Chapter Summaries

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.

Chen Caozhi used Murong Ping’s greed to win his interest in peace negotiations by teaching him how Jiangdong clans enriched themselves. After touring the Taihang Mountains with Ran Sheng, Chen Caozhi said he was eighty percent certain, then learned that Princess Qinghe had shot a leopard.

• Murong Chong led Chen Caozhi, Ran Sheng, Shen Chiqian, and Su Qi to Murong Ping’s villa for a hunt, and Chen Caozhi learned that Murong Ke had confiscated their gifts and weapons.
• Chen Caozhi told Murong Ping that he had intended to offer him gifts and discuss peace between Jin and Yan, and Murong Ping complained that Murong Ke had taken them.
• Chen Caozhi offered to explain how Jiangdong gentry clans built wealth, and Murong Ping agreed to consider supporting peace negotiations if the method worked.
• In private, Chen Caozhi advised Murong Ping to charge people for using mountains, marshes, forests, and springs, and Murong Ping became eager to try the scheme.
• Chen Caozhi and Ran Sheng climbed to a summit overlooking the Zhang River, where Chen Caozhi said he was eighty percent certain.
• Murong Chong summoned Chen Caozhi to see a leopard, and Chen Caozhi learned that Princess Qinghe had shot it.

Chen Caozhi hunted with Murong Chong, identified Princess Qinghe among the Rouge Warriors, and returned Murong Chong’s wagered horse to him. After attending Murong Ping’s banquet, Chen Caozhi returned to Ye City, where Murong Ling warned him against associating too closely with the Prince of Shangyong and invited him to meet the Grand Preceptor.

• Murong Chong challenged Chen Caozhi to identify which Rouge Warrior could order him about, and Chen Caozhi correctly picked Princess Qinghe.
• Murong Chong gave Chen Caozhi the Jade Cong Horse, but Chen Caozhi returned it to him and learned that Princess Qinghe was twelve, four years older than Murong Chong.
• Chen Caozhi introduced Ran Sheng as his younger cousin Yu Zisheng at Murong Ping’s banquet and discussed estate management with the wealth-loving prince.
• Murong Ping promised to help arrange peace talks between Yan and Jin, and Chen Caozhi returned to Ye City with Murong Chong’s party.
• Murong Chong asked Chen Caozhi to paint a Heavenly Maiden Magnolia and promised to bring him a branch from the Bronze Sparrow Garden.
• Murong Ling warned Chen Caozhi not to associate too much with Murong Ping and took him to see the Grand Preceptor, who had begun taking the powder and wanted his advice.

Chen Caozhi gave Murong Ke Five-Stone Powder and helped spread rumors that Fu Jian was illegitimate, prompting Yan’s leaders to consider exploiting unrest in Qin. The chapter ended with Di Qin requesting the return of Xi Bao and his three hundred soldiers, as Yan officials debated what to do.

• Chen Caozhi explained how Murong Ke should take Five-Stone Powder, and Murong Ke took the pills and soon felt energized.
• Murong Ke refused to let Chen Caozhi leave Yan until Qin sent an envoy to explain his unexpected arrival.
• Chen Caozhi told Shen Chiqian that their soldiers had spread rumors questioning Fu Jian’s parentage and should be rewarded.
• Murong Ke learned of the rumors and found that the prophecy paper from the Shrine of Ximen Bao had gone blank; he ordered the shrine officials released and discussed the chance to attack Qin.
• Yang Wu recounted the story of Fu Jian’s fly omen and argued that the gods had exposed Lady Gou’s deception; Murong Ke began preparing forces while delaying an invasion.
• Chen Caozhi painted a Heavenly Maiden Magnolia branch for Murong Chong, then learned that Di Qin had requested Xi Bao and his three hundred soldiers back.

Chen Caozhi attended the Ullambana Festival at Longgang Temple, where Ran Sheng unexpectedly encountered Ji Pi, the man who had helped him escape as a child. Murong Chong’s prank left Chen Caozhi alone with Princess Qinghe Murong Qinchen, and the chapter ended when Murong Chong announced that the Empress Dowager was coming.

• Chen Caozhi went to Longgang Temple with Murong Chong to float lanterns and honor his late mother.
• Elder Zhu Faya recognized Chen Caozhi as the painter of the murals at Waguansi and began to speak with him before the Empress Dowager arrived.
• An old monk named Ji Pi revealed to Ran Sheng that he had arranged for Zhang Jing Nu to flee with Ran Sheng when Ye City fell.
• Murong Chong led Chen Caozhi to a bamboo retreat, where Princess Qinghe Murong Qinchen mistook Chen Caozhi for her brother and thanked him for painting the Heavenly Maiden Magnolia.
• Murong Chong returned and warned Chen Caozhi that the Empress Dowager was coming, leaving him in an awkward position beside Murong Qinchen.

At the Ullambana Festival at Heavenfall Spring, Princess Qinghe Murong Qinchen was embarrassed when Murong Chong teased her about meeting Chen Caozhi, then found herself drawn to him despite her anger. After summoning Chen Caozhi, the Empress Dowager of the Kezuhun Clan discussed his political value and the possibility of marrying him to Murong Qinchen, but doubted his lack of roots in Yan.

• The Empress Dowager of the Kezuhun Clan encountered Chen Caozhi at Heavenfall Spring, where Murong Chong implied that Murong Qinchen had secretly met him.
• Murong Chong told Murong Qinchen he had teased her because Chen Caozhi returned his Jade Cong Horse, and she grew flustered when she learned Chen Caozhi had recognized her from behind.
• The Empress Dowager of the Kezuhun Clan summoned Chen Caozhi, asked about his family in Jiangdong, and dismissed him after a brief conversation.
• Kezuhun Yi suggested marrying Murong Qinchen to Chen Caozhi to secure his loyalty, but the Empress Dowager of the Kezuhun Clan questioned whether a displaced man without roots in Yan was suitable.