Glory Episode 9 Recap
> Glory Recaps
Manager Yan, the Head Maid of the Rong Residence, discovered that her lover had been secretly taking bribes from the He family. Not only had he been unfaithful, but he had also actively aided He Xingming in his attempt to poison the family’s well. When confronted, the man grew insolent, threatening to ruin her reputation by exposing their private affair to the entire city. Manager Yan, however, remained unmoved, declaring that the Rong family cared nothing for idle gossip.
She had him dragged out to receive eighty lashes before being permanently expelled from the mansion. As Rong Shanbao returned to the residence from the tea fields, she encountered a commotion at the gate. An elderly woman named Bo Rui was clamoring for entrance, claiming to be the wet nurse who had raised Shanbao. She told a heart-wrenching tale of walking a thousand miles to escape floods, but Shanbao, watching from behind her sedan's veil, was immediately suspicious.
Bo Rui’s home in Yuzhou was far too distant for a lone woman to travel on foot in such a short time, and her public demand for recognition on the eve of a major ceremony felt staged. Despite the woman’s desperate pleas, Shanbao refused to acknowledge her and ordered the "beggar" to be moved along. Sensing a trap, Shanbao summoned Lu Jianglai to her chambers.
She gave him a jade pendant and tasked him with investigating Bo Rui’s recent movements and identifying anyone in the Rong family she might have contacted. She admitted that her own servants were too conspicuous to be seen investigating, and she trusted Lu Jianglai implicitly, noting that if something happened to her, he might never discover the truth of his own identity. Shanbao’s instincts were correct.
No sooner had Bo Rui been turned away than she was spirited off by the eldest young master, Rong Shanchang. Jealous of Shanbao’s authority over the family business, Shanchang paid the old woman a bag of gold to fabricate a story about Shanbao's past. Bo Rui claimed that Shanbao possessed no innate Tea Bone talent and that her abilities were merely a product of years of secret training orchestrated by the late Madam Su to deceive the family.
Eager for leverage, Shanchang had Bo Rui sign a confession letter, oblivious to the fact that he was being manipulated. This entire scheme had been orchestrated by the second sister, Rong Yunxi, who sought to strip Shanbao of her status. During the solemn Tea Ancestor Ceremony, as Shanbao prepared to offer the first fresh leaves to the ancestors, Yunxi interrupted the rites before the gathered local dignitaries.
She boldly accused Shanbao of being a fraud who had falsely claimed the Tea Bone talent. Bo Rui was brought forward to testify, claiming that Shanbao had only learned tea identification from Elder Shenghui on Mount Putuo to hide her mediocre talent and fool the Old Madam. The situation took a sharp turn when Lu Jianglai arrived, dragging a tied-up Rong Shanchang before the crowd. It was revealed that Shanchang had colluded with Bo Rui to forge the confession.
To settle the matter, a witness named Wang Jing, a neighbor of Bo Rui, was produced. He exposed Bo Rui as a degenerate gambler who had suddenly come into wealth on her journey to Linji, bragging that she would soon extract thousands from the Rong family. Exposed as a liar, Bo Rui tried to flee, but Yunxi, desperate and unyielding, played her final card: she claimed the true Tea Bone was the youngest sister, Rong Yunwan.
Yunwan, who had been kept in seclusion due to her mental fragility, was led out into the spotlight. Terrified and confused, her vacant gaze and timid behavior drew scoffs from the guests. Yunxi aggressively pressured the girl to identify the finest teas, hoping to prove her innate gift. The stress triggered a traumatic breakdown in Yunwan, who began to lash out at Yunxi as if she were a childhood tormentor from her past.
Shanbao immediately moved to protect her sister, shielding Yunwan from the prying eyes of the crowd. She declared that while she cared little for her own status, she would show no mercy to anyone who dared to harm her sister. Disgraced and furious, Old Madam Rong called a halt to the public spectacle. In the privacy of the back courtyard, she unleashed her wrath.
She had Shanchang beaten until he was unconscious and ordered him to be sent to a farm for hard labor, effectively exiling him. Yunxi also faced a severe reprimand for her petty jealousy and for humiliating the family name on such a sacred day. Though the household was in turmoil, the Old Madam maintained a façade of calm for the guests, ordering the ceremony to continue as scheduled once the family matters were settled.
