Episode Summary
A hidden map disguised as a family motto leads Luo Lingyu and Lu Yun to uncover a secret passage, potentially connected to Lu Yun's father's death and Bei Chu spies within their ranks. Meanwhile, romantic regrets resurface for Prince Changyi, and political intrigue deepens in Bei Chu.
Spoiler Alert
In Qingyuan, Prince Changyi presents Lu Yun with a list of suspects. Among them is Mr. Kong, who previously served in the Zhenbei camp and fought alongside Lu Yun's father. Mr. Kong's rise to prominence was largely due to Prince Hengyang's trust in him.
Meanwhile, in Bei Chu, a new emperor has ascended the throne. The formerly low-profile Third Prince has directly declared himself emperor, and he has a Southern Yue defector among his ranks. This secret order reaches Yue Prefecture, and Chen Xiang wonders about the identity of this Yue Prefecture traitor. That night, Chen Xiu sees a person dressed in black delivering a secret order to the mansion. She's surprised, having previously suspected that her husband was communicating with people from Bei Chu, and tonight's events seem to confirm her suspicions.
Prince Hengyang and Luo Lingyu once again try to play matchmaker for Prince Changyi. Seeing Zhou Yangling dressed in women's clothing, looking pure and delicate, Prince Changyi is both moved and saddened. He hadn't realized that Zhou Yangling was the person he had been engaged to. Thinking he had found someone else he loved, he didn't want to force the issue. Only after the engagement was called off did he discover that the person he admired was, in fact, Zhou Yangling. Now that the request to break off the engagement has been sent to the mansion, it's too late to change his mind. Prince Changyi laments that all he wants now is for Zhou Yangling to be happy.
Luo Lingyu, having heard that the Luo family had some property, finally received the Emperor's permission to retrieve it. She hired several carriages and went to the government office. The officials brought out the Luo family's property, and Luo Lingyu, accompanied by her sister, went to inspect it. To their surprise, it was just a wooden box. Lingxi suggested that perhaps their mother had been thoughtful and placed a lot of banknotes inside. Filled with renewed hope, Luo Lingyu opened the box, only to find a scroll with the words "Be Strong All Your Life" written on it.
Seeing the thin scroll, Luo Lingyu tried to appear strong, but back home, she couldn't hold back her tears and cried with her sister. Their tears fell on the scroll, and they noticed that the paper beneath the four characters seemed to reveal more writing. Luo Lingyu immediately wet the scroll evenly, and the scroll began to separate, revealing a hand-drawn map underneath. It appeared to be a treasure map, and Luo Lingyu and her sister were thrilled. However, their excitement turned to disappointment when they realized the location marked on the map was Jingyang, which was currently occupied by Bei Chu. They wondered when they would ever be able to reach it and retrieve the treasure, feeling it was just another unattainable dream.
That evening, Lu Yun brings a bag of silver to Luo Lingyu. Hearing that she only received a family motto, he guessed that Luo Lingyu must be upset. Luo Lingyu shows him her new discovery, and Lu Yun examines it closely. He's shocked to realize that it's not a treasure map at all; it seems to be a secret passage. Lu Yun immediately tells Luo Lingyu to invite Zhou Yangling tomorrow, while he will summon Prince Hengyang and Prince Changyi to discuss the matter at the inn.
Lu Yun shares their important discovery with Prince Hengyang. The secret passage map has a seal that Lu Yun made for his father when he was a child, clearly indicating it was made by his father before his death. Luo Lingyu's father, as the governor, fought bravely alongside Lu Yun's father and must have known some details, which is why he went to such lengths to hide the map in the family motto. Prince Hengyang finds it hard to believe, as Mr. Kong has been with him since he was young. However, Lu Yun has evidence: when Lu Yun's father discovered two Bei Chu spies in the army and was about to capture them, he was killed. Therefore, they must now find a way to confirm the identities of these two spies, one being Mr. Kong and the other being the garrison commander, Chen Hao.
