The Prisoner of Beauty Episode 22 Recap, Plot

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Xiao Qiao finally forced Wei Shao to speak his mind. The hairpin was specially crafted with great care for Xiao Qiao. Delighted, she wore it on her head upon returning home. Wei Shao was very happy when he saw it. The two of them talked about Gao Heng. Xiao Qiao showed her admiration for him, which made Wei Shao jealous. He deliberately said that his talent was better than Gao Heng’s.

In fact, he had invited Gao Heng to write promotional poems in order to ease Xiao Qiao’s worries. Xiao Qiao saw through Wei Shao’s jealousy and was even more pleased. Wei Shao was in a bad mood because of the matter with Gao Heng. At that moment, Gao Heng came to request an audience again and brought a poem, hoping Xiao Qiao would play it.

Wei Shao was even more displeased, but since Gao Heng was a rare talent, he specially arranged for someone to send him to the Wei state border under the pretense of appreciating cliff carvings. Coincidentally, Wei Yan saw this. Wei Yan didn’t understand, but he knew that road construction was underway there and that it might be difficult to return within a month. Gongsun Yang, however, was happy, as it happened to solve Wei Shao’s dilemma.

Su Ehuang was gravely ill, but couldn’t find a suitable doctor, especially since she had little money left. At this moment, Xue Tai arrived. Su Ehuang originally thought he had come to arrest her and was prepared to remain trapped in the Jade Pavilion forever. Unexpectedly, Xue Tai had been entrusted with a final mission.

When Chen Xiang was seriously ill, he foresaw that Chen Pang would come to power and that both Xue Tai and Su Ehuang would be endangered. He thus left a final order to Xue Tai, instructing him to protect Su Ehuang. Su Ehuang felt that she had indeed not married the wrong man. Xue Tai told her about the upcoming Luli Assembly in the Wei state. Su Ehuang immediately decided to go.

Xue Tai handed over the military tally of his fifty-thousand-strong force to Su Ehuang and swore eternal loyalty to her. On New Year’s Day, Wei state held a grand ceremony. Xiao Qiao and Wei Shao presided over the sacrificial rites. The people eagerly invited Xiao Qiao to dance with them. Wei Shao nodded in agreement, but during the dance, the men raised their wheat stalks and offered them to Xiao Qiao. She backed away and did not accept them.

Wei Shao stepped into the crowd and collected them one by one, then personally handed them to Xiao Qiao, who then accepted them. As they were leaving, Wei Shao saw the muddy ground and offered to carry Xiao Qiao on his back, declaring he was willing to serve only her. Madam Xu and Madam Wei also prepared festival gifts for Xiao Qiao, and Xiao Qiao thoughtfully prepared gifts for everyone in return, including one for Wei Yan.

As a return gift, Wei Yan sent her a scented brazier, which happened to be something Xiao Qiao liked. From their conversation, Wei Yan realized that Xiao Qiao hadn’t noticed he hadn’t attended the sacrificial ceremony, which left him somewhat disappointed. He wanted to talk to her a bit more, but Xiao Qiao pointed out the way out of the mansion and sent him off. Wei Yan had no choice but to leave.

Although Xiao Tao thought it was good that the Grand Madam had prepared gifts for Xiao Qiao this year, she felt that just spending money wasn't enough to win her heart. If it had been Madam Ding, she would have known what Xiao Qiao liked. Xiao Qiao didn’t mind; she knew it would take more time for everyone to truly accept each other. Madam Ding had watched her grow up and was naturally different.

Later, Xiao Qiao went to the lantern market and found Wei Shao. Although Wei Shao didn’t like such flashy things, he knew Xiao Qiao did. When she suggested releasing a wishing lantern, he didn’t believe in such things but didn’t want to spoil the fun, so he accompanied her in writing wishes and placing them inside the lantern.

As they watched the lantern drift away, Wei Shao asked Xiao Tan to escort Xiao Qiao home first, pretending he still had official duties to attend to. Xiao Qiao believed him. After Xiao Qiao left, Wei Shao immediately ordered his men to retrieve her wishing lantern. But with so many lanterns, he claimed he wanted to understand the people's wishes. In truth, others had long seen through his intent.

Eventually, he found Xiao Qiao’s lantern, only to discover that her wish included only blessings for Yanzhou and for the Qiao family. Wei Shao’s expression changed instantly. Wei Qu also noticed someone was missing. Wei Liang thought it was Qiao Gui, but Wei Qu helplessly revealed it was Wei Shao. After returning, Wei Shao was in a foul mood, speaking with veiled sarcasm and pretending to be angry. Xiao Qiao suggested accompanying him the next day while he was unwell.

But the next morning, Wei Shao woke up to find Xiao Qiao gone. Instead, he overheard a conversation between Xiao Tao and her mother. Chun Niang advised Xiao Tao not to be too forward with her feelings for Wei Liang, as in matters of love, the one who takes the initiative tends to suffer. These words only made Wei Shao angrier, and he stormed off. Xiao Qiao happened to return and saw that he was upset, but didn’t understand why.

Through Wei Liang, Xiao Tao found out that Wei Shao had gone to retrieve the wishing lantern the day before. Xiao Qiao didn’t blame him for being upset and admitted that she had handled things poorly. She prepared a sumptuous dinner to apologize, but Wei Shao didn’t return. Helpless, Xiao Qiao drank a bottle of wine. When Wei Shao came back, he found Xiao Qiao already drunk.

He scolded the maidservants for not taking good care of her and personally looked after her. Drunk, Xiao Qiao tearfully begged for Wei Shao’s forgiveness and honestly shared her feelings. What she had written wasn't a wish, but a regret—Wei Shao was so close, within her reach, yet her family was far away in a distant land. All she could do was offer distant blessings. That was why she had only written about her family and not mentioned Wei Shao. Wei Shao helped Xiao Qiao lie down, gazed intently at her face, and couldn’t help but lean in to kiss her.

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