Recaps

Gu Moran’s six wives met Noble Consort Chen, who welcomed them and revealed her care for them, while discreetly investigating her son. After their affection scores rose, Shen Ling'er visited Gu Moran’s study at night, leaving their encounter poised to continue.

• Gu Moran sent each of his six wives advice before their visit to Noble Consort Chen, while a system countdown showed Ye Qingyun would reach the capital in ten days.
• Noble Consort Chen spoke privately with the six women, praising Shen Ling'er’s medical knowledge, comforting Murong Xue in the Northern Territory language, and offering the others personal kindness.
• Noble Consort Chen concluded that Gu Moran was thoughtful and quietly ordered Eunuch Zhang to investigate his reading and visitors.
• Gu Moran reviewed the six returned notes and saw that all six women’s affection scores had increased after Noble Consort Chen accepted them.
• Shen Ling'er brought tea to Gu Moran’s study without pastries or other suspicious items, and he invited her inside.

Shen Ling'er visited Gu Moran to ask whether he was truly weary, and he admitted that he was a little before she accidentally kissed him. The chapter ended with Gu Moran teasing her about her reddening ears.

• Shen Ling'er brought Gu Moran tea and asked whether he was really a wastrel, then told him she wanted to know if he was tired.
• Shen Ling'er noticed Gu Moran rubbing his sore neck and shoulders and massaged them while they talked about her medical training.
• Gu Moran admitted that he was a little tired, and Shen Ling'er offered to pour him more hot tea.
• Shen Ling'er tripped over a chair and fell toward Gu Moran, and they kissed when he caught her.
• Gu Moran pinched Shen Ling'er's ear and teased her for turning red, and she told him to shut up.

Shen Ling'er admitted she did not want to leave and asked Gu Moran whether he liked her, then deliberately kissed him. Gu Moran returned her affection, and she followed him into the inner room, where they embraced and agreed she could take her time believing him.

• Shen Ling'er refused to leave Gu Moran and told him she had changed outfits three times before visiting him.
• Shen Ling'er asked whether Gu Moran liked her, and he answered that he did before kissing her.
• Gu Moran took Shen Ling'er by the hand into the inner room, where she saw that he had prepared a bed with two pillows.
• Shen Ling'er told Gu Moran not to smile at other people anymore, and he embraced her and told her to take her time believing him.

Gu Moran and Shen Ling'er spent the night together, deepening her trust in him. By morning, the system warned that the other five beauties' affection would likely fall, just as Su Yao's maid Biyu passed the study.

• Gu Moran asked Shen Ling'er to stay with him, and she agreed to let him loosen her clothes.
• Shen Ling'er told Gu Moran she would not know him the next day if he stopped, and they spent the night together.
• Cui'er waited all night at Green Vine Courtyard, then watched Shen Ling'er return wearing Gu Moran's robe and retreat beneath the quilt.
• Gu Moran saw Shen Ling'er's affection rise by 40 points, while the system warned that the other five beauties' affection would decrease.
• Gu Moran reached the study doorway as Biyu, Su Yao's maid, passed by carrying morning tea.

After Shen Ling'er spent the night with Gu Moran, the other consorts reacted in their own ways, while Shen Ling'er worried she had caused trouble. Gu Moran saw several affection scores fall, then received an invitation to a poetry gathering from the Hanlin Academy.

• Biyu saw evidence that Shen Ling'er had stayed the night with Gu Moran and told Su Yao, who struggled to keep her calligraphy straight and wore out three brushes.
• News spread through the six courtyards; Murong Xue chopped apart wooden stakes, while Lin Qingdai cracked a scabbard and ordered Zitang to learn how Shen Ling'er and Gu Moran had gotten together.
• Liu Ruyan wrote two lines and put them away, while Xie Wanqing delivered mung bean cakes to the other courtyards and left one at Shen Ling'er's door.
• Shen Ling'er ate the mung bean cakes and asked Cui'er how the others had reacted, then admitted she had not meant to take Gu Moran's first night.
• Gu Moran saw Shen Ling'er's affection rise while Su Yao's, Lin Qingdai's, and Murong Xue's fell, then received an invitation from the Hanlin Academy to attend a poetry gathering in three days.

