Lost Track of Time Episode 3 Recap
> Lost Track of Time Recap
The Empress personally administered the medicinal soup to the gravely ill Emperor, leading to his sudden demise. During the Emperor's vigil, Mu Ze held Mu Chuan close, reminding him that in a world where family ties were few, only the two of them remained. Meanwhile, Lu Anran awoke from a month-long coma, having survived thanks to the blood ginseng that Mu Chuan painstakingly acquired for her.
Ling Xi, her maid, informed her that she had missed her younger brother Lu Yun's funeral. Lu Anran was overcome with grief, blaming herself for encouraging him to join the battle. Ling Xi clarified that Lu Yun was harmed by Prince Yi and Qin Yekuo, but reassured her that Mu Ze had already avenged him.
Ling Xi also revealed that the late Emperor had passed away three days prior, gravely ill from Prince Yi's provocations, and that Mu Ze was set to ascend the throne in three days. Upon hearing Mu Ze had returned, Lu Anran rushed to embrace him, barefoot. Mu Ze, filled with remorse, apologized for Lu Yun's death, admitting his own lack of foresight.
He vowed to protect Lu Anran and her family with his life, ensuring she would never again suffer such sorrow. Three days later, Mu Ze was crowned Emperor. He led the newly appointed Empress Lu Anran to his chambers to pay respects to his birth mother. There, he revealed that Consort Liang was not his true mother; rather, Consort Liang had used his birth mother to secure her own position before poisoning her and discarding her body in a well.
Mu Ze recounted witnessing this tragedy as a child, powerless to intervene. Despite his imperial power, he lamented being able only to retrieve her remains and erect a memorial tablet in his palace, unable to grant her a posthumous title or bury her in the ancestral temple.
Lu Anran comforted him, assuring him that their prayers during the Qingming and Cold Food festivals would bring his mother peace, and expressed her belief that he would become an emperor beloved by all. Three years into Emperor Jinghe's reign, on New Year's Eve, the Lu family gathered in the palace to celebrate the festival. Mu Chuan arrived with pear blossom fireworks, and even Mu Ze made time to join the festivities.
As they enjoyed the fireworks, Lu Anran joyfully revealed to Mu Ze that she was pregnant again. Mu Ze was overjoyed, believing their deceased son, Yu'er, had returned to them. Mu Chuan watched, a pang of envy in his heart. Two months later, the Empress Dowager mysteriously passed away, followed by Mu Ze's swift execution of Physician Jiang. Mu Chuan, who had been investigating the Empress Dowager's death, suspected foul play.
He confronted Mu Ze, questioning the rushed execution and Mu Ze's decision to bypass proper legal procedures and deny access to the prison. Mu Chuan pointed out that the Empress Dowager had always been in good health and her palace maids reported unusual symptoms before her death, leading him to suspect her meals had been tampered with.
He criticized Mu Ze for becoming a different person in just three years, breaking promises to Prince Yi's former followers, and making autocratic judgments that disheartened everyone. Enraged by Mu Chuan's insolence, Mu Ze confined him to his chambers, sternly reminding him that between brothers, the sovereign's authority came first. Despite her pregnancy, Lu Anran disregarded the guards' attempts to stop her and forced her way into Mu Chuan's room.
She knew that Mu Ze's severity meant Mu Chuan had uncovered something significant that violated the Emperor's taboos. Mu Chuan, not wanting Lu Anran to exert herself, finally admitted that Mu Ze was preventing him from thoroughly investigating the Empress Dowager's death. Lu Anran acknowledged Mu Ze's increasing ruthlessness since his ascension, admitting she could no longer deny the truth. Believing they were Mu Ze's last remaining family, she expressed hope that they could still bring him back.
Mu Chuan, however, urged her to prioritize her own safety should she encounter insurmountable obstacles. Back in her palace, Lu Anran confronted Mu Ze, accusing him of abandoning their fraternal bonds, disregarding right from wrong, and acting with dictatorial impunity. She questioned why he continued his merciless ways after achieving his imperial ambitions, and dared to suggest that the Empress Dowager's death, and even the late Emperor's, might be suspicious.
