Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty Ⅲ: To Changan Episode 24 Recap
> Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty Ⅲ: To Changan Recap
Nu Jiao, carrying both a pipa and a sword, made her entrance, drawing confused stares from the guests who wondered why a courtesan would bear arms. She explained that she had learned sword dance to supplement her pipa playing, as it was a means of survival. Leng Shuye, present among the guests, recognized her voice. However, another guest then pointed out that Nu Jiao was blind, a revelation that shocked Leng Shuye and caused further intrigue.
A guest suggested she perform her sword dance first, remarking on the rarity of a blind sword dancer. Nu Jiao requested Chu Yingtao to hold her pipa. Nu Jiao began her sword dance, her movements graceful and precise, but the tip of her sword suddenly veered towards Ruan Daxiong. Fortunately, Chu Yingtao was quick to react, using a tray to block the attack.
Thinking fast, Su Wuming announced that Chu Yingtao was also skilled in dance and invited her to perform with Nu Jiao. The two women moved in a controlled dance, effectively neutralizing Nu Jiao's offensive. After their performance, Nu Jiao played her pipa and sang, her voice filling the hall with Leng Shuye's poetry. She concluded with his famous "Cold Food Ballad," which earned widespread acclaim, securing Leng Shuye's victory in the poetry contest.
The consensus among the poets was that the top courtesan singing his poem was the ultimate determinant of the winner. After Nu Jiao departed, Leng Shuye remained somber. Lu Lingfeng, seeing his melancholy, offered a toast, encouraging him to find joy in their company. Meanwhile, Manager Hou led Nu Jiao to a private room, discreetly questioning her about the failed assassination attempt.
Nu Jiao admitted that the presence of skilled individuals at the banquet made it impossible to act and asked him to point out the target's room. That night, Nu Jiao crept into Ruan Daxiong's chambers to carry out the assassination. Unbeknownst to her, Lu Lingfeng was already on high alert. Her initial strike missed, and as she attempted to flee, Chu Yingtao intercepted her, quickly overpowering her.
Lu Lingfeng, identifying himself as "Lu Wuming," a humble Sushan Shop servant, and Chu Yingtao, claiming to be another servant, downplayed their martial prowess while subduing Nu Jiao. When Ruan Daxiong demanded an explanation, the Xuanhuo Troupe leader, Sai Mengchang, fabricating a story, claimed they found Nu Jiao attempting suicide. Lu Lingfeng swiftly debunked this, suggesting Nu Jiao had deliberately staged the scene to infiltrate Ruan's Restaurant.
He then pressed Ruan Daxiong about who hired the troupe, leading to the revelation that it was Manager Hou. Manager Hou, attempting to escape, was apprehended. Manager Hou confessed to orchestrating the assassination. He explained that Ruan Daxiong's father, on his deathbed, had entrusted him with the responsibility of assisting Ruan, but also granted him permission to take over the business if Ruan proved unworthy.
Seeing Ruan Daxiong's singular devotion to poetry and lavish spending, which he believed was squandering the family fortune, Manager Hou decided to seize control. Ruan Daxiong, acknowledging Manager Hou's past loyalty to his late father, gave him a surprisingly lenient sentence: two days confined in the woodshed for reflection.
Lu Lingfeng then stated that despite the Tang Empire's general tolerance for assassins, Nu Jiao, having been caught in the act of attempted murder, must be reported to the authorities for punishment. Just as ropes were brought out, Leng Shuye dramatically stepped forward, declaring his willingness to accept her punishment. He revealed that Nu Jiao's true name was Jiaonu.
He recounted their shared past in Luoyang, where he, a struggling scholar, and she, a courtesan, had found solace in each other's company. He spoke of her eventual rise as a top courtesan, his jealous outburst upon seeing her with a general, and his cruel curse that she would go blind—a curse he deeply regretted.
