Recaps

Chen Caozhi learned that Wang Meng was delaying peace talks to keep him in Chang'an and planned to use rumors about Fu Jian’s birth to unsettle Di Qin after he left. He prepared a cryptic prophecy on Baqiao Paper, intending for it to appear at the Shrine of Ximen Bao and fuel suspicion at court.

• Chen Caozhi returned to the State Guest Quarters, where Huang Xiaotong reported that Di Qin students wanted to buy his folding fan.
• Eunuch Zhao Zheng invited Chen Caozhi to expound Buddhist sutras for Empress Dowager Gou and said Wang Meng had left Chang'an, postponing peace talks for ten days.
• Dou Lang said Wang Meng had gone to relieve locust-stricken Jingyang and Sanyuan, while Chen Caozhi recognized the delay as a tactic to keep him in Chang'an.
• Chen Caozhi asked Su Qi about Empress Dowager Gou and heard the rumor that Fu Jian had been conceived after she dreamed of coupling with a god at the Shrine of Ximen Bao.
• Chen Caozhi considered spreading doubts about Fu Jian’s parentage and wrote an obscure prophecy with cuttlefish ink, planning for it to appear at the Shrine of Ximen Bao near Ye City.

Chen Caozhi delivered Eastern Jin weapons to Di Qin and expounded Buddhist scriptures to Empress Dowager Gou, winning her respect while making visits to Chang’an’s powerful families. After Wang Meng returned and suggested a long journey to inspect horses, Chen Caozhi recognized another delay and remained concerned about securing an agreement and Luoyang’s safety.

• Chen Caozhi delivered two carts of newly forged weapons to Di Qin’s armaments office for its officers and soldiers to test.
• Crown Prince Fu Hong welcomed Chen Caozhi into Sweet Dew Palace, where Empress Dowager Gou asked him about marriage before he explained Buddhist scriptures to her and Empress Gou.
• Chen Caozhi’s teachings turned Empress Dowager Gou’s attraction into reverence, and she invited him to return on odd-numbered days to expound the Dharma.
• Chen Caozhi visited Di Qin’s nobles and officials, praised Wang Meng to Qiang Wang, and observed resentment toward Fu Jian and Wang Meng among powerful relatives.
• Wang Meng returned to Chang’an after reporting locust damage and told Dou Lang to offer Chen Caozhi a trip to inspect horses at Longyou, which Chen recognized as a delaying tactic.

As drought worsened across Yangzhou, Xie Daoyun returned to Jiankang before traveling to Kuaiji to oversee relief work. After learning the Lu Clan might send Lu Weiwei into the palace while Chen Caozhi was away, Xie Daoyun resolved to help her escape that pressure.

• Drought devastated Yangzhou, and Zhu Yingtai volunteered to supervise relief efforts in Kuaiji because she knew its irrigation works.
• Xie Daoyun returned to Jiankang and told Xie An and Xie Wan that Chen Caozhi had warned Huan Wen about Di Qin efforts to win over settlements north of the Huai.
• Xie An told Xie Daoyun that Lu Weiwei might be sent to the palace, and Xie Wan argued that her family did not need her consent.
• Xie Daoyun discussed A'e's possible marriage to Huan Huo's daughter, then wrote a letter to Xie Xuan for her uncles to send to him.
• After Liu Xu suggested Xie Daoyun's grievance was that Lu Weiwei had reached Chen Caozhi first, Xie Daoyun decided to tell Lu Weiwei how to escape her predicament.

Zhang Tongyun received Xie Daoyun’s plan to protect Lu Weiwei from rumors that she would be taken into the palace, and brought Lu Weiwei’s Memorial of Remonstrance back for Xie Daoyun to review. Xie Daoyun pledged to help secure its presentation to Empress Dowager Chu, then won support from Sima Yu and Xi Chao before leaving for Kuaiji.

