Against the Current Episode 21

Gifts and plans

LanXiang and Ms Han are out shopping and come home to a mob outside their door. The family she had married in want to force her back for an arch thinking they will get labor cuts and grain benefits by claiming her. They are threatening Mr Xu and Han and his mother when LanXiang makes an oil slick from tung oil.🤣😂 The angry horde are flattened by it and she starts with the punishment for beating up someone. Han continues the list and Scholar Lu finishes up. He tells them flatly they won’t receive the awards they seek but may bring about death penalties starting with clan leader. 🤣😂 By the time their friend shows up with help the men have long since disappeared and have dropped their claim of widow Han. Here you have to respect the support Han is willing to give his family against public opinion and pressure. He is quite brave. Everybody is just relieved that the crisis is past and everybody is safe. JinQi goes with orchid and treats to find out LanXiang is at the scholar’s house working on music. He is entranced watching her sing until Scholar Han comes out to join her. He claps for them to make them aware of his presence. He tries to greet Scholar Lu who abruptly dismisses him and leaves after confirming who is grandfather is. The butler that used to be friendly is similarly rude and we are as puzzled as JinQi as to why? As Lan Xiang heads home she is escorted by both gentlemen. 🤣😂 JinQi is very disappointed she does not recollect their conversation when she was drunk. That was the entire point of the orchid. I felt bad for him on that one because it was an important encouragemmoment at a time he was most in need for one. He wanted it to stand out in her mind as much as it did his. I am annoyed with 2nd madam who is maligning Xiuru to her philistine daughter that messed up her own opportunity. Now what is very interesting is that in the time that has elapsed the mother is as manic as ever. But the belligerent indulged daughter that used to throw temper tantrums when she didn’t get her way, has molded herself into a much more thoughtful person. She understands that JinQi and Xiuru saved her life by filling in for the spot she should have taken but refused. JinQi has offered books to let her broaden her mind and she has copied many things requiring new found patience and diligence. She is now giving her mom the advice she should be receiving. She harbors no bad feelings towards XiuRu. She accepts responsibility for her foolish choice and chooses to make herself a ship so big that the Du rock she carries will be a small pebble. Tbh XiuRu’s demeanor would be a lot more suitable for this role. The mom here acting like 3rd daughter put on airs…as if😝🙄 She is the only daughter that didn’t dare to. 😝 It is at this gathering that we get a glimpse of JinQi’s mom’s choice for bride. She has no clue he has already chosen. At the Xu’s the men are sitting across from each other AGAIN sizing each other up. JinQi once again brings up the exam and that he knows the professor that could get him into the top school to finish his studies. He is all happy thinking the guy has accepted and on his way out the door when he refuses because he doesn’t accept favors he can’t return. Now they are back to square one. 😂🫣👀Both men decide that leaving promptly is their best option. LanXiang knows they are acting weird but really hasn’t quite figured out why yet. What she does do that is very sweet is get her professor calling card and sends it over the wall to scholar Han. I liked their basket delivery service.😁 He can accept this gift since he introduced her to Professor Lu. He gets an extra pleased expression and then tells his mom he wants to propose to LanXiang. He wants her to get a matchmaker ASAP because he knows the first to propose has the best chance of success. His mother laughs at his impatience and lets him know she and Ms Xu have already been discussing it. I liked how Mr Xu was questioned about Han and his ambivalence until she said he would be a good suitor for their daughter. That made him sit up and take interest.🤣Both of them liked the guy and thought their families a good fit. So now to see if Lan Xiang agrees.

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Four Stars

Their damn chastity memorial arch again! How many women they made suffer because of that fake thing back in the days, uuuugh 😡😡😡No comment on that auntie who had the audacity to talk bad about Xiuru as if she plotted to still the good prospect marriage of her brainless daughter, ugh 😠They would have become the Marquis's enemy if her daughter was the bride, she would have created nothing but havoc in the Marquis household with her spoiled attitude. The man is looking for a stepmother, not another daughter to raise, pffffOh-ho, someone will have to speed up his plan if he doesn't want to lose the matchmaking game, kekekeEvery mother is out there looking for a partner for their child, lol. And there is oblivious Lanxiang who has no idea she's coveted here and there hehehe 🤭🤭🤭P.S: seeing how the master Lanxiang is transcribing music for does not like LJQ's grandfather, I'm glad her family ended up in this courtyard and not in the nice home LJQ had planned for them. I feel like Lanxiang found herself a powerful back up without knowing and he would likely intervene if she ends up in a tricky situation because he's fond of her good nature and sincerity... ☺️P.P.S: what's with all these historical men proposing without making sure the one they're proposing to is interested first? Just because there is competition and they're not confident in winning. Pissing me off for no reason tsk tsk tsk 😒😒😒(sorry, I'm also watching Spring of Blade and the 2nd lead is doing the same thing as Scholar Han argh 😫)

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Who plays matchmaker for whom?

