares to act: Convinced Xiang has betrayed their promise of lifelong fidelity, Bai decides she may divorce him and plans to discuss it with their three children—two married sons and an unmarried daughter. Before she can do so, Ziyuan begins flaunting the affair, with marks on Xiang’s neck appearing regularly. Bai, who had not intended to blame Ziyuan alone, interprets this as deliberate provocation. She summons the shadow guard Emperor Qi Yanzhen gave her and hands him several items—apparently two large magnets—along with instructions.
• Character developments and interactions: Ziyuan’s gentle, understanding manner conceals a calculated pursuit of Xiang and a growing ambition. Xiang shifts from guilt and fear to self-justification, choosing secrecy over his marriage. Bai moves from quiet suspicion and heartbreak toward decisive retaliation. Song Yaoyao and Guagua comment on Ziyuan’s tactics and explain how Bai uncovered the affair, framing the events as a drama they are watching.
• Significant themes: The chapter explores betrayal, broken promises, self-deception, and the contrast between outward patience and hidden calculation. It also highlights the unequal responsibility Xiang places on Bai while excusing his own infidelity, and the moment private pain turns into an impending public confrontation.

Plot points

• Guagua reveals that Bai Chuen gave the Shadow Guard two large magnets and fish bladder glue. The guard finds Xiang Haidong and Ziyuan in their secret trysting place, knocks them unconscious, glues them belly-to-belly, and straps magnets to their backs to hold them tightly together.
• The pair spend the night bound and gagged. The next morning, Bai Chuen pretends to search anxiously for her missing husband, using a planted witness to lead her party to the courtyard.
• Hearing Bai Chuen arrive, Xiang Haidong panics at the thought of his affair being exposed and dies suddenly. When servants pour boiling water over the couple to dissolve the glue, Ziyuan is badly scalded. Her baby is lost, and she is left unable to have children.
• Bai Chuen publicly mourns Xiang Haidong, then declares that Ziyuan will become his concubine. Ziyuan refuses, especially after learning that Xiang is dead, but Bai Chuen insists and humiliates her.

Character developments and interactions

• Bai Chuen emerges as a calculated avenger: she orchestrates the trap, stages a show of concern, and uses Ziyuan’s earlier desire to marry Xiang against her.
• Ziyuan shifts from a secret lover hoping to marry Xiang to a frightened, grieving victim who has lost both her baby and future prospects.
• Xiang Haidong dies from terror before facing the consequences of his affair.
• Song Yaoyao watches with amused curiosity, joking about the glue and wishing she could have supplied modern superglue. Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng see her as mischievously entertained by the spectacle.

Significant themes

• Revenge and poetic justice: Bai Chuen turns Xiang and Ziyuan’s affair into a public humiliation.
• Deception and performance: Bai Chuen masks her revenge with an appearance of concern and grief.
• Cruel consequences of betrayal: Xiang’s infidelity leads to his death, while Ziyuan suffers severe physical and personal losses.

Key plot points and events

• Bai Chuen forces the injured Concubine Ziyuan to look in a bronze mirror at her face, badly blistered by boiling water. Ziyuan screams and faints.
• Bai orders a shaman to preserve her dead husband Xiang Haidong’s body using the Witch Tribe’s secret method. She commands that Ziyuan be kept under guard in the courtyard and made to stay beside the corpse every day, framing this as a way to fulfill her husband’s supposed wish.
• Song Yaoyao and Guagua discuss the Witch Tribe’s “Ten-Thousand-Year Paste,” made from a special plant and herbs. Though its name exaggerates its power, Guagua says it can preserve a body for about a century.
• When government constables arrive, Bai publicly performs grief and lets a maid explain events. The maid portrays Xiang as having died secretly with his mistress, Ziyuan, and claims Bai had generously intended to accept Ziyuan as a concubine.
• The maid urges the constables to investigate Xiang’s death. Outside, townspeople gossip, condemn Xiang’s alleged infidelity, and sympathize with Bai.
• Song Yaoyao, having learned enough, prepares to leave with Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng. The chapter ends as a woman helps an elderly lady down from a carriage.

