Episode 19 recap: Rong Er risked her life to save Li Qi.
Liu Shou Gui wanted to sell the gilded Buddha, but the shopkeeper saw him sneaking around in shabby clothes and suspected the Buddha was stolen or fake. Liu Shou Gui angrily took the Buddha back home. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. He cautiously opened it to find it was the eunuch Xiao Guizi, who had been sent by Qing Er and Jing Yi Tai Fei to bring Qing Er something. That's when he learned that Rong Er had been released from the palace but had not returned.
Liu Shou Gui hurriedly went to inform Li Qi's family that Rong Er was missing. Li Qi had been imprisoned in the Shen Xing司 for the theft case, and now Rong Er was also missing. When Li Yu Mei heard this, she quickly returned to the newspaper office to discuss it with Lu Qiu Tong, only to find that Lu Qiu Tong had gone to the Wan Hua Lou.
At the Wan Hua Lou, Lu Qiu Tong was looking for the flower lady, hoping to see the imperial chef. The flower lady warned Rong Er that if she saw Lu Qiu Tong, she should speak well of him in front of the esteemed person. Rong Er was shocked to discover that the esteemed person was Lu Qiu Tong, and begged him to quickly take her away. Liu Er and Li Yu Mei also rushed to the Wan Hua Lou to find Lu Qiu Tong. Li Yu Mei was very angry that her brother Li Qi was suffering in the Shen Xing司 because of her, while she had neglected him. Lu Qiu Tong hurriedly explained that Rong Er was not ignoring Li Qi, but was trapped at the Wan Hua Lou.
Rong Er said she must be rescued first, and then she would find a way to free Li Qi. Liu Shou Gui, upon hearing Liu Er and Li Yu Mei's argument and learning that Rong Er was trapped at the Wan Hua Lou, wanted to go confront them. But Liu Er stopped him, saying Rong Er was just working as a chef there. Liu Shou Gui didn't believe it, so Rong Er quickly said she was the imperial chef and the Wan Hua Lou was just using her to make money, and that she was not being mistreated.
Li Qi's mother told Li Yu Mei that Li Qi had risked his life for Rong Er, suggesting he might be in love with her. But Li Yu Mei strongly objected, saying it was unacceptable since Rong Er was found at the Wan Hua Lou. The mother was shocked, thinking a respectable woman would never go to such a place, suspecting Lu Qiu Tong had special feelings for Rong Er.
Rong Er, Lu Qiu Tong and the others discussed at Liu Shou Gui's how to rescue Li Qi. They analyzed that Qin Fang might have been coerced. Liu Shou Gui brought out the precious item he had found, and everyone was surprised, realizing it was related to the theft case in the palace and the Five Feng Building.
The people's tip-off about the theft at the Wufeng Building led the police to search the building, but they found no evidence and had to drop the case. Li Taifeng and others also discovered that Rong Er was not dead. In the palace, Li Gongong felt that Li Qi also needed to be eliminated quickly to avoid future troubles. Outside the palace, Rong Er, carrying a gilded Buddha, found Li Taifeng and said he was willing to return the treasures, but they had to release Li Qi. Li Taifeng pretended that it was Li Qi's subordinate Qin Fang who reported Li Qi's theft, and had nothing to do with himself. The two parted in disharmony.
Unknown to them, Rong Er was ambushed and captured by two people as soon as he left the Wufeng Building. He was taken to the storage room in the Treasure Hall and was surprised to find a young lady there, who turned out to be Qin Fang's sister. Liu Er and Li Yumei followed Rong Er and saw him being held captive. Lu Qiutong went to find the police, but had not returned yet. Liu Er was worried and decided to go check on Rong Er's location, but was stopped by Qin Fang, who then revealed the true situation.
It turned out that Qin Fang had been threatened and blackmailed, so he went to find Li Qi at the Shenjingsi. Li Qi instructed Qin Fang to cooperate with them in a pretend treasure theft, so they could trace the source. The Emperor was also aware of this in advance and made it a performance. Qin Fang followed the treasure transportation route and found Liu Er and the others also investigating the Wufeng Building.
When Li Taifeng was making a deal with foreigners, he was caught by the police. Qin Fang and the others also rescued Rong Er and Qin Fang's sister from the Treasure Hall, but encountered resistance from the black-clad man Wu Tian. Qin Fang held off Wu Tian so the others could leave first. Rong Er and Liu Er returned to help Qin Fang, only to discover that the black-clad man was actually Xiao Wu. Wu Tian took the opportunity to flee.
Back in the palace, Wu Tian reported the failure of the mission to kill Qin Fang, and the incident at the Treasure Hall was also exposed. Li Gongong quickly sent Wu Tian to the Shenjingsi to kill Li Qi. Li Qi and Wu Tian fought fiercely at the Shenjingsi, in a stalemate. Qin Fang came to help, exposed Wu Tian's identity, and had him arrested. But in the struggle, Qin Fang was injured and died.
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