• Zhang Tongyun read Xie Daoyun’s letter explaining that Lu Shi and Lu Qin were spreading rumors about Lu Weiwei entering the palace and outlining a plan to prevent it.
• Zhang Tongyun hurried to the Lu Residence, and Lu Weiwei sent back a heartfelt Memorial of Remonstrance asking Empress Dowager Chu to grant her marriage to Chen Caozhi.
• Xie Daoyun praised Lu Weiwei’s memorial and promised Zhang Tongyun she would help present it to Empress Dowager Chu after Empress Yu’s mourning period ended.
• Xie Daoyun told Zhang Tongyun to urge Lu Weiwei to wait for Chen Caozhi, then left Jiankang for Kuaiji the next day.
• Xie Daoyun appealed to Sima Yu, who promised to oppose the palace rumors if they proved true, and Xi Chao, who pledged his support for Lu Weiwei and Chen Caozhi.

Xie Daoyun traveled through drought-stricken Jiangdong, longing for Chen Caozhi and worrying over his mission, while Chen Caozhi waited in Chang'an for an audience with Fu Jian. After Fu Jian assigned Qiu Teng to negotiate in Wang Meng's place, Chen Caozhi suspected the Qin court was trying to delay him and resolved to seek Empress Dowager Gou's help.

• Xie Daoyun traveled from Jiankang toward Kuaiji with Xie Lang, remembering her journey with Chen Caozhi and coughing along the way.
• At the Feng Residence in Qiantang, Xie Daoyun told Run'er about Chen Caozhi's mission, and Ding Youwei expressed concern about Xie Daoyun's cough.
• Xie Daoyun saw the severe drought and stranded fish at the Qiantang River, rescued a little crucian carp, and wondered what Chen Caozhi was doing in Chang'an.
• Chen Caozhi met Fu Jian, complained that Wang Meng had delayed peace talks, and asked for another official to negotiate with him.
• Fu Jian appointed Qiu Teng to negotiate, and Chen Caozhi suspected the Qin court was stalling in hopes of keeping him in Chang'an.

Chen Caozhi refused Fu Jian’s rewards and used scripture to persuade Empress Dowager Gou to let him return to Jin. After reaching a peace and trade agreement with Fu Rong, he left Chang’an, but news of a Yan attack on Luoyang awaited him beyond Mianchi.

• Chen Caozhi returned Fu Jian’s gifts, then provoked Qiu Teng during their negotiations until Qiu Teng asked to be relieved of them.
• Fu Jian assigned Fu Rong to negotiate with Chen Caozhi, while Empress Dowager Gou urged Chen Caozhi to remain in Chang’an.
• Chen Caozhi expounded filial scriptures to Empress Dowager Gou and Fu Jian, then avoided Empress Gou’s invitation to preach at Houde Palace.
• Chen Caozhi and Fu Rong agreed that Qin and Jin would maintain their borders, trade weapons for horses, and exchange other goods; Fu Jian sent Xi Bao with Chen Caozhi to Jiangdong.
• Chen Caozhi, Ran Sheng, Su Qi, and their party left Chang’an with Xi Bao’s delegation and reached Mianchi on the fourteenth day of the sixth month.
• A Jin scout told Chen Caozhi that Murong Ke and Murong Chui had marched from Ye City to take Luoyang.

Chen Caozhi reached Luoyang as Yan’s army advanced and learned that Jin would not reinforce the isolated city. He resolved to hold Luoyang and planned to use nursery rhymes in Ye City to make Murong Wei recall Murong Ke from the campaign.

• Chen Caozhi warned Xi Bao that Murong Ke’s advance on Luoyang threatened Qin’s western defenses, and Xi Bao sent warnings to Chang'an and Deng Qiang.
• Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao entered Luoyang, where Shen Jin described the approaching Yan army and Chen Caozhi discussed the city’s defense with him.
• Shen Jin asked Chen Caozhi to take Shen Chiqian south, but Chen Caozhi insisted that Luoyang must be held after reading Xie Daoyun’s letter advising against fighting for it.
• Chen Caozhi told Shen Jin he would visit Murong Ke and Murong Chui, claiming he needed to deliver Golden Pǒluó drinking vessels entrusted to him by Xie Anshi.
• Chen Caozhi revealed that Duan Zhao had gone to Ye City to spread nursery rhymes implying that Murong Ke should succeed Murong Jun, hoping to provoke Murong Wei into summoning Murong Ke back.

