Recaps

Bai Mo and Shen Qing each faced decisions tied to their intended marriage as they prepared for Princess Ping'an’s flower-viewing poetry gathering. At the gathering, Bai Mo caught the attention of the princesses and formed an immediate rapport with the fifth princess, Feng Zijin.

• Bai Mo told Lichun to accept anything Young Master Yunwu returned and say that his debt was fully repaid, while Lichun and Xiaohan gossiped about him.
• Shen Qing accepted Princess Ping'an’s invitation, planning to gently reject her, and worried that he could not marry Bai Mo before his father interfered.
• Bai Yuanshuang brought Bai Mo to the gathering, hoping Princess Ping'an would help her separate Bai Mo from Young Master Qingya.
• The guests and princesses mistook Bai Mo for a beautiful young man when she entered, and Feng Zijin praised her appearance and pulled her to sit beside her.
• Feng Zijin defended women’s beauty by citing Prince Lanfeng, and Bai Mo reassured her that she had not taken offense.

Bai Mo attended Princess Ping'an’s flower gathering, where the Third Princess provoked her into joining a poetry competition. Bai Mo wrote a poem about peach blossoms, wine, and rejecting wealth, turning the gathering’s attention toward her talent.

• Bai Mo sat with the Fifth Princess, who warned her that the Third Princess seemed hostile toward her.
• Bai Mo told the Fifth Princess that the Third Princess and Princess Ping'an were love rivals for Young Master Qingya, and the Fifth Princess said she liked him too.
• Princess Ping'an announced a flower-themed poetry competition with valuable prizes for the winners.
• When Bai Mo tried to leave, the Third Princess mocked her for taking the academy examination, and the Fifth Princess urged her to write a winning poem.
• Bai Mo accepted the challenge and composed a poem about living among peach blossoms and wine rather than chasing wealth and status.

Bai Mo’s poem, “Peach Blossom Immortal,” dazzled two renowned scholars and changed the gathering’s view of her, though the third princess questioned whether she had written it herself. Bai Mo explained that peach blossom cake and wine had inspired her, leaving the scholars poised to judge her talent for themselves.

• Bai Mo finished writing “Peach Blossom Immortal” and handed her poem in at Princess Ping’an’s gathering.
• Great Scholar Chen and Great Master Xiao praised the poem and asked Bai Mo to come forward as its author.
• Great Master Xiao recited the poem to the assembled guests, who praised its carefree spirit while Bai Yuanshuang criticized it.
• Shen Qing arrived with the young masters, and he and Bai Mo exchanged smiles when they saw each other.
• The third princess suggested Bai Mo might have had someone else write the poem, so Great Master Xiao asked Bai Mo what inspired it.
• Bai Mo said that Fifth Highness had shared peach blossom cake and peach blossom wine with her, inspiring the poem.

Bai Mo impressed Headmaster Xiao with a second poem, and Headmaster Xiao invited her to become her personal disciple at Xiaoshan Academy. Great Scholar Chen announced the poetry gathering’s winners, with Bai Mo and Shen Qing taking first place in their respective contests.

• Headmaster Xiao asked Bai Mo to compose another poem, and Bai Mo wrote lines urging people to cherish their youth and seize the moment.
• Headmaster Xiao praised Bai Mo’s poem and concluded that she was a gifted poet, while Shen Qing was deeply moved by her words.
• Xiao Muzhi recognized Bai Mo as the woman who had helped him before, and his companions teased him about marrying her.
• Headmaster Xiao learned Bai Mo studied at home, then offered to teach her personally at Xiaoshan Academy; Bai Mo accepted after Shen Qing nodded.
• Headmaster Xiao kept Bai Mo’s poems and left the gathering, and Great Scholar Chen announced Bai Mo and Shen Qing as first-place winners.
• The organizers presented prizes to the winning ladies and gentlemen as Princess Ping'an watched Shen Qing intently.

