Shadow Love Episode 10 Recap
> Shadow Love Recap
Li Shuang rushed back to the military camp where the Yao Army was rapidly approaching. The Yao Army had advanced over twenty li and was expected to reach the borders by dusk. Li Shuang immediately ordered a count of weapons, preparation of troops, and a meeting for all officers. She dispatched Ji Ran to the city to check on Jin'an and ensure his safety.
Just then, Jin'an arrived at the camp with pear-blossom pastries, explaining he wanted to bring them warm. Li Shuang, focused on the urgent military situation, told him to wait. While waiting, Jin'an overheard Li Shuang's battle plan. He found a flaw in it and, despite initial hesitation from Ji Ran, burst into the main tent to voice his concerns.
Li Shuang had planned to create an illusion of strength by claiming 40,000 troops while only deploying 20,000, then lure the enemy into narrow trenches where archers would ambush them. Jin'an pointed out that the enemy had already deployed civilians as suicide troops and that arrows might not be enough to stop continuous waves. He proposed burning the passage to completely block the enemy and suggested showing mercy to civilians who didn't resist.
Despite Ji Ran's distrust and warning against keeping Jin'an close due to his unknown identity and sharp insight, Li Shuang assured him she knew what she was doing and ordered him to follow her commands. The Changfeng Army achieved a great victory. Meanwhile, in the Yao camp, after suffering heavy losses, Shi Du acknowledged his error in underestimating Li Shuang. His strategist, Liu Yun, advised against retreating entirely, urging to continue the war.
He ordered the Yao's embedded spies in Lucheng to take action and, knowing Li Shuang would return, emphasized the importance of coordinating internal and external forces for a decisive victory. In Lucheng, Military Supervisor Li Zhangyi, relieved by the news of the Yao Army's retreat, decided to celebrate. He planned to visit a renowned brothel in the city to "experience local customs," despite his aide's initial skepticism about the quality of frontier entertainment.
After the battle, Li Shuang commended Jin'an for his contribution to the victory. Jin'an, still curious about his origins, asked if she had any other questions for him. Li Shuang, understanding his unspoken thoughts, stated that she knew his intentions and he would speak if he truly had something to say. Jin'an confessed that the strategic plans seemed to appear in his mind spontaneously, a phenomenon he couldn't explain.
Li Shuang attributed it to his prolonged stay in the General's Mansion, and then told him the military camp was no place for him. She instructed Ji Ran to take him back to the mansion, but before he left, she asked him to change out of his conspicuous General's Mansion attire. As Jin'an changed, Li Shuang discreetly checked his chest, finding no wounds, which left her perplexed, wondering if she had been mistaken about him.
Li Shuang suddenly felt dizzy, a recurring symptom she noted had begun around the time of the Battle of Lucheng. Jin'an, concerned, asked if it was related to him, but Li Shuang reassured him it had started much earlier and was unrelated, attributing it to the fatigue of constant border conflicts. Jin'an made her promise to let physician Lu Xin examine her once the fighting subsided.
On their way to the General’s Mansion, Jin'an asked Ji Ran when Li Shuang would return. Ji Ran abruptly stopped the carriage and confronted Jin'an, demanding to know his true identity. He questioned Jin'an about the flame mark on his neck, revealing that another child named Jin'an, bearing the same mark, had disappeared from the army shortly before the current Jin'an appeared. Ji Ran suspected they were the same person and accused Jin'an of bringing danger to Li Shuang.
Jin'an, exhausted and without his strange powers, explained he couldn't remember many things and couldn't answer the questions. Ji Ran, convinced Jin'an was a threat to Li Shuang, resolved to act on his own, claiming he was willing to bear any consequences for the General's safety. In the ensuing struggle, Jin'an accidentally fell off a cliff. Ji Ran returned to Li Shuang with Jin'an's sash, reporting his death and asserting that Jin'an's refusal to confess proved his suspicious nature.
