Rebirth Episode 18 Recap
> Rebirth Recaps
Zhao Chun'er, consumed by bitterness over Yan Xun abandoning her at their wedding, directed her pain toward Chu Qiao. She had captured many soldiers of the Xiuli Army, imprisoning and torturing them. She summoned Chu Qiao to the dungeon to witness their suffering firsthand. Chu Qiao tried to stop Zhao Chun'er from harming the innocent, but Zhao Chun'er pressed a red-hot branding iron against a soldier. Unable to bear it, Chu Qiao kicked over a nearby brazier.
As guards rushed to extinguish the flames, she seized a sword and held it to Zhao Chun'er's throat, forcing her to stop. Li Yan soon arrived and separated the two women. The Queen of Lingyue, having recovered from her injuries, obtained the atlas requested by the King of Ximeng and prepared to depart. Zhuge Yue suggested she wait until fully healed, but the Queen had received orders to eliminate him.
Zhuge Yue grasped her sword hilt, reminding her that her mission was incomplete and she couldn't die yet. He then suffered a toxic relapse, vomiting blood. Chu Qiao arrived in time to protect him. Knowing Zhuge Yue wouldn't survive long without the antidote, the Queen of Lingyue left. Chu Qiao, now in possession of evidence proving Li Ce did not assassinate the emperor, went to see the Empress.
She wanted to understand what kind of woman would sacrifice her own son for power. The Empress recounted her past: two brothers fought for the throne, the elder killing the younger. The younger brother's lover was pregnant and submitted to the new emperor to save her child. He promised the child would live, but it died mysteriously soon after birth. The woman hated the emperor for breaking his word and mourned the infant's death.
Later, she bore the new emperor's child but despised it, viewing it as a disgrace. The Empress proposed a deal: if Chu Qiao agreed to a political marriage, she would release Li Ce. As a temporary measure, Chu Qiao agreed, promising not to go back on her word. Before the wedding, she requested to see Li Ce, which the Empress allowed.
In the prison, Li Ce was initially happy to see Chu Qiao, but noticing the Empress's spies behind her, his expression darkened. He urged her to leave. Knowing he worried for her safety, Chu Qiao calmly told him she would become the Princess of Yanbei the next day. Hearing the Empress used the marriage as leverage, Li Ce was heartbroken.
Chu Qiao whispered that the money he had given her was stored at the small courtyard, enough for him to live comfortably. She secretly slipped him a shadow puppet piece. Soon after Chu Qiao departed for her wedding, Li Ce was exiled to a remote region. Clutching the item she gave him, he held it as dearly as his own life. After a long, bumpy journey, his subordinate noticed the route had deviated.
They stepped out of the carriage to find all their escorts gone. Zhan Ziyu and his men surrounded them. Acting on the Empress's orders, Zhan Ziyu was there to end Li Ce's life. Learning it was his mother's decision, Li Ce felt a deep chill, reflecting that even a tiger does not eat its cubs, yet he had such a mother. Zhuge Yue arrived swiftly, helped Li Ce escape, and captured Zhan Ziyu.
Cheng Yuan, who had never approved of Chu Qiao, secretly helped her escape during the return journey from the wedding procession. Yan Xun, hearing Consort Helian was missing, went to search for her. Upon returning, he learned Chu Qiao had fled. Feeling abandoned once again by the one he loved, Yan Xun was on the verge of collapse.
He glared fiercely at Consort Helian, placed the red wedding veil Chu Qiao had discarded onto her head, and made her sit in the bridal sedan Chu Qiao had used. As if nothing had happened, he sent the wedding procession onward to Yanbei.
