Five Kings of Thieves Episode 4 Recap
> Five Kings of Thieves Recap
San Zhi Liu, unable to withstand the relentless assault, weakened rapidly. As he neared his end, Shui Yao'er appeared and gave Huo Xiaoxie a pill to administer to his master. After taking the pill, San Zhi Liu regained a little strength and asked Huo Xiaoxie to get him some water. While Huo Xiaoxie was gone, San Zhi Liu spoke privately with Shui Yao'er, confirming the pill was a Water Elixir and realizing her identity from the Water family.
Though weakened, he expressed gratitude for her help, feeling his life as a "hooligan" wasn't worth much but regretting his inability to provide well for his talented apprentice, Huo Xiaoxie. He revealed that Huo Xiaoxie possessed an "eerie flame" bloodline and asked Shui Yao'er if she would take him to the Five-elements Rally, an event held by the five-element families every twenty years for new members, noting that ordinary people like himself could never get close to their threshold.
Shui Yao'er promised to do her best to help Huo Xiaoxie. Satisfied with her promise, San Zhi Liu passed away shortly after Huo Xiaoxie returned with water. Huo Xiaoxie was distraught, refusing to believe his master was dead and insisting on finding a physician, but Shui Yao'er confirmed his master was gone. Meanwhile, Zhang Si ordered his men, including the Yufeng Detectives, to eliminate the five-element families and retrieve the Holy Cauldron.
Soon after, Zheng Zedao found Huo Xiaoxie and Shui Yao'er, warning them that Zhang Si's forces had already departed from Fengtian and urging them to leave quickly. Huo Xiaoxie asked Zheng Zedao to look after his friends who were injured. Zheng Zedao agreed. Zheng Zedao then recognized Shui Yao'er as the daughter of the Water King, whom his father had instructed him to visit.
He mentioned he was preparing to visit her family soon and noted that the upcoming Five-elements Rally would be held at Wangjiapu. He revealed his father had given him a Black Stone Fire Token. He again pressed them to leave quickly as Zhang Si's men were closing in. Huo Xiaoxie stated he wished to bury his master before leaving. As they traveled, Huo Xiaoxie suddenly felt intensely cold.
Shui Yao'er, observing this, realized it was the effect of something he had eaten. She used knots on a rope to tie his blood vessels, explaining this would restrain the proliferation of the cold energy and prevent the toxin from acting up too quickly. They then encountered the Yan family brothers. Shui Yao'er greeted them respectfully and revealed she had found the Jade Pearl.
She explained she needed their help to protect Huo Xiaoxie and take him to the Five-elements Rally at Wangjiapu, offering the pearl as compensation for their assistance. Despite initial hesitation about taking an outsider, the Yan brothers agreed to help in exchange for the Jade Pearl. During their journey, Huo Xiaoxie mentioned seeing a woman who looked exactly like Shui Yao'er in the Linglong Mirror. Shui Yao'er reacted initially with annoyance, but then became intrigued.
She recounted hearing from a fortune teller, or her father's story, that the Linglong Mirror shows one's destined person or future spouse, and wondered if Huo Xiaoxie might be the hero the fortune teller had spoken of. From that moment, her attitude changed, and she insisted that the Yan brothers must not harm him, promising to cook for them. They shared a meal, praising her culinary skills.
During the meal, they discussed the cold energy emanating from Huo Xiaoxie, and he admitted to having eaten the Jade Pearl. The Yan brothers confirmed Shui Yao'er's rope knots were suppressing the toxin. Huo Xiaoxie asked if they could remove it, but they said he had to do it himself. Later, as Huo Xiaoxie continued to suffer from the toxin, Shui Yao'er grew concerned.
She asked Yan Jingtian if Fire family martial arts could suppress the cold toxin and requested he teach Huo Xiaoxie. Jingtian initially refused, stating their family's martial arts were not taught to outsiders. Shui Yao'er dramatically threatened to have them cut Huo Xiaoxie open to retrieve the pearl if they refused to help. Jingtian reluctantly agreed to teach him after they reached a safer location. While traveling further, Huo Xiaoxie collapsed as the toxin flared up severely.
