Recaps

In the forty-first year of Yongzhao, Zhao Huiluan persuaded the emperor to let her study at the Imperial College. As Zhang Yunchi wondered whether she had done it for Rong An, Zhao Huiluan thought about how the college would let her venture beyond the inner court.

• Zhang Yunchi questioned why the emperor had agreed to let Zhao Huiluan study at the Imperial College.
• Zhao Huiluan told Zhang Yunchi that she would not leave him behind wherever she went.
• Zhang Yunchi recalled the three conditions the emperor had set for Zhao Huiluan's studies.
• Zhang Yunchi asked whether Zhao Huiluan had enrolled because of Rong An, who had been transferred to the Imperial College as a vice director.
• Zhao Huiluan said Rong An had promised to teach her everything he knew, while she privately recognized the college as her only way out of the inner court.

Zhao Huiluan and Zhang Yunchi’s carriage broke down on the way to the Imperial College, so Wen Yan lent them his carriage and turned back toward Yan Capital instead of attending. At the Imperial College, Zhao Huiluan reunited with Shen Zhiyun and learned that Sister Yao had not arrived yet.

• Zhang Yunchi’s carriage wheel broke, leaving him and Zhao Huiluan stranded on the road.
• Wen Yan offered his carriage to Zhao Huiluan and Zhang Yunchi, then headed back to Yan Capital with his servant.
• Zhao Huiluan and Zhang Yunchi rode on in Wen Yan’s carriage and discussed his reputation as a wastrel who sometimes helped women at the Red Sleeve House.
• Zhang Yunchi brought Zhao Huiluan to the Imperial College, where Wen Nihe and the others welcomed her.
• Zhao Huiluan greeted Shen Zhiyun and explained that Wen Nihe’s brother had lent them his carriage.
• Shen Zhiyun told Zhao Huiluan that Sister Yao had not arrived and might have offered them a ride if they had been delayed.

Zhao Huiluan arrived at the Imperial College, where she met Shen Zhiyao and learned about her strained interactions with Wen Nihe and Wen Yan. After struggling to stay awake through Vice Director Rong An’s first lecture, she told him she was unaccustomed to the early mornings and unfamiliar bed.

• Shen Zhiyao arrived at the Imperial College in the Shen family's carriage and greeted Zhao Huiluan and the others.
• The registrar showed Zhao Huiluan to the student quarters, where she shared a room with Shen Zhiyun and asked about Shen Zhiyao.
• Wen Nihe threw Shen Zhiyao's belongings out of their room, so Shen Zhiyao calmly moved into the room next door.
• Zhao Huiluan struggled to wake for class and sat behind Zhang Yunchi in the Hall of Exalted Aspirations.
• Rong An called Zhao Huiluan to the front, then explained the Imperial College's rules while she fought sleep.
• Rong An asked Zhao Huiluan whether she had slept well, and she said the unfamiliar bed and early hour had kept her from sleeping comfortably.

At the Imperial College, Shen Zhiyao rebuffed Wen Nihe’s insults and rejected Wen Yan’s attention, while Zhao Huiluan and Shen Zhiyun later found Rong An helping Shen Zhiyao in the library. The chapter ended with Zhang Yunchi impressing the archery instructor by hitting the target three times in a row.

• Zhao Huiluan and Shen Zhiyun overheard Wen Nihe insulting Shen Zhiyao and her family, and Shen Zhiyao firmly defended herself and told Wen Nihe to keep Wen Yan away from her.
• Wen Yan apologized to Shen Zhiyao, then warned Wen Nihe to stop meddling in his affairs and threatened to send her home.
• Shen Zhiyun told Zhao Huiluan how Wen Yan had fallen for Shen Zhiyao after seeing her at the Lantern Festival and had used a jade pendant as an excuse to contact her.
• At the Hall of Exalted Literature, Zhao Huiluan and Shen Zhiyun saw Rong An prevent books from falling on Shen Zhiyao; Rong An then gave Zhao Huiluan books and agreed to answer her questions.
• During archery lessons, Zhang Yunchi hit the target with three arrows in a row, earning Assistant Instructor Ma’s praise and an invitation to help teach the other students.

