A Dream Within A Dream Episode 25 Recap
> A Dream Within A Dream Recap
Nightwalkers arrived at the execution ground. Their leader, the Second Chief, addressed Chu Guihong, challenging him to demonstrate his ability to wipe out their organization. Declaring themselves the Waning River Crescent Nightwalkers, they greeted the officials present. The leader then called out to his comrades, asking why they were joining him, ready to face death when he was preparing to accept his fate. The Nightwalkers responded by reminding him of their code: to share everything, including death.
They presented a united front to Chu Guihong, stating they were fearless and that he might find them difficult to handle. Seeing the Nightwalkers openly disrupt the execution, Chu Guihong ordered the Qianyu Army to kill them all on the spot, accusing them of robbing the execution ground. Nan Heng intervened, summoning the Xuanjia Army to stop them. Song Yimeng and Song Yiting arrived, and Nan Heng questioned why they were at such a dangerous place.
Song Yimeng replied with a meta joke, saying they had to come or the story would end prematurely before her "additional chapter gift" was opened. She challenged Chu Guihong, asking if he had thoroughly investigated the three-year-old Jiangnan theft case and knew "why" Shangguan Baihe had stolen the disaster relief funds.
Chu Guihong explained that the relevant files that should have been in the Secretariat were damaged when he took over the case, leaving only the Ministry of Justice's conclusive record, adding that old matters were hard to trace. Song Yiting sarcastically concluded that he hadn't investigated, calling him hypocritical and ill-intentioned, someone who falsely accused a good person of being a thief despite claiming to be upright.
She stated that she and her elder sister, with the help of the Nightwalkers Along and Atiger, had figured out what kind of person Shangguan Baihe was three years ago in just one night. She criticized the Qianyu Army, saying they had countless ways to find the truth but only knew how to convict, search, and arrest, lacking the integrity to find justice.
When guards moved to stop Song Yiting, Song Yimeng intervened, asking if Chu Guihong dared to strike a woman in front of the capital's citizens. Nan Heng told Song Yiting to be quiet, but she retorted, questioning his right to speak after concealing the truth and obstructing official duties for the sake of a bit of brotherly loyalty, suggesting someone like him deserved a hundred planks even if spared death.
Song Yimeng presented a joint petition letter signed by over 800 Jiangnan citizens whom Shangguan Baihe had helped three years prior. They pleaded with the Kyoto Prefecture to distinguish right from wrong and prevent their benefactor from being wrongly executed. Song Yimeng then directed attention to Nan Heng and Chancellor Gao, suggesting they held the answers about the events three years ago.
She recounted that during the Jiangnan flood, when starvation was rampant, the disaster relief funds never reached the citizens. Shangguan Baihe snuck into the Prefectural Governor's residence, discovered the funds were completely embezzled, and stole the silver intending to rob the rich and help the poor. However, outside the Jiangnan Circuit, he encountered the Seventh Prince, Nan Heng, who was investigating the theft case.
Unaware of the full details of this case at the time and with his heart set on the flood disaster, Nan Heng arrested Shangguan Baihe. Seeing their hero become a criminal, the people petitioned for him, but the Prefectural Governor, supported by a powerful official in the court, obstructed their efforts, and Shangguan Baihe was jailed in Jiangnan.
Song Yimeng revealed that the Nightwalkers had found a token with the character "Yin" (隐) in the former Prefectural Governor's residence the previous night, stating that the Prefectural Governor back then was Chancellor Gao's follower. She suggested that if the embezzlement was instructed by Chancellor Gao, then Nan Heng's later secret release of Shangguan Baihe was precisely the Seventh Prince's helpless choice.
Song Yimeng accused Chu Guihong of disregarding the bigger picture and prioritizing his personal fight with the Xuanjia Army over investigating the Gao family and Chancellor Gao's faction, warning that his actions would only destabilize the Great Jing court. Chu Guihong seemed speechless. Nan Heng stated that the Jiangnan old case was personally handled by him, and he also personally supervised today's execution.
He proposed detaining the people present (the Nightwalkers and potentially Shangguan Baihe if execution hadn't happened yet), stating that if the full story wasn't investigated, he couldn't account to the people, and if the disturbance continued, it would be impossible to resolve. He suggested detaining them first, and after reporting to the Emperor and clarifying the truth, a decision could be made. Song Yimeng seemed to accept this proposal.
As she left, Nan Heng tried to explain, but Song Yimeng stopped him. She told him the person he should explain to was not her, but the Nightwalkers who trusted him and defended him even until the night before execution, recalling Atiger said he must have his difficulties and saved their lives, asserting he would always be their Boss.
