Episode Summary
Ling Er recovers from an injury with Huo Jingheng's help, deepening their bond, while the Empress Dowager actively tries to matchmake them. Consort Hui, initially punished for harming Ling Er, is spared further severe consequences, partly due to Ling Er's plea and Huo Jingheng's leniency. Consort Hui then surprisingly befriends Ling Er. Later, Consort Hui exposes Man Wang as a villain. Man Wang escapes custody with the aid of Yi Qingyun, the Crown Prince of Li Guo. Yue Chi pursues them but is ambushed and injured.
Spoiler Alert
A Prime Minister's Disguise: Episode 10 Recap & Spoilers
In this episode, Ling Er is nursing an injured hand from her fall into the water, a secret she keeps from both the Emperor and her older brother to spare them any worry. While Xiao Yue tends to her wound, Huo Jingheng arrives and personally applies medicine to Ling Er’s injury. The tender moment underscores their growing closeness and the increasingly ambiguous nature of their relationship. Meanwhile, Consort Hui faces severe consequences for her role in Ling Er’s accident; the Emperor has ordered her palace gates sealed, a punishment tantamount to being confined to the "cold palace" and stripped of her imperial favor.
The Empress Dowager, ever the eager matchmaker, continues her efforts to bring Huo Jingheng and Ling Er together. Her initial thought was to enlist the "experienced" Du Tianzhao to guide Huo Jingheng in matters of romance. However, Du Tianzhao, shrewdly guessing Huo Jingheng’s affections for Ling Er, cleverly avoids giving any actual advice. Undeterred, the Empress Dowager orchestrates a meeting for the pair at her private medicinal pool, located in a restricted area of the palace. The charged atmosphere makes both Huo Jingheng and Ling Er feel self-conscious, and they mutually decide to forgo the bath and leave. As they depart, Huo Jingheng spots something on a nearby screen. Mistaking it for a hidden weapon, he instinctively pulls Ling Er into a protective embrace, their hearts pounding in unison as they hold each other close. Secretly observing them, the Empress Dowager is ecstatic, more convinced than ever that her son has fallen for Ling Er and resolute in her determination to see them wed. It seems a mother truly does know her son best.
Confined and despondent, Consort Hui is overwhelmed by her desire for revenge and her unwilling subservience to the manipulative Man Wang, feeling trapped and unable to live a normal life. Believing her chances for vengeance are lost, she resolves to take her own life. Fortunately, Jieyu Zhao and another consort arrive just in time to save her. They implore Consort Hui to remember the familial bond they've formed over their two years in the palace and sternly admonish her for succumbing to despair. Simultaneously, Ling Er pleads with Huo Jingheng to show leniency towards Consort Hui. It’s only later that Ling Er discovers Huo Jingheng never actually intended to have Consort Hui executed.
Shortly after, Wei Zhang reports Consort Hui's suicide attempt. Huo Jingheng, accompanied by two companions, rushes to her quarters. Finding Consort Hui shaken but unharmed, Huo Jingheng allows Yue Chi to speak with her privately. Consort Hui expresses gratitude for their intercession but firmly tells Yue Chi that she can never consider herself part of his family. In an unexpected turn of events following this ordeal, Ling Er and Consort Hui forge an unlikely friendship, even becoming regular card-playing partners.
Consort Hui then makes a pivotal decision: she voluntarily exposes Man Wang as the true mastermind behind her schemes, providing details of his numerous nefarious deeds. Huo Jingheng, his patience exhausted, orders Yue Chi to arrest Man Wang. Yue Chi reveals he had already been monitoring Man Wang and, in fact, had just taken him into custody. However, the words are barely spoken when Wei Zhang bursts in with urgent news: Man Wang has escaped, aided by an unknown accomplice. Yue Chi immediately volunteers to lead the pursuit.
It’s revealed that Man Wang’s rescuer is Yi Qingyun, the Crown Prince of the rival Li Guo, who is looking to forge an alliance with Man Wang. As Yue Chi gives chase, he is ambushed. Thanks to his exceptional martial arts skills, he manages to fight off his attackers. Pressing on, Yue Chi eventually catches up to Yi Qingyun's carriage and manages to see the Crown Prince's face, only to be wounded by a treacherous arrow from a hidden assailant.
