Episode Summary
The Li family opens their tea shop, "Si Fu Zhai," across from the popular Pan Tavern, hoping to attract customers. Pan Tavern's owner, Chai An, retaliates by offering breakfast service, hurting the Li's business. Kang Ning devises a clever plan, involving Fan Lianghan's desire for a concubine and a temporary closure of their shop for renovations. She uses a singing girl, Lady Zhen, to trick Fan Lianghan and expose his family's hypocrisy. Si Fu Zhai reopens with a new, unique appeal, attracting a large crowd, much to Chai An's dismay. The episode ends with Chai An realizing Kang Ning's manipulation and Fan Lianghan once again relying on Chai An.
Spoiler Alert
The episode opens with Lady Li returning to their rented house, sharing the events of the temple visit with her daughters. The sisters realize that if things continue as they are, they'll be forced back to Luoyang. However, they've boasted to their neighbors about settling in Bianjing, and returning now would make them a laughingstock. The five sisters, as they did in their childhood, draw straws to decide their next move. The eldest, Shou Hua, wise and steady, believes their priority should be starting a business to secure their livelihood. As for their mother's push for them to marry, she suggests they simply go along with it for now, avoiding further arguments. The other sisters agree, and they convince Lady Li to use her savings to rent a large house with a storefront, planning to open a tea shop in the front and live in the back.
Lady Li, realizing her daughters are right and that business is her forte, is on board. But then she remembers she left the portraits at the temple and lets out a wail. Meanwhile, at the temple, a monk is helping to gather the portraits when a gust of wind sends one flying. Because Pan Tavern is a daily hub of activity, The Li family decides to open their "Si Fu Zhai" across the street, hoping to attract customers. Kang Ning turns back to look at the bustling Pan Tavern, and her eyes meet those of Chai An, who is looking down from an upper floor. Chai An nods slightly to Kang Ning, who pretends not to notice.
Fan Lianghan is under a strict no-alcohol order from his wife, Fu Hui, and is whining miserably. Chai An, already annoyed by Fan Lianghan's nagging, is informed by his servant De Qing that a new tea shop has opened across the street. But Chai An, the owner of Pan Tavern, is no fool. He sees the Li family's intentions and orders De Qing to have Pan Tavern start serving breakfast the next day, offering 200 servings of tea and snacks. The profit is secondary; the main goal is to prevent the small Li family tea shop from stealing Pan Tavern's casual customers. Fan Lianghan, seizing the opportunity to flatter Chai An, begs him for advice on how to escape Fu Hui's control. Although Chai An doesn't want to interfere in Fan Lianghan's marital affairs, he's so bothered by Fan's clinginess that he hints that Fan should invite his parents to come home. Fan Lianghan is instantly enlightened and overjoyed.
The next morning, the Li sisters are busy in the kitchen, each with their assigned tasks, quickly steaming up a batch of sweet buns. However, as Chai An predicted, Si Fu Zhai's grand opening is a bust. The place is deserted, mainly because Bianjing is filled with tea shops, and Chai An's order to have Pan Tavern serve tea further impacts the Li's business. Lady Li and her daughters discuss a counter-strategy, suggesting that Fu Hui ask Fan Lianghan to speak with Chai An, hoping that Pan Tavern will at least leave them some scraps. But Fu Hui is also worried about her own problems, mentioning that her mother-in-law has returned, blames her for Fan Lianghan's illness, scolds her severely, and wants to find a concubine for her son.
Lady Li is furious, believing the Fan family is bullying them, and wants to confront them. Shou Hua quickly calms her down, urging her not to stir up trouble. Fortunately, Kang Ning comes up with a clever plan to deal with both Chai and Fan families. First, she has Lady Li close the shop for two days. Then, she has Fu Hui pretend to be generous, allowing her husband to take a concubine, using the excuse that she needs time to find a suitable woman in the city. Chai An notices that Si Fu Zhai is closed and guesses the reason. De Qing reveals that the shop across the street seems to be under renovation, strangely converting the large open space into smaller rooms, which puzzles everyone. Meanwhile, Kang Ning visits Bianjing's famous shops, personally tasting their delicacies and instructing her maid, Chun Lai, to learn about the preferences of Bianjing's people, so they can cater to their tastes.
Just then, Fan Lianghan, claiming a matter of life and death, sends for Chai An. When Chai An arrives at the Fan residence, he discovers that the "life and death" matter is to help him choose a concubine. The three candidates are all from poor families, lacking Fu Hui's beauty and skills in singing or tea ceremony. Fan Lianghan shows little interest. Chai An glances behind a screen and realizes Kang Ning is there. He repeatedly warns Fan Lianghan that if he wants to live a long life, he should not take a concubine. Fan Lianghan, confused, follows Chai An to Pan Tavern, where he encounters Lady Zhen, a singing girl Kang Ning had arranged to be there. Fan Lianghan is instantly smitten with Lady Zhen, quickly discovers her identity, and decides to buy her as his concubine.
Hearing this, Chai An suspects something is amiss and fears trouble. He immediately sends someone to tell Fan Lianghan to give up the idea of taking Lady Zhen as a concubine. But Fan Lianghan ignores the warning, joyfully brings Lady Zhen home, and introduces her to his parents. Fan's mother tells Lady Zhen to serve tea to Fu Hui, stating that serving tea to the mistress is the ceremony, and from then on, she will be a member of the Fan family. Unexpectedly, Lady Zhen kneels down, tearfully recounting her life story and expressing gratitude to the Fan family for saving her. When Fan's father learns that Lady Zhen is the daughter of a scholar, his face darkens. He orders someone to bring silver and tells her to leave Bianjing and return to her hometown. When Chai An rushes to the Fan residence, he cries out that things are bad. He sees Fan's father about to punish Fan Lianghan, Fu Hui shielding her husband, and he himself trying to mediate, finally preventing a tragedy.
After this incident, Fan Lianghan seeks comfort in Fu Hui's arms, realizing that no outside woman compares to her, and vows never to take a concubine again. But Chai An sees Lady Zhen meeting privately with Kang Ning. He tries to question her, but Kang Ning seems prepared, and signals Chun Lai to block him. She then departs in a sedan, leaving behind two crab meat buns for him to sample. Soon, Si Fu Zhai reopens, and because of its unique atmosphere, complete with calligraphy, paintings, fragrant tea, and snacks, it becomes incredibly popular. Chai An comes to investigate and is furious to find that his own famous painting has been taken by Fan Lianghan to decorate the shop. He angrily reveals the truth about Lady Zhen to Fan Lianghan, who is finally enlightened and once again follows Chai An's lead.
