Chapter Summaries

Yanran learned that Cui Xiaoqiu had arrived and tried to discover why, while Cui Xiaoqiu privately told the Prince of Jin that the Cui Family was choosing his side. The Prince of Jin revealed that the emperor had granted Wuji a princely title but not Wuxian, and Linlin recognized the move as an attempt to set the brothers against one another.

• Yanran told Tang Zhuyun that Cui Xiaoqiu had arrived at the prince's residence and gone to see the Prince of Jin.
• Yanran rode to the outer study, where a guard stopped her from listening, and asked him to tell Cui Xiaoqiu to find her when he came out.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told the Prince of Jin that he had come to make the Cui Family's support clear, and the Prince of Jin said he would wait for the imperial edict before deciding what to do.
• The Prince of Jin told Linlin that the emperor had drafted an edict naming Wuji Yuwen Yu and granting him the title Prince of Cheng of the Second Rank, while Wuxian received no title.
• Linlin concluded that the emperor was favoring one twin to provoke a struggle among the three brothers.

Linlin and the Prince of Jin discussed the Cui Family’s pledge of allegiance, while Cui Xiaoqiu arrived to ask Great Confucian Scholar Kong to accept him as a student. Qu Nian offered to help the Prince of Jin if he investigated how to restore Qu Nian’s body, and the chapter ended as a major event unfolded in the Wu Family.

• Linlin and the Prince of Jin agreed to keep the Cui Family in service and wait for Great Confucian Scholar Kong to decide whether to take Cui Xiaoqiu as a student.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told Yanran he had come to study with Great Confucian Scholar Kong, and Yanran eagerly welcomed him to stay.
• Qu Nian offered the Prince of Jin his help in exchange for investigating how to return him to his original body, and the prince said he had sent people to the Southern Borderlands.
• Qu Nian urged the Prince of Jin to move against the Zhou Family and recruit Wu Zhenhai, but the prince refused to involve Wu Zhenhai or his family.
• Wu Zhenhai sent gifts for the twins’ one-month celebration and explained that mourning kept him from visiting, while a major event took place in the Wu Family.

Wu Zhenhai let Wu Shao return home after he begged forgiveness, then left the residence after a deceptive message from the Zhou Family. When he discovered that someone had disturbed Zhou Xu’s grave, he learned Wu Shao had brought a Daoist priest and his disciple there, and ordered his son brought to him.

• Wu Zhenhai mourned Zhou Xu at her grave and heard that Wu Shao had returned to beg forgiveness.
• Wu Shao admitted the ten thousand taels Wu Zhenhai had given him had been stolen, and Wu Zhenhai lashed him before allowing him back into the residence.
• Wu Zhenhai received a message claiming Governor-General Zhou wanted to discuss an important matter and went to the Zhou Residence, where he waited for hours before learning Zhou was away.
• Wu Zhenhai returned home and noticed that the soil around Zhou Xu’s grave appeared disturbed.
• Wu Zhenhai learned that Wu Shao had brought an old Daoist priest and his disciple to check the feng shui, then ordered Wu Shao brought to him.

Wu Zhenhai learned that Zhou Fu had manipulated Wu Shao into helping her take revenge, while Wu Yu remained missing. Wu Zhenhai confronted the Zhou Family but returned home without harming Zhou Fu, and the search for Wu Yu continued.

• Wu Zhenhai found Wu Shao and beat him until he confessed that Zhou Fu had plotted to use him to lure Wu Yu away and drown him.
• Wu Shao said Wu Yu had disappeared after going into nearby bushes, and Wu Zhenhai suspected he had been abducted by a trafficker.
• Wu Zhenhai learned that Zhou Fu had disguised herself as a Daoist priest’s disciple and placed talismans on Zhou Xu’s coffin, then had Wu Shao locked in the woodshed without medical care.
• Tang Zhuyun learned that Wu Yu had not been found and that the city was searching for him, while Ren Yingying said Mingzhu already knew what had happened.
• Mingzhu predicted that Wu Zhenhai would back down when confronted by Governor-General Zhou, and Song Jingyang later reported that Wu Zhenhai had returned home while Zhou Fu remained unharmed.

