Recaps

Xu Qi'an learned that the murder of Commandery Princess Pingyang had destroyed the Liang Faction, while two secret letters revealed the plots behind the Mulberry Lake and tax silver cases. After returning home, he found a severed hand on his bed.

• Wei Yuan told Xu Qi'an that the emperor had sentenced Earl Pingyuan, Sun Mingzhong, and Zhang Feng to extermination of their three clans, ending the Liang Faction.
• A secret letter to a mistress described the Mulberry Lake case, reported leads about Vice Minister Zhou and Chu Caiwei, and confessed that the writer had fallen in love with a man.
• A second secret letter to a lord explained how the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons and the minister of rites had conspired to release the entity beneath Mulberry Lake and frame rival factions.
• Xu Qi'an told Second Uncle Xu about the case, then teased Xu Lingyin and spoke with Lingyue before returning to his courtyard.
• Xu Qi'an entered his room and found a bright-red severed hand lying on his bed.

Xu Qi'an learned that the severed hand was part of a monk named Shenshu, who asked him to help recover his lost memories in exchange for assistance. After realizing the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons had brought the hand to him, Xu Qi'an weighed the danger of keeping it before Shenshu told him to keep their secret.

• The severed hand entered Xu Qi'an's body and brought him into a vision of a young monk who identified himself as Shenshu.
• Shenshu explained that his Primordial Spirit was incomplete and asked Xu Qi'an to help trace his past and recover his memories.
• Xu Qi'an connected the Mulberry Lake seal to the Buddhist Order, Great Feng's imperial family, and the Directorate of Astronomy, and inferred that the authorities had concealed what they knew.
• Shenshu told Xu Qi'an that a hooded woman had brought him there, and Xu Qi'an recognized the fox embroidered on her pouch as a clue linking her to the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons.
• Xu Qi'an woke without injuries and debated whether to tell Wei Yuan or the Director, while worrying about the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Demons' purpose.
• Shenshu told Xu Qi'an to keep their secret.

Xu Qi'an discovered that Xu Lingyue was suffering from menstrual cramps and accidentally prompted Xu Lingyin to make mischief by putting dirt in the family’s congee. At the Nightwatchers’ office, he questioned Hengyuan about his identity and cultivation before confronting him with a jade mirror fragment.

• Xu Qi'an visited Xu Lingyue and learned that she was enduring painful menstrual cramps without medicine.
• Xu Qi'an told Xu Lingyin that being mischievous would stop her stomach from hurting, and she dumped dirt into the congee to follow his advice.
• Auntie spanked Xu Lingyin, who blamed Xu Qi'an, and he hurried off to the Nightwatchers’ office.
• Xu Qi'an questioned Hengyuan, who identified himself as a thirty-year-old Eighth-Rank Martial Monk from Azure Dragon Temple.
• Xu Qi'an told Hengyuan that the conspirators had been condemned and Commandery Princess Pingyang’s remains had been found, then showed him the jade mirror fragment recovered from the well.

Xu Qi'an returned Hengyuan’s Earth Book Fragment and convinced him that Number Three had arranged his rescue, while concealing his own identity. After Hengyuan watched Henghui’s enemies be executed, Xu Qi'an discussed the unresolved Mulberry Lake case with the Heaven and Earth Society.

• Xu Qi'an questioned Hengyuan about the Earth Book Fragment, then claimed to be Number Three’s Nightwatcher spy and returned the fragment to him.
• Hengyuan accepted Xu Qi'an’s explanation and offered to help him in the future.
• Hengyuan watched the executions of Zhang Feng, Zhang Yi, and the families of Earl Pingyuan and Sun Zhongming to settle his grief and obsession over Henghui.
• Xu Qi'an received messages from the Heaven and Earth Society and explained that Commandery Princess Pingyang’s case was resolved, but the Mulberry Lake case itself remained unfinished.
• Number Five accused Number Three of being the one who picked up money every day.

Xu Qi'an learned that Number Five knew he was the one who kept finding silver, while Number Four began to suspect a connection between him and Cloud Deer Academy’s clear Qi phenomenon. In court, Emperor Yuanjing ordered Xu Qi'an to continue investigating the Mulberry Lake case under threat of death, and Wei Yuan summoned him as he trained with Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao.

