Story of Yanxi Palace Episode 18 Recap
> Story of Yanxi Palace Recap
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Amidst the heated debate surrounding the condition of Noble Lady Yu's newborn, the Emperor decided to summon Ye Tian Shi, a renowned physician from Jiangnan, to examine the prince. The Emperor declared that if the Fifth Prince was merely ill, he would be allowed to live; otherwise, palace rules would dictate his fate. Upon examination, Ye Tian Shi confidently announced that the prince simply had pathological jaundice, a condition he could easily cure.
This public declaration greatly embarrassed the imperial physicians, who were unable to refute his diagnosis. Noble Consort Gao, witnessing this, swiftly feigned ignorance, acknowledging she had almost endangered Yong Qi's life, which placated the Emperor and prevented him from reprimanding her. Just as Noble Consort Gao believed she had averted disaster, Consort Chun appeared before the Emperor with a serious accusation.
Noble Consort Gao was already in an awkward position, and Consort Chun intensified the situation by producing the corpse of a chef, accusing Noble Consort Gao of orchestrating the plot against Noble Lady Yu. The deceased, a Mongolian chef from the Imperial Kitchen known for preparing baked goods for Noble Lady Yu, had apparently committed suicide. Wei Yingluo recalled Noble Lady Yu's fondness for the chef's scones and detailed her daily dietary habits.
Ye Tian Shi confirmed that a pregnant woman frequently consuming overly sweet and hot foods could indeed give birth to a child with severe jaundice. He explained that Yong Qi's condition was caused by bile accumulation in the mother, likely resulting from an excessive diet of sweet cakes and hot scones over several months, a diet someone not accustomed to it, like a Mongolian, could not handle.
With the chef's body and Wei Yingluo's testimony, it became an unspoken truth that Noble Consort Gao had used the chef to harm Noble Lady Yu. Wei Yingluo publicly recounted how Noble Consort Gao, upon seeing Yong Qi, had immediately demanded he be buried alive. This incited suspicion that Noble Consort Gao was acting out of guilt.
Although Noble Consort Gao tried to explain, Consort Chun produced a blood letter found on the chef's body, which stated he was ordered by Noble Consort Gao to harm Noble Lady Yu. With this, the Emperor ordered Noble Consort Gao to be confined to Chuxiu Palace, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving without his command. The matter seemed resolved, but Ming Yu then stepped forward, accusing Wei Yingluo of illicitly using the Empress's golden seal to stop Noble Consort Gao.
Prepared for this, Wei Yingluo explained that she had used a carved inkstone, not the Empress's seal, as a desperate bluff to save Noble Lady Yu and her son. The weary Emperor, having endured enough for one night, ordered Wei Yingluo to receive fifty strokes with a cane as punishment but ultimately dismissed the severity of the charge. Later, Wei Yingluo confronted Consort Chun, revealing she knew Noble Consort Gao had been framed, as the clues were too obvious.
Consort Chun admitted to orchestrating the entire scheme to overthrow Noble Consort Gao, reasoning that the Fifth Prince's suffering was a small price to pay. Appalled by her ruthlessness, Wei Yingluo argued that harming a newborn was an act of a beast, not a human. Consort Chun, however, maintained that in the palace, one must defeat all rivals to survive, advising Wei Yingluo to abandon her kindness if she wished to live.
The Empress visited Noble Lady Yu, securing the Emperor's permission for her to be promoted to Imperial Concubine Yu and to raise her son, Yong Qi, herself. Meanwhile, Noble Consort Gao wasted away under house arrest. Her maid, Zhi Lan, secretly sought help from Gao's father, Gao Bin. Gao Bin was discussing river management plans with the Emperor and his expertise so impressed the Emperor that he was promoted to Viceroy of Zhili.
Gao Bin did not plead for his daughter but requested to see her before departing for his new post, a request the Emperor granted. The reunion between Gao Bin and his daughter, whose real name was Ning Xin, was strained. She bitterly resented him for her mother's tragic death, believing she was killed by bandits as retribution for his policies, not simply washed away in a flood as he claimed.
Her resentment was compounded by his swift remarriage to a woman who then tormented her and her siblings. Ning Xin became enraged when Gao Bin revealed his intention to send his two other daughters into the palace. Furious at being treated as a disposable pawn, she declared that as long as she lived, her stepmother and stepsisters would never gain power. Unmoved, Gao Bin simply told her she would need to be capable to prevent it and left.
Consumed by anger, Ning Xin decided she would rather die than allow her stepmother to triumph. She orchestrated a performance of "The Drunken Concubine" in a garden the Emperor frequently passed. Her sorrowful singing drew the Emperor's attention, reminding him of their past affection. Under the influence of wine, she tearfully expressed her grief over her mother's death and her father's coldness.
The Emperor, moved by her suffering and calling her by her personal name, Ning Xin, promised he would not allow her stepsisters to enter the palace. He also reassured her that he believed she did not harm Yong Qi, and he stayed with her for the night.
