Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace Episode 83 Recap
> Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace Recap
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Fifth Prince Yongqi, accompanied by his princess consort of the Sirin-Gioro clan, stumbled and fell while walking in the palace. His consort urged him to slow down, worried he was chilled after waiting in the snow. Though he insisted he was fine and tried to walk, he soon collapsed again and lost consciousness.
Imperial Physician Jiang Yubin was immediately summoned and reported to the Emperor that Prince Rong suffered from a deep abscess and a persistent high fever, indicating a dangerous condition. The physician expressed regret that he had not been called sooner. Consort Yu, Yongqi's mother, explained that Yongqi had been avoiding medical treatment, fearing she would worry, and had thus hidden his worsening illness.
The Emperor decreed that Prince Rong remain in Chonghua Palace to recover, making it convenient for Imperial Physician Jiang to treat him and for Consort Yu and the Emperor to visit. The princess consort was also to remain and assist in his care. The princess consort then suggested bringing in Lady Hu Yunjiao to Consort Yu, as Lady Hu usually attended to Yongqi with great care.
Meanwhile, in Yikun Palace, Empress Ruyi overheard her attendant Rongpei discussing Yongqi not having sent fresh flowers and sandalwood recently. Rongpei had heard rumors from a guard that the Fifth Prince's old illness had recurred. Concerned, Ruyi quickly sent Rongpei to inquire about the situation. Yongqi eventually regained consciousness, to the great relief of Consort Yu. She gently chided him for concealing his illness, which had caused so much worry for both her and the Emperor.
Yongqi, weak but lucid, apologized for being unfilial and acknowledged his chronic illness was beyond recovery. He entrusted the care of his son, Mianyi, and Lady Hu Yunjiao to his mother. Consort Yu, tears streaming, tried to reassure him that Imperial Physician Jiang would cure him. Unbeknownst to them, Lady Hu Yunjiao was listening from behind a screen, deeply affected by Yongqi's words.
Elsewhere, Imperial Noble Consort Yanwan, while playing cards with Chunchan, casually discussed Yongqi's imminent death, noting that she had instructed Lady Hu Yunjiao to act once Prince Rong died, ensuring the Empress would face the consequences of her past actions. Soon after, eunuchs arrived at Yikun Palace with urgent news: Prince Rong was critically ill, and after much pleading from Consort Yu, the Emperor had finally granted Ruyi permission to see Yongqi one last time. Ruyi rushed to his side.
The Emperor had already arrived at Yongqi's bedside. Yongqi, barely able to speak, declared himself unfilial, attributing his dire state to his long avoidance of medical treatment, which now left him beyond recovery. He recounted his fond memories of growing up by Royal Mother Ruyi's side and earnestly pleaded with the Emperor to show empathy for her and not to resent her.
Turning to Consort Yu, he expressed his fear that he could no longer protect her or Royal Mother, then drew his last breath. Imperial Physician Jiang Yubin confirmed Prince Rong's death. As sorrow enveloped the room, Lady Hu Yunjiao stepped forward, declaring Yongqi's death unjust and imploring the Emperor to seek justice for him. She accused Consort Yu of having Ling Yunche killed years ago, which she claimed caused Empress Ruyi to resent and distance herself from Consort Yu.
Consequently, Yongqi was forced to avoid suspicion, making him afraid to seek treatment from Imperial Physician Jiang. Lady Hu further alleged that Empress Ruyi, unwilling for Ling Yunche to truly die, had compelled Yongqi to find an auspicious burial site for Ling Yunche and arrange his affairs properly. The Emperor, enraged, retorted that he had ordered Ling Yunche's body to be cast into a mass grave.
Lady Hu countered that Yongqi initially complied, but Empress Ruyi's constant pressure to defy the Emperor's command left him restless day and night, severely worsening his illness. She concluded that Yongqi felt deeply ashamed to have Empress Ruyi as his legitimate mother, as her greatest concern was Ling Yunche. Consort Yu vehemently slapped Lady Hu, denouncing her for using the deceased Yongqi to humiliate his legitimate mother, insisting that Yongqi's true nature would never allow him to utter such words.
Lady Hu, however, maintained her claims, stating her deep love for Yongqi and that she was risking her life to reveal the truth. She then drank a vial of poison, proclaiming her intention to follow Yongqi in death. Imperial Physician Jiang confirmed her demise. Just then, Empress Ruyi arrived, only to be met by the Emperor's furious question as to how she dared show her face. He ordered Lady Hu Yunjiao to be buried as a side consort.