Chen Caozhi prepared to meet Murong Ke and travel to Ye City, hoping to avert the Yan threat to Luoyang, while Shen Jin arranged for his son and Ran Sheng to accompany him. As Murong Chui’s night attack alarm sent the Qin delegation fleeing south, Chen Caozhi left most of his soldiers behind to help Shen Jin defend Luoyang.

• Chen Caozhi explained to Shen Jin that he intended to use rumors about Yan succession disputes and meet Murong Ke and Murong Chui in Ye City.
• After scouts reported that Murong Chui’s force was approaching Luoyang, Shen Jin ordered Shen Chiqian to protect Chen Caozhi with his life.
• Chen Caozhi persuaded Shen Jin to help draw the Di Qin delegation into his plans, then convinced Ran Sheng to accompany him while disguising his identity by shaving his beard.
• Chen Caozhi told Xi Bao that he would leave Luoyang for Huaibei, leading Xi Bao to believe he would not stay to defend the city.
• At midnight, an alarm reported that Murong Chui had led three thousand cavalry on a night attack, and Shen Chiqian guided Xi Bao and Chen Caozhi out through the south gate.
• Chen Caozhi left most of his soldiers in Luoyang to assist Shen Jin and rode south with Xi Bao and the Qin delegation.

Chen Caozhi led Xi Bao and their party away from Luoyang as Yan forces closed in, then deliberately maneuvered them into a confrontation with Yan cavalry. Surrounded, he claimed they had come to see Murong Chui, leaving their fate dependent on whether the Yan general would bring them before him.

• After scouts reported that Yan troops blocked the Yi River crossings and were surrounding Luoyang, Chen Caozhi decided the party could not return and sent Shen Chiqian to find a crossing farther east.
• Chen Caozhi persuaded Xi Bao to have the Qin cavalry dismount and send their horses across separately, then led the party east along the river while secretly preserving the horses from capture.
• As dawn approached, Shen Chiqian veered north and led them toward Yanshi, where Yan cavalry discovered and surrounded them.
• Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao announced that they were credential-bearing envoys, and Chen said he had come to seek an audience with Murong Chui with a gift from an old friend.
• After the Yan general sent a report to Yanshi, Xi Bao accused Chen Caozhi of bringing disaster upon them, but Chen insisted they were envoys rather than captives and would speak with Murong Chui.

Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao were captured by Murong Chui’s forces near Yanshi, and Chen met the King of Wu to deliver a message from Xie An. The chapter ended as Murong Chui questioned whether Chen had truly come only to return an old gift, while armed men waited behind the tent curtain.

• Murong Chui postponed his advance on Luoyang after learning that Sun Gai had captured the Jin envoy Chen Caozhi, the Qin envoy Xi Bao, and their escorts.
• Murong Chui sent Murong Ling to bring the envoys to camp courteously, then arranged his troops to display Yan’s military strength and stand ready.
• Ran Sheng rode with Chen Caozhi and watched the Yan heavy cavalry, remembering his father Ran Min’s defeat and vowing to crush the Murong Clan’s prestige.
• Murong Chui welcomed Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao into his command tent, where armed men waited behind the curtain as Chen calmly remarked on the heat.
• Chen Caozhi told Murong Chui that Xie Anshi had sent him to return the gift Murong had given Xie thirty years earlier, and Murong questioned whether that was truly his sole purpose.

Chen Caozhi secured courteous treatment for the Jin and Qin envoys after confronting Murong Chui, who was ordered to send them to Gong County to meet Murong Ke. Chen Caozhi defeated Murong Chui at go and insisted their armed escorts accompany them, leaving Murong Chui to agree while requiring the escorts to surrender their bows and arrows.

• Chen Caozhi challenged Murong Chui over the hidden soldiers, prompting Murong Chui to withdraw them before Chen presented Xie An’s letter and gifts.
• Murong Chui postponed his advance on Luoyang and sent a letter to Murong Ke, who ordered him to escort Chen Caozhi, Xi Bao, and their party to Gong County.
• At a banquet, Xi Bao asked Murong Chui to let the envoys return home, but Murong Chui ignored the request and announced their trip to Gong County.
• Chen Caozhi played go with Murong Chui, lured him into a trap, and won by eight and a half stones.
• Chen Caozhi insisted that the envoys’ three hundred-odd attendants accompany them to Gong County, and Murong Chui agreed on condition that they surrendered their bows and arrows.

