The Long Ballad Episode 2 Recap
> The Long Ballad Recap
When Li Changge returned home, Li Jiancheng learned that she had disguised herself as a man and participated in the match. He praised her greatly and asked her to deliver the prized blade to his chambers. Li Changge, evasive, said she had already given it to Prince Qin. Li Jiancheng, who had always disliked Prince Qin, flew into a rage upon hearing this and forbade her from ever mentioning the prince again.
Just then, Wei Zheng arrived to see Li Jiancheng. He spoke a few words in defense of Li Changge before following him to the study to discuss state matters. Li Changge had always been willful. The Crown Princess had earnestly warned her the previous day, but she hadn’t taken it to heart. After learning that Li Changge had caused a stir at the cuju field, the Crown Princess, for the first time in her life, slapped her.
She made Li Changge swear before a statue of Guanyin to live a life free of hatred. Li Changge had never hated anyone before and made the vow. However, she added that if anyone harmed her mother, she would hate them completely. Hearing this, the Crown Princess was slightly reassured. She instructed Li Changge to pack her things and prepared to send her to Biyong Hall to reflect for ten days.
Asher Sun continued to monitor every move within the Eastern Palace. That night, Li Chunfeng observed an unusual celestial phenomenon, indicating a great upheaval. Worried, he decided to enter the palace to report to the emperor at once. The next day, the Crown Princess personally accompanied Li Changge to Biyong Hall. She had stayed up all night making pastries for her.
Unaware that this would be their final farewell, Li Changge, still resentful, threw the pastries and refused to call her "mother" again. Tears welled in the Crown Princess’s eyes as she watched Li Changge leave, her heart filled with sorrow but no regrets. This was the only way for Li Changge to survive. On the way, Li Changge realized the coachman wasn’t heading toward Biyong Hall.
Sensing something wrong, she recalled the Crown Princess’s strange behavior and escaped the carriage to return to the Eastern Palace. But she was too late—blood filled the Eastern Palace. Li Changge saw Prince Qin emerging from the Crown Princess’s room with bloodstained hands. Stunned, she stared blankly at her second uncle. Wei Zheng had planned to submit a memorial to the Crown Prince.
He wrote a letter to send to the Eastern Palace, but Fang Xuanling appeared at his residence and stopped him. The gates of Xuanwu were now closed, the Eastern Palace had been slaughtered, and Fang Xuanling had come for two reasons: to preserve Wei Zheng’s reputation for loyalty and to protect his life. Neither of them could step outside the residence that day. Asher Sun learned of the Xuanwu Gate coup.
The order to close the gates had come from the Crown Prince’s subordinate Chang He. He had assumed the Crown Prince controlled the palace gates, but the crossbow bolts outside the city were unique to Youzhou. Even the prince’s men were blocked from entering. Asher Sun chuckled coldly—this Prince Qin was more cunning than he had imagined. Chang He had already defected to Prince Qin.
Li Changge entered the Crown Princess’s room, but again, she was too late—the Crown Princess had stopped breathing. Crying, she wanted to know what had happened. San Niang, barely alive, crawled to her side. Hearing the commotion, Chang He arrived. He hadn’t expected Li Changge to still be alive and tried to kill her. San Niang used her life to block him. In agony, Li Changge saw the blade she had gifted to Prince Qin lying on the ground.
She finally realized that the Eastern Palace massacre had been orchestrated by Prince Qin. With San Niang’s help, she fled the mansion. Asher Sun spread news that “the Crown Prince and Prince Qi are dead, and all their men have been executed,” hoping to shake the Tang army’s morale. Meanwhile, Leyan learned of the Eastern Palace coup from Hao Dou. Deeply worried, she feared for Li Changge’s safety. The message spread by Asher Sun circulated among the troops, unsettling morale.
Prince Qin was troubled. Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui disagreed on how to proceed. After much deliberation, Prince Qin decided to hold his position and take no action. Li Changge, now in hiding, changed her clothes and unknowingly saved a young beggar. From him, she learned that her mother’s body was at Rong'en Temple. She used a ruse to get past the guards and finally saw her mother’s corpse. Overcome with grief, Li Changge wept bitterly.
She knew the Crown Princess had foreseen this end. Though she had once made Li Changge promise never to harbor hatred, with her mother and father dead, the Eastern Palace destroyed, and the court indifferent, how could she feel no hate? That day, she vowed: she would never rest until she personally avenged their deaths.
