Episode Summary
Xiao Shuo is kidnapped, leading Yue Chi to seek Huo Jingheng's help. Huo Jingheng assists in the rescue, and Yue Chi explains his desire for Xiao Shuo to live a normal life, which Huo Jingheng seems to accept. The kidnapping was orchestrated by Yi Qingyun to create a rift between Huo Jingheng and Yue Chi and to test Jiang Yunqing, who foils his plan by helping with the rescue. Tensions rise between Huo Jingheng and Yue Chi due to misunderstandings, but they eventually reconcile. The Empress Dowager orchestrates a "confiscation" of concubines' winnings from a card game. Yi Qingyun attempts to sway Yue Chi with gifts, but Yue Chi plans to refuse them, and Huo Jingheng trusts Yue Chi to handle Yi Qingyun's manipulations. Yue Chi confronts Yi Qingyun about potentially rescuing the Man King.
Spoiler Alert
"A Prime Minister's Disguise" Episode 13 Recap & Spoilers
During a break, Xiao Shuo, armed with a slingshot, went to find Yue Chi. Unexpectedly, Huo Jingheng arrived and spotted Xiao Shuo. In a panic, Yue Chi urged Xiao Shuo to leave quickly. As Xiao Shuo fled, he accidentally dropped his slingshot. Yue Chi tried to stop Huo Jingheng, hoping to explain, but before he could speak, news arrived that Xiao Shuo had been abducted. The immediate priority was to find Xiao Shuo, and Yue Chi pleaded with Huo Jingheng for help. Huo Jingheng, ultimately soft-hearted, led a large group of men, along with Jiang Yunqing, to search for Xiao Shuo in the rain late at night. Jiang Yunqing knew Xiao Shuo's whereabouts and deliberately placed his dropped slingshot on the path to guide them. Eventually, Huo Jingheng found Xiao Shuo, cut the chains binding him, and carried him away on his back. Deeply moved, Yue Chi knelt before Huo Jingheng in front of everyone and explained the situation. He assured Huo Jingheng that Xiao Shuo had no intentions of trying to restore any former status and that he only wished for Xiao Shuo to grow up safely like an ordinary child. He hoped Huo Jingheng would act as if he had never seen Xiao Shuo. Hearing this, Huo Jingheng simply smiled, shook his head, and left.
After court, Yue Chi didn't go to see Huo Jingheng, which angered Huo Jingheng. In his frustration, he decided to visit his concubines, only to find they were not in their palaces; they were all gathered with Consort Yue, playing cards. With nowhere else to go, Huo Jingheng went to his mother, the Empress Dowager, to vent. Seeing her son's anger, the Empress Dowager was amused but also expressed her trust in Yue Chi, believing he must have his reasons for his actions.
Xiao Shuo's kidnapping was orchestrated by Yi Qingyun, who aimed to sow discord between Huo Jingheng and Yue Chi, and also to test Jiang Yunqing. When Jiang Yunqing led them to rescue Xiao Shuo, Yi Qingyun was furious because she had ruined his plan. When it was time for Jiang Yunqing to take her antidote, she begged Yi Qingyun, who eventually gave it to her. In truth, Yi Qingyun had long known that this Jiang Yunqing was not the real one; he was merely using her. However, by this point, Jiang Yunqing was no longer as blindly obedient to Yi Qingyun as before.
The Empress Dowager, feeling disgruntled from her previous card game losses, wanted an excuse to confiscate some of the concubines' winnings. Huo Jingheng, understanding his mother's intentions, played along to make her happy. They went to Fengluan Palace, and Huo Jingheng, citing that their gambling disrupted palace decorum, punished the concubines by ordering them to return to their chambers for self-reflection and confiscated all their gambling money. In reality, it all went to the Empress Dowager. However, the Empress Dowager favored Ling'er and allowed her to keep her things. Ling'er, aware of the recent tension between Huo Jingheng and Yue Chi, took the opportunity to cheer Huo Jingheng up, urging him to reconcile with Yue Chi quickly and not to deliberately avoid him. Huo Jingheng denied avoiding him, but Ling'er's words prompted him to immediately summon Yue Chi. Coincidentally, Yi Qingyun was seeking an audience at the palace gate. Knowing Yi Qingyun's visit was likely not for a good reason, Huo Jingheng had Eunuch Gui summon Yue Chi to Fengyuan Hall. When the three met, Yue Chi directly brought up the events of the day they were pursuing the Man King, stating he had seen Yi Qingyun that day and suspected him of rescuing the Man King, an accusation Yi Qingyun denied.
After Yi Qingyun left, Huo Jingheng and Yue Chi cleared up their misunderstandings, both affirming they would not betray each other. Yi Qingyun's visit was an attempt to win over Yue Chi, so he tried to appeal to Yue Chi's interests by sending him many old weapons and blades as gifts. Yue Chi could not accept them, but the messenger dared not directly refuse Yi Qingyun, so he asked Yue Chi to meet Yi Qingyun and refuse him in person. Huo Jingheng had people secretly monitoring Yi Qingyun. Although Yi Qingyun was trying to curry favor with Yue Chi, Huo Jingheng trusted Yue Chi to handle the situation appropriately.
