The Longest Day in Chang'an Episode 19 Recap
> The Longest Day in Chang'an Recap
As sunset approached, the lights on the Peacekeeper Corps' grand watchtower dimmed, signaling Chang'an's loss of surveillance. Yet, Xishi Street remained brightly lit and bustling, with colorful lanterns competing for attention and people lingering in enjoyment. Inside the Right Cavalry's prison, Cui Qi and his Royal Escort surrounded Zhang Xiaojing, Tan Qi, and Yao Runeng.
Cui Qi called for the Right Cavalry to assist in the arrest, but Zhao Canjun, wary of being implicated in a prisoner escape, preemptively accused Cui Qi's Royal Escort of unlawfully entering the Right Cavalry's premises with ill intentions, ordering them to surrender their weapons. Realizing his situation was dire and he had no hope returning to the Peacekeeper Corps, Cui Qi reluctantly ordered his men to disarm.
Meanwhile, Zhang Xiaojing held Zhao Canjun hostage with a knife at his spine, threatening him with permanent paralysis. Zhao Canjun, intimidated, agreed to Zhang Xiaojing's plan, fabricating a story about transferring Zhang Xiaojing to Counselor Lin Jiulang's manor for interrogation as a pretext to leave the prison. As Zhang Xiaojing, still holding Zhao Canjun, passed Cui Qi, he quietly advised Cui Qi that he could still be of use to the Peacekeeper Corps if he returned.
Misinterpreting this as a sign of collusion, Zhao Canjun seized an opportunity and shouted for the Right Cavalry to kill Zhang Xiaojing. Zhang Xiaojing swiftly threw a handful of lime scraped from the wall, creating chaos, and pulled Tan Qi, urging her to run while leaving Yao Runeng to cover their escape. Yao Runeng found himself surrounded by Right Cavalry guards, lamenting his fate.
Eventually, he managed to evade his pursuers and rejoined Zhang Xiaojing and Tan Qi, expressing his admiration for Zhang Xiaojing's quick thinking in a crisis. When Tan Qi asked about the powder he used, Zhang Xiaojing replied he scraped it from the wall, adding that any useful trick was worth using. He then mentioned that someone should be waiting for them at the exit.
Yao Runeng, surprised, thanked Zhang Xiaojing for his trust, stating that as a descendant of the Yao family, he was committed. Meanwhile, Li Bi, desperate for assistance, rode towards Guo Lishi. He traversed the crowded streets filled with lantern-gazers but, weakened by exhaustion, collapsed. Zhang Xiaojing, Yao Runeng, and Tan Qi fled the Right Cavalry office, pursued relentlessly by guards. Their escape was short-lived as they ran into General Gan Shoucheng, who was returning from patrol with his Leopard Cavalry.
They were promptly re-arrested and brought back to the office for questioning. General Gan Shoucheng pressed Tan Qi for her identity. Zhang Xiaojing stepped forward to defend her, only to be subjected to a brutal beating by Zhao Canjun. Gan Shoucheng then ordered Tan Qi to dance on a bed of hot coals, threatening to brand Zhang Xiaojing with a red-hot iron if she refused.
Zhang Xiaojing tried to reassure her, claiming that after spending half a year in a water cell, the heat would be a welcome warmth. A scholar, sent by Li Bi, delivered a urgent letter to Guo Lishi, having risked his life to do so. The scholar explained that Li Bi was in trouble, otherwise, he would have come himself.
He reported that Gan Shoucheng had arrested three people: Yao Runeng, Tan Qi (described as the female servant always with Chief Li), and Zhang Xiaojing. Guo Lishi, correcting his subordinate for speaking disrespectfully of Zhang Xiaojing, expressed a desire to drink with Zhang Xiaojing if he were not a death row convict.
Despite Gao Quan's strong advice against interfering with the Right Cavalry's jurisdiction, fearing the Emperor's suspicion and the risk to his own future, Guo Lishi declared his intention to go to the Right Cavalry office. He cited a line from Li Bi's letter: "if everything was easy, it wouldn't be called a choice." Without hesitation, Tan Qi stepped onto the burning coals and began to dance, enduring excruciating pain. Gan Shoucheng commended her straightforwardness.
While Tan Qi danced, Zhao Canjun pressed Yao Runeng to reveal the mastermind behind their actions, threatening to chop off his hands, which Yao Runeng protested, citing his family's legacy. Tan Qi, seeing this, bravely interrupted, taking full responsibility. She confessed to being Li Bi's former servant, claiming she had fallen in love with Zhang Xiaojing after witnessing his righteous and heroic efforts to save the people.
Out of this love, she admitted to stealing her servant contract from Li Bi and conspiring with Yao Runeng to rescue Zhang Xiaojing so they could run away together and live in anonymity. She then produced the fabricated servant contract as proof. Zhang Xiaojing, deeply moved by her sacrifice and confession, looked at her with profound respect. That night, Guo Lishi arrived at the Right Cavalry office with the Imperial Guard, demanding to see Gan Shoucheng.
A guard initially rebuked Gao Quan for addressing Guo Lishi directly, but Gao Quan apologized. Gan Shoucheng, appearing nervous, presented a document from Lin Jiulang authorizing the arrests. Guo Lishi immediately highlighted the vague wording, "involved persons," pointing out that Zhang Xiaojing's name was deliberately omitted. He warned Gan Shoucheng that if the Emperor sought to assign blame later, Lin Jiulang could easily deny responsibility, leaving Gan Shoucheng to face the consequences alone.
Gan Shoucheng, concerned by the political trap, asked for advice, mentioning Zhang Xiaojing had just set their office on fire. Guo Lishi offered to take custody of Zhang Xiaojing, suggesting Gan Shoucheng could claim he was forcibly taken for interrogation, thus shifting blame to Guo Lishi if Lin Jiulang inquired. Gan Shoucheng requested a formal transfer letter, signed by Guo Lishi, for his justification.
