The Princess Royal Episode 3 Recap, Plot

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Both already had a vague answer in their hearts, so they pretended to be calm. After their emotions settled, they thought about what to do next. Pei Wenxuan remained silent for a long time, which displeased Li Rong, who questioned him about why he was obstructing her from choosing another husband. In the moment of answering, Pei Wenxuan hesitated, further solidifying Li Rong's suspicions. The two of them openly revealed their cards about their rebirth.

Looking back on the previous life, Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan did not have a good ending. They spent half their lives fighting to the death. Even though Pei Wenxuan once again expressed his intention to marry her, he was strongly rejected by Li Rong, who stated that she did not want to go through the same life of misplaced affection, scheming, and ending up alone.

Although Li Rong once thought of spending her life with Pei Wenxuan, growing old together, the matter with Qin Zhenzhen made her see that she had no place in Pei Wenxuan's heart. This arranged marriage was just a mutual use for political alliance, one relying on the princess's power to gain a foothold in the court, the other needing a powerful minister to secure her brother's throne. There was no genuine affection from the beginning.

Therefore, Li Rong gave Pei Wenxuan two choices: either declare a separation publicly and have no further contact or live separately in name only, maintaining their alliance. In the end, Pei Wenxuan chose the latter, agreeing never to betray her under penalty of death, and the outcome fulfilled this promise.

That night, like tonight, thunder roared. Even after the rain cleared, Pei Wenxuan fully understood how uncompromising Li Rong was about affection, insisting on purity and loyalty, even if it meant mutual destruction. Pei Wenxuan no longer hoped for Li Rong to agree to marry him but instead analyzed the situation for her, making final plans for her.

Currently, Li Rong's difficult position lay in the emperor's suspicion, and she also needed to protect her brother, Crown Prince Li Chuan's position as heir. Compared to Pei Wenxuan, if she had to choose among the other three candidates, Pei Wenxuan suggested focusing on the Duke of Ningguo's household. First, Cui Yulang, coming from a humble background, was useless. Second, the Yang family controlled military power, making them a thorn in the emperor's side. Only the foolish heir of the Ningguo household was relatively safe. The Duke of Ningguo was the emperor's childhood friend and had once shielded him from a sword, maintaining some friendship, which could protect the princess.

On the other hand, Crown Prince Li Chuan was dissatisfied with the emperor's choice of husband for his sister and complained to the empress. Empress Shangguan Yue patiently explained that the emperor feared the Shangguan family's power and would not agree to another noble family marriage. Now that the country was stable, noble families were the greatest threat to imperial power. The choice had to be made between the crown prince's position and the princess's happiness.

Seeing that it was late, Li Rong issued a guest expulsion order, stating that their positions had been different, past grudges were now bygones. Since heaven gave them a second chance, they need not meet again, each wishing the other well. Pei Wenxuan, with a stiff face, agreed, forcing himself to eat the citron and leave.

Watching Pei Wenxuan's receding figure, Li Rong had mixed feelings, as if she was sending off a fading memory. She immediately ordered the maids to prepare some items for him as a final gesture of dignity. Although Jing Lan didn't understand Li Rong's intentions, she complied. Seeing the box and cloak Jing Lan brought, Pei Wenxuan's anger dissipated instantly.

That night, Yang Quan sent people to ambush Li Rong, planning to stage a hero-saving-the-beauty scene to vie for the position of consort. Upon hearing the news, Pei Wenxuan guessed it was Yang Quan's men, instructing Tong Ye to report to the palace and set up roadblocks, hiding in the bushes. Yang Wan, fearing her brother's actions would be exposed, personally visited the empress and reached an agreement to keep tonight's events secret.

While Pei Wenxuan was painstakingly thwarting Yang Quan's men, Li Rong had already deduced from her secret guards that it was related to the Yang family and discovered they had planted a mole in her entourage. Li Rong disguised Jing Lan as herself, leading different teams, causing Yang Quan to mistake his target and realize too late he had been fooled. However, while Li Rong was galloping through the night, she was tripped by a rope set by Pei Wenxuan and fell unconscious. Pei Wenxuan hurriedly carried her into the woods, calling her name until she awoke.

While searching for water, the two quarreled, dredging up old grievances, shouting and gasping until they finally sat by the river roasting fish. During their conversation, Li Rong unexpectedly learned that Pei Wenxuan wore a sachet at Su Rongqing's request, otherwise, he would not be allowed into the princess's residence.

Pei Wenxuan admitted that he planted spies in the princess's residence to guard against Su Rongqing, not to harm Li Rong. He also revealed that Su Rongqing had a blood feud with the Li family. After hearing Pei Wenxuan's words, Li Rong was incredulous and fell into deep thought. Back then, the Su family conspired with Empress Shangguan Ya to enthrone the third prince, committing the crime of treason, leading to the entire Su clan's imprisonment, with the men executed and the women exiled. Despite Li Rong's pleas for Su Rongqing, he still couldn't avoid the tragic fate of being castrated.

Episode 2 Recap

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