Character developments

• Bai Chuen reveals herself as calculating and vengeful: she punishes Ziyuan privately while presenting herself publicly as a grieving, magnanimous widow.
• Ziyuan is left physically injured, humiliated, and under guard, with the threat of daily confinement beside the corpse.
• Song Yaoyao remains curious and observant, balancing amusement at Bai’s ruthlessness with professional interest in the corpse-preserving technique.
• The maid serves as Bai’s spokesperson, shaping the official and public account of the death.

Significant themes

• Public image versus private reality: Bai’s staged sorrow contrasts with her harsh treatment of Ziyuan.
• Revenge and punishment: Bai turns Xiang’s alleged affair into a prolonged punishment for his mistress.
• Gossip and social judgment: The crowd quickly forms a moral narrative about Xiang’s supposed infidelity and Bai’s virtue.
• Power and control: Bai controls Ziyuan’s movements and helps direct how the authorities hear the story.

Character interactions

• Bai humiliates and confines Ziyuan, while her attendants carry out her orders.
• Bai and her maid present a coordinated account to the constables, who begin investigating.
• Song Yaoyao and Guagua discuss the preservation paste, while Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng accompany her as she prepares to depart.
• Townspeople debate Xiang’s conduct and express sympathy for Bai.

Key plot points and events

• Xiang Haidong’s mother, Old Madam Xiang, arrives at the residence with her daughter and servants, wailing over her son’s death.
• She blames his death on a supposed “fox spirit” who drained him, unaware of the actual circumstances, and announces that she will take revenge.
• Old Madam Xiang rushes into the courtyard and collides with Bai Chuen. She insults Bai for failing to control her husband, but Bai calmly accepts the blame rather than argue in public.
• Bai directs Old Madam Xiang to the room where Ziyuan is staying. Song Yaoyao, eager to witness the confrontation, asks Guagua to show her what happens inside.
• Old Madam Xiang calls Ziyuan ugly; Ziyuan insults her in return. They fight, pulling hair, slapping, scratching, and biting, until others intervene.
• Old Madam Xiang demands that Bai avenge her after the fight. Bai suppresses her amusement at the old woman’s disheveled appearance and injuries.

Character developments and interactions

• Old Madam Xiang is grief-stricken but quick to blame Ziyuan, then turns her anger on Bai and ultimately attacks Ziyuan. Her lack of knowledge about the death fuels her mistaken accusations.
• Bai Chuen keeps her composure and acts submissive in front of witnesses. She is careful not to give anyone grounds to criticize her—or the Empress Dowager who raised her.
• Ziyuan, already furious about her disfigurement, responds aggressively to Old Madam Xiang’s insult, escalating their exchange into a brawl.
• Song Yaoyao eagerly follows the drama and uses Guagua to watch the fight. Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng share her curiosity and return to the crowd.

Significant themes

• Public reputation and filial duty: Bai Chuen restrains herself because her conduct reflects on the Empress Dowager.
• Grief and misplaced blame: Old Madam Xiang turns her sorrow into accusations based on assumptions rather than facts.
• Comic spectacle: The chapter treats the escalating family conflict as public entertainment, especially through Song Yaoyao’s delighted, gossip-loving perspective.

Key plot points and events

• Bai Chuen announces that she will bring Ziyuan into the household as Xiang Haidong’s concubine, claiming it fulfills her late husband’s wish. Ziyuan refuses, but Granny Xiang ignores her and threatens to ruin her reputation if she does not comply.
• Granny Xiang has servants restrain Ziyuan and beats her herself. Bai Chuen stops the attack before it becomes fatal, privately reminding Granny Xiang that the bailiffs are still present. Granny Xiang agrees to postpone further punishment until after Haidong’s funeral.
• The coroner rules that Haidong died from extreme nervous tension, with no homicide involved. The authorities leave, ending the investigation.
• Song Yaoyao and her companions buy a quiet, furnished two-courtyard residence for fifteen thousand taels, move in, and clean it.
• That night, they prepare to target the National Preceptor’s Residence. Though Feiye’s forces have been destroyed, Song Yaoyao fears he could rebuild his power as long as he retains his silver, so she intends to eliminate that possibility.