The Emperor then turned his wrath on Ruyi, demanding to know how she had treated Yongqi to provoke such a deathbed accusation from his beloved concubine. Consort Yu knelt, pleading with the Emperor not to misunderstand Ruyi, asserting that Lady Hu's words were one-sided and should not be fully believed.
The Emperor, recalling Ruyi's past defenses of Ling Yunche in Hangzhou, further accused her of arranging Ling Yunche's proper burial through Yongqi after Consort Yu had orchestrated his death, ultimately harming Yongqi. He concluded by recalling Ruyi's declaration of weariness with her role and her act of cutting her hair. He commanded Jinbao to escort Ruyi out, reclaim her Empress' decree and seal, and declared he no longer wished to see her.
Ruyi attempted to approach Yongqi's body, but the Emperor forcibly restrained her. With a look of profound despair, Ruyi left the room silently. In Qianlong's thirty-first year, the Fifth Prince Yongqi, Prince of the First Rank Rong, passed away. Soon after, Rongpei delivered the Empress' decree and seal to Jinbao. Ruyi, however, was not concerned with these losses.
She instructed Jinbao to convey a message to Consort Yu: Lady Hu Yunjiao's words were suspicious, and Consort Yu should thoroughly investigate her background. In Yangxin Hall, the Emperor, visibly distraught, ordered a candle and burned a secret decree he had prepared, naming Yongqi as the crown prince. Yuhu urged the Emperor to moderate his grief and care for his health, reminding him of his other imperial sons.
The Emperor then instructed Yuhu to retrieve the secret scroll from behind the "Transparency and Justice" plaque. Yuhu asked whether the Empress' decree and seal should be returned to the Interior Bureau, but the Emperor decided they should be kept in Yangxin Hall for the time being. Imperial Noble Consort Yanwan arrived to pay her respects, observing as Yuhu hastily put away the secret box at the Emperor's command.
Now effectively the highest-ranking consort in the harem, Yanwan dispatched a young eunuch to Ruyi's mother's residence to inform the elderly woman that Ruyi's imperial decree and seal had been confiscated. Meanwhile, Consort Yu mourned Yongqi, consumed by self-reproach for failing to recognize Lady Hu Yunjiao's true intentions. She vowed to uncover the truth and clear both Yongqi's and Ruyi's names.
Yuhu later reported to the Emperor that Ling Yunche indeed had a tomb with a headstone at an auspicious site, an arrangement made by Prince Rong himself, confirming Lady Hu's earlier claim. The Empress Dowager visited the Emperor, advising him to prioritize his health. She remarked that reclaiming the Empress' decree and seal so swiftly after Yongqi's death was rash, especially since Lady Hu's accusation was the sole testimony, and she was now dead, making the matter highly suspicious.
When asked for her opinion, Yuhu echoed these doubts, questioning why Lady Hu, supposedly so devoted to Yongqi, could remain so calm and articulate immediately after his death, directing all her accusations solely at Ruyi. Yuhu also noted that Yongqi's dying plea for the Emperor to forgive Ruyi contradicted Lady Hu's assertion that he was ashamed of his legitimate mother.
The Empress Dowager observed that Lady Hu's mention of Ling Yunche was clearly intended to strike at the Emperor's weak spot. The Emperor assured her he would order further investigation. Yuhu's investigation revealed that Lady Hu's entire family had perished in a fire shortly after she entered Prince Rong's manor, a tragedy that went uninvestigated and left no surviving relatives or significant assets, suggesting she may have been coerced.
Furthermore, Yuhu discovered that Lady Hu had indulged Yongqi in various forbidden activities during his illness. Given that Ruyi and Lady Hu had no prior connection or known animosity, Lady Hu's accusations against Ruyi seemed profoundly strange. In the capital, the news of Ruyi's decree and seal being taken reached her ailing mother through the eunuch dispatched by Yanwan. Overwhelmed with worry for Ruyi, her mother was overcome with shock and passed away.
Upon hearing of her mother's death, and that Yanwan had indirectly caused it, Ruyi knelt silently before a Buddha statue, consumed by profound grief. Rongpei informed Ruyi that the Imperial Noble Consort had deliberately sent someone to deliver the devastating news, highlighting Yanwan's malicious intent.
