Episode Summary
He Weifang escapes an ambush only to be stunningly reunited with Jiang Changyang, who she believed was dead. He reveals he survived King Ning's assassination attempt and has been secretly orchestrating rebellions to undermine the usurper's power. As King Ning is forced to lead an army to quell the unrest, Jiang Changyang prepares to face him in battle.
Spoiler Alert
In the Name of Blossom: Episode 22 Spoilers - He's Alive!
The story continues with He Weifang leading her fleet south. While walking down a street with her attendant, Chuan Yu, a thief suddenly snatches the sentimental love sachet from her waist. Weifang immediately sends Chuan Yu in pursuit. But it’s a trap. The moment Chuan Yu is gone, three brutish men from Zhang County corner Weifang, demanding she hand over some kind of evidence. Thinking fast, Weifang makes an excuse and seizes a moment of inattention to flee.
During her time apart from Jiang Changyang, Weifang has learned to be resourceful. Realizing Chuan Yu was deliberately lured away, she knows she's on her own. She puts her new skills to the test, scrambling over walls and dashing across rooftops. She uses a bamboo pole to trip up her pursuers and a slingshot to create a diversion, using every object at her disposal to aid her escape. Just as she’s about to break free, an arm grabs her. Weifang spins around, ready to strike, but stops dead when she hears a voice she thought she’d never hear again—it’s Jiang Changyang!
Staring in disbelief, she sees the man she has been dreaming of. He looks the same, his voice is the same, and he is real and tangible. Overcome with emotion, He Weifang bursts into tears of joy. Jiang Changyang is alive.
Jiang Changyang explains everything. King Ning had intentionally stabbed him in a non-lethal spot, aiming to keep him alive to expose the Emperor's network of loyalists. After he regained consciousness, King Ning subjected him to brutal torture, trying to force him to write down the complete list of the Emperor's undercover agents. However, Jiang Changyang played along, pretending to cooperate while secretly using King Ning's own channels to send a signal to his allies, warning them to go into deep hiding until they received a new call to action.
He takes Weifang to his current hideout. She clings to his arm, unable to stop smiling up at him, cherishing the moment she thought was lost forever. Knowing the suffering he must have endured, she insists he remove his shirt. Her heart breaks as she sees his upper body covered in scars from the torture, and she weeps for his pain.
After his narrow escape, Jiang Changyang cleverly deployed numerous body doubles across different locations to throw King Ning off his trail. Weifang, in turn, gives him all the supplies she had gathered over the years to fund the Hedong Army, empowering him to continue his mission. Using these resources, Jiang Changyang begins to instigate a series of local uprisings. The resulting instability across the kingdom prevents King Ning from focusing on his plot to usurp the throne, even though his custom-made imperial robes are ready. With rebellions flaring up everywhere, King Ning has no choice but to go to the Emperor and request to personally lead the army to crush the insurrections. The Emperor, fully aware of King Ning's ambition but powerless with the military in his rival's hands, is forced to agree, becoming a puppet in his own court.
As King Ning prepares to march out with Liu Chang, Jiang Changyang dons his own armor, ready to lead his forces onto the battlefield for a direct confrontation.