Gu Moran learned that Ye Qingyun would reach the capital in three days and prepared to counter his performance at the poetry gathering while managing tensions among the women in his residence. The chapter ended with Gu Moran suspecting that the Second Prince and Zhou Wenyuan were arranging a trap around Ye Qingyun’s arrival.

• Gu Moran ordered a covert operative to investigate Ye Qingyun’s journey and connections without confronting him, then learned that Ye Qingyun’s fortune and martial strength had increased.
• Gu Moran decided to use Xie Wanqing to present grand poems at the gathering, while asking Uncle Fu to invite Su Yao to his study.
• Su Yao rejected Gu Moran’s invitation and told him to restrain the unrest in the Green Vine Courtyard, so he sent her his treasured purple clay teapot instead.
• Gu Moran’s system reported that Zhou Wenyuan had met the emperor and stopped outside the Second Prince’s residence, leading Gu Moran to question whether his brother was preparing a stage for Ye Qingyun or a trap for him.

Gu Moran visited Su Yao after she sent him homemade cakes and found her reading his annotated book on statecraft. He pressed her about their relationship and said he wanted to stay the night, leaving her tense over the night they had spent together at the chancellor’s residence.

• Biyu delivered Su Yao’s white plum blossom cakes to Gu Moran, and the system recorded her first “proactive behavior” tag while her favorability stayed at -65.
• Gu Moran learned that Su Yao was reading volume seven of Strategies for Governing the State and went to Clear Frost Courtyard to see her.
• Su Yao questioned Gu Moran about his annotations and pointed out that he had resolved a debate about the salt and iron monopoly in a single sentence.
• Su Yao asked what Gu Moran had said to Shen Ling'er, and he admitted that he had taken her in when she came to him.
• Gu Moran told Su Yao their relationship was different, then said he wanted to stay the night and reminded her of what had happened at the chancellor’s residence.

Gu Moran asked Su Yao to relive their drunken encounter while sober, and she chose to let him kiss her. As they kissed in her study, he asked whether she had thought about him since the night at the chancellor’s residence.

• Gu Moran told Su Yao that pretending their accidental encounter never happened would not undo it, and asked her to remember it sober.
• Su Yao initially told Gu Moran to leave, but called him back and let him embrace her.
• Gu Moran teased Su Yao about her reactions, then kissed her when the lamplight dimmed; Su Yao closed her eyes and hooked an arm around his neck.
• Gu Moran deepened the kiss, knocking tea onto Su Yao’s only copy of Strategies for Governing the State, and she let him continue.
• Gu Moran loosened Su Yao’s collar and asked whether she had thought about him since their night at the chancellor’s residence.

Gu Moran spent the night with Su Yao, then learned that Ye Qingyun would reach the capital in two days and prepared poems to challenge him at the upcoming gathering. He traced Ye Qingyun’s travel support to a relative of Zhou Wenyuan and invited Xie Wanqing to attend the gathering, leaving her unsure whether she could properly go.

• Gu Moran and Su Yao spent the night together, and his system panel recorded a major rise in her favorability and a new autonomous-choice tag.
• Gu Moran saw that Ye Qingyun would arrive in the capital in two days and wrote three poems for the coming poetry gathering.
• Gu Moran learned that the Jizhou Chamber of Commerce had supplied Ye Qingyun with a horse and travel money, and traced its largest shareholder to Zhou Wenyuan’s cousin.
• Gu Moran ordered his agent to investigate the poetry gathering’s judges, then visited Xie Wanqing at Tranquil Ink Courtyard.
• After reading Xie Wanqing’s poem, Gu Moran invited her to the gathering, and she questioned whether it was proper for her to attend.

