Better Halves Episode 6 Recap
> Better Halves Recap
The morning after a night of heavy drinking, Shi Fa'ke woke up to find her makeup altered and could not recall the previous night's events. Her cousin found her and reminded her to attend to her duties promptly. Meanwhile, Marquis Wu'an sought the construction drawing of the imperial city, believing it to be with the Shen family, whose patriarch, Shen Chang, had designed the palace's secret tunnels.
To acquire this crucial map for military cooperation, the Marquis ordered his subordinate to have the Official Matchmaking Agency arrange a marriage for Shen Chang's unmarried daughter, Shen Tongyun. This task fell to Marriage Broker Deng, who was warned that failure would result in her replacement. Deng expressed concerns about Shen Tongyun's known preference for handsome men but was reminded that the marriage would be dictated by parental command and a matchmaker's words.
At Xibao Pavilion, Lu Chi's subordinate noted his unusually good mood. Before meeting his guests, Lu Chi reviewed a construction drawing of a turret containing a secret passage to the Forbidden Palace, which was built by Shen Chang, confirming the connection to the Marquis's objective. Upon hearing that an uninvited guest and Shi Fa'ke were visiting, Lu Chi instructed his staff to prioritize any news concerning "Ke" (Shi Fa'ke).
At the Official Matchmaking Agency, a colleague informed Shi Fa'ke that due to her success in Qi Shaoheng's case, she would be relegated to clerical tasks and no longer assigned new cases. Realizing she was being sidelined due to professional jealousy, Shi Fa'ke sought a way to retain her position. She learned from Marriage Broker Zhao that Deng was attempting to arrange a marriage for Shen Tongyun, the notoriously picky daughter of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.
Seizing the opportunity, Shi Fa'ke immediately found Shen Tongyun, who enthusiastically invited her into her carriage. Shen Tongyun confessed her deep affection for a certain gentleman and asked Shi Fa'ke to be her matchmaker. To Shi Fa'ke's dismay and jealousy, Shen Tongyun revealed the object of her affection was Lu Chi. Arriving at Xibao Pavilion, Shen Tongyun was delighted that Lu Chi was an acquaintance of Shi Fa'ke and urged her to arrange the proposal immediately.
When Lu Chi appeared, Shen Tongyun openly admired his appearance and declared her intent to marry him, asking Shi Fa'ke to convey her wishes. Realizing Shi Fa'ke had accepted the case, Lu Chi instructed his staff to escort Shen Tongyun out, stating Xibao Pavilion was too small to host her, but specifically asked Shi Fa'ke to remain. As an unwilling Shen Tongyun departed, she was immediately intercepted by Marriage Broker Deng.
Lu Chi pulled Shi Fa'ke aside, confronting her about accepting Shen Tongyun's case and subtly probing about her drunken behavior from the previous night. Shi Fa'ke evaded the topic of her intoxication. Pressed on why she took such a difficult case, she explained her desperation: with Deng blocking her from new cases and her mother unable to return to the agency, she felt immense pressure to uphold her family's reputation as the "No.1 matchmaker."
She saw Shen Tongyun as her only chance to prove herself. Lu Chi, however, simply stated that he did not like Shen Tongyun. With Lu Chi's clear rejection, Shi Fa'ke went to He's Bakery to enlist He Kexian as a replacement suitor. She feigned distress and tearfully manipulated him into agreeing to help. However, his sister, Ketian, saw through the ruse and angrily intervened, knowing her brother's affections lay with Shi Fa'ke.
She confronted Shi Fa'ke for trying to push her brother toward another woman and threatened to sever their friendship. Unbeknownst to Shi Fa'ke, Lu Chi was being watched by Marquis Wu'an. His subordinate reported that Shen Tongyun had met with Deng, expressing her unwavering desire for Lu Chi despite his lack of powerful connections, and that Deng had proposed an alternative, equally handsome match. The subordinate also relayed that Shi Fa'ke had been expelled from He's Bakery.
Lu Chi instructed him to investigate Shen Tongyun's associates but to leave Shi Fa'ke alone. Shortly after, Shi Fa'ke, already feeling betrayed by Shen Tongyun's secret meeting with Deng, saw Lu Chi staring in Shen Tongyun's direction. Misinterpreting this as affection, she grew jealous and twisted her ankle. Lu Chi approached to help, but her two older brothers arrived, forcefully taking their sister from his arms, carrying her away on their shoulders, and berating him as a stranger.
At home, Shi Fa'ke's protective father and brothers, convinced Lu Chi was a scoundrel, restricted her movements. To lift her spirits, they offered a fun outing and Shi Fa'ke suggested inviting Lu Chi so her brothers could apologize. They warily agreed, secretly planning to keep a close watch.
Meanwhile, Lu Chi, aware of the Shi family's protectiveness and the Marquis's investigation, instructed his subordinate, Lu Yi, to acquire all the shops in Ping'an Alley and transform them into a grand snack street, certain it would attract Shi Fa'ke. Shi Fa'ke was delighted by the new snack street. Though her brothers claimed Lu Chi had declined their invitation, he soon appeared at a noodle stall.
Her brothers, Shi Chongshan and Shi Huai, began aggressively eating from Shi Fa'ke's and Lu Chi's bowls. In response, Lu Chi ordered many more bowls of noodles, overfilling the brothers until they feigned stomachaches and left. After they departed, Lu Chi suddenly collapsed, having been poisoned by Shi Chongshan. Shi Fa'ke brought him to her home to care for him.
As her father disparaged Lu Chi, Shi Fa'ke defended him, revealing how he had managed their ancestral hall and bribed jailers to ease their imprisonment, stopping just short of mentioning he had taken a knife for her. Soon after, her mother caught Shi Chongshan secretly observing Lu Chi, and the truth came out: the father and sons had used a knockout drug on Lu Chi. Furious, their mother ordered them to care for him and apologize sincerely.
Despite their protests that it was improper for an unmarried woman to nurse a man, Shi Fa'ke insisted on personally tending to Lu Chi, threatening to never speak to them again if any harm came to him. While she diligently nursed the secretly-awake Lu Chi, who was merely feigning unconsciousness, her father and brothers eventually came to apologize and take over his care. Lu Chi then revealed he was awake, surprising the family, who promptly sought to escort him home.
