Recaps

Di Qingyu arranged a staged disaster at the moat during the Mid-Autumn Festival to begin her entry into the court’s power struggle. After explosions shattered a bridge and red liquid spread through the water, terrified onlookers fled, believing the bleeding stele foretold a great calamity.

• Di Qingyu reassured Di Yunqian that she wanted to protect his relationship with the Du family, then ordered mooncakes distributed and rumors spread that she was unwell.
• At the palace banquet, Di Yunqian explained Di Qingyu’s absence, while Gao Miling concealed her worry.
• Di Qingyu confirmed that Shao Lan’s people were in position and ordered them to act.
• Plainclothes agents detonated three charges near the revered stele, destroying part of a bridge and injuring people as others pulled victims from the water.
• Blood-colored liquid spread through the moat and appeared to seep from the stele, driving the crowd into panic as someone reported a stone floating in the river.

Di Qingyu’s explosives caused a bloody spectacle at the moat, prompting Di Yunqian to investigate and suppress rumors. She then sent Shao Chi’s men to attack the Wei Family, and the chapter ended with Di Yunqian learning that Wei Ning had been gravely wounded and ordering an investigation.

• A guard reported that an explosion had shattered the moat bridge and revealed a bloodied stele blaming the Du Clan, so Di Yunqian ended the banquet and ordered an investigation and a ban on rumors.
• Chunzhi told Di Qingyu that the imperial investigation had begun, and Di Qingyu ordered rumors directed toward the Du Family and the old case of a family wiped out years earlier.
• Di Qingyu dismissed concerns about the Wei Family’s loyalty and ordered Shao Chi to attack their home, injuring someone but killing no one.
• Di Qingyu revealed that she had recreated explosives from her previous life and awaited the arrival of the son of destiny, Gu Wenci.
• Di Yunqian learned that assassins had attacked the Wei Family, leaving Wei Ning gravely wounded, and ordered officials to investigate after hearing the attackers had escaped.

After the moat’s strange events stirred rumors of divine retribution against the Du clan, Du Chengji suspected his family was being targeted and prepared to withdraw from the royal city. In Yaohua Hall, Di Qingyu received the Empress Dowager, who abandoned Du Yutao and promised to support his execution, leaving Di Qingyu to recover as the Du Family tried to contain the crisis.

• Rumors of blood pouring from the moat frightened the royal city’s Du households, while Du Chengji suspected the incident was aimed at his family.
• Du Chengji learned that officials were investigating the moat and that the Wei Family was under Imperial Guard protection, then wrote to the Empress Dowager about leaving the royal city to preserve the Du Family.
• As rain began, Di Qingyu questioned whether Heaven was helping her and later prepared to receive the Empress Dowager in Yaohua Hall.
• The Empress Dowager brought medicinal herbs and acknowledged that Du Yutao had injured Di Qingyu, but Di Qingyu framed his attack as an affront to the imperial family.
• The Empress Dowager promised not to plead for Du Yutao and said she would urge the emperor to execute him, while Di Qingyu left the decision to her Imperial Father and grandmother.

Di Qingyu discovered that the empress dowager’s medicinal herbs could slowly poison her and made plans to turn the situation to her advantage. Meanwhile, Di Yunqian delayed Du Yutao’s execution and ordered an investigation into the strange moat disaster and the stele bearing the words “Du clan.”

• After the empress dowager left, Di Qingyu had Qiuwen examine the herbs and learned that prolonged use would cause her organs to fail.
• Di Qingyu reasoned that Du Chengji wanted Du Yutao executed quickly because he feared the moat incident would bring the Du Family under scrutiny, and she secretly instructed Chunzhi to act.
• The empress dowager urged Di Yunqian to execute Du Yutao, but Di Yunqian refused and ordered the case left pending while he dealt with state affairs.
• The vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review reported that the moat’s blood was human, the bridge damage resembled an earthquake, and the blood on the stele had likely been splashed there.
• Di Yunqian ordered officials to investigate every household in the royal city with the surname Du and check their clans’ criminal records.