Gu Moran asked Xie Wanqing to recite his poem at a poetry gathering to protect her father from the second prince’s pressure, and she agreed after revising its final couplet. Ye Qingyun arrived in the capital intending to break off his engagement to Su Yao, but learned she had already been married by imperial decree.

• Gu Moran told Xie Wanqing that Ye Qingyun would attend the poetry gathering and asked her to outshine him with a poem he had written.
• Xie Wanqing revised two characters in Gu Moran’s final couplet and agreed to present the poem, hoping to protect her father from the second prince’s influence.
• Gu Moran learned that Ye Qingyun had arrived in the capital a day early and saw his carriage enter the city.
• Ye Qingyun checked into the Azure Cloud Inn and told his bookboy he planned to break off his engagement with Su Yao at the chancellor’s residence.
• The bookboy told Ye Qingyun that Su Yao had been granted an imperial marriage and was already married.

Ye Qingyun learned that Su Yao had been married by imperial decree to the third prince, Gu Moran, before he could reach the capital to break off their engagement. After the chancellor refused to see him, Ye Qingyun received an invitation to meet at a poetry gathering and vowed to reclaim the recognition he believed he was owed.

• Ye Qingyun learned from his page that Su Yao had become one of six women married to Gu Moran, the third prince, and grew furious that she had married before he could break their engagement.
• Ye Qingyun went to the Chancellor's Residence to demand an explanation from Su Wenyuan, but adviser Li Yuan told him the emperor had ordered Su Yao's marriage.
• Ye Qingyun asked whether Su Yao had agreed to the marriage, and Li Yuan said a prime minister's daughter's marriage could not be decided by a simple yes or no.
• Li Yuan gave Ye Qingyun a note from Su Wenyuan inviting him to a poetry gathering the day after tomorrow.
• Ye Qingyun left determined to attend the gathering and reclaim the recognition he believed was owed to him.

Gu Moran learned that Ye Qingyun’s fortune was rising ahead of the poetry gathering and investigated the judges and Ye’s preparations. After arranging to monitor Ye and his allies while refusing to have Su Yao watched, Gu Moran encountered Su Yao limping toward him.

• Gu Moran saw that Ye Qingyun’s fortune was increasing and that the Heavenly Dao Correction Force’s pull on Su Yao had reached 17%.
• Gu Moran received reports naming the poetry gathering’s judges and revealing that Xu Wenli had ties to the second prince and Ye Qingyun had spent the night preparing at a bookshop.
• Gu Moran ordered his agent to monitor Ye Qingyun, Zhou Wenyuan, and Xu Wenli’s son, but said there was no need to watch Su Yao.
• Gu Moran chose bamboo-green fabric for Xie Wanqing’s dress and ordered adjustments so she could recite poetry comfortably.
• Gu Moran heard that Su Yao had barely eaten because her throat hurt, then saw her limping toward him with a volume of Strategies for Governing the State.

Gu Moran prepared Xie Wanqing for the poetry gathering and planned how to counter Ye Qingyun, while the system reported changes in the women’s affection toward him. Ye Qingyun finished six poems for the contest, though his book attendant judged the darkest, most ink-covered one the likeliest to win.

• Su Yao passed Gu Moran without speaking, and he chose not to follow her.
• Gu Moran coached Xie Wanqing on the poetry gathering, gave her likely topics and verses, and urged her to stand firm if challenged.
• Uncle Fu delivered Noble Consort Chen’s note telling Gu Moran not to lose too badly, and Gu Moran planned the gathering’s proceedings and possible variables.
• The system reported that Su Yao’s affection had risen to nine, Shen Ling’er’s to fifty-two, and Xie Wanqing’s to thirty-two.
• Ye Qingyun completed six poems and asked Shuhe which one looked likeliest to win; Shuhe picked the one with the most ink.

