Chapter Summaries

Wei Chengye stabbed Wei Mingxiu after chasing him through the hunt, but Zhou Ye and Wei Zhao arrived in time to witness it. As Zhou Ye tended Wei Mingxiu’s wound, Wei Mingxiu accused Wei Chengye before their father and pleaded for justice.

• Wei Mingxiu begged Wei Chengye for mercy, but Wei Chengye disarmed him and stabbed him in the chest.
• Wei Mingxiu smiled at Wei Chengye and told him to look behind him as Qian Zhong, Zhou Ye, Wei Zhao, and others arrived.
• Zhou Ye rushed to Wei Mingxiu and pressed a hand over his wound, visibly distressed.
• Wei Mingxiu told Wei Zhao that Wei Chengye had lured him hunting, attacked him, and tried to kill him.
• Wei Mingxiu pleaded with Wei Zhao to uphold justice and have pity on him.

Zhou Ye realized that Wei Mingxiu had orchestrated the confrontation to expose Wei Chengye’s attempt on his life, and joined the prince in pressing the case before Wei Zhao. Empress Feng arrived and demanded that Wei Zhao judge the matter fairly, leaving him under public pressure to act against the son he favored.

• Zhou Ye recognized that Wei Mingxiu’s wound and the events in the woods were part of a dangerous plan to expose Wei Chengye.
• Zhou Ye backed Wei Mingxiu’s account and reminded Wei Zhao that Wei Chengye had used the martial skills he had been taught to wound his brother.
• Wei Zhao slapped Wei Chengye, who then claimed he had accidentally injured Wei Mingxiu while trying to save him from the death warriors.
• Empress Feng arrived, ordered Qian Zhong to fetch the imperial physician, and asked Zhou Ye to explain what had happened.
• Zhou Ye recounted the incident, and Empress Feng told Wei Zhao that he must handle the matter fairly before the court officials and Imperial Guards.

Wei Mingxiu’s plan forced Wei Zhao to punish Wei Chengye after the Third Prince grievously wounded him. As Wei Chengye began receiving thirty lashes and faced five years of confinement, Wei Mingxiu declared victory while resting in Zhou Ye’s arms.

• Wei Mingxiu reassured himself that Empress Feng had taken his side, then coughed up blood and collapsed into Zhou Ye’s arms.
• Wei Mingxiu appealed to Wei Zhao and Empress Feng for justice, while a military officer proposed checking the arrows and bloodstains to verify his account.
• Zhao Guofeng rode off to retrieve the evidence, and Feng Chenyi followed him at Empress Feng’s signal.
• Wei Zhao kicked Wei Chengye away and sentenced him to thirty lashes and five years confined at Cypress Mountain Temple.
• The Imperial Guards lashed Wei Chengye as he glared at Wei Mingxiu, who thanked Wei Zhao for upholding justice.

Wei Mingxiu survived his sword wound while Zhou Ye stayed by his side and cared for him. After Wei Zhao showed more concern for Wei Chengye, Zhou Ye carried Wei Mingxiu away, assuring him that he cared for him.

• Wei Zhao belatedly comforted Wei Mingxiu, who concealed his disgust and thanked him, while Empress Feng and Zhou Ye doubted his sincerity.
• The imperial physician examined Wei Mingxiu and confirmed the sword had missed his vital organs, then prepared to remove it and stitch the wound.
• Zhou Ye held Wei Mingxiu steady as the imperial physician pulled out the sword and stitched the wound, letting Wei Mingxiu bite his fingers through the pain.
• After the imperial physician bandaged both of them, Wei Zhao asked him to treat Wei Chengye, and Zhou Ye carried Wei Mingxiu away, telling him, “He doesn't care for you, but I do.”

After Wei Mingxiu was injured, Zhou Ye and Empress Feng maneuvered Wei Zhao into letting her adopt and raise him. The chapter ended with Wei Mingxiu moving into Empress Feng’s residence, fulfilling his and Zhou Ye’s goal.

• Zhou Ye left the unconscious Wei Mingxiu in Wei Zeyu’s care and went to confront Wei Zhao.
• Feng Chenyi returned with arrows that could have exposed Wei Chengye, but Wei Zhao ordered the evidence destroyed and the captured assassins executed.
• Zhou Ye claimed that Wei Mingxiu had called for his deceased birth mother and lamented his lonely life in the palace.
• Empress Feng asked Wei Zhao to let her adopt Wei Mingxiu, and Wei Zhao agreed to move him into her residence.
• Zhou Ye thanked Empress Feng with a look and hurried back toward Wei Mingxiu’s carriage.