Zhao Huiluan and Wen Yan shared food and secretly drank wine at the Imperial College. As they talked, Wen Yan explained how he first came to admire Shen Zhiyao.

• Zhao Huiluan watched Wen Yan bandage Shen Zhiyao’s blistered hand and teased Rong An about treating Shen differently from his other students.
• Zhao Huiluan learned that Wang He, Wen Hong’s adoptive son, had been appointed to oversee construction of a shrine at the Temple of the First Sage.
• Wen Yan brought Zhao Huiluan chicken from Between Water and Clouds, and they ate together in a quiet pavilion.
• When Zhao Huiluan remarked that wine would go well with the food, Wen Yan fetched a flask he had hidden at the Imperial College.
• Zhao Huiluan asked Wen Yan whether he loved Shen Zhiyao, and Wen Yan recalled admiring her calmness when they first met at a temple gate.

Zhao Huiluan helped Wen Yan pursue Shen Zhiyao by advising him to win the class prefect election, and Wen Yan was elected. Shen Zhiyun worried that Shen Zhiyao’s feelings for him were complicated by his ties to the Wen family.

• Wen Yan confessed his feelings for Shen Zhiyao, and Zhao Huiluan offered to help him court her.
• Zhao Huiluan advised Wen Yan to become class prefect to gain opportunities to spend time with Shen Zhiyao.
• Zhao Huiluan got drunk with Wen Yan, and Rong An punished her with ten extra sheets of calligraphy.
• Wen Yan apologized to Zhao Huiluan for avoiding her, and she accused him of protecting his reputation before Rong An arrived.
• Zhao Huiluan suggested that Shen Zhiyun consider whether Shen Zhiyao liked Wen Yan, and Shen Zhiyun voted for him in the class prefect selection.
• Wen Yan was elected class prefect, and Shen Zhiyun worried that Shen Zhiyao’s coldness toward him came from his family ties.

Wen Yan spoke with Shen Zhiyao about ambition, while Zhao Huiluan brought Shen Zhiyun to a lecture on the stars. Hearing Vice Director Tao recount a prophecy about a southern general star, Zhao Huiluan remembered how Yun Fengge had saved her in her previous life and wondered why he had married her.

• Wen Yan crumpled his unfinished essay and asked Shen Zhiyao whether she would look down on him for lacking ambition, and she accepted his wish for a carefree life.
• Zhao Huiluan took Shen Zhiyun to find Zhang Yunchi, who was despondent after missing the target with all three arrows in the archery examination.
• Zhao Huiluan and Shen Zhiyun heard students discuss Vice Director Tao's prophecies about the southern general star and the danger to Marquis Jingwu and his son.
• Zhao Huiluan attended Tao Xuanzhi's lecture on the stars with Shen Zhiyun and Zhang Yunchi, and a student asked whether the southern general star was Yunsong, Yun Fengge.
• Tao Xuanzhi smiled without confirming the general's identity, and Zhao Huiluan remembered how Yun Fengge had rescued and protected her in her previous life before wondering why he had married her.

At the Imperial College, Shen Zhiyao and Shen Zhiyun defended women’s right to pursue official careers, while Zhao Huiluan stopped the quarrel and questioned Registrar Tao Xuanzhi about her father and Tao’s past. Zhao’s questions revealed that Tao’s family had died during the Oirat invasion of Hequ, and she left him after expressing sympathy.

• Shen Zhiyao challenged the students who opposed women taking the imperial examinations, and Shen Zhiyun offered to compete with them.
• Shen Zhiyun argued that women deserved choices beyond the inner quarters, and Shen Zhiyao supported her as the students protested.
• Zhao Huiluan rebuked the students for criticizing her, and Rong An signaled the registrar to let the discussion pass as a conversation about storybooks.
• After class, Tao Xuanzhi accepted Zhang Yunchi’s respectful bow, then answered Zhao Huiluan’s questions about the emperor’s health and his own family.
• Zhao Huiluan learned that Tao Xuanzhi’s relatives had died during the Oirat invasion of Hequ and expressed sympathy; Zhang Yunchi questioned whether Tao would risk his position for the dead.

