Episode Summary
In Episode 5, the powerful Right Chancellor executes his opponent's agent, Song Wuji, in the capital to suppress evidence of his corruption. Meanwhile, in Lingnan, Li Shande's mission to transport fresh lychees stalls when he refuses to deceive local merchants into funding the impossible task. Desperate, he sells a valuable travel pass to a merchant, Su Liang, for a large sum. Instead of fleeing, Li Shande decides to see the mission through and, seeking to buy lychees, finds himself in an orchard where he uses his horticultural knowledge to help the local farmers, led by A'Tong, solve a pest problem.
Spoiler Alert
The Litchi Road Episode 5 Recap: A Desperate Bargain
This Episode, the intricate web of political power plays in Chang'an tightens, leading to a brutal public display of authority. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away in Lingnan, Li Shande’s impossible mission forces him to choose between his conscience and his life.
A Bloody Message in the Capital
The episode opens with the grim reality of the Right Chancellor's dominance. His corruption and abuse of power have left the imperial court paralyzed with fear. In a bold move, the Left Chancellor dispatches his agent, Song Wuji, to the southern region of Lingnan to uncover evidence of the Right Chancellor's collusion with a local official, He Youguang.
Song Wuji succeeds in his mission and returns to the capital, Chang'an, with damning proof. However, the Right Chancellor's network is vast. Song Wuji is immediately apprehended. In a final, defiant act, he publicly denounces the Chancellor's extensive crimes before a stunned crowd. Enraged, the Right Chancellor orders Song Wuji's immediate execution on the street, a brutal and public warning to all who would dare oppose him.
The Chancellor's paranoia doesn't end there. He dispatches his subordinate, Lu Huan, to interrogate Song Wuji's servants, desperate to know the full extent of the information that was uncovered. When they reveal nothing, the Chancellor has Song Wuji's trusted attendant tortured, threatening his family to extract information. The attendant breaks, but only reveals that Song Wuji was investigating the destroyed "Whale-Riding Tower" . The Chancellor, however, knows there's more. He is aware that He Youguang plans to use a military fish tokento mobilize the Gaozhou navy, effectively turning Lingnan into his private domain. He sends a messenger south to warn his own operative, Ma Guiyun. Unbeknownst to him, Lu Huan, who is secretly working against him, learns of this and remains confident that his own man in Lingnan, Zheng Ping'an, can handle the situation.
A Crisis of Conscience
Down in Lingnan, Li Shande is running out of options. Tasked with the impossible mission of transporting fresh lychees to the capital, he first seeks financial help from He Youguang, who flatly refuses and pleads poverty.
His companion, the resourceful Zheng Ping'an, devises a new plan. He gathers the region's foreign merchants (the Hu Shang) and, with a silver tongue, pitches the lychee delivery as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gain imperial favor. He promises them fame and fortune if they fund the endeavor. The merchants are captivated and eagerly offer their support.
Li Shande, however, is tormented by guilt. He was tricked into this suicide mission himself and cannot bear to see these merchants similarly deceived.He interrupts Zheng Ping'an's pitch, bluntly telling the merchants the truth: the Emperor demands the lychees arrive fresh, a feat they know is impossible over the vast distance to Chang'an. Panic ensues, and the merchants flee, taking their money with them.
Zheng Ping'an is livid. He screams at Li Shande, reminding him what's at stake: not just his own life, but the fate of his daughter, Xiu'er, who will be sold into slavery if he fails. But Li Shande, though terrified, refuses to be a con man.
A Glimmer of Hope
Desperate, Li Shande throws himself into finding a way to preserve the fruit, but every attempt fails. Just as he hits rock bottom, a Hu merchant named Su Liang appears. He offers Li Shande two large pearls as a gift and makes him an offer: he will lend Li Shande all the money he needs. In exchange, he wants the blank five-prefecture travel pass Li Shande possesses, a document that would grant him unrestricted trade access in Lingnan. Li Shande, seeing a way out, asks for over 700 guan; Su Liang gives him 990.
Zheng Ping'an urges Li Shande to take the money and run back to Chang'an to save himself and his daughter. After all, he has now illegally sold a government document on top of failing his mission. But something in Li Shande has shifted. He can't accept defeat, especially when he has yet to even see a lychee tree with his own eyes.
Resigned, Zheng Ping'an arranges for his departure, and the two men share a heartfelt, poetic farewell. As Li Shande's convoy waits in the long line to leave the city, he decides he wants to at least bring some lychees back for Xiu'er. He remembers a girl, A'Tong, who sold the fruit, and pays a local to guide him to her family's orchard.
For the first time, Li Shande stands in a lychee grove, completely mesmerized. His awe is cut short when the local farmers mistake him for a thief and tie him up. Their hatred for officials is palpable. But Li Shande, an expert in horticulture, notices they are struggling with a foul-smelling pest. He instructs them on how to create a pesticide from mint leaves and soap pods. The remedy works miracles, and the grateful farmers release him just as their leader, A'Tong, returns. Seizing his chance, Li Shande makes his request: he needs to buy some of her lychees to take back to Chang'an.