On the journey back from the hunting grounds, Zhou Ye realized he had come to genuinely care for Wei Mingxiu and urged Wei Zeyu to treat his Sixth Brother with affection. Wei Mingxiu woke to Zhou Ye’s angry scolding and told him, “Junior Preceptor, I won.”

• Zhou Ye cared for the injured Wei Mingxiu on the carriage ride back, and Wei Zeyu asked why he cared for him so much.
• Zhou Ye admitted that Wei Mingxiu was hard not to care for and asked Wei Zeyu to welcome him if he moved in with the empress.
• Wei Zeyu promised to love Wei Mingxiu as much as he loved Xuexue and fell asleep during a rest stop.
• Wei Mingxiu woke, grasped Zhou Ye’s hand, and discovered that Zhou Ye was angry with him for risking his life without consulting his teacher.
• Zhou Ye helped Wei Mingxiu drink soup and scolded him, while Wei Mingxiu smiled at the concern before saying, “Junior Preceptor, I won.”

Wei Mingxiu explained how he had planned his victory and trusted Zhou Ye, while Zhou Ye warned that he might someday leave. Five years later, a Chu princess arrived in Great Wei to renew the marriage alliance, and Wei Zhao turned his attention to Wei Mingxiu as a possible groom.

• Wei Mingxiu told Zhou Ye he had secured the plan’s success by learning about his wound, keeping a way to defend himself, and trusting Zhou Ye and the Feng Family.
• Zhou Ye apologized for underestimating Wei Mingxiu, then warned that he might one day leave the capital; Wei Mingxiu asked whether he could visit him if that happened, and Zhou Ye agreed.
• Wei Mingxiu moved into Wei Zeyu’s residence under Empress Feng’s protection, while Wei Zhao planted servants who repeatedly failed to poison or kill him.
• Wei Zhao realized Wei Mingxiu may have engineered the trap against him, but could not undo the order placing the boy in Empress Feng’s care.
• Five years later, a Chu envoy brought the third princess to Great Wei after the eldest princess died, seeking a new marriage alliance, and Wei Zhao set his sights on Wei Mingxiu.

After Wei Mingxiu quelled corruption in the south, he learned that the State of Chu would send a princess to Great Wei following the eldest princess’s death. Zhou Ye ordered him to protect the princess and win her over, leaving Wei Mingxiu troubled by the plan.

• Wei Mingxiu swiftly exposed and punished corrupt officials in the south, earning the gratitude of local people as he prepared to return to the capital.
• A-Nan teased Wei Mingxiu about accepting a wildflower and revealed that the State of Chu was sending its third princess to visit the emperor.
• A-Nan told Wei Mingxiu that Zhou Ye had sent him a letter, and Wei Mingxiu eagerly read it.
• Zhou Ye instructed Wei Mingxiu to go to Nanlu Town, ensure the princess’s safety, and try to win her over.

Wei Mingxiu and A-Nan rescued the State of Chu’s delegation from skilled assassins while traveling to protect the princess. After the attackers fled, Zhou Ye arrived with them captured and asked Wei Mingxiu whether he had missed him.

• Wei Mingxiu followed Zhou Ye’s orders and rode with A-Nan to the official road near Nanlu Town.
• Wei Mingxiu and A-Nan intervened when assassins attacked the State of Chu’s delegation, killing several attackers and driving the rest away.
• Wei Mingxiu stopped A-Nan from pursuing the fleeing assassins and identified them as death soldiers carrying poison.
• Lord Zheng thanked Wei Mingxiu, who introduced himself as Prince You of Great Wei.
• Zhou Ye arrived with the captured assassins and revealed himself to Wei Mingxiu, asking whether he had missed him.

Zhou Ye secretly reunited with Wei Mingxiu after capturing the robbers who had attacked the State of Chu's delegation. Once the group set off for Yu Town with Zhou Ye as their guide, Wei Mingxiu asked whether Young Master Yun had come with him.

• Zhou Ye arrived in the Southern Border, captured fleeing robbers, and met Wei Mingxiu while concealing his identity behind a mask.
• Wei Mingxiu recognized Zhou Ye and played along with his cover story as Zhou Li, a tea merchant, while A-Nan learned Zhou Ye was the junior preceptor.
• Zhou Ye offered to escort Zheng Feng and the delegation, and Wei Mingxiu persuaded Zheng Feng to accept his help.
• The group cleared away the corpses and set off for Yu Town, with Wei Mingxiu pulling Zhou Ye into his carriage and sending A-Nan to drive.
• Wei Mingxiu asked Zhou Ye whether Young Master Yun had come with him.