Episode 8 recap: Ye Shi Jie was almost trapped by Li Lian's scheme.
The lady from Ming Yi Tang deliberately tore the famous painting and framed Ye Shi Jie, just because she was unhappy that he did not join their team. Xue Fang Fei stepped in to help, and Ye Shi Jie wanted to thank her. Xue Fang Fei proposed that Ye Shi Jie help her team win the first round of the annual competition.
Xiao Heng saw this and questioned why Xue Fang Fei ventured into this trap alone. Xue Fang Fei said it was none of his business, and Xiao Heng believed the two of them would eventually end up on the same path. The lady mocked Ye Shi Jie, saying it was unwise for him to join Xue Fang Fei's team as they would hold him back.
Xue Fang Fei proposed a bet, confident in her chances of winning. Li Lian scolded her, saying that if she lost, she would have to return to the Zhen Nu Hall by herself. Xiao Heng comforted Li Lian, and Li Jing made an excuse to leave, not wanting additional complications.
Li Lian couldn't hold back and insulted Xiao Heng, calling him a dog serving the emperor. Li Jing warned him not to provoke Xiao Heng. General Xuan Wei's daughter, Meng Hong Jin, loudly accused Ye Shi Jie of damaging her painting and demanded a huge compensation, which Ye Shi Jie refused to pay, believing it was extortion.
Xue Fang Fei stepped out of the crowd, despite Jiang Jing Rui's attempt to stop her, and carefully examined the painting, publicly pointing out that it was a forgery. The crowd was surprised, and Meng Hong Jin had to back down, asking Ye Shi Jie to just pay five ounces of gold.
Ye Shi Jie still believed it was extortion and wanted to take Meng Hong Jin to the magistrate, but Meng Hong Jin accused him of being unreasonable. Xue Fang Fei tried to mediate, wanting to buy the painting to appease Ye Shi Jie, and also comforted Meng Hong Jin.
However, Ye Shi Jie accused Xue Fang Fei of meddling. Jiang Ruo Yao mocked Xue Fang Fei for seeking attention, but Zhou Yan Bang praised her and wanted to recruit her to his team.
Li Lian was furious, believing Xue Fang Fei had ruined his plan to use Meng Hong Jin to trouble Ye Shi Jie and then pretend to help him. Xiao Heng invited Xue Fang Fei upstairs for tea, and, recognizing her identity, deliberately called her by her nickname "A Li" and shared a story, warning her about the dangerous path ahead and advising her to think carefully before proceeding.
Xue Fang Fei insisted on seeking justice, stating that her matters were unrelated to Xiao Heng, who responded that their fates might converge. Back at her residence, Bai Xue informed Xue Fang Fei that Jiang Ruo Yao had reported the painting incident to Ji Shu Ran. Ji Shu Ran subtly suggested that Xue Fang Fei should not have gone to Ming Yi Tang, as her daytime activities could affect the relationship between Jiang Yun Bai and the Li family.
Mrs. Jiang Lao Fu Ren did not want to get involved in this matter, but she couldn't help but want to hear Xue Fang Fei's explanation. Xue Fang Fei admitted that her actions were not well-considered, but she just happened to identify the painting as a forgery and wanted to use this opportunity to silence the rumors and restore her and Jiang Yunbai's reputation.
Ji Shu Ran had originally wanted to keep Xue Fang Fei by his side and train her, but Xue Fang Fei's response made Jiang Lao Fu Ren feel that she understood the bigger picture. Jiang Jing-rui suddenly appeared to testify, helping Xue Fang Fei by revealing that Xiao Heng had invited her to tea, and thus the matter was resolved.
Li Lian privately approached Ye Shi Jie, asking him to team up with her, but she wasn't in a hurry for his response. Zhou Yan Bang stopped Xue Fang Fei in class, wanting to invite her to team up with him, but before Xue Fang Fei could refuse, Jiang Jing-rui stepped in to mock him for being greedy.
Jiang Ruo Yao witnessed this scene. Liu Xu looked at Xue Fang Fei's actions with newfound respect and wanted to get to know her better. Xue Fang Fei proactively suggested that they team up, and Liu Xu was especially delighted to hear that Ye Shi Jie might join them.
Xue Fang Fei invited Ye Shi Jie to join her team, but he still harbored resentment towards her past actions. Xue Fang Fei had previously obtained information from Tong Er and explained the situation to Ye Shi Jie, and the two resolved the misunderstanding.
Ye Shi Jie, realizing he had almost been used by people like Li Lian, decided to join Xue Fang Fei's team. Jiang Yunbai was greatly pleased by Xue Fang Fei's conduct, and he didn't think Xue Fang Fei was overreacting as Ji Shu Ran had suggested.
Ye Shi Jie's successful addition to the team made Liu Xu very happy. Jiang Jing-rui inquired around and found that they were the only four not yet in a team, and upon learning of Liu Xu's joining, the two looked down on each other. But when Ye Shi Jie appeared, Liu Xu instantly became gentler.
Meng Hong-jin brought people to sow discord, believing that Xue Fang Fei's team would hold Ye Shi Jie back. The two sides argued endlessly, and Meng Hong-jin proposed a bet, with the loser required to kneel. Ye Shi Jie agreed, and Jiang Jing-rui joined in, escalating the bet to the point of also involving people like Li Lian. Li Lian demanded that if Xue Fang Fei's team lost, she would have to return to the Chastity Hall, and Xue Fang Fei agreed to this bet.
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