Character developments and interactions

• Bai Chuen presents herself as honoring her husband’s wishes, but she also manages Granny Xiang’s cruelty strategically, ensuring Ziyuan survives while keeping the authorities from intervening.
• Granny Xiang is vindictive and eager to dominate Ziyuan, whom she blames for her son’s death. She relishes the prospect of having authority over her as a concubine.
• Ziyuan strongly resists being forced into marriage and is physically assaulted, leaving her badly injured.
• Song Yaoyao remains determined and proactive: after settling her group’s living arrangements, she turns her attention to preventing Feiye’s return.
• Song Yaoyao and Guagua banter over Guagua’s salesmanship, while Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng handle choosing the residence with her approval.

Significant themes

• Coercion and power: Ziyuan’s refusal is disregarded, and marriage is used as a means of control and punishment.
• Revenge and cruelty: Granny Xiang seeks to repay perceived wrongs through abuse, while Bai Chuen tempers that violence only for practical reasons.
• Security and vigilance: The group buys a permanent home and plans to neutralize Feiye before he can regain influence.
• Appearance versus motive: Bai Chuen frames her decision as fulfilling her husband’s wish, while Granny Xiang sees it as an opportunity to assert power.

Plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao expects Qi Yanzhen to blame Feiye for his crimes and confiscate the National Preceptor’s Residence, so she plans to loot its riches first.
• To avoid detection, she uses a drone to spread knockout powder over the residence, putting the guards and shadow guards to sleep. She, Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng take antidotes, disguise their faces, and enter.
• Song Yaoyao searches the vaults while her companions investigate the study. She empties both the main Treasure Vault and Feiye’s private vault into her storage space.
• Guagua reveals a hidden chamber behind the private vault wall. Song Yaoyao opens it and takes all the crates of gold, which she suspects may be Feiye’s illicit wealth.
• In the study, Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng find evidence of Feiye’s crimes: records of brutalizing commoners for Corpse Refining, letters to senior ministers, and bribery ledgers. They cannot locate the money and continue searching as Song Yaoyao leaves to explore elsewhere.

Character developments

• Song Yaoyao is resourceful and methodical, using the drone and Guagua’s guidance to make the raid safe and efficient. Her excitement at finding the hidden gold contrasts with her slight guilt when her brothers wonder where Feiye’s money is.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng cooperate with her, taking a careful, evidence-focused approach in the study.

Significant themes

• Taking advantage of power’s collapse: Song Yaoyao acts before Qi Yanzhen can seize Feiye’s assets.
• Justice and evidence: The raid uncovers proof of Feiye’s abuses and political corruption.
• Ingenuity and secrecy: Technology, planning, and teamwork let the group evade the residence’s defenses.
• Irony: Song Yaoyao has already taken the illicit treasure while her companions search for it.

Character interactions

• Song Yaoyao reassures Song Qinghui about her plan and explains why they should not approach the residence openly.
• She directs Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng to search the study while she handles the vaults.
• Guagua guides her to the hidden door, enabling her to uncover the gold.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng discuss the missing bribe money, unaware that Song Yaoyao has found and taken it.

Chapter summary

Song Yaoyao searches the National Preceptor’s Residence and takes its valuables, including furniture made from golden silk nanmu. Guagua helps identify the treasures and is delighted when Yaoyao promises to exchange some items for energy, which Guagua badly needs.
After reuniting with Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng, Yaoyao explains that the evidence they found implicates more than twenty high-ranking officials—roughly half the Night Central Kingdom’s court. Revealing it would likely let Emperor Qi Yanzhen protect the officials, destroy the evidence, and win their loyalty. Yaoyao says the evidence is still useful, but asks the others to follow her somewhere before explaining how.
Yaoyao changes into a young gentleman’s clothes and announces that they are going to the Heavenly Dance Pavilion, a brothel. Song Qinghui initially panics, fearing their parents’ reaction, but Yaoyao assures him that they have official business there: the emperor previously told her to seek help from the establishment if they ran into trouble. The men accept that it is likely a Heavenly Phoenix Kingdom intelligence outpost.
Because curfew has closed the pavilion’s front gates, the three go around to the rear. Song Qinghui carries Yaoyao over the wall with his Lightness Skill, and they land in the courtyard.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Yaoyao remains practical and resourceful: she scavenges strategically, sees the political danger in exposing the evidence, and takes the initiative to seek covert assistance.
• Guagua acts as Yaoyao’s cheerful accomplice, helping locate valuables. Its need for energy—made worse by the expense of courting a girl—prompts Yaoyao to promise it a reward.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng trust Yaoyao’s judgment despite being confused by her plans. Qinghui is protective and anxious about the brothel visit, while both men are reassured by the explanation that it serves a serious purpose.
• Yaoyao’s humorous speculation about how brothels operate during curfew amuses the others, who silently react to her vivid imagination.