• Number Five accused Number Three of lying about a friend who kept finding money, and Xu Qi'an admitted to the Earth Book Society that he was the one finding silver.
• Number Four linked the start of Xu Qi'an’s strange luck to the clear Qi soaring at Cloud Deer Academy and decided to return to the capital to question Dean Zhao Shou.
• Number Five refused to explain how she knew Xu Qi'an was finding silver, saying she had promised someone not to reveal it.
• Emperor Yuanjing asked his ministers to recommend candidates for two vacant posts, then postponed the decision after the officials argued.
• Wei Yuan sought a reward for Xu Qi'an’s work in Commandery Princess Pingyang’s case, but Minister Sun accused Chang Yan of colluding with the Demon Race in the Mulberry Lake case.
• Emperor Yuanjing ordered Xu Qi'an to continue the Mulberry Lake investigation and threatened to have him beheaded if he failed; after court, Wei Yuan summoned him while he was sparring with Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao.

Xu Qi'an learned that Emperor Yuanjing disliked him and that the Mulberry Lake case could only be resolved by capturing Zhou Chixiong, but he could not reach the Director for help. In Yunzhou, Zhou Chixiong was confronted at a bandit stockade by a mysterious female war god who wielded lightning.

• Wei Yuan told Xu Qi'an that the emperor had rejected his proposal and that he would need to capture Zhou Chixiong to settle the Mulberry Lake case.
• Xu Qi'an told Song Tingfeng, Zhu Guangxiao, and Li Yuchun about the setback, then learned from Chu Caiwei that the Director was in seclusion and accepted medicine for his younger sister.
• Zhou Chixiong attended a victory feast at a Yunzhou bandit stockade while its chiefs discussed a beautiful captive woman.
• The woman Zhou Chixiong embraced turned into a paper figure, and a charm ghost's appearance raised his suspicions that someone had come for him.
• A female war god arrived during the storm, summoned lightning, and destroyed the stockade's watchtowers, leaving Zhou Chixiong terrified.

The Flying Swallow Heroine captured Zhou Chixiong, and Xu Qi'an arranged to have him brought to the palace with help from Cloud Deer Academy and the Directorate of Astronomy. At morning court, Wei Yuan announced that Zhou Chixiong was waiting outside the palace city, leaving the ministers stunned.

• The Flying Swallow Heroine defeated the bandits, killed their chief, and captured Zhou Chixiong.
• Xu Qi'an learned of Zhou Chixiong's capture and arranged for Number Two to deliver him to Cloud Deer Academy before he reached the capital.
• Xu Qi'an sought help from Princess Biaobiao and Princess Huaiqing, then told Wei Yuan that Zhou Chixiong had been captured.
• Xu Qi'an brought the unconscious Zhou Chixiong to the palace city with Song Qing, Chu Caiwei, Zhang Shen, Jiang Lyuzhong, and Yang Yan.
• At morning court, Wei Yuan declared that the truth of the Mulberry Lake case had come to light and revealed that Zhou Chixiong was waiting outside the palace city.

Xu Qi'an brought Zhou Chixiong before Emperor Yuanjing, where Zhang Shen compelled him to confess that Minister of Rites Li Yulang had ordered the collusion with the Demon Race and the smuggling of gunpowder. After the emperor assigned the case to the Ministry of Punishments, Xu Qi'an confronted Minister Sun and Li Yulang and recited a pointed poem as they were escorted away.

• Xu Qi'an and the Gold Gongs resisted a eunuch’s attempt to inspect Zhou Chixiong before presenting him to the emperor.
• Xu Qi'an revealed Zhou Chixiong in the imperial audience hall, and Zhang Shen’s words compelled him to name Minister of Rites Li Yulang as the person behind the plot.
• Song Qing and Chu Caiwei confirmed that Zhou Chixiong was telling the truth, and Emperor Yuanjing assigned the case to the Ministry of Punishments.
• After Li Yulang was stripped of his office and escorted away, Xu Qi'an confronted him and Minister Sun outside the palace.
• Xu Qi'an recited a poem mocking the ministers’ hopes for clever sons and their pursuit of high office.

After the Mulberry Lake case, Xu Qi'an humiliated Minister Sun with a poem and escaped arrest thanks to Wei Yuan, then celebrated with his colleagues at the Imperial Music Bureau. The night ended with Xu Qi'an and his companions discovering that Li Yuchun was so proper and particular that he spent his time with a courtesan rearranging her room.

