Episode Summary
Gu Pingyuan and the caravan survive a deadly swamp crossing, only to be betrayed by Han Long in Horqin. While Han Long tries to bury the caravan crew alive, Gu and Chang Yuer ride through a battlefield to seek help from the Prince. They are captured; Gu escapes prison during a plague outbreak, while Yuer is enslaved in the Prince's tent.
Spoiler Alert
Road Trip Blues and Rich Kid Problems
The caravan life isn't glamorous. Chang Si and his crew are hauling medicine to the Horqin Grassland, and it is brutal. They are camping out in the wild, and nobody is sleeping well. Gu Pingyuan is awake and brooding. He misses his mom back in Huizhou. He feels guilty that he can’t be there for her.
Chang Yuer tries to comfort him. It doesn't go well. Gu admits he plans to stay in Horqin. He thinks he is bad luck for the caravan. He wants to protect them by leaving. Yuer hates this idea. She clearly has feelings for him but can't say it out loud. She gets mad and storms off to her tent.
Back in Beijing, the drama is different. Su Zixuan wants Li Wantang to open a bank in Pingyao, Shanxi. It's for the revolutionary cause. Li Qin jumps at the chance. He heard Gu Pingyuan is in Pingyao. He survived Ningguta, and Li Qin wants to find him.
Li Wantang is hesitant. He takes his son to the family vault. It’s full of gold and that old ginseng root Li Qin bought. The old man gets cold feet. He wants Li Qin to stay safe in Beijing and run the local shops. He regrets ever letting Li Qin go to Ningguta in the first place. Li Qin isn't having it. He refuses to be a useless rich kid. He actually threatens suicide if his dad doesn't let him go. Li Wantang has no choice. He caves.
The Mud Pit from Hell
The caravan hits Black Water Swamp. This place is a death trap. One wrong step and you sink. Chang Si makes the guys walk in a line, tapping the ground with sticks. It’s slow going.
Disaster strikes anyway. A wagon sinks. They manage to cut the horse loose, but the medicine is gone. It gets worse. Yuer goes for a bathroom break and falls into the bog. She starts sinking fast. Chang Si tries to run to her, but the crew holds him back. They think it’s suicide.
Gu Pingyuan doesn't hesitate. He drops to the ground and rolls across the mud to distribute his weight. He grabs Yuer. Now they are both sinking. It looks like the end. They have a grim moment where they agree to die together. Chang Si finally manages to throw a rope tied to a rock. The crew hauls them both out. They survive, and Yuer is definitely looking at Gu differently now.
Meanwhile, the villain is making moves. Wang Tiangui’s butler tracks down General Xu in prison. He shows Xu a picture. Xu confirms it’s Gu Pingyuan. Xu is furious and wants revenge.
The Double Cross
The caravan finally reaches Horqin. The Prince is away fighting a war. A guy named Han Long is in charge. He is bad news. Chang Si wants payment for the drugs. Han Long stalls. He makes excuses. Gu Pingyuan smells a rat immediately. He suspects Han Long plans to kill them and keep the money.
Gu tells the crew to hide the rest of the medicine in the middle of the night. Good call. Han Long raids their camp with soldiers. He arrests Heizi and demands the drugs. He opens the boxes, but they are empty. Han Long loses it. He threatens to bury Chang Si alive.
Battlefield Run
Han Long actually digs a giant pit. He’s serious about this live burial thing. Gu and Yuer manage to steal two horses. They decide to ride straight to the front lines to find the Prince and report Han Long.
It is a terrible plan. They have to cut through an active battlefield. Bullets are flying. Explosions are everywhere. Gu’s horse trips. He’s on foot, dodging death. Yuer swings by on her horse and scoops him up. They ride toward the Prince’s camp together.
Back at the camp, Han Long pushes Chang Si and the crew into the pit. But then his men find the hidden medicine. Han Long is distracted. He starts filling the pit with dirt. Heizi and Chang Si manage to untie their ropes. They grab Han Long and drag him into the pit with them. It’s chaotic justice.
Captured Again
Gu and Yuer make it to the Prince's camp, but they don't get a warm welcome. Soldiers surround them. They are captured immediately.
Gu gets thrown in a cell. Yuer is dragged off to be a slave in the Prince's tent. Gu tries to escape his ropes. A fellow prisoner tells him to give up or he’ll die. Then, that same prisoner suddenly collapses from the plague. Panic erupts. The guards are distracted. Gu uses the chaos to break out.
The Prince isn't having a good day either. His general betrayed him. He lost the battle. He is complaining to the Queen when the West Mongol Little Khan shows up. Yuer is hiding in the corner, terrified.
