Episode 12 recap: Fan Xian and Li Cheng Ze are in a direct confrontation.
Fan Xian openly collected 3,000 taels of silver from Dai Gong Gong in public, deliberately doing so to provoke the officials to impeach him at the Censorate. Fan Xian used this opportunity to root out many corrupt officials, most of whom were affiliated with Li Cheng Ze. Ye Ling Er does not want to marry Li Cheng Ze, and has asked Fan Xian to help her settle the score with Li Cheng Ze.
In the direct confrontation between Fan Xian and Li Cheng Ze, Doctor Li diagnosed that Fan Jian was poisoned. Fan Xian sustained serious internal injuries, and Li Cheng Ze analyzed that the poison was planted by Fan Xian, as he was a disciple of the poison expert Fei Jie. Li Cheng Ze suspected that Fan Xian was feigning his injuries, but Doctor Li, with decades of medical experience, insisted that it was impossible for him to be mistaken. Li Cheng Ze could not figure out who had seriously injured Fan Xian.
After Doctor Li left, Fan Xian had Fan Ruo Ruo send the antidote to Fan Jian. He had feigned illness in front of Doctor Li, but he was indeed experiencing problems - since returning from Northern Qi, Fan Xian's powerful true qi had become increasingly uncontrollable, and the wound from Yan Bing Yun's stabbing had not fully healed. Wang Qi Nian advised Fan Xian not to take actions lightly, lest his true qi become chaotic and his martial arts be ruined.
Hearing that Fan Xian was seriously injured, Lin Wan Er dispatched Ye Ling Er to visit him at the Fan manor. But Ye Ling Er saw that Fan Xian appeared fine, and thought he was just pretending to be ill, reporting this back to Lin Wan Er.
On Fan Xian's instructions, Deng Zi Yue arranged for rumors to be spread in the capital about Li Hong Cheng and Yuan Meng's secret affair. Soon, these rumors were circulating throughout the capital, portraying Fan Xian as instigating factional struggles and aligning with the Censorate against Li Cheng Ze. Fan Xian could not take this lightly, as it could make all civil and military officials wary of him and the Investigative Bureau.
Fan Xian had Deng Zi Yue spread news in the public, while Li Cheng Ze had his people propagate rumors about Fan Xian in official circles. The two were engaged in an open and covert struggle, unwilling to give an inch. Li Cheng Ze decided to target Lin Wan Er as a weak spot.
Ye Ling Er happened to be at the imperial villa and saw Li Cheng Ze, becoming enraged. She did not want to marry Li Cheng Ze but dared not defy the order, fearing for her life and her family's safety. She rushed towards Li Cheng Ze, intent on fighting him, but was restrained by the guards. Sitting in the courtyard, Ye Ling Er angrily sharpened her knife.
After careful consideration, Fan Xian decided to first establish a favorable public image to alleviate the wariness of civil and military officials towards him. He immediately went to discuss marriage arrangements with Lin Wan Er. Arriving at the imperial villa, Fan Xian found Ye Ling Er sharpening her knife, intending to attack Li Cheng Ze. Fan Xian gave Ye Ling Er a bottle of deadly poison pills, suggesting she find an opportunity to poison Li Cheng Ze, though Ye Ling Er did not want to kill him.
Li Cheng Ze claimed he had come to explain, stating that Baoye Pavilion was the property of Fan Si Zhe, not related to Fan Xian. But he then turned the conversation to slander Fan Xian in front of Lin Wan Er.
Overhearing Li Cheng Ze's words, Fan Xian promptly threw a chair into the room, narrowly missing Li Cheng Ze. Wang Qi Nian, waiting outside the imperial villa, suddenly saw the Grand Princess of Northern Qi arrive on a mule, which suddenly panicked and ran off with the terrified princess. Li Cheng Ru and the Grand Princess had come to visit Lin Wan Er, but had to hurry after the runaway mule.
Li Cheng Ru recognized at a glance that Wang Qi Nian was Fan Xian's confidante, and couldn't help but think of the military horses that he and Gao Da had killed, and Li Cheng Ru was very angry. Wang Qi Nian explained with a smile that this incident was solely Gao Da's doing. Li Cheng Ru wanted to go chase after the Grand Princess of Northern Qi and had no time to bicker with Wang Qi Nian, so he demanded to know his name. Wang Qi Nian lied and said his name was Deng Zi Yue, and even repeated it a few times to make sure Li Cheng Ru wouldn't forget.
Lin Wan Er hosted a banquet inviting Li Cheng Ze, Ye Ling Er and Fan Xian to dinner. Lin Wan Er and Fan Xian had not seen each other in a long time, and the two poured their hearts out, exchanging sweet words. Lin Wan Er noticed that Fan Xian had lost weight and fretted over him, but Fan Xian admitted he was pretending to be sick and told her not to worry.
Ye Ling Er sat drinking silently by himself. Li Cheng Ze didn't want to continue watching the two lovebirds, and got up to leave, but Fan Xian quickly stopped him and asked him to take responsibility for the gold maiden who died at the Baiyue Lou. Li Cheng Ze claimed ignorance, and even asked Fan Xian to persuade Fan Si Zhe to surrender. Fan Xian suppressed his indignation, clinked cups with Li Cheng Ze, and secretly drugged Li Cheng Ze's wine, vowing to seek justice for the innocent who had died.
Li Cheng Ru brought the Grand Princess of Northern Qi to meet Lin Wan Er, and casually helped tidy the princess's disheveled hair. The princess blushed deeply, and Li Cheng Ru realized he had been a bit too forward, apologizing profusely and even offering to swear an oath, which amused the princess greatly.
Li Cheng Ru and the princess sat down to eat. As a prince, Li Cheng Ru had been leading troops in battles since childhood, unlike the refined Fan Xian and Li Cheng Ze, and he ate and drank heartily. The princess excitedly recounted the amusing story of buying a warhorse to give to Li Cheng Ru. Ye Ling Er, emboldened by alcohol, wanted to break his engagement with Li Cheng Ze, but Li Cheng Ze firmly refused. Coincidentally, all three couples present were betrothed by Emperor Qing's decree.
Li Cheng Ru had considered escaping the marriage, but seeing the princess's kindness and charm, he gave up on that idea. Fan Xian was relieved that Lin Wan Er, whom Emperor Qing had betrothed him to, was his beloved. Ye Ling Er dared not escape the marriage, fearing it would implicate his family. Fan Xian advised her to flee to Northern Qi or Danzhou. Li Cheng Ze deliberately brought up the rumors about Fan Xian in Northern Qi, but the princess stood up for Fan Xian, clarifying that he and Hai Tang Duo Duo were only kindred spirits, not lovers. Lin Wan Er was visibly distressed, though she did not make a scene.
Worried the princess would reveal more secrets, Fan Xian quickly interrupted her and made an excuse to take the princess outside to look at the new horse, which turned out to be a mule. The princess teased Li Cheng Ru for being tricked. Lin Wan Er had already realized Li Cheng Ze's true purpose - to sow discord and make her and Fan Xian break off their engagement, so that Fan Xian couldn't take over the inner treasury as Emperor Qing had decreed. Lin Wan Er firmly stated their engagement would not change, and Li Cheng Ze stormed off.
Fan Xian lied that he had drugged Li Cheng Ze's wine, terrifying him. Fan Xian gave him an antidote and left with Lin Wan Er. The princess watched the whole spectacle and left with Li Cheng Ru. Li Cheng Ze wasn't sure whether to take the pill, and sought Li Cheng Ru's advice, who urged him to appease Fan Xian. Ye Ling Er suspected the pill was actually poison, further alarming Li Cheng Ze.
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