The Princess Wei Young Episode 35 Recap
> The Princess Wei Young Recap
Upon being severely chastised by the Emperor and threatened with punishment, Li Weiyang vehemently asserted her innocence in the Crown Princess's assassination. She claimed she was framed and had risked her life to escape prison rather than passively accept such an injustice. When the Emperor pointed out the Crown Princess and many witnesses had identified her as the killer, Li Weiyang countered by asking if he had heard of the art of facial disguise.
She explained that someone must have impersonated her to commit the murder and frame her. To prove her alibi, she presented evidence: a handprint copied from a newly plastered inn wall where she accidentally left a mark while rushing to the Earth God Shrine, along with the inn owner's testimony detailing her entry time at the inn. She argued that the timeline made it impossible for her to have committed the murder.
Though impressed by her resourcefulness, the Emperor stated that even if she were cleared of the murder, escaping prison was still a capital crime. Attempting to feign ignorance about the law and her background, Li Weiyang claimed to have grown up in a village. However, the Emperor, already suspicious, ordered her left wrist to be checked.
Upon seeing a distinctive birthmark, he confronted her, revealing that Li Changru, having obtained a portrait of the Northern Liang Princess, Xin'er, from Li Minfeng, had sent it to Zhaoyi, which also showed the identical mark. Cornered, Li Weiyang admitted she was indeed Xin'er, the princess of Northern Liang and daughter of the Duke of Hexi. She explained that she hadn't hidden her identity willingly but had been thwarted from revealing the truth.
She then accused General Chiyun Nan of framing her father as a rebel to seize the iron mine in Liang and eliminating her entire family. The Emperor expressed disbelief, stating Chiyun Nan had already handed over the mine. Li Weiyang insisted Chiyun Nan's actions were a temporary strategy, and offered proof: a memorial written by the deceased Governor of Zhangye, Ma Jun, detailing Chiyun Nan's crimes and deception, which was currently in Tuoba Jun's possession.
Meanwhile, Tuoba Jun had been grieving for his mother, the Crown Princess, even kneeling for two days without food. Upon hearing news that the Celestial Prison had caught fire, where Li Weiyang was held, he became anxious, overriding his attendant's attempt to make him eat. Soon after, he received word at the Crown Prince's Manor that Li Weiyang herself had set the fire to escape and seek an audience with the Emperor to clear her name.
Li Minde urged Tuoba Jun to go to the palace to help Li Weiyang, knowing she was in great danger. Tuoba Jun, still struggling with his mother's death but harboring doubts about Li Weiyang's guilt, presented Ma Jun's memorial to the Emperor. The Emperor was enraged by Chiyun Nan's treachery but, to protect his own reputation from appearing easily manipulated, decided against publicly announcing Chiyun Nan's crimes.
Instead, he promised Li Weiyang to abolish the Liang slave system, granting Liang people equal status as Great Wei citizens, urging her to prioritize her people's happiness over personal revenge. He then opted to confer upon Chiyun Nan the title of Lord Protector, but subtly stripped him of his military power by ordering him to hand over the Tiger Seal to the Minister of War.
The Emperor then sent Li Weiyang back to prison, promising to release her once the true killer of the Crown Princess was found. He sternly warned her not to reveal any of their conversation to Tuoba Jun, expressing his desire for Tuoba Jun to hate her and forget her, as he would not allow a vanquished princess to marry the Prince of Gaoyang. He further threatened her family's lives if she disobeyed.
Li Changru, learning from Minde that there might be a "turn of events" for Li Weiyang, resolved to eliminate any chance of her rival's survival, deciding to "eliminate the weed by its roots." At the same time, Chiyun Nan, understanding his new title as a demotion, prepared to depart for Youzhou, leaving his trusted subordinate Hongluo to protect his family.
In the Celestial Prison, Li Weiyang, worried about Jun Tao and Baizhi, particularly Jun Tao's reckless nature, asked Minde to watch over Jun Tao carefully to prevent her from doing anything foolish. However, upon returning to the Prime Minister Manor, Minde discovered Jun Tao was missing. Jun Tao, having heard rumors about Chiyun Nan's promotion, had left abruptly.
Li Changru, upon hearing Jun Tao was missing and connecting it to the news about Chiyun Nan, shrewdly anticipated Jun Tao's likely actions, believing it would further endanger Li Weiyang. As Chiyun Nan journeyed to his new post, the boat he was on was first attacked by masked assassins sent by the Emperor. Though wounded, Chiyun Nan escaped to the river, where he was confronted by Jun Tao, disguised as a boatman.
She accused him of killing the Duke of Hexi and her own father, and for Li Weiyang's current imprisonment. Declaring her intention to avenge Northern Liang, she attacked him. Their struggle ended with both of them falling into the water. Later, a guard reported to the Emperor that Jun Tao, Princess Anping's bodyguard, had killed Chiyun Nan. The Head Eunuch later confirmed to Minde that Jun Tao also died.
Enraged, the Emperor, citing Li Weiyang's changing identity and revenge-seeking behavior, and accusing her of allowing Jun Tao to assassinate the Lord Protector Chiyun Nan, declared that Li Weiyang would be beheaded in three days. Minde, distraught by the decree, rushed to Li Weiyang's cell, where she calmly accepted her fate, finding solace in Chiyun Nan's death and her revenge fulfilled, though saddened by Tuoba Jun's continued disbelief.
Afterward, Minde frantically rushed to Tuoba Jun, who was still grappling with his mother's death but now doubted Li Weiyang's guilt. Minde informed Tuoba Jun that Li Weiyang would be executed in three days and pleaded with him to intervene.
Though Li Minde reminded him that Li Weiyang loved him wholeheartedly and implored him to ask his heart if she truly was the murderer, Tuoba Jun's heart remained conflicted and empty, torn between his deceased mother and the woman he loved. Ultimately, he stormed into the palace, begging his Imperial Grandfather for mercy.
The Emperor was furious, chastising Tuoba Jun for daring to lecture him and reminding him that as the supreme ruler, his words were law, and he could depose his grandson just as he had deposed his royal father. He then issued a decree that anyone who dared to plead for Li Weiyang would also be executed. The Emperor also revealed that Li Prime Minister was kneeling outside, atoning for his grave mistake in failing to verify Li Weiyang's identity.
Furthermore, the Head Eunuch later informed Minde that his family was spared from punishment due to the Emperor's prior promise made during the hunting grounds incident. Back at the Prime Minister's Manor, other family members reacted to Li Weiyang's true identity and impending execution. While Seventh Concubine expressed continued acceptance of Weiyang as her daughter, Changxi gloated, viewing Weiyang's downfall as revenge for her own past sufferings and refusing to acknowledge her as a sister.
In her cell, Li Weiyang found solace that her great enemy Chiyun Nan was dead and her revenge fulfilled, allowing her to face death without regret. Her only sorrow was Tuoba Jun's continued disbelief in her innocence. She longed for one last meeting to clear his misunderstanding and tell him she was sorry for the pain she had brought into his life. Unbeknownst to her, Tuoba Jun stood silently outside her cell, watching her, before turning and walking away without a word.