She accused Nan Heng of liking to turn others' genuine hearts into straw and questioned why he was willing to let the Nightwalkers fall into danger but never considered bringing Gao Changyin to justice or presenting him to the Emperor. Calling him hypocritical, she stated she only wanted to remember the upright and kind hero Mr. Li, not a scheming and treacherous person like him.
As the Nightwalkers were being led away, Rong Hua provoked them and attempted to take them to the Kyoto Prefecture jail. The Nightwalkers resisted, pointing out Nan Heng had just ordered them watched, questioning Rong Hua's authority. Nan Heng stopped the confrontation, ordering his subordinate Fu Gui and others to go back with Rong Hua to the Kyoto Prefecture.
Nan Heng then stated it was time to set everything back on track, acknowledging Song Yimeng was right that he shouldn't treat others' genuine hearts as straw. He addressed the Nightwalkers, saying they acted rightly and stood tall and should have walked under the sun, taking responsibility for getting them involved.
He instructed his subordinate to tell Chu Guihong that from start to finish, the one he wanted to deal with was only Nan Heng himself, challenging him to resolve their conflict in the imperial court with real swords and guns. He added that his brothers were going back with Chu's men today, but if they lost a single hair, he would make Chu Guihong pay back double.
Minister Yan Yi of the Ministry of Justice sought out Song Yude, expressing concern that his office might be implicated now that the Gao family was under investigation, given the Ministry's conclusive judgment on the Jiangnan theft case.
Song Yude dismissed his worries, telling him to handle his cases according to the rules, insisting that if he was clean, he'd be clear, and reminding Yan Yi that while they were from the same cohort of Jinshi, they weren't from the same faction and weren't familiar, effectively telling him not to bother him. In the imperial court, the Emperor was angered by Nan Heng's absence, which caused all the officials to wait.
Nan Rui seized the opportunity, claiming Nan Heng knew the Emperor would hold him accountable and had fled due to fear of punishment. He requested the Emperor immediately order the investigation and confiscation of the Gao family's party officials and their residences, and that the command of the Xuanjia Army should immediately be stripped from Nan Heng's hands. The Emperor asked Song Yude for his opinion.
Song Yude replied that while all military power should be in the Emperor's hands, the Xuanjia Army was built by the Seventh Prince himself, and suddenly removing its command required a proper and justified reason, as any matter needed thorough investigation. Nan Rui dismissed this, saying the news about Chancellor Gao's crimes was already public throughout the capital.
Chu Guihong added fuel to the fire, stating that based on the events at the execution ground, Nan Heng was not only the head of the Gao family's party and held significant military power, but also possessed the Nightwalkers, a martial arts force. He warned that if action wasn't taken soon, troop mutiny/turmoil would happen in the capital sooner or later. Other officials voiced their agreement.
Nan Heng suddenly arrived, commenting that he hadn't realized how much the officials dreaded him. Nan Rui immediately shouted, calling for the Imperial Guards to seize him for forming factions and shielding Chancellor Gao. Nan Heng presented a scroll containing the witnesses and physical evidence for the Jiangnan old case, explaining that he had personally investigated the case three years ago and naturally kept a scroll, which he had just retrieved.
When Chu Guihong questioned the scroll's authenticity, given the original evidence was damaged, and accused Nan Heng of tampering with it as a suspect, Nan Heng challenged him to investigate it together with Minister Yan Yi instead of making baseless accusations. The Emperor asked Nan Heng how Gao Changyin's actions in the case should be judged.
Nan Heng proposed that for embezzling two thousand gold of disaster relief silver, a crime that was real though the money was recovered, Gao Changyin should be stripped of his Prime Minister position and exiled a thousand li according to the laws of Great Jing. Some officials, including Chu Guihong, reacted by suggesting this was a strategy by Nan Heng to silence criticism and distance himself, effectively cutting off his own wings.
Nan Heng knelt, stating that if it weren't for his indulgence, Gao Changyin wouldn't have committed today's offense. He said he came not just to charge Gao Changyin but also to personally admit guilt. He confessed that the Waning River Crescent was built by him, and he was its leader, Li Shiliu.
He admitted to insufficient supervision and poor judgment (deserving 20 lashes), harboring martial arts figures and deceiving reports (adding 20), and indulging the prisoner robbery and causing a disturbance at the execution ground (adding another 20).
