Episode Summary
Wei Yan continues his unsettling advances towards Xiao Qiao, who cleverly tries to gauge his intentions through Wei Shao. Wei Shao, initially jealous of Wei Yan's perceived smoothness with women, is manipulated by Wei Yan into helping him "find" a woman (secretly Xiao Qiao) through a portrait. Wei Yan orchestrates a situation to make Xiao Qiao believe Wei Shao was at a brothel, leading to a confrontation where they both present evidence – the portrait and a jade pendant Wei Yan stole from Wei Shao and sent to Xiao Qiao. Wei Shao attempts to clear the air by formally introducing Xiao Qiao to Wei Yan, but Wei Yan continues his scheming, even trying to turn Wei Shao against Xiao Qiao by questioning her loyalty. Meanwhile, a drought in Rong Commandery creates political pressure for Wei Shao. Xiao Qiao proposes extending the Yongning Canal as a solution, which Wei Shao suspects is partly a move to aid her home state. Wei Yan further tries to sow discord by highlighting Xiao Qiao's letters to Yanzhou, but Wei Shao reveals he's aware of their innocent content. The episode ends with Wei Yan cornering Xiao Qiao as she prepares for Lady Xu's birthday.
Spoiler Alert
So, things kicked off with Wei Yan being his usual charmingly creepy self. He basically told Xiao Qiao he wanted to see how she and her "sister" (likely referring to her general demeanor or a companion) would react to his advances, then actually tried to get handsy with Xiao Qiao. She dodged him, and he just smirked and strolled off. Ugh, that guy.
Xiao Tao, bless her loyal heart, immediately wanted to tell Wei Shao what went down. But Chun Niang and Xiao Qiao were hesitant, worried it would look like they were trying to stir up trouble between the brothers. It’s a classic C-drama pickle!
Meanwhile, Wei Shao, bless his clueless heart, had spent all night at a jade shop getting a bracelet fixed for Xiao Qiao, hoping for a sweet surprise. Plot twist: Xiao Qiao had already "found" her bracelet – the one Wei Yan conveniently "helped" her find earlier (because, you know, he orchestrated its disappearance in the first place). Xiao Qiao, playing it smart, told Wei Shao that Wei Yan was the one who located the missing bracelet. She was clearly trying to get a read on Wei Yan through Wei Shao’s reaction. Instead of giving her the newly fixed bracelet, Wei Shao got a little green-eyed, admitting to himself that he’s not as smooth with the ladies as his brother. You think, Wei Shao?
Later that night, Wei Shao tracked Wei Yan down to a brothel – a place Wei Shao clearly despises. Wei Yan, surrounded by women, made Wei Shao come up to him. Wei Shao, annoyed, shooed the girls away and called Wei Yan out for picking such a classy meeting spot. Wei Yan then got all serious, begging Wei Shao for help. He claimed he’d met a woman he was smitten with and wanted Wei Shao’s assistance in finding her, saying it would help him settle down.
Wei Yan confessed he’d seen this "madam" (implying a married woman). Wei Shao was not impressed, obviously annoyed that Wei Yan would go after someone else's wife. Wei Yan then whined that Wei Shao wasn't genuinely trying to help. To appease him, Wei Shao asked for a description, and Wei Yan handed over a portrait. As Wei Shao was leaving, he vowed to find the woman – but only to warn her to stay far away from Wei Yan. Burn!
As Wei Shao turned to go, Wei Yan, under the guise of playful roughhousing, snatched a jade pendant from Wei Shao's belt. He then had one of the brothel girls deliver it to Xiao Qiao. Smooth, Wei Yan, real smooth (not). Once everyone cleared out, a guard appeared, reminding Wei Yan of his actual mission from some dude named Chen Pang. Wei Yan dropped the act, admitting his supposed infatuation with Xiao Qiao was just a ploy. The plot thickens!
Wei Shao, none the wiser about the stolen pendant, gave the portrait to Wei Liang, instructing him to find the woman and tell her to steer clear of Wei Yan. Then, Wei Shao realized his pendant was missing and ordered a search, trying to keep it on the down-low from Xiao Qiao. Too late, buddy, that ship has sailed, and the pendant is already with your wife.
A search party went out with the portrait, but it only showed a side profile of a woman holding an orchid. In a moment of mistaken identity, Wei Liang even thought a random woman on the street was Xiao Tao.
