Story of Yanxi Palace Episode 55 Recap
> Story of Yanxi Palace Recap
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The Empress tells her confidante that the Emperor's affection for Consort Ling is too deep to be extinguished by a single outburst. She likens her plan to a vast dike collapsing from a single ant hole, emphasizing that her goal will be achieved slowly. Indeed, for over half a month, the Emperor avoids the Palace of Everlasting Joy, secluding himself in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
He is haunted not by Wei Yingluo's murder of Erqing, but by his own culpability in the late Empress Fuca Rongyin’s suicide, a guilt that has been brought to the surface. Tormented by guilt, the Emperor races away on horseback with Hailancha in pursuit. The Emperor confesses he made an irreparable mistake and wronged someone deeply. He reflects on Fuca Rongyin, his wife since he was fifteen, whom he allowed to wither in the Forbidden City.
He admits he was once disappointed in her sentimentality, viewing her as a perfect wife but not a competent Empress, whose shoulders were too weak for the phoenix crown. Her death, he now realizes, was a release for her but a scandal he had to cover. He concludes it was not she who was too sentimental, but he who was too ruthless.
Later, the Emperor and Hailancha intercept eunuchs smuggling allegedly insect-damaged medicine out of the palace to sell for the Imperial Hospital's expenses. However, Hailancha discovers valuable, intact caterpillar fungus hidden among the damaged goods. The terrified eunuchs implicate Doctor Ye Tianshi, and the Emperor orders a full investigation of the Imperial Hospital. Meanwhile, the Empress receives lavish gifts, including a rare parrot from Prince He, signaling her rising influence.
When Chamberlain Wu reports that the Solon guards are aggressively searching the hospital, the Empress asserts her authority over the Imperial Household Department. She instructs Wu to take over, ordering him to conduct his own thorough search and examine a year's worth of medicine ledgers. At the Palace of Everlasting Joy, Ming Yu notices Wei Yingluo’s inner turmoil betrayed by a crooked branch in her painting. She urges Yingluo to apologize to the Emperor, but Yingluo refuses to seek humiliation.
In the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Emperor has no appetite. Supervisor Li subtly reminds him that the exceptional chef Zhang Dongguan is now at the Palace of Everlasting Joy, suggesting the Emperor could use retrieving the chef as an excuse to visit. The Emperor agrees, but before he can leave, he is summoned by the Empress. At her palace, Wu Shulai reports his findings: the medical ledgers reveal that Consort Ling has been secretly taking contraceptive medicine.
Feigning shock, the Empress watches as the furious Emperor storms off to confront Yingluo. The Emperor furiously demands to know why Yingluo took the contraceptive medicine. When she remains silent, he outlines her entire scheme: entering the palace to avenge Fuca Rongyin, eliminating Noble Consort Chun, and artfully gaining his favor only to achieve her goals. He accuses her of using him as a pawn. Yingluo confirms his suspicions, admitting her sole purpose was revenge.
Asked why she made him a fur hat, she coldly replies it was out of guilt for his kindness, but he bitterly notes that her continued use of the contraceptive medicine proves he meant nothing more to her. Yingluo retorts that the late Empress suffered far more. She confronts him about his affair with Hitara Erqing, which, combined with the loss of her child, drove the Empress to despair.
She accuses him of using the Empress in both life and death, citing the brutal punishment of dozens of officials after the funeral not as an act of grief, but as a pretext for a ruthless political purge. The Emperor coldly confirms this. He explains that after thirteen years of lenient rule, the officials had grown complacent. He needed a "sword" to purge officialdom, and the late Empress’s death provided the perfect opportunity.
He is an Emperor, he reminds her, and emperors are inherently ruthless. He declares she will be confined to the Forbidden City until death and will no longer need the contraceptive medicine, as he will never favor her again. A confused Ming Yu tells Yingluo about Doctor Ye's arrest, and Yingluo calmly reveals that she was taking contraceptive medicine and has confessed everything to the Emperor. The Palace of Everlasting Joy, she states, is now a true cold palace.
That night, the Empress finds the Emperor standing alone and drapes a coat over him. He asks if she has ever blamed him. She admits she has resented him but never hated him, explaining that an Emperor and Empress are not an ordinary couple driven by personal feelings. She even admits to blaming him for her father Naerbu's death but came to regret it, vowing to always stand by him.
Deeply moved, the Emperor confesses no one has ever spoken to him with such understanding. The next morning, Yingluo dismisses her servants, but Zhenzhu and Xiao Quanzi loyally choose to stay. Yingluo then takes a worried Yuan Chunwang with her to confront the Empress. She cuts through the Empress's feigned concern and points to Yuan Chunwang, calling him the Empress’s "most loyal dog."
Yingluo lays out the entire plot: first, the Empress sent Hu Po to incite her to kill Erqing. Second, she orchestrated the medicine theft to expose Yingluo's contraceptive use and, consequently, her true motives to the Emperor. Yingluo explains that besides the jailed Doctor Ye, only Yuan Chunwang knew about the medicine. Staring at the man she trusted like a brother, she expresses her profound disbelief at his devastating betrayal.
