Episode 22 recap: Emperor Qing forced Lin Ruo Fu to retire and return to his hometown.
As soon as Emperor Qing handed the investigation of the cheating case in the previous imperial examination to Fan Xian, someone reported Lin Ruo Fu to Fan Xian. Lin Ruo Fu guessed that someone was behind the scenes trying to force him to resign, so he preemptively submitted his resignation to Emperor Qing. Emperor Qing readily agreed, and Lin Ruo Fu warned Fan Xian to be more careful in the future. Emperor Qing then drove away all of Fan Xian's supporters, wanting to leave Fan Xian isolated.
When Fan Xian came to see Lin Ruo Fu, Lin Ruo Fu had already heard that He Zong Wei had accused him of killing someone to cover up cheating in last year's imperial examination. Fan Xian was in a dilemma - if Lin Ruo Fu was truly guilty, he would be betraying his own conscience by protecting him, but if he arrested Lin Ruo Fu, he would be letting down Lin Wan Er, his fiancée.
Lin Ruo Fu, who had been the prime minister of Qing Kingdom for many years and had many disciples, couldn't even remember them all. He seemed to recall there had been impersonation in last year's examination, but he had never sent anyone to kill. Lin Ruo Fu provided Fan Xian with the names of the four people involved, asking him to investigate.
The more Lin Ruo Fu thought about it, the more he felt something was amiss. As soon as Fan Xian took over the case of examination cheating, someone had come to accuse him. Lin Ruo Fu deduced that someone was manipulating things behind the scenes, and those four people had already been bought off. He immediately burned the list.
Yan Ruo Hai and Fan Jian both came to negotiate with Chen Ping Ping, feeling that Lin Ruo Fu's case should not be investigated by Fan Xian. But this was Emperor Qing's order, which Chen Ping Ping could not change.
Yan Bing Yun had He Zong Wei file a lawsuit at the Supreme Court, and personally had the court's guards escort He Zong Wei and the woman there. Yuan Hong Dao lay in ambush at a restaurant along their route, with the riverside windows opened for a quick escape.
As Yan Bing Yun's group passed by the restaurant, Yuan Hong Dao suddenly stepped out, loudly denouncing He Zong Wei and the woman, claiming to uphold justice for Lin Ruo Fu. He drew a dagger and threw it at the woman in the carriage. On Yan Bing Yun's order, the court guards rushed into the restaurant to arrest him, but Yan Hong Dao escaped by jumping out the rear window into the river.
Yan Bing Yun recognized Yan Hong Dao as one of Lin Ruo Fu's followers, and secretly mocked the foolishness of those who had used him to frame Lin Ruo Fu. Lin Ruo Fu was deeply saddened to learn this, as Yan Hong Dao had followed him for years. Fan Xian expressed deep sympathy for him. Lin Ruo Fu then took Fan Xian to the palace to see Emperor Qing, giving him many warnings along the way.
After escaping, Yan Hong Dao headed towards Li Yun Rui's domain of Xinyang in a carriage. Fan Jian realized Yan Hong Dao was one of Li Yun Rui's people, and had Chen Ping Ping send guards to capture him. But Chen Ping Ping advised Fan Jian to patiently wait for the outcome of Lin Ruo Fu's meeting with Emperor Qing.
When Lin Ruo Fu met Emperor Qing, he knelt and confessed, claiming he was ill and wanted to retire. But Emperor Qing did not believe him, and had Fan Xian examine Lin Ruo Fu.
Although Fan Xian could not find any fatal illness in Lin Ruo Fu's pulse diagnosis, Lin Ruo Fu insisted on resigning from office. Emperor Qing hypocritically tried to retain him, but Lin Ruo Fu had made up his mind to leave. Emperor Qing praised his hard work and meritorious service, saying that he could not immediately find a replacement for him. Lin Ruo Fu knew that he was irreplaceable, so he told Emperor Qing to take his time in selecting a successor. Emperor Qing asked him to recommend some of his disciples, knowing that this was a way to weaken Lin Ruo Fu's influence in the court.
Lin Ruo Fu did not fall into the trap. He claimed that he had served the government with integrity and did not have any suitable disciples to become prime minister. Emperor Qing then asked Lin Ruo Fu to wait until Lin Wan Er and Fan Xian's marriage was completed before leaving, and wanted him to retire and return to his hometown alone. Lin Ruo Fu entrusted Lin Da Bao to Fan Xian, and only then did Emperor Qing allow him to depart.
As Lin Ruo Fu left the palace with Fan Xian, he could not help sighing towards the heavens, recalling Emperor Qing's actions. All of this had been carefully arranged by Emperor Qing, who had long wanted to get rid of Lin Ruo Fu but could not find a proper excuse. Emperor Qing had Fan Xian preside over this year's imperial examinations, hoping to use the case of corruption and fraud to take Lin Ruo Fu down, but Li Cheng Ze had someone impersonate the culprit instead. So Emperor Qing seized this opportunity to force Lin Ruo Fu's resignation.
Fan Xian witnessed the silent battle between Emperor Qing and Lin Ruo Fu. Although Emperor Qing pressured him relentlessly, Lin Ruo Fu remained unperturbed. In the end, Lin Ruo Fu lost, but he held onto his bottom line and refused to hand over the list of his disciples, hoping to one day return to the capital and rise again. Lin Ruo Fu saw through Emperor Qing's true intentions - to leave Fan Xian isolated. This was the first time Fan Xian experienced Emperor Qing's ruthlessness.
Meanwhile, Yan Bing Yun's group was escorting He Zong Wei and a woman to file a complaint at the Supreme Court. Suddenly, a palace eunuch arrived with an imperial decree, unexpectedly appointing He Zong Wei as an imperial censor at the Censorate. He Zong Wei was overjoyed, kneeling and swearing loyalty to Emperor Qing. Yan Bing Yun was stunned, as He Zong Wei had not even participated in the imperial examinations. Yan Bing Yun urged He Zong Wei to leave quickly, and He Zong Wei abandoned the lawsuit, taking the woman with him. Yan Bing Yun looked down on him and left in a huff.
Chen Ping Ping asked Yan Ruo Hai to change the wheelchair's wheels, and Yan Ruo Hai had Fan Jian help hold the wheelchair. Fan Jian, worried that his position might not be secure with Lin Ruo Fu's forced retirement, feared that Fan Xian would be left isolated. However, Chen Ping Ping remained optimistic, believing that Fan Xian would excel in the political arena. Fan Jian could not refute him and left in a sulk.
Before leaving for his hometown, Lin Ruo Fu called Lin Da Bao to his side, advising him to learn to protect himself well. Aside from Lin Wan Er and Fan Xian, he should not trust anyone else. If they ever neglected Lin Da Bao, Lin Ruo Fu would still be his strong support. Lin Da Bao, whose intelligence was comparable to a child's, did not fully understand Lin Ruo Fu's words, but he recorded them all in his heart.
Comments(Episode 22)