Zhao Huiluan helped Wen Yan arrange a meeting with Shen Zhiyao, then caught Rong An watching her at the Imperial College. Fireworks frightened her just as Rong An began to tell her something, leaving him concerned about her.

• Zhao Huiluan agreed to arrange a meeting between Wen Yan and Shen Zhiyao in exchange for food and wine.
• Zhao Huiluan told Shen Zhiyao that Vice Director Rong was waiting for her in the pavilion, and Shen Zhiyao went to meet Wen Yan there.
• Zhao Huiluan crept closer to watch Wen Yan and Shen Zhiyao, but Rong An caught her and questioned what she was doing.
• Zhao Huiluan told Rong An she would act as Wen Yan's matchmaker if he wanted to marry Shen Zhiyao, but fireworks drowned out her words.
• Rong An began speaking to Zhao Huiluan, who suddenly admitted that she was scared.

Zhao Huiluan overcame her fear of fireworks and persuaded Rong An to ally with her to protect her future and help the crown prince ascend the throne. After sealing their agreement, she pressed Rong An about whether he and Shen Zhiyao had known each other before, but he asked her to state her own suspicions first.

• Rong An led Zhao Huiluan into Chongwen Pavilion to shield her from the fireworks, and she told him why she hated them.
• Zhao Huiluan offered to help Rong An enter the Grand Secretariat if he joined her, and she asked him to help the crown prince ascend the throne smoothly.
• Rong An questioned Zhao Huiluan's intent, and she explained that she wanted to preserve her status and wealth before circumstances changed.
• Rong An accepted Zhao Huiluan's offer, and they sealed their alliance with a handshake.
• Zhao Huiluan teased Rong An and asked whether he and Shen Zhiyao had known each other before, but Rong An asked her to share her thoughts first.

Zhao Huiluan deduced that Shen Zhiyao was actually Xie Zhiyao, the rescued daughter of the imprisoned Censor Xie, and learned how Rong An had protected her. After Zhao Huiluan declared her willingness to help Xie Zhiyao, Rong An revealed that he had refused his teacher’s plan to betroth Xie Zhiyao to him, leaving Zhao Huiluan shocked and then annoyed.

• Zhao Huiluan tricked Rong An into reacting to Xie Shangxiu’s name, then explained how she had identified Shen Zhiyao as Xie Zhiyao.
• Zhao Huiluan recounted how Rong An had arranged for Xie Zhiyao to be rescued and entrusted to Great Scholar Shen Linfu.
• Zhao Huiluan explained that Rong An’s concern for Xie Zhiyao and her complicated feelings toward Wen Yan had raised her suspicions.
• Zhao Huiluan promised to help Xie Zhiyao and told Rong An that their alliance required mutual trust.
• Rong An revealed that his teacher had proposed betrothing Xie Zhiyao to him, but he had refused.
• Rong An left Chongwen Pavilion to escort Zhao Huiluan back, while she followed him in shock and annoyance.

After returning safely to the dormitory, Zhao Huiluan reassured Zhang Yunchi and later joined him, Rong An, Wen Yan, and the Shen sisters for a feast at Between Water and Clouds. Their attempt to disguise themselves as young men failed at Red Sleeve House, where the madam explained that their eyes and mannerisms gave them away.

• Rong An stopped Zhao Huiluan near the dormitory and asked whether she had truly visited her honored teacher in the Imperial Prison.
• Shen Zhiyun reunited with Zhao Huiluan, and they learned Zhang Yunchi was still searching for her before turning back to find him.
• Zhang Yunchi rushed to Zhao Huiluan, checked that she was unharmed, and left in a huff when she teased him with promises of food and wine.
• Five days later, Zhao Huiluan and Zhang Yunchi joined Rong An, Wen Yan, Shen Zhiyun, and Shen Zhiyao for a feast at Between Water and Clouds.
• At Red Sleeve House, the madam saw through the three girls' disguises and told them their eyes and mannerisms made them look like women.

Wen Nihe ordered the Red Sleeve House madam to send Shen Zhiyao south, claiming her grandfather would protect them. After Shen Zhiyao disappeared, Zhao Huiluan arranged a discreet official search and gave Zhang Yunchi her late mother's pendant as a cover story.