Chen Caozhi and his companions reached Gong County, where he treated Shen Chiqian’s seizure and met Murong Ke. After answering Murong Ke’s challenge about Yan’s claim to the Five Phases, Chen Caozhi asked to return home, but Murong Ke refused, leaving Chen to rely on the rumors and political schemes he had set in motion.

• Murong Ling escorted Chen Caozhi, Xi Bao, and their party toward Gong County, and he and Chen Caozhi built a friendly rapport during the journey.
• At Blackstone Pass, Murong De welcomed the party and revealed that Murong Ke was unwell; Chen Caozhi realized his Five-Stone Powder might be useful.
• Shen Chiqian collapsed with an epileptic seizure, and Chen Caozhi gave him his reformulated Five-Stone Powder, which eased the convulsions.
• At a banquet and later in private, Chen Caozhi met Murong Ke, who tested him on whether Yan could succeed Jin with Water Virtue.
• Chen Caozhi argued that Yan should claim Wood Virtue by succeeding Later Zhao, earning Murong Ke’s respect.
• Chen Caozhi asked Murong Ke to let the envoys return, but Murong Ke refused, while Chen privately expected rumors in Ye City to provoke conflict between Qin and Yan.

Chen Caozhi treated Murong Ke’s wasting-thirst with a Five-Stone Powder prescription while waiting for the nursery rhymes to force Yan’s leaders back to Ye City. After receiving an urgent decree and a secret letter, Murong Ke suspected Murong Ping’s scheme and decided to withdraw his army and return to the capital.

• Murong Ke and Murong De questioned Chen Caozhi about Shen Chiqian’s illness, and Chen Caozhi amused them with a story about a man pretending that stones in his rice caused a stone flare.
• Chen Caozhi diagnosed Murong Ke with wasting-thirst and prescribed a modified Five-Stone Powder, which Murong Ke accepted for his imperial physicians to review.
• Shen Shao arrived with Murong Wei’s decree ordering Murong Ke and Murong Chui to return to Ye City immediately, ostensibly because floods and droughts made further campaigning unwise.
• Murong Ke received a secret letter from Ye City, and Murong Chui and Murong Ling joined him in Gong County to discuss the nursery rhymes threatening them.
• Murong Ke concluded that he should avoid a struggle with Murong Ping, surrender his offices, and restore peace, then ordered the army to withdraw and set out for Ye City the next day.

After Murong Ke withdrew from Luoyang with Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao, Wang Meng and Huan Wen recognized opportunities to exploit the turmoil in Yan and Qin. Huan Wen planned a Northern Expedition and considered using Lu Weiwei’s proposed entry into the palace to turn Chen Caozhi against the Jin court.

• Shen Jin learned that the Yan army had lifted its siege of Luoyang and carried Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao north, while he strengthened the city’s defenses.
• Wang Meng learned of conflict within Yan’s ruling family and persuaded Fu Jian to prepare fifty thousand troops to seize Yan territory in Henan.
• Gao Rou sent Huan Wen Chen Caozhi’s secret letters, and Huan Wen praised Chen’s schemes and began planning a Northern Expedition for the following year.
• Huan Wen told Li Jingshu that Chen Caozhi had been taken to Ye City and questioned her about whether Lu Weiwei would die rather than be separated from him.
• Huan Wen decided to let Lu Shi send Lu Weiwei into the palace, hoping her resistance would make Chen Caozhi resent the Sima clan and serve Huan Wen more completely.

As the Lu Clan pressed Lu Na to send Lu Weiwei into the palace, Lu Weiwei endured surveillance and sought Empress Dowager Chu’s help to protect her bond with Chen Caozhi. Zhang Tongyun and Gu Kaizhi prepared to deliver Wei Rui’s memorial, while Chen Caozhi remained away on his mission.

