A Dream of Splendor Episode 17 Recap
> A Dream of Splendor Recap
Using the faint moonlight, Gu Qianfan saw Zhao Pan'er dancing gracefully in the pavilion. It wasn't until the dance ended that Zhao Pan'er noticed Gu Qianfan. Because of the tea competition earlier today, Zhao Pan'er was still bothered by her musician status.
However, Gu Qianfan didn't mind; he stated that he had already thought it through clearly and finally realized that he had fallen in love with her unknowingly in recent days, and decided to marry her as his wife, with the Three Letters and Six Etiquettes, in a formal marriage.
Zhao Pan'er emphasized the disparity in their statuses again, saying that if Gu Qianfan insisted, rumors about her would appear in Tokyo after tonight, and hoped that Gu Qianfan would not make a decision based on impulse. In order to soothe Zhao Pan'er's unease, Gu Qianfan broke off a flower branch and handed it to her, saying frankly that he didn't care about those rumors at all.
Compared to Zhao Pan'er, who came from a musician background, perhaps the Living Yama of the Capital Security Office had a worse reputation. It was Gu Qianfan's sincere confession that gradually moved Zhao Pan'er. She finally accepted the flower branch, and the two embraced tightly. Shen Ruzuo continued to pester Song Yinzhang, making her unbearable. She simply told him truthfully that she had been married before, later divorced her ex-husband, and even personally sent him to prison.
However, Shen Ruzuo already knew about this matter, especially knowing that Song Yinzhang was not a naive young lady who knew nothing of the world, but a remarkable woman who was seemingly delicate on the outside but strong on the inside. At first, Shen Ruzuo did admire Song Yinzhang's pipa skills. But later, upon learning about her past experiences, he couldn't help but feel pity and respect for her.
In Shen Ruzuo's view, Song Yinzhang is the foremost pipa player in Jiangnan, possessing both talent and beauty. Even if her reputation was tarnished by villains, as the saying goes, a thing reflects its owner, and music reflects the person. Her pipa music is like a bright moon and a gentle breeze; why should she care about a little dust on the spiritual platform?
So Shen Ruzuo was willing to be the whisk on the spiritual platform, seeking favor from the beautiful woman. Song Yinzhang almost took him seriously. Fortunately, Sun Sanniang's voice came at this moment. She immediately woke up as if from a dream, urged Shen Ruzuo to leave quickly, and promised to play a tune for him. Shen Ruzuo arranged to meet at Jinming Pool outside Shun Tian Gate three days later.
To prevent Song Yinzhang from backing out, he directly took her hairpin as proof. Because Chi Yanei couldn't stand this insult, he took people to Half-Covered Face, preparing to make a scene. Unexpectedly, other people appeared outside the door. Both sides thought they were guards hired by Zhao Pan'er. After a confrontation, Chi Yanei fled in a panic, and the disturbance was quelled.
Zhang Haohao warned Chi Yanei not to trouble Zhao Pan'er anymore, stating that her backer was definitely not an ordinary person, to avoid bringing disaster upon himself. Gu Qianfan and Zhao Pan'er were eating at a nearby restaurant when they happened to encounter Lei Jing from the Capital Security Office. Their every move was seen by him, and he commented that they were going out as a couple and sitting arm in arm at the same table.
But it was Lei Jing's words that alerted Gu Qianfan. He simply stated frankly that he and Zhao Pan'er did have some genuine feelings, but most of it was just for show, not deep-rooted affection, and hoped that Lei Jing would not take it seriously. Zhao Pan'er was extremely saddened by this, especially Lei Jing's words, which pierced her heart like a poisonous bee's sting.
Lei Jing felt that a woman like Zhao Pan'er, who had reformed from a courtesan background, was completely unworthy of Gu Qianfan. At most, she could be a mistress. Furthermore, he should not follow Ouyang Xu's path, which would be equivalent to cutting off his path to advancement. If he truly wanted to marry, he should seek a lady from a noble family. Not only was Lei Jing having tea here, but Xiao Wei also discovered his half-brother.
Although Gu Qianfan didn't resemble Xiao Qinyan in appearance, his tastes and habits were remarkably consistent with his own. So he ordered someone to investigate carefully. Just as Zhao Pan'er was about to question Gu Qianfan about the previous matter, Xiao Wei suddenly came out. Gu Qianfan concealed his relationship with the Xiao family, not wanting Zhao Pan'er to get involved, so he asked her to return to Half-Covered Face first.
After Zhao Pan'er left, Xiao Wei revealed his intention to compete for the position of legitimate eldest son of the Xiao family. But Gu Qianfan stated that he had no relationship with the Xiao family, and warned him not to provoke him again, or he would not be polite.
Qi Mu saw this scene from nearby and then informed Gu Qianfan that there was no need to rush to deal with Lei Jing, because his purpose was to act for the literati class against Xiao Qinyan. Inside the Half-Covered Face tea house, two suspicious-looking individuals were sitting. Taking advantage of Zhao Pan'er's inattention, Sun Daqiang pretended to have been poisoned and died. Ge Zhaodi, who was with him, rushed over and wailed, attracting many onlookers.
She publicly slandered that the tea drink at Half-Covered Face was poisoned and insisted on reporting it to the authorities. Seeing that Ge Zhaodi was relentless, the gentlemen present felt that it was a matter of human life and originally wanted to report it to the yamen for investigation, but they were blocked by Zhao Pan'er. At this critical moment, Zhao Pan'er suddenly noticed Sun Daqiang's abnormality and instantly became suspicious.
She went directly into the inner room, prepared two bowls of red fruit drink, and poured them into Ge Zhaodi's and Sun Daqiang's mouths respectively. As expected, Sun Daqiang's feigned death was exposed. He immediately got up and tried to run, but Sun Sanniang quickly moved to block the door. Zhao Pan'er closed the tea house door, leaving only a few gentlemen inside.
She emphasized that she had given Sun Daqiang and Ge Zhaodi a mute potion, stating that if they did not confess the truth, they would lose the ability to speak forever after half an hour.
