Recaps

Gu Moran learned that Liu Huaijin, Liu Ruyan’s father and a key witness in the old Liu case, was alive and hiding. After learning that the Second Prince’s Residence and the Imperial City Bureau were racing to seize a wounded witness in Old Well Alley, Gu Moran and Liu Ruyan rushed there and found an injured old man guarding the well.

• Gu Moran used the restored Destiny Monitoring Eye and discovered Liu Huaijin was alive behind the screen, though Liu Huaijin refused to meet Liu Ruyan.
• A covert operative reported that forces from the Second Prince’s Residence and the Imperial City Bureau had reached the east of the city, while a wounded man near a well was under attack.
• Liu Huaijin directed Gu Moran to the third well in Old Well Alley and warned him not to let either faction question or take the man, who would recognize a bronze token.
• Madam Chun led Gu Moran and Liu Ruyan through a shortcut, and Gu Moran took Liu Ruyan by horse toward Old Well Alley with his death warriors hidden nearby.
• Gu Moran found two unconscious men in the shop’s backyard and an injured old man guarding the well; the old man mistook him for another agent of the Second Prince.

Gu Moran and Liu Ruyan found Han Che, a surviving Liu Clan gunpowder craftsman who had engineered the longevity-pill plot to expose the emperor and avenge the Liu Clan. As the Imperial City Bureau closed in, Gu Moran escaped with Tao Wujiu's testimony while Han Che stayed behind to make himself evidence.

• Han Che revealed that he had rescued Tao Wujiu and supplied the pills and formula that led the Second Prince to present them to the emperor.
• Gu Moran's Eye of Monitoring showed Han Che's loyalty to the Liu Clan and his plan to die as evidence that could implicate the Second Prince's Residence.
• Han Che uncovered old wax molds, furnace accounts, pills, and Tao Wujiu's testimony, then told Gu Moran to take the testimony and protect Liu Ruyan.
• Gu Moran took the testimony and promised to keep Liu Ruyan safe, while Liu Ruyan told Han Che that she trusted him.
• Han Che insisted on staying behind, then dropped a wooden barrier and released choking medicinal smoke to delay the pursuers as Gu Moran and Liu Ruyan headed for the back gate.

Gu Moran and Liu Ruyan escaped after Han Che died publicly accusing the Second Prince’s Residence of plotting against the emperor and framing the Liu Clan. At the Imperial Medical Bureau, Elder Shen warned Chu Tianxing not to reveal the emperor’s prognosis carelessly, but Chu Tianxing responded by proposing they become sworn brothers.

• Gu Moran led Liu Ruyan out through the back door while Han Che stayed behind and died after accusing the Second Prince and defending the Liu Clan.
• The Imperial City Bureau found the Second Prince’s spies, an old wax mold, and pill-furnace accounts beside Han Che’s body, then ordered the evidence recorded and the spies taken away.
• Gu Moran told Liu Ruyan that Han Che had meant for everyone to witness his death and hear the accusation that the second prince offered pills to murder the emperor.
• Elder Shen warned Chu Tianxing that telling the emperor he had only two years left could get him killed, and advised him to say the pills were harmful and the emperor’s health could improve.
• Chu Tianxing praised Elder Shen and asked him to become his sworn brother, promising that they would live and die together.

Chu Tianxing rehearsed careful answers with Elder Shen before appearing before the emperor to discuss the harmful elixirs. In the Hall of Supreme Ultimate, Chu Tianxing explained their effects and assured the emperor that stopping them and recuperating could restore his health.

• Elder Shen warned Chu Tianxing to avoid reckless remarks and coached him on three statements about the elixirs, the emperor’s health, and reviewing future formulas.
• Chu Tianxing practiced the statements and asked whether he would be fed or rewarded at the imperial audience, prompting Elder Shen to worry about his loose tongue.
• The emperor summoned Chu Tianxing and asked what was wrong with the elixirs and how much time he had left.
• Chu Tianxing began to say “Two” but, after Elder Shen coughed, changed his answer to the elixirs’ two harmful effects.
• Chu Tianxing told the emperor that the elixirs damaged his qi, blood, and spirit, but that stopping them and recuperating could restore his health.

After Chu Tianxing’s warning about elixir poisoning, the emperor ordered an investigation and restricted the princes from contacting him. When Lu Huaizhang accused Gu Moran’s wives of linking six powerful families to Prince Yi’s Residence, Gu Moran proposed a registry for all such family dealings and demanded that the same scrutiny apply to the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, and senior officials.

