Joy of Life Episode 32 Recap
> Joy of Life Recap
Emperor Qing ordered the servants to prepare the meal, but feigned feeling unwell and told them to eat by themselves. The three looked at each other for a moment, and only started eating after Emperor Qing urged them repeatedly. The Crown Prince ate very elegantly and properly, while the Second Prince buried his head in the food, eating voraciously like a whirlwind. Emperor Qing watched and commented.
He said the Crown Prince had been stiff since childhood and was still a block of wood, and then pointed at the Second Prince, who was eating heartily, scolding him for having no table manners since childhood and still behaving like that. He gave fifty strokes to each of them (figuratively, referring to his criticism). After commenting, Emperor Qing turned to Fan Xian and asked him who he favored between the two. Fan Xian was stunned.
He honestly replied that no matter how he answered, it would be a capital offense. Emperor Qing, however, said that loyal ministers were not afraid of death, and asked if he was a loyal minister or a treacherous minister. Fan Xian chuckled and said he could be loyal or treacherous, depending entirely on what he needed. Hearing this, Emperor Qing stopped pressing him and turned back to his two sons, asking them to comment on Fan Xian.
The Crown Prince stated that Fan Xian's literary talent was astonishing and he was a vital minister of the state. The Second Prince, however, said that loyal ministers and treacherous ministers were common, but cunning loyal ministers were rare. Both had a high opinion of Fan Xian. Fan Xian quickly bowed and thanked them.
Emperor Qing said that since they had such a high opinion of him, they should protect him more in the future, and no matter who succeeded to the throne, he would be a vital minister in the court. Hearing this, the Crown Prince quickly left his seat and prostrated himself, expressing his apprehension. Although the Second Prince disdained the Crown Prince's actions, he was unwilling to be left behind and knelt to agree.
Emperor Qing warned the two again, saying that many people from the Six Ministries had submitted memorials impeaching Fan Xian in the past few days, whether they were the Crown Prince's students or the Second Prince's followers, and told them to go back and restrain them properly. The Crown Prince and the Second Prince quickly denied having followers or students but expressed willingness to warn and persuade them to prevent rumors from misleading the public further.
Only then did Emperor Qing get to the point, stating that Xiao En would be escorted back to Northern Qi in two days, and to dispel public suspicion, it would be most appropriate for Fan Xian to lead the mission. Remembering Lin Ruofu's repeated instructions before he left, Fan Xian specifically asked if this was an imperial decree.
Emperor Qing stated that it was just a suggestion, but at the same time said that before this, he had visited Minister Lin's mansion, and Fan Xian should listen more to Minister Lin's advice. However, if he didn't want to go, he would have to change his marriage alliance, because there was a lot of opposition in the Six Ministries, and without dispelling these suspicions, he could not take charge of the Royal Treasury.
Hearing this, Fan Xian immediately expressed his willingness to go to Northern Qi. Emperor Qing, instead, told him to think about it more. Fan Xian stated that his mind was made up. Emperor Qing then told him to discuss the itinerary with Chen Pingping and promised that after he returned, he would arrange his marriage with Wan'er. Because of Li Yunrui's affair, Yan Xiao Yi was stripped of his command and demoted to the frontier.
Before heading north, he came to the Xinyang border specifically to bid farewell to Li Yunrui. Li Yunrui felt bad in her heart for implicating Yan Xiao Yi. At this moment, someone on a fast horse brought news from the capital, stating that Fan Xian was to lead an envoy mission to Northern Qi. And the place where Yan Xiao Yi was stationed was also on the way north.
Li Yunrui hinted to Yan Xiao Yi that he should eliminate Fan Xian in that desolate and vast area. After leaving the palace, Fan Xian went directly to the Investigator's Office. He saw Chen Pingping looking sad while facing the flowers and plants that Ye Qingmei had planted years ago. Only after asking did he learn that the esteemed Director of the Investigator's Office was worried that those withered flowers and plants would not survive the winter.
Fan Xian knew that he was missing his extraordinarily talented late mother, and these flowers and plants were his only solace. So he squatted down, pulled up two withered ones to examine, and found they were just lacking potassium. He then offered to take care of these flowers himself and promised to restore them to lush vitality, which made Chen Pingping happy.
Chen Pingping knew that this mission to Northern Qi was both a test from Emperor Qing and an opportunity for Fan Xian. He instructed Fan Xian that no matter what, he must safely bring Yan Bingyun back, and reminded him to be wary of Shen Zhong, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in Northern Qi. This person was very dangerous.
He had already placed other information on Fan Xian's carriage and told him to read it carefully to understand the political situation in Northern Qi. As for his safety, he had already sent people to protect him secretly. After returning from this trip north, Fan Xian would be able to take over the Royal Treasury and the Investigator's Office.
At that time, he would secretly and silently assist him, and he would become the most important minister in Qing Kingdom, and no one would be able to threaten his safety anymore.
When Fan Xian was to go on the mission to Northern Qi, Senior Brother Leng and the junior brothers from the Third Division prepared a lot of things for Fan Xian, including robes that were fire-resistant and proof against swords and spears, scattered fire-washed cloth that could be used to descend, ropes for escaping, a fan with hidden mechanisms, a jade pendant containing poisoned smoke, the latest researched wrist crossbows, and so on. Fan Xian was dazzled by the sight.
