Rattan Episode 17 Recap
> Rattan Recap
After Jia Guizhi directed villagers to carry Zhou Wandong to a hospital, Qin Fang expressed his disbelief that the woman in the old painting, Bai Ying, could be Si Teng. He explained that he knew of Bai Ying from his great-grandfather’s belongings, including a 1946 family photo inscribed with a note about "friend Bai Ying" joining them on a lake trip.
Si Teng confirmed that she was only "half a Yi," revealing that she and Bai Ying were two halves of the original Si Teng. She described their separation as a forceful division of her rattan essence, stemming from an irreconcilable internal conflict. This brutal split occurred because, unlike an animal that simply becomes lame from injury, her unique rattan nature allows even a broken branch to thrive, making their opposing desires impossible to contain within a single body.
As Yan Furui entered after growing restless outside, Si Teng continued her story. She explained that after splitting, each half's power rapidly declined, and their lifespans dwindled to a few decades, like a "terminal illness" for their kind. The only cure was for the halves to re-integrate or for one to destroy the other and reclaim its power.
Si Teng had attempted to reconcile, but Bai Ying was deeply infatuated with Shao Yankuan, believing his proposal was proof of true love, even though he knew her true nature. To prove Bai Ying was deluded, Si Teng investigated and discovered Shao Yankuan was planning to propose to another woman from an opera house. When confronted, Bai Ying dismissed it as a temporary folly, convinced Shao Yankuan truly loved her.
Realizing Bai Ying was lost to her infatuation, Si Teng declared she would eliminate Shao Yankuan to sever Bai Ying's mortal ties. However, in a shocking betrayal, Bai Ying killed Si Teng to protect her lover. Si Teng admitted that she still struggles to understand how she, the one focused on their true nature, was defeated by her emotionally compromised other half. Drawing from Jia Guizhi's confession and other clues, Si Teng pieced together what happened after her death.
Jia San, the rickshaw driver who took her to the Huamei Textile Mill, accidentally witnessed the murder. Bai Ying threatened him with a Rattan Kill and commanded him to move Si Teng's body to Darna, where his family was to guard it for generations. He was then instructed to send a letter with his new address to "Bai Ying" at the Shao Court.
After he complied, Bai Ying sent instructions back to him: starting 70 years from that night, his descendants had until an 81-year deadline to find a person surnamed Qin and bring them to Si Teng's burial site. Failure would mean death by the Rattan Kill. This generational task, Jia Guizhi had confirmed, had fallen to her. The confession also shed light on Jia Guizhi’s own tragedy.
She had tasked her husband, Zhao Jianglong, with finding the Heaven Pearl, hoping it would allow them to have a child. However, this quest led to Zhou Wandong murdering him. In a later confrontation with the bedridden Zhou Wandong, Jia Guizhi enacted her revenge.
After forcing him to ingest a Rattan Kill, she chillingly revealed that she had buried the Heaven Pearl with Zhao Jianglong's body and then reported Zhou Wandong to the police, leaving him to die slowly in prison. Qin Fang realized his family was the "Qin" from Bai Ying's plan, and his kidnapping was a design set in motion decades ago.
Si Teng elaborated that Bai Ying's ideal scenario was for the Jia and Qin families to remain in contact, which explained Qin Fang's family tradition of visiting Darna to "kowtow to return a favor" to a "Jia Guihong." However, Bai Ying had a contingency: the Rattan Kill ensured the Jia family would fulfill their duty regardless.
When Qin Fang questioned why it had to be his family, Yan Furui joked about his blood having revival powers before Si Teng, exhausted, ended the discussion. Shortly after Qin Fang and Yan Furui left, Shan Zhigang emerged from the shadows and launched a powerful attack, drawing Si Teng into a fierce battle. They fought as equals, but though Si Teng repelled him, the fight's backlash caused her to collapse in a wheat field.
The next day, a frantic Qin Fang and Yan Furui searched and found her unconscious. Sending Yan Furui away, Qin Fang remembered his blood could help her. He bit his lip and pressed it to hers, transferring his blood in a desperate attempt to save her. Si Teng briefly awoke only to push him away before falling unconscious again. Meanwhile, the severely injured Shan Zhigang stumbled to a tomb, revealing his true identity as the ancient Qiu Shan.
In a monologue, he recounted his obsession with destroying Si Teng—the being he created. Fearing her potential threat after his fellow Xuan Sect members died, he had consumed the same otherworldly substance used to mutate Si Teng, which restored his youth. He was digging up Zhao Jianglong’s corpse to retrieve the Heaven Pearl to heal his own injuries, but it crumbled to dust in his hands, causing him to cough up blood and collapse. Qin Fang stayed by Si Teng's side, growing worried as her hand turned cold. After a full day, she finally awakened.