• Elder Shen confirmed that Chu Tianxing’s medical reasoning was sound, and the emperor ordered the Imperial City Bureau and Imperial Medical Bureau to continue investigating the elixirs.
• The emperor faulted Gu Mochen for failing to track the elixirs’ chain of custody and barred princes from contacting Chu Tianxing privately until the case was resolved.
• Lu Huaizhang accused Gu Moran’s six wives of strengthening Prince Yi’s Residence through frequent visits and correspondence with their natal families.
• Gu Moran defended the wives’ ordinary family dealings and argued that the influential families were protecting themselves from being implicated in his troubles.
• Gu Moran offered to register his wives’ visits, gifts, letters, and guests with the Imperial Clan Court every three days, then demanded that the same rules apply to the Crown Prince, the Second Prince, and officials of the fifth rank and above.

Gu Moran turned Lu Huaizhang’s impeachment into a demand for an empire-wide household audit, forcing the emperor to rebuke Lu and order Gu Moran’s household to behave. In the Eastern Palace, Chen Qinglan accepted further cuts to her allowance and surrendered the treasury keys, but Matron Cui then searched her dowry chests for a missing gold ruyi.

• Gu Moran argued that account books, gatehouse records, and carriage traffic should be checked in every titled household, and he answered objections by pointing out that investigating only Prince Yi's Residence would invite suspicion.
• The emperor scolded Lu Huaizhang for his memorial and told Gu Moran to warn the six women in his household not to overreach.
• Chen Qinglan learned that the crown prince had received a representative from the Qin family and saw the family’s military connections as a possible path into the Ministry of War.
• Matron Cui reduced Chen Qinglan’s charcoal allowance, removed pastries and supper meat, and took charge of the Eastern Palace inner treasury keys.
• Matron Cui announced that a gold ruyi was missing and began searching Chen Qinglan’s dowry chests despite Caiwei’s protest.

After Matron Cui searched her rooms and humiliated her on the crown prince’s orders, Chen Qinglan went to the Hall of Proper Beauty and overheard him plotting with an adviser to free Xiao Jinghan during a general amnesty and trade her position for Qin Jingzhi’s support. She returned to her side hall and ordered Caiwei to grind ink, preparing to seek help.

• Matron Cui searched Chen Qinglan’s belongings, and Chen Qinglan told Caiwei to stop crying and prepare ginseng soup.
• Chen Qinglan went to the Hall of Proper Beauty despite her injured leg, where a eunuch warned her the crown prince was in a temper.
• From outside the room, Chen Qinglan overheard the crown prince and his adviser plan to stage Xiao Jinghan’s death in a prison fire and use him to target Prince Yi’s Residence.
• Chen Qinglan heard that Qin Jingzhi would support the crown prince in exchange for a path through the Ministry of War, while Miss Qin demanded a high rank in the Eastern Palace.
• The crown prince said he would remove Chen Qinglan from the principal consort position once the bargain succeeded, and Chen Qinglan withdrew without revealing she had heard.
• Back in the side hall, Chen Qinglan ordered Caiwei to grind ink, but Caiwei asked who could save her.

Chen Qinglan sent Chen Qingyuan a coded family letter, hoping it would reach someone who could understand her warning. At Prince Yi's Residence, Gu Moran discovered evidence that Shen Ling'er's parents had been killed after exposing the dangers of the longevity pills, and he hid that part of the testimony before Shen Ling'er arrived with medicine.

• Chen Qinglan wrote Chen Qingyuan a letter disguised as family chatter because she could not safely write to her father, and Caiwei carried it away.
• Gu Moran read Tao Wujiu's testimony linking the Second Prince's Residence, Han Che, old wax, and the Liu Clan's storehouse seal to the longevity pills.
• Gu Moran found that Shen Zhiheng and Wen Heng had entered the palace to test the pills, urged the court to stop using them, and died in a staged furnace fire whose aftermath concealed their bodies.
• Gu Moran split the testimony, keeping the Shen Family evidence separate until he could investigate further without endangering Shen Ling'er and Elder Shen.
• Shen Ling'er arrived at Gu Moran's study with medicine despite Uncle Fu warning that His Highness was occupied.

