Recaps

Zhou Wanwan exposed the Zhou family’s schemes, collected an enormous debt from Shen Wanjun, and forced Fang Ting to face the consequences of her wagers. She expanded her stronghold and took in two abused siblings, then left Prefect Fang confronting her over Concubine Mei.

• Zhou Wanwan exposed corrupt manor stewards, drove them out, and defeated the Black and White Twin Fiends with help from the trees before discovering their hidden estate and the crimes they had committed.
• Zhou Wanwan accompanied Zhou Fusheng to Zhou Family Village for Zhou Qingzhou’s wedding, where she challenged the family’s demands and secured contracts over valuable jewelry and belongings.
• After Fang Ting insulted Liu Su'e and threatened Zhou Wanwan, Zhou Wanwan arranged a wager with Shen Wanjun and the Jiangnan scholars, then presented them with wild game worth 108.4 million taels and made them sign an IOU.
• Fang Ting’s belongings disappeared and her servants tried to seize Zhou Wanwan’s possessions, but Zhou Wanwan’s family and trained young women resisted her, and Zhou Wanwan defeated Qiuyue and demanded that Fang Ting honor their bet.
• Shangguan Wan'er brought an army to Black Wind Stronghold, but Zhou Wanwan and the trees trapped the soldiers with altered paths and firecrackers, then drove them off with vines as Grand Tutor Zhao urged Zhou Wanwan to claim the throne.
• Zhou Wanwan uncovered the bandits’ hidden supplies and rescued Zhao Qingxi and Zhao Qinghe from abusive relatives, bringing them to the stronghold to brew wine.
• Zhou Wanwan forced Fang Ting to kowtow a hundred times in public and sent her home, then caged Concubine Mei after her men tried to punish Zhou Wanwan.
• Prefect Fang confronted Zhou Wanwan over Concubine Mei, and Zhou Wanwan replied that Concubine Mei was only his concubine.

Zhou Wanwan protected Zhou Xiaoyan from a forced marriage, raided a bandit stronghold, and clashed with Lord Shen while promoting sweet potatoes. After healing Old Master Xie, she faced arrest by Nie Shi'an and was urged by Madam Shen to escape.

• Zhou Wanwan took Prefect Fang’s treasure, then used the chalcedony to strengthen Lingbao, medicinal plants, and the stronghold’s trees.
• Madam Lu and Lu Xuening faked their deaths, changed their faces, and returned to the city planning to destroy Zhou Wanwan’s family through a marriage alliance.
• Zhou Wanwan helped Zhou Dazhu buy Zhou Xiaoyan and Zhou Xiaoting out of a forced marriage, then arranged Zhou Xiaoyan’s wedding and defended her dowry from her relatives.
• Zhou Wanwan’s family left the Zhou home after Old Madam Zhou threw them out, and Zhou Wanwan took food, valuables, and weapons from Dragon and Tiger Mountain’s hidden cellar.
• Zhou Wanwan proposed planting sweet potatoes to prepare for famine, but Lord Shen imprisoned her over Shen Wanjun’s debt and his resentment of her.
• While Zhou Wanwan was held by the Shen Clan, tree spirits dismantled the family’s residences and uncovered buried treasure, while Zhou Wanwan befriended Madam Shen and Shen Yunshu.
• Zhou Wanwan tamed the estate’s dogs, collected crayfish and game, and promised to treat Old Master Xie’s crushed legs in return for his service.
• Zhou Wanwan treated Old Master Xie until he could walk, but Nie Shi'an accused her of misleading people about sweet potato yields and threatened to imprison her, so Madam Shen urged her to escape.

Zhou Wanwan outmaneuvered the Nie Family, won a public contest for the Zhou brothers, and used her power to leave the Nie household in disarray. As famine worsened, she organized relief and a farming plan for refugees, then returned to the Nie Family’s new residence and was drawn into a gathering of young ladies.

• Zhou Wanwan revived Xiao Che and took him into her service, while Old Scholar Tree secretly carried the Nie residence and its treasures away.
• At the lotus-viewing banquet, Zhou Wanwan wagered on the sweet potato harvest and arranged a match between the Zhou brothers and Nie Feng’s companions, then Zhou Qingchen and Shen Yunshu’s prospective marriage became a public dispute.
• The Zhou brothers defeated Nie Feng’s group in combat, cuju, and archery, and Zhou Wanwan collected the wagers for her supporters.
• Zhou Wanwan used Old Scholar Tree’s power to remove the Nie residence again and humiliated Nie Feng after he tried to have her beaten.
• Zhou Wanwan confronted officials over starving refugees, learned of Cheng Yue’s developmental difficulties, and advised county magistrates to prepare water, grain, and coarse-grain relief.
• Zhou Wanwan proposed porridge and a farming plan using sweet potatoes and cassava, and Shen Yu'an recruited refugees to cultivate leased wasteland.
• Nie Rou and the Nie family moved to the Cui household, where Zhou Wanwan sold fruit and served a seafood feast to Nie Rou and the Cui sisters.
• At Cui Yingying’s gathering, Lu Lan warned the young ladies about Zhou Wanwan and revealed that the Nie Family’s wager winnings had been stolen, after which Cui Yingying ordered Zhou Wanwan to bring out her rare flowers.

Zhou Wanwan built her business, secured the Xiao Family Army, and exposed plots within the Cui and Luo families. After helping Cui Zhining and Madam Cui the Younger, she uncovered Cui Wenyuan’s hidden wealth and began moving against the clans driving up grain and salt prices.

• Zhou Wanwan sold rare flowers, food, and other goods to Prince Rui and his officials, then exposed Luo Qitong’s plot to poison Princess Rui and helped reveal the Luo family’s crimes.
• Zhou Wanwan and the trees gathered seafood and made salt, visited Whale Island to heal An'an’s mother, and returned to find Xiao Bang’s soldiers surrounding Black Wind Stronghold.
• Zhou Wanwan subdued Xiao Bang and persuaded Xiao Bingshan and the Xiao Family Army to pledge loyalty to her, then faced criticism from the Cui and Nie families over her estranged grandparents.
• Zhou Wanwan demanded repayment for her mother’s jewelry and secured money from the Cui and Nie families, then charged Madam Cui for a banquet and impressed Cui Wenyuan’s visiting officials with the meal.
• Zhou Wanwan cured Cui Zhining’s Swelling Gu, and Cui Zhining’s cousin Cui Zhiyi suffered its backlash as Cui Wenyuan plotted to kill his wife and daughter on their journey home.
• Zhou Wanwan helped Madam Cui the Younger and Cui Zhining survive an attack, then uncovered Cui Wenyuan’s hidden treasures and learned that Madam Cui’s sons had been drowned and his mistress had helped target her dowry.
• Madam Cui the Younger brought Zhou Wanwan valuables and asked her to investigate her family, while Cui Wenyuan tried to extort her dowry and discovered the Cui family’s old residence had been stripped of its treasure.
• Zhou Wanwan dug up Cui Wenyuan’s hidden silver, learned he and other clans had restricted grain and salt supplies, and sent ginseng to her apothecary as Cui Wenyuan vowed to punish her.