After Wu Zhenhai was crushed by Governor-General Zhou’s refusal to take responsibility, he mourned Ruanruan and resolved to keep searching for Wu Yu. Yanran then set out with Mingzhu, Cui Xiaoqiu, and Cui Run, while the Prince of Jin quietly considered Cui Run as a possible match for Mingzhu.

• Wu Zhenhai recalled Governor-General Zhou dismissing his grievances and promising only to search for Wu Yu, then wept at Ruanruan’s grave and vowed to raise Wu Yu well if he found him.
• Yanran persuaded Tang Zhuyun to let her take Cui Xiaoqiu horseback riding, and the Prince of Jin arranged for Mingzhu to accompany her.
• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun that Cui Run was a talented, gentle young man whom he thought might suit Mingzhu, but they agreed to let the two spend time together without mentioning the idea to her.
• The next morning, Yanran and Mingzhu left to meet Cui Xiaoqiu and Cui Run, with Yanran promising to teach them to ride.
• Cui Run glanced at Mingzhu as she climbed into the carriage and was struck by her beauty.

Yanran and Sanbao rode and hunted at the pasture while Cui Xiaoqiu declined to ride, prompting Yanran to suspect his arm was injured. Mingzhu began learning to ride, and Cui Xiaoqiu quietly explained that he did not want to display his merely passable horsemanship beside Sanbao’s skill.

• Yanran and Sanbao rode across the pasture while Cui Run and Cui Xiaoqiu watched nearby.
• Yanran returned with two wild rabbits, but Cui Xiaoqiu refused her offer to teach him to ride and glanced at his right arm.
• Yanran suspected Cui Xiaoqiu had injured his arm, but he insisted he was fine, and she arranged for a gentle horse to be led for him.
• Yanran and Sanbao helped Mingzhu begin riding while Cui Xiaoqiu walked his horse with Cui Run.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told Cui Run that he avoided riding because his skills could not compare with Sanbao’s.

Mingzhu was thrown from her horse when Wu Zhenhai’s hunting dogs frightened it, and Wu Zhenhai caught her as she fell. At the meal afterward, Mingzhu recognized a hungry child outside as Wu Zhenhai’s missing son, Wu Yu, and Yanran went to speak with him.

• Mingzhu practiced riding alone while Yanran and the others watched.
• Wu Zhenhai rode past with hunting dogs, frightening Mingzhu’s horse, and he caught her when she fell.
• Mingzhu recognized Wu Zhenhai by the red mole behind his ear, while he left to continue searching for his son.
• At the meal, Mingzhu spotted a hungry child who looked like Wu Zhenhai and suspected he was Wu Yu.
• Yanran, Sanbao, and Cui Xiaoqiu went outside, and Yanran asked the boy his name.

Yanran brought feverish Wu Yu to the Prince of Jin’s residence, where he clung to her and refused to leave with Wu Zhenhai. Meanwhile, Tang Zhuyun, Xiu'er, and Ren Yingying discussed whether Cui Run might suit Mingzhu, and Wu Zhenhai went to visit his trusted subordinate Tao Ma and Tao Ma’s wife, Manniang.

• Yanran brought Wu Yu home, and he clung to her while refusing to explain what had happened or let her leave.
• Wu Zhenhai came to collect Wu Yu, but Wu Yu seemed afraid of him and would not go; the Prince of Jin agreed to let Wu Yu stay until he recovered.
• Tang Zhuyun asked Xiu'er to watch Mingzhu and Cui Run, and Xiu'er urged caution about Cui Run’s ambitions and his strict widowed mother.
• Ren Yingying joined the discussion, said she admired Cui Run, and agreed they should watch him before deciding whether he suited Mingzhu.
• Wu Zhenhai left the prince’s residence and went to visit his confidant Tao Ma, whose beautiful wife Manniang was rumored to be having an affair with Wu Zhenhai.

Wu Zhenhai visited Tao Ma and Manniang, asked them to look after Wu Yu if he died, and mourned Zhou Xu. The next day, he sent Wu Shao to join the army in Liaodong and severed their father-son bond when Wu Shao refused.

