Fake Princess Episode 1 Recap
> Fake Princess Recap
In the dead of night, Yuyao was frantically pursued by her household staff, eventually cornered at the edge of a cliff. Her father informed her that her beloved Duan had been murdered on her grandfather's orders. He implored her to return home, warning that defiance of the imperial decree would lead to the ruin of their entire clan.
Heartbroken upon hearing of her lover's demise, Yuyao declared her wish to reunite with him in the next life and tragically leapt from the cliff. Meanwhile, Prince Li Che, traveling incognito with an envoy from the Night Kingdom while escorting tribute, found himself targeted by the audacious female bandit Changle and her comrade Bro Meng.
As Li Che, recalling warnings from Gongsun Mo, suspected the attackers were from the Liu family and ordered his guards to engage, Bro Meng and his gang, upon seeing Changle's success signal, quickly retreated. This led the envoy to believe their escape was due to imperial grace. Later, Changle proudly displayed the stolen western telescope to Bro Meng and her fellow bandits, boasting it was enough to sustain them for a year.
Deciding the item was too valuable and risky to sell immediately, she opted to keep it and play with it for a few days. Back at the Liu mansion, Yuyao's father suggested retrieving her body, but Liu Sheng, his father, sternly forbade it. Liu Sheng emphasized the grave danger to their entire family if the Emperor discovered Yuyao's suicide, lamenting that his grand plan had been ruined. He ordered everyone to maintain absolute secrecy about Yuyao's fate.
At the imperial court, Li Che and the Night Kingdom envoy presented the tribute to the Emperor. Among the gifts were exquisite spices, jade, blankets, Xilagu grain, and a pair of "mother-son stones." The envoy explained that the mother stone provided climate control, and when combined with the son stone (crafted into a special treasure), it would emit light, symbolizing the brilliant bond between the Empress and her son, the Prince.
The Empress, inferring the gift's intended recipient, directed it towards her son, the Fifth Prince Li Heng. However, upon opening the box, Li Heng discovered a raw bone instead of the promised western telescope. The Emperor erupted in fury. The envoy, prostrating himself, swore that they had prepared a western telescope and that someone must have tampered with it. Li Che realized that the bandits' earlier, sudden retreat was indeed a calculated deception.
Li Che sought the Emperor's permission to investigate the matter, acknowledging that the incident occurred under his escort. Liu Sheng also requested to join the investigation to recover the tribute. The Emperor approved. Upon reaching Baiyi Mountain, Liu Sheng proposed a strategy to divide their forces: one group disguised as a merchant caravan to lure the bandits, and the other to directly raid the stronghold.
Li Che, suspecting Liu Sheng's true intentions to put him in harm's way, insisted on being the bait himself. He secretly instructed General Wang, who was to accompany Liu Sheng's raiding party, to closely watch for the western telescope, hinting that Liu Sheng might attempt to hide it to frame him. Changle's bandits soon ambushed Li Che's "merchant" group again. Changle recognized Li Che from their previous encounter and initially tried to negotiate.
However, Li Che's guards, secretly loyal to Liu Sheng, urged him to kill the "female thief" to boost morale. Li Che, wary of Liu Sheng's manipulative tactics and uncertain of Changle's fighting prowess, hesitated. Changle, noticing his reluctance, taunted him as a "cowardly rat," successfully provoking him into a duel. During their fight, a villager rushed in, warning that official troops were attacking the stronghold, indiscriminately killing people. Changle quickly deployed a smoke bomb and made her escape.
Liu Sheng's forces relentlessly seized the villagers and demanded to know the identity of their leader and the whereabouts of the western telescope. When an elderly man refused to cooperate, Liu Sheng angrily drew his sword. Just as he was about to strike, Changle and Bro Meng's group arrived, stopping the senseless slaughter. However, Changle was captured. Liu Sheng, pulling off her scarf, was stunned by her striking resemblance to Yuyao. General Wang also recognized the likeness.
To prevent his secret from being exposed, Liu Sheng swiftly killed General Wang, exclaiming that this was "Heaven's gift" to him. Upon finding General Wang dead, Li Che questioned Liu Sheng about the masked female bandit. Liu Sheng feigned ignorance, claiming no such person was found and that the western telescope had been recovered. Satisfied, Li Che ceased his inquiry.
Liu Sheng then threatened Changle, offering to secure the safety of her twenty-five captured villagers by replacing them with death row prisoners, and provide a hefty reward in gold if she agreed to undertake a secret mission for him for three months, the details of which he would not yet reveal. Changle, prioritizing her people's safety, agreed on the condition that all her villagers were kept safe.
Liu Sheng promised to use "turtle powder" at the mission's end to fake her death and ensure her escape. Changle was then transformed, dressed in elegant attire. Yuyao's father was astounded by her perfect resemblance to his deceased daughter. Liu Sheng formally declared Changle as Liu Yuyao, the Liu family's eldest daughter and his granddaughter, and assigned Nong Ying, a skilled martial artist, as her personal maid.
Meanwhile, the Emperor, pleased with the recovered tribute, announced Li Che's impending grand wedding, confirming that the phoenix coronet and robes of rank had been sent to Liu Sheng's mansion. Changle was furious at being forced into marriage but confronted Liu Sheng. He brought Shitou and her "third aunt," whom he had rescued from prison as part of his promise, to coerce her. Using her remaining twenty-plus villagers as leverage, Liu Sheng forced Changle to agree to marry.
He revealed her intended groom: Crown Prince Li Che. Li Che's intelligence network uncovered the "shocking secret" of the real Liu Yuyao, a crime of imperial deception that would spell the end of the Liu family. Li Che immediately summoned Chen. On the day of the wedding, Nong Ying advised Changle to control her temper, reminding her of the political complexities, especially with Empress Shen and her son Li Heng, a rival to Li Che.
As Li Che arrived to escort her, Changle, who had just eaten watermelon, accidentally stumbled into his arms, leaving a watermelon seed stuck on her face. During the ceremony, an official named Chen attempted to disrupt the proceedings, declaring that the woman was unfit to marry the Prince. Li Che noticed what he initially mistook for a large beauty mark on his bride's face, only to realize, upon closer inspection, that it was a watermelon seed.
He silently mused on the surprising untidiness of his "noble" fiancée. Changle, recognizing Li Che as the "handsome young man" she had fought, was shocked to learn he was the Crown Prince, mentally boasting about having "kicked" the future emperor – a story she could tell for a lifetime.
