Maiden Holmes Episode 20 Recap
> Maiden Holmes Recap
Following the recent resolution of Princess Yunchuan's case, Xie Beiming prepares a ginseng soup for Dong Rushuang, claiming it will help her recover from her taxing efforts. Fearing it might taste awful, she watches as he bravely takes the first sip, only for him to immediately suffer a nosebleed. When Dong Rushuang learns he used an entire thousand-year-old ginseng root, she is exasperated by his foolishness. Flustered, Xie Beiming apologizes for his clumsiness.
Moved by his earnest yet bumbling nature, Dong Rushuang asks why he took so long to confess his feelings. He then declares his love for her, admitting he fell for her back in Qingshui County. He humbly acknowledges that he may not be as clever as Su Ci or as steady as Pei Yanzhi, but promises to love and care for her for the rest of his life.
Both tearful and joyous, Dong Rushuang embraces him, affectionately calling him a "silly man." Meanwhile, after escaping through a secret passage, Su Ci and Pei Yanzhi find themselves trapped in a locked room. Pei Yanzhi suggests they must spend the night and attempts to build a barrier of books between them. Su Ci removes the barrier, confidently stating she knows he would never take advantage of her.
In response, Pei Yanzhi playfully pushes her to the ground and leans in close, challenging her assumption. When she insists he isn't that kind of person, he relents, admitting he was only joking before they settle down to sleep. The next morning, Su Ci is already deep in her investigation. She tells Pei Yanzhi she is certain that Lei Zheng's framing of him was orchestrated by a mastermind and vows to find them.
She presents a letter from the former Minister of War, Liang Feng, to Lei Zheng. The letter states that if Lei Zheng ensures Liang Cheng's promotion, Liang Feng will remain silent about a past event that is critical to the stability of the government. They realize this likely connects Liang Feng's involvement in the Battle of Honggu relief efforts with the Bai Liang case that Lei Zheng handled, and decide to seek out Liang Feng immediately.
At Prince Qi's mansion, Xie Beiming joyfully distributes red packets to the staff, celebrating his new relationship with Dong Rushuang. As Su Ci and Pei Yanzhi discuss their findings, they announce their departure for the Capital Suburb. Elsewhere, Prince Yun learns of their trip and dismisses the excuse that they are resting. Aware of Pei Yanzhi's history of conducting serious business under the guise of leisure, he orders his men to follow them closely.
Suspicious of Su Ci's origins and her close ties to the prince, he also demands a thorough investigation into her background. Upon arriving at the Liang Mansion in the Capital Suburb, the group discovers they have walked into a funeral. They had intended to visit Liang Feng, but his daughter-in-law, Madam Zhang, informs them that he died after accidentally slipping and hitting his head on the corner of his desk.
As a detective from the Mingjing Office, Su Ci asks to examine the scene. She observes inconsistencies in the bloodstains, particularly spotting blood on a Pixiu statue away from the desk. Madam Zhang cannot provide precise details about the fall, only that the butler was the first to discover the body at dawn. Liang Feng’s son, Liang Cheng, arrives from the capital, overcome with grief.
When Su Ci requests to perform an autopsy, he vehemently refuses, accusing her of disrespecting his father's memory and using Prince Qi's influence to disrupt their family's mourning. He insists the death was an accident. Su Ci counters that she believes it was murder and that the Pixiu was the weapon. To de-escalate the situation, Pei Yanzhi apologizes for the intrusion and asks to take the Pixiu statue as a keepsake, a request Liang Cheng reluctantly grants.
As they leave, Su Ci discreetly observes turmeric stains on the legs of Liang Cheng's horse. Later, Su Ci demonstrates her theory using water-filled goat intestines to simulate blood spatter. She shows how a fall against the desk would create a fan-shaped pattern, which is different from the scene, and how being struck with the Pixiu would match the evidence. She enlists Pei Yanzhi to help with the demonstration, accidentally soaking him and causing him to leave in annoyance.
Urged by the others, Su Ci goes to his room to apologize and finds him changing. After chiding her for using him as a prop, he asks for her help. As she wipes his back, she sees the many old scars from past battles, and her heart fills with concern for him. Recalling the turmeric stains on Liang Cheng's horse, Su Ci grows more convinced of his involvement.
Knowing he will continue to obstruct an official autopsy, she decides to infiltrate the Liang Mansion that night. There, she unexpectedly runs into a disguised Pei Yanzhi, who is also searching for clues related to the Honggu battle. While examining Liang Feng’s collection of calligraphy, Pei Yanzhi identifies them as forgeries, noting that the genuine works are kept in the imperial palace. Su Ci then discovers a list among the items that mentions "Jinxi Town." Their investigation is cut short when they hear Liang Cheng's voice approaching the room.
