Blossom Episode 30 Recap
> Blossom Recap
Su Yan noticed a silver hairpin in Dou Zhao's hair when at the temple. She followed Dou Zhao on the street, suddenly appeared, and took the hairpin. Excitedly, Su Yan asked about its origins. Dou Zhao truthfully explained that it was a gift from a mother she rescued, along with her child, during a campaign to eliminate bandits.
Su Yan, anxious to visit the mother and child, took out her own matching hairpin, proving that the mother and child were, in fact, her own mother and younger brother. Dou Zhao brought Su Yan to visit the sleeping mother and child. Su Yan, not wanting to disturb their peaceful dreams, quietly attempted to leave. However, her mother woke up, called her back, and the two embraced each other, crying tears of joy.
Mother and daughter knelt before Dou Zhao, expressing their heartfelt gratitude for her help. Su Yan also resolved to repay Dou Zhao for her kindness. While Dou Zhao was making lanterns for the Lantern Festival, Song Mo arrived. Aware that the palace banquet was approaching, Song Mo wanted to quickly gather information on Prince Qing's actions. Dou Zhao suggested that to control Prince Qing, they would need to leverage the power of the workers.
Conveniently, the Crown Princess had invited her to discuss the palace banquet, presenting an opportunity to move their plans forward. Song Mo also intended to accompany the Crown Prince and Prince Qing on a hunting trip, where he could potentially gather more insight. The two split up to take action. The Crown Princess was impressed by Dou Zhao's innovative ideas for organizing the palace banquet and instructed her maids to follow Dou Zhao’s arrangements completely.
When the Crown Princess was about to taste a fish dish, she suddenly felt nauseous. Dou Zhao noticed her reaction and realized she was pregnant. A pregnant woman’s sense of smell is particularly sensitive. The Crown Princess did not hide this fact from Dou Zhao and instructed Wang Ge to pick a magnolia flower for her.
Dou Zhao noticed a tattoo on Wang Ge's exposed arm and suddenly recalled her past life, where Wang Ge had drawn a bow and aimed an arrow at Song Mo. Observing the Crown Princess's discomfort, Dou Zhao promptly treated her. Wang Ge initially wanted to intervene but was reprimanded by Dou Zhao for his disrespectful behavior and had no choice but to let her proceed.
Prince Qing, impatient and restless, used the hunting trip as an excuse to provoke the Crown Prince, demanding that the Crown Prince relinquish his position to him. The brothers started to fight. Song Mo ordered the Imperial Guard to turn away and forbade anyone from eavesdropping on their conversation, under penalty of death for their families. As the brothers’ fight escalated, both were bound to get injured.
To stop them, Song Mo stepped in and punched both of them, effectively ending the conflict. News of this incident quickly reached the emperor. The empress took the initiative to apologize, offering to step down from her position and requesting that Prince Qing be demoted to a commoner. As a result, the emperor did not punish Prince Qing. Although he knew the Crown Prince had been wronged, the emperor refrained from visiting him, as doing so would expose the incident.
Song Mo, as the commander of the Imperial Guard, was bound to be blamed, and without him, no one could maintain balance in the court. At the Crown Prince's residence, the Crown Prince rebuked Song Mo for striking him. However, the Crown Princess, understanding the bigger picture, acknowledged that without Song Mo, the Crown Prince would have been seriously injured. Dou Zhao also realized that Prince Qing intended to eliminate both the Crown Prince and Song Mo.
Hoping to unite their efforts, Dou Zhao asked the Crown Prince about the circumstances surrounding the death of Duke Dingguo. The Crown Prince explained that he had once sworn to the emperor that he would not disclose any details. However, the Crown Princess, who had not made such a vow, revealed the truth. Duke Dingguo was blameless, and the emperor had summoned him to the capital under false pretenses because he was the only person the emperor fully trusted.
At that time, the emperor was gravely ill and feared that the kind-hearted Crown Prince would not be able to control Duke Dingguo. To ensure the duke's loyalty to the Crown Prince, the emperor feigned animosity and ordered him to be brought to the capital under charges. The plan was for the Crown Prince to release the duke upon ascending to the throne, thus gaining a loyal ally.
