KJ2025

Hidden alliances

Ning is confined to her room for 5 days as punishment for her leave from the palace. Zhuo is a psycho; demonstrated by making Pei kill his best friend as a young boy. He is suspicious about the identity of Madame Li and Pei’s loyalty. Pei makes a very convincing show of allegiance, and while frightening for Ning, she understands what he is doing and why necessary. These two play off each other well and are growing closer in understanding. Pei shares the treats he was duped into buying and notes that they really are a favorite for her. He is very cool and calculating in his assessment of people, which is why it’s surprising he was willing to change his mind about 5th Prince Ning. He tells her that whether an Emperor does good or evil is more important than gender. He is walking a fine line with Zhuo, but is successful for now in toeing the line. He questions Li thoroughly to find out who knows Ning is a woman. He knows he will have to figure out a way to keep this all quiet and considering his options. He tells Li flat out she will not get a second chance to deceive and her life is in the balance if she tries it. Li is protecting someone other than Ning but she definitely doesn’t want it known by anybody. The machinations continue and alliances are both fluid and steadfast. Zhuo is wondering if Li is someone from his past but hasn’t connected all the dots yet. His hatred and obsession with revenge clouds his judgment for the big picture. He prefers the scorched earth approach to dealing with conflict and doesn’t care about collateral damage. One interesting development is Ning wanting to allow women to have property. This will not go over well with officials but will be a godsend to widows who have no family or male to fight for them. This will allow them to live on their family land and to make a living without harassment from bully officials profiting from their hardships.

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Justice for Junlai

Pei agrees to take Ning back to palace and spare Li. She makes one last request and demands justice for Junlai. The government officials have her punishments all lined up when it is discovered who she is. Pei helps her and all is noted by scribe to be sure justice is served. It is especially satisfying that the three main culprits get beaten for their activities at the entrance to Junlai Village. Pei tells her that a female emperor is unprecedented and their alliance is forged. This is a well acted drama and the story is nicely paced. The production staff does an excellent job with the fight scenes and drawing you into the story.

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Kill or be killed

Already an assassination attempt on young emperor. She does well but fortunately gets help from Pei who dispatches them. Zhuo most likely behind this to get rid of those he considers political enemies. Young emperor gives Pei another surprise by naming those killed, what office they held and how they had served the people. I don’t think Pei gave any of the royal family credit for actually being concerned about the welfare of the people. We see Zhuo raised him for single purpose of revenge but that is so shortsighted. The eunuch party has just shifted which side draws or gives blood without real concern for the nation as a whole. I am hoping these two team up and change things. Auntie has fooled Pei into going to town and she and young emperor escape the palace.

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The new Emperor’s first test

Pei is rebuked by Zhuo for his choice. Zhuo is foaming at the mouth for a killing spree. Fortunately Pei is long tired of the innocents dying. As ruthless as he appears, I think he is trying to find the best solution for the people. Zhuo reminds me of the second prince. He seems to be hanging by a thread to control bloodlust. 5th prince, now emperor, acquits herself well and spares the scholar. She removes his title and banishes him to his hometown. This will hopefully appease the scholar group and keep the peace. Zhuo is far from happy with the decision and plots with Pei to kill him. I have no idea if the scholar will survive but at least effort was made to spare him. After Zhuo demonstrates his authority to the young emperor, Pei suggests she hides her strengths better and to appear docile. She asks the right question….is it counsel or warning? I think Pei is intrigued by her actions and resigned to dealing with Zhuo. This again was fast paced as Pei and Zhuo discuss army locations and tactical choices followed by first round of internal politics with new emperor. Both are accomplished tho Zhuo disagrees with the decisions for both of them. So far Pei and 5th Prince are holding Zhuo at bay, but he is making it clear this is not the correct choice and consequences will take place if defied again.

