Return of the Queen Episode 23 Recap
> Return of the Queen Recap
Ye Haimeng, following a clue left by Lu Sinan in his frequently used Latin literature dictionary, quickly arranged for an insider to discreetly enter Cloud Manor. The insider successfully retrieved a secret document, a USB drive, from behind a painting. Ye Haimeng instructed her assistant, Tan Xin, to open it. The USB drive contained a video message from Lu Sinan, recorded just before his wedding to Ye Haimeng.
In the video, Lu Sinan confessed that their marriage was a premeditated deception, part of a plan orchestrated due to his family's Changlu Capital Group facing a severe credit crisis caused by the real estate industry's downturn and massive credit losses. He revealed that Lu Changdong had blackmailed him, using his son—whom Lu Sinan had with his college lover overseas—as leverage.
Faced with a choice between his son and deceiving Ye Haimeng, Lu Sinan chose to deceive her to protect his family from ruin. He apologized for the fraudulent marriage and the original scheme to seize her Mare Nubium shares through marital co-ownership. However, Lu Sinan then disclosed his intention to change the plan.
Instead of harming Ye Haimeng, he had arranged for local friends at their honeymoon hotel to secretly escort her to safety after she appeared to "disappear" according to his father's original orders. He planned to return to China, secure some Mare Nubium shares to revive Changlu Group, and then explain everything to Ye Haimeng. This, he claimed, was the only way he could protect his family, his love, and her without causing her harm.
The video then took a chilling turn as Lu Sinan warned, "If my plan fails, if I stay in Monaco and never return—" He directly implored Ye Haimeng, "Haimeng, if I die in Monaco, please, do whatever it takes to take back Mare Nubium completely. I already sense that, to prevent the Lu family from being destroyed, my father would do anything, even make you and me disappear together."
This revelation stunned Ye Haimeng and her team, as it starkly contradicted the initial belief that Lu Sinan had intended to murder her abroad. Instead, it implied he had been secretly protecting her, while Lu Changdong might have intended to kill both his son and daughter-in-law. Ye Haimeng received a short CCTV clip from the honeymoon hotel, which showed two men attempting to kill Lu Sinan and her.
A flashback from four years ago in Monaco further revealed the full horror of the event. While Lu Sinan was enacting his plan to fake Ye Haimeng's death, two men, confirmed by Lu Sinan to be working for "Mo" and sent by his father, broke into their hotel room. Lu Sinan confronted them, stating, "My father wants me dead. He wants to get rid of Haimeng." One of the assailants chillingly responded, "Only the dead can keep secrets."
As they made their escape in a car, Lu Sinan, gravely aware of the danger, warned Ye Haimeng, "If anything happens to us, don't contact anyone. Don't ask anyone for help. Don't trust anyone!" This confirmed that Lu Changdong had indeed intended to murder his own eldest son and daughter-in-law to bury the secret. Overwhelmed by these revelations, Ye Haimeng rushed to Cloud Manor to confront Lu Changdong.
She demanded to know why, if his goal was only Mare Nubium, he would kill his own son, Lu Sinan. Lu Changdong, no longer hiding anything, coldly explained that Lu Sinan was not worthy of being his son or the heir to the Lu family because he lacked ambition, never sought to expand the family's fortune, and even married and had a child behind their backs. Lu Changdong stated that Lu Sinan's sacrifice for the family was his "glory."
He chillingly declared that no one was exempt from sacrifice for the sake of Changlu Capital. He asserted that if anyone, including his own sons, hindered the company's progress, "they must die." He completely dismissed Ye Haimeng's talk of love and family as "rubbish," asserting that only money and power mattered in a ruthless world. Ye Haimeng, disgusted, called him "truly pitiful" for his desolate existence devoid of love, filled only with money, ruthlessness, and murder.
She defiantly declared herself his opponent, vowing to protect Mare Nubium and dismantle Changlu Capital. Meanwhile, the Lu family's aggressive moves against Mare Nubium caused the company's stock price to plummet, triggering foreign chains to cut ties and Mare Nubium to teeter on the brink. Back at home, Ye Bochen noticed his adoptive mother packing, clearly intending to flee. He cleverly sent her away by asking for noodles, then took a hidden phone from a suitcase.
He photographed incriminating evidence of Mare Nubium's financial leak, but was discovered by Ye Yuezhi. Ye Yuezhi, furious, denounced him as an ungrateful son and demanded the phone. Ye Bochen, however, refused, revealing that he had already sent the evidence to Ye Haimeng and Ling Ke. He then completely broke ties with his adoptive father, expressing years of pent-up resentment for being treated as less than human, constantly seeking approval, and bearing the brunt of Ye Yuezhi's infertility frustrations.
He declared he would no longer be a "Ye" and would live only for himself, hoping never to see them again. Despite the company's dire situation, a colleague urged Ye Haimeng to "go see him," reassuring her that they would handle things at headquarters. Shortly after, Ye Haimeng received a call from a partner of Lu Siyu's archery club.
She learned that Lu Siyu's shares in the club had been sold to a new investor, and the 22 million transfer fee, minus taxes, had been deposited directly into her personal account as per Lu Siyu's authorization. Before she could fully process this shocking news, Ye Haimeng looked up and saw Lu Siyu, alive and well, standing in the pouring rain, holding an umbrella. Overjoyed, she ran to him and embraced him, confirming that his touch was real.
Lu Siyu affirmed, "It's me," and then declared, "From now on, you can't call me 'Kid' anymore. Call me your boyfriend. I'm willing to keep standing by your side. I'm willing to keep being with you, loving you. With me here, you won't hurt anymore."