After winning treasures at Princess Ping'an's poetry gathering, Bai Mo befriended Xiao Yiliu and met her brother Xiao Muzhi. When Princess Ping'an lured Shen Qing away, Bai Mo followed and discovered she had been trapped instead, so she escaped the locked room through the roof as people approached.

• Bai Mo and Shen Qing admired their matching luminous pearls after the poetry gathering ended.
• Bai Mo met Xiao Yiliu, learned she was Great Master Xiao's granddaughter and a student at Xiaoshan Academy, and spoke with her about studying.
• Xiao Muzhi joined them, and Bai Mo recognized him as the young master she had helped during the staged carriage accident involving Bai Yuanshuang.
• Bai Mo saw a maid lead Shen Qing away and followed, but lost sight of him and found a man dressed to resemble him entering a room.
• Bai Mo entered the room, realized she had been lured into a trap, knocked out the disguised man, and found the exits locked.
• Bai Mo used vines to escape through the roof and hid in the courtyard rockery as a crowd approached.

Bai Mo hid with Yun Wu and Shen Qing in a rockery while the third princess accused her of having an illicit affair with her attendant lord. When the princess confronted the man pretending to be Shen Qing, he claimed that he and Bai Mo were in love, leaving the crowd convinced she was guilty as Xiao Yiliu stepped forward.

• Bai Mo found Yun Wu helping an ill Shen Qing hide in the rockery and treated Shen Qing while Yun Wu warned her that people were searching nearby.
• The third princess accused Bai Mo of seducing her attendant lord, while the fifth princess and Xiao Yiliu doubted the accusation and Xiao Muzhi left to find a way to help.
• Bai Mo overheard the accusations and stayed focused on Shen Qing as he recovered.
• The third princess entered the room with a crowd, and Shen Qing woke beside Bai Mo and asked her not to misunderstand his visit to the princess's courtyard.
• The man pretending to be Shen Qing claimed that he and Bai Mo were in love, and Xiao Yiliu entered the room after the crowd reacted in shock.

Bai Mo escaped the third princess's search and returned to the garden, where Xiao Muzhi helped her establish an alibi. When the princess confronted her, Xiao Muzhi testified that Bai Mo had been with him the whole time.

• Bai Mo told Yun Wu to protect Shen Qing, gave Shen Qing medicine, and climbed the rockery to escape the search.
• Bai Mo crossed the rooftops back to the garden, where Xiao Muzhi found her and offered to claim they had been together.
• Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi reached the lakeside pavilion just before the third princess and her search party arrived.
• The attendant accused Bai Mo of an affair, but Bai Mo denied knowing him and the fifth princess demanded evidence.
• Xiao Muzhi testified that Bai Mo had never left the pavilion, making the crowd doubt the attendant's accusation.

Bai Mo thwarted the Third Princess’s attempt to frame her, but Princess Ping'an fueled rumors about her and Xiao Muzhi. Meanwhile, Yun Wu helped Shen Qing escape danger, and Shen Qing questioned him about his connection to Bai Mo as they left the princess’s residence.

• Bai Mo exposed signs that the Third Princess’s attendant had been drugged, and the Third and Fourth Princesses ended the accusation and took him away.
• Princess Ping'an apologized to Bai Mo, then implied she and Xiao Muzhi were a perfect match, prompting Xiao Yiliu to defend her brother.
• Bai Mo left the banquet worried about Shen Qing and regretted being unable to leave sooner.
• Yun Wu helped the unwell Shen Qing to his carriage, and Shen Qing invited him along because returning alone might be dangerous.
• Shen Qing asked Yun Wu about Bai Mo and the day’s events, and Yun Wu explained that he had come to return an item Bai Mo had once given him.

Yun Wu explained how he rescued Shen Qing and learned Bai Mo had been framed, while Shen Qing reassured him of his love for Bai Mo and invited him to stay at the Grand Preceptor's residence. After taking medicine and falling asleep, Shen Qing left Bai Mo worried, and she confronted Bai Yuanshuang as she harassed Xiao Muzhi outside the princess's residence.

