Episode 5 recap: Yue Ling yearned for the Eastern Yu Kingdom.
Yue Ling went to see the Northern King. The Northern King used formalities to say he was busy with official duties and had no time to oversee her, telling her to instruct the people in his mansion if she had any matters. Yue Ling wanted to see Zhou Shi Yu, but learned that he had passed away. At night, Yue Ling burned paper offerings for Zhou Shi Yu, burning a large pile of paintings of beautiful women.
Zhou Shi Yu disguised himself as a ghost to try to frighten Yue Ling, but chanting about beauties was useless - he only wanted Yue Ling. When Yue Ling saw his shadow behind her, she touched him and discovered he was not dead, then embraced him. Zhou Shi Yu explained that he had been revived by a scholar hired at great expense by the Northern King.
Yue Ling showed Zhou Shi Yu the account books of the Northern King's mansion, believing they could serve as her talisman - if the Northern King planned anything against her, she could expose them. Zhou Shi Yu was curious about the origin of the books and worried that Yue Ling had already been targeted, advising her to go to the Northern King's mansion, believing the Northern King would protect her.
Yue Ling and the others packed their bags. Qian Qian saw the account books and worried the Northern King was plotting a rebellion, which could implicate the Northern King's wife. She did not want Yue Ling to go to the Northern King's mansion, but Yue Ling was willing to sacrifice herself for her elder sister. When they arrived at the Northern King's mansion, Xing Yi was displeased that the Northern King did not appear, but Yue Ling thought the Northern King avoiding her meant she did not wish to see him either, so she just went along with the situation.
Meanwhile, the Northern King learned the situation from Lin Mu and had him add some Eastern Yu cuisine to their meals. Zhou Shi Yu arranged for two new chefs skilled in Eastern Yu cuisine to serve Yue Ling, and also assigned two maids to attend to her. Yue Ling was unsure of the Northern King's intentions, so she decided to hold a welcome banquet featuring Eastern Yu delicacies that night.
Zhou Shi Yu could smell the aroma from the Northern Garden, and Lin Mu informed him that all the beauties of the mansion had gone to attend the banquet.
Zhou Shi Yu, curious, went to the courtyard with some guards, and indeed saw the people there singing and dancing, with the drunken Yue Ling pulling Zhou Shi Yu and addressing him as a sworn brother. Seeing her swaying drunkenly, Zhou Shi Yu directly carried her back to her room. Yue Ling, looking at Zhou Shi Yu's face, kept calling his name over and over, and under the influence of the alcohol, she dreamed of marrying him.
Princess Gao Luo Yi came to the mansion looking for Zhou Shi Yu. The steward knew he was in the Beauties' Pavilion and thought it inconvenient, but Gao Luo Yi barged in regardless. Hearing the commotion, Zhou Shi Yu immediately pulled the beauty close to him, but Gao Luo Yi angrily drove the beauties away.
The Empress Dowager sent Madam Director to teach Yue Ling etiquette, flower arranging, and tea brewing, but Yue Ling could not stand the constraints and did not want to learn. At this time, Gao Luo Yi came to reprimand Yue Ling for not understanding propriety, but Yue Ling defiantly turned the tables and lectured Gao Luo Yi for, as a junior, daring to scold her, and had Madam Director handed over to her instead, leaving Gao Luo Yi speechless with anger.
Xing Yi went to the Wind and Moon Pavilion to confront Su Nian, demanding she reveal her true face. Su Nian gracefully danced, teasing Xing Yi by taking his hand, causing him to blush and run away. On the way back, Xing Yi began to suspect he might have mistaken the identity.
Yue Ling started missing her homeland, and when Zhou Shi Yu came to check on her, she complained that the rules of Beishuo were too difficult to learn, and she preferred the freedom of Eastern Yu.
Chancellor Zhou Jing Yuan learned that the arrangements in the Northern King's mansion were watertight, scolding his subordinates for their incompetence. The subordinates reported that everything else was under control, and Zhou Jing Yuan knew the Northern King no longer wanted to hide.
The assassin Ling Xi of the Gentle Breeze group delivered a message to Su Nian, informing her that Princess Yue Ling had taken the master's account books, and instructing Su Nian to find a way to get them back. Su Nian recalled Yue Ling's previous visit, and Ling Xi conveyed the orders, saying that although the previous mission had failed, the master was still willing to give him another chance, and had him stay to assist Su Nian in completing the task.
The next day, Yue Ling did not continue her etiquette lessons, as Madam Director had returned to the palace to report. Yue Ling was curious about the reason, and learned it was on the Northern King's orders.
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