• After Empress Xiao’s burial, Lu Shi advanced plans for Lu Weiwei to enter the palace, while officials and clans weighed the political consequences.
• Sima Yu urged Emperor Sima Yi to deny the rumors, but Sima Yi refused to issue a refutation.
• Lu Clan elders arrived in Jiankang to pressure Lu Na, and Lu Weiwei’s relatives watched her closely to prevent her from harming herself.
• Lu Weiwei asked Zhang Tongyun to deliver her Memorial of Remonstrance to Empress Dowager Chu, and Zhang agreed to take it to Waguansi.
• Gu Kaizhi returned to Jiankang, learned of Lu Weiwei’s plight, and resolved to help Zhang Tongyun present the memorial.
• Gu Kaizhi, Chen Shang, and Liu Shangzhi discussed the pressure on Lu Na, while Chen Shang worried that their family could not oppose the emperor and Lu Clan.

Empress Dowager Chu opposed Emperor Sima Yi’s plan to bring Lu Weiwei into the palace, warning that it could destabilize Jin and provoke Huan Wen. After a rumor spread that Chen Caozhi had been captured by the Xianbei, Lu Qin used the news to persuade Sima Yi that Lu Weiwei’s entry would now be acceptable.

• At Waguansi, Gu Kaizhi and Zhang Tongyun told Empress Dowager Chu about Lu Shi’s plan for Lu Weiwei to enter the palace and showed her Lu Weiwei’s Memorial of Remonstrance.
• Empress Dowager Chu questioned Sima Yi at Chongde Palace and warned that the plan could upset the balance of power and give Huan Wen a pretext to intervene.
• Sima Yi summoned Lu Qin, who agreed to suspend the plan while they gauged public opinion and Huan Wen’s response.
• Huan Wen learned of Lu Shi’s plan but waited to see how Sima Yi and Lu Shi would proceed, while arranging for news of Chen Caozhi’s supposed capture to spread.
• After Jiankang heard that Chen Caozhi had been captured by the Xianbei, Sima Yi considered stripping him of his post, but Sima Yu, Wang Shu, and Xi Chao opposed the punishment.
• Lu Qin told Sima Yi that Chen Caozhi’s capture made Lu Weiwei’s palace entry seem reasonable, and Sima Yi agreed.

After learning that Chen Caozhi had been captured by the Xianbei, Lu Weiwei cut her hair and vowed to wait for him rather than enter the palace. In Gushu, Xi Chao persuaded Huan Wen to oppose the marriage discreetly and reassure Lu Weiwei, while Li Jingshu’s visit to Jiankang stirred Sima Daofu’s jealousy with rumors about Zhu Yingtai.

• Lu Weiwei learned from Zhang Tongyun that Chen Caozhi had been abducted, then cut her hair and declared she would marry no one but him.
• Lu Na resolved to confront Lu Shi and the clan elders, fearing that forcing Weiwei into the palace would end in tragedy.
• Xi Chao visited Huan Wen, learned of Chen Caozhi’s plans, and warned that Lu Weiwei’s death could leave Chen Caozhi unwilling to serve.
• Huan Wen agreed that Xi Chao could reveal he had sent an envoy to demand Chen Caozhi’s return, and arranged for Li Jingshu to visit Lu Weiwei.
• Li Jingshu arrived in Jiankang and told Sima Daofu that she had heard Zhu Yingtai was a woman, possibly Xie Daoyun.

On the Double Seventh Festival, Xiao Chan visited Lu Weiwei with Zhang Tongyun, and Li Jingshu, Zhou Matou, and Sima Daofu arrived to offer support against the Lu elders’ effort to send Weiwei into the palace. Li Jingshu reassured Weiwei that Huan Wen was negotiating for Chen Caozhi’s safe return, while privately plotting to stir jealousy over Xie Daoyun and turn Chen Caozhi against Huan Wen.

• Xiao Chan worried over Chen Caozhi’s captivity and went with Zhang Tongyun to visit Lu Weiwei at the Lu Residence.
• Li Jingshu, Zhou Matou, and Sima Daofu visited Lu Weiwei, and Sima Daofu inspected her beauty with curiosity and jealousy.
• Li Jingshu told Lu Weiwei and Zhang Wenwan that Huan Wen supported Chen Caozhi’s marriage to Weiwei and had sent an envoy to Ye City to negotiate Chen Caozhi’s return.
• Li Jingshu accompanied the women into the rear garden and privately planned to use rumors about Xie Daoyun to provoke Lu Weiwei and undermine Chen Caozhi’s relationship with Huan Wen.