Spotting Zhang Si's chasing forces, Shui Yao'er quickly devised a plan: the Yan brothers would lure Zhang Si's men away, while she would take Huo Xiaoxie to the Wood family for help. Jingtian agreed, stipulating that the Jade Pearl must not fall into the Wood family's hands. Shui Yao'er insisted saving Huo Xiaoxie was her priority, having promised his master. They agreed to meet later at a post house located thirty li away.
To execute the diversion, Yan Jingtian had two of the brothers ride a single horse on the coastal path, taking turns riding in front and back to create hoof prints that would mislead their pursuers into believing a man and a woman were riding ahead. The tactic worked, and Zhang Si's Yufeng Detectives, observing the tracks, initially believed they were close to catching a man and woman, ordering their forces to pursue aggressively.
However, they eventually realized they had been fooled and turned back to broaden their search. Shui Yao'er successfully brought the ailing Huo Xiaoxie to the designated post house, where they met Lin Wan, a woman from the Wood family. Lin Wan, demonstrating impressive medical skill, successfully removed the Jade Pearl from Huo Xiaoxie's body. She kept the pearl, declaring it her fee for the treatment.
Shui Yao'er did not protest the loss of the pearl, expressing only relief that Huo Xiaoxie had been saved. Lin Wan, perceiving Shui Yao'er's deep concern for Huo Xiaoxie, shared her findings: she had discovered an "eerie flame" within him during the procedure, noting that it had likely kept him alive.
However, she identified it as a "dark flame," warning that those with such a bloodline historically faced difficult and often ill-fated destinies, suggesting that Shui Yao'er should reconsider their potential relationship. Shui Yao'er explained that the Jade Pearl had been taken from Zhang Si's manor, highlighting the ongoing danger of Zhang Si's intense pursuit.
Concerned by this, Lin Wan quickly concealed the pearl and instructed Shui Yao'er to pack their belongings for an immediate departure by carriage under the cover of darkness. Huo Xiaoxie, upon waking, dreamt of being saved by a beautiful woman. Following Lin Wan's advice, Shui Yao'er made sure Huo Xiaoxie spent time in the sun to counter the lingering cold energy. She also prepared food for him, demonstrating her renowned cooking skills.
She cautiously informed Huo Xiaoxie that the Jade Pearl had been taken by the physician as payment, and strongly cautioned him against revealing this to the Yan brothers, fearing negative consequences for both of them if they learned the pearl was gone. She then attempted to teach him a therapeutic exercise intended to soothe his meridians and regulate his body, but he found it difficult and questioned the effectiveness of the technique.
The Yan family brothers arrived at the post house, once again complimenting Shui Yao'er's cooking. An awkward discussion ensued regarding the martial arts training and the promised Jade Pearl. Huo Xiaoxie expressed frustration with his inability to learn the technique Jingtian had shown him, implying the teaching was inadequate.
Shui Yao'er intervened, trying to mediate by acknowledging Huo Xiaoxie's clumsiness but also reminding Jingtian of the Jade Pearl's value and its potential significance to the Fire family in potentially locating the Holy Cauldron. Jingtian, though still asserting he had taught what he could, reluctantly agreed to teach Huo Xiaoxie one more, simpler technique, insisting he would take back the pearl afterwards regardless of Huo Xiaoxie's progress.
Before the new lesson could begin, other figures arrived with urgent news: Zhang Si's forces were located at the foot of the mountain, having successfully tracked them using a dog. Shui Yao'er immediately proposed a plan to lure Zhang Si's men up the mountain the following morning to confront and eliminate them. Simultaneously, Zhang Si's forces were shown setting up an ambush formation, guided by the dog's tracking, and discovering evidence consistent with the Water family's presence.