• Yun Wu told Shen Qing that he had taken him to a physician and hidden him in the rockery after suspecting trouble, and he explained that Bai Mo had been accused of an affair with the Third Princess's consort.
• Shen Qing told Yun Wu that he trusted Bai Mo and that they loved each other, leaving Yun Wu to hide his own heartbreak and wish them happiness.
• Shen Qing invited Yun Wu to stay at the Grand Preceptor's residence, where Jiang You arranged a room for him after Shen Qing faltered from exhaustion.
• Shen Qing drank the contents of a medicine bottle and fell into a deep sleep.
• Bai Mo left the princess's residence and found Bai Yuanshuang blocking Xiao Muzhi's carriage and insulting her.
• Bai Mo confronted Bai Yuanshuang and asked why she was blocking Young Master Xiao's way.

Bai Mo silenced Bai Yuanshuang after she publicly spread rumors about her marriage to Shen Qing, but gossip about Bai Mo’s romantic life spread through the Capital the next day. Shen Qing offered Yun Wu a peaceful home as a guest, and Bai Peilan arrived to have lunch with Bai Mo.

• Bai Mo slapped and kicked Bai Yuanshuang for exposing her private intentions, then left with Lichun while Xiao Muzhi departed in his carriage.
• Rumors spread through the Capital praising Bai Mo’s talent while accusing her of several illicit romances, including a secret pledge to Young Master Qingya.
• After bathing and seeing how clean he looked, Shen Qing invited Yun Wu to share a meal and encouraged him to stay at the residence as a guest rather than a servant.
• Yun Wu accepted Shen Qing’s offer and promised to live there as a guest.
• Bai Peilan arrived as Bai Mo was preparing for lunch, and Lichun arranged another place at the table for her.

Bai Mo heard the Capital’s rumors about her supposed romances, then learned she had placed first in her examination. The chapter ended with messengers congratulating her and Bai Peilan celebrating her daughter’s achievement.

• Bai Peilan told Bai Mo about rumors praising her literary talent and inventing several romantic entanglements, and Bai Mo denied most of them.
• Bai Peilan praised Bai Mo’s poem and said she expected her to pass the examination.
• Lichun pushed through the crowd to hear the results and learned that Bai Mo had ranked first.
• Bai Peilan hurried home after receiving news of the result, while a messenger arrived to deliver the formal announcement.
• Bai Mo met the messenger at the gate, accepted congratulations as First-Ranked Bai, and thanked the messengers.

Bai Mo placed first in the examination, while rumors spread that she and Shen Qing had pledged themselves to each other. Shen Qing told Shen Jingwen that the rumors were true and revealed his slow-acting poison, but she refused to send him to the family temple and declared the Bai family unworthy of him.

• Bai Peilan celebrated Bai Mo's first-place examination result and rewarded the household servants with two months' wages.
• Xiaotian told Shen Qing that Bai Mo had placed first and that rumors claimed she and Shen Qing were privately pledged to each other.
• Shen Qing went to Shen Jingwen's courtyard and confirmed the rumors while asking her to hear his explanation.
• Shen Qing revealed that he had consumed a slow-acting poison and feared he would not live past nineteen.
• Shen Qing explained that he and Bai Mo had been set up at the Third Princess's residence, then asked to be sent to the family temple.
• Shen Jingwen refused to send Shen Qing to the family temple and said the Bai family was not worthy of him.

Shen Jingwen ordered an investigation into Shen Qing’s alleged poisoning and his son-in-law’s conduct while trying to contain damaging rumors. Meanwhile, Bai Jingyao welcomed Elder Xiao to his residence, where she learned that Bai Mo had placed first in the xiucai examination and asked how she had studied.

