Chapter Summaries

Xie Huizhou endured the snake demon’s unwanted nighttime visits while preparing to invigilate the Imperial Examination, and the plot began moving again when Zhou Yanqing placed third. As the emperor arranged the Qionglin Banquet, Xie Huizhou looked forward to seeing the story unfold.

• Xie Huizhou hid the snake demon’s existence from Eunuch Li, then continued receiving gifts and unwanted visits from the disguised demon while his health improved.
• Xie Huizhou asked Zhang Lanhe for a protective talisman, and Zhang Lanhe concealed his own worsening poison while delivering Xie Huizhou’s official robes.
• Xie Huizhou invigilated the Imperial Examination in red robes, while candidates struggled with the difficult questions he had written.
• Zhou Yanqing praised Xie Huizhou to Fang Yuanke, who admitted he would rather not see the Ninth Prince and suggested inviting him to their residence if Zhou placed in the top three.
• Zhou Yanqing placed third in the Imperial Examination, and the emperor arranged a Qionglin Banquet attended by Xie Huizhou, who eagerly anticipated the plot’s next events.

Xie Huizhou resumed drawing Phoenix Painting for Li Xu while wondering whether the white snake haunting him was real. After hearing a legend that the snake had been sealed beneath the imperial palace, he decided to investigate during the Qionglin Banquet, as his new drawings stirred excitement across the Capital City.

• Li Xu urged Xie Huizhou to draw another volume of Phoenix Painting, and Xie Huizhou agreed for the money despite his embarrassment about Zhang Lanhe seeing the earlier drawings.
• Xie Huizhou asked Li Xu whether demons existed and recalled the white snake that had been bothering him.
• Li Xu dismissed the idea of demons but told Xie Huizhou a legend that the founding emperor had sealed a giant white snake beneath the imperial palace.
• Xie Huizhou decided to explore the palace during the Qionglin Banquet, and Li Xu left with his new drawings.
• Xie Huizhou's drawings caused a stir throughout the Capital City, and even the confined Eighth Prince heard about them.

Xie Huizhou’s paintings became popular across Capital City, but the Eighth Prince, Xie Tingchun, discovered that they revealed his secret ambitions and ordered his advisers to find the artist. After hearing the emperor had lifted his confinement, he prepared to attend the Qionglin Banquet and confront Ninth Brother.

• Xie Huizhou’s later paintings portrayed Zhang Lanhe as noble and tragic, prompting rumors that the artist was dead or in love with the Imperial Preceptor.
• Newly freed Xie Tingchun seized a guard’s copy of the Phoenix Painting and laughed at its erotic depiction of Zhang Lanhe.
• Xie Tingchun found that the paintings also exposed his affair with an imperial consort, rebellion plans, and network of spies, and he feared the emperor would discover them.
• Xie Tingchun ordered an investigation and wanted Spring Studio Hermit killed, but his adviser urged him to avoid drawing attention and try buying off the artist.
• Xie Tingchun agreed to send subordinates to handle the matter and decided to attend the Qionglin Banquet to deliver a gift to Ninth Brother.

At the Qionglin Banquet, Zhang Lanhe protected the ailing Xie Huizhou from being pressured to drink, while their mutual attraction and jealousy stirred trouble. Xie Huizhou left to sort out his feelings, and the Eighth Prince followed him intending to kill him and frame Zhou Yanqing.

• Zhang Lanhe watched Xie Huizhou at the banquet and worried over his renewed illness and coughing.
• Zhou Yanqing and Fang Yuanke invited Xie Huizhou to visit their residence, and Xie Huizhou accepted so he could observe them together.
• When guests pressed Xie Huizhou to drink, Zhang Lanhe took the cup and drank for him, saying Xie Huizhou was his student.
• Zhang Lanhe and Zhou Yanqing glared at each other, while Xie Huizhou grew troubled by his feelings for the Imperial Preceptor and went to get some air.
• The Eighth Prince decided to kill Xie Huizhou and frame Zhou Yanqing, then followed him despite his advisers' warnings.
• Xie Huizhou noticed someone trailing him and thought a little rat was following him.