The Crown Prince, disdaining such manipulative tactics, respected Duke Dingguo and refused to play political games. However, the emperor believed that as a ruler, he could not rely solely on kindness and needed to create resentment to secure loyalty. What seemed like a flawless plan fell apart when someone exploited the situation. At this time, Eunuch Wang arrived on the emperor's orders to recount the events of the past.
The emperor had known that Duke Dingguo was innocent but had still issued a guilty verdict based on the Empress Wan's suggestion. Even then, he had shown leniency to the Jiang family, condemning only Duke Dingguo. From this, Song Mo deduced that the real mastermind behind the rebellion was Empress Wan. The emperor was poisoned, and Empress Wan, adept in the art of toxins, had mixed poison into his antidotes, preventing his condition from improving.
In her palace, Prince Qing knelt before Empress Wan, admitting his recklessness but claiming he only wanted her to replace the emperor, as he could not bear to see her submit to him. Empress Wan, instead of blaming him, gently caressed his face, lamenting that seizing power was not an easy task. Now that their plans were close to being exposed, there was no need to continue their charade. She decided to act ahead of schedule.
The toxin she had administered to the emperor was about to take effect, and she was eager to see if the emperor could still shed tears. Dou Zhao understood that the half-poisonous, half-medicinal concoction given to the emperor would have dire consequences if the antidote was not found and the treatment suddenly stopped. This was why the emperor could not reveal the truth. Song Mo asked the Crown Prince if he was willing to restore order.
However, the Crown Prince was adamant that doing so would trample on the dignity of the royal family and refused. Dou Zhao scolded him harshly, and before the Crown Prince could respond, the Crown Princess praised Dou Zhao for her words and joked about hiring her to berate the Crown Prince every day.
Song Mo mentioned a letter Duke Dingguo had sent to Jiang Huisun, hoping it would not fall into Prince Qing's hands, as it was something his faction deeply feared. Song Mo expressed his willingness to assist the Crown Prince in ascending the throne, provided the emperor publicly exonerated Duke Dingguo and cleared his name. The Crown Prince hesitated, but the Crown Princess clasped his hand and shook hands with Song Mo.
The Crown Prince, dissatisfied with Song Mo’s arrogance, warned Dou Zhao to ensure Song Mo didn’t step out of line. Song Mo, in turn, told the Crown Princess to manage the Crown Prince. After leaving, Song Mo and Dou Zhao encountered some teasing. Along the way, Song Mo grew unhappy, suspecting the Crown Prince’s praise for Dou Zhao was born out of admiration. He demanded that Dou Zhao wear only black and avoid dressing up.
But even as he made the demand, he admitted to himself that she would look stunning in black too. Frustrated, he jumped off the carriage, carried Dou Zhao in his arms, and walked down the street, declaring that everyone should know she was his woman. He vowed to protect her at all costs. Eunuch Wang brought a bowl of medicine to the emperor, who drank it without hesitation, seemingly resigned to his fate.
Meanwhile, Miao Ansu and Song Han prepared to bury Anping. Miao Ansu regretted coming to the capital, feeling her brother wouldn’t have died if they had stayed in Futing. Song Han reassured her, mentioning his new position as commander of the Tengxiang Guard, on par with Song Mo’s rank, and promised that they no longer needed to endure anyone’s scorn. Miao Ansu, unfamiliar with the position, listened as Song Han explained its importance.
While she saw the capital as peaceful, his words painted it as a battlefield. Song Han embraced her, promising to bring her peace. Dou Zhao took Qixia to her former courtyard, hoping to jog her memory. In fragments of conversation, Qixia revealed that she had once prepared medicine for Jiang Huisun, who had been seriously ill. Song Mo, testing her, asked about a letter. Qixia urgently sought it from Dou Zhao.
Pretending to have the letter, Dou Zhao handed her a decoy. Qixia rushed to Jiang Huisun, excitedly announcing that Duke Dingguo had sent a letter. The letter contained hidden words visible only when moistened. Jiang Huisun initially wanted Qixia to hide it but later decided it was better to give it to Song Mo. Knowing it could not be concealed, Jiang Huisun instructed Qixia to paste it in plain sight, believing it would be safer there.
Related Posts