He also asked Senior Brother Leng for some raw materials for making poisons and returned loaded down. On the way back to the mansion, all the people Chen Pingping had sent in plain clothes to protect Fan Xian were silently taken down. His personal bodyguards felt the carriage was too conspicuous, so they had Fan Xian get out and go ahead first, while letting Wang Qinian continue driving the carriage.
Unexpectedly, after not walking far, the last bodyguard by Fan Xian's side also fell down, having been struck. However, Fan Xian was then pleasantly surprised to find that the one who had acted was none other than his teacher, Fei Jie, whom he hadn't seen for many days. It turned out that Fei Jie had just returned to the capital and was unaware of the situation.
Seeing many suspicious people around Fan Xian, he thought they were assassins and took action to deal with them. Fortunately, the poisons he used were not fatal. Fei Jie took Fan Xian and Wang Qinian into the backyard of a rouge shop. In the backyard, a large parasol was propped up, and two lounge chairs were placed beneath it, just like the backyard of the Fan residence in Danzhou years ago. The teacher and student lay down comfortably.
Fan Xian casually asked Fei Jie whose shop this was. Fei Jie said he opened it himself. Fan Xian was very surprised to hear this, but Wang Qinian remarked that women were willing to spend more money on rouge and powder than anything else, exclaiming that Old Fei had good foresight. Fei Jie, however, stated that opening this shop had nothing to do with making money.
It turned out that back then, when Chen Pingping made a long-distance raid to Northern Qi to capture Xiao En, it happened to be Xiao En's son's wedding. Fei Jie planned to poison his daughter-in-law to threaten Xiao En into submission. He put the poison in rouge, but because he didn't understand rouge well, the effect was too poor, giving him away. Ultimately, Xiao En's son and daughter-in-law died on the spot.
Although Chen Pingping captured Xiao En, he was crippled in both legs. He felt extremely guilty about this and opened this shop after returning. Fei Jie knew how formidable Xiao En was and absolutely refused to let Fan Xian go to Northern Qi to take risks. He even planned to take Fan Xian to escape the capital. But when he opened the back door to go prepare, he found Chen Pingping quietly waiting outside.
It turned out that after the people accompanying Fan Xian encountered trouble, someone informed Chen Pingping. Chen Pingping understood Fei Jie and knew what he was thinking, so he came directly to this place. Fei Jie was still a bit surprised that Chen Pingping was able to find this place. Chen Pingping smiled and said that he had always known about this location. Chen Pingping and Fei Jie drove Fan Xian and Wang Qinian out.
The two had a big argument in the backyard, and neither could convince the other. Chen Pingping said that after Fan Xian returned safely, the capital would be entirely in his hands, which would be a splendid future. Fei Jie, however, worried that the tragedy of the past would repeat. He had always regarded Fan Xian as his son and didn't want to have no one to send him off when he was old.
Fan Xian listened from outside as the two argued fiercely. He couldn't bear it anymore, so he pushed the door open and walked in. He told his teacher that Yan Bingyun was demoted to Northern Qi because of him, and he felt guilty, so he had to personally bring him back. Hearing this, Fei Jie had nothing more to say. After returning, Fan Xian arranged to go on an outing with Lin Wan'er in the suburbs.
He told her about his trip to Northern Qi and also explained his reluctance to go, but his unavoidable need to do so because of the marriage engagement. Lin Wan'er listened and said that even without the marriage engagement, she could elope with him, as she had saved some money, enough for a lifetime. Fan Xian was touched and said he would not let her reputation be harmed, so he had to go on this mission.
Although Lin Wan'er was worried, she no longer stopped him, merely repeatedly instructed Fan Xian that he must return alive from this mission to Northern Qi, and that she would be waiting for him here with cherry blossoms. On his way back, Fan Xian encountered the Second Prince, who had set up a pavilion in the street just to see him. The two drank wine and chatted.
The Second Prince stated that after returning from this mission, the spring imperial exams would not be far off, and at that time, he would recommend him again to preside over the exams. Fan Xian asked him why he favored him so much. The Second Prince thought for a moment and said that he found him pleasing to the eye, and even if he eventually sided with the Crown Prince, it wouldn't hinder their friendship.
He told Fan Xian that the commander of Fengming Pass was one of his followers, and he would have him escort him when the time came. However, Fan Xian politely refused. Seeing that Fan Xian was still unwilling to get close to him, the Second Prince lost some interest and got up to leave. Upon hearing the news of Fan Xian's mission to Northern Qi, Fan Jian entered the palace overnight to beg Emperor Qing to retract the order.
Emperor Qing, however, evaded the topic, stating that the Minister of Revenue had taken leave due to illness and returned to his hometown, and that he had already decided to promote Fan Xian to the position of Minister. Fan Jian was extremely anxious and pleaded repeatedly. Emperor Qing, however, stated that there was no room for discussion on either matter. Helpless, Fan Jian could only request that his personal guards escort Fan Xian north. Only then did Emperor Qing agree.
On the day Fan Xian was set to depart, Chen Pingping and Fei Jie both came to send him off. Fei Jie also took out a newly developed medicine and gave it to Fan Xian, saying that although this thing couldn't take a person's life, even a Grandmaster would be dazed for a while after taking it. Fan Xian smiled and accepted it.