Xie Huizhou lured the Eighth Prince into a trap after discovering him following with murderous intent, then let him struggle in the lotus pond. Zhang Lanhe arrived and took over, revealing his snake-demon nature to the Eighth Prince, who taunted him that Xie Huizhou would reject him once he knew the truth.

• Xie Huizhou realized the Eighth Prince, Xie Tingchun, was following him and lured him to the abandoned lotus pond.
• Xie Tingchun tried to shove Xie Huizhou into the pond but fell in himself, then begged Xie Huizhou to save him.
• Zhang Lanhe arrived and urged Xie Huizhou not to show mercy to an enemy, offering to handle Xie Tingchun while Xie Huizhou changed his wet clothes.
• After Xie Huizhou left, Zhang Lanhe revealed his serpentine form as something beneath the water pulled Xie Tingchun under.
• Xie Tingchun called Zhang Lanhe a demon and warned that Xie Huizhou would leave him; Zhang Lanhe dismissed him and sent him to his death.

The Eighth Prince drowned at the Qionglin Banquet after going to the Lotus Pond, and Consort Shu accused Xie Huizhou of killing him. Zhang Lanhe protected Xie Huizhou and helped the emperor close the case as an accidental drowning, while Xie Shiqing wondered where the Fourth Prince had gone.

• The Eighth Prince's advisers and Consort Shu secretly searched for him, then a palace maid found his drowned body in the Lotus Pond.
• Consort Shu accused Xie Huizhou of murdering the Eighth Prince, but Zhang Lanhe said Xie Huizhou had been with him and blamed an evil spirit.
• The emperor ordered an investigation, and a eunuch said the Eighth Prince had entered the water himself to retrieve something.
• The emperor learned the Eighth Prince had been clutching a silk handkerchief belonging to one of his consorts and ended the investigation by calling the death an accidental drowning.
• Consort Shu swallowed her anger, and the emperor left after ordering a dignified funeral for the Eighth Prince.
• Xie Shiqing remarked that the Eighth Prince had failed to kill Xie Huizhou and wondered where the Fourth Prince was.

Xie Huizhou broke into Suowu Palace while searching for White Snake and found a portrait of a woman who looked just like him. Xie Wangqiu revealed that the woman was Xie Huizhou’s mother and offered to tell him about her past.

• After overhearing eunuchs warn about Suowu Palace, Xie Huizhou decided to investigate it.
• Xie Huizhou slipped past the imperial guards and searched the palace, mistaking it for a possible place where White Snake was held.
• Xie Huizhou discovered a portrait of a woman who resembled him and felt an inexplicable connection to her.
• When Xie Huizhou heard someone watching him, he shot an arrow beside the hidden person to force them out.
• Xie Wangqiu emerged and told Xie Huizhou that the woman in the painting was his mother, offering to reveal her past.

The Fourth Prince, Xie Wangqiu, told Xie Huizhou that Consort Yu had been taken from her first husband by the emperor and had another child before entering the palace. He then revealed that palace rumors claimed Xie Huizhou was not the emperor’s biological son.

• Xie Wangqiu followed Xie Huizhou into the room and confronted him about what he had discovered.
• Xie Wangqiu described how the emperor killed Consort Yu’s husband and forced her into the palace.
• Xie Huizhou wondered who his mother’s first child was and felt guilty that his birth had cost that child their mother.
• Xie Wangqiu said Consort Yu gave birth to Xie Huizhou prematurely after entering the palace and revealed rumors that the emperor was not his father.

After the Fourth Prince’s taunts triggered Xie Huizhou’s poison, Little White Snake protected him until Zhang Lanhe arrived and relieved his pain. Xie Huizhou worried Zhang Lanhe would abandon him if he stopped being a prince, but Zhang Lanhe promised he never would.

