The Autumn Ballad Episode 30 Recap
> The Autumn Ballad Recap
Song Jin reported to Liang Yi that before Mr. Zhan's death, only the imperial chef, Mr. Ding, had visited him, bringing food as comfort. Song Jin found the situation peculiar, noting how swiftly and smoothly events unfolded. He questioned why the case of Liang Yi’s late father, which Liang Yi himself had closed four years prior, was now being reopened.
Liang Yi, convinced that Mr. Zhan’s case was linked to his father’s, resolved not to overlook any lead, even if it meant pursuing a false one. Acting on this intuition, Liang Yi, accompanied by Song Jin, went to Mr. Ding’s residence. Inside, they discovered a body that had recently died, with a broken crossbow bolt from the Firewood Office protruding from its chest.
Recognizing they had walked into a trap, Liang Yi moved to leave, but Yuan Lang and his men suddenly stormed in, surrounding them. Yuan Lang accused Liang Yi of murdering the imperial chef and moved to arrest him. To buy Liang Yi time to escape, Song Jin courageously blocked their path, standing his ground until he tragically fell, mortally wounded by their blades. Heartbroken, Liang Yi was forced to flee, leaving his loyal subordinate behind.
Following this, Yuan Lang went to the Emperor, presenting a fabricated narrative of Liang Yi’s alleged crimes. He claimed that Liang Yi had attempted to bribe Mr. Ding to poison the Emperor’s food and, upon refusal, had brutally silenced him. Yuan Lang alleged that Mr. Ding had bravely exposed Liang Yi, even pre-notifying the Main Administrative Office of his meeting with Liang Yi, but Yuan Lang's arrival had been too late to save him.
Initially, the Emperor expressed disbelief, citing Liang Yi’s years of loyal service. However, Yuan Lang presented a list of officials Liang Yi had secretly befriended. He elaborated that Liang Yi had exploited his position as Inspector of the Firewood Office to monitor officials, specifically leveraging the He family’s misconducts against civilian women to coerce General He into a secret alliance.
Yuan Lang further accused Liang Yi of abusing the Emperor’s trust to manipulate court politics and eliminate rivals, asserting that his crimes were shocking and undeniable. Yuan Lang theorized that after the Emperor reinvigorated the Main Administrative Office, Liang Yi felt he had lost favor and began seeking a new master. He pointed out the close relationship between Noble Consort Guo, the Crown Prince’s birth mother, and Marquis Wenyuan’s family.
Yuan Lang suggested that Liang Yi could easily gain the Crown Prince’s trust through this connection. He warned that the kind-hearted Crown Prince, no match for Liang Yi’s cunning, could be manipulated to control ministers and even the Northern Army of the He family, effectively allowing Liang Yi to rule Dashuo. Enraged by these accusations, the Emperor immediately ordered Liang Yi to be captured alive for a direct interrogation.
Following the imperial decree, Yuan Lang sealed off the Liang Residence, prohibiting anyone from leaving until the case was resolved and arranging for the Main Administrative Office to handle all supplies and security. Despite his success, Yuan Lang remained deeply uneasy.
He recognized that the trap for Liang Yi was not particularly subtle, yet Liang Yi had fallen into it, leading him to believe that a hidden mastermind had engineered this elaborate scheme, finding a way to force Liang Yi into the situation. This person's true identity and capabilities were still unknown, leaving Yuan Lang himself in a precarious position. Meanwhile, Qin Xuan completed his mission of recovering lost goods for a Northern Liang dignitary.
However, the dignitary's haste to leave without inspecting the retrieved items or signing official papers immediately struck Qin Xuan as suspicious. He also learned that the northern trade routes were now specially guarded. Soon after, Qin Xuan learned from Qiu Min that Liang Yi had been accused of murder and treason and was now a city-wide fugitive. Distraught, Qin Xuan resolved to find Liang Yi before Yuan Lang could.
At the same time, Qiu Yan and Qingdai had reached Mozhou, a border town between Dashuo and Northern Liang. Enchanted by the local culture, they stumbled upon a wedding. Qiu Yan noted that contrary to rumors in the capital, Northern Liang people did not look crude. They learned that unlike Dashuo, where red symbolizes joy, white is considered most auspicious for Northern Liangs.
They also observed the custom of Northern Liang women wearing a large thumb ring from childhood, which the groom removes during the wedding to symbolize the bride’s coming of age and the opening of her maidenhood. Qiu Yan was particularly intrigued to learn about the Anling blossom, a local herb whose petals could be ground into a potent Anling poison.
This poison was symbolically scattered at weddings, signifying that breaking one’s marital vows was akin to ingesting the fatal toxin, leading to a swift, symptomless death. Overhearing whispers about Liang Yi’s wanted status and the serious nature of his alleged crime, Qiu Yan grew gravely concerned for his safety and immediately rushed back towards the capital. Back in the capital, Yuan Lang sought out Shi Xiaoxiao, demanding to know Liang Yi’s whereabouts and handing her a letter.
