Legend of the Magnate Episode 21 Recap
> Legend of the Magnate Recap
Commander Xu initially planned to torture Gu Pingyuan in Ningguta, but Gu Pingyuan convinced him to collaborate on an arms deal. They traveled to the Russian border, where they purchased a large cartload of foreign weapons from Russian soldiers. As a gesture of goodwill for his honest business, a Russian officer presented Gu Pingyuan with a handgun as a gift.
During their arduous journey back through a snowstorm, Gu Pingyuan suggested they rest in a cave, but Commander Xu refused, citing strong "yin energy." Instead, he insisted they push on to the horse camp, revealing he had a "treasure" there that couldn't be bought with money. Gu Pingyuan questioned why they were going to the horse camp instead of Ningguta.
Along the way, Gu Pingyuan noticed Commander Xu's reliance on opium and asked how long he had been using it, warning him it was taboo for officials. Commander Xu scoffed, claiming many officials secretly indulged, and stated he would quit once his cough subsided, as he still aspired to be a mighty general. Despite the worsening weather, Commander Xu insisted they couldn't stop, fearing the horses would freeze to death, which would prevent their return.
He urged them to press on to the horse camp before nightfall. They finally reached the horse camp after dark, having spotted a dead, poisoned wolf on the way—a trap Commander Xu had set earlier. Commander Xu, who had been relying on opium to manage an illness contracted from years in the frigid camp, began to howl like a wolf, mockingly "greeting" the beasts before his planned departure the next day.
Gu Pingyuan, alarmed, urged him to stop, fearing they would attract a pack. Commander Xu, however, reveled in his long-standing fight with the wolves, boasting how they always ended up as his prey or bedding, and saw this as a final farewell. He taunted Gu Pingyuan for his fear, telling him to rest and bolt the shed door while he tended to the horses. Once inside, Gu Pingyuan discovered empty opium boxes, confirming his severe addiction.
Suddenly, a gunshot rang out. Gu Pingyuan rushed outside to find Commander Xu had shot a wolf and, shockingly, killed the horse that pulled their cart, knowing the scent of blood would draw more predators. Gu Pingyuan confronted him, realizing Commander Xu had removed the bullets from his gun. He accused Commander Xu of being insane, questioning why he was dragged on such a long journey only to die.
Commander Xu sneered that he wanted Gu Pingyuan to experience the same crushing downfall he had endured. Gu Pingyuan desperately offered to take Commander Xu back to the Central Plains for medical help and give him all the money from the guns, but Commander Xu refused, declaring his illness incurable. Blaming Gu Pingyuan for ruining his life, he was about to shoot him when a wolf lunged, attacking Commander Xu. In the ensuing chaos, Gu Pingyuan snatched the gun.
As other wolves swarmed the dead horse, Gu Pingyuan dragged the injured Commander Xu back into the shed and barricaded the door. Bleeding heavily, Commander Xu revealed that Su Zixuan had left him two crates of opium, instructing him to stay alive until Gu Pingyuan came, thus orchestrating the entire ordeal. Enraged, Gu Pingyuan cried out Su Zixuan's name.
Commander Xu then mockingly advised Gu Pingyuan to use his last bullet on himself, warning that being torn apart by wolves was a far more painful death. Unwilling to die a brutal death, Gu Pingyuan set fire to the shed, using the flames to scare off the encroaching wolf pack, then escaped the burning structure.
With only one bullet remaining, he fought the persistent wolves with a burning roof beam, repelling their repeated assaults before taking cover beneath the cart of foreign weapons. The shed behind him collapsed, and Commander Xu perished in the fire. Meanwhile, Chang Si and Chang Yu'er had been traveling day and night to Ningguta. Chang Si judged they were near the horse camp, but urged caution in the heavy snow, suggesting they find a local guide.
Just as Gu Pingyuan, cornered under the cart, was forced to fire his last bullet at an attacking wolf, Chang Yu'er and Chang Si arrived. They unleashed a barrage of arrows, killing several wolves and sending the rest scattering. Overwhelmed with relief, Gu Pingyuan tightly embraced Chang Yu'er, too emotional to speak, while Chang Si expressed his relief that Gu Pingyuan was safe.