Sima Daofu told Lu Weiwei that Zhu Yingtai was actually Xie Daoyun, who had disguised herself as a man to serve alongside Chen Caozhi because she loved him. Lu Weiwei accepted the revelation without outward anger, but after explaining it to Zhang Tongyun and Xiao Chan, she privately wondered whether Xie Daoyun had shared a closeness with Chen Caozhi that she did not know about.

• Sima Daofu revealed to Lu Weiwei that Zhu Yingtai was Xie Daoyun and claimed Xie had entered official service and followed Chen Caozhi because she loved him.
• Lu Weiwei concealed her hurt and told Sima Daofu that she could not prevent Xie Daoyun from loving Chen Caozhi.
• Sima Daofu reported Lu Weiwei's reaction to Li Jingshu, who resolved to spread gossip and damage Chen Caozhi and the Chen Commandery Xie Clan.
• Lu Weiwei told Zhang Tongyun and Xiao Chan that Zhu Yingtai was Xie Daoyun, and Xiao Chan reassured her that Chen Caozhi loved only her.
• Lu Weiwei recalled Xie Daoyun speaking to Chen Caozhi in a woman's voice during a private encounter and felt uneasy despite trusting him.

As drought and famine worsened, rumors revealed that Xie Daoyun was serving as Zhu Yingtai, Military Adviser of the Western Headquarters, and was linked to Chen Caozhi. Xie An weathered the scandal in Jiankang while Xi Chao conveyed Huan Wen’s support for a possible marriage, leaving Xie Daoyun’s response to the rumors in Kuaiji unresolved.

• Drought and famine spread across Yangzhou and Jiangzhou as news that Xie Daoyun had entered office as Zhu Yingtai caused a sensation in Jiankang.
• Jia Bizhi and Xi Chao tried to determine who had exposed the story, while Xi Chao sent Huan Wen a letter asking his position on the rumors.
• Suitors and other distinguished guests crowded the Xie Residence to test whether Xie Daoyun was really in Shanyin, but Xie An told them she was away overseeing drought relief and sent them off disappointed.
• Xie An visited Xi Chao, who relayed Huan Wen’s suggestion that Chen Caozhi marry Xie Daoyun and that the Lu Clan woman be abandoned.
• Xi Chao assured Xie An that Chen Caozhi would return from Hebei with great achievements, and a later letter to Zhi Daolin repeated that prediction.
• Huan Wen left Zhu Yingtai in her post, while the chapter ended with Jiankang’s rumors expected to reach Kuaiji within a month.

Xie Daoyun helped Dai Shu organize drought relief in Kuaiji and tried to prevent the famine from driving owner-farmers off their land. After falling ill during Qixi, she recovered somewhat and decided to return to Jiankang with Xie Shao.

• Xie Daoyun worked with Dai Shu to open granaries, distribute grain, secure donations, and protect owner-farmers from selling their land at ruinous prices.
• While returning to Shanyin with Xie Shao, Xie Daoyun suffered a severe coughing fit and admitted that she had been unwell for months.
• At the Post Station, Xie Daoyun joined Liu Xu and Yinfeng in praying beneath the moon for her family and loved ones.
• Xie Daoyun collapsed with fever and coughing during the Qixi prayers, and Xie Shao rode through the night to seek Master Zhi Mindu.
• Xie Shao learned that Master Zhi Mindu had died, then returned to find Xie Daoyun somewhat improved; she announced that she would return to Jiankang the next day.

Chen Caozhi arrived in Ye City as a celebrated Jin envoy while Murong Ke returned amid rumors and political suspicion. As Chen prepared a secret plan at the Shrine of Ximen Bao, an unexpected golden-haired, blue-eyed child arrived to visit him.

