Chapter Summaries

Ren Yingying confronted Qu Nian after he returned, while Dog Meat attacked him and reignited their hostility. Fearing Qu Nian had come for her, Ren Yingying asked Tang Zhuyun to find out why he had come to the Prince of Jin’s residence.

• Qu Nian demanded that Dog Meat be killed, but the Prince of Jin refused and left in high spirits.
• Ren Yingying told Qu Nian she had freed his four concubines, and they argued over their relationship.
• Dog Meat charged at Qu Nian, and the two rolled around fighting until Ren Yingying pulled Dog Meat away.
• Ren Yingying ran to Tang Zhuyun’s courtyard and begged for help escaping, but Tang Zhuyun questioned her feelings about Qu Nian.
• Ren Yingying admitted she was overwhelmed and asked Tang Zhuyun to find out from the Prince of Jin why Qu Nian had come.

Ren Yingying resisted Qu Nian’s attempt to speak with her alone, while Qu Nian sought advice from the Prince of Jin about winning her over. He accepted that Ren Yingying cared more for Dog Meat than for him, then joined the Prince of Jin for a drink, where Yanran arrived crying.

• Ren Yingying sat with Dog Meat and her four concubines as bodyguards, refused to speak privately with Qu Nian, and watched him leave.
• Qu Nian asked the Prince of Jin about Ren Yingying and learned that she and Tang Zhuyun were human souls from another world.
• The Prince of Jin advised Qu Nian to cherish Ren Yingying and suggested winning over Dog Meat, Ren Yingying’s favorite dog.
• Qu Nian admitted he was not even as important to Ren Yingying as Dog Meat and agreed to drink with the Prince of Jin.
• Yanran arrived crying while Qu Nian and the Prince of Jin were drinking.

Yanran begged the Prince of Jin to let her go to the Xia Kingdom with her brother, but he refused, and Cui Xiaoqiu later helped comfort her. Cui Xiaoqiu proposed involving Yanran’s birth father to ease the lingering hurt in her heart, leaving the Prince of Jin to consider the idea.

• Yanran argued that she should be allowed to gain battlefield experience like her brother, but the Prince of Jin refused because he feared for her safety.
• Qu Nian told the Prince of Jin that he planned to approach Ren Yingying by first winning over Dog Meat and then her associates.
• The Prince of Jin decided to find ways to cheer Yanran up and considered asking Cui Ling for advice.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told the Prince of Jin he had comforted Yanran, then suggested that her birth father should be allowed to treat her well.
• The Prince of Jin objected to Cui Xiaoqiu’s proposal, but fell silent when Cui Xiaoqiu asked whether her birth father should remain a knot in Yanran’s heart.

Yanran remained upset that she could not go to the Xia Kingdom, while Tang Zhuyun tried to cheer her up and discussed Ren Yingying’s marriage with Xiu'er. As Yanran went out to ride, Xiao Pang stopped her and asked to talk, leaving their father-daughter conversation about to begin.

• Tang Zhuyun offered Yanran horseback riding and fed her mutton buns, while Xiu'er reassured her that Yanran would soon recover from her anger.
• Tang Zhuyun and Xiu'er discussed Ren Yingying’s marriage to Qu Nian and agreed that making peace with the marriage was better than trying to escape it.
• Yanran met Cui Xiaoqiu and Cui Run, learned they were going to study with Xiyou, and said she would find Sanbao and ride a horse.
• Cui Run remembered refusing to leave Cui Xiaoqiu and discussing his estrangement from his mother over Mingzhu.
• Xiao Pang stopped Yanran at the main gate and invited her to sit with him, then began speaking to her.

Yanran defended her adoptive parents to Xiao Pang, and their relationship began to heal as he accepted that she was better off with them. Meanwhile, Qu Nian confronted Ren Yingying over the money she had taken from the prince’s residence, leaving her stunned by how much he knew.

• Yanran told Xiao Pang that her parents had refused to let her go to the battlefield because they wanted to protect her, and she did not blame him for their separation.
• Xiao Pang said he had overcome his drug dependence and credited the prince and princess consort, while Yanran reassured him that her mother would listen to him.
• Xiao Pang and Yanran parted on warmer terms, and he later arranged to run into her often as their relationship gradually became more natural.
• Qu Nian sought out Ren Yingying to collect the money she had taken from the prince’s residence and named the precise amount of silver and copper coins.
• Qu Nian also revealed that he knew about the chest Ren Yingying and the others had fished from the lotus pond, then claimed she was the only one who believed people who said they disliked him.
• Ren Yingying denied that anyone had told Qu Nian about the chest and insisted that her companions loved her, not him.