• Wen Nihe threatened the Red Sleeve House madam into carrying out her grandfather's order to send Shen Zhiyao south.
• Zhao Huiluan and her companions visited the Red Sleeve House, where she spoke openly about its auction of new girls.
• Zhao Huiluan told Zhang Yunchi she wanted to go south, but the next day he informed her that Shen Zhiyao had vanished during a temple fair.
• Zhao Huiluan instructed Zhang Yunchi to tell the prefect of Shuntian that she had lost an important object so officials could search for Shen Zhiyao without drawing attention to the Shen family.
• Zhao Huiluan gave Zhang Yunchi her late mother's pendant and asked him to return it intact once Shen Zhiyao was found.

Shen Zhiyao woke in a warehouse among kidnapped girls and learned that their captors were forcing them to take medicine to produce menstrual blood. When soldiers blocked the ferry crossing, the traffickers took the girls to a ruined temple instead.

• Shen Zhiyao heard her captors order medicine forced down the girls’ throats and learned it was meant to bring on their periods.
• Shen Zhiyao saw a dozen frightened girls in the warehouse and asked whether they had been hurt.
• A bearded trafficker recognized Shen Zhiyao, shoved her, and warned his underling to make sure his mother was cared for if he went to prison.
• The traffickers tied the girls together and hurried them toward a boat, but a guard reported that soldiers had filled the ferry crossing.
• Shen Zhiyao suspected Princess Zhenning had sent help, and the traffickers drove the girls to a ruined temple as a storm broke.

Zhao Huiluan learned that the missing girls case had reached court officials and went to Tianji Hall to take her leave of the Yongzhao Emperor. There, she encountered the newly promoted Daoist Xuanyi, whose arrival stirred a faint unease in her.

• Zhao Huiluan ordered people to search for the burly criminal’s parents after receiving his pendant from Zhang Yunchi.
• Officials traced the abductors’ superiors, but the Shuntian Prefecture magistrate and Court of Judicial Review minister halted the investigation; Rong An and others continued it.
• Zhao Huiluan learned that the criminal’s parents had been killed and that someone was sending him their fingers to keep him silent.
• Wen Yan confronted Wen Hong and insisted he would marry Shen Zhiyao, refusing Wang Wenhua’s attempt to intervene.
• Zhao Huiluan went to Tianji Hall as the holiday ended and learned that Daoist Xuanyi had recently been promoted for presenting pills.
• Daoist Xuanyi recognized Zhao Huiluan as Princess Zhenning and bowed to her.

Zhao Huiluan recognized Daoist Xuanyi and realized the missing-girls case was connected to the source of the pills made from virgin girls’ menstrual blood. She warned Rong An to stop investigating, while Wen Yan remained on hunger strike over his refusal to marry anyone but Shen Zhiyao.

• Zhao Huiluan remembered seeing Daoist Xuanyi give pills made from virgin girls’ menstrual blood to the Yongzhao Emperor and became sick with disgust.
• Zhao Huiluan connected the pills’ ingredients to the missing girls and concluded that a powerful noble person was protecting the trafficking and bribery.
• Zhao Huiluan hurried to the Imperial College and warned Rong An to stop investigating because he and the innocent women involved would suffer if he continued.
• Rong An realized the danger behind the case, and Zhao Huiluan returned to her dull studies as the Wen and Shen siblings stayed away.
• Wen Yan continued his hunger strike rather than marry anyone but Shen Zhiyao, and he could no longer keep food down.

Zhao Huiluan visited Shen Zhiyao to warn her to stop investigating Wen Hong and to tell her that Wen Hong wanted her to marry Wen Qingyu. Shen Zhiyao agreed to the marriage, despite Zhao Huiluan and Shen Zhiyun urging her to reconsider.

• Shen Zhiyun confronted Zhao Huiluan about keeping Shen Zhiyao’s identity and their dangerous plans from her.
• Zhao Huiluan asked Shen Zhiyao whether she wanted to be called Shen Zhiyao or Xie Zhiyao, and Shen Zhiyao asked her to keep using Shen Zhiyao.
• Zhao Huiluan told Shen Zhiyao to stop investigating the case because Wen Hong’s influence made it too dangerous to act without being able to defeat him decisively.
• Zhao Huiluan explained that Wen Hong had asked her to visit so Shen Zhiyao would save Wen Qingyu, who was lovesick.
• Shen Zhiyao agreed to marry Wen Qingyu, but Shen Zhiyun and Zhao Huiluan urged her not to risk her life or act out of hatred.

