episode 24 spoilers ahead

24/96!

--IN WHICH XU HUI SETS TRAPS--

1.Xu Hui discusses the strange incident with Xiao Q seeming to want to mend the rift. Xu Hui only tells her that she went to visit her and became angry, and feels guilty for ruining the chance. She carefully words everything, appealing to Menieng's desire to actively help, and Menieng falls for it: she volunteers to deliver food to Xiao Q and help mend the situation. She doesn't know that this food may contain the necessary goods to induce a miscarriage.

2.Meanwhile, Prince Wei is irritated that his plan to use Chengxin has flopped now that he is dead--he wanted to kidnap his mother and blackmail Chengxin. But he has a back up, because he has learned that Chengxin is not actually dead...He has a letter sent to the Crown Princess, and orders that it be delivered anonymously.

3.Meanwhile, Crown Princess is going through Chengxin's things because she wants to know how he managed to obtain her husband's attention (she is fixated on her husband but I think she truly loves him; she tolerated Chengxin when she thought he might help the prince). She receives the mysterious letter and is shocked to learn that Chengxin is alive on Mount Mong (I won't lie, I thought maybe that Prince Wei hired an impersonator, but it's true) The crown princess arrives and sees both Chengxin and the prince there, meaning the crown prince has lied to the Emperor for this man. She leaves. So she doesn't hear the Crown Prince talking to Chengxin, who will shortly leave for Mongolia and live quietly....The crown prince should not have hesitated but immediately sent him away...

4.Menieng visits Xiao Q who is with Consort Wei. Xiao Q manages to steal a satchet without anyone noticing. I don't think she should trust Xu Hui; I know she is desperate but Xu Hui could easily kill two birds with one stone and make it look like Menieng was helping her miscarry.

5.Xu Hui continues to wreak havoc, and it is so easy for her because she has a pristine reputation. She is able to convince the princess, who came to speak to Menieng, to talk to her. Xu Hui learns that Chengxin is alive, and she plots. She tells the princess that they can help the crown prince by having Chengxin killed. She encourages her to see Honorable Wei, since she knows his schedule, she knows exactly where she can meet him clandestinely...

6.Next, Xu Hui meets with Menieng, tells her what the crown princess tells her, and tells her where the emperor will be to help divert attention, but she basically does that to get her out of the way. As she leaves Xu Hui coldly whispers that it is her fault for siding with Menieng (sums it up perfectly)Meanwhile, Xu Hui sees the emperor, suggests they go to the gardens, and he just happens to see and overhear the conversation between Crown Princess and Honorable Wei: he hears her tell Wei that Chengxin is alive, and first Wei does not believe her, but then he does and he says he will take care of it...The emperor is ANGRY

7.Afterwards, Xu Hui encounters Menieng and plays the dumb card and talks about how upset she is that she messed everything up but Menieng tells her not to worry about it...

8.Meanwhile, the Crown Prince is with Chengxin. He reveals that the reason he has been so attached to him because he resembles a cousin he cared for deeply, Chengxun (I know, of all the names). He shares that all of his friends, everyone he cared for, were guarding Xiaongu Gate and were killed by his father. he says he wants to see at least one friend survive.

9.Chengxin goes into the woods and he runs into....the Emperor! The emperor accuses him of being the worse for manipulating his son into lying to him. Chengxin says they are merely good friends, he tells him this is his fault and that the crown prince is innocent. The emperor hesitates, especially when he hears that his son is attached to him because he resembles Chengxun. The crown princes comes outside, and Chengxin yells at him to turn around and run, but he does not and he sees his father behead him (OMG!) and the prince is so upset he pulls a sword on the emperor and tries to kill him (OMG!) But the emperor gets through his rage when he basically calls him crazy for trying to kill him over a valet. The crown prince is arrested....

10.That night Prince Wei burns paper for the people he has killed (so this is called Joss paper burning, usually done in veneration of the deceased, typically you burn like money to help the dead have a life of luxury or shorter stay in hell)(I am somehow cynical that he possesses guilt over his actions) He assesses the situation and states they have about a 70%chance of seeing the prince deposed.

11.Consort Wei is strangely vulnerable around him, ruefully asking if they will ever finish scheming but he is reassuring to her (are these two lovers? if she is to be empress wouldn't that mean he plans to marry her?) (they are also strangely vulnerable and we see that circumstance and fate seemed to make them into these ruthless people: he lost his mother because of scheming and she lost the ability to have children. the two were taught very bitter lessons early on that no one is to be trusted and you can only survive by eliminating everyone else)

12.Prince Wei reassures her that the emperor would not let sentiment get in the way of reason. he also suggests that she take the opportunity to take out Menieng at the same time she disposes of Xiao Q...

---I have mixed feelings. The emperor almost did his son a favor by being the one to kill Chengxin, that way he did not have to do it. But he is also a hypocrite, in my book. In addition to this, Crown Prince really continues to demonstrate that he would not be the best emperor if only because he cannot handle criticism or injustice--he rails against the plots against him without understanding that this is the reality of being emperor and he needs to get better at the game if he wants to survive--

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