Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace Episode 68 Recap, Plot

> Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace
> Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace Recap

After enduring a difficult labor, Consort Ling gave birth to a princess, much to her disappointment. She had hoped for a prince, believing a son would grant her protection and the Emperor's forgiveness. She had bled profusely during the delivery, leaving her in a weakened state. When Eunuch Jinzhong reported the birth, His Majesty showed no interest. Instead, acknowledging Consort Ying's grief over the loss of her Sixth Princess, he decided to entrust the Seventh Princess to Consort Ying's care.

Consort Ying, however, voiced her long-standing dislike for Consort Ling and questioned the propriety of raising the child of someone of her equal rank. In response, His Majesty issued a decree, delivered by Li Yu, stripping Consort Ling of her title and demoting her to Second-Class Attendant Wei. This also meant a reduction in her household staff.

The Empress, Ruyi, supported Consort Ying's new role and reiterated her suspicions about Madam Wei (Second-Class Attendant Wei's mother)'s involvement in the death of the Thirteenth Prince, Yongjing. She requested His Majesty's approval to continue the investigation into Second-Class Attendant Wei. His Majesty agreed, stating he would deal with Second-Class Attendant Wei once the Empress concluded her investigation.

Distraught, Second-Class Attendant Wei pleaded with Li Yu not to take her newborn, but he dismissed her pleas, informing her that she would face consequences once the truth about the Thirteenth Prince's death was revealed. He then took the Seventh Princess to Chuxiu Palace. Desperate, Second-Class Attendant Wei ventured out in the pouring rain to Cining Palace, seeking help from the Empress Dowager.

However, Gugu, a senior palace maid, turned her away, reminding her of her mother's recent misdeeds, including plotting to cause the death of an Imperial heir, and forbidding her from disturbing the Empress Dowager again. Collapsing in the rain, Second-Class Attendant Wei was spotted by Ling Yunche's passing patrol. She begged him for help, recalling their shared past. Ling Yunche firmly refused, stating his position as His Majesty's bodyguard and her status as an Imperial Concubine.

He advised her to cease harming others. Second-Class Attendant Wei, enraged, warned him not to assist the Empress, even if she couldn't win his affection. Ling Yunche, unwilling to listen further, turned and left. In Chuxiu Palace, Consort Ying cherished the Seventh Princess. She had repeatedly rejected Second-Class Attendant Wei's requests to visit, unwilling to let the princess be influenced by her biological mother's questionable character.

Noble Consort Chun, overseeing the Imperial Household Department's expenses, instructed the department staff to double Consort Ying's allowance in recognition of her new charge and to neglect Second-Class Attendant Wei, citing her vicious nature and past harm to an Imperial heir. Noble Consort Chun also mentioned the upcoming return of Princess Hejing and her son, Heir Apparent Qingyou, emphasizing the importance of their proper reception. Princess Hejing, accompanied by Heir Apparent Qingyou, soon returned to the palace.

His Majesty was pleased to hear of Jingse's capable household management in the Khorchin tribe. Jingse recounted how her husband, Septeng Baljur, had caused trouble and how she nearly died giving birth to Qingyou, leaving her unable to bear more children. She tearfully revealed her husband's subsequent taking of concubines and her desire to remain in the palace by her Imperial Father's side. His Majesty then instructed her to pay her respects to the Empress.

When Jingse paid her respects to the Empress and other consorts, she openly criticized the palace's increasing extravagance, noting a stark contrast to her late mother, Empress Xiaoxian's, characteristic frugality. The Empress explained that the current prosperity of the nation naturally differed from the early days of His Majesty's reign.

Jingse, however, retorted that it was simply a case of "the tea cooling down when people leave," an idiom implying that her mother's influence had waned, and subtly directed her grievances towards the Empress. Later, Jingse confided in her attendant, Momo Cui, expressing her resentment towards the Empress for having persuaded her to marry into the Khorchin tribe, believing it indirectly led to her mother's untimely death and her own unhappy marriage.

She wished for the Empress to experience similar suffering. Meanwhile, Sanbao reported to the Empress that Wangchan, Second-Class Attendant Wei's eunuch, was seen carrying a dog that resembled Fugui'er at the scene of the fire, suspected to be related to the Fifth Princess's death. Consort Yu's maid, Yexin, also confirmed that Granny Tian, a midwife, had been seen speaking privately with Second-Class Attendant Wei and had been summoned to Yongshou Palace by Wangchan.