• Wu Zhenhai gave Tao Ma and Manniang's son a jade pendant, then asked them to care for Wu Yu if he died.
• Wu Zhenhai told Tao Ma and Manniang that he wanted to follow Eighth Miss Zhou, and Manniang accepted his silver note after he left.
• Wu Zhenhai returned home and wept while embracing Zhou Xu's tombstone.
• Wu Zhenhai summoned Wu Shao and ordered him to go to Liaodong to join the army and earn the right to marry Zhou Fu.
• Wu Shao refused, and Wu Zhenhai declared their father-son bond severed.

Wu Zhenhai distanced himself from Wu Chanjuan while sending gifts to the prince and Ninth Miss, and Yanran continued caring for Wu Yu. Mingzhu explained that she wanted to explore a romance with Cui Run, while the household received an imperial decree for Wuxian and began considering his formal name.

• Wu Zhenhai refused to bring Wu Shao back and told Wu Chanjuan to manage her own life, but gave her ten thousand taels after learning she had surrendered her dowry to her mother-in-law.
• Wu Zhenhai sent jewelry to the prince and Ninth Miss, leaving Yanran puzzled about why he was not taking Wu Yu back.
• Yanran admitted that she could not leave Wu Yu alone because she suspected he had been mistreated, and she went to check whether he had awakened.
• Mingzhu told Tang Zhuyun that she wanted to give Cui Run a chance because she found him kind and interesting, and Tang Zhuyun encouraged her to follow her own judgment.
• After an imperial decree bestowed a name and honors on Wuji, the household continued calling him Wuji and Wuxian by their old names, while the Prince of Jin, Tang Zhuyun, and Linlin considered a formal name for Wuxian.

The Prince of Jin kept Song Jingyang in the northwest after receiving Zhou Yanhui’s plea for help, as the Xia Kingdom faced danger from the restless Tatars. By autumn, the household prepared for the Mid-Autumn Festival while Wu Zhenhai mourned Zhou Xu and Mingzhu considered asking Ren Yingying for help.

• Linlin named Wuxian Yuwen Xing, and the three new children settled happily into the household.
• The Prince of Jin told Song Jingyang to stay rather than return to Qingzhou, then showed him Zhou Yanhui’s plea for help as the Xia Kingdom came under threat from the Tatars.
• Song Jingyang urged the Prince of Jin to seize the northwest’s military power and uncover the Zhou Family’s trump cards, while the prince arranged help for Zhou Yanhui.
• The Prince of Jin told Song Jingyang to conceal the crisis from Xiu'er, and Song Jingyang reassured her that he had been given another task.
• As summer turned to autumn, Wu Zhenhai thought of Zhou Xu and her approaching birthday, while Mingzhu considered asking Ren Yingying for help with Cui Run.

Qu Nian tried to learn how Ren Yingying had gained her moment of glory, but the women instead discussed Mingzhu’s dilemma and noticed Dog Meat’s growing understanding. Qu Nian went to complain to the Prince of Jin, who answered his warning with a jab of his own.

• Qu Nian asked the system how he could become human, and it said he had to fall in love with Ren Yingying, then shocked him for his improper thoughts.
• Tang Zhuyun noticed Dog Meat seemed to understand people better, while Ren Yingying comforted him and called him her son.
• Mingzhu said she was unsure whether to tell Wu Zhenhai the truth, and Xiu'er, Tang Zhuyun, and Ren Yingying offered their views and support.
• Qu Nian left to find the Prince of Jin, and Xiu'er revealed she had noticed the prince’s study door was often shut because he kept Dog Meat there.
• Qu Nian complained to the Prince of Jin by writing that his days were numbered, and the prince replied that Qu Nian was liable to die of anger.

Qu Nian discussed recovering his human form and sending word to his parents with the Prince of Jin, then offered advice as the prince faced threats from the Zhou Family, Xia Kingdom, and the capital. The Prince of Jin asked Qu Nian to spy on Cui Run, but refused to use Mingzhu’s marriage to Wu Zhenhai as a political shortcut.