Scholar Han proved his worth by defending the older sister against selfish neighbors who wanted to drag her toward a cruel fate simply because she had become a widow. Her younger brother tried to dissuade the agitated mob using the law, his eloquent words, and his dignified bearing, but they lunged at him with kicks and clubs. However, Jia Lan—who had arrived with the wronged woman—used her wits; she poured a thick, sticky oil onto the ground, causing everyone to tumble over one another. At that moment, Jia Lan raised her voice to cite the punishments—specifically the number of lashes—mandated by the King’s statutes for home invasion; Scholar Han added the rest of the penalties to the list, noting the aggravating factor of assaulting a royal scholar. Terrified, the mob fled, spurred on by the threat from Jia Lan’s father to report them to the Imperial Guard.Lin Jin Qi, looking dashing and well-groomed, adjusted his hair and straightened his robes in front of Jia Lan’s door while his subordinates tried to assist him (in another humorous moment, Lin Jin Qi told one of them that he needed to study a certain book on courtship ten times over). Yet, upon arriving, he encountered Scholar Han alongside Jia Lan, who was finishing an opera song. Undeterred, Lin Jin Qi greeted the household’s elder scholar—a man who was somewhat tipsy but possessed refined knowledge. Upon receiving LJQ’s respectful bow, the old man grimaced and said, "Ah, so you are Old Man Lin’s grandson," before leaving the room with a look of disapproval. LJQ attempted to offer a respectful greeting to another elderly gentleman, who reacted the same way: he gave LJQ a reproachful look and walked away. Jia Lan accepted the gift LJQ had brought and offered a lame excuse for the two elders' behavior. A conversation then ensued between the rivals vying for Jia Lam's attention. At one point, LJQ thought he had succeeded in his plan to draw the scholar away from Jia Lam by getting him to accept an offer to study in another province under a renowned teacher. Scholar Han refused (much to LJQ's displeasure). LJQ gave Jia Lam an orchid pot as a gift, reminding her of her own words: "Orchids are more fragrant at night." That was why "some friends" had sent her this plant. Jia Lam regarded him with a knowing look (while feigning ignorance), as if she did not grasp the duel unfolding between the two men before her. Yet, she was well aware that her parents and Scholar Han’s mother had already arranged a marriage between her and the scholar. At one point, Scholar Han said to his mother, "I must act quickly regarding Jia Lam, or someone else will beat me to it." He had rejected Lin Jin Qi’s offer to study with the famous teacher, yet he accepted the letter of recommendation for that same teacher—the one Jia Lam had handed him over the garden wall. (He likely accepted it because he wished to go to that new place with her.) Meanwhile, at the Lin family estate, another marriage is being arranged—and I am not referring to Xiu Rui; she is quite happy being the subject of mature conversations between Xiu Wan and her mother, who is actually grateful for the situation. He holds onto Lin Jin Qi’s symbolic words—likening him to a ship "that will brave the open sea and triumph" (a conclusion we can logically draw from their conversation). So, which marriage am I talking about? The one being arranged for Lin Jin Qi by his mother: a match with a duchess. Madam Lin is overjoyed to have secured such an excellent match for her only son. Her personal maid even remarks, "A catch like that won't stay single for long." She believes Lin Jin Qi will be happy. (But will he? Or, beneath that mother's gaze, does she actually know what her son holds in his heart?) By the end of the episode, we are introduced to the duchess—Lin Jin Qi’s prospective new wife. She is a stunningly beautiful yet cunning young woman who, upon seeing an orchid, immediately senses Jia Lam’s presence in Lin Jin Qi’s life. The episode concludes with her staring down Jia Lam, who likewise instantly senses trouble coming from this elegant, beautiful woman. Let us move on, then, to the next episode: Episode 22.

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