Episode Summary
Huo Jingheng initiates a plan to reduce the power of the vassal lords by feigning anger in court, prompting Du Tianzhao to suggest the measure. Though Ouyang Wenming objects, Huo Jingheng uses the situation to pressure Yue Chi (disguised as a consort) into devising a strategy. Yue Chi proposes establishing Rongying Academy in the capital to entice the lords' sons with promises of power and luxury, thereby weakening their fathers' influence. Huo Jingheng agrees and puts Yue Chi in charge of the academy's construction. The plan succeeds in making the young lords content in the capital. Later, Huo Jingheng visits Yue Chi, revealing he intentionally spared Yue Chi's life in a past battle and confiding his reluctant path to becoming emperor, driven by a desire to care for his people.
Spoiler Alert
"A Prime Minister's Disguise" Episode 4 Recap & Spoilers
Huo Jingheng is determined to curb the influence of the vassal lords, but he knows he must tread carefully. He devises a plan, preparing numerous memorials detailing how the lords have been arbitrarily increasing taxes. Then, during a court session, he feigns a rage. Seizing the moment, Du Tianzhao proposes the strategy of reducing the lords' power. However, Ouyang Wenming voices strong opposition, arguing that such an act would be unjust, as the Da Ning Dynasty was established through the collective efforts of Huo Jingheng and these very same vassal lords. Having gauged the court's sentiments, Huo Jingheng decides to temporarily set the matter aside. Yue Chi, who has been eavesdropping, recognized from the memorials that this was a deliberate ploy by Huo Jingheng, and the court's proceedings confirm his suspicions.
Aware that Yue Chi was listening, Huo Jingheng had intentionally raised his voice. He decides it's time to stop waiting and actively pressure Yue Chi into assisting with the plan to consolidate power. Huo Jingheng confronts Du Tianzhao, forcing him to admit that Yue Chi had been helping him review the court memorials. Feigning great anger, Huo Jingheng drags Du Tianzhao to Fengluan Palace for a direct confrontation with Yue Chi.
Yue Chi manages to rush back to the palace just in time. Du Tianzhao is extremely nervous, worried that his association with Yue Chi (who is currently disguised as the Emperor's favored consort) will be misconstrued. Huo Jingheng, however, isn't concerned about any supposed romantic jealousy; after all, he is fully aware that his "beloved consort" is actually Yue Chi. Huo Jingheng's true purpose for the visit is to compel Yue Chi to devise a strategy for dealing with the vassal lords. Though reluctant to get involved, Yue Chi ultimately agrees, partly to prove his own innocence and partly for the sake of Ling'er.
After leaving Fengluan Palace, Du Tianzhao questions Huo Jingheng, asking if this had been his plan all along and voicing his suspicion that Huo Jingheng might know Yue Chi's true identity. Huo Jingheng denies this, offering a fabricated explanation: he merely believed that Ling'er, having grown up alongside Yue Chi, would have naturally been influenced by him (implying Yue Chi's intellect, not his secret). True to form, Yue Chi conceives a plan overnight. The following day, he meets with Huo Jingheng and Du Tianzhao to discuss his proposal.
Yue Chi explains that since the positions of the vassal lords are hereditary, traditionally passing to the eldest son of the primary wife, Huo Jingheng could issue a decree to implement a selection process for these heirs. This would open the opportunity to all children of the vassal lords. Yue Chi suggests bringing these potential heirs to the imperial capital and establishing the "Rongying Academy." At the academy, the young lords would be treated lavishly. Those who successfully pass the selection process would then be granted their own territories to govern, effectively giving them a share of the power and weakening the established lords. Initially, Huo Jingheng hesitates, concerned that the plan might be harmful. When Yue Chi presses him to specify what harm he foresees, Huo Jingheng finds himself convinced by Yue Chi's reasoning and gives his tacit approval. As the architect of the plan, Yue Chi is put in charge of overseeing the construction of Rongying Academy.
Once Rongying Academy is completed, numerous young lords are invited to the palace. They are delighted upon hearing the conditions and opportunities offered by the academy. With this, Huo Jingheng achieves his objective: to make them so content in the capital that they lose any desire to return to their provincial fiefdoms – a state of being "too happy to think of home."
With the Rongying Academy successfully established, Huo Jingheng visits Yue Chi at Fengluan Palace with wine to celebrate. During their conversation, Huo Jingheng deliberately reveals a past secret: on the battlefield, he had intentionally aimed his arrow to miss Yue Chi and had only used a fraction of his strength, expressing mock surprise that Yue Chi had "died" from such a blow. The two also reflect on the burdens of emperorship. Huo Jingheng confesses his longing for a life of freedom, a desire to be a wandering hero. However, he explains that witnessing the suffering of the common people, their hunger and cold, compelled him to take the throne. His sole motivation for being emperor, he states, is to ensure his people are well-fed and clothed.