Ye Qingyun prepared to make his name at the capital’s poetry gathering, refusing Aide Tian’s offer of the secret prompt while accepting silver for new clothes. Gu Moran learned that Ye Qingyun had declined the prompt, while Xie Wanqing decided she wanted to take the stage herself.

• Ye Qingyun reviewed his poems about his hardship, the broken betrothal, and his coming triumph, then steadied himself with the ancient scroll at his waist.
• Aide Tian brought Ye Qingyun the gathering’s proceedings and offered him the secret prompt, but Ye Qingyun refused it and accepted silver for clothes instead.
• Ye Qingyun chose a humble-looking blue-gray robe and planned to use his poems to expose the Su Clan and confront Su Yao and Gu Moran.
• Gu Moran read a covert report about Aide Tian’s visit and realized Ye Qingyun did not know that Xie Wanqing would be among his opponents.
• Xie Wanqing reread the poem in front of her and decided she wanted to take the stage at the gathering.

Shen Ling'er brought Su Yao soup and a throat-soothing pill, while warning her that Ye Qingyun would attend the next day's poetry gathering. Gu Moran arranged surveillance and preparations for the event as several women planned to watch, each for her own reasons.

• Shen Ling'er visited Su Yao with snow fungus soup and a pill, and told her Ye Qingyun would be at the poetry gathering.
• Su Yao took the pill and tasted the soup, then called Shen Ling'er a clever woman.
• Gu Moran assigned agents to watch the Second Prince's people, Ye Qingyun's attendant, and the chancellor's spies, and warned them not to intervene.
• Gu Moran arranged clothes, ornaments, and carriages for the women who might attend the poetry gathering.
• Murong Xue declined horse racing and said she would watch the poetry gathering, while Lin Qingdai planned to watch Gu Moran make a fool of himself.

Ye Qingyun arrived at the Hanlin Academy poetry gathering and answered Lu Zhibai's mockery with a pointed retort. As the judges and guests assembled, Su Yao entered despite fearing that Ye Qingyun might raise their old agreement in public.

• Gu Moran declined to intervene personally at the gathering, while the system reported that Ye Qingyun's fortune had peaked and his highlight moment was near.
• Ye Qingyun arrived with Shuhe, checked in, and said that the crowd's initial contempt would make it easier to impress them.
• Lu Zhibai mocked Ye Qingyun's dusty journey and plain clothes, but Ye Qingyun countered that traveling a thousand miles made him fit to take the stage.
• Zhou Wenyuan greeted Ye Qingyun and urged him to write well, changing how the surrounding scholars viewed him.
• Xie Wanqing and Shen Ling'er took their seats, and Shen Ling'er guessed that Gu Moran had given Xie Wanqing a note telling her to answer her critics.
• Su Yao arrived at the gathering with Biyu, choosing to attend despite worrying that Ye Qingyun would bring up their old agreement in public.

Su Yao attended the Hanlin Academy poetry gathering despite the risk of humiliation, while Ye Qingyun mistook her glance for attention and prepared to face Gu Moran. Gu Moran arrived, reassured Xie Wanqing, exchanged remarks with Su Yao, and the gathering was about to begin with Ye Qingyun still holding his poems.

• Su Yao entered the gathering and sat with Xie Wanqing and Shen Ling'er in the women's seating area.
• Murong Xue and Lin Qingdai watched from the teahouse as they waited for Gu Moran and the contest to begin.
• Xie Huai'an and the other judges took their seats, while Ye Qingyun prepared his manuscripts and mistook Su Yao's glance toward the platform as a look at him.
• Gu Moran arrived late with half a cake, surveyed the gathering, and greeted Shen Ling'er, Su Yao, and Xie Wanqing before taking his seat.
• Zhou Wenyuan announced that the poetry gathering would judge participants only by their poetry, and Ye Qingyun kept his manuscripts clenched in his sleeve.