• Chen Caozhi crossed the Zhang River into Ye City and considered how to exploit Yan's internal turmoil before escaping back to Jiangdong.
• Murong Ke obeyed an imperial order to return to Ye City, while Murong Chui remained at Gong County with ten thousand troops.
• Huangfu Zhen welcomed Murong Ke's party and was surprised to see Chen Caozhi treated as an honored guest rather than a captive.
• The people of Ye City gathered to admire Chen Caozhi as he rode through the streets to the guesthouse with Xi Bao and their escorts.
• Xi Bao lamented that they might remain hostages, and Shen Chiqian told Chen Caozhi that their secret prophecy would appear at the Shrine of Ximen Bao on the Seventh Night Festival.
• A visitor arrived at Chen Caozhi's quarters in a sedan chair, revealing a child with golden hair and blue eyes.

Chen Caozhi hosted a visit from Murong Chong, then used a staged cure to spread word of his medical powers while Duan Zhao reported on the turmoil in Yan’s court. The chapter left Duan Zhao preparing to flee Ye City and Chen Caozhi continuing his effort to undermine Murong Ke.

• Murong Chong visited Chen Caozhi, dismissed an assistant minister who called him “Phoenix,” and left after Chen Caozhi challenged him with a question.
• Chen Caozhi explained Murong Chong’s identity to Ran Sheng, Shen Chiqian, and Su Qi, and considered how Yan’s future might unfold.
• Chen Caozhi and his companions remained confined at the Post Station while Murong Ke faced rumors and debate over his resignation.
• Duan Zhao arrived at the Post Station posing as a gravely ill man, and Chen Caozhi cured him with Five-Stone Powder in front of the Yan soldiers.
• Duan Zhao told Chen Caozhi that Murong Ke had requested to resign and that Murong Wei would visit the Shrine of Ximen Bao the next day.
• Chen Caozhi ordered Duan Zhao to leave Ye City at dawn and return to Gushu before he could be recognized or endangered.

Chen Caozhi attended the Shrine of Ximen Bao ceremony, where a mysterious prophecy linking Ximen Bao to Fu Jian disrupted the proceedings and sharpened tensions among Yan’s leaders. The chapter ended with Murong Chong inviting Chen Caozhi to hunt the next day.

• Murong Ling and Shen Shao escorted Chen Caozhi and Xi Bao from Ye City to the Shrine of Ximen Bao for the ceremony.
• Emperor Murong Wei, the Empress Dowager of the Kezuhun Clan, Murong Ke, and other Yan nobles arrived and began the sacrificial rites.
• The shrine superintendent discovered a sixteen-character prophecy among the prayers, and Murong Ke asked Chen Caozhi and the officials to interpret it.
• Yang Wu connected the prophecy to Fu Jian’s birth, while Murong Ping accused Murong Ke’s circle of distracting people from Yan’s internal troubles.
• Murong Ke ordered the shrine superintendent and ritual officiants confined for investigation, then allowed the subdued ceremony to continue.
• At the banquet, Chen Caozhi watched Murong Ke keep the prophecy, and Murong Chong invited him to hunt the following day.

Murong Ke moved Chen Caozhi to Ice Well Terrace while keeping him inside Ye City, and Chen planned to return south soon. Murong Chong led Chen out through the east gate with his red-scarved female guards, then asked Chen to explain a remark that had puzzled him.

• Murong Ke accepted Han Huan and Nie Xiong's argument that Yan should succeed Zhao under Wood Virtue, then privately instructed Murong Ling to relocate Chen Caozhi.
• Murong Ling brought Chen Caozhi and his companions to Ice Well Terrace, separating them from Xi Bao and the other Qin envoys; Chen expected Xi Bao to return to Guanzhong and hoped to head south the next month.
• Chen Caozhi's loved ones in Jiankang, Qiantang, and Shanyin spent the Seventh Night Festival apart from him, while Xie Daoyun asked Xie Shao to travel to Jiankang.
• Murong Chong arrived at Ice Well Terrace with twenty red-scarved female guards and invited Chen Caozhi to hunt, but the east gate guards refused to let Chen leave under Murong Ke's orders.
• Murong Chong's guards charged the gate soldiers, allowing Murong Chong and Chen Caozhi to ride out of Ye City; Chen praised Murong Chong's force as he admired the display.
• Murong Chong asked Chen Caozhi what his earlier words about hearing and seeing meant, and Chen explained their origin in a story about Ji Kang and Zhong Hui.