A League of Nobleman Episode 28 Recap
> A League of Nobleman Recap
Outside the hall, people suddenly died. The Empress Dowager appeared outside, seemingly brought back to life, with a blood letter draped over her body. The blood letter was read aloud, stating that thirty years ago, the prince was critically ill. The Empress Dowager, using the pretense of the Resurrection Array, replaced him with a common baby boy.
A witch of the Moluo Clan accidentally learned of this, felt pity, and took the dying true prince, healed him, and raised him as her own. Twenty years ago, the witch wished to return the prince and discussed it with Mr. Lan Lin. However, the Empress Dowager learned the true prince was alive, feared exposure, and decided to eliminate the threat by ordering the assassination of her own child.
She also ordered the complete slaughter of the Moluo clan and exterminated Lan Lin's family for treason. The letter concluded by stating the souls of the Moluo clansmen had wandered for twenty years and could only rest if the Empress Dowager's body was exposed, as punishment for her heinous crimes of killing her son and wiping out a clan. Grand Tutor Liu Xian respectfully requested to see the birth certificate.
Gu Qingzhang presented a document, claiming it was a page of the birth certificate given to Xuan Ji by the Empress Dowager to be burned when Gu Qingzhang was buried alive. Saved by fate and wind, it fell into his adoptive mother's hands. He stated it bore his childhood palm print and the Empress Dowager's palm print, asking Mr. Wang and Mr. Dou, who had seen the original, to verify its authenticity. They confirmed it matched.
The Chief of Imperial Astronomy then verified that the baby palm print on the document matched Gu Qingzhang's current palm print. With the verification complete, Grand Tutor Liu Xian declared there should be no further objection. He stated the matter concerned the royal lineage and was of great importance, urging officials to support the return of the true emperor. He then led a group of officials in welcoming Gu Qingzhang to the throne.
However, Minister Wang objected, stating that holding the new emperor's ascension ceremony on the same day as the Empress Dowager's funeral did not conform to etiquette. Lan Jue stepped forward and clarified that historical records contained precedents for the simultaneous performance of the two rites. Lan Jue then proceeded to help Gu Qingzhang put on the attire prepared for the emperor's ascension. As he did so, Gu Qingzhang realized Lan Jue was attempting to assassinate him.
Gu Qingzhang expressed his deep disappointment, believing Lan Jue to be his only true friend, and hurt that even he wanted him dead. Despite the betrayal, Gu Qingzhang declared his enthronement was destined and no one could stop it. Just as Grand Tutor Liu Xian was about to perform the coronation, Chen Chou appeared, supporting a seriously injured Zhang Ping. Zhang Ping loudly announced that there was no prince exchange, and Gu Qingzhang was not the real emperor.
He revealed that General Xiong had stabbed him precisely, avoiding vital points, making the injury look severe but not fatal, allowing him to appear dead. Zhang Ping then stated he held the real birth certificate that could prove the emperor's identity, meaning the certificate Gu Qingzhang possessed must be forged. He asserted that by opening the coffin, he could prove Gu Qingzhang's certificate was fake.
When officials protested opening the sealed coffin, Zhang Ping countered by pointing out the Empress Dowager's body was kneeling outside, seemingly dragged out by Moluo ghosts as everyone had seen. He claimed these 'ghosts' were merely Gu Qingzhang's subordinates in disguise, using the underground passages connected to the hall square to move secretly and create the illusion. He challenged the officials, saying if the coffin was empty as their observation implied, why were they afraid to open it?
Zhang Ping then presented his true theory: there was "another" Empress Dowager inside the coffin, and the kneeling body outside was a fake, which had never been placed in the coffin. He explained that Gu Qingzhang had used the Resurrection Array as a cover to swap the real Empress Dowager with a fake one to facilitate his entry and plans in the palace. The fake Empress Dowager was the one who died the day before.
After the small encoffining ceremony was performed on the fake body, it was moved to the culvert by Eunuch Liu and Gu Qingzhang's men instead of being placed in the coffin, as evidenced by tulip ointment and mercury found in the canals. They then dragged this fake body from the culvert during the commotion outside the hall and placed the blood letter on her to simulate a ghostly accusation.
The person now lying in the coffin was the real Empress Dowager, whom Gu Qingzhang had kidnapped from Banyue Pavilion and swapped back into the coffin after the small encoffining ceremony, sealing it in front of everyone. Zhang Ping added that the Empress Dowager in the coffin was still alive. General Cao confirmed this by stating the female officer who performed the encoffining had confessed that the real Empress Dowager was indeed inside the coffin.