• The Fourth Prince told Xie Huizhou that the emperor suspected he was not his biological son, and Xie Huizhou’s distress triggered his poison.
• The Fourth Prince moved closer to torment Xie Huizhou, but Little White Snake bit his wrist to protect him.
• A phantom silver serpent appeared behind Xie Huizhou, frightening the Fourth Prince into fleeing.
• Zhang Lanhe arrived, eased Xie Huizhou’s pain, and said he had handled the Eighth Prince’s situation so no one would investigate.
• Xie Huizhou asked whether Zhang Lanhe would still care for him if he were no longer a prince, and Zhang Lanhe promised never to abandon him.

Zhang Lanhe told Xie Huizhou that he had followed him because of who he was, but Xie Huizhou avoided guessing what that meant. After Xie Huizhou nearly collapsed, Zhang Lanhe took him to the National Preceptor's Residence to recover, where he arranged an unexpected doctor for him.

• Zhang Lanhe told Xie Huizhou that he had followed him because of who he was, and urged him to guess why.
• Xie Huizhou pretended not to understand Zhang Lanhe's feelings and decided to think about them later.
• Xie Huizhou nearly fell, and Zhang Lanhe caught him and offered to take him away because he was still weak from the poison.
• Zhang Lanhe and Xie Huizhou left the imperial palace without being stopped by the guards, and Xie Huizhou wondered whether his identity had been exposed.
• Zhang Lanhe brought Xie Huizhou to the National Preceptor's Residence to recuperate and arranged an unexpected doctor for him.

Xie Huizhou received treatment from Ye Changfeng, who discovered that Zhang Lanhe had been drawing poison from him at great cost to himself. Zhang Lanhe secretly helped detoxify Xie Huizhou overnight, and the chapter ended with Xie Huizhou feeling stronger and receiving an invitation from Zhou Yanqing and Fang Yuanke.

• Zhang Lanhe brought the reluctant physician Ye Changfeng to the National Preceptor's Residence, where Ye agreed to treat Xie Huizhou after being threatened.
• Ye Changfeng diagnosed Xie Huizhou with severe poisoning and realized Zhang Lanhe had been drawing poison from him.
• Ye Changfeng warned Zhang Lanhe that his sacrifice could kill him, but agreed to write detoxifying prescriptions for both men in exchange for snake scales.
• Zhang Lanhe secretly entered Xie Huizhou's bedchamber as a giant phantom White Snake and drew out poison while coiling around him.
• Xie Huizhou slept while clinging to Zhang Lanhe's tail, woke feeling stronger, and received an invitation from Zhou Yanqing and Fang Yuanke.

Xie Huizhou attended Zhou Yanqing’s banquet while Zhang Lanhe learned that the poison threatening Xie Huizhou’s life might still be cured. The emperor discovered Zhang Lanhe’s attachment to Xie Huizhou and planned to use the Ninth Prince as bait by sending him to plague-stricken Pingzhou.

• Xie Huizhou accepted Zhou Yanqing’s invitation to a banquet, and Zhang Lanhe reluctantly let him go while wanting to follow secretly.
• Zhang Lanhe pressed Ye Changfeng about curing Xie Huizhou’s poison, and Ye Changfeng explained that an antidote or enough time might save him.
• Zhang Lanhe vowed to find the antidote and secure Xie Huizhou’s survival, despite the danger of the emperor learning about their bond.
• The Imperial Guards commander reported Zhang Lanhe’s unusual closeness to Xie Huizhou to the emperor, who realized the Ninth Prince was the Imperial Preceptor’s weakness.
• The emperor planned to send Xie Huizhou and the newly appointed Third Place to plague-stricken Pingzhou, hoping to force Zhang Lanhe to beg him for mercy.