He admitted that his long poem "Cold Food Ballad" brought him fame, after which he abandoned the imperial examinations and returned to Nanzhou Prefecture to focus on poetry with three companions, but his heart still held deep guilt for Jiaonu. He saw this moment as an opportunity to atone for his past wrongs. Su Wuming asked Jiaonu if she had anything to add. She confirmed her heartbreak after Leng Shuye left.
Her fame as a courtesan eventually waned in Luoyang and then Chang'an. Instead of entering the Ghost Market or marrying a merchant, she chose to travel the world. On Mount Song, she encountered a starving old man, to whom she offered a sesame cake. He, in turn, became her martial arts mentor. She then adopted the alias Nu Jiao and became an assassin, deliberately feigning blindness as a stark reminder of Leng Shuye's curse.
She emphasized that she had always sworn to only target the truly wicked and, upon witnessing Ruan Daxiong's respectful treatment of poets, concluded that he was not an evil man and therefore held back from killing him. Moved by her words, the other poets realized Jiaonu's enduring affection for Leng Shuye. Overwhelmed, Leng Shuye proposed marriage, pledging to marry her immediately.
When Jiaonu hesitated, he threatened to take his own life with her sword, asserting that if they could die together, they would be reunited in the afterlife for their wedding. Ruan Daxiong and the others quickly intervened, offering to host their wedding banquet immediately. Gao Da offered to act as guarantor, taking full responsibility for any legal repercussions of harboring a criminal. Su Wuming, deeply touched by their love, also supported the impromptu wedding.
Finally, Jiaonu accepted Leng Shuye's heartfelt proposal. Ruan Daxiong immediately arranged for a joyous wedding ceremony and summoned the troupe to provide entertainment. Lu Lingfeng, acknowledging the extraordinary circumstances, decided to allow the wedding to proceed. Under the watchful eyes of all the guests, Leng Shuye from Nanzhou and Fu Jiaonu from the northern lands exchanged vows and were officially wed.
During the wedding feast, Lang Yehu secretly urged Sai Mengchang (whose true name was Gou Mengchang) to gather their belongings and depart quickly, fearing their prolonged stay would raise suspicion. However, Gou Mengchang's greed was inflamed by Ruan Daxiong's apparent wealth. He decided to proceed with a robbery, secretly adding a sleeping drug to the drinks.
He instructed two of his men, Liulang and Qilang, to guard the first floor and intervene if any fighting broke out upstairs, indicating the drug had failed to fully incapacitate the guests. After confirming that everyone appeared to be unconscious, Gou Mengchang and Lang Yehu moved to carry out their plan, intending to eliminate Lu Lingfeng and Chu Yingtao first.
Simultaneously, Liulang and Qilang, believing it to be full of treasure, seized a heavy cabinet from the first floor and fled, unaware that it contained the real leader of the Xuanhuo Troupe, bound and gagged. Moments later, Lu Lingfeng and his companions, who had anticipated the drug and merely feigned unconsciousness, having covered their mouths and noses to avoid its effects, suddenly sprang into action, revealing their deception to a shocked Gou Mengchang and Lang Yehu.
Lu Lingfeng and Chu Yingtao engaged the bandits. Ruan Daxiong, Wang Youbo, Leng Shuye, and Gao Da, all proving to be surprisingly adept in combat, joined forces to subdue Gou Mengchang. Lu Lingfeng then revealed his true identity as a Judicial Official to the assembled poets. Under interrogation, Gou Mengchang confessed his real name and admitted to being a notorious bandit.
He explained that Lang Yehu had persuaded him to impersonate the Xuanhuo Troupe leader, using the guise of performers to easily gain access to wealthy households for robbery. Gou Mengchang further divulged that the actual Xuanhuo Troupe leader was trapped inside the very cabinet that Liulang and Qilang had stolen, along with all the gold, silver, and valuables they had plundered recently. Ruan Daxiong, gravely concerned, immediately urged pursuit, emphasizing that recovering the stolen goods was secondary to saving the human life endangered within the cabinet.
