Chapter Summaries

Jinghua revealed that a secret edict ordered the Prince of Min's Residence to attack the northwest and offered rewards for killing the Prince of Jin, then asked Tang Zhuyun to treat her brother Qu Nian. Tang Zhuyun could not explain Qu Nian's strange condition and suggested seeking a more capable physician or Southern Frontier sorcery.

• Jinghua admitted that she had poisoned the Prince of Jin to delay his journey and create an explanation for the emperor, then described how she used voice mimicry to carry out the scheme.
• Jinghua said a secret edict instructed the Prince of Min's Residence to attack the northwest and promised a marquisate and the chancellorship to whoever killed the Prince of Jin.
• The Prince of Jin doubted Jinghua's account, while Tang Zhuyun questioned her about the poisoning and then agreed to hear her medical request.
• Jinghua described Qu Nian waking after the wedding in the capital, unable to speak normally, eating raw meat, and struggling to relieve himself despite having a healthy body.
• Tang Zhuyun admitted she had never encountered Qu Nian's symptoms and suggested his brain might be damaged or that he might be possessed, advising Jinghua to seek better help or Southern Frontier sorcery.

Tang Zhuyun and the Prince of Jin worried that Jinghua’s report about the emperor’s intentions might be part of a forged imperial edict, and they planned an investigation while Tang Zhuyun wrote Ren Yingying a gossipy letter. Five or six days later, Ren Yingying received it while struggling with Dog Meat’s refusal to mate and prepared to write back.

• Jinghua left the Prince of Jin’s residence after asking Tang Zhuyun to send word if she learned anything about Qu Nian.
• Tang Zhuyun wrote to Ren Yingying that the Heir to the Prince of Min had woken up and might be mad, while she and the Prince of Jin considered Jinghua’s claim that the emperor wanted him dead.
• The Prince of Jin suggested someone might have forged an imperial edict, so he planned to write to Tang Mingfan, Huaishang, and Pei Shen to investigate.
• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun that Qu Nian had once said he would have wanted Qu Hua to marry him if he were not an imperial prince, and Tang Zhuyun added the news to her letter to Ren Yingying.
• Ren Yingying received Tang Zhuyun’s letter while tending to Dog Meat, who remained uninterested in mating with any dog, and she told the messenger to wait for her reply.

Ren Yingying read Tang Zhuyun’s letter and learned that Qu Nian had gone mad in the Southern Borderlands, while Qu Nian—trapped in Dog Meat’s body—struggled to find out what had happened to his own body. Ren Yingying misunderstood the strange reports as proof that Qu Nian was dangerous, leaving him frustrated and unable to correct her.

• Ren Yingying read that Qu Nian had gone mad and laughed, while Qu Nian moved closer to hear what the letter said.
• Qu Nian climbed onto the table but could not read Tang Zhuyun’s handwriting, and he realized Ren Yingying and Tang Zhuyun wrote in their own language.
• Ren Yingying read that Qu Nian was peeing and pooping everywhere and eating raw meat, and Qu Nian concluded that a dog had taken over his body.
• Ren Yingying wondered whether her and Tang Zhuyun’s arrival had disrupted the human and beast paths, noting that Dog Meat had begun acting like a person while Qu Nian acted like a dog.
• Ren Yingying read that Qu Nian hit women and his sister, and she worried that he might be even more dangerous now that he had gone mad.

Ren Yingying worried that the Prince of Jin was in danger, but soon turned her attention to mahjong and writing back to Tangbao. She then summoned a veterinarian to examine Dog Meat, leaving Qu Nian frightened and furious.

• Ren Yingying read that the emperor might kill the Prince of Jin and briefly worried about Tangbao, then decided she might go back with everyone if they all died.
• Ren Yingying wrote a long reply to Tangbao and sent it away from the Prince of Jin's Residence.
• Ren Yingying had a veterinarian examine Dog Meat because she feared he had not adjusted to being a male dog.
• The veterinarian declared Dog Meat healthy after startling him with a needle, and Ren Yingying continued worrying that other dogs might discriminate against him.

Qu Nian fled the concubines’ discussion of Dog Meat’s health, while Madam Yao and Mianmian schemed to bring Huaishang around. The Prince of Jin’s party reached Yangqu Town and prepared to continue northwest after resting, with Yanran bringing roasted meat and going to fetch her brother.

• Ren Yingying told the concubines that the doctor had confirmed Dog Meat had grown up, and Qu Nian ran out before returning after overhearing them mention castration.
• Huaishang hurried away after receiving a letter from the Prince of Jin, leaving Madam Yao and Mianmian to plan how to bring him and Mianmian together.
• Mianmian told Madam Yao that she had a hundred thousand taels and wanted to use it to make the Prince of Jin happy, but Madam Yao proposed pretending to be gravely ill to force a wedding.
• The Prince of Jin decided the party would rest in Yangqu Town because of the wind and snow before continuing toward the northwest.
• Yanran brought Tang Zhuyun, the Prince of Jin, and Sister Xiu'er tamarisk-roasted meat, then went to call her brother.

