Episode 4 recap: Chen Zhi deceived the Hua family of all their money.
Lin Wan was deeply grateful for the help of Shen Qi and others. Chen Zhi told Lin Wan that the imperial court had made a decision, and now they should quickly purchase good farmland and gather tenant farmers, which was the best plan. Additionally, they needed to rent several houses in the city for accommodation. Xia Jin E was the head of the household, so Chen Zhi began discussing the specifics with her. Shen Qi explained the matter of posting notices, and Hua Zhi calmly said that what happened yesterday was a failure and there was no need to mention it again in the future.
Lin Wan fully agreed with Chen Zhi's proposal. As a result, the wives, young ladies, and even the maidservants handed over their jewelry and money to them to buy land and houses on their behalf. Hua Zhi disagreed and said she could handle these matters herself, but her mother stopped her, saying that an unmarried daughter should not show herself in public.
As the money was not enough, Shen Qi contributed his own money and jade pendant, and Chen Zhi swore to the heavens that he would make up the remaining amount to help them complete this matter. To reassure them, Yu Zhenyao was responsible for supervision. After they left, Hua Zhi was still worried, so she instructed Uncle Zhong to follow Chen Zhi.
Gu Yan Xi arrived at the Seventh Constellation Division to familiarize himself with the environment. After taking the main seat in the division's office, he took off his mask. Chen Qing offered wine to Gu Yan Xi and was surprised to discover that he was the person who had troubled him on the street earlier. Chen Zhi knew that Uncle Zhong was keeping an eye on him at the main gate, so he deliberately left through a side door.
Gu Yan Xi questioned Deputy Commander Yuan Qi why he secretly bypassed the division commander and reported Qi Ruhai to the palace. Yuan Qi showed off his qualifications and a condescending attitude, even mentioning that he knew Gu Yan Xi's family affairs. Gu Yan Xi calmly told him that in the eighth year of Chengtian, his maternal family conspired against the court. In order to avoid implicating too many lives, the imperial court kept it a secret, thus protecting his mother and numerous officials. He had known about this since he was young.
Unable to threaten him, Yuan Qi handed over his waist token as requested. However, when he put down his sword, he still wanted to make a desperate attempt. Fortunately, Gu Yan Xi was prepared and skilled enough. He not only emerged unscathed but also successfully beheaded Yuan Qi. With Yuan Qi's death, Gu Yan Xi conveyed the message to all the guards of the Seventh Constellation Division that betraying the division commander would not end well.
The division commander was loyal to the imperial court, and the guards of the Seventh Constellation Division should be loyal to their division commander.
From now on, the commander of the Seventh Constellation Division has the final say, and everyone must follow his rules. Chen Qing pleaded for mercy from Gu Yan Xi, while Zheng Hu, who was unaware of the situation, spoke up in his defense. Gu Yan Xi thought Zheng Hu was decent and appointed him as the deputy commander. Shen Huan saw Shen Qi's jade pendant at the gambling den and mistakenly thought he was secretly gambling. As a result, Shen Huan redeemed it and planned to show it to his father.
Hua Zhi went to the pawnshop where Chen Zhi had visited earlier and discovered that Chen Zhi was lying. She then went to the pawnshop owned by Chen Zhi and encountered Shen Qi at the entrance. Shen Qi held the jade pendant and mentioned something strange: although the pawnshop had taken the pendant, Hua Di saw it at the gambling house. Chen Zhi went to see Lin Wan again and said they were still short of some money. If they could sell the Hua family's collection of books, they would be able to buy a large mansion with four courtyards.
Lin Wan and Xia Jin E did not suspect anything. Just as Chen Zhi was about to take the books and leave, Hua Zhi returned. She took out Shen Qi's jade pendant and exposed Chen Zhi's gambling habit. It turned out that she and Uncle Zhong had already approached Yu Zhenyao. They discovered that Chen Zhi conspired with him to deceive the Hua family's assets for the purpose of gambling. When Chen Zhi realized that the situation was exposed, he tried to escape in a carriage. Hua Zhi quickly came up with a plan and called out the guards from the Seventh Constellation Division, who had been monitoring them, claiming that they wanted to surrender.
After the guards intercepted the carriage, Hua Zhi confessed that they had secretly taken money out of the mansion when it was confiscated. Now all the money was hidden in the pawnshop by Chen Zhi. Realizing that the situation was more complicated than it seemed, the guards took Chen Zhi and Hua Zhi back with them. Meanwhile, Gu Yan Xi was practicing martial arts with the guards of the Seventh Constellation Division at the division's headquarters. His extraordinary skills made his subordinates willingly submit. At that moment, someone reported that a batch of the Hua family's belongings had been confiscated.
Gu Yan Xi ordered the release of Hua Zhi, but she refused to leave and requested to see the division commander. Gu Yan Xi put on his mask and granted her an audience. Hua Zhi asked the commander to return the manuscripts to the Hua family. Gu Yan Xi said he wanted to study Mei Hua Yi Shu for entertainment, which made Hua Zhi nervous because the latest manuscript by Hua Yi Zheng was hidden within it.
Gu Yan Xi noticed Hua Zhi's reaction but did not expose her. He ordered someone to return all the books to Hua Zhi. Shen Qi visited Zi Huang Residence again to apologize to the Hua family. Unexpectedly, he learned that Hua Zhi had been taken away by the Seventh Constellation Division and left in a hurry.
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