Zhao Huiluan helped Shen Zhiyao agree to marry Wen Yan and warned Shen Zhiyun that Wen Hong would investigate her identity. The Wen household began the formal wedding arrangements, while the Yongzhao Emperor learned that Princess Zhenning had brought the couple together and complained that Rong An was letting her neglect her studies.

• Shen Zhiyao agreed to marry Wen Yan, and Zhao Huiluan told Shen Zhiyun to make her family background more convincing before Wen Hong investigated it.
• Zhao Huiluan sent Wen Yan's attendant back to the Wen household with Shen Zhiyao's jade pendant, and the family rejoiced when Wen Yan stirred.
• Wen Hong ordered a physician to treat Wen Yan, then told his steward to arrange the marriage and investigate everything thoroughly.
• The Wen and Shen households completed the customary betrothal steps before the fifth month, and Yan Capital anticipated their wedding.
• The Yongzhao Emperor mistook the bride for Shen Zhiyun, then learned it was Shen Zhiyao and heard that Princess Zhenning had brought the couple together.
• The Yongzhao Emperor praised Wen Yan's devotion and scolded Rong An for letting Princess Zhenning neglect her studies.

Wen Yan recovered and told Wen Hong he wanted to enter officialdom, while Wen Nihe objected to his marriage to Shen Zhiyao and resisted her own marriage prospects. On Wen Yan and Shen Zhiyao’s wedding day, he came to fetch her, but Shen Zhiyun blocked the way and demanded a poem before the bride could leave.

• Wen Yan thanked Wen Nihe for nursing him and apologized to Wen Hong for worrying him.
• Wen Yan said he wanted to help support the Wen family, and Wen Hong promised to send him south for practical service after the Mid-Autumn Festival.
• Wen Nihe complained that Wen Yan was marrying Shen Zhiyao, and Wen Hong told her he would seek a suitable match for her as well.
• Zhao Huiluan brought Shen Zhiyao a bridal gift at the Shen residence while the wedding preparations continued.
• Wen Yan arrived in person to fetch Shen Zhiyao, and Shen Zhiyun stopped him at the door and asked him to compose a poem to hurry the bride.

More than a month after marrying Shen Zhiyao, Wen Yan visited Zhao Huiluan at the Imperial College and admitted that his bride remained distant. The chapter left him seeking advice while Zhao Huiluan continued copying books.

• Wen Yan impressed Shen Zhiyun and the wedding guests by composing bridal-makeup poems, then married Shen Zhiyao.
• At the wedding banquet, Zhao Huiluan asked Rong An about Wen Yan, and Rong An called him a fine piece of jade.
• Wen Nihe watched Rong An leave, then confronted Wen Yan for agreeing to sleep in the study on his wedding night while Shen Zhiyao mourned her parents.
• At the end of the seventh month, Zhao Huiluan copied books at the Imperial College when Wen Yan came to visit.
• Wen Yan told Zhao Huiluan that Shen Zhiyao remained distant and had barely spoken to him in the month since their marriage.

Wen Yan confided his worries about Shen Zhiyao to Zhao Huiluan and revealed that he planned to pursue practical service. Inspired by his plans, Zhao Huiluan decided to seek practical service herself, and Rong An later praised her studies to the Yongzhao Emperor.

• Zhao Huiluan reminded Wen Yan that the Shen family had rejected his marriage proposal three times while he was unconscious, then advised him to speak with Shen Zhiyao before leaving for practical service.
• Wen Yan explained that he planned to serve in a southern government office so he could shoulder his family responsibilities and provide Shen Zhiyao with support.
• Zhao Huiluan told Rong An she wanted practical service to learn about life and government, and she planned to use Grand Secretary Wen's arrangements for Wen Yan to her advantage.
• Rong An asked what Zhao Huiluan needed him to tell the Yongzhao Emperor, and she whispered her request to him before teasing him about his red ears.
• On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Rong An reported Zhao Huiluan's studies to the Yongzhao Emperor, who doubted his praise but heard that she excelled in most subjects.