He offered to use his position as a Prince as atonement, stating that from then on, he would no longer be a Prince of Great Jing, would not enjoy special privileges, and would only use the Xuanjia Army's full strength to protect the long-term peace of the realm. The officials reacted with surprise, interpreting this as a complete withdrawal from the fight for the Heir Apparent, questioning if he was seeking death.
Song Yude spoke, arguing that the law should be followed according to law, not human emotions, and that the one who made the mistake in the Jiangnan old case was Gao Changyin, not the Seventh Prince. He added that the death row prisoner scheduled for execution was a mistaken judgment, and if not for Nan Heng's benevolence/compassion, he wouldn't have kept his life for three years.
As for the Waning River Crescent, although it exists independently of the court, its actions over the years have all benefited the common people and were not wrong. Minister Yan Yi, prompted by the Emperor to answer truthfully, confirmed that if all written in the scroll was true, the punishment for Gao Changyin should indeed be as Nan Heng proposed according to the Ministry of Justice's precedents.
The Emperor granted Nan Heng's request, stating he would fulfill his devotion to the country, his maternal uncle, and those around him. He ordered 60 lashes and stripped him of his Princely position and half his life. After the flogging was complete, Song Yude observed Nan Heng. Later, Chu Guihong approached Song Yude, asking why he had stood on Nan Heng's side today when he had previously guided him on investigating the Waning River Crescent.
Song Yude denied bias, stating his words were just to prevent Great Jing from falling into chaos. Chu Guihong spoke of his history with Song Yimeng, asking why Song Yude and Song Yimeng had changed and what he had done wrong. Song Yude countered by asking if Chu Guihong, in his eagerness to investigate the execution ground matter to the end, had considered implicating Song Yimeng.
He contrasted this with Nan Heng, who had clarified the Jiangnan old case in one day and taken responsibility for the execution ground disturbance to protect the Nightwalkers and the reputation of Song Yude's two daughters, handling everything airtight.
When Chu Guihong suggested Song Yude was saying he was inferior to Nan Heng, Song Yude corrected him, stating that Nan Heng's actions were merely addressing the matter and quelling the disturbance, whereas Chu Guihong was using the incident as an excuse, aiming at the Xuanjia Army. He concluded their hearts were different, their paths naturally diverged, and Chu Guihong's approach would drag more people into the vortex.
Chu Guihong insisted he had no such intention towards Song Yimeng, that if Nan Heng were brought down, he would ensure no one harmed her, and would marry her with a grand dowry, restoring all her reputation. Song Yude replied that he understood Chu Guihong's helplessness, but all of this ended the day he broke off the engagement with Song Yimeng. He begged Chu Guihong to release Song Yimeng and also release himself.
Song Yimeng returned home, contemplating the upcoming "iconic scenes" described in her script, such as the wedding day stabbing, jumping off the tower, being made into a human pig in the cold palace, and the Song family being annihilated by Nan Heng. She felt that nothing had truly changed. She specially prepared a rich dinner, gathering her family to speak frankly.
She shared her initial negative perceptions of her father as a bureaucratic old sly dog, A Ting as a high-minded white lotus, and her stepmother as an evil stepmother. However, through their interactions, she realized the meaning of family, citing examples like her father secretly preparing ginseng cake, A Ting being straightforward and protective, and her stepmother caring for her like her mother would have. She expressed gratitude and resolved past misunderstandings, particularly with her stepmother Zhou Xueyi.
The family teased her for being dramatic, and they enjoyed a warm, harmonious meal together. Meanwhile, Nan Rui discussed plans to target Nan Heng with the Emperor, who advised patience, stating it wasn't time yet. Nan Rui expressed confidence, feeling that without Chancellor Gao, Nan Heng's strength in civil administration, military skill, and court support could no longer compare to his own.
Chu Guihong argued that the Xuanjia Army on the border and the Nightwalker experts made Nan Heng's faction significant, urging the Emperor to strip him of his military power. He acknowledged Song Yude's point about needing a justified reason and suggested creating one.
He proposed leveraging the deep brother-sister affection between Prime Minister Gao and Noble Consort Niang Niang, suggesting Nan Heng, being usually filial, would have concerns if pressure came from the Noble Consort, potentially forcing him to relinquish his command. Someone arrived at Nan Heng's residence to inform him that Prime Minister Gao wanted to see him in the Imperial Prison. Nan Heng initially refused but then changed his mind, acknowledging Gao Changyin was his maternal uncle.
Despite his injuries, he instructed his subordinate Fu Gui to make thorough arrangements for Gao Changyin's exile journey to ensure he would suffer less, and prepared to leave immediately to see him.