Significant themes

• Political pragmatism: Evidence does not automatically bring justice; exposing widespread corruption may strengthen the ruler’s hold over the court.
• Trust and teamwork: Yaoyao coordinates smoothly with Guagua and persuades her companions to follow her lead.
• Humor amid intrigue: The treasure hunt, Guagua’s courtship expenses, and Yaoyao’s curfew theories provide comedy alongside the political maneuvering.

Plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao, her second brother Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng arrive at the Heavenly Dance Pavilion to make contact with its madam.
• A drunken patron mistakes Qinghui and Yaoyao for a male couple, prompting an awkward scene. Qinghui angrily clarifies that Yaoyao is his sister; Yaoyao and Liu Zheheng calm him down.
• Inside, Qinghui tries to shield Yaoyao from the performances, but she insists on looking around. A serving boy mistakes her for a young, sexually eager male customer.
• The group asks to meet the pavilion’s madam, Sister Cui. Liu Zheheng secures the request with a silver ingot.
• The serving boy privately reports that the unfamiliar guests have requested no entertainers and seem to want Sister Cui specifically. Sister Cui agrees to meet them, having accepted their payment.

Character developments

• Song Yaoyao is curious and unembarrassed by the performances, despite being on a mission and being mistaken for a young man.
• Song Qinghui is protective of Yaoyao and uncomfortable in the brothel, but his efforts to shield her repeatedly create comic misunderstandings.
• Liu Zheheng stays practical and composed, directing the group toward its purpose and using money to gain access to Sister Cui.
• Sister Cui/Cui Tingrong is revealed as a man who poses as the pavilion’s madam to conceal his identity. He leads the Heavenly Phoenix Kingdom’s spies in the Night Central Kingdom.

Significant themes

• Disguise and mistaken identity: Yaoyao’s appearance and Cui Tingrong’s assumed role shape how others perceive them.
• Family protectiveness: Qinghui’s concern for his sister clashes humorously with her independence.
• Pragmatism and secrecy: The group’s mission unfolds in a pleasure house that also serves as a cover for espionage.

Character interactions

• Qinghui’s angry denial of the drunk patron’s assumption, followed by Yaoyao’s teasing insistence that he let her look around, provides much of the chapter’s humor.
• Liu Zheheng mediates between the siblings and handles the business of securing a meeting.
• The serving boy treats the visitors as customers in public, then gives Sister Cui a discreet report, showing the pavilion’s dual commercial and intelligence functions.

Plot and events

• Song Yaoyao and her companions meet Sister Cui, the proprietor of a pleasure house, and ask whether they can speak securely. Sister Cui takes them to a guarded room on the top floor.
• Song Yaoyao presents a jade pendant given to her by the emperor as proof of her connection to him. Sister Cui recognizes it and tests her with a secret call-and-response code; her correct reply confirms she is an ally.
• Song Yaoyao introduces herself, her brother Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng. Sister Cui reveals that he is a man who disguises himself as a woman to protect his identity.
• Song Yaoyao explains why the group came to Illusion City. She and her companions have already helped take a frontier city, destroyed Feiye’s lair and its puppets, and reached the capital ahead of him.
• Song Qinghui recounts the destruction of Feiye’s lair and mentions that the group has also visited Feiye’s National Preceptor’s Residence that night. Song Yaoyao presents evidence they found there for Sister Cui to inspect.

Character developments and interactions

• Sister Cui (Cui Tingrong) is revealed as a trusted agent of the emperor, whom he once saved and helped train. He has spent eight years operating in the Night Central Kingdom and is eager to repay the emperor.
• Song Yaoyao shows caution and confidence, verifying security before revealing her purpose and using the emperor’s pendant and code to establish trust.
• Song Qinghui takes over the account of the group’s actions, while Sister Cui reacts with growing excitement and astonishment. Liu Zheheng is introduced as part of the party.
• Their exchange moves from suspicion to mutual recognition and cordial hospitality, with Sister Cui ordering food and wine for his guests.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and gratitude: Sister Cui’s service stems from the emperor’s past kindness and his desire to repay it.
• Secrecy and trust: Disguises, guarded meeting places, the pendant, and the recognition code illustrate the risks of covert work.
• Courage and initiative: Song Yaoyao and her companions act boldly and independently in enemy territory.
• Hidden identities: Sister Cui’s disguise reflects how appearance can conceal a person’s true role and allegiance.

Plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao gives Sister Cui evidence gathered from the National Preceptor’s Residence implicating more than twenty senior officials. She argues that handing it to Qi Yanzhen would let him pardon the ministers and win their loyalty, so Sister Cui should use it to pressure them into serving their cause.
• They agree to work on two fronts: Sister Cui will stir up the court with the evidence, while Song Yaoyao and her companions will expose Feiye’s actions to the people of the capital.
• Song Yaoyao explains that their visit to the Heavenly Dance Pavilion also creates witnesses who can confirm they spent the night there, anticipating that Qi Yanzhen may order a citywide search after learning they visited the National Preceptor’s Residence.
• The trio returns to their private room, eats and listens to singers through the night to make their stay look convincing. Song Qinghui remains uncomfortable and eventually sleeps; Song Yaoyao and Liu Zheheng stay awake until dawn.
• As they leave, a man from the neighboring room implies he overheard them having an unusually lively night, leaving Song Yaoyao confused.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Yaoyao shows strategic foresight: she recognizes that mass punishment could backfire for Qi Yanzhen’s government, and proposes using the evidence for leverage and public unrest instead. She also reassures her uneasy Second Brother and adapts to the need to maintain their cover.
• Sister Cui agrees with Song Yaoyao’s analysis, takes responsibility for the political maneuvering, and offers practical support, including household staff.
• Song Qinghui is inexperienced and embarrassed by the brothel setting, though Song Yaoyao’s reassurance helps him relax somewhat.
• Liu Zheheng follows Song Yaoyao’s lead and helps maintain their cover through the night.
• The chapter highlights Sister Cui’s growing respect for Song Yaoyao, whom he recognizes as the capable leader of the group.

Significant themes

• Political leverage and strategy: Evidence is more useful as a tool for coercion than as a direct appeal to justice.
• Public opinion and divided fronts: The protagonists aim to destabilize both the government and the public’s perception of its leaders.
• Deception and appearances: The group deliberately performs the role expected of visitors to the pavilion to protect their movements.
• Power and loyalty: How rulers handle wrongdoing can strengthen or weaken their hold over officials.

Key plot points

• A man who overheard Song Yaoyao’s elaborate love poems and improvised fortune-telling at the brothel asks her to teach him the tricks so he can impress Miss Qiaoying. Yaoyao admits she made the fortune-telling up, and her companions help her leave.
• Back at their residence, Yaoyao and Liu Zheheng sleep after their sleepless night. Government troops arrive, suspecting them of robbing the National Preceptor’s Residence, and search the house. Liu bribes the suspicious officer; the search turns up nothing, and the group is allowed to leave.
• Guagua reports that Qi Yanzhen learned the National Preceptor’s Residence had been emptied after its occupants awoke from being drugged. He suspects an inside job, has arrested its staff, sealed the city gates, and ordered a citywide search. He is also digging up the estate in case the goods were hidden through a secret passage.
• Yaoyao decides to organize the thousand puppet soldiers’ recovered identities into searchable categories—such as officials, martial artists, merchants, and commoners—so the public can more easily identify them.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Yaoyao is tired but quick-witted: she keeps her disguise intact during the search and is amused by Qi Yanzhen’s frantic, fruitless efforts. She also turns her attention to finding a practical use for the puppets’ identities.
• Liu Zheheng protects the group by calmly explaining their absence and bribing the officer.
• Song Qinghui helps shield Yaoyao from the man at the brothel and opens the residence gate.
• Qi Yanzhen grows increasingly suspicious and desperate, convinced the stolen goods remain in the city.
• The brothel patron’s request shows how Yaoyao’s improvised romantic and fortune-telling performance has impressed an unintended audience.