• Xu Qi'an presented Minister Sun with a mocking poem, and Wei Yuan stopped the Ministry of Punishments from arresting him by declaring that telling the truth was not slander.
• At the constabulary, Wei Yuan explained that the Ministry of Punishments tried the case to avoid upsetting the balance between court factions, and Xu Qi'an asked for money to host a celebration.
• Wei Yuan gave Xu Qi'an two hundred taels and sent Yang Yan and Jiang Lyuzhong along to the Imperial Music Bureau.
• Xu Qi'an and his colleagues drank and joked at the Shadowed Plum Pavilion, while Yang Yan and Li Yuchun remained solemn.
• Xu Qi'an, Song Tingfeng, and Zhu Guangxiao eavesdropped on Li Yuchun, who ignored the courtesan and meticulously corrected the room's furnishings.
• Xu Qi'an and his companions left Li Yuchun's room in disbelief and decided to make more noise in their own rooms that night.

Fuxiang used a gathering of courtesan queens to share Xu Qi'an’s diary entries, which recorded his courtly exploits, romantic schemes, and vow to focus on cultivation. Xu Qi'an then learned Wei Yuan planned to promote him to Silver Gong after the capital evaluation, and he told his family he intended to buy a house in the inner city.

• Jiang Lyuzhong praised Xu Qi'an’s new reputation as the Courtesan Killer, while Li Yuchun said he had slept well despite the noise.
• Fuxiang attended Mingyan’s feast, where the courtesan queens discussed Xu Qi'an’s poem attacking Minister Sun and asked about his private life.
• Fuxiang read diary entries recounting Xu Qi'an’s dealings with the court, the princesses, Chu Caiwei, Hengyuan, and his broken vow to avoid women.
• Yang Yan told Xu Qi'an that Wei Yuan intended to promote him to Silver Gong after the capital evaluation.
• Xu Qi'an announced to his family that he planned to buy a house in the inner city, then went to sleep imagining the purchase.

Xu Qi'an visited the Directorate of Astronomy to ask Chu Caiwei to assess an inner-city residence, and learned that Alchemy Masters needed the common people's recognition to advance. The warlocks urged Chu Caiwei to help him, and after choosing a suspiciously cheap residence near the Imperial Music Bureau, Xu Qi'an asked the broker what had happened there.

• Xu Qi'an asked Chu Caiwei to help him find a residence, but she initially refused because she was focused on studying alchemy.
• Song Qing explained that warlocks followed the Way of Humanity and that Chu Caiwei needed to create alchemy recognized by the common people to advance.
• Xu Qi'an hinted that he had an idea to help Chu Caiwei, prompting the warlocks to send her with him to view properties.
• Xu Qi'an chose a three-courtyard residence priced at fifty-five hundred taels because it was near the Imperial Music Bureau.
• The broker warned Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei that the residence was uncanny and people could not live there, so Xu Qi'an asked for the details.

Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei investigated a haunted house, where her feng shui array failed to stop black Qi rising from the well, so they planned to return at night. Meanwhile, Wei Yuan went to the imperial study and faced Emperor Yuanjing’s furious accusation.

• The broker told Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei that a woman’s ghost had haunted the house and brought misfortune to its owners, and Xu Qi'an chose to inspect it.
• Chu Caiwei found resentment Qi rising from the well and used a Pure Yang Feng Shui Array, but the black Qi returned after they prepared to leave.
• Xu Qi'an tried a hometown exorcism chant, and Chu Caiwei proposed returning that night to investigate the well’s source.
• Wei Yuan told Nangong Qianrou that a secret letter could weaken the Qi Faction, then answered Emperor Yuanjing’s summons.
• Emperor Yuanjing hurled a memorial at Wei Yuan and accused him of betraying the trust placed in him.

Wei Yuan faced a corruption inquiry after Zhu Yang reported him, while Xu Qi'an learned the case could threaten him too. Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei investigated a haunted well and encountered a grotesque ghost at its bottom.

