The Autumn Ballad Episode 32 Recap
> The Autumn Ballad Recap
Following the discovery of Yao Gai and Shi Xiaoxiao's bodies, buried beside Song Jin's tomb, investigations revealed they were hunted by trained, elusive, and cruel assassins. This suggested a conspiracy far deeper than mere political rivalry. Liang Yi and his concubine, Su Yiwan, who had previously gone on the run, were brought to Yuan Lang at the Main Administrative Office, having willingly decided to surrender.
They explained that the true conflict was not between two officials but a larger struggle between Dashuo and Northern Liang. They asserted that Northern Liang spies sought to eliminate Liang Yi to prevent him from exposing the Noble Consort's true bloodline. Liang Yi explained that the mastermind behind the plot had approached Yuan Lang even before Mr. Zhan contacted him, indicating Mr. Zhan's dying words were merely a lure.
He further clarified that Northern Liang's primary motive to kill him was to obstruct his proposed military reform for the Northern Army of Dashuo, which aimed to reduce heavy military spending and enhance Dashuo's military power in preparation for an inevitable war with Northern Liang. Yuan Lang, initially skeptical and accusing Liang Yi of collusion, was urged by Liang Yi to understand the gravity of the situation, emphasizing the need to prioritize national interest.
Despite their long-standing animosity, which included Liang Yi framing the Qiu family and causing Song Jin's death, Qiu Yan and Liang Yi gambled on Yuan Lang's patriotism. They surrendered themselves, believing that despite his thirst for power, Yuan Lang was a person deeply devoted to his country. Yuan Lang, acknowledging their trust, agreed to cooperate. The immediate priorities were to raid the Northern Liang merchants' storage and, crucially, to identify and eliminate the snitch within the Main Administrative Office.
Liang Yi recalled a previous incident where Northern Liang assassins ambushed him after Shi Xiaoxiao lured him, confirming his suspicion that there was an enemy within Yuan Lang's ranks. Qiu Yan suggested that their overt surrender would alert this snitch, causing them to make a move to relay information, thus exposing themselves. With Liang Yi now officially assisting as a witness, the stage was set.
During a headcount, the mute old man Wang, who managed the keys to torture devices, was found missing. A search of his residence uncovered writing in Northern Liang's tongue, leading to his capture. However, Qiu Yan observed that Wang suffered from severe myopia, needing to hold objects close to discern them, making it impossible for him to have written such small characters. She deduced that he was framed.
Realizing the spy's cunning, Qiu Yan proposed a method to unmask the real culprit. Yuan Lang would announce a plan to send a secret agent to Northern Liang, requiring everyone to copy a sample of Northern Liang's tongue handwriting under the guise of identifying the best imitator. When everyone was copying, Liang Yi tested them by saying "stop" in Northern Liang's tongue. Jiang Yun, Yuan Lang's subordinate, stopped instantly, revealing his understanding of the language.
Liang Yi further explained his true trap: he had deliberately altered a stroke in one character of the copied text, changing a "Horizontal" to a "Throw." An imitator would copy this exactly, but a true Northern Liang spy, focused on disguising their handwriting, would instinctively correct it to the original "Horizontal" stroke if they knew the language. Jiang Yun's handwriting revealed the "Horizontal" stroke, confirming his identity as the spy.
Jiang Yun was immediately apprehended and, under intense interrogation by Yuan Lang, confessed that the Northern Liang spy hideout was located west of the city. Meanwhile, Qiu Min arrived, having followed Qin Xuan from the Ministry of War out of concern for his safety, and insisted on staying despite Qin Xuan's protests. The group then formulated a plan to capture the Northern Liang assassins.
Knowing the assassins were well-trained but few in number, they decided on a strategy of wit over force, planning to use a colorless and odorless sleeping gas, previously from the Firewood Office but now stored in the Main Administrative Office's armory. To prevent the assassins from taking hostages in the densely populated area, they decided to lure the local residents away by announcing a city-wide distribution of free rice.