He also stipulated that Zhang Xiaojing must never be seen in the Peacekeeper Corps again, or he would be deemed an absconder. Guo Lishi agreed to all terms. Gan Shoucheng then ordered the transfer of Zhang Xiaojing and the others to Guo Lishi, and instructed his men to guard the Peacekeeper Corps entrance to prevent Zhang Xiaojing from returning.
Ji Wen reported Guo Lishi's actions to Lin Jiulang, who concluded that Guo Lishi had offended the Emperor and violated palace rules, ensuring the Emperor would lose trust in him and removing an adversary. However, Lin Jiulang remained perplexed by Guo Lishi's willingness to take such a significant risk to save a death row convict. Guo Lishi's attendants took Zhang Xiaojing, Tan Qi, and Yao Runeng to a safe spot near Guangde Street.
Observing the joyous, lantern-lit streets, Yao Runeng felt uneasy, noting how quickly people had forgotten the earlier chaos and were oblivious to the continued danger, despite the selfless efforts of people like Zhang Xiaojing. Zhang Xiaojing, noticing Tan Qi's discomfort, affectionately inquired about her burnt feet. Tan Qi downplayed her injuries, claiming she had trained to dance on hot plates as a child. Zhang Xiaojing then playfully suggested they really should run away and live in incognito.
Tan Qi, flustered, dismissed it as a mere tactic to escape, but Zhang Xiaojing, seeing the genuine emotion in her eyes, teased her, saying adults blend truth and lies, and that her feelings were real. Suddenly, Xu Bin, sent by Li Bi, appeared, relieved to see them. He led them through a secret passage, explaining that the Peacekeeper Corps and Jinglong Temple shared a wall, connected by this passage for emergency retreats.
Zhang Xiaojing commented that retreat showed wisdom, but not retreating in danger showed righteousness, subtly praising Yao Runeng for his actions earlier. They arrived at Jinglong Temple's backyard, where Li Bi awaited. Zhang Xiaojing immediately noticed Li Bi's pale complexion. Li Bi, attempting to conceal his poisoning, merely stated he had encountered robbers on his way to meet Director He, resulting in a wounded horse. He then sent Tan Qi away.
Zhang Xiaojing, unconvinced, pressed him about the location of the "robbery." Li Bi dismissed it as unimportant, explaining that Guo Lishi had risked his position to save Zhang Xiaojing, and as Zhang Xiaojing could not return to the Peacekeeper Corps, they had to meet here. Li Bi then asked if Zhang Xiaojing still intended to protect Chang'an's people. Zhang Xiaojing affirmed his commitment, stating that while he might resent the government, his dedication to the people remained unwavering.
Li Bi expressed frustration at the hour lost due to the Right Cavalry, revealing that three hundred barrels of Fuhuolei were still hidden in the city. Zhang Xiaojing, shocked by the sheer quantity, recognized the immense challenge of finding them in the crowded city.
He meticulously analyzed the Wolven Squad's movements and choices of hiding spots, concluding that the true mastermind was not the Wolven Squad, but a powerful, wealthy, and well-connected individual intimately familiar with Chang'an, who had been planning this for at least half a year. He deduced that the Wolven Squad were mere pawns. Zhang Xiaojing directly asked Li Bi if he knew the mastermind's identity, sensing he was hiding something.
Li Bi denied it, urging Zhang Xiaojing to focus on locating and destroying the Fuhuolei. Zhang Xiaojing suggested interrogating Cao Poyan for clues. Li Bi, citing Cao Poyan's critical condition and the inconvenience of Zhang Xiaojing going to the Peacekeeper Corps, offered to question him instead. This only deepened Zhang Xiaojing's suspicion, who accused Li Bi of trying to satisfy both sides and warned him that such attempts often lead to failure.
At the Peacekeeper Corps' jail, the medical officer informed Li Bi that Cao Poyan's injuries were too severe for recovery, requiring a miracle. Li Bi dismissed the medical officer and approached Cao Poyan. He confronted the dying Cao Poyan, revealing that all the Wolven Squad members in the city, including Ma Ge Er, had died gruesome deaths, and that their Flaming Demon would not come. He challenged Cao Poyan to speak his truth, offering him a potent pill.
Li Bi explained the pill contained arsenic and loess, which would cause excitement but was typically used as rat poison. He stated that taking it would provide the strength to speak before a quick death, allowing Cao Poyan to tell his story. Otherwise, he would die in silence like his brothers, his past glories forgotten. Cao Poyan, weighing his options, finally requested the pill and took it.
In another cell, Wang Yunxiu, fearful of contagion, demanded Yuan Zai move her away from the "diseased patient." Yuan Zai, trying to reassure her, promised to protect her. Wang Yunxiu, growing increasingly agitated, even suggested Yuan Zai kill the patient and offered to get him a position. Cheng Can, a fellow prisoner, remarked that a "death row convict" had been there earlier, foolishly investigating a case for Chang'an, yet still facing execution.
This comment caught the attention of the "diseased patient" in a sack, who revealed herself to be Wen Ran. Wen Ran then informed Wang Yunxiu that "Zhang Xiaojing is not in the Peacekeeper Corps." Confused, Wang Yunxiu asked who she was. Wen Ran then called for guards, claiming Wang Yunxiu was sick. When the guards entered, Wen Ran used a "Holy Rue Incense" to induce hallucinations and incapacitate Wang Yunxiu and Yuan Zai. She then administered an antidote to Cheng Can and demanded to know Zhang Xiaojing's whereabouts. Cheng Can informed her that Zhang Xiaojing had already escaped.