Rong An showed the Yongzhao Emperor an essay written by Princess Zhenning, whose progress unsettled the emperor even as he praised her. Later, Zhao Huiluan reunited with the little crown prince and waited with him for their father, who found them playing beneath an osmanthus tree.

• Rong An presented Princess Zhenning’s essay to the Yongzhao Emperor and confirmed she had written it herself.
• The Yongzhao Emperor praised Zhenning’s progress and promised rewards for Rong An and the Imperial College staff.
• Rong An met Zhao Huiluan and the little crown prince, who greeted his former teacher before chasing after his elder sister.
• Zhao Huiluan waited with the little crown prince beneath an orange osmanthus tree, where they played rock-paper-scissors.
• The Yongzhao Emperor watched the siblings play, then scolded Zhao Huiluan for bullying her brother as the little crown prince defended her.

The Yongzhao Emperor decided Zhao Huiluan would leave the Imperial College after Mid-Autumn, and she persuaded him to send her out for practical experience. After rejecting Annan as too dangerous, he considered letting her accompany Wen Yan to Jiangnan.

• The Yongzhao Emperor told Zhao Huiluan she would not return to the Imperial College after Mid-Autumn, citing her truancy and meddling in Wen Qingyu's affairs.
• Zhao Huiluan convinced the Yongzhao Emperor not to dismiss all the female students, then proposed leaving the college under the pretext of practical experience.
• Zhao Huiluan said she wanted to go to Annan after hearing of its young general, but the Yongzhao Emperor and the little crown prince warned her that it was unsafe.
• The little crown prince begged the Yongzhao Emperor to choose somewhere safer, and Zhao Huiluan argued that he would not let her travel anywhere alone.
• The Yongzhao Emperor remembered that Wen Yan was going to Jiangnan for practical experience and considered sending Zhao Huiluan with him.

Zhao Huiluan prepared to travel south with Wen Yan, while the Mid-Autumn Festival brought Zhao Jin'ang to comfort her and left Wen Yan longing for Shen Zhiyao. As Wen Yan departed the capital to gain experience, Shen Zhiyao agreed he could fetch her when he returned, and Zhao Huiluan set out with her attendants.

• Zhao Huiluan persuaded the Yongzhao Emperor to let her travel to Jiangnan for fun rather than take an official post, and Zhao Jin'ang lamented that she would be away.
• During the Mid-Autumn fireworks, Zhao Jin'ang held Zhao Huiluan's hand to comfort her, while Rong An and Wen Yan watched the fireworks alone and thought of her and Shen Zhiyao.
• Wen Yan visited Shen Zhiyao after Wen Nihe left her courtyard, and Shen Zhiyao finally came out to speak with him after he said he was leaving the capital.
• Wen Yan draped his outer robe over Shen Zhiyao and promised to fetch her from the Shen residence when he returned; she agreed.
• On the seventeenth day of the eighth month, Zhao Huiluan left the Yan Capital with Nianxia and Fudong, while Zhang Yanli and Zhang Yunchi saw her off and urged her to take more attendants.

Wang He escorted Wen Yan and Zhao Huiluan south after Wen Hong instructed him to prioritize the princess’s enjoyment over official business. Half a month later, they reached Jiangnan, where Zhao Huiluan left the carriage to admire the scenery as Wang He accompanied her on foot.

• Wen Hong told Wang He to keep Zhao Huiluan safe and ensure she enjoyed her stay in Jiangnan, while Wen Yan traveled with him to gain experience.
• Zhao Huiluan and Zhang Yunchi said farewell to Wen Yan, and Shen Zhiyun arrived to see Zhao Huiluan off.
• Shen Zhiyao emerged from the Shen Family carriage, and Wen Yan ran toward his wife.
• Rong An left the carriage beneath the city wall after his sword-carrying attendant called for him.
• After half a month on the road, Zhao Huiluan insisted on walking, so Wang He arranged for guards to accompany them near the city.
• Zhao Huiluan admired the river and autumn scenery as someone asked Wang He whether he was from Jiangnan.