Shen Ling'er learned from Gu Moran's confession and an old copper bell that her parents had died in the palace pill furnace chamber, despite her grandfather telling her they were traveling. She realized Elder Shen had kept the truth from her for years by writing letters in her parents' names.

• Shen Ling'er saw her mother's name, Wen Heng, on Gu Moran's confession and demanded to read it.
• Gu Moran gave Shen Ling'er the confession, and she tested the old copper bell, revealing a palace pill furnace brand linked to the people named in the document.
• Shen Ling'er read that her parents had entered the palace pill furnace chamber, opposed the imperial medicine, and died in a fire, with their bodies never returned for burial.
• Shen Ling'er asked Gu Moran whether her parents had died long ago and whether Elder Shen had known the truth.
• Shen Ling'er recalled her grandfather's promises and the letters supposedly sent by her parents, realizing Elder Shen had written them himself.

Shen Ling'er learned from Tao Wujiu's testimony that her parents had been burned alive after opposing the emperor's life-draining pills, and she struggled to accept that Elder Shen had concealed the truth. Gu Moran comforted her and stopped her from confronting the emperor's agents prematurely, while she resolved to keep investigating the evidence.

• Shen Ling'er read Tao Wujiu's testimony describing how her parents identified the emperor's pills as life-draining and were trapped in the burning pill furnace chamber.
• Gu Moran urged Shen Ling'er to stop reading and warned that confronting Elder Shen or the emperor could endanger her family and Prince Yi's Residence.
• Shen Ling'er realized Elder Shen had hidden the truth to protect her when she was a child, though she still wanted answers from him.
• Gu Moran held Shen Ling'er as she mourned her parents and told her to leave the investigation to him for now.
• After steadying herself, Shen Ling'er decided to investigate the medicine, the furnace, and the old records step by step.

Gu Moran stayed with the distressed Shen Ling'er while copying evidence about the Shen Family’s pill case, then learned that Xiao Jinghan might soon be released from prison. A covert letter from Crown Princess Chen Qinglan reached Gu Moli, whose reaction suggested it contained a hidden message.

• Gu Moran copied Tao Wujiu’s testimony about the Shen Family’s medicine furnaces while Shen Ling'er slept beside him.
• A system warning told Gu Moran that Xiao Jinghan’s release from the imperial prison was imminent and that the crown prince’s forces were drawing near.
• Uncle Fu informed Gu Moran that Chen Qinglan had sent a letter to her younger sister, and Gu Moran ordered an investigation into who handled the prison guard roster.
• Shen Ling'er woke and asked Gu Moran to stay close, so he lay beside her on the couch until dawn.
• Chen Qingyuan brought Chen Qinglan’s letter to Gu Moli, who reread its seemingly ordinary family chatter and noticed something concealed in it.

Gu Moli used Chen Qingyuan to spread a warning about former-dynasty Xiao Clan music and the empress dowager’s birthday banquet, while also planting questions about a general amnesty and its name list. At the Xu Clan’s gathering, Chen Qingyuan delivered the warning, and the Zhou Clan’s young lady confirmed that palace officials were checking the music before the hostess raised a more serious concern.

• Gu Moli read Chen Qinglan’s letter, asked about her life in the Eastern Palace, and told Chen Qingyuan to warn others about former-dynasty Xiao Clan music at the empress dowager’s birthday banquet.
• Gu Moli instructed Chen Qingyuan to mention a possible general amnesty and urge careful checking of the release list, while ensuring that the Xu Clan’s and Zhou Clan’s young ladies would carry the information onward.
• At the Xu Clan’s banquet, Chen Qingyuan repeated the warning and attributed it to a nun at Ganye Temple.
• The Zhou Clan’s young lady said inner-palace officials were checking the birthday banquet’s musical selections, and the Xu Clan’s young lady began to raise another serious concern.

Gu Moli and Noble Consort Chen uncovered a likely Eastern Palace plot involving the Empress Dowager’s birthday amnesty and the former dynasty’s Xiao Clan. They ordered an investigation into the imperial prison while keeping the warning from Gu Moli’s imperial brother for now.