• Shen Qing told Shen Jingwen he wished to remain unmarried and fulfill his filial duty, and she promised to investigate the rumors and summon an imperial physician.
• After Shen Qing left, Shen Jingwen ordered Mama Sun to investigate his alleged poisoning and his son-in-law, and to stop the rumors from spreading.
• Bai Jingyao brought lavish gifts to Bai Peilan’s residence after learning Bai Mo had placed first in the xiucai examination, then took Bai Mo home to meet Elder Xiao.
• Bai Jingyao reunited with Tang Xin, praised Bai Mo’s examination result, and arranged a dinner featuring dishes from Ru'an Commandery for Elder Xiao.
• Elder Xiao praised Bai Mo’s reputation, learned she had studied seriously for only a little over a month, and asked how she had prepared for the examination.
• Bai Mo told Elder Xiao that she could remember anything after looking at it once.

Bai Mo met Elder Xiao, who praised her talent and agreed to help arrange her marriage to Shen Jingwen’s family. The next day, Shen Jingwen learned that Yuan-shi had poisoned Shen Qing, and an imperial physician began examining him.

• Elder Xiao praised Bai Mo’s talent, agreed to speak with Shen Jingwen about the marriage proposal, and mentioned her grandson Xiao Muzhi as a worthy match.
• Bai Jingyao received an auspicious date for the proposal, and Elder Xiao agreed to visit the Grand Preceptor’s Residence with them the day after tomorrow.
• Nanny He and Mama Sun reported their findings to Shen Jingwen, who learned that Yuan-shi had used the Ghost Physician’s Ten-Year Powder on Shen Qing.
• Shen Jingwen sent an imperial physician to give Shen Qing a routine examination at the Pure Elegance Courtyard.
• The imperial physician examined Shen Qing’s pulse, and his expression grew increasingly grim as Yun Wu asked whether something was wrong.

Shen Qing’s examination led the physician to declare that he was poisoned, gravely ill, and unlikely to have children, leaving him devastated. Meanwhile, Bai Mo helped prepare betrothal gifts for Shen Qing and gave Bai Jingyao a pair of diamond rings to take to her aunt.

• The young physician examined Shen Qing and said a strange poison had ruined his health and left him unlikely to have children.
• Nanny He asked the physician not to disclose what he had learned and escorted him out to report to the head of the household.
• Yun Wu comforted Shen Qing and helped him back to his room, where Shen Qing feared he could not give his beloved a child or continue her family line.
• At the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State, Bai Jingyao and Bai Mo checked the betrothal gifts being prepared for Shen Qing.
• Bai Mo showed Bai Jingyao her diamond rings, then gave him another pair for him to present to her aunt.

Bai Mo sensed Shen Qing’s distress and rushed to the Grand Preceptor’s Residence, where he rejected her and called off her family’s planned proposal. The chapter ended with Bai Mo confronting him over the effort her family had put into the match, and Shen Qing coldly asking what it had to do with him.

• Bai Mo felt Shen Qing’s emotional distress while explaining the meaning of a ring to Bai Jingyao, then hurried to the Grand Preceptor’s Residence.
• Bai Mo entered Shen Qing’s room through a rear window, and Yun Wu quietly let her in.
• Bai Mo examined Shen Qing and found that his body was recovering, but Shen Qing pulled away and accused her of improper behavior.
• Shen Qing told Bai Mo he had mistaken gratitude for love and would not accept her family’s proposal, saying he wanted to marry into the imperial family.
• Bai Mo confronted Shen Qing about her family’s preparations for the proposal, and he replied, “What does it have to do with me?”

Bai Mo confronted Shen Qing after he rejected her marriage proposal, then drowned her sorrow in wine with Xiao Yiliu and Xiao Muzhi. Drunk on the way home, she mistook Xiao Muzhi for Shen Qing and kissed him.

• Shen Qing rejected Bai Mo, citing his grudge and threatening to repay her with his life if she used the imperial iron decree to force the marriage.
• Bai Mo left the Grand Preceptor's Residence in distress and encountered Xiao Yiliu, who invited her to drink with her and Xiao Muzhi.
• Bai Mo told the Xiao siblings that Shen Qing had rejected her and explained that she had planned to devote herself to him.
• Bai Mo drank until she was drunk, and the Xiao siblings escorted her back to the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State.
• During the carriage ride, Bai Mo mistook Xiao Muzhi for Shen Qing, pleaded with him not to break up, and kissed him.

