Return of the Queen Episode 17 Recap
> Return of the Queen Recap
Ye Bochen went to the archives room looking for Ling Ke. Someone mentioned she had gone there and likely wouldn't be back up for a while. When Ye Bochen found Ling Ke there, he asked if she had already left. Startled, Ling Ke criticized him for being so quiet and questioned his purpose, asking if he was there for reconciliation or to cut ties.
Ye Bochen said he didn't understand, but then revealed that Ye Haimeng had sent him and that Siyu was in Xiamen for a club invitational tournament, with Haimeng accompanying him. Ye Bochen, implying a fallout between close friends, asked Ling Ke if she and Ye Haimeng had fought. Ling Ke quickly corrected him, stating, "Watch your wording. Ye Haimeng and I are not close friends." When Ye Bochen asked what they were then, Ling Ke declared, "Enemies."
Ye Bochen expressed disbelief, suggesting that he and Ling Ke were more like enemies. Later, as Ling Ke almost fell from a stool, Ye Bochen caught her, causing them to stand very close. Ling Ke promptly pushed him away, asserting that she disliked people getting too close to her. Ye Bochen commented on her cold demeanor, always refusing kindness. Ling Ke clarified that she hadn't returned to accept kindness but to search for a big secret.
She then presented Ye Bochen with a USB drive, challenging him to take it back and ask his foster father, Ye Yuezhi, if it contained Mare Nubium's secret ledger. She goaded him, asking if he didn't have the nerve. Ye Bochen, seeing through her provocation, affirmed that he wasn't afraid and simply wanted to help her.
Meanwhile, in Xiamen, Ye Haimeng was waiting impatiently for Lu Siyu to get ready for their trip to the beach, remarking that he was taking too long. Lu Siyu, from inside his room, admitted he wasn't ready and was trying to choose the right outfit for their first date, wanting something formal and fresh.
Ye Haimeng advised him to wear something comfortable, saying there was no need to make it complicated because as long as they were together, they would have countless firsts. She picked out a shirt for him and urged him to hurry as they were running out of time. As she helped him unbutton his shirt, she accidentally tore it.
Lu Siyu playfully asked if she wouldn't help him change and called her "Sister," to which Ye Haimeng retorted, "Who wants to help you change clothes? Who said you could call me Sister?" She then fled to the lobby, muttering about how difficult kids these days were to handle, her face flushed. Later that evening, the couple went out for a date. Ye Haimeng asked if she looked good, and Lu Siyu asked her to come closer.
When she refused, he insisted. She pointed out the beautiful mountain trail. Lu Siyu teasingly asked if she would make him climb it, to which Ye Haimeng offered to carry him if he lacked stamina. Lu Siyu stated that with her by his side, he always performed at his best. Ye Haimeng then listed a packed schedule of work calls for the following day, implying she couldn't accompany him to the competition.
Lu Siyu expressed his nervousness, stressing the importance of this being his first competition back in the country as a top-seeded player, fearing a loss if she wasn't there. Ye Haimeng teasingly replied that the busy President Ye prioritizes her career, suggesting he focus on his competition while she enjoyed the view. As she walked away, Lu Siyu called out to her repeatedly. People they passed on the trail gave him flowers and wished him luck for his competition.
He eventually found Ye Haimeng, who was waiting for him, holding a bouquet of flowers and smiling. She promised to be with him from his first arrow until he won the championship, telling him his life needed no one's guidance or proof, only to move toward his desired direction with all his might.
Lu Siyu then asked her to close her eyes, and as she counted down, he revealed a spectacular fireworks display, explaining he wanted to create the most beautiful memories there with the person he loved most. Ye Haimeng, too, had prepared a surprise for him. Their happiness was palpable. Ye Bochen met his foster father, Ye Yuezhi, at a restaurant.
Ye Yuezhi questioned why they had to meet alone, but Ye Bochen explained he simply wanted to have a meal with him. Ye Bochen then directly showed Ye Yuezhi the USB drive, asking if it truly belonged to him and contained Mare Nubium's secret ledger. Ye Yuezhi became agitated, accusing Ye Bochen of trying to trick and threaten him, and of wanting to ruin the entire Ye family.
He reminded Ye Bochen that he and Xiao Ting had adopted him from an orphanage and raised him, deserving gratitude, not betrayal. Ye Bochen countered that he had spent the past two decades repaying their kindness, asking if it wasn't enough. He tearfully expressed his belief that Ye Yuezhi had never truly considered him a son. He recounted how he had always obeyed his foster father's every command and arrangement, yet Ye Yuezhi was never satisfied.