Qu Nian confronted Ren Yingying about her past misdeeds and demanded the chest she had hidden with Hua Cha. After she handed it over, Dog Meat chose to leave with Qu Nian so they could uncover who had caused him to turn human, while Ren Yingying secretly went to investigate the chest's contents.

• Qu Nian confronted Ren Yingying with what he knew about her fantasies and demanded the chest she had brought to the northwest.
• Ren Yingying went to retrieve the chest while Dog Meat stayed behind with Qu Nian, who persuaded him to work together to find the culprit behind his transformations.
• Ren Yingying returned with several concubines and handed Qu Nian the chest, but Dog Meat followed Qu Nian despite her calling him back.
• Ren Yingying warned Yuanyang, Jinse, and Jinjin not to be fooled by Qu Nian, then went to secretly look inside the chest.

Qu Nian and Ren Yingying examined the mysterious chest from the lotus pond, but an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction made her storm out. Ren Yingying vented to Mingzhu, who confirmed she was done with Cui Run and resolved not to make herself unhappy for anyone again.

• Qu Nian and Dog Meat inspected the seamless, patterned chest, and Qu Nian noticed Ren Yingying eavesdropping outside.
• Ren Yingying joined Qu Nian to look at the chest, then accused him of being a pervert when she saw his torn trousers.
• Qu Nian realized his trousers had split and panicked about what Ren Yingying had seen as she left with Dog Meat.
• Ren Yingying visited Mingzhu, complained about Qu Nian, and learned Mingzhu was sorting her possessions to repay Wu Zhenhai.
• Mingzhu told Ren Yingying that things with Cui Run were over and that she would no longer make herself unhappy for anyone.

Ren Yingying and Mingzhu discovered that the pomegranate’s hidden pattern matched the Prince of Min’s chest, but neither Qu Nian nor the Prince of Jin could open it. The Prince of Jin discussed his plans to drive back Northern Yi with Qu Nian and warned that Consort De’s ambitions posed a threat, leaving Qu Nian ready to help once he married.

• Ren Yingying noticed that the damaged pomegranate revealed a flower matching the pattern on the Prince of Min’s chest, and she sent it to Tang Zhuyun instead of Qu Nian.
• The Prince of Jin and Qu Nian tried to use the pomegranate to open the chest, failed, and decided to ask Qu Nian’s father and Madam Yan about their origins.
• The Prince of Jin told Qu Nian that he had secured the Wen Family’s support through Huaishang and could provision his army for another year.
• The Prince of Jin proposed driving Northern Yi back in one stroke before he became occupied with other affairs.
• The Prince of Jin warned Qu Nian that Consort De had taken the Eighth Prince under her name and was becoming a rival, and Qu Nian offered to help after his marriage.

Qu Nian and Ren Yingying argued over their relationship while Tang Zhuyun urged them to resolve their ambiguous situation. Wu Zhenhai learned that Mingzhu’s match with Cui Run had fallen through, and the chapter ended with him seeing Qu Nian following Ren Yingying.

• The Prince of Jin teased Qu Nian about Ren Yingying’s wedding and advised him not to marry her again, while Qu Nian said he would help only if she chose to follow him willingly.
• Tang Zhuyun urged Ren Yingying to speak plainly with Qu Nian, but Ren Yingying said their relationship had no future and complained about his threats involving his concubines.
• Wu Zhenhai visited Wu Yu and was pleased that the boy was studying under Great Confucian Scholar Kong.
• Wu Zhenhai saw Mingzhu’s bruised eye and learned from the back-gate keeper that her match with Cui Run had fallen through.
• Wu Zhenhai saw Qu Nian following Ren Yingying and realized the heir was the man she had been arguing with.

After Mingzhu rejected Wu Zhenhai’s renewed pursuit and returned the money he had lent her, he began courting her publicly despite her continued refusal. A Northern Yi spy then offered Wu Zhenhai Mingzhu as a reward for helping them capture the border city, and Wu Zhenhai reported the offer to the Prince of Jin.

• Wu Zhenhai learned that Mingzhu had parted ways with Cui Run and visited her, while Qu Nian rebuked him for involving himself in the prince’s residence’s affairs.
• Mingzhu returned Wu Zhenhai’s money and told him she had no intention of marrying him or getting back together, but he insisted he would pursue her.
• Wu Zhenhai showered Mingzhu with gifts and made his pursuit public across the border city, though she remained cold toward him.
• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun that Wu Zhenhai was investigating spies and that she should stay out of his pursuit of Mingzhu.
• A Northern Yi spy offered Wu Zhenhai Mingzhu if he helped them capture the border city, and Wu Zhenhai pretended to agree before reporting the offer to the Prince of Jin.
• The Prince of Jin said Wu Zhenhai would not betray his country, prompting Tang Zhuyun to recall that the Xiao Family had once colluded with the Northern Yi.