Shao Chi and Shao Lan scattered papers across the royal capital accusing Minister of Punishments Du Chengji of a brutal murder committed seven years earlier. The authorities tried to suppress the papers as the citizens learned the identity of the Du clan on the river-suppressing tablet, while Shao Lan and Shao Chi fled.

• Shao Lan and Shao Chi planned to scatter papers by kite, but Shao Lan had to ask Wanniang for money because both youths were broke.
• Shao Lan drew crowds into the streets by claiming silver had been dropped, then shot down kites carrying stacks of papers.
• A citizen read that Du Chengji had murdered a woman and her family seven years earlier, escaped justice after a fire, and later risen to become minister of punishments.
• The vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review ordered officers to find the paper distributors and collect every paper, but the papers had already been spread across the city.
• Shao Lan hid his bow and arrows and fled from pursuing officers, while Shao Chi withdrew from the mountainside after the kites were gone.

Gao Miling visited Di Qingyu, and their conversation revealed why Gao Miling had taken a sterility decoction and resigned herself to life in the palace. Di Qingyu promised to help her leave when a new emperor ascended the throne.

• Gao Miling visited Di Qingyu in Yaohua Hall and gave her a peace talisman blessed at Longhua Temple.
• Di Qingyu teased Gao Miling about her wealth and offered to keep her gold, silver, and jewels, so Gao Miling gave her a jade pendant she could use to take money from her storeroom.
• Di Qingyu asked why Gao Miling believed she would never have children, and Gao Miling admitted she had taken a sterility decoction a year earlier to avoid bringing a child into the palace's dangers and ease the emperor's worries about the Gao Family.
• Gao Miling explained that she had accepted her role as a pawn in the palace and feared her child would suffer the same fate.
• Di Qingyu promised to help Gao Miling leave the palace when a new emperor ascended the throne, and Gao Miling agreed to trust her.

Di Yunqian investigated rumor papers spread over the royal city and became suspicious that the Zhang Family had framed the Du Family. As a crowd gathered outside the Du residence and officials retrieved old case files, Du Chengji tried to appear confident but wondered who was behind the attack.

• The vice minister of the Court of Judicial Review told Di Yunqian that a masked man had shot down the kites carrying rumor papers and left behind a bow whose grip cord matched Di Yinli’s unusual knot.
• Di Yunqian dismissed the bow as insufficient proof against Di Yinli, ordered an inquiry into the papers and old Ministry of Punishments files, and told officials to watch the Du Family.
• Di Yunqian recalled that Zhang Lingshen had taught Di Yinli the knot and suspected the Zhang Family might be plotting against the Du Family.
• A subordinate told Du Chengji that injured people and other commoners were gathering at the Du residence to demand an explanation, while the household could not send word to the empress dowager.
• Du Chengji ordered his guards to protect the residence and insisted that he was innocent, despite learning that officials were retrieving the old case files.
• Left alone, Du Chengji wondered whether Wei Ning or the Zhang Family was behind the rumors.

Di Qingyu visited Zhu Juxuan’s residence to thank Zhu Wuyang for saving her and used the gifts and news about Du Yutao’s execution to hint at suspicions surrounding the Empress Dowager and Du Chengji. Zhu Juxuan began weighing those implications while Di Qingyu stayed to dine and speak with the Zhu sisters.

• Zhu Juxuan hurried to welcome Di Qingyu after learning she had arrived at his residence.
• Di Qingyu offered precious medicinal herbs as thanks for Zhu Wuyang saving her, but Zhu Juxuan initially refused them.
• Di Qingyu said the Empress Dowager wanted Du Yutao executed quickly, then revealed she had asked the emperor to delay the execution until Du Chengji’s affairs were investigated.
• Di Qingyu suggested that heaven would judge whether the accusations against Du Chengji were true, leaving Zhu Juxuan to ponder her meaning.
• Di Qingyu asked to stay for a meal and chat with the Zhu sisters, while Zhu Juxuan excused himself to leave.