Significant themes

• Deception and disguise: Yaoyao’s invented fortune-telling and concealed identity help her navigate scrutiny.
• Power and corruption: The officer accepts a bribe while accusing the group without evidence.
• Information as a tool: Categorizing the puppets’ histories could make identifying them far easier.
• Irony and reversal: Qi Yanzhen destroys the estate searching for goods Yaoyao has already taken, while Yaoyao watches his frustration with satisfaction.

Key plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao’s request for household and security staff is quickly fulfilled by Sister Cui. Six people arrive: Qiu An and Wen Cheng for protection and errands, Ginkgo and Chang Fei for daily care, and Aunt Yu and Ding You for cooking.
• Song welcomes them warmly, and Aunt Yu says they brought food supplies and will shop for more the next morning.
• Guagua finishes investigating the identities of the puppets. Song is shocked to learn that several were prominent people whose disappearances had been concealed.
• Four puppets are the Lu family: celebrated general Lu Changfeng and his three sons, Lu Qianhe, Lu Qiandi, and Lu Kangqi. Qi Yanzhen, threatened by their reputation and military talent, arranged their deaths with court officials. Afterwards, fearing their ghosts, he ordered Feiye to prevent their souls from reincarnating. Feiye instead took their bodies to create powerful puppets.
• Another puppet is Wei Xiaobai, eldest legitimate grandson of Grand Tutor Wei Ningshan. A gifted scholar and warrior, he vanished while traveling and studying; his family never discovered that Feiye had turned him into a puppet.

Character developments and interactions

• Song continues to rely on Guagua’s research and responds with compassion and anger as she learns what happened to the puppets. She condemns Qi Yanzhen and Feiye for their cruelty.
• Guagua provides the history behind the puppets and lightly reminds Song to honor her promise of a reward.
• Song Qinghui recognizes Sister Cui’s people and brings them in. The new staff show respect to Song and her household, while Song treats them as trusted allies rather than formal subordinates.
• The Lu family’s fate reveals Qi Yanzhen’s paranoia and ruthlessness, while Feiye’s role shows his willingness to exploit the dead for his own purposes. Wei Xiaobai’s disappearance illustrates how powerful families can be left searching in vain.

Significant themes

• Abuse of power: Qi Yanzhen destroys capable people because he fears their influence.
• Identity and concealment: The puppets’ true identities were hidden behind unexplained disappearances and rumors.
• Family and legacy: The Lu family’s destruction and Wei Xiaobai’s loss threaten the futures of their families.
• Justice and compassion: Song’s indignation contrasts with the cruelty inflicted on the puppets.

Plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao and Guagua review a dossier on Feiye’s victims. It says Feiye has attacked people he found alone, including Wei Xiaobai, and helped refine Lu Changfeng and his three sons into puppets. The list also names other prominent victims, from a wealthy merchant’s nephew to martial artists and examination graduates.
• Yaoyao realizes that exposing the crimes could turn officials across the Night Central Kingdom against Feiye and Qi Yanzhen. She has Guagua print ten thousand copies of the dossier.
• Liu Zheheng and Song Qinghui read the account of Lu Changfeng’s death and are horrified. Though Lu was an enemy commander, they respected him and are outraged that he and his sons died through internal plots rather than on the battlefield.
• Yaoyao launches a drone to drop booklets over Illusion City’s busiest streets. Citizens and even imperial guards read them, while the guards fail to catch anyone as the crowd scatters and the drone moves from street to street.
• A copy reaches Qi Yanzhen. Alarmed by the exposure and its likely consequences, he angrily berates his guards for failing to stop the distribution.

Character developments and interactions

• Song Yaoyao turns information into a political weapon, calmly arranging a mass release and anticipating that others will act against Qi Yanzhen and Feiye.
• Liu Zheheng and Song Qinghui share Yaoyao’s outrage, especially because Lu Changfeng’s fate violates their sense of honor as military commanders.
• Qi Yanzhen shifts from concealment to panic and fury as he imagines the backlash from the Lu family and his ministers.
• Guagua supplies the research and printing, while Yaoyao directs the operation. The servants notice the drone but keep their curiosity to themselves.

Significant themes

• Abuse of power and dehumanization: Feiye’s victims are treated as objects for corpse refining, regardless of status or background.
• Public knowledge as political leverage: Spreading evidence threatens powerful figures more effectively than direct confrontation.
• Honor among soldiers: The deaths of Lu Changfeng and his sons provoke anger because they were killed through schemes, not in honorable battle.
• Fear and control: The crowd initially fears punishment for reading the booklets, while the guards’ efforts to suppress them only spread the news further.