Speaking of Xiao Tao, she noticed Wei Shao's clothes reeked of booze and perfume – brothel vibes, for sure. As she was about to report this to Xiao Qiao, Wei Liang intercepted her. Still thinking the portrait was of Xiao Tao, he warned her to avoid Wei Yan and showed her the painting. Xiao Tao took one look and was like, "Dude, that's not me, that's Xiao Qiao." Wei Liang was relieved it wasn't Xiao Tao, but Wei Qu (another Wei family member, it seems) pointed out this was even worse news: Wei Yan had his sights set on Xiao Qiao.
Chun Niang was trying to convince Xiao Qiao to clear the air with Wei Shao when he showed up, portrait in hand. Xiao Tao and the others made themselves scarce. Xiao Qiao, still fuming, saw Wei Shao toss the portrait on the table, and she retaliated by throwing the jade pendant down too. Mic drop! Wei Shao quickly tried to explain that he wasn't with any women at the brothel. He then said he wanted to hear Xiao Qiao's side, believing that while Wei Yan might be tactless, he wouldn't actually make a move on his brother's wife. (Oh, Wei Shao, you sweet summer child). He decided they’d all meet the next day to clear things up, and then the matter would be dropped.
The next day, Wei Shao arranged a meeting at Lady Xu's place and formally introduced Xiao Qiao to Wei Yan. Wei Yan, bold as ever, complimented Xiao Qiao's beauty. Wei Shao, to his credit, instinctively stepped in front of Xiao Qiao. Wei Yan, however, didn't push it further and went to see Lady Xu.
Later, Wei Shao visited Wei Yan's place and met a woman named Lan Yun, who he thought bore a resemblance to Xiao Qiao. Wei Yan brushed it off, accusing Wei Shao of seeing Xiao Qiao in everyone and, get this, warned Wei Shao to be wary of Xiao Qiao. Wei Shao recounted his own positive experiences with Xiao Qiao, affirming his deep trust in her and reminding Wei Yan that they were married and he should treat family well. He returned the portrait, saying he couldn't find the woman. After Wei Shao left, Wei Yan took out the portrait (presumably of Xiao Qiao) and studied it, while Lan Yun reappeared behind him, smiling enigmatically. This Lan Yun is suspicious!
On a completely different note, Xiao Tan successfully oversaw the completion of the Yongning Canal, and water came rushing through. But then, bad news: Rong Commandery was hit by a drought. The local prefect appealed to Wei Shao for help. Unfortunately, it was a bad harvest year nationwide, making aid difficult. Grain hoarding was rampant, prices were high, and no region had surplus to spare, especially since Wei Dian (another Wei, likely a stubborn one) was refusing to release any grain. Wei Shao was, understandably, stressed.
Xiao Qiao, seeing his distress, offered to listen, thinking she might be able to help. Wei Shao, however, shut down any talk of politics. Undeterred, Xiao Qiao suggested that to truly solve Rong Commandery's drought, they needed to extend the Yongning Canal further south. This, she argued, would benefit the people of Rong Commandery and be a lasting achievement for the Wei state. Wei Shao didn't immediately agree, suspecting her true motive was to buy more breathing room for her home state of Yanzhou, as canal construction would divert resources and attention. Smart lady, that Xiao Qiao.
Later, Xiao Qiao was in the study looking up "Records of Rong Commandery" when Wei Yan conveniently showed up. He called her out for being in the study while Wei Shao was away. Xiao Qiao explained Wei Shao had given her permission. Wei Yan, ever the pot-stirrer, brought up the feud between their families, trying to make Xiao Qiao doubt if the Wei family would ever truly trust her.
Predictably, Wei Yan then went to Wei Shao, offering to procure grain. But in the same breath, he tried to undermine Xiao Qiao again, mentioning he knew she’d been writing letters back to Yanzhou, implying she might be passing intelligence. Wei Shao surprised him by revealing he’d already read the letters. Turns out, Xiao Qiao was genuinely concerned about the drought in Rong Commandery and was even researching drought-resistant crops. Wei Yan was taken aback that Wei Shao would read his wife's mail. Wei Shao’s response? He trusts Xiao Qiao, but they aren't just husband and wife; he's also the ruler of the Wei state. Fair enough.
The episode ended with Xiao Qiao writing congratulatory remarks for Lady Xu's birthday feast. She ran out of ink, and just then, Wei Yan appeared again. He complimented her calligraphy, saying it was as beautiful as she was (lay it on thick, why don't you?). Xiao Qiao, clearly uncomfortable, respectfully backed away and tried to excuse herself to get more ink, but Wei Yan stepped forward, blocking her path. Cliffhanger! That man just doesn't quit.