• Qu Nian asked the Prince of Jin for help becoming human again, and the prince offered to test any ideas Qu Nian had.
• Qu Nian proposed writing to the Prince of Min and Princess Consort Min to assure them he was safe, while keeping his plan to demand a divorce from Ren Yingying to himself.
• Qu Nian asked how the Prince of Jin would handle the coming battles against the Zhou Family and Xia Kingdom, and the prince said he would face them one by one.
• The Prince of Jin asked Qu Nian to discreetly observe Cui Run because Mingzhu had grown close to him.
• Qu Nian argued that Mingzhu should marry Wu Zhenhai to help defeat the Zhou Family, but the Prince of Jin refused to sacrifice his sister’s happiness.

As Mingzhu’s birthday approached, Tang Zhuyun agreed to celebrate it quietly at the prince’s residence despite Mingzhu’s fear that Wu Zhenhai would discover her deception. Wu Zhenhai then sent a huge chest of gifts, supposedly for the young lady whose birthday was coming up, leaving Mingzhu and the others to wonder whether he knew about her.

• Tang Zhuyun and Ren Yingying discussed Mingzhu’s birthday with Xiu'er, who said Mingzhu did not want to celebrate because Wu Zhenhai might notice their shared birthday.
• Mingzhu suggested that Wu Zhenhai could be brought to their side with silver or women, but Tang Zhuyun said she would consult the Prince of Jin.
• Tang Zhuyun decided they would celebrate Mingzhu’s birthday as planned, without inviting outsiders, and give the household staff an extra month’s allowance.
• Tang Zhuyun and Mingzhu found that Wu Zhenhai had sent a chest packed with fine gifts, toys, clothes, and jewelry for Yanran.
• A messenger clarified that Wu Zhenhai had sent the chest as a birthday gift for the young lady, and Mingzhu guessed he had mistaken Yanran for the birthday girl.
• Mingzhu and Xiu'er suspected Wu Zhenhai might be plotting something, while Wu Zhenhai privately realized that Mingzhu shared the young lady’s birthday and planned to bring her gifts too.

Tang Zhuyun, Xiu'er, and Ren Yingying discussed gifts and preparations for Mingzhu’s birthday, while Qu Nian watched the twins and reflected on motherhood and his own wish for children. Mingzhu appeared content with Cui Run’s prayer beads, but the others remained suspicious of Wu Zhenhai’s efforts around Zhou Fu.

• Tang Zhuyun planned to give Mingzhu a precious pomegranate, while Xiu'er chose a pearl curtain Song Jingyang had brought her.
• Ren Yingying described her plan for a disappearing-dog performance, and Qu Nian watched Wuji and Wuxian before thinking about his mother and wanting children of his own.
• Mingzhu arrived wearing prayer beads Cui Run had requested at a temple, and the women teased her about the gift.
• Ren Yingying said Wu Zhenhai had booked the best opera troupes and arranged restaurant banquets for Zhou Fu; Mingzhu said his actions might serve his interests and urged her friends not to worry about her.

Tang Zhuyun and Xiu'er discussed Cui Run's stinginess and worried about Mingzhu's relationships before the prince's residence celebrated Mingzhu's birthday. The festivities ended with Ren Yingying's botched magic trick, while Wu Zhenhai's new opera was being praised at the Zhou Family.

• Xiu'er told Tang Zhuyun that Cui Run had money of his own but was stingy, and they agreed to slow any talk of marriage between him and Mingzhu.
• Tang Zhuyun asked whether Wu Zhenhai had gotten over Mingzhu, and Xiu'er insisted Mingzhu must never return to him.
• The Prince of Jin allowed Cui Run into the inner courtyard for Mingzhu's birthday celebration, where the guests presented gifts and Wu Yu offered Mingzhu a crabapple instead of the buyao Yanran had prepared for him.
• Wu Yu admitted he feared Mingzhu disliked him and would reject his gift, while Cui Xiaoqiu suggested they discuss it later.
• Ren Yingying tried to conjure Dog Meat, but Qu Nian hid from her and barked from a stone table, making the guests laugh.
• At the Zhou Family's celebration, Zhou Yushan praised Wu Zhenhai's newly commissioned opera, The Twenty-Eight Horsemen of Yuntai.