Xie Huizhou planned to take Zhang Lanhe with him when he left the capital, while the Little White Snake and Zhang Lanhe misunderstood his intentions as a promise to elope. After learning little about Fang Yuanke from his Shadow Guards, Xie visited the Young Marquis and found himself facing an ominous gift.

• Xie Huizhou added the doomed Imperial Preceptor Zhang Lanhe to his plans to leave the capital, and the Little White Snake happily relayed his words to Zhang.
• The Shadow Guards gave Xie a detailed dossier on Zhang Lanhe instead of information about Fang Yuanke, and Xie praised their work.
• Xie brought fruit to the Anping Marquis Residence, where the old steward mistook him for someone else before leading him inside.
• Xie found Zhou Yanqing and Fang Yuanke playing chess together, and Zhou welcomed him with a feast prepared to suit his tastes.
• Fang Yuanke presented Xie with a lavish gift, leaving Xie worried that he had been lured into a deadly trap.

Xie Huizhou attended a meal with Fang Yuanke and Zhou Yanqing, where Fang Yuanke warned him against Zhang Lanhe and tried to steer him away from the Imperial Preceptor. After Fang Yuanke gave Xie Huizhou a stack of Phoenix Illustrations and offered to introduce him to beauties, a messenger arrived from the palace just as they were about to collect Fang Yuanke’s grand gift.

• Xie Huizhou met Fang Yuanke and shared a meal with him and Zhou Yanqing while Little White Snake watched the guests warily.
• Fang Yuanke urged Xie Huizhou to get rid of the snake Zhang Lanhe had given him and warned that Zhang Lanhe had ill intentions, but Xie Huizhou defended the Imperial Preceptor.
• Fang Yuanke presented Xie Huizhou with Phoenix Illustrations, which Xie Huizhou recognized as his own paintings, and offered to introduce him to a beauty.
• Zhang Lanhe, possessing Little White Snake, grew furious at Fang Yuanke for speaking against him and trying to introduce Xie Huizhou to someone.
• Fang Yuanke prepared to take Xie Huizhou to collect his grand gift, but the old steward rushed in to announce that someone had come from the palace.

Xie Huizhou learned that the emperor had ordered him, Zhou Yanqing, and Fang Yuanke to travel to Pingzhou and deal with a deadly plague. As the group realized the Divine Physician Ye Changfeng was at the National Preceptor's Residence, Xie Huizhou went with Fang Yuanke to see a thank-you gift and was stunned by what he found.

• Palace eunuchs delivered imperial decrees ordering Xie Huizhou, Zhou Yanqing, and Fang Yuanke to resolve the Pingzhou Plague.
• Zhou Yanqing objected that Xie Huizhou was too frail for the mission, but the chief eunuch warned that refusing the decree was a capital offense.
• Zhou Yanqing said he knew an exceptional physician, and Xie Huizhou revealed that Ye Changfeng was staying at the National Preceptor's Residence.
• Xie Huizhou left to discuss the plague mission with the Imperial Preceptor, while privately considering killing the eunuchs to avoid the assignment.
• Fang Yuanke asked Xie Huizhou to accept a prepared thank-you gift, and Xie Huizhou was shocked when he saw it.

Fang Yuanke revealed that he and Xie Huizhou were brothers by the same mother, then warned Xie Huizhou about the emperor and urged him to stay by his side. After fleeing to collect his thoughts, Xie Huizhou stopped to buy mung bean cakes for Zhang Lanhe and encountered a flamboyant stranger who mistook him for a beautiful maiden.

• Fang Yuanke led Xie Huizhou into a secret chamber, where Xie Huizhou recognized their mother, Shen Yuxiang, in a portrait beside her spirit tablet.
• Fang Yuanke revealed that he was Xie Huizhou's eldest brother and said he had never blamed him for their mother's death.
• Fang Yuanke warned Xie Huizhou that the emperor might kill him and urged him to stay with his big brother, while Xie Huizhou defended Zhang Lanhe.
• Xie Huizhou left in turmoil and headed toward the National Preceptor's Residence, then stopped to buy mung bean cakes that Zhang Lanhe liked.
• As Xie Huizhou returned to his carriage, a flamboyant, handsome stranger asked to marry him and make him his princess consort.