Zhu Juxuan realized Di Qingyu was urging the Zhu Family to help bring down the Du Family, while the emperor intended to use the case as bait to uncover the force behind the destructive attack. Di Qingyu returned to the palace after dinner at the general's residence, leaving Zhu Juxuan and Madam Zhu worried about the emperor's plans and her own role in them.

• Zhu Juxuan told Madam Zhu that Di Qingyu had drawn the Zhu Family into the Du Family affair and wanted them to act against the Du Family for their own future.
• Zhu Juxuan explained that the emperor cared more about finding whoever caused the bridge and stele to be destroyed than proving the rumors about the Du Family, and that the Du Family's fate could serve as bait.
• Madam Zhu wondered whether Di Qingyu was behind the scheme, but Zhu Juxuan said she was too young and lacked the influence to have planned it alone.
• Di Qingyu chatted with Zhu Jiuning about marriage and advised her to choose someone who would treat her well.
• Di Qingyu ate dinner at the general's residence, learned Zhu Wuyang would not appear because of his wound, and returned to the palace.

Di Qingyu let the investigation into the Wei and Du Families unfold while the empress questioned Wei Xin about the conspiracies. Wei Xin persuaded the empress to protect her family, and the empress formally brought the Wei Family under her wing.

• Di Qingyu told Chunzhi not to contact Wei Xin and chose to wait for other factions to act against the Du Family.
• The empress questioned Wei Xin about whether Di Qingyu had arranged the incidents and asked if Wei Ning had evidence from the past.
• Wei Xin argued that the Du Family was hiding further wrongdoing and urged the empress to investigate it and consider her father for minister of punishments.
• The empress said the Duke of Anguo was already investigating the Du Family and promised the Wei Family protection through her and the Second Prince.

After news spread that Du Yutao had attacked Di Qingyu and Zhu Wuyang, Du Chengji faced the angry crowd and swore to sever his ties with his son, then offered three years of his salary to compensate those harmed by the moat disaster. The crowd dispersed, while a hidden figure watching from across the street told a gagged, resentful man that she had not forced Du Chengji to make his declaration and ordered him taken back.

• News spread that Du Yutao had attacked Di Qingyu and Zhu Wuyang, prompting the people to gather outside the Du residence again.
• Du Chengji came out with a sword and claimed he was innocent of the accusations against him.
• Du Chengji said he had asked for Du Yutao to be executed and cut his palm to swear that he was severing their father-son relationship.
• Du Chengji offered three years of his salary to compensate the moat disaster's victims, and the crowd dispersed, doubting the accusations against him.
• A figure across from the Du residence told a gagged man that she had not forced Du Chengji to make his declaration, then ordered him taken back.

Di Qingyu learned that her brothers had reached Yulu City and were managing flood relief well, then redirected her agents to search the royal city for suspicious warehouses. Zhu Juxuan reported that the medicinal herbs the Empress Dowager had given Di Qingyu could fatally harm someone frail, leaving Di Yunqian suspicious of the Empress Dowager’s intentions.

• Di Qingyu visited Di Yunqian, who praised the princes’ orderly flood relief in Yulu City and said their escort had been doubled after the earlier bandit attack.
• Di Qingyu asked Chunzhi about the mountain bandits and ordered her to search the royal city for warehouses guarded by people resembling government soldiers.
• Zhu Juxuan told Di Yunqian that Bai Lian had identified the Empress Dowager’s medicinal herbs as dangerous to someone who had been ill and frail for years.
• Di Yunqian demanded proof, and Zhu Juxuan said the herbs were intact outside the hall and could be examined by skilled physicians.
• Di Yunqian grew suspicious that the Empress Dowager might have intended to harm Di Qingyu.

Di Yunqian moved against the empress dowager and Du Chengji after Di Qingyu ordered Shao Chi to release their plan. Du Yutao exposed his father’s corruption, leaving Du Chengji facing arrest and investigation.

