The Love by Hypnotic Episode 5 Recap
> The Love by Hypnotic Recap
The morning after their wedding, Song Jinyu brought Li Qian nourishing medicine, emphasizing its importance after marriage. However, Li Qian refused the gift, tersely stating that he had not slept with her. A similar exchange occurred with Li Mingyue and her attendant, Tanli. Li Mingyue complained of body aches and exhaustion, revealing she had spent the night on a chair, finding it surprisingly hard and slippery.
Tanli, shocked, openly criticized Li Qian for making the princess sleep on a chair on their wedding night. That night, Li Qian was tormented by a nightmare, seeing a young boy, who appeared to be himself, desperately trying to escape a blazing fire while being held back. He awoke with a jolt, disoriented to find himself in Li Mingyue’s bed, his hand firmly clutching hers.
He quickly rose and stumbled out of the room, bumping into the door frame on his way. Li Mingyue, roused by the sound, caught a glimpse of a fleeing shadow and cried out, believing there was a thief. Servants searched the manor but found no intruder. Li Qian then emerged, feigning concern and claiming he had rushed out upon hearing her cries, despite not even wearing his outer robe. Li Mingyue, suspicious, questioned his disheveled appearance.
After the confusion settled, Li Mingyue, convinced it wasn't a mere nightmare, searched her room and discovered a man's belt. She vowed that if the “thief” dared to return, she would personally beat him up. Confused by his peculiar sleepwalking habit, which inexplicably led him to his "enemy’s bed," Li Qian sought answers.
His friend Song Jinyu found him looking at a book on intimate practices and began offering questionable advice on the "art of war" in romance, such as "playing hard to get." Their discussion was interrupted by the arrival of Princess Kangle and Sikong Zhen. Kangle teased a flustered Song Jinyu about his theories before taking Sikong Zhen with her to view a scroll.
After Song Jinyu's awkward departure, Li Qian later confessed his strange behaviors and uncontrollable sleepwalking to Sikong Zhen, who suggested he embrace it as an opportunity to "explore the unknown realm of life," hinting at a deeper, subconscious connection. That same night, Li Qian experienced another vivid dream, seeing himself surrounded by many children with Li Mingyue, eating and drinking together in a tent.
He awoke once more in Li Mingyue's bed, only to be promptly struck on the shoulder with a jade pillow by an infuriated Li Mingyue. Injured, Li Qian hastily fled her room. Determined to prevent any further nocturnal intrusions, Li Mingyue declared her intent to punish Li Qian for destroying their contract every night. She instructed Tanli to prepare a bag of soybeans, a large net, a rope, and numerous bells, intending to set elaborate traps in her room.
Meanwhile, Li Qian, equally intent on stopping his involuntary sleepwalking, drank two bowls of soothing soup and ordered his attendant, Queyan, to tie him up and nail his room door shut from the outside. Despite their preparations, the manor's servants began placing bets on whether Li Qian would manage to enter Li Mingyue's room, with most betting against him, though Fifth Orange and his subordinates remained confident in the prince.
The next morning, Li Qian once again found himself in Li Mingyue's bed. He noted with frustration that the six barriers he had put in place had utterly failed to stop him, musing that his martial skill had become a burden. As he lay there, Li Mingyue turned over and, to his surprise, embraced him in her sleep. Li Mingyue’s subsequent angry shout confirmed the victory of Fifth Orange and his subordinates in their wager.
As a consequence of the shoulder injury she inflicted, Li Mingyue was now forced to copy scriptures for Li Qian, grumbling that he was deliberately pretending to be sick to avoid his duties. Li Qian’s friends, Song Jinyu and Sikong Zhen, soon came to tease him. Song Jinyu spread a rumor that Li Qian had injured his arm during marital duties, calling it a "millennium anecdote."
Li Mingyue vehemently denied this, clarifying that she was the one who hit him and, to everyone's astonishment, revealed that she and Li Qian had not yet slept together. Sikong Zhen then offered his interpretation: Li Qian's repeated actions were due to his body being "often more honest than the mouth," suggesting a deeper emotional attachment.
He asserted that Li Mingyue was the key to resolving Li Qian's "distress from the amnesia," which was the underlying reason for his subconscious appearances by her side. Later, Qiao Huixin arrived at the manor and found Li Mingyue laboriously copying Buddhist scriptures. She immediately offered to help, stating she could mimic his handwriting very well, an offer Li Mingyue gladly accepted, calling her a savior.
Qiao Huixin then presented Li Mingyue with exquisite new clothes, suggesting they would make her so pretty and moving that the prince would stare at her. Li Mingyue dismissed this, stating she dressed to make herself happy, not for any man. She countered that men are like duckweed, not women, and advised Qiao Huixin, who possessed both a good family background and good looks, not to attach herself to men, but rather make them rely on women instead.
Li Mingyue expressed deep gratitude to Qiao Huixin, declaring that without her assistance, Li Qian would surely have punished her. She proposed they call each other sisters and warmly invited her to come often, citing her own boredom within the manor walls. After Qiao Huixin departed, Tanli warned Li Mingyue that Qiao Huixin’s true intention was not to help but to add trouble to her future, as she would frequently visit to pursue Li Qian.
However, Li Mingyue surprisingly welcomed the idea, stating she wanted her to dress up nicely to distract Li Qian's attention. Tanli was taken aback, but Li Mingyue simply joked about how a jealous wife might act, feigning horror at the thought of another woman coveting her husband.
