Royal Nirvana Episode 42 Recap
> Royal Nirvana Recap
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At the imperial banquet, Crown Prince Xiao Dingquan sat among the Emperor, Gu Silin, and the new Empress. The Empress offered him lotus root slices, noting his usual aversion to alcohol and advising him to drink less. The Emperor, however, remarked that people change. Gu Silin soon noticed Xiao Dingquan's severely reddened hands and asked who had injured him. The Emperor quickly interjected, stating that Xiao Dingquan was disobedient and deserved the punishment.
To de-escalate the tension and protect his uncle, Xiao Dingquan immediately took responsibility, admitting he had neglected his studies and deserved the beating. The Emperor then sarcastically suggested that with Gu Silin present, the Crown Prince would surely be more diligent, before offering Gu Silin another drink. Meanwhile, palace guards escorted Lu Wenxi away.
As she looked at the distant birds, admiring the cloudy mountains and vast rivers like a painting, she recited a poem about finding liberation only in the presence of gods, Buddha, and nature. She then recited another about enduring hardship and forgetting toils, her mind troubled by her uncertain fate. After the banquet, once everyone had dispersed, a visibly intoxicated Xiao Dingquan approached the Emperor.
He returned an imperial item, which the Emperor instructed him to keep, but then pleaded for Lu Wenxi's release, asking for her to be "bestowed" upon him. The Emperor questioned his sobriety, but Xiao Dingquan insisted, stating he would endure further beatings until Lu Wenxi's calligraphy improved, connecting it to his previous punishment.
He admitted knowing she was a grave sinner, but when the Emperor pressed him for a reason, comparing it to his past act of protecting a maid, Xiao Dingquan passionately confessed his love for her. Amused, the Emperor scoffed at his "lovestruck" son, then cruelly instructed Xiao Dingquan to kneel and beg the new Empress for forgiveness, as Lu Wenxi had offended her.
The Empress, moved by Xiao Dingquan’s desperate plea, spoke up for him, but the Emperor ignored her, sternly ordering Xiao Dingquan to kneel and implore his "mother." Unable to address the former Consort Zhao as his mother, Xiao Dingquan initially hesitated and turned to leave. However, realizing Lu Wenxi's life hung in the balance, Xiao Dingquan swallowed his pride. He returned to the Emperor and Empress, kneeling and abandoning all dignity to beg for her. His pleas were eventually granted.
Just as a guard was strangling Lu Wenxi in a secluded area, Xiao Dingkai, Prince V, rushed in, ordering them to release her. He declared he was also acting on an imperial decree and tried to take her away. Moments later, Xiao Dingquan arrived. He checked Lu Wenxi’s breathing with a trembling hand, relieved to find she was still alive. As he carefully lifted her, he remembered the Crown Princess's dying words, urging him not to harm Lu Wenxi.
Under Xiao Dingquan's care, Lu Wenxi slowly regained consciousness. She asked him where she was and if she was "home," and then questioned why he hadn't abandoned her. Xiao Dingquan confessed his bewilderment, pressing her for answers about why the Crown Princess had knelt to her that night, and her true identity. Lu Wenxi remained tight-lipped, only revealing that her surname was Gu and she was from the Shanggong division.
Frustrated by her evasiveness, Xiao Dingquan left, after revealing her location by quoting a poem about washing clothes. Lu Wenxi realized she was in the laundry department, a place of menial labor. Before leaving, Xiao Dingquan instructed his guard to keep a close watch on her. Back in the palace, Xu Changping was waiting for Xiao Dingquan.
He presented the Crown Prince with numerous trinkets from palace maids, who, having heard rumors of Xiao Dingquan’s devotion to a maid, wished to express their affections. Xiao Dingquan refused the gifts, but Xu Changping humorously admitted he had already accepted and consumed the accompanying tokens of gratitude. Xu Changping then recounted a conversation he overheard between the Emperor and Gu Silin.
He revealed that after the banquet, the Emperor had insisted on playing chess with a newly sobered Gu Silin and had discussed both the upcoming hostage sacrifice ceremony and the appointment of the next chancellor. Xiao Dingquan was surprised by the connection between these two significant matters. Xu Changping, though hesitant to reveal more, hinted that Xiao Dingquan’s troubles were far from over, suggesting he would soon face not just physical pain but also severe headaches.
Meanwhile, Zhang Luzheng visited Qi Wang Xiao Dingtang. Upon learning of his presence, Qi Wang's wife, Princess A'zhuo, who was Li Baizhou’s daughter, became enraged. She confronted Zhang Luzheng, pouring a basin of water over his head and angrily accusing him of causing her father’s death. Qi Wang quickly intervened, comforting his distraught wife and asking Zhang Luzheng to leave, stating they would discuss the matter another day.
In the laundry department, Lu Wenxi was subjected to bullying by other palace maids who resented her, gossiping about her clumsiness and privileged status. They deliberately poured dirty water over her head, but Lu Wenxi endured the abuse silently. During morning court, the Emperor announced the victory in Changzhou and Gu Silin's return. He then declared that Xiao Dingquan would preside over the hostage sacrifice ceremony.
Despite Xiao Dingquan's protests of his inexperience in such national ceremonies, the Emperor insisted, ordering him to prepare the "reward and penalty draft," pointedly suggesting that if he struggled, the maid (Lu Wenxi) could help him. A few days later, when the Emperor demanded to see the draft, Xiao Dingquan admitted he hadn't written it, citing the gravity of the task and his reluctance to overstep his bounds in such a critical national policy. He accepted the charge of defiance.
The Emperor then punished him by ordering him to attend lectures, questioning if he was "playing truant again." Unbeknownst to Lu Wenxi, Xiao Dingkai's subordinates ensured she received special care in the laundry department, a fact noted with resentment by the other maids. In her solitude, Lu Wenxi clutched Xiao Dingquan’s private seal, which she treasured, missing him and pondering her bitter fate.
Separately, during Xiao Dingquan’s forced attendance at lectures, his teacher gave him a lost item, asking him to personally return it to its rightful owner, emphasizing that the owner would regret its loss forever.