Based on this, the Empress ordered Wangchan to be taken to the Office of Careful Punishment for interrogation. On his way, Jinzhong discreetly warned Wangchan to be cautious with his words. Under torture, Wangchan denied that the dog was Fugui'er, claiming it was a stray, and insisted that Second-Class Attendant Wei had only summoned Granny Tian to inquire about her own upcoming delivery.

The Empress, finding significant loopholes in Wangchan's testimony, noted that Second-Class Attendant Wei was only newly pregnant at the time, making such an urgent summons suspicious. She requested His Majesty to summon Second-Class Attendant Wei to the Office of Careful Punishment for confrontation, suggesting torture if her statements failed to align with Wangchan's. His Majesty consented. Upon learning that Wangchan was being interrogated, Second-Class Attendant Wei grew frantic.

At that moment, Heir Apparent Qingyou, unattended for a moment, ran past, playing with a ball. Seeing Qingyou near the water, Second-Class Attendant Wei conceived a cunning plan. She instructed Jinzhong to immediately plead with His Majesty on her behalf. She and Chunchan then hid, and Second-Class Attendant Wei deliberately threw Qingyou's ball into the water. As Qingyou attempted to retrieve it, he fell in.

Second-Class Attendant Wei immediately jumped into the water to save him, while Chunchan cried for help. Guards quickly arrived and rescued Qingyou. Moments later, Sanbao arrived to escort Second-Class Attendant Wei to the Office of Careful Punishment. As she was being led away, Second-Class Attendant Wei whispered to Chunchan that Princess Hejing now owed her a favor. Jinzhong promptly reported Second-Class Attendant Wei's heroic act to His Majesty.

Both His Majesty and the Empress rushed to see Qingyou, who was thankfully unharmed. Princess Hejing expressed her gratitude for Second-Class Attendant Wei's actions but was dismayed to learn that her son's savior had been sent to the Office of Careful Punishment.

His Majesty explained that Second-Class Attendant Wei's mother had colluded with a midwife to cause the death of the Thirteenth Prince, and that Second-Class Attendant Wei's servant was also suspected of involvement in the deaths of the Fifth and Sixth Princesses. He stated that Second-Class Attendant Wei was being interrogated to ascertain her complicity. Princess Hejing, however, worried that torture at the Office of Careful Punishment could force a false confession and insisted that her son's savior deserved a reward.

At the Office of Careful Punishment, Second-Class Attendant Wei saw Wangchan, severely beaten, but refused to confess to any crime. When pressed about her meetings with Granny Tian, Second-Class Attendant Wei changed her story, claiming she had summoned Granny Tian before Consort Shu's delivery, not just when the Empress was pregnant. Wangchan, under duress, struggled to corroborate her new account. As the torturers prepared more severe methods, Princess Hejing intervened, arguing with His Majesty.

She accused the Empress of jealousy and of using the Thirteenth Prince's death as a pretext to eliminate rivals, drawing parallels to her own unhappy marriage. She questioned the Empress's certainty that Second-Class Attendant Wei, and not her mother, was the true mastermind. Princess Hejing's pleas ultimately persuaded His Majesty to order Second-Class Attendant Wei's release for further questioning.

Jinzhong arrived at the Office of Careful Punishment to deliver the decree, covertly advising Second-Class Attendant Wei to remain steadfast in her denial, emphasizing that a confession would mean death. The Empress, upon hearing of Second-Class Attendant Wei's release, instructed Consort Ying to join His Majesty at Yongshou Palace. His Majesty visited Second-Class Attendant Wei, thanking her for saving Qingyou. Jinzhong and Chunchan seized the opportunity to speak on her behalf.

Second-Class Attendant Wei adamantly denied any knowledge of her mother's misdeeds, blaming her mother and Granny Tian for conspiring against the Empress. She vehemently swore to the heavens that she did not incite Fugui'er to cause the death of the Fifth Princess, arguing that she had no motive as she had no prince to benefit from such actions. Seemingly convinced by her pleas, His Majesty ordered Jinzhong to release Wangchan.

Just then, Consort Ying arrived with the Seventh Princess, ostensibly to meet His Majesty for dinner. She expressed her suspicions about the seemingly convenient timing and circumstances of Qingyou's fall and Second-Class Attendant Wei's rescue, openly questioning why Second-Class Attendant Wei was in that specific location at that precise moment.

Episode 67 Recap

Episode 69 Recap