Tang Zhuyun learned how the Prince of Jin had enlisted Wu Zhenhai to deceive Northern Yi spies while letting him approach Mingzhu. As the Prince of Jin cracked down on spies and prepared for war, Mingzhu and Wu Zhenhai grew closer, while Tang Zhuyun adjusted the emperor’s medicine and rejected Ren Yingying’s suggestion to kill him.

• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun that he had given Wu Zhenhai a chance to gain the Northern Yi spies’ trust, and Tang Zhuyun warned him not to let Mingzhu get hurt.
• Ren Yingying announced she planned to earn a bounty by helping catch spies, while Tang Zhuyun suspected the Prince of Jin was clearing out spies before leading troops against Northern Yi.
• Mingzhu brought peach blossom pastries and admitted she had stayed up cooking after Wu Zhenhai visited, talked until he fell asleep, and then helped finish the pastries before leaving.
• Tang Zhuyun sorted medicinal herbs to adjust the emperor’s prescription and told Ren Yingying she did not plan to use the medicine to harm him.

Wuxian’s first words delighted the household, while the Prince of Jin prepared for war and was summoned after Wu Guang accused Wu Zhenhai of spying for Northern Yi. Wu Zhenhai was detained when he could not explain where he had been, and Mingzhu told Tang Zhuyun that he had been with her that night.

• Wuxian said “chicken” twice after seeing a chick, and the household celebrated his first words.
• The Prince of Jin told Tang Zhuyun he planned to lead troops to war around the Dragon Boat Festival and gave her instructions for his absence.
• A trusted aide reported that Wu Guang had publicly accused Wu Zhenhai of being a spy and meeting a Northern Yi agent on the fifteenth.
• Wu Zhenhai could not explain his whereabouts because he had been with Mingzhu, so the Prince of Jin had him detained for the time being.
• Mingzhu told Tang Zhuyun that Wu Zhenhai had been with her that night.

Mingzhu found comfort in Tang Zhuyun’s assurance that the Prince of Jin’s family would stand by her, while Wu Zhenhai uncovered Wu Guang’s betrayal. As the Prince of Jin departed to fight the Northern Yi with fifty thousand soldiers, Tang Zhuyun hid her tears and prayed for his safe return.

• Tang Zhuyun reassured Mingzhu that the prince’s residence would support her, and Mingzhu said she no longer wanted a future with Wu Zhenhai but did not want him falsely accused.
• Wu Zhenhai uncovered evidence that Wu Guang had colluded with the enemy and exposed a veteran Northern Yi spy, then secretly saw that Mingzhu was feeling better.
• Ren Yingying asked Tang Zhuyun and Qu Nian for weapons to help the Prince of Jin, and Qu Nian agreed after confessing that Ren Yingying was what he cared for.
• On the Dragon Boat Festival, the Prince of Jin left with fifty thousand soldiers without waking Tang Zhuyun to say goodbye.
• Tang Zhuyun watched him leave, then wept and prayed that he would return safely.

The Prince of Jin visited his children before leaving for the troop assembly grounds, while Tang Zhuyun struggled with missing him. Later, Qu Hua arrived and slapped Qu Nian, and Ren Yingying was summoned to help him.

• The Prince of Jin tucked Yanran in, checked on Wuji and Wuxian, and gave a wet nurse a jade thumb ring for Guagua.
• The Prince of Jin donned his armor and rode to the troop assembly grounds with his guards.
• Tang Zhuyun fried dough sticks while Ren Yingying tried to cheer her up by talking about Qu Nian.
• Qu Hua arrived at the residence and slapped Qu Nian when she saw him.
• Jinjin asked Ren Yingying to help Qu Nian, and Ren Yingying went out to watch as Qu Nian caught Qu Hua's wrist when she tried to strike him again.

Qu Hua confronted Qu Nian for failing to visit her after she spent months trying to save him, then revealed that Mu Ziyu had asked their parents for her hand in marriage. After Qu Hua left the prince’s residence, an imperial decree summoned Tang Zhuyun to the capital.

• Qu Hua restrained by Qu Nian accused him of abandoning her after she had searched for a way to save him.
• Qu Hua told Qu Nian that Mu Ziyu, the Mu Family’s young master, wanted to marry her, and demanded that Qu Nian help her deal with him.
• Qu Nian brought Ren Yingying into the room to introduce her to Qu Hua, but the two women traded barbs and Ren Yingying tried to leave.
• Qu Hua left the prince’s residence two days later after Qu Nian paid her off.
• Tang Zhuyun heard that Qu Hua had left, then received an imperial decree summoning her to the capital.

