A Girl Like Me Episode 36 Recap
> A Girl Like Me Recap
Following Ban Hua's collapse from poisoning, Shi Feixian and Jiang Luo celebrated their success. They planned to marry the unconscious Ban Hua to Shi Jin, believing this would demoralize Rong Xia. They also intended to use the wedding as a diversion to capture the Crown Prince. Shi Feixian leveraged the lives of Ban Hua’s parents to force Shi Jin’s compliance, leaving him no choice.
Meanwhile, Ban Huai and his wife attempted to flee the capital with their followers, but imperial soldiers intercepted them at the city gates. The loyal retainers, including Softy, were captured while creating a diversion for Ban Huai and his wife to escape. As planned by Rong Xia, Du Jiu then arrived to escort the couple to the safety of the military camp. Later, as Ban Hua accused Shi Jin of taking advantage of her, Jiang Luo appeared.
Impressed by her spirit, he proposed to grant them a marriage. Ban Hua defiantly claimed that with her parents safe, he had no leverage over her. In response, Jiang Luo had the captured Softy and other retainers brought forward. He threatened their lives, forcing Ban Hua to kneel and agree to the marriage to save them.
Afterward, Shi Jin explained to Ban Hua that their compliance was a ruse to make Jiang Luo overconfident, which would create an opportunity for them to escape. Shi Jin also confessed his long-standing affection for her, recalling how he had admired her spirited and brave nature since he first saw her as a child in the military camp. He wished for her to always remain her unrestrained, unique self.
Moved by his sincerity, Ban Hua agreed to cooperate, though she could not reciprocate his feelings. Jiang Luo, oblivious to their deception, announced the impending marriage, which Rong Xia and Ban Heng initially dismissed as a demoralization tactic. Confident in her scheme, Shi Feixian presented Ban Hua with a shabby wedding dress. Ban Hua requested a better one, and Shi Feixian readily agreed before Ban Hua humbly asked for permission to deliver the wedding invitation to Rong Xia personally.
Believing Ban Hua was powerless and merely seeking closure, a smug Shi Feixian granted the request, eager to see Rong Xia's reaction. As Rong Xia's forces struggled to breach Yujing's defenses, many in his camp began to suspect Shi Jin had truly betrayed them. Just then, Ban Hua and Shi Jin appeared outside the city walls to meet with Rong Xia. They presented him with the wedding invitation, announcing a three-day truce for the ceremony in Yujing.
A disbelieving Rong Xia reminded Ban Hua of their promise to live a simple life together, but Shi Jin interjected, asserting his claim as her fiancé. Rong Xia questioned Shi Jin’s conscience for forcing a marriage with someone who did not love him. Shi Jin retorted that Rong Xia, who claimed to love her, had repeatedly put her in peril.
He declared Rong Xia's engagement to Ban Hua broken and delivered Jiang Luo’s offer: surrender Crown Prince Jiang Zhang, and Jiang Luo would forgive him, restore his family’s honor, and grant him a promotion. Rong Xia vehemently refused. Rong Xia suspected a hidden message but could find nothing in the invitation. His advisors and the Crown Prince worried the wedding was a trap. Rong Xia grew distraught, believing Ban Hua was trying to push him away to save him.
It was Ban Heng who later discovered a secret message in the invitation when he held it to candlelight, revealing Jiang Luo’s true plan: to use the wedding to lure Rong Xia’s forces away and capture the Crown Prince. On the wedding day, a distraught Softy wept for Ban Hua, who tried to comfort him with a joke about her "curse" of failed marriages.
Rong Xia, Ban Heng, and Akeqi arrived at the ceremony, where Shi Feixian greeted Rong Xia with sarcasm. Ban Heng shot back a sharp retort about her altered appearance. As the ceremony began, Jiang Luo dispatched troops to capture the Crown Prince. The plan was for a counter-attack to be signaled when Ban Hua and Shi Jin were to drink the cross-cupped wine.
At that moment, Ban Hua seized Shi Jin and held him hostage, refusing to be forced into the marriage. Shi Feixian and Prime Minister Shi desperately pleaded with Xie Chongjin to save Shi Jin. However, Xie Chongjin, prioritizing his larger scheme, ignored their pleas and ordered his men to forcibly remove them from the scene. Choosing to sacrifice his ally, he turned to face Rong Xia, ready for a confrontation. Rong Xia declared that he had anticipated such a move, having come fully prepared.