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Plans within plans

Machinations galore in these short 20 minutes. The reigning Emperor is gravely ill and Pei has been called home. He sends out the physician and listens to the last wishes of the Emperor. He then tells the scribe to write something completely different and speeds along the Emperor’s death after revealing his true identity. Another has plans to leave but returns when realizes father has passed. She is the fifth prince who has been brought up as a male for 20 years to escape with her caretaker. Everything was set until she was called in with her brothers. Pei sets the royal seal on a table and suggests a fight to death scenario for them to see who will rule. She tries to reason with her brothers but is only partially successful. There is a mind altering drug being burned like incense that has the brothers acting out their worst natures. She defends herself but still refuses to play the game. She threatens to destroy the seal and Pei offers her two poor scenarios. She still refuses to kill her maid and he stops her intent by providing a third option. Accepting the throne. He is unaware of her gender but believes her to be the easiest puppet of the mix. I believe he will find himself mistaken. The first brother willingly? abdicated so he is the only other sibling not dead. Not sure if we will ever see the one who was supposed to get the throne, but noting his existence in case he makes an appearance. This episode was well done in all respects. It was just very quickly done and lots to process. Kudos to cast and production team for such an excellent first episode.

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The best laid plans….

While it seemed a good idea for BanXia to call the demon via the mirror….they did not make any backup plan in the event the demon wasn’t terminated. Here is where I want to slap XuanYe on the back of the head for not considering his possible failure. He should have had a better backup plan to keep BanXia safe. To his credit the symbol he put on her hand did rescue her so that is a huge plus. But that know it all constable has him at the station and rain is washing away his barrier. This is the first time I have seen BanXia terrified. She was really shook when she met the demon alone and showered with pears. It gave me satisfaction to watch him get blasted for forcing that pear on her. But now she is again alone with the demon. She has moxie in calling him out tho not sure how much that pole is going to help her.

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Mother / daughter pears

After the dancer collapses there is another female body that changes from young and beautiful to ancient and mummified. This has the one officer convinced the other body must be the missing Madame Zhang. One policeman wants XuanYe to help and the higher ranking constable does not. XuanYe was talked into examining the body and sends Rabbit to get it. He sees BanXia and thinks she is following him. He tricks her so that she is locked in the morgue and he’s quite pleased with himself as he tells XuanYe. He has lost his cuteness with this stunt and I am glad he got the slap he had coming. 😝 I cannot believe BanXia was so stubborn in keeping quiet. She put herself in danger and then blamed the wrong person. She was successful in having XuanYe see the mirror in the right timeframe for it to still be a portal. He now believes her about her father and agrees to help. He gets so frustrated with her butting in, but at the same time I think he admires her courage and unshakable faith when she believes something. She is unflappable facing controversy and while impulsive in her actions, she is usually correct that it is something that needs investigated. He has warned her thoroughly and repeatedly of the possible consequences of dealing with demons and she consistently lets him know she’s all in no matter what. The next surprise is somebody has already taken the pear and a root is in its place.

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Truth and dare

The eel demon is on a rampage because XuanYe killed his companion. This is actually a reasonable reaction. The rabbit is all for killing him but the hunter shows mercy. Since he was used as a weapon and not truly malicious on his own XuanYe used moon bugs to consume his primordial spirit and make him a common eel. BanXia tries to hire XuanYe to find out the truth of her father’s supposed death. She brings the mirrors. I was not understanding last episode that it was one from each location her father had used. It seems like they might have served as portals but now function as regular mirrors. He refuses to help her and says she doesn’t have enough money. She sends to get more but doesn’t think money is the real issue. Neither does rabbit🤣 XuanYe reminded him that BanXia was on the hunt right after him and that they needed to keep an eye on her. He also knows the demon won’t approach if they are together. So he now can watch from a distance knowing she will most likely be the next one attacked. BanXia now knows there is an underground city and shows no hesitation to travel there if that’s what it takes to find her father. I think XuanYe is honestly surprised that she would dare to go with or without him. One of the dancers is the recipient of beauty wish. There is another mysterious death of an old woman wearing jewelry of another. The dancers meet at a wishing shrine where BanXia and maid also happen to be. Wishes and gossip is shared. BanXia learns that XuanYe may be the one they talked about when saying he killed his family. She is surprised when he tells her it is true. Knowing what she does about demons she is trying to apply a reasonable explanation on why he might do such a thing. They go out for a meal where she tries to impress ordering one of everything. Music and dancing are on bottom floor when the one dancer with beauty wish spins to the ceiling and then collapses on the floor. Everybody is running to her to find out what is going on.

