Recaps

Chen Caozhi won favor at court, developed his relationship with Lu Weiwei, and supported Xie Daoyun’s ambitions while painting at Waguansi. The arc left him preparing to debate Zhu Yingtai as political tensions and family disputes continued around him.

• Chen Caozhi rejected Emperor Sima Pi’s request to make an elixir, then exposed Lu Song’s oil trick, which ended with the emperor scalded and Lu Song disgraced.
• Chen Caozhi copied Buddhist and Weiqi texts, began the Waguansi murals with Gu Kaizhi, and received land and support for the Chen Clan’s plans in Qiantang.
• Xie Daoyun and Lu Weiwei visited Waguansi, where Xie Daoyun concealed her familiarity with Chen Caozhi and he promised Lu Weiwei that he would marry her.
• Sima Daofu told Chen Caozhi she would marry him before Emperor Sima Pi’s illness forced her return to Jingzhou, while Chen Caozhi marked Qingming far from his family.
• Xie Daoyun impressed guests at a literary gathering, confessed to Liu Dan that she longed for Chen Caozhi, and resolved to enter Huan Wen’s staff as Zhu Yingtai.
• Chen Caozhi supported Xie Daoyun’s plans and continued painting with Gu Kaizhi, while Ran Sheng defended Lu Weiwei and Zhang Tongyun from attackers.
• Yuan Tong and Zhuge Zeng offered Chen Caozhi six hundred thousand Wuzhu coins to debate Zhu Yingtai, but he first refused before later accepting her private challenge at Waguansi.
• Lu Qin confronted Chen Caozhi over Lu Weiwei, while the Lu elders considered reconciliation with the Gu Clan and ordered Wei Rui kept away from Chen Caozhi.
• Chen Caozhi accepted Zhu Yingtai’s invitation to debate on the eighth day of the fourth month and vowed to argue seriously, as Lu Weiwei waited for their Three-Year Promise and Gu Kaizhi prepared to finish his Vimalakirti mural.

Chen Caozhi joined Huan Wen’s Western Headquarters, where he advised on military and political affairs and helped establish Ran Sheng’s new identity. As Huan Wen pursued reforms, Chen Caozhi prepared to return to Jiankang to meet Lu Weiwei and recruit Zhu Yingtai, while protecting Xie Daoyun’s secret.

• Chen Caozhi and Xie Daoyun debated at Waguansi, and Empress Dowager Chu awarded them both three hundred bolts of silk.
• Xie Daoyun chose to enter Huan Wen’s service as Zhu Yingtai, and Chen Caozhi supported her decision while refusing Xie Xuan’s suggestion that he marry her.
• Chen Caozhi traveled to Gushu, passed Hao Long’s three challenges, and advised Huan Wen on Shen Jin’s appointment, government reforms, and military policy.
• Chen Caozhi and Xie Xuan proposed the Strong Army Policy, and Huan Wen ordered iron prospecting and the construction of improved bellows.
• Jing Nu revealed that Ran Sheng was Ran Yu, son of Ran Min, and Chen Caozhi helped him accept his past, gave him the name Chen Yu, and placed him in Huan Shiqian’s army.
• Huan Wen accepted Xi Chao’s recommendations for a household census and tuduan, sent Shen Jin north, declined the Director of the Department of State Affairs post, and submitted Chen Caozhi’s practical proposals.
• Chen Caozhi and Xi Chao set out for Jiankang to recruit Zhu Yingtai, and Chen Caozhi planned to meet Lu Weiwei despite heavy rain delaying their journey.

Chen Caozhi served at Huan Wen’s Western Headquarters and helped prepare the Great Tuduan while Xie Daoyun joined the staff. As Lu Weiwei was sent away to Wu Commandery, Chen caught up with her for a brief reunion, then returned to Jiankang to press ahead with land registration despite warnings of resistance.

• Chen Caozhi reunited with Lu Weiwei near New Pavilion and spent time riding and visiting with her before returning to Jiankang.
• Lu Na proposed that Chen Caozhi marry Lu Weiwei in secret, but Chen said he hoped to marry her formally within three years and would not abandon his family.
• After Ge Hong’s death, Chen Caozhi delivered his plague treatise for copying and discussed epidemic remedies and reforms with Xie An and Xi Chao.
• Xie An arranged for Xie Daoyun to enter service, and she joined Chen Caozhi on the journey to Huan Wen’s Western Headquarters.
• Chen Caozhi and Xie Daoyun presented reforms to Huan Wen, who approved the Great Tuduan and agreed to stop obstructing Xie An’s return to court.
• The court appointed Chen Caozhi to the Tuduan Bureau, and he traveled to Jiankang with the Princess of Nankang while Li Jingshu sought to use the princesses’ feelings for him as leverage.
• Chen Caozhi learned that Lu Weiwei had been sent to Wu Commandery, rode through a storm to catch up with her, and met her by the Nine-Bend River before she continued her journey.
• Back in Jiankang, Chen Caozhi learned that Lu Shi had rejected help with his marriage, declined a return to court, and asked Sima Yu to support the Tuduan review despite warnings that great clans would resist.

Chen Caozhi advanced the Tuduan reforms, pursued support from the Kuaiji clans, and confronted resistance while protecting his family’s interests and renewing his promise to Lu Weiwei. After winning over Yu Xiaofu and the commandery school, he received an urgent dispatch from Jiankang before leaving to meet Yu Yu.

• Chen Caozhi helped secure approval for stricter Tuduan rules, persuaded several clans to surrender hidden households, and was appointed chief envoy to investigate Kuaiji with Zhu Yingtai.
• Chen Caozhi traveled through Wu Commandery, evaded Lu Qin’s ambush in Huating, and reunited with Lu Weiwei at the Songjiang ferry landing.
• In Qiantang, Chen Caozhi exposed the Chu Clan’s collusion with Wuchao Mountain bandits, helped defeat the bandits, and urged the Chen Clan to strengthen its forces and invest in its future.
• Chen Caozhi and Xie Daoyun reached Shanyin, issued a proclamation reassuring hidden households, and sought support from Wei Sien and Xie Shen, while Lu Shu and He Zhu worked to undermine the review.
• Nearly a thousand people gathered to demand that Chen Caozhi and Zhu Yingtai leave Kuaiji, but Ran Sheng dispersed the crowd and Chen Caozhi arrested Zhang Lun for neglecting his duties.
• Chen Caozhi and Xie Daoyun visited Kuaiji Academy, where Chen Caozhi’s lecture impressed Yu Xiaofu and won support from most of the students.
• Xie Daoyun decided to return to Dongshan, Chen Caozhi prepared to visit Yu Yu, and an urgent dispatch from Jiankang arrived before he could depart.