Mu Ze, infuriated, accused her of treating his affection as worthless and suspected her of having an illicit relationship with Mu Chuan, asking if her heart had changed when Mu Chuan gave her a bracelet. Lu Anran vehemently denied his accusations, swearing on her life her innocence with Mu Chuan. She then countered, accusing Mu Ze of hypocrisy, feigning affection, and discarding his youthful ideals and aspirations, declaring that he was the one who had changed most.
In a fit of rage, Mu Ze struck her and then threatened the safety of her entire Lu family, warning her to remember her duties as a subject's wife before speaking out of turn again. An advisor later reminded Mu Ze that river transport, the nation's lifeline, should be under imperial control, and that the Lu family's power in this area had become a "raging mountain flood" that needed to be contained.
He also pointed out that Lu Anran's actions during the Empress Dowager's funeral rites—delaying the burial due to a supposed conflict with the Buddha's birthday—indicated her suspicion of Mu Ze. He concluded that the Lu family posed a threat and must be eliminated. Later, Lu Anran encountered Xiao Jingque's son, Liner, who presented her with a paper rabbit. Recognizing the unique hopping mechanism, Lu Anran realized it was identical to the one her deceased son Yu'er had.
She immediately confronted Xiao Jingque, demanding to know if she was involved in Yu'er's death. Xiao Jingque, no longer concealing the truth, confessed that she killed Yu'er and that Mu Ze had known all along, viewing Lu Anran and her son as mere pawns, insignificant in his grand scheme. Xiao Jingque further revealed that the Lu family was being framed for smuggling arms to Beilin and was to be summarily executed.
At this point, Xiao Ying, who was present, corroborated the damning information. He told Lu Anran that Mu Ze had orchestrated Lu Yun's death and the sacrifice of the entire vanguard army to frame Qin Yekuo and overthrow Prince Yi, thereby securing his own path to the throne. Lu Anran rushed to the main hall, where Mu Ze was in the process of sentencing her family.
She burst in, demanding to know if the rumors of her family's execution were true. Mu Ze, after dismissing his ministers, faced her. Lu Anran asked him three crucial questions, demanding truthful answers sworn on his throne: Was he targeting the Lu family to seize their ports and fleet? Had he orchestrated the death of Lu Yun and the vanguard army? Did he know all along that Xiao Jingque was responsible for Yu'er's death?
Mu Ze admitted to all three, justifying his actions as necessary for the throne and national security. Heartbroken, Lu Anran smashed the jade token of love they had once exchanged, declaring that he loved his imperial power more than he loved her. She then turned and walked away. Amidst a heavy snowfall, Lu Anran collapsed in despair.
Her maid, Ling Xi, rushed to her side, weeping and begging for help for the Lu family, whose execution was scheduled for the next day. Lu Xinran, now the Lady Protector of the Nation, arrived. Ignoring Ling Xi's pleas, she revealed her cold-blooded betrayal: she had conspired with her Second Uncle to fabricate the evidence against the Lu family, orchestrating their downfall to align herself with the imperial family.
She cruelly boasted about her newfound power and Lu Anran's status as a disgraced former Empress. When Ling Xi bravely tried to defend Lu Anran, Lu Xinran fatally stabbed her. As Ling Xi lay dying, Lu Xinran delivered a final, devastating blow: she revealed that the walnut cakes Lu Anran had once given to her own mother were poisoned, and those cakes had originally been intended for Lu Anran herself. Thus, Lu Anran had unknowingly caused her mother's death.
The Lu family, forty-six members strong, were summarily executed. Mu Chuan was poisoned to death. In a final act of defiance and retribution, Lu Anran, clad in a crimson wedding dress, set herself ablaze in the Hanguang Palace. She reflected on her complicity in Mu Ze's bloody ascent to power and dedicated her self-immolation as a burial for all the innocent souls he had sacrificed, bitterly remarking on his ruthlessness in even eliminating his own brother. Suddenly, an explosion echoed.
Lu Anran lifted her head, seemingly on a boat, as Ling Xi called out, concerned that Lu Anran seemed dazed from the blast and worried about her upcoming Coming-of-age Ceremony the next day.