Liang Yi asked Qiu Yan to remain behind for her safety, but she was nonetheless present at the operation site where she later encountered Jiang Yun. The plan to evacuate the residents by distributing rice was successful. However, the attempt to capture the Northern Liang assassins went awry as the assassins had anticipated their move and laid a counter-ambush. Simultaneously, Jiang Yun managed to escape from his prison cell, killing anyone in his path.
Qiu Min, hidden, witnessed Qiu Yan confronting Jiang Yun. Though she initially considered helping her sister, memories of Qin Xuan's harsh words made her discard her knife and flee. Qiu Yan, in a desperate struggle, accidentally killed Jiang Yun. She immediately rushed out, worried about Qiu Min's safety. Qiu Min, feigning ignorance, learned of the ambush at the assassins' hideout and expressed concern for Qin Xuan.
Realizing their limited manpower, Qiu Yan sought assistance from Official Tong, who successfully helped subdue the remaining Northern Liangs. Yuan Lang explained Liang Yi's presence as a fugitive assisting in a grave matter, promising to later report to His Majesty and requesting Official Tong's temporary discretion. Back at the Main Administrative Office, Qiu Yan recounted Jiang Yun's counter-scheme to Liang Yi, who, relieved to find her unharmed, expressed his concern.
The captured Northern Liang shared crucial information: their grand plan involved revealing Noble Consort Guo's indenture contract after the Crown Prince ascended the throne. This revelation of the Crown Prince's Northern Liang bloodline would incite other feudal lords to rebel, plunging Dashuo into internal strife, at which point Northern Liang would invade from the south. Crucially, the indenture contract was still in the hands of a snitch within the Imperial Palace.
Given access to His Majesty's memorandums, the prime suspects were the Grand Preceptor, Imperial Commander Yan, and Eunuch Liu, who were always present during His Majesty's reviews. Yuan Lang devised a new plan: since the assassins' hideout had been dismantled, the palace snitch was likely unaware of the full extent of their exposure. Yuan Lang would draft three distinct memorandums, each proposing to send secret agents to Northern Liang with a unique list of candidate names.
These memorandums, with the cooperation of Noble Consort Guo and a bribed eunuch, would be strategically delivered to the three suspects at different times and locations. Eunuch Liu would sort the first memorandum in the Imperial Study, Imperial Commander Yan would review the second before it reached the Imperial Study, and the Grand Preceptor would read the third aloud in the temple.
The snitch would then unwittingly reveal their identity by sending a carrier pigeon with the specific list they had seen. That evening, Qiu Yan found Liang Yi deep in thought. She joined him, comforting him by saying that Song Jin and his parents would surely understand his difficult choices. In a moment of shared intimacy, they embraced and kissed.
This tender scene was witnessed by Qiu Min, who had previously misjudged Qiu Yan's feelings for Qin Xuan but now realized her own suspicions were misplaced. The next morning, a carrier pigeon arrived, confirming Imperial Commander Yan as the initial suspect. Qin Xuan volunteered to lure Imperial Commander Yan away from his guards, creating a fabricated story about a conflict between the Ministry of War and Imperial Guards.
Liang Yi insisted Qiu Yan accompany him, declaring she must remain within his sight after her recent brushes with danger. Qin Xuan successfully lured Imperial Commander Yan, who was then apprehended by Yuan Lang and Liang Yi. Imperial Commander Yan vehemently denied being the Northern Liang spy, pointing out his alibi of staying at the Imperial Guards Camp overnight without opportunity to send a pigeon and inviting them to verify it.
Liang Yi quickly realized that if Imperial Commander Yan was the real spy, he wouldn't have sent an incriminating message, as doing so would only narrow the list of suspects to himself. Imperial Commander Yan then mentioned that the Grand Preceptor and Eunuch Liu had accompanied His Majesty to the Chinese alchemy room that morning for a ritual and to consume a newly concocted pill.
A chilling realization struck Liang Yi: the snitch, knowing exposure was imminent, was likely attempting to carry out the Northern Liang's plan prematurely by harming His Majesty. The group immediately rushed to the palace.