Shi Xiaoxiao refused to cooperate, citing Yuan Lang’s broken promise to make her Liang Yi’s wife and unwilling to marry a man condemned for treason and facing annihilation of his entire clan. Yuan Lang, revealing that he was merely following orders, explained that a mastermind had set a death trap for Liang Yi, and he, Yuan Lang, was merely taking advantage of the opportunity.
He urged Shi Xiaoxiao to cooperate, stressing that Liang Yi’s only chance of survival was to be captured by the Main Administrative Office, as falling into the mastermind’s hands would guarantee his demise. Qin Xuan successfully located Liang Yi and arranged for his hiding in an abandoned warehouse of the Ministry of War, a place untouched for years and outside the Main Administrative Office's jurisdiction. Upon learning of Song Jin’s tragic sacrifice, Qin Xuan felt a deep sorrow.
Liang Yi, however, insisted that Qin Xuan not get involved further, knowing that Yuan Lang was aware of their close ties. Instead, Liang Yi tasked Yao Gai with investigating Mr. Ding’s background and connections. Liang Yi felt a grim relief that Qiu Yan had left, saving her from his current predicament.
He then painstakingly crafted a memorial tablet for Song Jin, recalling their shared childhood and lamenting Song Jin’s fate as a loyal servant forced into a life of violence, unlike his own chosen path. Liang Yi also remembered Song Jin's earnest wish that he would not seek revenge for his father but rather live a happy life away from court entanglements. Grief-stricken and furious, Liang Yi vowed revenge.
Meanwhile, Yao Gai began his investigation in the marketplace, sensing he was being followed. Turning around, he found Qiu Yan, who immediately began pressing him for Liang Yi’s whereabouts. Yao Gai, feigning ignorance and trying to mislead her by suggesting Liang Yi would have fled the capital, later reported to Liang Yi that all physical evidence related to Mr. Ding was stored in the Main Administrative Office's warehouse.
That same night, Liang Yi stealthily entered Yuan Lang’s residence, specifically the morgue where Mr. Ding’s body was kept. Yuan Lang, who had also been there, had just left but unexpectedly returned to retrieve evidence. Liang Yi narrowly avoided detection, momentarily forgetting to close the morgue door after examining the corpse. As Liang Yi left the morgue, he again sensed someone following him. This time, it was Qiu Yan. The two reunited in a tight embrace.
Liang Yi then revealed his discovery: Mr. Ding’s corpse emitted a peculiar, rusty odor, strikingly similar to the smell from his own father’s body six years ago. He noted that despite witnessing countless deaths during his years at the Firewood Office, he had never encountered such a distinct smell before. Upon hearing this, Qiu Yan immediately connected the rusty scent to the Anling poison of Northern Liang, which she had recently learned about.
She explained that this specific poison caused victims to fall into a coma and die, leaving no other immediate symptoms. However, days after death, the body would emit a rusty odor, and the bones would eventually turn greenish-black. This new information made Liang Yi question if his father had truly died from Duke Lu’s arrow, considering the arrow in Mr. Ding’s body hadn't hit any vital organs and had caused minimal bleeding, making poisoning a plausible cause of death.
Liang Yi was stunned by the possibility that his father's death had a hidden cause. He realized that if Yuan Lang was using this six-year-old secret to frame him, someone must have provided Yuan Lang with insider information, as Yuan Lang was stationed elsewhere at the time.
Qiu Yan added that Anling blossoms only grew in Northern Liang and the poison's complex production meant only Northern Liangs knew how to use it, suggesting Yuan Lang might be colluding with Northern Liang forces to bring Liang Yi down. Despite lacking concrete proof beyond a remembered scent, Liang Yi was determined to exhume his father’s remains to confirm if the bones showed the characteristic greenish-black discoloration caused by the Anling poison.
He acknowledged the complexity of the matter, given its potential to involve two nations, and requested Qiu Yan's support, which she readily offered. Liang Yi arranged a safe place for Qiu Yan to stay. Seeing her sneeze, he instinctively called out for Song Jin to fetch hot water, before the painful realization of Song Jin’s death washed over him, deepening his sorrow.
As Qiu Yan tried to comfort him, Liang Yi, desperate to protect her after losing Song Jin, gently rendered her unconscious and entrusted her to Qin Xuan, explaining his desire to keep her out of danger. When Qiu Yan awoke and learned of Liang Yi’s decision to send her away, she vehemently refused to leave with Qin Xuan, insisting on returning to Liang Yi.
She confessed her profound love for him, declaring that she could not live without him, explaining that while she once thought nothing was more important than freedom and her future, hearing of his peril while she was at the Northern Liang border had filled her with an unprecedented fear, making her realize her mistake.