Xie Huizhou was mistaken for a woman by Wuzi, a prince from the Northern Border Kingdom, who declared that he still wanted to marry him after learning he was a man. When Xie Huizhou returned to his carriage, he found Little White Snake missing and was confronted by the snake demon who had abducted him before.

• Wuzi approached Xie Huizhou at the market, mistook him for a woman, and asked him to become his consort.
• After learning Xie Huizhou was a man, Wuzi said he still loved him and introduced himself as the third prince of the Northern Border Kingdom.
• Xie Huizhou rejected Wuzi and falsely claimed to be Xie Wangqiu, the Fourth Prince, before leaving for his carriage.
• Zhang Lanhe woke to find Xie Huizhou gone and saw him speaking with Wuzi, which stirred his jealousy and possessiveness.
• Xie Huizhou returned to the carriage, could not find Little White Snake, and was seized by the snake demon, who asked who he had met that day.

Zhang Lanhe confronted Xie Huizhou in a carriage, jealous of his attention to another man and insisting they belonged together. Xie Huizhou questioned Zhang Lanhe about demons and his hidden identity, then tried to end the pursuit by claiming he loved someone else.

• Zhang Lanhe covered Xie Huizhou's eyes and confessed that he had been watching him and sending him gifts and letters.
• Xie Huizhou called Zhang Lanhe a pervert and told him they were not close, while Zhang Lanhe insisted they were already partners.
• Zhang Lanhe said he was the only snake spirit and claimed that no one was better suited to Xie Huizhou than he was.
• Xie Huizhou asked to see Zhang Lanhe's true face, but refused when Zhang Lanhe said that seeing it meant he had to marry him.
• Xie Huizhou questioned Zhang Lanhe about the absence of demons and rumors about his true body, but Zhang Lanhe demanded marriage before revealing his secrets.
• Xie Huizhou told Zhang Lanhe he already loved someone and asked him to stop pestering him.

Xie Huizhou realized he might love the mysterious snake demon, who kissed him while secretly curing his poison. After teasing and touching Xie Huizhou, the demon vanished, leaving him wondering whether the snake was Zhang Lanhe.

• Xie Huizhou blurted out that he loved someone, then privately realized his feelings might be for the Imperial Preceptor, Zhang Lanhe.
• Zhang Lanhe pressed Xie Huizhou to name the person he loved and threatened to kill his romantic rivals, prompting Xie Huizhou to accuse him of being obsessive.
• Zhang Lanhe kissed Xie Huizhou as punishment for biting him, and Xie Huizhou noticed that the kiss was also drawing poison from his body.
• Xie Huizhou felt Zhang Lanhe's body to search for clues, arousing the snake demon, who warned him before turning into mist and disappearing.
• Xie Huizhou removed his blindfold and wondered why the snake demon reminded him so much of the Imperial Preceptor.

Xie Huizhou grew convinced that Zhang Lanhe was the Snake Demon and hurried to the National Preceptor's Residence to find proof. He learned Zhang Lanhe was soaking in the rear courtyard's cold spring and headed there before the steward could warn him away.

• Xie Huizhou connected the Snake Demon's reactions to Zhang Lanhe's presence and resolved to tease Zhang Lanhe after confirming his suspicion.
• Xie Huizhou fed mung bean cakes to Little White Snake and noticed the snake's likeness to Zhang Lanhe.
• Xie Huizhou entered the National Preceptor's Residence without announcing himself and searched for Zhang Lanhe.
• The steward told Xie Huizhou that Zhang Lanhe had gone to the cold spring in the rear courtyard.
• Xie Huizhou hurried toward the cold spring, while the steward privately urged Zhang Lanhe to act before someone else won the prince's affection.