• Di Yunqian ordered Zhu Juxuan to keep the medicinal herbs secret and asked him to invite Bai Lian to examine Qingyu.
• Di Qingyu told Chunzhi to tell Shao Chi to release the people they had captured and begin their plan.
• Di Yunqian sent the empress dowager to Longhua Temple under guard, then Zhu Wuyang arrested Du Chengji as he tried to flee.
• Di Yunqian questioned Du Chengji about the Li Family murders, but Du Chengji denied involvement.
• Du Yutao revealed a hidden account book documenting Du Chengji’s corruption, and Zhu Wuyang confirmed that he had found it.
• Du Chengji attacked Du Yutao and cursed him, while Du Yutao said he had learned betrayal from his father.

Du Chengji was exposed and arrested for embezzlement and the attack on Wei Ning’s family, while his son Du Yutao turned against him. Di Yunqian promoted Wei Ning to minister of punishments, and Di Qingyu treated Du Chengji’s downfall as one move in a larger plan.

• Du Yutao revealed that Du Chengji had taught him to lie about his attempt on Di Qingyu and had helped cover up the attack on Wei Ning’s family.
• Du Chengji attacked Du Yutao, and guards restrained him after he beat his son until he could no longer move.
• Di Yunqian ordered Du Chengji imprisoned, the Du Family’s property confiscated, and the family members jailed.
• Gao Qian and Zhang Lingshen recommended Wei Ning for minister of punishments, and Di Yunqian decreed that Wei Ning would take the post the next day.
• Di Qingyu told Chunzhi that Du Chengji had been a chess piece to advance her plan, then went to sleep without waiting for news.

At court, Du Chengji was stripped of office and sentenced to beheading, while Wei Ning was promoted to minister of punishments. Later, Bai Lian examined Di Qingyu and agreed to announce that her health was severely damaged and she could never bear children, leaving Di Qingyu’s plan tied to his eventual meeting with Shang Lu.

• Di Yunqian issued an edict stripping Du Chengji of office, ordering his imprisonment and future execution, and confiscating the Du Family’s property.
• Di Yunqian promoted Wei Ning to minister of punishments, and Wei Ning gratefully accepted the decree.
• Di Qingyu welcomed Bai Lian, who reproached her for making him deal with an old woman and criticized Qiuwen’s medical skills before Di Qingyu explained she had damaged her own health with medicine.
• Bai Lian told Di Qingyu that Zhu Wuyang’s life was in grave danger, and she asked him to say that she could never bear children.
• Bai Lian agreed to Di Qingyu’s request and reminded her not to forget her promise when she succeeded; Di Qingyu thought of his meeting with Shang Lu.

Bai Lian told Di Yunqian that Di Qingyu’s injuries had likely left her unable to conceive, then left the palace after collecting his fee. Di Qingyu persuaded Gao Qian to let her inspect the provincial graduates’ lists, leaving their alliance in the investigation cautiously unspoken.

• Bai Lian told Di Yunqian that Di Qingyu was recovering but would likely never be able to conceive, and Di Yunqian paid him one thousand taels for the consultation.
• Bai Lian left the palace with Little White, whose reaction revealed that it had detected a medicine there; he decided to search the other three kingdoms first.
• Di Qingyu asked Gao Qian for Du Chengji’s bribery ledger, and he questioned whether the emperor might be keeping Du Chengji alive while waiting for someone.
• Gao Qian initially refused to give Di Qingyu the promised provincial graduates’ lists, then offered them after asking what role she played in the case.
• Di Qingyu said she was also a chess piece, and Gao Qian let her inspect the lists for a quarter of an hour.

Di Qingyu assigned three fates to the strategists she had identified: aid for future loyalists, surveillance for future opponents, and death for corrupt officials. She then met Wei Xin, who secretly reported on the empress’s orders while pretending to paint Di Qingyu asleep, and Di Qingyu asked her what she suspected about the Du Family trap.