• Wei Yuan confessed to the charges in Zhu Yang’s memorial, and Emperor Yuanjing ordered the Ministry of Punishments, the Court of Judicial Review, and the prefectural office to investigate.
• The chief minister of the Court of Judicial Review sought a list of implicated Nightwatchers and asked to transfer Zhu Yang, while Wei Yuan refused to trade the list for secret letters.
• Wei Yuan told Nangong Qianrou to warn Xu Qi'an to lie low, as Xu Qi'an learned through the jade mirror that Zhu Yang’s report had implicated dozens of Nightwatchers.
• Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei went to the haunted house at night and descended into its well to investigate what lay beneath it.
• At the bottom of the well, Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei saw a bloodied female ghost raise her head toward them.

Xu Qi'an and Chu Caiwei investigated a haunted residence, and Xu Qi'an learned that the ghost’s murder was tied to a possible treasonous scheme involving the Ministry of Works, Yunzhou, and the Shaman God Cult. He went to the Nightwatchers’ office to report his discovery and learned that several colleagues had been arrested, but Wei Yuan refused to receive him that night.

• Chu Caiwei captured the vengeful spirit and discovered that a yin vein beneath the residence had nourished it.
• Xu Qi'an empathized with the ghost and saw that she had been abducted, abused, murdered for overhearing a conversation, and thrown into a well.
• Xu Qi'an recognized the important figure in the ghost’s memory as the Qi Faction’s Minister of Works and suspected collusion with the enemy involving Yunzhou and the Shaman God Cult.
• Xu Qi'an told Chu Caiwei what he had learned, reclaimed his mirror, and headed with her to the Nightwatchers’ office.
• Copper Gongs told Xu Qi'an that the Ministry of Punishments and the Court of Judicial Review had arrested Jiang Lyuzhong, Li Yuchun, Min Shan, and Yang Feng, among others.
• Xu Qi'an tried to see Wei Yuan at the Righteous Qi Tower, but the guards refused to admit him because Wei Yuan had retired for the night.

Xu Qi'an told Wei Yuan that a secret brothel was tied to the Qi Faction and the Shaman God Cult, prompting a Nightwatcher raid that uncovered murdered women and a sealed, inscribed well. The raid’s aftermath was interrupted by screams from the front hall.

• Xu Qi'an brought Chu Caiwei to the Righteous Qi Tower and told Wei Yuan about the female ghost’s memories and the Minister of Works’ dealings with the Shaman God Cult and Yunzhou.
• Wei Yuan issued an arrest warrant, and Zhang Kaitai assembled Nightwatchers to raid the residence Xu Qi'an had discovered.
• Xu Qi'an led the Nightwatchers through the residence, where they subdued guards and arrested officials, guests, and the owner.
• Xu Qi'an revealed that a well in the rear courtyard contained women’s corpses, and Chu Caiwei detected a sealing formation around it.
• Zhang Kaitai identified incantations carved into the well as the work of the Shaman God Cult, and Xu Qi'an confirmed the residence’s connection to the cult.
• A commotion and screams erupted from the front hall.

Zhang Kaitai and Xu Qi'an discovered that a Shaman God Cult shaman had used ghosts and a curse to kill a prisoner, while Minister Sun pursued the Nightwatchers’ corruption case and searched for grounds to implicate Xu Qi'an. The chapter left Minister Sun summoned to the palace after vowing to manufacture evidence against Xu Qi'an.

• Zhang Kaitai found the prisoner dead from a shaman’s Curse Killing Technique, and Xu Qi'an realized the paper figures had been sent by a Shaman God Cult ghost-raiser.
• The hidden shaman watched the commotion from nearby, then sent a paper figure to the Minister of Works, who killed his sleeping concubine after reading its message.
• Minister Sun inspected the imprisoned Nightwatchers and found that Li Yuchun had only fifty taels of silver and a modest home.
• Jiang Lyuzhong and another imprisoned Gold Gong discussed their likely dismissal and plans for life afterward.
• Minister Sun learned that Xu Qi'an’s property included imperial gifts and that courtesans claimed they had served him for free, so he vowed to fabricate a weakness for him.
• A palace clerk summoned Minister Sun, who ordered a sedan chair prepared.

Wei Yuan and Xu Qi'an exposed Minister Liu's crimes through a female ghost's memories, turning the court against him and securing Xu Qi'an's reprieve from arrest. Xu Qi'an returned home to reassure his family and invited Aunt, Lingyue, and Lingyin to see the house he had chosen.