Plot points and events

• Furious that none of his people can identify the strange flying object, Emperor Qi Yanzhen orders elite palace fighters to hunt it down and kill it.
• Song Yaoyao uses the drone to taunt them, leading them on an exhausting chase across the city before letting it disappear at night.
• She then uses the cover of darkness to scatter booklets about the emperor’s crimes across officials’ residences, wealthy merchants’ districts, gambling houses, and brothels. People read the revelations aloud, spreading the news throughout Illusion City.
• The Lu family learns from the booklets that the emperor had their men killed and that Feiye turned them into puppets. Old Madam Lu faints from shock, then resolves to take the family to beat the Dengwen Drum and publicly challenge the emperor.
• Old Madam Lu expects Qi Yanzhen to blame Feiye, but sees value in forcing him to answer publicly. She also notes that the Grand Tutor may act over his grandson Wei Xiaobai’s fate, while the merchants’ associations could create further trouble for the emperor.

Character developments

• Song Yaoyao proves both playful and strategically relentless: she turns the drone into a distraction, then uses it to distribute evidence throughout the city.
• Old Madam Lu moves from grief and shock to determined leadership, choosing public confrontation despite expecting the emperor to evade responsibility.
• The Lu women are devastated by the revelation but begin preparing to demand justice.
• Qi Yanzhen appears increasingly enraged and threatened, responding to the drone with force but unable to control the information spreading through his city.

Character interactions

• Song Yaoyao’s antics amuse and impress Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng, who praise her audacious plan.
• The Lu family mourns together; Madam Lu asks Old Madam Lu how to proceed, and the elder directs them to petition publicly.
• Old Madam Lu connects the Lu family’s grievance to other influential groups, suggesting that the scandal could unite the Grand Tutor and merchants against the emperor.

Significant themes

• Exposure and public accountability: The booklets turn hidden state crimes into a citywide scandal.
• Resistance through ingenuity: Song Yaoyao defeats powerful pursuers through technology and misdirection rather than force.
• Loyalty betrayed: The Lu family’s generations of service are answered with murder and the desecration of their dead.
• Collective pressure: The revelations may bring together grieving families and powerful social groups, making the emperor’s attempt to evade blame more difficult.

Plot points and events

• Old Madam Lu recognizes that the booklet exposing the puppet-making scandal could turn many groups against Emperor Qi Yanzhen: wealthy merchants, martial artists, and scholars. She orders her people to contact the listed scholars and plans to wait for the resulting unrest.
• Grand Tutor Wei Ningshan collapses when he learns his grandson Xiao Bai has died. After recovering, he blames Qi Yanzhen, arguing that Feiye could not have used people for corpse-refining without the emperor’s tacit approval. He plans to join forces with Old Madam Lu and summons influential former students to discuss their response.
• Merchants, martial-arts sects, and ordinary citizens react with shock and anger as they learn that missing people—including prominent martial artists—were turned into puppets.
• The next morning, Song Yaoyao, Song Qinghui, and Liu Zheheng visit a teahouse to witness the city’s reaction. Rumors spread that Old Madam Lu and the Wei family heir have beaten the Dengwen Drum, while merchants and victims’ families gather outside the palace. Forbidden Army soldiers try to silence the public.
• Through Guagua’s video, Song Yaoyao watches the morning court. Old Madam Lu makes an emotional public appeal over the Lu family’s losses; the drum sounds again as Wei Zhiwen arrives. Qi Yanzhen ultimately shifts blame onto Feiye, promising punishment once he is captured.

Character developments and interactions

• Old Madam Lu moves from private grief to political action, using her family’s tragedy to challenge the emperor and mobilize other groups.
• Wei Ningshan turns from shock and mourning to fierce opposition, rejecting his former loyalty to the royalist cause. He clashes with his son Wei Zhiwen, who initially insists the emperor was not directly responsible; Ningshan argues that the emperor must have approved Feiye’s actions.
• Wei Zhiwen, grieving his son, accepts his father’s plan to coordinate with Old Madam Lu.
• Qi Yanzhen avoids addressing the scandal directly at first, then deflects responsibility onto Feiye.
• Song Yaoyao watches the public and court reactions with interest, while Guagua provides her with a recording of events.