Bai Mo drunkenly kissed Xiao Muzhi in the carriage, and their families discovered them together at the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State. After hearing that the Shen family had rejected Bai Mo, Xiao Muzhi declared that he was willing to marry her if she agreed.

• Bai Mo kissed Xiao Muzhi in the carriage while calling him Qing'er, and Xiao Muzhi's sister Xiao Yiliu tried to stop her.
• The carriage arrived at the residence, where Bai Jingyao, Bai Peilan, Tang Xin, Elder Xiao, and others saw Bai Mo clinging to Xiao Muzhi.
• Xiao Yiliu helped the drunken Bai Mo away, and everyone gathered in the main hall as Elder Xiao demanded an explanation.
• Xiao Yiliu explained that the Shen family's young master had refused to marry Bai Mo, leaving her upset and guilty.
• Bai Jingyao asked how the family should handle Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi's public intimacy, and Xiao Muzhi said he would marry Bai Mo if she was willing.

After Bai Mo’s drunken kiss with Xiao Muzhi, the Bai and Xiao families discussed a possible marriage, but they agreed to wait until Bai Mo was sober. Once she woke, Bai Mo returned to the main hall and thanked her relatives and Elder Xiao, leaving her decision about the marriage unresolved.

• Bai Jingyao enthusiastically proposed a marriage between Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi, while Bai Peilan and Elder Xiao considered the match.
• Xiao Yiliu urged the families to wait until Bai Mo sobered up before discussing the marriage, and Bai Jingyao set aside the planned Shen family match.
• Bai Mo woke after using her Wood-Element Ability to sober up and learned that Elder Xiao and the Xiao siblings were still at the residence.
• Bai Mo returned to the main hall, apologized to Xiao Muzhi for the day’s events, and sent him to change his wet robe.
• Bai Mo thanked Xiao Yiliu, Elder Xiao, and her aunt, then apologized to Bai Jingyao and Bai Peilan for worrying them.

After Bai Mo refused to marry Xiao Muzhi at first, he confessed that he loved her, and she agreed to take responsibility for what happened between them. The families began arranging their betrothal, while Xiao Muzhi admitted that he hoped she would eventually love him despite her feelings for Shen Qing.

• Tang Xin asked Bai Mo whether she would marry Xiao Muzhi, but Bai Mo said she had no romantic feelings for him and would not force him to marry her.
• Bai Jingyao warned Bai Mo that refusing to marry Xiao Muzhi could bring shame and harm to him, and Xiao Muzhi returned and declared that he loved her and wanted to marry her.
• Bai Mo agreed to marry Xiao Muzhi, and Bai Jingyao and Bai Peilan began preparing the betrothal arrangements.
• Bai Mo returned to her courtyard, bathed, and put away the jade pendant Shen Qing had given her, deciding to return it later.
• On the way back to the Xiao residence, Xiao Muzhi told Xiao Yiliu that he had fallen in love with Bai Mo when she held him and hoped she would come to love him.
• Great Master Xiao agreed to the betrothal after Elder Xiao told her that Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi would marry.

Bai Mo decided to put her disappointment aside and focus on studying, but Bai Jingyao drew her into preparations for her marriage to Xiao Muzhi. After discussing the betrothal gifts, her father's dowry, and possible living arrangements, Bai Mo left for Xiaoshan Academy.

• Bai Mo chose to visit Xiaoshan Academy and asked Xiaohan to prepare her, but Lixia relayed Bai Jingyao's summons.
• Bai Jingyao told Bai Mo the proposal would take place in three days and showed her the expanded betrothal gifts.
• Bai Jingyao gave Bai Mo the official list of her father's dowry and advised her not to hand it to Madam Chen again.
• Bai Mo told Bai Jingyao to let Xiao Muzhi choose whether they would live separately or at the residence.
• Bai Mo left for Xiaoshan Academy with Xiaohan and Lichun.