Wu Zhenhai killed Zhou Fu and seized control of the Zhou Residence, declaring that he was avenging Zhou Xu. After the Prince of Jin gave Mingzhu a handwritten Buddhist scripture, news arrived that Wu Zhenhai had surrounded the Zhou Residence, leaving them wondering what he intended to do.

• Wu Zhenhai asked Zhou Fu to meet him privately, then strangled her and had her body removed.
• Wu Zhenhai's disguised men took control of the Zhou Residence, and he rejected the Zhou family's offers to negotiate.
• Wu Zhenhai had Governor-General Zhou taken away; half a shichen later, he announced that the governor-general had died of a sudden illness.
• Wu Zhenhai ordered his subordinates to handle the household and said he would seek an audience with the Prince of Jin.
• The Prince of Jin gave Mingzhu a Buddhist scripture he had copied for her birthday.
• A visitor reported that Wu Zhenhai had surrounded the Zhou Residence, shocking Mingzhu and the Prince of Jin.

Mingzhu worried that Wu Zhenhai would pursue her after learning the truth, while the Prince of Jin went to assess the Zhou Residence affair. Wu Zhenhai later pledged himself to the prince in exchange for a chance to live, swearing loyalty to every master of the residence and taking responsibility for handling the aftermath.

• Mingzhu told the Prince of Jin she feared Wu Zhenhai would keep pestering her, and he reassured her before leaving to inspect the Zhou Residence.
• Unable to sleep, Mingzhu sat beneath the covered walkway and wondered what had happened at the Zhou Residence.
• Wu Zhenhai knelt before the Prince of Jin, admitted to killing over his betrothed's mistreatment, and asked him to spare his men and look after Wu Yu.
• Wu Zhenhai offered his life and loyalty in exchange for the Prince of Jin's protection, and the prince demanded an oath of loyalty to every master of the residence.
• After Wu Zhenhai swore the oath, the Prince of Jin ordered him to manage the Zhou Family affair while the prince handled the explanation to the capital.
• Qu Nian complained that the Prince of Jin had gotten off easy, and the prince teased him about relying on his sister.

Mingzhu worried that Wu Zhenhai would recognize her and turn against the prince’s residence, but she decided to stay and avoid public gatherings for now. Meanwhile, Wu Zhenhai dug up Zhou Xu’s coffin to take her home, only for the coffin and Wu Zhenhai to fall from the carriage on the way down the mountain.

• Tang Zhuyun, Xiu'er, and Ren Yingying discussed Wu Zhenhai’s destruction of the Zhou Family and tried to reassure Mingzhu.
• Mingzhu said she feared Wu Zhenhai would recognize her and become an enemy of the prince’s residence, so she planned to stay inside and avoid banquets.
• Tang Zhuyun agreed that Mingzhu could remain at the residence, while Xiu'er and Ren Yingying joked about the family staying together.
• Yanran told Tang Zhuyun that Wu Yu had clung to her and cried when his father came to take him away.
• Wu Zhenhai dug Zhou Xu’s coffin out of her grave and set off with it on a carriage.
• The carriage tipped on the mountain road, throwing Wu Zhenhai and the coffin to the ground.

Wu Zhenhai discovered that the remains in Zhou Xu’s coffin might belong to someone else and became convinced that Ruanruan could still be alive. As he investigated, Mingzhu learned the truth might soon come out and decided to meet him herself before he uncovered it.

• Wu Zhenhai broke open Zhou Xu’s coffin and tried to reassemble the charred bones, then summoned a coroner to help.
• The coroner identified signs that the deceased had given birth, leading Wu Zhenhai to suspect the remains were not Zhou Xu’s.
• Wu Zhenhai asked the coroner to estimate the woman’s age and, convinced she was not Ruanruan, ordered every coroner in the border city to be brought to him.
• The Prince of Jin told Mingzhu that Wu Zhenhai was investigating the events surrounding Zhou Xu’s death.
• Mingzhu decided to meet Wu Zhenhai herself and explain the truth before he found it out, hoping to keep him calm enough to surrender the Zhou Family supporters’ list.