Episode Summary
Ye Ping’an confronts her traumatic past linked to Ruan Qin’s suicide while targeting aristocratic villain Li Zongxu, who branded Cai Lian. Using psychological manipulation and a risky infiltration of his ancestral hall, she uncovers evidence tying him to the Censor Case. Meanwhile, tensions escalate between lowborn official Yuan Shaocheng and the elitist Li clan, whose power play threatens both Mangou’s marginalized community and Mei faction allies.
Spoiler Alert
Ye Ping’an’s lifelong nightmares trace back to Ruan Qin, a tragic figure from her past. Years ago, Ruan Qin—a woman stripped of dignity after being lured into a wealthy estate and violated—was abandoned by her in-laws. Her grandmother took her to shaman Gu Erniang for spiritual cleansing, but before the ritual concluded, Ruan Qin leaped from a cliff. Young Ye Ping’an witnessed the suicide, an event that seared permanent trauma into her psyche and now fuels her relentless pursuit of justice.
The aristocratic Li Zongxu openly mocks Yuan Shaocheng, the lowborn Chief Minister of the Dali Temple from Mangou, dismissing him as a disposable pawn of the powerful Mei faction. Though Yuan holds a high-ranking title, he still rents a modest home in Yanqing Ward, a stark contrast to Li’s inherited wealth and influence. Li’s disdain deepens as Mangou’s waste collectors encroach on lucrative territories in wealthy districts like Langyang Commandery. After waste crew leader Xin Jun secures a turf war victory, Yuan’s ally Gu Wenyu recruits him for a clerical job. Yuan’s cautious brother Yuan Hesheng urges a background check, hinting at brewing tensions. Meanwhile, Yuan Shaocheng vows to dismantle Li’s elitist clan to uplift Mangou’s marginalized citizens—a mission complicated by Li’s latest power play.
Ye Ping’an reveals Li Zongxu as the man who branded Cai Lian with a torturous lotus mark. Exposing Li’s impotence-driven cruelty and his bimonthly pilgrimages to Wan’an Mountain, she orchestrates a psychological trap. With help from monk Liao Jing, the team manipulates Li into believing he’s cursed, exploiting his superstitious guilt. Under hypnotic trance via ritual bells, Li unwittingly divulges clues about his clan’s ancestral hall—a lead Ye Ping’an urgently pursues.
Sneaking into Langyang Commandery’s heavily guarded hall, Ye Ping’an discovers a hidden chamber devoid of Li’s mother’s memorial tablet. Inside, she uncovers a copper lotus brand matching Cai Lian’s scar and a damning scroll implicating Li in the Palace Censor. Though she replants evidence to avoid suspicion, the clock ticks as Li’s uncle, Chief Secretary Li Muyuan, schemes to sabotage Yuan Shaocheng by entrusting Li Zongxu with hosting a critical diplomatic banquet. With Mei faction allies and Mangou’s fate hanging in the balance, Ye Ping’an’s personal vendetta unknowingly aligns her with larger political warfare—but her recklessness risks exposing them all.
Themes: Trauma as a double-edged sword; systemic oppression vs. underdog defiance; the cost of vengeance in a corrupt hierarchy.
Symbolism: The lotus brand—a literal and metaphorical scar of exploitation; ancestral halls as vaults of hidden sins.
What’s next: Expect Yuan Shaocheng’s background checks on Xin Jun to unravel darker ties, while Li Muyuan’s banquet plot threatens to collapse the Mei faction’s tenuous authority.