Yanran complained that Cui Xiaoqiu’s request to record her travels had burdened her, until the Prince of Jin offered to send him a map and a book instead. After dinner, Tang Zhuyun teased the Prince of Jin about his past, then spotted a dark figure outside in the snow.

• Yanran explained that she had promised Cui Xiaoqiu travel sketches and notes about local customs, and the Prince of Jin offered to send him a map and the Record of Great Zhou instead.
• Tang Zhuyun learned Yanran had written a thick stack of letters but had not sent any, and Xiu'er laughed at Cui Xiaoqiu’s failed plan to keep Yanran writing to him.
• Xiu'er discussed the Cui Family and marriage alliances with Tang Zhuyun, then Tang Zhuyun asked the Prince of Jin about his past and he let her believe no one had arranged a woman for him.
• Tang Zhuyun opened a window to cool the overheated room, saw that snow had fallen, and noticed a dark figure on the road outside.

Tang Zhuyun and the Prince of Jin noticed a stranded stranger seeking shelter during a snowstorm and arranged for him to rest under guard. The next day, the man’s questions about Tang Zhuyun made the Prince of Jin suspect he wanted to meet her alone.

• Tang Zhuyun and the Prince of Jin watched a stranger approach their full inn, and the Prince arranged for him to spend the night in the gatehouse.
• The Prince of Jin kept guards watching the stranger while he and Tang Zhuyun shared an intimate evening.
• Tang Zhuyun woke near noon and learned the stranger had stayed because the Prince found his behavior suspicious.
• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun the stranger had asked whether she was staying at the inn, and a guard reported that the man seemed wary of the Prince and wanted to see Tang Zhuyun alone.

Tang Zhuyun met Zhang Jin, a former refugee she had helped, after he traveled to warn her that someone was digging up rumors about her supposed affair during the snow disaster. The Prince of Jin took Zhang Jin to investigate who was behind the slander, while Tang Zhuyun suspected the scheme aimed to separate her from him.

• Tang Zhuyun agreed to meet a young man who claimed she had once helped his family, while the Prince of Jin hid behind a screen.
• Zhang Jin explained that he had returned home with his siblings after Tang Zhuyun gave them medicine and travel money.
• Zhang Jin warned Tang Zhuyun that someone in his village was asking about the snow disaster and searching for the man she was falsely accused of having an affair with.
• The Prince of Jin revealed himself, praised Zhang Jin for defending Tang Zhuyun, and took him away to investigate the rumor.
• Tang Zhuyun told Xiu'er she suspected the slanderers wanted to drive a wedge between her and the Prince of Jin.

Tang Zhuyun reflected with Xiu'er on the dangers of being the Prince of Jin’s wife and affirmed that she trusted him and would face the future by his side. After they walked in the courtyard, the Prince of Jin told her he had kept Zhang Jin and would write a letter while Zhang Jin sent word to his family.

• Tang Zhuyun joked with Xiu'er that men, as well as women, posed a threat to her, and explained that the Prince of Jin’s growing political power had brought attacks from all directions.
• Tang Zhuyun admitted that she had feared the dangers of marrying into power but said the Prince of Jin was worth facing them for, while Xiu'er reassured her that they would face trouble together.
• Tang Zhuyun refused to consider taking a concubine for the Prince of Jin and went with Xiu'er to walk in the snow-cleared courtyard.
• Zhang Jin hurried out after bowing to Tang Zhuyun, and the Prince of Jin explained that he had let Zhang Jin stay and was going to write a letter while Zhang Jin contacted his family.

Yanran’s game with local children led to the rescue of Jiang’er, an eleven-year-old forced to steal by a man who exploited dozens of girls. Jiang’er revealed that she had overheard a stolen letter mentioning the Prince of Jin and Tang Zhuyun, leaving them wondering who had written it.

• Yanran invited a timid girl to play, but the girl clung to a guard and accused the man who approached her of forcing her to steal.
• The man tried to flee, and Yanran ordered the guards to seize him while Tang Zhuyun watched from the inn.
• The guards learned that the man had trained Jiang’er to steal since she was five and controlled more than twenty girls for theft and sale.
• Yanran brought Jiang’er to Tang Zhuyun, who offered her food and urged her to speak.
• Jiang’er said she had stolen a letter that mentioned the Prince of Jin’s devotion to the princess and the difficulty of becoming his concubine, but she could not remember who wrote it.

Yanran learned that Jiang'er had risked stealing to escape a thief who threatened her, and the Prince of Jin's household rescued Jiang'er and her sisters. Yanran asked to keep Jiang'er as her maid, while Tang Zhuyun agreed to wait until her father investigated the girl.