At the poetry gathering, Ye Qingyun impressed the judges with his first poem, “Entering the Capital,” and began reciting a second poem that alluded to hardship and closed doors. His pointed glance toward the women’s seats drew attention to Su Yao, while Gu Moran watched her closely.

• The judges opened the gathering’s three rounds, and the first two contestants recited poems that earned polite, measured praise.
• Ye Qingyun took the stage and recited “Entering the Capital,” winning applause and praise from the judges for its backbone and strong lines.
• Gu Moran’s system reported that Ye Qingyun’s luck value had risen by two percent and that a node resonance had activated.
• Shen Ling’er and Xie Wanqing acknowledged Ye Qingyun’s skill, while Su Yao said that poetic ability and good character were different things.
• Ye Qingyun began his second poem, “Unbending,” describing poverty and rejection, and looked toward Su Yao as Gu Moran watched her reaction.

Ye Qingyun publicly returned his family's old betrothal to the Su Clan and won the crowd over with a third poem. As the gathering moved to its second round, Gu Moran signaled Xie Wanqing to answer Ye Qingyun's challenge.

• Ye Qingyun's poem about burning ambition earned praise, while Gu Moran decided to let him continue until his own words gave the authorities grounds to act.
• Ye Qingyun announced that he would settle an old matter, then publicly returned his family's betrothal document to the Su Clan.
• Ye Qingyun recited his poem "Azure Clouds," drawing cheers from scholars and angering Su Yao's attendants.
• Xie Wanqing promised to restore Su Yao's dignity with an argument grounded in propriety.
• The judges announced a timed spring-themed couplet round, and Gu Moran signaled Xie Wanqing to rise as Ye Qingyun picked up his brush.

Xie Wanqing defied objections and joined the Hanlin Academy poetry gathering, where she and Ye Qingyun wrote poems on the theme of spring. After the judges praised Ye Qingyun’s poem, Qian Muzhi began reading Xie Wanqing’s, leaving its reception unresolved.

• Shen Ling'er gave Xie Wanqing candy and encouragement before she walked to the poetry platform.
• Xie Wanqing asked to compete, and Qian Muzhi overruled objections that women could not take part.
• Xie Wanqing and Ye Qingyun completed their poems within the allotted time.
• Qian Muzhi and the other judges reacted strongly to Xie Wanqing’s poem, while Ye Qingyun’s confidence began to falter.
• Qian Muzhi read Ye Qingyun’s poem aloud to the crowd, drawing applause and praise.
• Qian Muzhi unfolded Xie Wanqing’s poem and began reciting its first line.

Xie Wanqing’s poem about the imperial court won the poetry gathering and was accepted for the Hanlin Academy’s collection, but Zhou Wenyuan and Ye Qingyun questioned whether she had written it herself. She defended her learning and challenged Ye Qingyun to admit whether he simply could not accept being beaten by a woman.

• Qian Muzhi recited Xie Wanqing’s poem, and the judges, scholars, and spectators applauded its grandeur as Ye Qingyun’s own poem seemed diminished beside it.
• Qian Muzhi accepted Xie Wanqing’s poem for the Hanlin Academy’s collection, while Zhou Wenyuan questioned whether the topic had been leaked and accused the judges of possible favoritism.
• Xie Wanqing rejected Zhou Wenyuan’s insinuations and told him to provide evidence, and the judges defended the fairness of the gathering.
• Ye Qingyun praised the poem but questioned whether Xie Wanqing could have written about court life without an accomplished man guiding her.
• Xie Wanqing explained that her reading and education had taught her about the world, then asked Ye Qingyun whether he was questioning her poem or unable to accept that a woman had beaten him.

Xie Wanqing answered Ye Qingyun’s challenge with two poems that won over the Hanlin scholars and the crowd, while Gu Moran’s support changed Xie Huai'an’s view of Prince Yi. The chapter ended as Qian Muzhi hesitated over Xie Wanqing’s third poem.