• At a gathering, Chen Qingyuan heard the Zhou and Xu young ladies discuss the amnesty register and the dangers of admitting people from the former dynasty.
• The Zhou young lady passed warnings about former-dynasty music and names on the amnesty register to a court lady, who added them to the birthday banquet’s list of taboos.
• Eunuch Zhang showed Noble Consort Chen that the Bureau of Ceremonial had specifically listed the former dynasty’s Xiao Clan as taboo.
• Gu Moli revealed that Chen Qinglan’s letter had hinted at an Eastern Palace scheme involving the birthday banquet, the amnesty register, and the Xiao Clan.
• Gu Moli and Noble Consort Chen suspected the crown prince planned to free a former-dynasty prisoner and use that person against Gu Moli’s imperial brother.
• Noble Consort Chen ordered Eunuch Zhang to investigate Xiao Clan prisoners from the past ten years, especially those who should have died, and told Gu Moli not to alert her imperial brother yet.

Gu Moli warned Noble Consort Chen that the Eastern Palace might use the empress dowager’s birthday banquet to extract Xiao Jinghan from the imperial prison, while Gu Moran uncovered signs of a planned prison fire. Gu Moran asked Lin Qingdai to help protect the capital’s defenses, and they prepared to send Batuer out in disguise to investigate.

• Gu Moli warned Noble Consort Chen that the Eastern Palace could exploit the birthday banquet, guard changes, and case-file handover to move against the imperial prison, prompting Noble Consort Chen to order a quiet investigation.
• Xiao Jinghan realized that the crown prince’s men intended to use a fire in the western part of the prison as cover for his escape.
• Uncle Fu told Gu Moran that a prison clerk surnamed Wei had checked the guard roster and bought old wax and pine oil, and Gu Moran recognized the danger to Xiao Jinghan and Liu Ruyan.
• Gu Moran went to Iron Plum Courtyard and told Lin Qingdai that the Eastern Palace might extract an old retainer of the former dynasty’s Xiao Clan using a prison fire.
• Lin Qingdai offered her father’s token to mobilize the Grand Commandant’s forces for the capital’s defenses, but Gu Moran advised her not to go herself.
• Gu Moran asked Batuer to disguise herself as a night-soil collector so she could leave the residence without attracting attention.

Batuer delivered Lin Qingdai and Gu Moran’s warning about a possible prison escape to Lin Zhenshan, disguised as a night-soil carrier. Lin Zhenshan confirmed a suspicious gap in the imperial prison’s guard rotation and asked Batuer about the war in the Northern Territory.

• Gu Moran and Lin Qingdai told Batuer to warn Lin Zhenshan about a possible escape involving a former member of the previous dynasty’s Xiao Clan, and Lin Qingdai added that she might be pregnant.
• Batuer entered the Grand Commandant’s Residence disguised as a night-soil carrier and gave Lin Zhenshan the warning.
• Lin Zhenshan reacted with disbelief when Batuer said Lin Qingdai might be pregnant, and Batuer suggested Gu Moran was fast in bed.
• Lin Zhenshan checked the city defense duty roster and found a gap in the west alley’s guard rotation near the imperial prison.
• Batuer relayed Gu Moran’s guess that the prisoner might not be an ordinary remnant of the previous dynasty, and Lin Zhenshan asked her about the war in the Northern Territory.

Lin Zhenshan prepared to watch the imperial prison as the crown prince arranged to free Xiao Jinghan and use him against Prince Yi's Residence. Xiao Jinghan recognized the Eastern Palace's scheme, and a fire broke out in the prison storeroom.

• Batuer told Lin Zhenshan that the Northern Territory lacked winter grain and faced more raids, so he ordered the Ministry of War to check supplies and arranged to watch the imperial prison.
• Lin Zhenshan ordered disguised riders to monitor the prison exits and sent another ten men to hide around Prince Yi's Residence.
• Crown Prince Gu Moyuan arranged for Xiao Jinghan to escape during a staged prison fire, attack Prince Yi's Residence, and later be killed in secret.
• Xiao Jinghan recognized the escape agent's Eastern Palace token cord and agreed to leave, intending to turn the crown prince's plan against him.
• A fire broke out in the imperial prison's western storeroom, filling the corridors with smoke as jailers shouted and prisoners rattled their doors.