General Cao ordered the coffin opened. The Empress Dowager was found to still have breath. Zhang Ping explained that a silver needle had been inserted into an acupuncture point, rendering her unable to move or speak but leaving her conscious; she would recover quickly once the needle was removed. Shortly after the needle was withdrawn, the Empress Dowager woke up, remarking on the spectacle and questioning their haste in holding a funeral for her.
Grand Tutor Liu Xian asked her directly if Gu Qingzhang was the real emperor. The Empress Dowager did not explicitly deny his identity but instead pointed to what 'this rebel' had done to her, implying his actions were not those of a true royal. Zhang Ping reiterated that opening the coffin would prove the birth certificate was fake. He explained that even a perfect forgery would miss one detail: the Empress Dowager's palm print.
Gu Qingzhang had forced her to make the print after kidnapping her, thinking it would pass. However, the Empress Dowager had suffered from herpes after childbirth thirty years ago, leaving scars on her palm. He showed her hand, noting the scars. He explained the symptoms of the illness included palm mucus that would dry into crumbs on clothing or paper. If the palm print on the certificate was genuinely from thirty years ago, it would bear traces of these crumbs.
Since Gu Qingzhang was unaware of this historical detail, he could not have replicated it. The authenticity of the certificate could be determined by examining the inkpad area for white crumbs. Zhang Ping then asked Gu Qingzhang if his certificate could withstand such a test. Gu Qingzhang replied, "No need to verify. This birth certificate is fake." Upon Gu Qingzhang's admission, Grand Tutor Liu Xian called him a rebel and ordered General Cao to apprehend him.
Gu Qingzhang questioned the Empress Dowager why she wasn't revealing his reasons for kidnapping her and orchestrating the events of the day. He then turned to Zhang Ping, asking why he, who was supposedly obsessed with the truth, was now unwilling to pursue the real reasons. Zhang Ping identified Gu Qingzhang as Mr. Jinghu, who had appeared during the imperial examination the previous year, accusing him of inciting scholars, causing unrest, kidnapping the Empress Dowager, and plotting usurpation.
He called Gu Qingzhang a delusional madman obsessed with becoming the emperor. Gu Qingzhang commented that Zhang Ping, or Ku Ruo, could now lie and had grown up. Gu Qingzhang then addressed the Empress Dowager, declaring that all the night-blooming cereus in the Imperial City would bloom for her tonight. He reminded them of the scarlet mist poison, revealing he had improved it using the embalmer before the man's suicide. The toxin was now hidden in the flower pollen.
When the flowers bloomed, the scarlet mist would cover the entire city, and people would die painlessly in happy illusions, with smiles on their faces, their bodies stiffening. He stated the Imperial City was now filled with night-blooming cereus, and tonight was the night they would bloom. Zhang Ping expressed doubt that Gu Qingzhang could control the flowers to bloom. However, Gu Qingzhang used a pottery whistle from the Moluo clan, and instantly, people outside the hall began dying.
Someone cried out that the night-blooming cereus had all bloomed and the red pollen within was poisonous and lethal to the touch. Panic erupted as people died. Amidst the chaos, it was noticed that the Empress Dowager and Gu Qingzhang were gone. Zhang Ping urged people to remain calm and cover their mouths and noses with damp cloths. He rushed towards the blooming flowers despite being warned, touched one, and quickly figured out the secret.
Night-blooming cereus typically bloom in cool night temperatures. Gu Qingzhang had buried large amounts of saltpetre in the soil beforehand and instructed his subordinates hidden in the culverts to flood the soil with water, causing a rapid temperature drop, which triggered the flowers to bloom. Zhang Ping realized the poisonous mist was spreading across the city and they needed to find a way to save the citizens.
Zhang Ping, Lan Jue, Xiong Xiao, Chen Chou, and others quickly hurried into the city. People in the city, some fascinated by the suddenly blooming flowers, began dying as the red mist reached them. Zhang Ping directed citizens to use damp cloths, seek higher ground, and enter buildings, sealing off doors and windows. General Cao stated that the safety of the entire city's population was paramount, even more so than finding the Empress Dowager and Gu Qingzhang at that moment. They worked to gather people and guide them to safety.