Enraged, Li Shuang accused Ji Ran of acting on mere suspicion and violating military law. She ordered him imprisoned upon their return to the city and immediately dispatched a team, led by Ji Ran, to search for Jin'an, demanding he be found, alive or dead, because she still had many questions for him to answer. Meanwhile, in the Fragrance Garden brothel, Li Zhangyi was drunkenly forcing a dancer named Yanzhi to drink.
Yunge stepped in to protect Yanzhi, charming Li Zhangyi and diverting his attention. Yanzhi, worried for Yunge, urged her to leave, fearing Li Zhangyi's cruelty, but Yunge calmly said she could handle it. Later, Yunge stole Li Zhangyi's token, used it to gain access to the granary, and set it on fire. The granary guards reported a woman using Li Zhangyi's token to infiltrate and then burn the supplies, leaving behind a Yao State signal flare.
Li Shuang deduced that Li Zhangyi had fallen into a trap and, given the intact signal flare, believed the information about the granary hadn't yet reached the Yao Army. Due to their dwindling supplies and the enemy's superior numbers, Li Shuang ordered the army to break camp at dawn and sent a messenger with the signal flare to the General's Mansion, ordering the capture of the woman before morning.
Jin'an, having survived the fall due to his strange powers, realized Ji Ran's ruthlessness and decided to return to the General's Mansion. There, he overheard Li Shuang's orders to investigate and capture the female arsonist. Recognizing a unique incense scent from the Fragrance Garden, Jin'an deduced the spy's origin and the urgency of finding her before the Yao Army exploited the intelligence. He rushed to the Fragrance Garden, but it was too late; the place had been massacred.
A dying Yanzhi told Jin'an that Li Zhangyi was responsible, believing Yunge was a Yao spy, and directed Jin'an to the City God Temple. Concurrently, Li Zhangyi, discovering Yunge missing and fearing exposure of his negligence and potential treason, decided to eliminate Li Shuang. He ordered all city guards replaced with his own men and the city gates sealed, determined to prevent Li Shuang from entering until Yunge was dealt with.
He plotted to let Li Shuang die at the hands of the Yao Army, believing it would serve his interests perfectly. The Yao Army, informed of the granary's destruction, began their attack on Lucheng, expecting the city gates to open. Li Shuang and her army arrived at Lucheng's gates, demanding entry, but were blocked by Li Zhangyi's newly appointed guards, who claimed they could not open the gates without Li Zhangyi's direct order.
Li Shuang confronted Li Zhangyi, accusing him of deliberately delaying while the Yao Army approached. Li Zhangyi, feigning concern for catching the "suspect" from the granary fire, retorted that Li Shuang, as a general, was a coward for contemplating retreat and insisted the battle must be fought. At this critical moment, Jin'an appeared on the city wall, having located Yunge and brought her to the General's Mansion with the help of others.
He presented Li Zhangyi with Yunge's sachet, threatening to expose Li Zhangyi's complicity with Yunge and the granary fire unless he opened the gates for the Changfeng Army. Li Zhangyi, advised by his aide to not fall for the trap, initially refused, confident the approaching Yao Army would eliminate Li Shuang. Jin'an, brandishing a blade, countered Li Zhangyi's threats, stating his own life was insignificant compared to Li Zhangyi's, implying he would take Li Zhangyi down with him if necessary.
With the Yao Army rapidly closing in, Li Zhangyi panicked and ordered the gates to be opened. However, Li Shuang, seeing the imminent danger to the city's civilians, stopped the gates from opening fully. She declared that letting the army in now would be "inviting wolves into their home" and the only option was to lure the Yao Army to the dense forest outside the city for a chance at survival.
As the battle intensified, Jin'an once again felt a surge of his strange powers. He joined Li Shuang on the battlefield, and together they confronted and killed the Yao General Shi Du, effectively ending the chaotic battle. Li Shuang, finding herself repeatedly saved by this masked figure, asked why he always hid his true identity. He replied that his identity was not important, but he would always strive to do whatever she wished. This unwavering promise made Li Shuang realize that the masked hero was indeed Jin'an.