Chang Si, Chang Yu'er, and Gu Pingyuan began their journey out of Ningguta with the cart of foreign weapons. During their travels, Chang Yu'er asked about Empress Dowager Cixi's appearance. Gu Pingyuan downplayed it, describing her as an ordinary person before fondly adding that she was "not as pretty as you." When Chang Yu'er then inquired about Bai Yimei, Gu Pingyuan assured her that Bai Yimei's looks were irrelevant to him now.
He acknowledged sometimes envying her for following her own path, even if it meant "going a little wild." Chang Yu'er then relayed a message from Li Qin, warning Gu Pingyuan not to go to the capital, as people there would not treat him well. Gu Pingyuan lamented that besides his family, Chang Yu'er and Chang Si were among the few who genuinely cared for him.
Chang Yu'er reminisced about their past adventures, wistfully suggesting that dying together in a past battle might have been a blessing. As they reached the Shanxi border, Chang Si announced that he and Chang Yu'er would not accompany Gu Pingyuan to the capital, as their route to Shanxi was quicker. He then rode ahead, giving Gu Pingyuan and Chang Yu'er a moment for a private farewell.
Gu Pingyuan confessed he would "be thinking of her all the time" and offered to escort her back to Pingyao in Shanxi. However, Chang Yu'er gently refused, understanding that their paths would eventually diverge anyway. She expressed her weariness of "begging the sun and the moon"—longing for time to slow when they were together and speed up when apart. Gu Pingyuan apologized, feeling he owed her much due to his unstable life.
Chang Yu'er comforted him, recalling Chang Si's belief that Gu Pingyuan possessed "great fortune and unlimited potential" and would one day become a governor or general. Declaring her greatest wish was for him to live well, she told him not to feel indebted. Gu Pingyuan promised to find her once he settled down but feared it would be a long wait. Chang Yu'er urged him, "If you want to come find me, then hurry," and they shared a tearful goodbye.
Gu Pingyuan successfully transported the weapons to Anhui. Upon his arrival, Prince Gong and Qiao Song were ecstatic. Prince Gong, mentioning Empress Dowager Cixi's high regard for Gu Pingyuan, proposed he serve as the Pacification Commissioner for Anhui. Gu Pingyuan initially demurred, but Prince Gong explained the role was a crucial, non-official liaison needed to evacuate civilians from the besieged city of Hefei.
He emphasized that as Anhui was Gu Pingyuan's homeland, it was his duty, promising a formal position if he succeeded. For his people, Gu Pingyuan solemnly accepted. He then made a personal request: for Prince Gong to investigate his father's disappearance after going to the capital for examinations and the conspiracy that led to his own exile. Prince Gong agreed, finding the circumstances strange, and instructed him to submit a formal petition for the Nine Gates Infantry Commander to investigate.
Prince Gong detailed the dire situation in Hefei, where the Green Standard Army had secured two mountains and aimed Western cannons at the rebel leader Li Cheng's mansion. He coldly dismissed Gu Pingyuan's concern for civilian lives, stating no one had ever cared for them. Their strategy involved leaving one side of the city open while having secretly planted tons of explosives under the walls.
Prince Gong marveled at Li Cheng's resistance, as the city's inhabitants were eating rats, and cynically concluded that an official's status is built on the people's blood. Inside Hefei, Li Cheng surveyed the streets filled with civilian bodies, his granaries empty, leaving him desperate. Later, Prince Gong served Gu Pingyuan his family's "Orchid Snow tea," revealing Empress Dowager Cixi had named it "Top Tea Under Heaven."
This caused merchants from across the country to abandon their own unique teas to cultivate it. Gu Pingyuan found this a great pity, to which Prince Gong offered a lesson in officialdom: the value of things is determined by a single powerful word. Later, at the Anhui Tea Merchants' Association, Old Master Hu knelt before Gu Pingyuan, begging for forgiveness for his past actions.
Gu Pingyuan quickly helped the elderly man up, insisting he alone was responsible for any past troubles and would bear the consequences himself. He invited the merchants to be seated, asking Old Master Hu to take the seat of honor. Gu Pingyuan then publicly apologized for his previous "arrogance and disrespect" towards Old Master Hu and the entire association.