• Di Qingyu wrote down the strategists’ names and ordered Chunzhi to support some, monitor others, and kill those marked for elimination.
• Chunzhi warned that funding impoverished scholars would cost more silver than Di Qingyu had, and Di Qingyu said she would find a way to get it.
• Wei Xin visited Di Qingyu, who reminded her of the Wei Family’s debt and expected Wei Xin to send her gold and silver.
• Di Qingyu had Xialin keep Wei Xin’s palace maid outside, then told Wei Xin that the empress had planted a spy on her.
• Wei Xin explained that the empress had sent her to win Di Qingyu over and learn her plans, while Di Qingyu told her to report any threat to Noble Consort Gao.
• While painting Di Qingyu as if she were asleep, Wei Xin asked whether Di Qingyu had already laid a trap for the Du Family, and Di Qingyu invited her to explain her theory.

Wei Xin deduced how Di Qingyu had brought down Du Chengji, and Di Qingyu tested her loyalty by threatening to kill her. Impressed by Wei Xin’s intelligence and experience investigating cases, Di Qingyu agreed to train her and eventually help her leave the palace.

• Wei Xin explained how Di Qingyu’s moves had turned Du Yutao into the weakness that exposed Du Chengji.
• Di Qingyu challenged Wei Xin to guess when she would die, then gripped her throat; Wei Xin insisted she could be a valuable and loyal subordinate.
• Di Qingyu released Wei Xin and asked whether she wanted to leave the palace, and Wei Xin described her experience helping her father investigate cases.
• Di Qingyu offered Wei Xin medicinal liquid to keep the emperor from desiring her and instructed her to remain in the palace as a spy on the empress’s side.
• Di Qingyu promised to arrange Wei Xin’s departure when the time was right and told her to visit daily for lessons from Chunzhi.

After Du Chengji was imprisoned, Di Yunqian kept him alive as bait while the Ministry of War investigated a mysterious weapon fragment. In the imperial garden, Di Qingyu saw through Di Chenzhe’s calculated friendliness and remained wary of him.

• The commoners praised Di Yunqian for imprisoning Du Chengji, while Di Yunqian rebuked an official who asked when Du Chengji would be executed.
• The minister of war reported that the Ministry of War had identified only charcoal on the mysterious fragment, and Di Yunqian promised its maker a marquisate and the post of prime minister.
• Zhu Juxuan told Di Yunqian that Du Chengji denied attacking the Wei Family and proposed using him as bait by spreading word that he would be exiled.
• Di Yunqian agreed to Zhu Juxuan’s plan to watch Du Chengji and capture anyone who approached him.
• Di Jixin insulted Di Qingyu in the imperial garden, while Di Chenzhe apologized and then left with his sister.
• Di Qingyu told Chunzhi that Di Chenzhe’s apology was a calculated attempt to improve her opinion of him and deepen her rift with Di Jixin.

Di Qingyu discovered that Emperor Di Yunqian had orchestrated the disaster relief grain hijacking, then presented him with an ancient alchemy book that might explain the moat explosion. Di Yunqian became eager to study the weapon described in it, but questioned why she had kept her findings private.

• Xialin reported that the missing relief grain was guarded by men resembling the Imperial Guard, and Di Qingyu concluded that the emperor had staged the hijacking.
• Di Qingyu told Xialin that the emperor had used the princes as a smokescreen and forced corrupt ministers to replace the stolen supplies.
• Di Qingyu went to Xuanzheng Hall and asked Di Yunqian whether he had delayed Du Chengji's execution because of the moat's collapse.
• Di Qingyu showed Di Yunqian a fragmentary alchemy book describing explosions and suggested that it could explain the moat disaster.
• Di Qingyu identified charcoal and sulfur as likely ingredients, and Di Yunqian asked why she had researched them in secret before bringing the book to him.

Di Qingyu persuaded Di Yunqian to let her help develop weapons for Xiling, then received the title of Eldest Princess the next morning. Her sudden elevation stunned the palace and court, while the people largely welcomed it, leaving Xiling poised for political turmoil.

