Episode 15 recap: Ayan Seeks Pei Yan's Help to Clear Zheng Sheng's Name
In Episode 15, after Pei Yan and Wei Zhao’s relentless efforts, they finally uncover the truth behind the arms case. However, Wei Zhao is not happy; he feels that the investigation has gone too smoothly, as if someone is guiding them step by step. They first discover that a rice shop is selling old rice, which leads them to the Eight Granaries. Eventually, they find out that members of the Pei clan have been using the granaries' funds to cover the losses of the Mint, ultimately revealing Pei clan’s corruption.
The more Wei Zhao thinks about it, the more uneasy he feels. He notices that Pei Yan has been preoccupied and has lost interest in searching for Yan Qiao Shuang and her sister. Concluding that Pei Yan is also being kept in the dark, Wei Zhao sends Yi Fei to secretly investigate the sisters' whereabouts.
Pei Yan is well aware of the cunning nature of the Pei clan and is hesitant to continue the investigation. He decides to close the case hastily. Pei Yan cannot forget how, after the death of his father, Pei Zi Jing, he and his mother were driven out by the clan members. His mother, Rong Yu Die, reminds him to remember the ugly faces of the Pei clan and to work hard so that he won’t be used as a stepping stone by others. Pei Yan still feels indignant about it.
Jiang Ci senses that Pei Yan is troubled and shows concern for him. This warms Pei Yan’s heart, and he promises to take Jiang Ci on a trip to the south once he finishes his tasks. Jiang Ci wants to go to the magistrate’s granary to collect rice for the starving people. Pei Yan gives her a note, but the officials at the granary refuse to cooperate, only giving Jiang Ci two bags of rice—far from enough. Determined, Jiang Ci decides to find another way and asks Cui Liang to make porridge for the hungry.
Jiang Ci seeks help from Ayan by the river, where Ayan takes her to gather bitter grass to feed the starving people. When He Yonglin hears that Jiang Ci is at the river, he rushes over with a group to confront her, seeking revenge for his father, He Zhenwen. He Yonglin approaches Jiang Ci aggressively and tries to strike her. Just in time, Wei Zhao arrives and stabs He Yonglin’s hand with a dagger, causing him to flee in fear. Jiang Ci thanks Wei Zhao for saving her once again.
Later, Jiang Ci and Ayan prepare porridge at a dilapidated temple. Ayan specifically instructs Jiang Ci to keep the bitter grass separate from the rice. Jiang Ci, without much thought, cooks the porridge herself and adds some sugar she gets from Wei Zhao. Suddenly, Wei Zhao notices Ayan looking flustered as she hides a knife pendant under her clothes, leaving him puzzled.
A young boy asks for meat, and Jiang Ci tells him to close his eyes and imagine a bowl of beef porridge. The starving people, moved by her words, close their eyes and begin to imagine. Wei Zhao follows suit. When Jiang Ci sees the long-lost smiles on the faces of the hungry, she feels a deep sense of satisfaction. Unable to bear it any longer, Wei Zhao takes Jiang Ci to the Pei clan granary to steal rice and meat.
At the granary, the guards refuse to give them any rice or meat and try to fight them off. However, Wei Zhao easily subdues them, and they comply by handing over the supplies. Feeling elated, Jiang Ci buys a sugar figurine of a kitten from a roadside vendor as a gift for Wei Zhao, constantly comparing it to his face, which makes him chuckle at her adorable antics.
When Jiang Ci hasn’t returned late into the night, Pei Yan grows worried. Upon learning that Jiang Ci has gone to the Pei family granary with Wei Zhao to steal supplies, he feels a pang of jealousy.
Pei Yan waited at the door for Jiang Ci and spotted her laughing and chatting with Wei Zhao from a distance. He felt a pang of discomfort. Jiang Ci wanted to sleep with her maid, and Wei Zhao teased her for not having her own room. Pei Yan offered to give Jiang Ci a separate room, which made Wei Zhao feel relieved enough to leave.
Pei Yan ordered the main culprit behind the arms case to be paraded through the streets, where the townspeople threw vegetable leaves at him. Jiang Ci and Ayan collected the thrown leaves and returned to the dilapidated temple to cook vegetable porridge for the starving people, all of which Pei Yan and Wei Zhao observed. Pei Yan personally delivered food to the hungry, and Jiang Ci thanked him for his generous assistance.
After Pei Yan left, Ayan asked Jiang Ci to seek justice from Pei Yan for her father. Yi Fei secretly investigated the whereabouts of Yan Qiao Shuang and her sister, discovering that they had previously lived in Zheng Sheng's home. Zheng Sheng was a craftsman at the Mint, who died in a fire, prompting Wei Zhao to suspect that the case at the Mint was much more complex than it appeared. He instructed Yi Fei to continue the investigation.
Wei Zhao found a woman's footprint in Zheng Sheng's house and recalled Ayan's unusual behavior, suspecting that the footprint belonged to her. He noted that Ayan disliked mixing ingredients when cooking porridge, likely due to the psychological trauma from being enslaved for so long. Wei Zhao theorized that Ayan might be a descendant of Zhao Wu but lacked concrete evidence.
It turned out that Zheng Sheng was Ayan's fiancé. Two months ago, while working at the Mint, he accidentally discovered a secret: apart from the A-class workshop, all the other workshops were using scrap metal. After telling Ayan about this, he was soon killed in the fire. Ayan suspected he had been murdered to silence him and sought information from other craftsmen, but they had all left one by one. She wanted Pei Yan to clear Zheng Sheng's name.
Jiang Ci took Ayan to find Pei Yan, and Ayan revealed a dagger pendant that Zheng Sheng had given her. The material of the pendant was different from that of the other workshops. Pei Yan offered Ayan temporary shelter at the Hou residence. As Pei Yan pondered the situation, he felt a sense of dread. He knew there were hidden truths behind the arms case but was afraid to continue investigating. He merely aimed to frame it as a corruption case to avoid raising suspicion with Emperor Xie Che of Da Liang. He instructed An Cheng to find craftsmen who had worked with Zheng Sheng and to look into Zheng Sheng's relationship with Yan Qiao Shuang and her sister, reminding An Cheng to ensure Wei Zhao remained unaware of any hidden truths regarding the arms case.
Wei Zhao urged Pei Yan to return to Qingkang soon to report to Emperor Xie Che. Pei Yan made an excuse about needing to wrap up loose ends, and Wei Zhao decided to stay with him. Ayan wanted to give Pei Yan a gift to express her gratitude but didn’t know what he would like. Jiang Ci was also in the dark. When she saw Wei Zhao leaving, she sneaked into his room to look for a small clay cat. Suddenly, Wei Zhao returned, and Jiang Ci asked him for advice on what kind of gift to give.
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