Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty Episode 19 Recap
> Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty Recap
Wei finds Ming Hui calmly playing the qin, her plans having succeeded. Wei sarcastically questions her composure following the death of her supposed friend, Xiaochun. Ming Hui retorts that Xiaochun deserved her fate and reveals that she knows about the "sly trick" Wei and Yinxiang pulled to rescue her from the royal dungeons, warning Wei that it was an act of treachery.
Unintimidated, Wei confronts Ming Hui about her long list of cruel deeds, from framing her with embroidered shoes to orchestrating the plot against Xiaochun. Wei then delivers a final blow, informing a stunned Ming Hui that she has arranged with Consort De to have her sent out of the palace to care for her family. The members of the Eighth Prince Party attempt to discuss state affairs with Emperor Kangxi but find him weary and distracted.
He confides in them that he has been having recurring dreams of his beloved late Empress Renxiao. He is overcome with shame, having promised her he would personally raise the Crown Prince to be a good man, only to see him fall into disgrace. Later, Yinti astutely analyzes that his father’s shame is his greatest torment and that to forgive himself, he must first find a way to forgive the Crown Prince.
Anxious about being forced to leave the palace, Ming Hui confronts Yinti, urging him to take action against Yinxiang. She accuses him of being soft because of his feelings for Wei, but Yinti coolly dismisses her, stating he has his own plans. Yinti then finds Wei and warns her to stay out of the princes' dangerous power struggles, telling her she was merely lucky to have saved Xiaochun.
Wei refuses, declaring that she will protect the man she loves, even if it means dying. Frustrated, Yinti asks why she always chooses to stand against him. A talisman with Yinxiang's handwriting is discovered in the Crown Prince's former residence. Enraged, Kangxi immediately concludes Yinxiang used talismanic magic against his brother and orders him arrested and confined to the Imperial Clan Court without a trial.
A frantic Wei learns the news from Yinti and, realizing she is powerless, rushes to Yinzhen for help. He reluctantly agrees to take her to see her husband. In his cell, Yinxiang is targeted by an assassin disguised as a maidservant bringing him food. He cleverly sees through her ruse, and a fight breaks out just as Yinzhen and Wei arrive. The assassin briefly takes Wei hostage, but Yinxiang rescues her, sustaining a minor injury in the process.
Cornered, the assassin takes her own life. In the moments they have together, Yinxiang and Wei share a tender and sorrowful farewell, and he asks Yinzhen to protect her. The ordeal leaves Wei hopeless, but Yinzhen encourages her to remain strong, reminding her that she is Yinxiang's pillar of support. When Kangxi hears of the assassination attempt, his primary reaction is not concern for his son's safety but suspicion at how conveniently Yinzhen arrived on the scene.
Consumed by grief, Wei can neither eat nor sleep. She spends the night writing a petition for the Emperor but loses hope when she learns that even Yinzhen, who has been kneeling for hours outside Kangxi's hall, has failed to move him. Just as she despairs that her own petition will be useless, Ming Hui arrives to put the final part of her plan into motion.
She tells Wei a calculated lie: that Yinti was the one who forged the talisman. She urges Wei to expose him to the Emperor, claiming her own motive is jealousy over Yinti's unwavering affection for Wei. Ming Hui explains to the Eighth Prince her true, more insidious strategy: she knows Kangxi fears seeing his sons destroy one another and wants to contain the scandal. If Wei publicly accuses another prince, it will force the Emperor's hand.
To prevent the conflict from escalating, he will have no choice but to sacrifice Yinxiang to end the matter swiftly, a move that would also ruin Wei and weaken Yinzhen. In court, Yintang and others from the Eighth Prince's faction press for Yinxiang's punishment, but Kangxi turns their words back on them, delivering a stern warning to all his sons against fratricide. Just then, Wei arrives.
She walks past a kneeling Yinzhen and goes before the Emperor, stunning the court by declaring that Yinxiang is innocent. When Kangxi demands to know who the real culprit is, she confesses, "It was me." To prove her claim, she flawlessly replicates Yinxiang's handwriting on a new talisman.
As for her motive, she weaves a story of jealousy, claiming the Crown Prince had encouraged Yinxiang to take a new concubine and that Yinxiang had considered it, driving her to frame them both out of hatred. Her confession is so unexpected that Kangxi dismisses everyone else, keeping Wei alone for further questioning.