• Ye Qingyun acknowledged only half of his doubts were resolved and challenged Xie Wanqing to another contest in poetry.
• Xie Wanqing presented Qian Muzhi with three poems, and the first, ending with the call to climb one more flight of stairs, drew applause and praise.
• Qian Muzhi read Xie Wanqing’s second poem, whose encouragement to those seeking kindred spirits moved the scholars and left Ye Qingyun speechless.
• Gu Mochen remarked that he had underestimated Gu Moran, while Su Yao recognized that Gu Moran had given Xie Wanqing poems and the chance to stand onstage herself.
• Xie Huai'an admitted to Han Heting that his prejudice against Prince Yi had run too deep.
• Xie Wanqing handed Qian Muzhi her third poem, and he studied it without passing it to Han Heting.

Xie Wanqing’s poem about Mount Tai earned praise and secured her victory over Ye Qingyun in the spring-themed second round. Ye Qingyun insisted on a final paired-verse contest, where Xie Wanqing kept turning his challenges back on him and held a slight advantage.

• Qian Muzhi read Xie Wanqing’s poem about Mount Tai, whose final couplet declared that she would one day ascend its highest peak and see all mountains small beneath her.
• Qian Muzhi entered Xie Wanqing’s three poems in the Hanlin Academy’s poetry collection, and the judges awarded her the spring-themed second round over Ye Qingyun.
• Ye Qingyun admitted defeat in the second round but challenged Xie Wanqing to compete in a final paired-verse contest, and she accepted.
• Ye Qingyun offered lines about hardship, humble origins, and an old pledge, while Xie Wanqing answered with lines about renewal, later judgment, and a light that would shine forever.
• Xie Wanqing challenged Ye Qingyun by asking how verse could be written for a private grudge; Ye Qingyun replied that fame and rank also arose from injustice, but Qian Muzhi judged her line sharper by half an inch.

At a poetry gathering, Xu Wenli and Zhou Wenyuan accused Xie Wanqing of receiving hints and challenged the fairness of her contest with Ye Qingyun. Gu Moran countered their accusations and defended Xie Wanqing, leaving Ye Qingyun’s motives under public scrutiny.

• Xu Wenli accused Xie Wanqing of glancing toward Prince Yi’s seat for hints, and Zhou Wenyuan supported his suspicion.
• Xie Wanqing denied receiving help and challenged Xu Wenli to answer verses within five breaths, while Ye Qingyun asked whether someone was behind her.
• Gu Moran intervened and asked Zhou Wenyuan whether visiting someone’s inn before the contest counted as passing hints.
• Gu Moran told Ye Qingyun that he was shamelessly riding Xie Wanqing’s coattails and warned scholars against using women’s reputations to build their own.
• Gu Moran challenged Ye Qingyun for choosing the poetry gathering to seek an explanation and holding up his marriage contract like a soul-summoning banner.

Xie Wanqing defeated Ye Qingyun in the poetry contest, earning recognition while Gu Moran gained sixth-rank martial strength. Ye Qingyun returned Su Yao’s marriage contract, though he still suspected Gu Moran was secretly behind his defeat.

• Xie Wanqing won the third round with the line “May prose open an age of peace,” and Qian Muzhi entered both her and Ye Qingyun’s poetry in the Hanlin Academy’s records.
• Qian Muzhi and Han Heting advised Ye Qingyun to look beyond personal grievances, while Ye Qingyun admitted defeat to Xie Wanqing.
• Gu Mochen watched Xie Wanqing and Gu Moran from the second prince’s table, while Gu Moran’s system announced his sixth-rank advancement and increased Xie Wanqing’s affection.
• Ye Qingyun suspected Gu Moran had arranged events behind the scenes, then told Su Yao he was returning their marriage contract and would stop using their engagement to gain fame.