Episode 35 recap: Xie Wei assassinated the Prince of Pingnan.
Xie Wei and Jiang Xue Ning were in the same room, discussing who would sleep on the bed. Suddenly, Xie Wei leaned over Jiang Xue Ning, surprising her. He pointed towards the door, and Jiang Xue Ning followed his gaze to see a figure moving below the window. Xie Wei quietly informed her that the Prince of Pingnan didn't trust them and had put them together. To avoid raising suspicion, Xie Wei suggested that they put on a show. He lightly scratched her ribcage, causing Jiang Xue Ning to cry out. Xie Wei instructed her to continue acting in pain without him scratching her further.
The person responsible for surveillance listened under their window for a while and then reported the situation to the Prince of Pingnan. After hearing the description, the Prince of Pingnan chuckled and said that his godson had finally become clever. The Prince of Pingnan was in a good mood because he had received news of Yan Mu and his son's uprising and believed that he hadn't misjudged them.
News of Yan Mu's uprising reached the capital city. Xue Yuan volunteered to lead troops to suppress the rebellion. However, Master Gu thought that Xie Wei had always been loyal to the country and now held a high position, so there was no reason for him to rebel. He suspected there was more to the situation and suggested sending someone to the front lines for clarity. The Great Moon Kingdom's army was ready to attack, and if Xue Yuan and the Yan family's army clashed, it would endanger the Daqian Kingdom. The Emperor agreed with Master Gu's advice and decided to send Zhang Zhe. If Xie Wei was truly plotting treason, he would be executed without mercy.
Xue Yuan realized his advice wasn't accepted by the Emperor, so he turned to the Empress Dowager. However, the Empress Dowager believed that since the Emperor had already made a decree, she couldn't say much more. Seeing that the Empress Dowager wouldn't support him, Xue Yuan decided to take drastic measures. He reminded the Empress Dowager that once Shen Jie ascended the throne, he would let the Emperor meet his end sooner. Xue Yuan's words shocked the Empress Dowager because, after all, the Emperor was her son. In order to force the Empress Dowager's compliance, Xue Yuan even used past events as a threat, but she still refused to harm her son.
The Yan family's army successfully captured three cities in a row. If they took two more, they would be able to advance directly towards the capital. When the Prince of Pingnan learned this news, he was extremely pleased. As his long-held wish was about to come true, he asked Xie Wei what reward he desired. However, Xie Wei humbly declined credit. Since the Dragon Boat Festival was approaching, he proposed hosting a celebratory banquet. The Prince of Pingnan gladly agreed, as the fake Xue Ding Fei was known for indulging in food and drink. Xie Wei suggested that Xue Ding Fei handle the arrangements, and the Prince of Pingnan had no objections.
During the capture of the third city, Yan Mu received another letter from Xie Wei. Lv Xian brought all of Xie Wei's letters and quickly deciphered the hidden message, just like how Jiang Xue Ning had drawn a turtle on the edge of a banknote in the past. Lv Xian pieced together Xie Wei's letters and discovered that the hidden message was: "端午诛平南" (Assassinate the Prince of Pingnan on the Dragon Boat Festival).
Upon reading Xie Wei's hidden message, Yan Lin praised his cleverness. It was unlikely that the Prince of Pingnan would ever expect the Yan family's army to make a sudden strike. According to Xie Wei's plan, Xue Ding Fei had already poisoned the water in advance. However, before the poison could take effect, the Prince of Pingnan suddenly confronted Jiang Xue Ning. The Prince of Pingnan had found out that the failure in Tongzhou was due to Jiang Xue Ning's betrayal to the Yan family's army. He decided to kill Jiang Xue Ning to avenge the fallen. At Xie Wei's repeated pleas, the Prince of Pingnan gave up the idea of killing Jiang Xue Ning. However, to teach her a lesson and to display his power to Xie Wei, he decided to cut off one of Jiang Xue Ning's hands and ordered Xie Wei to carry it out personally.
Xie Wei refused to harm Jiang Xue Ning. In the end, following the Prince of Pingnan's rules, he stabbed the dagger into his own hand. At that moment, Yan Lin led his troops to attack. Seeing the surrounding soldiers falling one after another, the Prince of Pingnan realized he had been tricked by Xie Wei. He then raised his sword to strike Jiang Xue Ning, but Xie Wei shielded her with his body. As a result, he was stabbed in the back. In the end, with their combined efforts, they brought an end to the life of the Prince of Pingnan. As the Prince of Pingnan was dying, he warned Xie Wei not to be too complacent, as there were even more dangerous things awaiting him in the capital city.
Comments(Episode 35)