Episode Summary
The Emperor's suspicion of the Li family grows, leading to her father's demotion. While hiding in a village, Jin An's mysterious illness worsens, revealing a need for blood. Li Shuang, facing pressure from her own army, stages a trap with a fake military map to expose remaining enemies. Jin An, believing her to be in real danger, rushes to her aid and is gravely wounded. While he is unconscious, Li Shuang discovers that her blood is the cure for his pain, letting him feed from her.
Spoiler Alert
The Walls Close In
Trouble in the Capital
So, the spy is dead. You'd think that would be the end of it. But it's not. Su Muli stands up in court and basically calls the whole thing a sham. He suggests Li Shuang used the situation to her advantage. Her brother, Su Muyang, tries to defend the Li family. That was a mistake. Su Muli immediately drops a bomb. He tells the Emperor that Li Ting left the capital in Su Muyang's personal carriage. This changes everything for the Emperor. He demotes Li Shuang's father, Li Wei. He also orders the investigation into the spy to continue. The Li family is definitely not out of the woods.
A Simple Life Isn't So Simple
Back in the village, Jin An is trying his best. He makes a beautiful flower bed for Li Shuang to sleep on. He even builds a little bed for himself right next to it. He works hard for a local woman, plowing her field just to get some wine for Li Shuang. She's touched by the gesture. She's so touched, in fact, that she drinks all of it in one night. Jin An had planned for that wine to last her for days.
After Li Shuang is asleep, Jin An's pain comes back. It's bad. He figures out what he might really need is blood. He makes a desperate move and goes for the chicken coop. It's a total disaster. The chickens go wild, and the noise brings the woman he helped earlier running. She finds Jin An with blood on his mouth and freaks out. She drags him to Li Shuang, telling her not to get mixed up with a crazy person. When Li Shuang asks him what he was doing, Jin An just says he was hungry.
Li Shuang is dealing with her own stuff. She brought grain to the villagers. They see her as a hero. But she knows she's the reason their lives were ruined in the first place. The guilt is eating her up. Jin An finds her hiding and comforts her. They watch a shooting star together. Li Shuang wishes for peace and an end to all wars. Jin An is still in pain, but he won't do anything to hurt her. He just wants to stay by her side.
A Test of Loyalty
A Hard Choice
Li Shuang gets a message from the capital when she returns to her army. The news is not good. Her own men tell her to give up Jin An. They believe it's the only way to save her family and the army. She just can't do it.
Later, she finds a bored Jin An at the camp. Out of nowhere, she asks him if he would be willing to die for her. She immediately plays it off as a joke and pours them both a drink. Then she gives him a bag of money. She tells him to leave Lu City and make a life for himself. She says he can't stay at her mansion, and he can't return to the army. Jin An refuses. He tells her he can't live without her. But her mind is made up. She's a general giving an order. He has no choice but to leave.
The Ultimate Sacrifice
Li Shuang knows Jin An saved her and her brother. She doesn't want him to die. She understands the real problem is the Emperor's fear of her family's power. Sending Jin An away was actually to protect him. There is a major plan going down at her mansion that night.
Of course, Jin An can't stay away. He's too worried, so he sneaks back. He finds spies breaking in to steal a military deployment map. This was all part of the plan. Li Shuang needs the spies to believe the map is real. She intentionally gets "injured" to sell the story. But she didn't count on Jin An. He smells her blood, loses control, and rushes in to protect her. He gets stabbed and seriously wounded. He told her he would die for her. He meant it. We learn the entire attack was a setup. The map was bait to catch the last of Huo Du's followers.
A Dangerous Cure
Jin An is unconscious from his injuries. Lu Xin points out that even if they don't know who he is, taking a knife for Li Shuang should prove his loyalty. While asleep, Jin An starts mumbling about needing blood. Lu Xin leaves to look through some medical books. She also leaves ointment for the wound on Li Shuang's neck.
Then it happens. Jin An suddenly lunges and bites Li Shuang's neck. He immediately calms down. After a moment, Li Shuang just lets him do it. She lets him drink her blood.
The next morning, Li Shuang wakes up with a terrible headache. Jin An, on the other hand, wakes up feeling fantastic. All his pain is gone. He finally understands. Li Shuang is his cure. When she comes to change his bandages, he panics. He's afraid she'll see how fast he's healing and get rid of him. He looks at her neck and sees the bite mark is much worse.
