Royal Nirvana Episode 58 Recap, Plot

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Huddled gloomily in Baoben Palace, Xiao Dingquan refused to wear his shoes or remove the shackles on his wrists. Servants urged him to sit up from the cold floor, reminding him that it was unseemly, but he remained defiant. A guard was ordered to keep a close eye on him. Shortly after, the Emperor entered, finding Xiao Dingquan still kneeling. Xiao Dingquan implored his father to abolish him.

The Emperor, however, set aside his usual stern demeanor, saying he was merely thirsty for tea and wished for his son to keep him company. This was a rare moment, as Xiao Dingquan confessed he had never brewed tea with the Emperor alone. The Emperor extended a hand, pulling Xiao Dingquan up. As they sat together, the Emperor reminisced about teaching Xiao Dingquan the tea skill when he was a child, specifically how to use the tea whisk.

Xiao Dingquan gently corrected him, stating it was his eldest brother, Prince Qi, who had taught him, adding that he had to practice it alone for a long time since Minister Lu never bothered to instruct him. The Emperor admitted he had also spoken with Prince Qi about the Mid-autumn festival incident, expressing regret over past wrongs.

He then shifted the conversation, asking Xiao Dingquan why he hadn't clarified his innocence and instead took all the blame, suspecting Xiao Dingquan believed the Emperor had orchestrated the plot with Prince Qi. Xiao Dingquan responded that suspicion between monarch and minister only leads to chaos, and that he feared the consequences of a minister suspecting the emperor. The Emperor reassured him, saying that for this night, they would speak only as father and son.

Xiao Dingquan confessed that he was an accomplice in the scheme, but the Emperor dismissed his statement as an act, calling his performance too real. The Emperor acknowledged the difficulty of balancing loyalty and filial piety, admitting that Xiao Dingquan had given his loyalty to him but his filial devotion to someone else (Gu Silin).

He expressed understanding of Xiao Dingquan's suffering and apologized for his own actions as a father, though not as the Emperor, claiming Xiao Dingquan could not understand his position from his current standing. The Emperor then made a surprising revelation, stating that Xiao Dingquan was not meant to be the crown prince, and Prince Qi was not meant to be the eldest son. He inquired if Gu Silin had ever spoken to Xiao Dingquan about this secret.

Without elaborating further, the Emperor stroked Xiao Dingquan's head, his eyes moist with tears, reiterating his awareness of Xiao Dingquan's pain and the harsh realities of being born into the imperial family. He then personally demonstrated the intricate steps of the tea-making process, a rare display of paternal affection that deeply moved Xiao Dingquan. As Xiao Dingquan diligently practiced, he expressed newfound confidence in his tea-making, believing he could now master the art of tea foaming.

However, the Emperor's sudden tenderness was quickly revealed to be a calculated move. While feigning fatherly concern, he tasked Xiao Dingquan with comforting Gu Silin and persuading him to return to Changzhou immediately. Xiao Dingquan's nascent smile vanished as he realized his father was manipulating him to appease Gu Silin. Heartbroken, he poured out the tea, expressionlessly donned his shackles once more, and resigned himself to fulfilling his father's command to persuade his uncle.

A palace official offered him more comfortable shoes, but Xiao Dingquan refused, opting to keep the shackles. The Emperor reiterated his expectations for Xiao Dingquan's conversation with Gu Silin, stating he feared Gu Silin might not listen, and gave him two "shichen" (four hours) before he would be retrieved. Meanwhile, the situation in Changzhou was dire. Li Ming'an, the prefectural governor, was confronted by his officers regarding the invading enemy forces.

He ordered the army provisions to be burned to prevent them from falling into enemy hands and to free up his men for defense, despite a military officer's previous orders to guard the provisions. He, along with his three hundred men, prepared to fight to the death against overwhelming odds.

Li Ming'an's wife, understanding the gravity of the situation, instructed soldiers to follow Earl Jiayi, entrusting the city's lives to him, stating she had never expected peace or survival since coming to Changzhou with her husband. Gu Fengen and his men were also seen battling the enemy, attempting to secure the city gates with wagons. Li Ming'an, witnessing the fierce fighting, lauded the soldiers as "real soldiers," lamenting the "shortsighted and good-for-nothing noblemen."

When Xiao Dingquan arrived, Gu Silin instantly understood that his nephew had confessed everything to the Emperor. After a brief attempt by a subordinate to enforce formality, Xiao Dingquan confirmed that he had indeed spoken to the Emperor. Gu Silin pressed him, asking what he had told the Emperor that would still result in Xiao Dingquan being sent in shackles.

With tears streaming down his face, Xiao Dingquan explained that although he was Gu Silin's nephew in private, as the Crown Prince, he had to uphold justice for the nation, even if it meant betraying his uncle. Gu Silin was deeply disappointed, remarking that he had expected more from the nephew he had tried so hard to protect, lamenting that Xiao Dingquan only knew how to cry and didn't understand the complexities of power.

Xiao Dingquan, in turn, voiced his disappointment in his uncle, saying Gu Silin was not the man he had imagined. Still troubled by the Emperor's cryptic words, Xiao Dingquan questioned his uncle about the hidden truths related to their family. He directly stated that the Emperor had told him he was not supposed to be the Crown Prince and Prince Qi not the eldest son, pressing Gu Silin about the secret concerning his mother.

Gu Silin then revealed the long-held family secret: Xiao Dingquan's mother, then Princess Su, had been pregnant with the Emperor's first legitimate son. However, during the first month of the fourth year of the late emperor's reign, while visiting the imperial guards, she was traumatized by the sight of Crown Prince Min's suicide, leading to a miscarriage. This tragedy alienated the Emperor from her.

After Prince Min's death, a critical ballad circulated in the capital, further infuriating Prince Su (the current Emperor) and leading him to order a city-wide arrest of the singer, which angered the late emperor. Consequently, the late emperor died without officially naming Prince Su as Crown Prince. Prince Su became depressed and further estranged from Xiao Dingquan's mother, taking a woman from the Zhao family as a concubine, who later bore Prince Qi, Dingtang.

It was only due to the insistence of Xiao Dingquan's maternal grandfather, the Grand Chancellor, that his mother conceived Xiao Dingquan. Gu Silin recounted a desperate argument between the Emperor and Xiao Dingquan's mother, where she accused him of abandoning their child to favor the Gu family's influence and questioned if his birth was merely for the Gu family's power to endure. Gu Silin concluded by saying, "So you are born."

Upon hearing this agonizing truth, Xiao Dingquan burst into uncontrollable sobs, barely able to stand. He felt his entire life had been defined by tears and bitterness. Leaning into his uncle's embrace, he lamented his tragic existence, realizing that he had been born with the weight of these burdens, "with shackles," and that he should not have existed at all. Gu Silin expressed profound apologies from himself and his family for Xiao Dingquan's plight. Xiao Dingquan, however, thanked his uncle for finally revealing the truth, while Gu Silin continued to lovingly address him as "A'bao."

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