• Wei Yuan told the court that Nightwatchers had raided a trafficking den and linked its owner to Minister Liu and the Shaman God Cult.
• Xu Qi'an recounted how he found the residence, and Chu Caiwei used the Feng Shui Compass to let the senior eunuch experience the female ghost's memories.
• The senior eunuch identified Minister Liu as the man who had discussed cannons and equipment with the foreigner Tamuraha before the ghost was murdered.
• Emperor Yuanjing and the ministers condemned Minister Liu, while Wei Yuan told Xu Qi'an that the Ministry of Punishments would no longer arrest him.
• Xu Qi'an returned home, told Aunt the matter was settled, and invited her and his younger sisters to see his chosen house.

Xu Qi'an took Auntie and his sisters to inspect a haunted house, then discussed Yunzhou’s bandit supply lines and the Mulberry Lake case with the Heaven and Earth Society. The group linked the Shaman God Cult to both investigations, while Xu Qi'an’s family remained wary of the house despite his assurance that the ghost was gone.

• Xu Qi'an showed Auntie and his sisters a rundown house, and they toured it before he revealed that a ghost had haunted its well.
• Auntie fled the house with her daughters, but Xu Qi'an paid a deposit and assured them that the female ghost had been dealt with.
• At Laurel Moon Tower, Xu Qi'an told Number Two that the Shaman God Cult might be backing Yunzhou’s bandits and explained its ties to the Minister of Works.
• Number One connected the Shaman God Cult to the Mulberry Lake case, and Daoist Jinlian identified a paper man as the likely means used to ignite the explosives.
• After lunch, Xu Qi'an bought Xu Lingyin malt candy, and she corrected his warning that it might crack her teeth.

The released Nightwatchers learned that Xu Qi'an had helped secure their freedom by exposing the Minister of Works' collusion with the Shaman God Cult. Meanwhile, Xu Qi'an bought a haunted residence for his family and made a crude chicken seasoning, preparing to test it at dinner.

• The Nightwatchers left the Ministry of Punishments and returned to their office, where Wei Yuan told the four Gold Gongs that Xu Qi'an had earned their release through his role in the case against the Minister of Works.
• Jiang Lyuzhong regretted not recruiting Xu Qi'an earlier, but refused to explain what he knew about the young Copper Gong.
• Xu Qi'an bought the haunted residence after his aunt and Xu Lingyue approved of it, then arranged for Xu Pingzhi to hire craftsmen to repair it.
• Xu Qi'an bought shiitake mushrooms, stewed them with an old hen, and combined the resulting broth and mushroom juice to make a crude chicken seasoning.
• Xu Qi'an carried a bowl of the savory liquid into the main residence at dinnertime, intending to get his family's feedback.

Xu Qi'an introduced a concentrated seasoning to the Xu household, delighting his family with its effect on their food. On patrol, he encountered Monk Hengyuan, initially refused to lend him money, then called him back to ask how much he needed.

• Xu Qi'an added his secret seasoning to the cooks’ dishes, and the Xu family marveled at how delicious the meal tasted.
• Xu Lingyin climbed onto the dining table and declared that the food was all hers.
• Xu Qi'an told Zhu Guangxiao and Song Tingfeng that he was nearing the peak of the Qi Refining Realm and planned to pursue a breakthrough.
• Monk Hengyuan approached Xu Qi'an outside the constabulary, but Xu Qi'an assumed he wanted to borrow money and refused.
• After seeing Hengyuan’s torn shoes and remembering his father, Xu Qi'an called him back and asked how much he wanted to borrow.

Xu Qi'an visited Hengyuan at the Nourishing Life Hall, agreed to seek an arcanist’s help for a dying child, and learned Hengyuan’s Lion’s Roar technique. He returned to the Star Observation Tower to find Chu Caiwei and Song Qing, but neither was available.

• Xu Qi'an followed Hengyuan to the Nourishing Life Hall and saw the slum conditions surrounding it.
• Hengyuan showed Xu Qi'an the dying child he had rescued, and Xu Qi'an promised to ask an arcanist to examine him and offered Hengyuan silver.
• Hengyuan taught Xu Qi'an about Lion's Roar and demonstrated how it could stun an enemy before a follow-up attack.
• Xu Qi'an and his colleagues donated silver to the Nourishing Life Hall, and Song Tingfeng gave the old clerk his purse before arguing with Xu Qi'an on the way out.
• Xu Qi'an went to the Star Observation Tower, learned that Chu Caiwei was with the Eldest Princess and the Director, and that Song Qing was conducting research with a death-row prisoner.