• Di Qingyu explained her interest in weapons and offered to devote her life to Xiling, swearing never to marry to earn Di Yunqian’s trust.
• Di Qingyu urged Di Yunqian to act quickly against the hidden threat behind Du Chengji and appealed to his ambition to unite all under heaven.
• Di Yunqian’s suspicions eased as he prioritized developing the weapon, though he did not directly answer Di Qingyu’s request.
• The next morning, Li Peian delivered Di Yunqian’s decree elevating Di Qingyu to Eldest Princess, and she accepted the title and investiture.
• The empress and ministers questioned the unprecedented decree, while the people of Xiling Royal City largely supported Di Qingyu’s promotion.

After Di Qingyu received the title of grand princess, she entertained the consorts who came to seek her favor and spoke privately with Wei Xin. She explained how she had used her schemes and explosives to secure her position, then urged Wei Xin to remain loyal and offered her the possibility of becoming Xiling's first female chancellor.

• Zhu Juxuan told Madam Zhu that Di Qingyu's new title likely had a hidden reason, while they discussed Zhu Jiuning's marriage prospects.
• Di Qingyu accepted gifts from the consorts who came to Yaohua Hall, while she reassured Gao Miling without revealing her role in making explosives.
• Wei Xin massaged Di Qingyu and admitted she understood how Di Qingyu had used the Du Family affair and explosives to gain the emperor's favor.
• Di Qingyu told Wei Xin that her value outweighed any suspicion the emperor might have and warned her to ground her cleverness in loyalty.
• Di Qingyu gave Wei Xin a hairpin and said she could support her in becoming Xiling's first female chancellor.

Wei Xin accepted Di Qingyu’s offer to become Weisheng Xin, sever ties with her family, and serve her ambitions. Di Qingyu then secured a residence and resources from Di Yunqian to secretly develop a weapon, but her return to the palace ended with a warning of danger.

• Di Qingyu offered Wei Xin a choice between remaining a Wei family daughter with limited prospects or faking her death and becoming her devoted strategist, and Wei Xin chose to serve as Weisheng Xin.
• Di Qingyu ordered Chunzhi to arrange Wei Xin’s feigned death in three days and send her to the Information Pavilion to learn from Shao Chi.
• Di Qingyu asked Di Yunqian for a residence, money, and skilled people to develop weapons in secret, promising results before the end of the year.
• Di Yunqian gave Di Qingyu Du Chengji’s confiscated residence, a thousand taels of gold, and several hundred servants for its repairs.
• Di Qingyu planned renovations and secret passages at the former Du residence, then boarded a carriage back to the palace late at night as someone warned her to watch out.

Di Qingyu captured Du Yutao after he led assassins against her and discovered that Zhu Wuyang had witnessed her fighting. She admitted she had used him before, promised to protect the General's residence, and warned him to scrutinize the men courting his sister before kicking him from her carriage.

• Di Qingyu ordered Du Yutao's assassins killed and had him taken away for interrogation after he refused to reveal who had supplied them.
• Zhu Wuyang confronted Di Qingyu in her carriage, accusing her of hiding her martial arts and using him to help bring down the Du Family.
• Di Qingyu admitted her scheme and promised to do everything in her power to save everyone in the General's residence if it faced disaster.
• Zhu Wuyang offered to take another blade for Di Qingyu someday, while she told him they were not enemies unless he stood in her way.
• Di Qingyu warned Zhu Wuyang to vet the men courting his younger sister, then kicked him out of the carriage near the palace gates.
• Zhu Wuyang watched the carriage leave and wondered why being with Di Qingyu felt so familiar and easy.

Di Qingyu advanced her plans while preparing to welcome her four imperial brothers back from disaster relief. At the banquet, the princes discovered that her new rank as Grand Princess had placed her above them.

• Di Qingyu met with the Ministry of Works to discuss renovating the Du residence and ordered Wei Xin to be switched with a prepared corpse after taking fake-death medicine.
• Di Qingyu learned that the four princes had returned from Yulu City and decided to welcome them using her authority as Grand Princess.
• Di Yunqian greeted the four princes at the city gate and invited them to a celebratory banquet.
• At the banquet, Di Jinzhao questioned why the eldest prince had been assigned a lower seat, and the princes waited to learn who outranked him.
• Di Qingyu entered the hall as Grand Princess, and the four princes reacted with surprise when they recognized her.