Moonshine and Valentine Episode 17 Recap
> Moonshine and Valentine Recap
Centuries ago, Xi Yan defied her family and broke her engagement with Qingmu to pursue a relationship with a human, Helan Jingming. She married him and gave birth to their son, Helan Xi, whose courtesy name was Jingting. Xi Yan secretly returned to the Fox Clan’s home, collecting her gold and silver jewelry and precious treasures as gifts for her human mother-in-law. Qingmu, who still deeply cared for her, was saddened by her humble demeanor.
He warned her that not all humans would be as kind as Jingming, but Xi Yan remained completely devoted. Despite being constantly scorned by her mother-in-law and even persuaded to steal a valuable Gold Flower Mirror from a neighbor, Xi Yan did not hesitate for love. When she was caught stealing the Gold Flower Mirror, Xi Yan transformed into a wisp of smoke and vanished.
The next day, the neighbor confronted the Helan family, publicly demanding that Xi Yan drink realgar wine, a substance fatal to foxes. To protect the Helan family’s reputation and Jingming’s future, Xi Yan consumed the wine, which burned her from the inside. In her final moments, she realized the insurmountable gap between humans and foxes and that a mythical creature could never find a true home in the human world.
She returned to the Fox Clan with infant Jingting, entrusting him to the care of Qingmu, who loved her unconditionally. Although Xi Yan never reciprocated Qingmu’s affection, he dedicated everything to her last wish. He gave Jingting his courtesy name, bestowed wealth upon him, and even fabricated a revered identity for him – that he was Qingmu’s own son. Jingting, having human blood, was frail and suffered from blindness.
This forced Qingmu to reveal the truth to Princess Zhaoyan, Xi Yan's sister. While Xi Yan had loved humans dearly, Princess Zhaoyan harbored deep resentment, blaming humans for her sister’s death and for encroaching on their territory. However, seeing the helpless, orphaned infant, Zhaoyan couldn't bring herself to abandon him, especially since he was her own sister’s flesh and blood.
She then advised Qingmu that Jingting could regain his night vision by falling in love with a pure Yang human girl and consuming her liver on a Yang day of a Yang month in a Yang year. To fully restore his daytime vision, he would also need to marry a Fox Clan girl of pure lineage, whose union on their wedding night would cleanse the impure human blood from his body.
Upon hearing this, Qian Hua finally understood that Qingmu’s care for her was only because she was meant to be a “medicine” – a cure for Jingting’s eyes. For this half-human, half-fox child, who was not related to him, Qingmu had gone to great lengths, even alienating many. The depth of Qingmu’s love for Xi Yan was immeasurable. With the truth revealed, Princess Zhaoyan no longer concealed her intentions.
She regretted saving Jingting, which she believed led to the Fox Clan's division and the suffering of the human girl and Qian Hua. She sought to atone for these mistakes by preventing Jingting from ascending to the position of Chief Priest and by allowing Huiyan to live a complete life.
The only way to make the Flower of the Fox disappear from Huiyan and grant her a new life was for Jingting to willingly sacrifice himself and return the energy within him to Huiyan. This method was too cruel, and Qian Hua hesitated. Knowing Jingting’s probable choice, she couldn’t bear it and decided to keep the secret to herself, burdened and exhausted. Zhao Song was oblivious to Qian Hua’s secrets, her pain, or her decision to marry him.
All he knew was that his desperate pleas to Qingmu for affection had gone unanswered. Resentment consumed Zhao Song’s remaining reason. On what should have been a peaceful night, Zhao Song, in a fit of rage and despair, forced himself on Qian Hua, whose desperate cries filled the night. All the plans she had prepared could no longer be spoken. The next day, Zhao Song and Qian Hua began their journey back to the South.
Qian Hua, unable to hide the physical and emotional wounds or forgive Zhao Song’s transgression, remained silent. Their relationship was irrevocably broken. Zhao Song pleaded with her, longing for her to turn back and join him on a new path, abandoning all thoughts of fame, status, or being the Fox Clan’s priest. However, Qian Hua, carrying the fate of everyone in her heart, could not afford to delay and was determined to return to the South.
Her urgent desire to leave led Zhao Song to mistakenly believe she was rushing back to Jingting’s embrace. This time, Zhao Song resolved to disrupt the balance: either Qian Hua would stay with him, or Jingting would die. Ultimately, Qian Hua walked away amidst Zhao Song’s curses, igniting murderous intent in him. Meanwhile, Pipi struggled to accept that she was Huiyan, feeling like a mere shadow of the woman Jingting truly loved.
This felt unfair, as she had given her heart entirely to Jingting. She packed her bags and returned home, only to be confronted by her mother at the door, asking for money. Under Pipi's questioning, her mother timidly admitted to borrowing nearly ten thousand yuan from Jialin to invest in financial products. Overwhelmed, Pipi put aside thoughts of Jingting and focused on finding a part-time job to earn money. By chance, she found work as a server at a bar.
Jingting, confused by Pipi's sudden departure, followed her to ensure her safety. Later, Pipi confided in a friend about the ancient paintings she found in Jingting’s room. The woman in the paintings looked exactly like her but wore clothes from different dynasties. Pipi explained that she had asked another friend, Su Mei, who told her the women in the paintings were the same person—Pipi herself from different eras—implying reincarnation.
While her current friend found this fascinating and even romantic, suggesting Jingting was trying to help her regain lost memories, Pipi couldn't accept it. She felt there was someone else in his heart, and she was merely her shadow. Her friend offered to treat them to dinner for Pipi's birthday, but Pipi had to go to her 5:30 class and declined.
Qian Hua spoke with Helan Jingting on the phone, confirming she had obtained the answers they sought from Princess Zhaoyan and would report the details to him in person soon. She mentioned she had decided to return to the South. After the call, Zhao Song confronted Qian Hua. He tried to tell her something important, but she cut him off.
He confessed anyway that for years he thought he desired the leader's throne above all else, but now realized it was her he truly wanted. He declared that if he couldn't have Qian Hua or the throne, Jingting wouldn’t either. Qian Hua responded that she was obsessed with Jingting because he would never hurt her the way Zhao Song had. Zhao Song warned her that if she left, he would destroy Jingting. As Qian Hua walked away, Zhao Song, consumed by rage, solidified his resolve to ruin Jingting.