Significant themes

• Abuse of power and complicity: Ningshan argues that the emperor bears responsibility even if Feiye carried out the crimes.
• Grief as political force: The Lu and Wei families’ losses fuel organized resistance.
• Public dissent and repression: Citizens gather and speak out, while soldiers attempt to intimidate them into silence.
• Growing unrest: The scandal threatens to unite officials, merchants, martial artists, scholars, and ordinary people against the imperial court.

Key plot points and events

• Song Yaoyao notices a woman leading a reluctant but compliant man into a teahouse and asks Guagua for the gossip.
• Guagua identifies them as Qi Heyue and Li Jidong, whose tribal name is Mifeng—meaning “excellent” in the Witch Tribe’s language, not “honeybee.”
• Li Jidong is the youngest of the Witch Tribe’s Eighth Elder’s ten sons. His father especially dotes on him because his mother is beloved and fragile, and Li Jidong is exceptionally clever.
• Though sociable and charming as a child, Li Jidong grows into a quiet, composed young man. At sixteen, tribal rules require him to leave home and gain experience.
• During his five-year journey, he falls in love with Bai Xiuzhu. When his father becomes seriously ill, Li Jidong searches for a rare medicinal herb.
• He finds the herb deep in a dangerous mountain and sends it to his father by hawk, but is then attacked by a pack of more than twenty wolves. After a four-hour fight, he kills them, badly injured, and struggles toward a village before collapsing.

Character development and interactions

• Song Yaoyao eagerly interprets Qi Heyue and Li Jidong’s hand-holding as romantic teasing, while Guagua gently challenges her assumptions and provides the real backstory.
• Li Jidong is portrayed as a gifted, well-loved child who becomes restrained and self-reliant. His journey shows his devotion to his father: despite the danger, he goes alone to secure the medicine.
• The Eighth Elder’s affection for his youngest son explains both his special place in the family and the emotional stakes of Li Jidong’s quest.
• Song Qinghui and Liu Zheheng watch the gossip unfold and share Song Yaoyao’s confusion over the name “Mifeng.”

Significant themes

• Family duty and filial devotion: Li Jidong risks his life to save his father.
• Coming of age and independence: The tribe’s tradition forces young people to leave home and prove themselves.
• Appearance versus reality: A name that sounds comical to outsiders has a respected meaning in its own language, and Li Jidong’s bashful appearance leaves room for Song Yaoyao’s mistaken speculation.

Plot points and events

• After being mauled by wolves, Li Jidong is rescued by Bai Xiuzhu and her father, who nurse him back to health. He stays with them for three months, then leaves because his tribe forbids marriage to outsiders.
• Unable to forget Xiuzhu, Li returns six months later and finds two thugs breaking into her home and threatening her. He knocks them unconscious and later leaves them permanently witless, ensuring they cannot retaliate.
• Xiuzhu explains that her father died while hunting and that villagers have since tried to take her property, pressure her into marriage, and harass her.
• Li asks Xiuzhu to leave the village with him. She agrees, revealing that she loves him too. They become a couple, sell the Bai family home, and leave together.
• Song Yaoyao questions how this romance fits with Qi Heyue, whom Li had recently encountered outside the teahouse.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Jidong moves from suppressing his love out of loyalty to tribal rules to choosing Xiuzhu’s safety and their future together. He is fiercely protective, though his severe treatment of the thugs reveals a ruthless side.
• Bai Xiuzhu, previously dependent on her father and increasingly vulnerable after his death, finds the courage to leave the village and openly choose the man she loves.
• Their mutual affection becomes explicit through Xiuzhu’s willingness to go with Li and his promise to protect her. She accepts his actions against the thugs rather than fearing him.
• The story also highlights the care of Xiuzhu and her father in rescuing and nursing Li, and Li’s gratitude and loyalty in return.

Significant themes

• Love versus social rules: Li’s tribal marriage prohibition nearly costs him the person he loves, but he ultimately rejects the rule.
• Protection and vulnerability: Xiuzhu’s isolation leaves her exposed to harassment; Li’s return changes her prospects.
• Loss and new beginnings: After her father’s death, Xiuzhu leaves behind her home and village to build a life with Li.