Xiao Jinghan escaped the imperial prison but was intercepted by Lin Zhenshan, then attacked Gu Moran after recognizing him as a target. Gu Moran dodged Xiao Jinghan’s attacks and ended by calling on Lin Zhenshan, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Xiao Jinghan escaped through a side gate with his contact, carrying half of an old seal and plotting to revive the Xiao Clan’s banner.
• Lin Zhenshan’s guards surrounded the getaway cart and seized Xiao Jinghan’s contact, while Xiao Jinghan charged toward Gu Moran’s carriage.
• Xiao Jinghan recognized Gu Moran and attacked him with his chain and martial arts, but Gu Moran dodged and taunted him about their ranks.
• Lin Zhenshan watched Gu Moran demonstrate the Wind-Dismantling Hand and realized he had mastered it deeply.
• As Xiao Jinghan continued attacking, Gu Moran retreated in front of Lin Zhenshan’s horse and declared that his father-in-law had the makings of a Great Emperor.

Gu Moran helped Lin Zhenshan capture Xiao Jinghan during an attempted escape from the imperial prison, and Xiao Jinghan accused the Eastern Palace of arranging the escape and plotting to kill Lady Liu and Prince Yi. The emperor ordered the crown prince brought under escort, then questioned Gu Moran, who challenged Xiao Jinghan’s motive as the accusations against the Eastern Palace unfolded.

• Lin Zhenshan’s guards seized Xiao Jinghan, found a half old seal and a scorched Eastern Palace waist-token fragment, and escorted him to the palace.
• Xiao Jinghan told the emperor that an Eastern Palace contact had arranged his escape and instructed him to kill Lady Liu’s daughter and Prince Yi.
• The emperor summoned Prince Yi and ordered the Jinwu Guard to bring the crown prince under escort and seal the crown prince’s study.
• Gu Moran appeared before the emperor, saw that suspicion toward him remained, and asked Xiao Jinghan why he would want to kill him or Lady Liu.
• Gu Moran complained that he was still only second in line to the throne, while Xiao Jinghan struggled to believe his audacity.

After the prison fire, Xiao Jinghan was brought before the emperor, and the crown prince was summoned under guard to answer for the Eastern Palace waist token found at the scene. Xiao Jinghan accused the Eastern Palace of helping him, and the emperor called officials to examine the evidence.

• Gu Moran explained that the escaped former-dynasty remnant and the Eastern Palace waist token put him in danger, prompting the emperor to silence him.
• The emperor confined the crown prince to the Eastern Palace and ordered him summoned without time to change, while the Jinwu Guard sealed his study.
• The crown prince entered the Hall of Supreme Ultimate and saw Xiao Jinghan kneeling before the emperor, with Lin Zhenshan and Gu Moran also present.
• The emperor showed the crown prince a charred waist-token fragment, and the crown prince claimed he had only just learned of the prison fire.
• Xiao Jinghan said someone from the Hall of Proper Beauty had given him courage, and the crown prince angrily accused him of framing the Eastern Palace.
• The emperor summoned the minister of the Imperial Clan Court, the commanding general of the Jinwu Guard, and the minister of punishments, then ordered them to examine the evidence.

The emperor examined evidence linking the imperial prison fire and a forged transfer document to the Eastern Palace, while Gu Moran and Xiao Jinghan exposed the crown prince’s involvement. He ordered investigations and confined the Eastern Palace, then questioned Xiao Jinghan about what he had been hiding.

• Chen Dehai presented the emperor with burned pine oil, a forged Ministry of Punishments document, a fragment of a Hall of Proper Beauty waist token, and half an old seal.
• The commanding general of the Imperial Guard and the minister of punishments traced the fire preparations and forged document to people with access to the imperial prison and old case files.
• Gu Moran questioned why the attacker had targeted Lady Liu and mentioned that old wax had appeared around both the pills and the prison fire.
• Xiao Jinghan testified that the Eastern Palace had ordered him to kill Lady Liu, Prince Yi, and the second prince, and the crown prince blurted out that he had never ordered the second prince killed.
• Chen Dehai read Jail Officer Wei’s confession implicating a former Hall of Proper Beauty eunuch, and the emperor ordered the Eastern Palace study sealed, further interrogations, and reviews of the relevant records.
• The emperor ordered the crown prince to kneel properly, then asked Xiao Jinghan what he had been hiding.

Xiao Jinghan exposed the Eastern Palace’s role in his escape and challenged the emperor over the crown prince’s light punishment. The emperor ordered him returned to the imperial prison as a witness while secretly commanding that the Xiao Clan’s descendants be wiped out.

