Blossoms in Adversity Episode 1 Recap, Plot

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> Blossoms in Adversity Recap

On a stormy night, Hua Yizheng, the elder of the Imperial Censor Hua family, was writing a letter on a boat when a sudden gale struck, causing water to flood the deck. In the urgent moment, the sail needed to be lowered immediately, but the hired servants went on strike over wages. Seeing this, the young Hua Zhi, without hesitation, grabbed a dagger from the ground, climbed up the mast, and cut the sail to save everyone.

The next day, the Shen family was coming to present the betrothal gifts, but Hua Zhi was not anxious; it was her maid Bao Xia who was nervous. Hua Zhi told Bao Xia that even after marriage, they must insist on doing what they believed in. Looking at the surrounding walls of the house, Hua Zhi sighed, feeling as if trapped in a cage.

Just then, another maid, Ying Chun, came and told Hua Zhi that everyone was currently waiting at Chengyuan for the imperial bestowal of the peach wood charms. Hearing this, Hua Zhi became excited and took Bao Xia and Ying Chun toward the west corner gate. Uncle Zhong had long been waiting there with the carriage. Hua Zhi instructed Ying Chun to guard the gate while she and Bao Xia boarded the carriage and left. Chengyuan was bustling with excitement.

In the room facing the stage, the third lady of the Hua family, Xia Jin’e, was having the servants report the accounts. Feeling the charcoal braziers were placed too closely in front of her, she ordered the servants to move them. Coincidentally, they ended up in front of the second lady Qi Huilan and the first lady Zhu Yingzhen.

Zhu Yingzhen wanted to step out for some fresh air, but Qi Huilan invoked the old madam’s authority, making her abandon the idea. Qi Huilan then asked the fourth lady, Wu Yuniang, who said it was a bit hot. Qi Huilan thus told the maid Zhe Gui to open a window, and seeing this, Xia Jin’e simply ordered all the windows to be opened.

Since the peach wood charms would arrive at night, the Hua family’s old madam, Lin Wan, stayed with everyone to watch the opera while waiting. Commander Chen Qing of the Seven Guards led patrol officers to search the streets. After finding Hua Zhi’s blueprint at a bronze ware shop, they stopped Hua Zhi's carriage. As an unmarried lady, Hua Zhi should not have appeared in public, but Chen Qing pressed aggressively.

Shen Qi, the eldest son of the Shen family, stepped forward to defend her but was forcibly thrown aside by the officers. Refusing to submit, Shen Qi faced Chen Qing drawing his sword. At the critical moment, Gu Yanxi shielded Shen Qi behind him. Gu Yanxi recognized that the blueprint depicted an ancient-style bronze crow, but Shen Qi became suspicious of Gu Yanxi’s identity and insisted on taking him back to the Seven Guards Bureau.

Knowing how formidable the Seven Guards were, Hua Zhi quickly jumped off the carriage to defend Gu Yanxi. After Hua Zhi revealed her identity, Chen Qing repeatedly apologized. Hua Zhi admired Gu Yanxi for coming from the northern lands and lamented that since she came to the capital four years ago, she had not seen snowfall again. Late at night, the emperor summoned Hua Yizheng.

He and his eldest son, Hua Pingyu, donned their official robes and hurried to the palace. Meanwhile, in Chengyuan, the ladies continued enjoying the acrobatic performances. Xia Jin’e took the opportunity to report Hua Zhi’s engagement to Lin Wan and, with veiled sarcasm, mocked Hua Zhi. Only then did Lin Wan realize that Hua Zhi was missing among the gathered crowd. A servant reminded her that Hua Zhi had gone out, which made Lin Wan furious.

The Da Qing Emperor, Gu Chengtai, summoned Prince Ling’s heir, Gu Yanxi, late at night and told him there was something worth hearing that night. In the grand hall, Gu Chengtai brought up the matter of appointing a crown prince and the investigation of private minting led by the Seven Guards. Surprisingly, Hua Yizheng, who had always dared to speak frankly, remained silent on both issues.

Curious, Gu Chengtai questioned him, and Hua Yizheng straightforwardly replied that these were His Majesty’s private affairs, and whether he advised or not was insignificant. Gu Chengtai was displeased, insisting that the Seven Guards were his creation and that Prince Hui, Gu Yanrui, and Prince Xian, Gu Yangong, were his own sons—thus it was not wrong to call them private matters.

The atmosphere grew tense, but Hua Yizheng showed no fear, bluntly stating that the Seven Guards disregarded the law and committed executions recklessly, while the crown prince’s position remained undecided, causing constant infighting among the princes. For the sake of the nation’s stability, it should be resolved quickly. By that reasoning, these were matters of the state, not private affairs.

Enraged, Gu Chengtai dismissed Hua Yizheng and stripped the official ranks of his three clans, exiling the entire family to the northern lands, never to be reinstated. Gu Chengtai then summoned Qi Ruhai, the historian of the Seven Guards, to the hall, and Qi Ruhai declared that the mastermind behind the private minting case was Gu Yanxi.

Episode 2 Recap

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