Xu Qi'an cooked noodles for Chu Caiwei, Princess Huaiqing, and Yang Qianhuan, then used his savory seasoning recipe to motivate Caiwei to pursue advancement in Alchemy. He asked Yang Qianhuan to treat the sick child at the Nourishing Life Hall, and Hengyuan discovered the child had improved after an arcanist visited.

• Xu Qi'an prepared hand-pulled noodles with his homemade chicken seasoning, and Chu Caiwei and Princess Huaiqing joined him and Yang Qianhuan for a meal.
• Xu Qi'an told Chu Caiwei that learning to make his seasoning could help her advance to Alchemy Master, and gave her a manual describing the method.
• Xu Qi'an asked Yang Qianhuan to help treat the child at the Nourishing Life Hall, explaining that the child might not survive three days.
• Yang Qianhuan visited the Nourishing Life Hall at night and left a prescription and porcelain bottle beside the child.
• Hengyuan found the child breathing steadily and realized that a fourth-rank arcanist from the Directorate of Astronomy had treated him.

Xu Qi'an settled his family into their new home, where a supposed ghost at the well turned out to be Xu Lingyin looking for food. After easing everyone’s fears, he was asked to keep Xu Lingyue and Aunt company because they were too frightened to sleep.

• Song Qing considered using alchemy to study the human body and praised Xu Qi'an after hearing about Chu Caiwei’s attempt to make chicken bouillon powder and MSG.
• Xu Qi'an helped his family move into their new residence, and Xu Lingyue insisted on living near him in the western wing.
• Xu Lingyin waited beside the well, hoping to lure out a ghost she could eat.
• A maid screamed after seeing what looked like a head in the well, but Xu Qi'an found Xu Lingyin there searching for food.
• Xu Qi'an fed Xu Lingyin pastries and settled the household, then Xu Lingyue asked him to keep her and Aunt company because they were scared.

Xu Qi'an guarded his family through the night, then worried that Hengyuan might uncover his identity as Number Three while visiting the Nourishing Life Hall. He later confirmed Song Qing and Chu Caiwei had produced MSG, while Wei Yuan and Emperor Yuanjing exchanged veiled political challenges before the emperor sent Wei Yuan to check on the empress.

• Xu Qi'an stayed awake guarding his aunt and sisters, then heard his aunt warn Xu Lingyue to be careful around him while bathing.
• Xu Pingzhi returned from duty, and Xu Qi'an explained that Xu Lingyin had slept beside the well because she was hungry for a fried ghost.
• Xu Qi'an visited the Nourishing Life Hall, where Hengyuan questioned how he had recognized the child; Xu Qi'an claimed Number Three had told him.
• Song Qing and Chu Caiwei showed Xu Qi'an their MSG, and Song Qing offered him ten percent of the proceeds, estimated at several thousand to ten thousand taels within the capital.
• Emperor Yuanjing and Wei Yuan argued indirectly about what should endure, then the emperor told Wei Yuan to visit the empress, who had lost her appetite.

Wei Yuan obtained Xu Qi'an’s chicken essence to help the empress regain her appetite, and she eagerly ate after tasting food made with it. Princess Huaiqing later confronted Xu Qi'an about Wei Yuan sending her mother half a jar, leaving him surprised and silent.

• Wei Yuan visited the empress, who misunderstood his lack of concern, and learned from Princess Huaiqing that Xu Qi'an’s secret seasoning might help her appetite.
• Xu Qi'an gave Wei Yuan a jar of chicken essence, and Wei Yuan tested it in noodles before keeping the jar and giving Xu Qi'an a small bottle.
• The empress tasted soup made with chicken essence, finished it, and asked for more food.
• A palace eunuch told Wei Yuan that the empress had eaten more than usual and was looking forward to lunch.
• Princess Huaiqing asked Xu Qi'an for chicken essence, then said Wei Yuan had sent her mother half a jar, leaving Xu Qi'an stunned.