• Xiao Jinghan admitted hiding the old Xiao Clan seal but denied opening the prison gates, arranging the fire, or forging documents, and identified a contact who had promised to free him.
• A eunuch testified that he had carried messages on Zhou Yun’s orders, linking the Eastern Palace adviser to the escape; the crown prince claimed he had been deceived.
• Gu Moran warned that the escape plot required access to prison schedules, forged documents, wax, and pine oil, and the emperor ordered the crown prince confined with added locks while Zhou Yun was interrogated.
• The emperor sentenced Xiao Jinghan to ten more years in prison, but Gu Moran argued that he was needed to corroborate testimony, so the emperor ordered him held under strict guard in the high-security wing.
• After ordering a public edict announcing Xiao Jinghan’s sentence, the emperor secretly commanded that the Xiao Clan’s line of descendants be severed.

The emperor ordered Xiao Jinghan kept alive and held the crown prince responsible for his safety while the Eastern Palace remained sealed. Chen Qinglan used her scald to summon an imperial physician and create a record, then faced the angry crown prince when he returned.

• The emperor ordered Xiao Jinghan gagged and taken away alive, then warned the crown prince that he would be held accountable if anything happened to him in prison.
• The emperor kept the Eastern Palace study sealed and its people confined, while Gao Fu ordered the imperial physician’s visit to Chen Qinglan recorded and reported.
• Chen Qinglan endured treatment for her scald and kept her actions and family letter concealed as she waited for news from the main hall.
• A palace maid told Chen Qinglan that the Jinwu Guard had sealed the study and taken the crown prince and Master Zhou away.
• The crown prince returned to the side hall, questioned Chen Qinglan about summoning an imperial physician, and seized her wrist as Caiwei stepped forward.

Chen Qinglan endured the crown prince’s questioning and tightened restrictions in the Eastern Palace while concealing what she had written to Chen Qingyuan. The empress summoned her to the Palace of Phoenix Ceremony, and Chen Qinglan left the troubled Eastern Palace alone.

• The crown prince questioned Chen Qinglan about her letter to Chen Qingyuan, then warned her not to meet anyone from outside and ordered more guards posted at her side hall.
• Chen Qinglan told Caiwei that no one should seek out Chen Qingyuan, determined to keep the Eastern Palace’s troubles from reaching her younger sister.
• A female official arrived with the empress’s verbal summons, and Chen Qinglan accepted the invitation to the Palace of Phoenix Ceremony.
• Chen Qinglan left Caiwei behind and rode in a sedan chair past the crown prince’s shouts and the sound of breaking porcelain.

The empress warned Chen Qinglan to stay silent amid the threat to the crown prince, revealing the price she had paid to become empress and offering to protect the Chen Family. Xiao Jinghan was tortured and returned to the imperial prison, where his thoughts fixed on Gu Moyuan.

• The empress told Chen Qinglan that the Chen Family could be implicated if the crown prince fell and urged her to endure rather than speak out.
• The empress revealed that the emperor had denied her children and that her family had died securing her position; she said she was raising two young princes as a source of influence.
• The empress offered to shield the Chen Family if Chen Qinglan kept silent, and Chen Qinglan accepted the jade bangle and agreed to comply.
• The empress told Chen Qinglan to have the Imperial Medical Bureau record her leg injury as evidence.
• Xiao Jinghan was tortured under a secret decree, then returned to the imperial prison under strict guard and a ban on visitors.
• In his cell, Xiao Jinghan thought of Gu Moyuan and cursed the crown prince.

Xiao Jinghan uncovered the Little Sunflower Chapter in prison and began a dangerous new cultivation path, while Gu Moran learned that Xiao’s hatred had shifted to the Crown Prince and faced scrutiny from Lin Zhenshan. The chapter left Lin secretly giving Gu Moran martial arts manuals and warning him to protect Lin Qingdai.

• Xiao Jinghan retrieved the Little Sunflower Chapter from beneath the third blue brick and resolved to wait for a chance to settle his debts with the crown prince, emperor, and Gu Clan.
• Gu Moran saw the system report that Xiao Jinghan’s release had been stopped, his hostility now targeted Crown Prince Gu Moyuan, and his new cultivation route showed signs of corruption.
• Lin Zhenshan tested Gu Moran’s movements, recognized that he had reached the sixth rank, and told him to stop pretending to be useless in front of Lin Qingdai.
• Lin Zhenshan warned Gu Moran not to involve Lin Qingdai in dangerous political conflicts without protecting her.
• Lin Zhenshan secretly gave Gu Moran a box of martial arts manuals and said more would be delivered to his residence, telling him to hide their source from Lin Qingdai.