The Autumn Ballad Episode 1 Recap
> The Autumn Ballad Recap
Before her wedding, Qiu Yan, the second illegitimate daughter of the Qiu family, revealed that she had little curiosity about her fiancé, He Feng. Instead, she cherished a fan given to her by a mysterious benefactor who had taught her to read and write, which had enabled her to gain entry into the Qiu family. She doubted she would ever meet him again, as his only trace was the fan and a self-assigned title written on it.
The wedding ceremony began with great fanfare, but tragically, He Feng suddenly collapsed from a severe coughing fit and died in the main hall. A physician declared him beyond help, leaving General He and his wife devastated. Observing the body, Qiu Yan noted the unusual rigidity of He Feng's limbs, a detail inconsistent with a recent death. Soon after, Qiu Yan’s father, Qiu Yi, and his wife, Madam Han, arrived at the He Residence to take Qiu Yan back.
Their attempt to also return the betrothal gifts infuriated General He, who insisted that Qiu Yan was now his daughter-in-law and must mourn his son. Qiu Yi countered, citing imperial law that allowed annulment if an illness was concealed before marriage.
However, the matchmaker then confessed that Qiu Yan's birth mother, Madam Liu, had bribed her with ten taels of silver to alter Qiu Yan's Eight Characters, as her original ones were deemed destined to bring misfortune and death to her husband. Convinced that Qiu Yan had jinxed his son, General He declared that she must be buried alive with He Feng. Qingdai, Qiu Yan’s maid, overheard this from outside the door and immediately informed her mistress.
Qiu Yan and Qingdai attempted to flee the He Residence disguised as new servants, but their ruse was quickly discovered. While being pursued, they split up. Qiu Yan ran towards a group led by Liang Yi, an inspector from the Firewood Office, and fabricated a story about being an orphan trying to find her aunt. However, Liang Yi noticed her expensive hairpin and delicate hands, discerning her lie.
Without offering assistance, he instructed his subordinate to proceed and allowed the He family guards to resume their chase. Shortly after, Qiu Yan was rescued by her parents, who arrived in a waiting carriage. Back at the Qiu Residence, Qiu Rong, Madam Liu’s son, complained that Qiu Yan's situation had ruined his plan to secure a government position through the He family.
Meanwhile, Qiu Yi confronted Madam Liu, chastising her for altering Qiu Yan’s birth chart and bringing disgrace upon the family. Later, Madam Liu privately urged Qiu Yan to return to the He Residence and appease her in-laws, suggesting that after the funeral, she could adopt a son from the main He family branch. This, she argued, would secure Qiu Yan's future and pave the way for Qiu Rong's career.
Realizing her mother's selfish motives, Qiu Yan confronted her, rejecting the notion that a woman's life should be sacrificed for her male relatives. Disappointed, Qiu Yan burst into the family hall where the elders were deliberating her fate. Declaring that rules no longer mattered to a person facing death, she publicly shamed her Third Uncle for his academic failures and her Fourth Uncle for his dissolute behavior, accusing both of being unfilial.
Angered by her audacity, Old Madam Qiu declared that Qiu Yan would be sent back to the He Residence. Just then, a servant rushed in with news: the ancestral tablet of the Old Mistress was bleeding. While the men dismissed it as a trick, Old Madam Qiu sent everyone away and demanded Qiu Yan’s thoughts. Qiu Yan seized the opportunity, claiming the bleeding tablet was a sign of sorrow from the Old Mistress, who had also been unwillingly buried alive.
She subtly implied that if she were forced to die, she would become a vengeful spirit. After solemn contemplation, Old Madam Qiu decided to seek the Crown Prince's mediation, hoping he would honor his past connection as a student of the late Old Master Qiu. Relieved, Qiu Yan later praised Qingdai, who had orchestrated the "bleeding" tablet with ink.
Qiu Yan explained she chose the Old Mistress’s tablet because Old Madam Qiu harbored deep guilt over forcing the woman to her death and would, therefore, feel compelled to believe the omen to soothe her own conscience. As she relaxed, she gazed at the fan, recalling how its owner had once challenged her not to run away from home until she could read all the characters on it—a challenge that eventually led her to learn his name, Liang Yi.
In the Firewood Office prison, Liang Yi interrogated Official Li over an account book detailing 30,000 taels of embezzled military funds, suspecting the Ministry of War was behind the corruption. He then received an edict from the Crown Prince to mediate the conflict between the Qiu and He families.
Though his subordinate saw it as a thankless task, Liang Yi viewed it as an opportunity to gain the He family’s support to investigate the military, an acceptable trade-off for offending the scholar-official Qiu family. At the mediation, General He demanded "a life for a life." Liang Yi proposed a compromise: Qiu Yan would not be buried alive but would instead become a nun at Jingyun Convent to pray for He Feng.
He skillfully persuaded General He to accept by reminding him that escalating the conflict would displease the Emperor. Later, Liang Yi admitted to his subordinate that he showed leniency because he was reminded of a young girl he had saved years ago, reflecting that Qiu Yan was, like her, a living person. Qiu Yan was devastated, telling her father that life in a convent was no different from death.
Qiu Yi explained it was the best outcome he could secure, as the decision was made by the powerful Marquis Wenyuan, who was also the head of the Firewood Office. Qiu Yan tearfully revealed a bold new plan: to become a female official in the imperial court, a position open to unmarried, educated women.
She intended to use Noble Consort Guo's upcoming birthday celebration, which her stepmother Madam Han was invited to, to impress the consort and secure a place in the palace. While Qiu Yi dismissed the idea as impossible, Madam Han strongly supported Qiu Yan, admiring her indomitable spirit. On Noble Consort Guo's birthday, Madam Han presented an ornate lacquer screen as a gift. Then, Qiu Yan stepped forward, offering a "simple gift" of her own. As she presented it, an indignant courtier shouted, "Such audacity! How dare you take Her Highness for a fool?"
