My Uncanny Destiny Episode 12 Recap
> My Uncanny Destiny Recap
Zhilan collapsed, coughing up blood, after being pricked by a needle hidden on her wedding dress button. Liu Xuanming and Ye Zhaonan rushed to her side. Ye Zhaonan quickly determined the needle was poisoned. Feng Lei, in panic, confessed that Princess Qi Meng had ordered him to swap the wedding dress and claimed ignorance of the poison.
In her final moments, Zhilan expressed a wish to return to Muxi City to live her own life and to wear a true wedding dress just once. Despite efforts, the potent poison claimed her life. Overwhelmed by grief, Yun Luo and Zhao Jing vowed revenge on Qi Meng. However, Ye Zhaonan declared that Qi Meng was hers to deal with and forbade anyone else from harming her.
Hearing the news, Yi Yangjun hurried back and confronted Qi Meng, warning her not to cause trouble and provoke others. Qi Meng remained defiant, stating that on the wedding night, Xuanyue City would be hers to command, and she could kill anyone, even if it meant a massacre, asking Yi Yangjun what he could do to stop her.
Yi Yangjun reminded her of their "Ideal City Plan," which aimed for a peaceful takeover of Xuanyue, followed by unification with Tianmu to attack Muxi, establishing a war-free, prosperous city. He argued that under Qi Meng's rule, only slaughter would increase. He declared his intent to order the city's forces to halt the plan immediately. Calling him talkative, Qi Meng struck him unconscious, asserting her will could not be stopped.
As the wedding ceremony preparations continued, Ye Zhaonan wore her wedding attire, stained with blood. When someone commented on the stains being inauspicious, Ye Zhaonan replied that cleanliness resided not in clothes but in the person, suggesting a truly dirty person should be thoroughly cleansed, even if it meant peeling off their skin. Qi Meng, also in a wedding gown, appeared beautiful.
As the auspicious time arrived and they were about to proceed, Qi Meng stopped them, questioning Ye Zhaonan's right to participate alongside her. Liu Xuanming unexpectedly agreed and ordered his guards to escort Princess Qi Meng away. Qi Meng's facade of gentleness dropped, revealing her ambition as she predicted they would all soon be prisoners. However, Liu Xuanming revealed they had anticipated her plans and were fully prepared.
Tianmu forces, who had infiltrated the city disguised as commoners like jugglers and peddlers, had been apprehended. They had also uncovered her scheme involving the large dowry of war horses and assigned hostlers, intended to control Xuanyue's cavalry during the planned uprising. Liu Xuanming exposed Tianmu's true intention: never a genuine alliance, but a plot to first seize Xuanyue City and then use it to attack Muxi City, thus conquering two cities with one strategy.
He also revealed that Qi Meng's father, the Tianmu Lord, had recently died, and her brothers were preoccupied with succession struggles, implying her fate would be disregarded. Upon hearing this, Qi Meng immediately knelt, pleading with Liu Xuanming for forgiveness, claiming she was merely following her father and sister's orders and did not genuinely wish to kill. Liu Xuanming highlighted her sudden shift in demeanor, recalling her recent threat to kill them all. He then pressed her about Zhilan.
Qi Meng attempted to blame her maid, Qian'er, but the maid confessed Princess Qi Meng was the one who gave the order. Liu Xuanming recounted a childhood memory where Qi Meng deliberately drowned a bunny he had given her before crying about it, illustrating her manipulative nature. Growing desperate, Qi Meng begged Ye Zhaonan, calling her Sanmei, to save her. She then ordered a horse prepared for escape.
When Liu Xuanming's guards moved to stop her, she seized Ye Zhaonan, taking her hostage. Liu Xuanming, however, showed no panic, knowing Ye Zhaonan's capabilities and that she desired a private confrontation with Qi Meng. As Qi Meng rode away with Ye Zhaonan held at knifepoint, Ye Zhaonan retaliated with arrows, shooting Qi Meng repeatedly and dedicating each shot. The first arrow was for Ke Qianyue, for being manipulated and harmed.
The second was for Liu Xuanming, for being propositioned and toyed with. The final arrow was for Zhilan. Qi Meng, bleeding profusely, begged Ye Zhaonan not to kill her, warning that her sister would seek vengeance. Ye Zhaonan replied that she welcomed the challenge and then revealed her true identity: she was not Guan Sanmei, but Ye Zhaonan, the Lord of Muxi. Qi Meng succumbed to her injuries.
