Renascence Episode 8 Recap
> Renascence Recap
The executioner raised his blade, and just as the hour arrived for Prince Su's punishment, Yao Mowan rushed onto the platform, shouting for the execution to stop. She had proof, she told Emperor Ye Hongyi, that Prince Su was wrongfully accused. Yao Mowan explained that while the treason document's handwriting appeared similar to Ye Junqing's, his usual powerful strokes result in dense, rounded characters.
In contrast, the document's writing was sharp and faint, a clear indication that it was a forgery. The Shu envoy accused Yao Mowan of breaking into a prohibited judicial area and switching the document. Yao Mowan challenged him to read the document aloud, only to reveal that the text she handed him was a mere drinking game rhyme, not the actual treason document.
She exposed the envoy as a martial artist who was illiterate in the Chu language, proving he had never read the original document himself. At that moment, Jian Chen, an assassin from Shu whom Ye Junqing had once spared, stepped forward with a sworn testimony. He corroborated Yao Mowan's claims, revealing that the envoy had hired a skilled calligrapher, Mr. Wu Liu, for fifty gold coins to fabricate the document in Prince Su's handwriting.
When the envoy tried to argue it would take at least three days to forge such a document, Yao Mowan cleverly questioned how he would know that if he hadn't planned the forgery. With both human and material evidence presented, the Shu envoy was speechless. Jian Chen, having repaid Ye Junqing's kindness but betrayed Shu, declared that loyalty and righteousness could not coexist, and tragically took his own life.
Emperor Ye Hongyi, enraged by the deception, ordered the Shu envoy arrested and Ye Junqing released. Overwhelmed by exhaustion from her efforts, Yao Mowan collapsed. Later, Yao Mowan awoke to find Ye Junqing by her bedside. He returned her jade pendant, reminding her of their agreement. She then asked if he still saw her as a replacement for her sister, Yao Moxin.
Ye Junqing confessed that while he saw traces of Yao Moxin in her, in his heart, he had long ceased to regard her as a mere substitute. Overjoyed, Yao Mowan embraced him. Their moment was interrupted by Ben Lei, who reported that Princess Han Yue was feeling unwell and specifically requested Yao Mowan's medical attention.
Despite her own fatigue, Yao Mowan agreed to go, but not before playfully complaining about various aches to Ye Junqing, hinting for him to accompany her. Feigning indifference, Ye Junqing urged her to leave quickly, claiming Han Jinyi was waiting for him. As Yao Mowan and Ting Yue made their way to the palace, a flower pot fell from above, narrowly missing Yao Mowan as Ting Yue pushed her aside.
Ben Lei, who had been secretly following them on Ye Junqing's orders, swiftly caught Ting Yue, saving her from falling, and a spark ignited between them. Meanwhile, Ye Junqing discussed the implications of the treason case with Han Jinyi. He recognized that while Dou Shiming might not have been the mastermind, he harbored a strong desire for Ye Junqing's death.
Ye Junqing explained that despite being stripped of his military authority, his deep camaraderie with the border army made him a continuing threat to anyone seeking to truly control them—a threat that would only disappear with his death. He also revealed that Dou Shiming had discovered Han Jinyi's secret investigation into his activities and urged Han Jinyi to continue the investigation to uncover Dou Shiming's true nature.
At the palace, Princess Han Yue tested Yao Mowan by asking about a "Southland Treasure" from her clan, which allowed two people who drank it to sense each other's presence, but Yao Mowan didn't understand its significance. As Yao Mowan examined her, Princess Han Yue, despite symptoms of dizziness and nausea, showed a stable pulse. Princess Han Yue then touched Yao Mowan's arm, noticing a mark there and causing Yao Mowan to instinctively pull back.
The princess apologized, admitting that in her daze, she had momentarily mistaken Yao Mowan for Yao Moxin, noting their striking resemblance. Princess Han Yue then suggested they call each other sisters, a proposal Yao Mowan accepted, and Han Yue pledged to protect her. While retrieving medicine at the palace clinic, Yao Mowan overheard staff discussing the gruesome details of Empress Yao Moxin's death.
They described her vomiting blood and developing rashes, suspecting a combination of poison nut extract and heartbreak grass, the latter having been found in Lady Li's chambers. Realizing the inconsistencies, Yao Mowan urgently sought an audience with Emperor Ye Hongyi. She explained that the symptoms suggested multiple poisons, not just one, and that heartbreak grass alone couldn't have caused such extensive disfigurement. She suspected there were other culprits beyond Lady Li.
Ye Hongyi, however, dismissed her concerns, stating that all evidence had vanished and he wished for her sister to rest in peace. Determined, Yao Mowan secretly entered De Zhao Palace, where Yao Moxin had lived, hoping to find clues. Before she could, Thousand Face ambushed her, knocking her unconscious and bringing her before Emperor Ye Hongyi.
Furious at her trespassing, Ye Hongyi was ready to punish her, but Yao Mowan reiterated her belief that Lady Li was too easily exposed to be the sole culprit. Intrigued, Ye Hongyi granted her seven days and his imperial token to investigate, on the condition that if she found nothing, she must drop the matter. Upon exiting, Yao Mowan encountered Yao Su Luan, who was unsettled by the events and immediately wrote a letter to Dou Xianglan.
The public revelation of Yao Mowan's role in exposing Shu's plot had drawn unwanted attention. Han Jinyi informed Ye Junqing of Dou Shiming and Dou Xianglan's plot to use Yao Mowan to get to him. This, combined with Ben Lei's earlier report of a disguised assailant trying to harm Yao Mowan with a falling flower pot, made Ye Junqing realize she was in grave danger. Aware of the threats, he visited her.
After some lighthearted banter where she playfully accused him of hypocrisy for his secret concern, she tried to ask a hypothetical question about Yao Moxin's killer. Ye Junqing grew visibly frustrated, abruptly shut down the conversation, and left. Still hurt, Yao Mowan confided in Princess Han Yue, who taught her the Nanyue custom of sewing a fragrance pouch to express one's feelings. After making one, she confronted Ye Junqing, asking if he had truly accepted her.
Just then, Ye Junqing spotted a figure spying on them from behind a rock formation. To protect her, he harshly rejected her, reminding her of her "identity" and warning her against "overstepping her boundaries." He threw the pouch to the ground, declaring he "couldn't be bothered" with it. A heartbroken Yao Mowan called him "insane" and ran off. Immediately, Ye Junqing instructed Ben Lei to protect her and apprehend the spy.
Ben Lei failed to catch the figure but noted their strange martial arts and disguise, which solidified Ye Junqing's suspicion that the assailant was Thousand Face, implying Emperor Ye Hongyi himself had other motives concerning Yao Mowan. Once alone, Ye Junqing retrieved the discarded pouch. Distraught, Yao Mowan drank heavily. Ye Junqing, thinking of the pouch and her pain, went looking for her and found her in the palace.
Still angry, she ignored him and used Ye Hongyi's imperial token to enter the Housekeeping Bureau to examine a case file. Suddenly, a sleeping gas filled the room, and she collapsed. The Bureau then erupted in flames, and the two guards on duty were killed. Hearing of the fire, Ye Junqing rushed into the burning building to save Yao Mowan. Trapped together, Yao Mowan confronted him, asking why he had come to die with her.
As death seemed imminent, she pressed him for his true feelings. He confessed that while he had loved Yao Moxin, he never expected that it would be Yao Mowan who stayed by his side through life and death. He began to promise to take care of her if they survived, but his words were cut short. Ben Lei arrived outside, desperately trying to put out the fire, but Yao Mowan, choosing to be willful, refused to leave, determined to hear his full confession.