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Tears and travel

I liked that both the rabbit and demon hunter followed BanXia home. I also liked that she tried to figure out which one followed her with the lights. She is quite bold because she immediately leaves to find them on her own. She notices the night watchman gets burned but hides because she doesn’t want to get caught outside after midnight. There is a disturbance from her father’s residence and she checks it out. Nobody even knew he was home so that in itself was odd. He is disheveled and there are broken items lying on the floor. He persuades her to go home and she promises to visit the next day. The following morning it appears her father is dead from a fire in a rented place.. The elderly women are all lined up to start a weeping fest and she quiets them down asking questions. Things are not lining up correctly with the time or location of his death and she is wanting some answers. During the night there are fish head looking demons that are causing grief. They seem to not like discordant sounds so rabbit’s flute playing is perfect 😂 Here I don’t think Ren Jin Lun is having to act hard that his ears are pained with the noise🤣One makes a poor woman play her instrument all night so he can heal. The constsble comes in and rescues her and to be honest I am surprised he is so useful. This fight scene was much better done but he was soon knocked out by the demon. Here the hunter and rabbit take over and get him literally bagged and out of the way. He knows the constable is going to find a way to stick this to him but he handles it anyways. BanXia has looked through her father’s place and has noted that things are odd. She and maid find mirrors that don’t reflect people and she is convinced more is going on then the rented house seems to imply. No one will believe her and they all think she is going over the deep end about demons again. They do not believe they exist and refuse to acknowledge that she might be right about some things. I am liking Song Zu er’s character and acting. She is doing a really good job being strong willed and fearless. She thinks for herself in spite of the odds and refuses to back down just because she isn’t believed. When her brother firmly states that he is taking her to the doctor she packs up and leaves. I am not sure what it was she threw into the water but I am hoping it is that stupid medicine they keep making her take. For now it looks like her family is trying to marry her off and keep her medicated. I think they really do love her, but they could not be more wrong in how they deal with her.😝 There is also one who is given her wish to be beautiful. I am curious what price tag comes with that. The eel demon has escaped but the rabbit doesn’t seem too concerned. It is also fun that BanXia can tell what they really are by their shadows. They all end up meeting in the street at the end of the episode.

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Duan BanXia meets demon hunter

The episode begins with a man spending his day eating noodles. He has consumed many bowls and some are commenting. A young boy is outside playing with an origami frog, when the father notes the boy has disappeared. The man jumps from the table and finds the boy being dragged underground. After rescuing him he is annoyed that this distraction prevented him from catching the murderer that likes to tear out the throats of their victims. BanXia is there to see her brother’s wedding. She is known for visions and everybody is concerned that she is taking her medicine. This salve calms her nerves and the scent keeps her from seeing things. She sees her new sis in law and something feels off — her shadow has wings. BanXia is of course upset because the last thing she wants to do is tell everybody she’s seeing things. But at the same time she wants to protect her brother. She asks questions to find out how they met and their story doesn’t reassure her. She meets noodle guy who tells her he is a demon hunter. He demonstrates that her visions are real and that she needs to tell her family what she saw and that the demon must be killed to protect her family. BanXia bravely goes to visit her sis in law and is even more convinced that something is wrong. She sees the wings again and makes excuses for a quick exit. She follows a rabbit vision into the woods and again runs into demon hunter. He tells her that the medicine she uses will keep her from visions but that it is also harmful to her. He clears her eyes of its effects and shows her an entrance she hadn’t been able to see.

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Shopping with Chen Duo

This episode beautifully sums up Chen Duo and her secret wish of having choice and of her mentors respecting it. We get to see each member share a bit of her day and reflect on her impact on them. Chulan is not on same page but here he is still immature and fearful. Meng is a second because he cries more for himself than for her. But he finally begins to understand and sees the beauty of it. I think in his final moments Liao understood what she wanted. He and Meng fought the hardest to keep her, but she was not able to stay. I did not expect such a moving episode from this type of drama, but they did it well. The cast did an excellent job in showing appreciation for small things and for making the story so moving. The end song was also very beautiful and fitting.

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Choices

This episode shows the forge destroyed and Leader Ma ready to go all out to defeat them. The battle was quite good and choices were being made. WangYe opted to assist but only after he made sure that they could bring Ma in alive. WangYe continues to be my second favorite. While he has a lazy appearing attitude he tends to be spot on for the big picture. He noted with both Ma And ChuLan that a woman they could not say no to was directing their choices. And that for this reason, he did not side with either of them. Chen Duo wanted freedom of choice rather than freedom. They still have not told us everything she said to Liao, but we are getting much closer to understanding. I am truly wishing there were more episodes to get all these stories understood, but am enjoying the overview we are getting of how these forces have been brought together.

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