Later, Ye Zhaonan visited Zhilan's tomb, weeping with sorrow and regretting not having forcefully opposed the marriage, thinking Zhilan's fate might have been different. In a vision, Zhilan appeared beside her, comforting her and assuring her that it was not her fault as she had done her best. Zhilan encouraged Ye Zhaonan to continue on her path, acknowledging the future challenges but urging her to persevere and never give up.
Meanwhile, Jin Ting expressed his wish to learn dancing, which his brother Jinfu found preposterous, insisting he should focus on martial arts. Jin Ting cited the Lord's decree promoting diverse work roles regardless of gender and explained he intended to use his connections among dancers to gather information about his missing sister. Shortly after, Jinfu received a letter from a spy in Xuanyue City.
Recognizing the handwriting as Ye Zhaonan's, he was surprised to learn Ye Zhaonan was alive and located with his spies in Xuanyue. The letter stated that Ye Zhaonan would make a final decision there and instructed Jinfu to release the families of Feng and Zhao, also forbidding a reply. Enraged, Jinfu immediately sent a message to his spies, ordering them to kill the person who wrote the letter, threatening the lives of their entire families if they failed.
Ye Zhaonan proposed an alliance between Xuanyue and Muxi to Liu Xuanming, arguing that the prolonged war had impoverished the people and that a united front would deter Tianmu from attacking either city. She acknowledged Liu Xuanming's deep enmity towards the name Ye Zhaonan but emphasized that the welfare of the people, achieving strength, prosperity, and a world of Great Unity where everyone thrived, should be his priority as a city lord.
She suggested releasing the Muxi slaves held by Xuanyue as a gesture of goodwill and proposed herself, in her identity as Guan Sanmei, as an envoy for peace negotiations. Liu Xuanming, recognizing the vital importance of ending the conflict for his people, agreed and appointed Guan Sanmei as Xuanyue's peace envoy to Muxi City, tasking her with achieving lasting peace and ending hostilities.
Ye Zhaonan met with Yi Yangjun and asked him to accompany her to Muxi City for the peace talks. She acknowledged his dedication to his Ideal City plan but asked if he understood her vision: a world free from war, starvation, poverty, and social hierarchy, achieving prosperity and Great Unity for all. She viewed the peace talks as the crucial initial step towards this grand goal benefiting the people. Yi Yangjun agreed to assist her in this endeavor.
Before her departure, Liu Xuanming bid farewell to Ye Zhaonan (as Guan Sanmei). He commanded her to return safely, promising to watch for her from the city gate tower daily and telling her to look towards Xuanyue if she missed him. In a playful exchange initiated by Ye Zhaonan, he humorously forbade her from looking at or listening to other women who might be prettier or more eloquent. Ye Zhaonan promised to return safely.
Yun Luo also expressed her concern, urging her to return soon. Liu Xuanming then issued a stern warning to the true Ye Zhaonan of Muxi City through Guan Sanmei: should he dare to harm Guan Sanmei in the slightest, Liu Xuanming would personally lead his army to conquer Muxi. With these farewells, Ye Zhaonan and Yi Yangjun departed from Xuanyue City together.
Later, Tan Rang was ambushed by assassins sent by General Jinfu due to his failure to complete his mission. Tan Rang defeated his attackers and resolved to return to Muxi City to fully address the situation. Yun Luo insisted on accompanying him, declaring they must not be separated, especially as she possessed two "superb mounts." These mounts turned out to be donkeys, which Yun Luo excitedly dubbed "Beasts of Heaven and Earth."
Tan Rang, however, found the journey frightening and struggled to control the animal, humorously questioning Yun Luo's competence as they made their way towards Muxi City. In Tianmu City, Qi Meng's sister, Huirou, had seized the throne, telling her fighting siblings they should join their deceased father. A report reached her stating that Princess Qi Meng had been killed in Xuanyue City by Xuanyue's envoy, Guan Sanmei. They also learned that Yi Yangjun was accompanying Guan Sanmei to Muxi City for peace talks. Huirou found these developments increasingly intriguing and expressed her satisfaction.