Tang Zhuyun received a suspicious imperial edict summoning her to the capital and decided she could not go without investigating. Ren Yingying asked Qu Nian to help keep Tang Zhuyun away, but fled after he demanded she cook him a meal and kissed her.

• Tang Zhuyun and Xiu'er suspected the imperial summons was a trap, and Tang Zhuyun resolved to delay traveling to the capital.
• Ren Yingying, worried for Tang Zhuyun, visited Qu Nian with swollen lips after an allergic reaction to crab.
• Ren Yingying offered to help Qu Nian deal with Qu Hua in exchange for a plan to stop Tang Zhuyun from going to the capital.
• Qu Nian said he had a plan but refused to share it until Ren Yingying agreed to cook him a meal.
• Qu Nian kissed Ren Yingying, who stomped on his foot and ran away before remembering she had not learned his plan.

Qu Nian tried to advise Ren Yingying to tell Tang Zhuyun to stall before returning, but a misunderstanding made Ren Yingying attack him with a broom. Ren Yingying joined Tang Zhuyun and Mingzhu, who planned to claim Tang Zhuyun was pregnant, and Tang Zhuyun said she would rebel rather than go back if forced.

• Qu Nian told Ren Yingying to have Tang Zhuyun stall, but Ren Yingying mistook his words for an order to strip and chased him with a broom.
• Qu Nian clarified that he meant delaying Tang Zhuyun's return, and Ren Yingying thanked him while pretending she had only tried to brush off a bug.
• Ren Yingying overheard Mingzhu suggest that Tang Zhuyun claim to be pregnant to avoid returning, and Tang Zhuyun agreed it was a convenient excuse.
• Ren Yingying asked what Tang Zhuyun would do if the emperor insisted, and Tang Zhuyun said she would rebel rather than go back alone.
• Ren Yingying enthusiastically supported Tang Zhuyun, then redirected the conversation by asking whether Wu Zhenhai had stopped visiting Mingzhu.

Tang Zhuyun delayed the emperor’s summons while Cui Xiaoqiu’s letter revealed the emperor’s worsening health and the political motives behind calling her to the capital. The chapter left Tang Zhuyun aware that the summons was tied to the war against Northern Yi and the emperor’s fears about the Prince of Jin.

• Tang Zhuyun claimed she was pregnant and sent the eunuch back with her reply, while waiting for news from the capital.
• Yanran asked Cui Xiaoqiu for advice about the summons, and he showed her a letter from his grandfather.
• Yanran learned from the letter that Consort De suspected Tang Zhuyun’s medicine had been tampered with and that the emperor’s health had suddenly worsened.
• Tang Zhuyun and the others discussed Cui Xiaoqiu’s cleverness and his closeness with Yanran before he explained the letter’s implications.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told Tang Zhuyun that the emperor had summoned her because he could not risk disrupting the war against Northern Yi and feared the Prince of Jin would be hard to control.

Yanran and Cui Xiaoqiu shared a meal and talked about family expectations while Tang Zhuyun and the others resolved to resist the emperor’s attempt to take hostages. A young woman selling sanzi slipped Yanran a warning that a spy was following her, and Cui Xiaoqiu sent Cui Run to follow the couple who delivered it.

• Tang Zhuyun and the others concluded that the emperor had tacitly approved taking hostages and resolved not to return quietly.
• Yanran followed Cui Xiaoqiu out for food, and they discussed family schemes, expectations, and the burdens they had to bear.
• A young woman selling sanzi placed a message beneath the food warning Yanran that a spy was following her.
• A tall man arrived claiming to be the seller’s husband, and he left with her after taking the basket.
• Cui Xiaoqiu told Cui Run to have someone follow the couple.

Tang Zhuyun and her companions investigated spies in the border city, while Ren Yingying helped identify a couple who escaped the shadow guards. Wu Zhenhai later lured Mingzhu away from the others and begged her to help him with an urgent crisis.

• Cui Xiaoqiu told Yanran that the martial couple had fled, and Wu Zhenhai reported that the woman was Lady Yu while the man's name was Zhao Ertai.
• Ren Yingying drew portraits of the couple, and Wu Zhenhai's search uncovered more than a dozen spies but failed to find them.
• Tang Zhuyun prepared medicinal herbs for the soldiers at the front and refused to send medicine to the emperor.
• Wu Zhenhai tried to summon Mingzhu with silver melon seeds, then told her that Tang Zhuyun's heir had gone out with Dog Meat.
• Ren Yingying rushed off after Wu Zhenhai's warning, and Wu Zhenhai grabbed Mingzhu and pleaded for her help with a matter of life and death.