A Girl Like Me Episode 38 Recap
> A Girl Like Me Recap
As the standoff at the city wall reached its climax, Rong Xia fired an arrow at Ban Hua. Xie Chongjin watched, stunned, as he never imagined Rong Xia would kill her with his own hands. Immediately, Rong Xia ordered a full-scale attack on the city. At the city gate, Xie Chongjin was ambushed and wounded by Akeqi and Shi Jin but was rescued by his subordinates.
He rushed back to the main hall to inform Jiang Luo that the city gates had fallen and surrender was their only option. Jiang Luo, enraged, dismissed Xie Chongjin as a useless fool. Shi Feixian, however, saw an opportunity. She suggested that Rong Xia's act of killing Ban Hua would enrage the Ban family’s loyalists.
She proposed inciting Old General Ban's former top commanders, who were defending the capital, to lead the Imperial Guards against Rong Xia under the pretext of revenge. Outside the palace, two senior generals loyal to the late Old General Ban were indeed guarding the gates. One of them, believing Ban Hua to be dead, condemned Rong Xia as a hypocrite. Just then, Ban Hua, miraculously alive, appeared before them holding the Tiger Tally.
She revealed the tally and reminded them of her grandfather's core belief: to fight for the common people and the nation. She urged them to see Jiang Luo for the tyrant he was and questioned if they intended to serve him. Moved by her words, the generals reaffirmed their allegiance to the people and pledged to fight alongside her. With Shi Jin securing the palace entrance, Ban Hua led the soldiers into the main hall.
Inside, Jiang Luo and Shi Feixian were shocked to see Ban Hua alive. A defiant Jiang Luo swore to kill Rong Xia if he dared to enter. Ban Hua confronted Jiang Luo, holding him accountable for the thousands who had starved or been poisoned under his rule and demanding he pay for his crimes.
As Jiang Luo was being escorted away, Shi Feixian realized the truth: Xie Chongjin had betrayed them and was colluding with Rong Xia, using Ban Hua’s feigned death as a ruse. She lamented being just one step away from becoming the Empress of Daye. Ban Hua rebuked her ambition, but Shi Feixian retorted that as empress, she would never be controlled by anyone.
Ban Hua coolly replied that in her eyes, Shi Feixian was already dead, and she was taken into custody. Fleeing the hall, Jiang Luo spotted Xie Chongjin and desperately pleaded for help, offering him the position of Prime Minister in exchange for killing Rong Xia. However, Xie Chongjin revealed the truth of his betrayal, reminding Jiang Luo that he was the one who broke faith first by promising to divorce Xie Wanyu and make Shi Feixian the empress.
Rong Xia watched with dry amusement as Jiang Luo’s "reinforcements" turned on him. Proclaiming himself the true emperor and Jiang Zhang unworthy, Jiang Luo was dragged away and imprisoned in a side palace. Later, Xie Wanyu visited Jiang Luo in his confinement and threw a letter of divorce in his face, leaving him speechless. The Ban family finally returned to their mansion, the turmoil feeling like a distant memory.
Ban Hua noticed a chest wound on Rong Xia and finally realized he was the mysterious man in black from her dreams. Rong Xia playfully listed his old injuries, including one from her horsewhip, joking that she would have to care for him for life. Ban Hua retorted that the emotional pain he caused her was just as severe. They then affectionately discussed their future, including marriage, retiring from court life, and having children.
With legitimate rule restored, Jiang Zhang ascended the throne. In court, Rong Xia confessed to forging the late Emperor’s edict, which enabled Jiang Luo’s usurpation, and requested to be stripped of his titles and exiled as a commoner. He insisted that his mistake led to the suffering of many during the famine and he could not forgive himself. Though many ministers defended him, Jiang Zhang praised Rong Xia’s integrity.
Then, to the astonishment of the entire court, he announced his intention to abdicate and pass the throne to Rong Xia. The ministers erupted in protest, but Jiang Zhang was resolute. Outraged by his irresponsibility, Ban Hua accused him of treating the throne like a game and abandoning his people before storming out. Rong Xia followed, reassuring her he would never break their promise to retreat to a peaceful life together.
The Empress Dowager and Empress Suyue strongly opposed the abdication. The Empress Dowager feared for Jiang Luo’s life if Jiang Zhang stepped down, while Suyue worried about renewed instability in Daye. Jiang Zhang confessed he desired a simpler life with Suyue and questioned whether she loved him or the power of being empress. Suyue insisted she loved him but maintained that the empire needed stability above all.
Meanwhile, Suyue secretly approached Shi Jin, urging him to use the Imperial Guards to force Jiang Zhang to retract his decision and to eliminate Rong Xia, which would allow the Shi family to seize power. However, Shi Jin refused, declaring that after all they had been through, his family was more important than power. In their prison, Jiang Luo frantically promised titles to anyone who would free him, even trying to convince Shi Feixian to trust him one last time.
She coldly pointed out that deposed rulers are never spared. An imperial edict arrived, sentencing them both to lifelong imprisonment. Jiang Luo demanded to see Jiang Zhang, but Rong Xia informed him that the new emperor had authorized him to handle their punishment. Back at the Ban Mansion, the family was overjoyed to find their pomegranate tree had survived and was bearing fruit.
Ban Hua and her parents teased Ban Heng about proposing to Xie Wanyu, but he felt it would be insensitive to do so right after her divorce. Elsewhere, Ban Heng arranged a marriage for his friend Zhou Changxiao on the condition that Zhou help him devise a way to propose to Xie Wanyu.
At the Xie estate, Count Xie was delighted to hear of his daughter's closeness with Ban Heng and offered to propose on her behalf, causing a shy Xie Wanyu to retreat to her room. Finally, the Empress Dowager met with Ban Hua privately. She presented a secret edict from the late Emperor, which named Ban Hua as Princess Changle, a title kept hidden to protect her. The Empress Dowager then asked directly about Rong Xia's intentions for the throne. Ban Hua reassured her that Rong Xia was dedicated to the people and had no desire for the throne himself, finally putting the Empress Dowager's fears to rest.