• Yanran asked Jiang'er why a letter had made her think Tang Zhuyun was good, and Jiang'er explained that she had admired Tang Zhuyun's capability.
• Jiang'er revealed that a thief had threatened to assault her, so she had stolen to escape him; Yanran told her that the guards had caught him and rescued her sisters.
• Jiang'er demonstrated her exceptional pickpocketing by removing Yanran's jade pendant without anyone noticing.
• Yanran asked Tang Zhuyun to let Jiang'er become her maid, and Tang Zhuyun agreed if the Prince of Jin's investigation found nothing wrong.
• Yanran said the letter had been burned and that she wanted her father to question the thief about its writer.

Tang Zhuyun kept Jiang'er and selected fifteen more girls to accompany the party toward the border city, while Prince of Min and Princess Consort Min sought Buddhist prayers for their son’s strange condition. Ren Yingying and Qu Nian continued living in each other’s bodies, with Ren Yingying pretending to pray and Qu Nian desperately begging to return to his own.

• Tang Zhuyun accepted Jiang'er and told her to look after Yanran, then agreed to keep fifteen other girls whose characters seemed decent.
• Tang Zhuyun decided Prince of Jin would arrange the remaining girls’ fates, and the party resumed its journey toward the border city after several days.
• Tang Zhuyun told Xiu'er that the prefect of Yangquan had considered sending his daughter to Prince of Jin but had abandoned the plan.
• Prince of Min and Princess Consort Min invited eighty-one monks to pray for their son and had Ren Yingying and four concubines join the ceremony.
• Qu Nian prayed for his soul to return to its rightful body, while Ren Yingying whispered that she was only pretending to pray.

After an incense burner exploded, Qu Nian shielded Ren Yingying and was wounded, while she misunderstood his anatomy and worried over him. Ren Yingying revealed she knew the burner had been sabotaged and planned to pursue her freedom, then asked Hua Cha to find male dogs so she could investigate Dog Meat’s condition.

• The Ge ware incense burner exploded, and Qu Nian leaped between Ren Yingying and the flying shards, suffering cuts across his back.
• Ren Yingying tended Qu Nian’s wounds, mistook his visible nipples for a sign that he had not fully become a male dog, and stopped herself from popping them.
• Hua Cha told Ren Yingying she suspected the incense burner’s explosion was no accident, and Ren Yingying confirmed someone had tampered with it to drive her away.
• Ren Yingying said she would wait to see whether the saboteur succeeded before settling the score, and declared that she wanted to gain her freedom.
• Ren Yingying asked Hua Cha to catch a couple of male dogs so she could check whether other male dogs had the same features as Qu Nian.

Ren Yingying’s letter to Tang Zhuyun revealed that she suspected someone in the palace was spying on her, prompting Tang Zhuyun to reconsider Consort De’s rise. In the border city, Tang Zhuyun learned that Governor Zhou’s granddaughter planned to marry the Prince of Jin as a secondary consort.

• Ren Yingying wrote Tang Zhuyun a humorous letter about Qu Nian, her strange wishes, and her suspicion that someone had been watching her in the palace.
• Tang Zhuyun wondered whether the emperor had put Xiao Wu under Consort De’s care and questioned how Consort De had gained control of the phoenix seal.
• Tang Zhuyun and Xiu'er went to a mutton soup shop, where Tang Zhuyun said she planned to establish a medical academy for girls.
• Xiu'er told Tang Zhuyun that Zhou Xu, granddaughter of the border city’s governor Zhou Jiyin, had announced she would marry the Prince of Jin as a secondary consort.
• Tang Zhuyun dismissed Zhou Xu’s ambition as unimpressive and wondered why the governor’s household had raised a daughter like her.

Tang Zhuyun arranged a banquet for prominent households in the border city after Zhou Xu declared her wish to become the Prince of Jin's secondary consort. The Prince of Jin described Zhou Jiyin's obstruction of his efforts to build military influence, and Tang Zhuyun urged him to be patient before he asked her for a favor.

• Xiu'er warned Tang Zhuyun to watch Zhou Xu and remind the Prince of Jin about her ambitions.
• Tang Zhuyun declined to meet Zhou Xu alone and decided to invite prominent households to a banquet, sending Zhou Xu a separate invitation.
• Tang Zhuyun asked Yanran to help prepare for the guests, and Yanran joked about performing with Jiaojiao.
• Linlin and Xiu'er helped send invitations as the residence prepared for the banquet.
• The Prince of Jin told Xiu'er to write Song Jingyang reassurance about his looks, then explained to Tang Zhuyun that Zhou Jiyin had isolated the Xue Family and was difficult to deal with.
• Tang Zhuyun encouraged the Prince of Jin to be patient, and he said he had something to ask of her.