Ye Bochen revealed that his very existence served as a daily reminder of Ye Yuezhi and Xiao Ting's marital flaw and Ye Yuezhi's inability to have a biological son, which Ye Yuezhi viewed as a lifelong shame. Infuriated, Ye Yuezhi called Ye Bochen a "bastard" and a "wildling," declaring that not a single cent of his wealth would go to him, stating he had no son.
As Ye Yuezhi raised his hand to strike Ye Bochen, Ling Ke arrived and intervened, telling Ye Yuezhi to speak without violence. She told him he didn't deserve to be called Ye Bochen's father. Ling Ke then gave Ye Yuezhi two choices: either return to Mare Nubium's Vice President's office the next day and open all the secret USB drives in the drawer, or she would call the police, and they would meet at the station.
She sternly warned him that from that day on, she and Mare Nubium were his opponents, not Ye Bochen, and if he ever mistreated Ye Bochen again due to his background, she would settle the score with him bit by bit. Ling Ke then led Ye Bochen away. Later, sitting on a park bench, Ling Ke listened as Ye Bochen confessed his long-held pain.
He recounted overhearing Ye Yuezhi and Xiao Ting's arguments since he was adopted, revealing his foster father's true feelings—that his existence was a constant reminder of Ye Yuezhi's inability to have a biological son, his "lifelong shame." He confessed to carefully obeying every word and arrangement, often not even knowing what he was doing or where his future lay.
Ling Ke, echoing Ye Haimeng's philosophy, advised Ye Bochen that sometimes people become too deeply entrenched in relationships not due to manipulation, but a subconscious belief that more effort will yield a change in the other person's heart. She reminded him that Ye Haimeng's life motto was to "see herself," emphasizing that while his adoptive parents' kindness for raising him should be repaid, the path of his future life must be walked by himself.
She encouraged him to look within, ask himself where he wanted to go, be brave, think clearly, and then move forward. Meanwhile, Lu Changdong instructed Mo to send Du Meiyun overseas, ostensibly for better medical treatment for her migraines, but in reality, to silence her. Du Meiyun was defiant, warning Lu Changdong that if anything happened to her children while she was away, she would haunt him even as a ghost.
After she departed, Lu Changdong told Mo to ensure she was monitored until her plane took off, emphasizing they couldn't let her jeopardize their grand plan. Mo also informed him that Middle Eastern partners had expressed strong interest in their financing plan and would send a formal letter soon. Lu Changdong reiterated the critical nature of their plans, stating, "Everything hinges on this. We don't have much time left."
Upon learning that Ye Haimeng had accompanied Lu Siyu to the archery invitational in Xiamen, Lu Changdong scoffed at her leisure, concluding that the pressure Lu Sinan had exerted on her previously "was too light." In Xiamen, as the club invitational tournament was about to begin, Lu Siyu prepared to face a formidable opponent, Song Yang, who had also returned from overseas.
Lu Siyu recalled their previous match in the university leagues, where he lost, scoring 40% to Song Yang's 60%. Despite Ye Haimeng's attempts to reassure him that it was "just an invitational," Lu Siyu confessed that he no longer felt the burden of winning glory for the Lu family or the pressure from his brother, and so, "if I lose, so be it." Just three minutes before the match, Lu Siyu grew visibly nervous.
He lamented forgetting his lucky shoulder guard butterfly, which Ye Haimeng had accidentally broken, and not having her ruby earrings. He believed Lady Luck might not be on his side and jokingly asked her to comfort him if he lost. Ye Haimeng then appeared with the ruby earrings, reminding him they were his lucky charms and that she would accompany him to the competition. She helped him put them on.
She encouraged him to believe in himself, stressing that on the field, he was striving for his own dreams and passion, not fulfilling a task given by others. During the elimination round, Lu Siyu and Song Yang were tied. As Song Yang scored nine rings, a flashback of past words haunted Lu Siyu: Lu Changdong's voice stated, "Just an excellence award isn't enough. From now on, you must only bring back championships. . ."
followed by a woman's voice (likely Du Meiyun) revealing, "He never wanted Siyu to carry the Lu surname. All that talk about archery championships and bringing glory to the family—those were just excuses! He hated Siyu!" Remembering Ye Haimeng's words to believe in himself and pursue his own dreams, Lu Siyu took his final shot and scored a perfect bullseye (10 rings), securing his victory against Song Yang. Ye Haimeng cheered wildly alongside the enthusiastic crowd. Lu Siyu became his own champion, finally overcoming the external pressures and inner demons that had plagued him, achieving true self-redemption.
