Joy of Life Season 2 Episode 21 Recap, Plot

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> Joy of Life Season 2 Recap

The Empress heard that the person who impersonated Yang Wanli was a student of Li Chengqian, and that the foolish Li Chengqian had followed Fan Xian to lodge a complaint to the Emperor. She became anxious and sent someone to summon Li Chengqian to ask about the details. Only then did she learn that Li Chengqian had been framed.

Upon learning that Qing Di had handed over the investigation of past years' corruption in the Spring Imperial Examination to Fan Xian, she became wary of him but couldn't express it openly, while Li Chengqian considered Fan Xian his best partner. Fan Xian put Wang Qinian in charge of revising the list of successful candidates.

Wang Qinian thought he only needed to erase the imposter and replace him with Yang Wanli, but to his surprise, Fan Xian asked him to re-copy the entire list. Staring at the densely packed names, Wang Qinian silently cursed. Deng Ziyue made sarcastic remarks nearby, which made Wang Qinian grit his teeth in anger. But he didn't dare defy Fan Xian's orders and had to copy the list painstakingly, afraid that one mistake would mean starting over again.

Fan Xian had someone bring Guo Youzhi to the Imperial Inspectorate's prison. Guo Baokun accompanied Guo Youzhi there, worried that Fan Xian might silence Guo Youzhi after using him. Fan Xian came to the prison to consult Guo Youzhi about the Spring Exam corruption case and promised to release him soon. Guo Baokun finally relaxed. Guo Youzhi provided Fan Xian with important clues and suggested starting the investigation with those who had suffered injustices in past Spring Exams.

Lin Ruofu sent Yuan Hongdao to invite Fan Xian. Lin Dabao missed Fan Xian a lot and insisted on going with Yuan Hongdao. Lin Dabao cheered happily upon seeing Fan Xian. Yuan Hongdao made an excuse to leave for some errands and reminded Fan Xian before departing to protect Dabao well. Fan Xian readily agreed and went home with Lin Dabao without giving it much thought.

Lin Ruofu, upon hearing that Qing Di had assigned the corruption case to Fan Xian, realized Qing Di was grooming him for greater responsibilities and wanted him to earn political merit through this case in preparation to take over the Internal Treasury. But since the case involved many people, Fan Xian could easily become the target of public anger if things went wrong. After careful consideration, Lin Ruofu decided to make a sacrifice and let Fan Xian start with him.

Fan Xian was deeply grateful. Lin Ruofu wanted to play chess with Yuan Hongdao, only to learn that he hadn’t returned from his errand. He began to suspect Yuan Hongdao had a mistress and even brought up rumors about Fan Xian and Haitang Duoduo. Fan Xian repeatedly denied it, insisting there was nothing between him and Haitang Duoduo. Wang Qinian, after great effort, finally finished copying the list.

He was so sore all over that Fan Xian couldn’t help teasing him. Fan Xian was puzzled as to why Qing Di had entrusted him with the corruption case. Wang Qinian believed Qing Di wanted to shape Fan Xian into the literary world’s leader. Chen Pingping used the power of the Imperial Inspectorate to find evidence and witnesses for the case. Qing Di told him to hand everything over to Fan Xian to facilitate the investigation.

Both Chen Pingping and Qing Di had high hopes for Fan Xian, but their intentions differed. Although Fan Xian was Qing Di’s biological son, Qing Di wanted to use him to find the Temple and secure imperial power. Chen Pingping, on the other hand, wanted to pass the Imperial Inspectorate left by Ye Qingmei to Fan Xian. Qing Di asked Chen Pingping to shoot arrows. Chen Pingping missed nine times in a row.

Qing Di then demanded a hit on the tenth try. Feeling helpless, Chen Pingping slyly placed the arrow into the tube while Qing Di was distracted and took the opportunity to express his loyalty. Qing Di was satisfied, wanting only to assert his supreme authority before Chen Pingping. After Chen Pingping left, Qing Di smashed the arrow tube with his palm. Today was the day the Spring Exam results were to be posted. Candidates gathered early outside the examination courtyard.

Unlike previous years when the Ministry of Rites announced the results, this year it was done by the Imperial Inspectorate. The candidates whispered among themselves, saying Yang Wanli had been impersonated and Fan Xian had gone to Qing Di to seek justice for him, causing the delay. The staff of the Imperial Inspectorate posted the list. Successful candidates cheered joyfully, while those who failed sighed and beat their chests in regret.

Yang Wanli, Hou Jichang, and Cheng Jialin made the list, while Shi Chanli failed. Feeling dejected, Shi Chanli was comforted by Yang Wanli and Hou Jichang, who encouraged him to try again next year. Hou Jichang and Yang Wanli planned to visit Fan Xian with Cheng Jialin, and Shi Chanli wanted to join them. Since Cheng Jialin was injured in the crowd and couldn’t walk, Yang Wanli, Hou Jichang, and Shi Chanli went to Fan Mansion together.

They asked to become Fan Xian’s disciples and were willing to serve him loyally. Fan Xian prepared a master’s gift for Hou Jichang and Yang Wanli, which read, “Be a good person, be a good official. ” The two of them left in high spirits. Fan Xian asked Shi Chanli to stay and showed him the government-issued notice declaring the destruction of Shijia Town.

Only then did Shi Chanli learn that his home had been burned down and all his family perished. He was devastated. He had left his hometown early to take the exam, never expecting such a tragedy. Now, he had no home to return to. He Zongwei brought a woman in mourning clothes to file a complaint with Fan Xian. This was the woman Yuan Hongdao had secretly met that day, unbeknownst to Fan Xian.

The woman accused Lin Ruofu of corruption and murder. Her husband had made the honors list but was impersonated by one of Lin Ruofu’s students. Later, Lin Ruofu had allegedly sent someone to kill him. He Zongwei claimed he gave up on the Spring Exam to seek justice for candidates. Fan Xian didn’t know what to do and called Yan Bingyun to discuss countermeasures.

Yan Bingyun feared Fan Xian might be biased and wanted to take over the investigation of Lin Ruofu. Fan Xian insisted on handling it personally and went straight to the Prime Minister’s residence to confront Lin Ruofu. Meanwhile, Yuan Hongdao went to a restaurant by the river and asked the waiter to open the riverside window.

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