Tang Zhuyun planned to use her banquet to spread the word that the Prince of Jin wanted to find his mother, hoping to reassure her if she was alive. At the banquet, she met the women of the border city’s prominent households and noticed the contrast between Zhou Fu and Zhou Xu.

• Tang Zhuyun told the Prince of Jin that the banquet could help publicize his wish to reunite with his mother, and he agreed.
• Ren Yingying entertained Qu Nian and the concubines with a bawdy joke before they played games together.
• Qu Nian asked the system who could help restore his human body, and it named the Prince of Jin, Tang Zhuyun, and Ren Yingying.
• Tang Zhuyun hosted the banquet and met Old Madam Zhou and the female relatives of prominent households.
• Tang Zhuyun observed Zhou Xu’s affected behavior and Zhou Fu’s poised manner, then cautioned Xiu'er that appearances could be deceiving.

At a banquet, Tang Zhuyun treated a young maid’s seizure and later tended Zhou Xu after she injured her forehead. Alone with Tang Zhuyun, Zhou Xu dropped her act and tried to threaten her by invoking her grandfather.

• Yanran entertained the younger girls while Tang Zhuyun hosted the older guests, and Zhou Fu repeatedly stopped Zhou Xu from causing trouble.
• Tang Zhuyun treated a young maid rescued from Yangqu with silver needles, and the girl soon woke up.
• Zhou Xu left the gathering and returned with a bloodied forehead, claiming she had ruined her face in a fall.
• Tang Zhuyun took Zhou Xu to a nearby room for treatment despite Zhou Xu accusing her of plotting against her.
• Once they were alone, Zhou Xu grabbed Tang Zhuyun’s hand and warned that the prince would answer to her grandfather if Tang Zhuyun harmed her; Tang Zhuyun ordered her to be quiet.

Tang Zhuyun treated Zhou Xu’s self-inflicted head wound as Zhou Xu revealed how Lady Wang and Zhou Fu had controlled her and her mother for years. Zhou Xu asked Tang Zhuyun to help her mother and pledged to help her even if she could not.

• Xiu'er sent everyone away from Zhou Xu’s room and refused to let Zhou Fu stay, while Zhou Fu withdrew in tears.
• Tang Zhuyun treated Zhou Xu’s wound and asked what she wanted to tell her.
• Zhou Xu explained that Lady Wang had forced her to act foolish and ugly to make Zhou Fu look better, and had used control over her mother’s physician to keep her obedient.
• Zhou Xu told Tang Zhuyun that Lady Wang planned to use her and eventually make her disappear, and that she had injured herself to seek Tang Zhuyun’s help.
• Zhou Xu asked Tang Zhuyun to treat her mother’s consumption and pledged to help Tang Zhuyun even if she could not.

Zhou Xu offered to help Tang Zhuyun expose Zhou Fu and her mother in exchange for help protecting her own mother, and Tang tested her by asking her to arrange a meeting. At the Zhou family banquet, Yanran accidentally let a tiger loose, startling the guests before riding away on it.

• Zhou Xu told Tang Zhuyun that she had evidence against Zhou Fu and her mother and offered to serve as Tang’s ally if Tang helped protect her mother.
• Tang Zhuyun asked Zhou Xu to arrange a meeting with her mother so she could treat her, and Zhou Xu accepted the difficult task.
• Zhou Fu thanked Tang for treating Zhou Xu, while Zhou Xu hinted that someone at the prince’s residence might have caused her injury.
• Yanran accidentally summoned Jiaojiao the tiger during the banquet, frightening the women, and Tang ordered Yanran to reflect behind closed doors without dinner.
• Yanran rode Jiaojiao away as Xiu’er blamed the prince for keeping the tiger, and Zhou Fu watched thoughtfully.

Zhou Fu tried to win Yanran’s sympathy, but Yanran rebuffed her and had Jiang’er steal Zhou Fu’s jade pendant. Tang Zhuyun decided to ask Ren Yingying for medicine for lung disease, while Ren Yingying’s fishing and barbecue were interrupted by alarming news.

• Zhou Fu visited Yanran and tried to comfort her while subtly implying that Yanran was sensible because she was not doted on, but Yanran answered her sharply.
• Yanran asked whether Zhou Fu wanted to become the Prince of Jin’s secondary consort, and Zhou Fu denied it, blaming her eighth sister’s joke.
• After Zhou Fu left, Yanran revealed that Jiang’er had taken Zhou Fu’s jade pendant and hid it under the kang mat.
• Tang Zhuyun decided to write Ren Yingying for medicine in case Concubine Yu had consumption, and said she would tell the Prince of Jin about helping Zhou Xu.
• Ren Yingying went fishing and barbecuing with her companions, but someone arrived with news that something terrible had happened.