Bai Mo enrolled at Xiaoshan Academy and met Xiao Yiliu there after Great Scholar Chen showed her around. Xiao Yiliu spoke earnestly about her younger brother and asked Bai Mo to care for him after their planned marriage.

• Aunt Liu escorted Bai Mo through Xiaoshan Academy to meet Great Scholar Chen, who registered her in xiucai class A and told her to begin after the academy’s three-day break.
• Great Scholar Chen invited Bai Mo to lunch and introduced her to the academy’s facilities and students.
• Xiao Yiliu met Bai Mo at the dining hall, and the three shared a meal while discussing studies and examinations.
• After Great Scholar Chen left, Xiao Yiliu told Bai Mo that her family was preparing for Bai Mo’s marriage proposal three days later.
• Xiao Yiliu described her deep concern for her younger brother and asked Bai Mo to look after him; Bai Mo smiled and nodded.

Bai Mo promised Xiao Yiliu she would treat Xiao Muzhi well, while Shen Qing remained outwardly calm until he learned Bai Mo was going to propose marriage to the Xiao family. As the families discussed the wedding, Bai Mo struggled with her worry for Shen Qing but was called away to discuss the bridal chamber.

• Xiao Yiliu urged Bai Mo to love and protect Xiao Muzhi, and Bai Mo promised not to let him down if he treated her well.
• Bai Mo returned to the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State, while Shen Qing spent the next few days quietly reading, playing chess, and painting with Yun Wu.
• Xiaotian told Shen Qing that Bai Mo would go to the Xiao residence to propose marriage, and Shen Qing shut himself in his room and smashed objects.
• Bai Mo felt a sharp pain in her heart and considered going to see Shen Qing and returning his token of love.
• Xiao Muzhi brought Bai Mo osmanthus pastries, and she praised his cooking despite being lost in thought.
• Bai Mo drew back from leaving when she was called in with Xiao Muzhi to discuss where the bridal chamber would be.

Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi agreed on a wedding residence beside the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State, and their families began arranging the wedding. After the elders sent them to the garden, Xiao Muzhi took Bai Mo to a lakeside pavilion, where he quietly admired her.

• Bai Mo deferred to Xiao Muzhi on choosing their residence, and he selected the home beside the Residence of the Earl Who Protects the State.
• Bai Peilan and the others agreed to begin preparing the residence, exchange birth records, consult the temple about an auspicious date, and hold the wedding in the ninth month.
• Great Master Xiao asked Xiao Muzhi to thank his future in-laws, then sent him and Bai Mo to walk in the garden.
• Xiao Muzhi led Bai Mo to a lakeside pavilion, where she admired the koi and learned that his grandmother had raised them and planted the osmanthus trees.
• Xiao Muzhi watched Bai Mo with affection as she sat beside the lake.

Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi grew closer as they spoke about family, and the Earl Who Protects the State’s household formally brought fifty loads of betrothal gifts to the Xiao Residence. Shen Qing watched Bai Mo’s procession from a teahouse and explained that he had rejected her because of his revenge and his belief that he was unworthy of her.

• Bai Mo and Xiao Muzhi discussed his grandmother’s cats, and Xiao Muzhi promised to treat Bai Mo’s mother and uncle as his own family after their marriage.
• The Earl Who Protects the State’s household arrived at the Xiao Residence with fifty loads of betrothal gifts, drawing crowds who admired Bai Mo and the grand procession.
• Shen Qing watched Bai Mo pass from a private room at the Baihui Teahouse, and Yun Wu questioned why he had given up the marriage.
• Shen Qing told Yun Wu that he cared for Bai Mo but felt unworthy of her and feared dragging her into his revenge, then revealed that revenge might require killing his father.
• Xiao Muzhi welcomed Bai Mo’s family at the Xiao Residence, while Li Ce and Qi Mengzhou teased him about winning her over; he said that when something needed snatching, he had to snatch it.