The Romance of Hua Rong Episode 3 Recap
> The Romance of Hua Rong Recap
Hua Rong, still on the island, devised a plan to stay near Qin Shang Cheng. She intended to repay him for saving her life and declared herself his personal maid, hoping this would grant her access to his room. Upon discovering Qin Shang Cheng's illiteracy and his "worm-like handwriting," she saw an opportunity. She offered to teach him, suggesting that a heroic figure like him should not be illiterate.
Qin Shang Cheng initially hesitated to accept a woman as his teacher. Hua Rong confidently boasted about her extensive knowledge and photographic memory, claiming she could easily be a Number One Scholar if she were a man. To prove her abilities, she challenged him to pick any book from behind him, stating she had memorized them at age 10.
Qin Shang Cheng chose "The Art of War by Mr. Zhu Ge," and Hua Rong accurately recited a section about "The merit and demerit art." Impressed, Qin Shang Cheng agreed to her teaching him starting the next day. Hua Rong left his room, thrilled her plan was working. Later, Qin Shang Cheng struggled with his writing practice. Qian Dayou, his subordinate, commiserated, saying holding a pen was harder than a sword.
Qin Shang Cheng wondered how long he'd have to practice, to which Qian Dayou joked it would be until his writing was no longer "like worms." Qin Shang Cheng warned Qian Dayou that if his writing didn't improve, he would seize one of Qian Dayou's treasures, prompting Qian Dayou to promise to try harder. Meanwhile, Qin Shang Cheng secretly instructed his men to closely monitor Chen Biao's activities.
Having been recently punished, Chen Biao was incited by Hu Er, who reminded him of how Qin Shang Cheng had humiliated him over a woman, despite Chen Biao once saving Qin Shang Cheng's life. Hu Er stirred Chen Biao's resentment by criticizing Qin Shang Cheng's strict rules, like forbidding killing and stealing, which left the pirates feeling stifled. Hu Er claimed everyone wished Chen Biao would replace Qin Shang Cheng and restore their glorious days, pledging his loyalty.
Chen Biao pondered the suggestion. The next day, Hua Rong arrived at Qin Shang Cheng's room for their lesson. She noticed Qian Dayou discussing an important nautical chart with Qin Shang Cheng, who quickly concealed it upon her entry. Hua Rong began her lesson, instructing Qin Shang Cheng on proper penmanship. She taught him the characters for "Zhi, yong, shuang, quan" (Wisdom pairs with brave).
When Qin Shang Cheng asked her to write her name, Hua Rong cleverly wrote homonyms instead, explaining the characters' meanings in terms of "flowers and trees" and "sharing honor and disgrace," as her father taught her. She then "accidentally" spilled tea on Qin Shang Cheng's clothes, hoping he would change and she could search for the map, but he remained unfazed, simply stating the clothes would dry quickly.
That evening, Hua Rong disguised herself as a subordinate and entered Qin Shang Cheng's bathing chamber with hot water. She attempted to find the nautical chart while he bathed but accidentally dropped a dagger, startling him. Qin Shang Cheng quickly disarmed her and pulled her into the water, discovering it was Hua Rong. She stammered that she only wanted to wash his clothes again to atone for causing his previous allergic reaction.
Qin Shang Cheng, seeing through her excuse, ordered her out. After she left, he secretly checked a hidden compartment under his bed, confirming the nautical chart was still there. Later, Yue Feng informed Hua Rong that ship travel was now heavily restricted, so their only option was to build their own boat, which he could do as he had secretly saved wood. Hua Rong asked about the nautical chart, and Yue Feng advised caution.
Hua Rong confidently assured him she could find it easily now that she was Qin Shang Cheng's teacher and had free access to his room. Unbeknownst to them, Chen Biao had been observing their closeness. He confronted Yue Feng, asking about his relationship with Hua Rong, which Yue Feng denied, stating they only washed clothes together. When Yue Feng asserted that Chen Biao could not insult his "sister," Chen Biao was enraged and ordered his men to beat Yue Feng.
Hua Rong rushed to Yue Feng's side, distressed by his injuries. He urged her to tolerate the situation for their escape, refusing to name his attacker. However, Hua Rong deduced it was Chen Biao, as he was the only one on the island she wouldn't dare provoke. Refusing to tolerate such injustice, Hua Rong learned that Chen Biao loved crabs.
She went to the kitchen and instructed the cook to deliver a special tea, which she provided, along with the crabs to Chen Biao, claiming it was a reward from Qin Shang Cheng. That night, during a meeting in the assembly hall, Chen Biao proposed they rob a state ship carrying military supplies, seeing it as a lucrative target. Qin Shang Cheng immediately refused, reminding them of his rule against attacking military supply ships.
Their argument was abruptly interrupted by a loud sound, and Chen Biao, suffering from severe diarrhea, rushed out of the hall in embarrassment. The next morning, while Hua Rong was teaching Qin Shang Cheng, Chen Biao arrived with his men and the cook, accusing Hua Rong of poisoning him. The cook testified that Hua Rong had given him the tea for Chen Biao, claiming it was from the Master.
Hua Rong boldly defended herself, pointing out that Qin Shang Cheng had consumed the same tea last night without any ill effects, proving it wasn't poisoned. She suggested Chen Biao's public humiliation was due to eating something unclean or catching a cold. To further provoke him, Hua Rong sarcastically reassured him, saying she would surely not blather about his desire for the Master's position. Enraged, Chen Biao drew his sword and lunged at her.
Qin Shang Cheng intervened, stopping Chen Biao. Hua Rong then dramatically wailed, demanding Chen Biao apologize or for Qin Shang Cheng to handle the matter fairly. Qin Shang Cheng, playing along, ordered Chen Biao to be publicly whipped. Faced with this choice, Chen Biao begrudgingly apologized to Hua Rong. Hua Rong, satisfied, triumphantly thanked Qin Shang Cheng. Afterward, Qin Shang Cheng revealed to Hua Rong that he knew her actions were deliberate.
He reminded her that her admired hero, Yun He, had written about food incompatibilities, meaning Hua Rong must have known that eating crabs and then drinking tea would cause stomach issues. He also deduced her motive was revenge for Chen Biao beating Yue Feng. Hua Rong admitted she would always seek revenge for her "brother." Surprisingly, Qin Shang Cheng merely fined her three months' allowance, leaving Hua Rong astonished by his leniency, given his usual cold and unfeeling demeanor.
Meanwhile, Hu Er continued to instigate Chen Biao, who finally decided to move forward with his plans for rebellion. That night, a fire broke out in the kitchen. Qin Shang Cheng deliberately went to inspect the blaze, creating a diversion for Hua Rong. She seized the opportunity to sneak into his room, located the nautical chart, memorized its details, and then carefully replaced it.
What she didn't know was that Qin Shang Cheng had been observing her from behind the door, and the chart she copied was a fake, swapped by him beforehand. Elated, Hua Rong ran to the beach to find Yue Feng. Qin Shang Cheng and his men then surrounded them.
To utterly convince Hua Rong of her predicament, Qin Shang Cheng proposed a bet: if Hua Rong could navigate the boat out of the area using her memorized map, he would release both her and Yue Feng. However, if she failed, she would have to remain on the island and cease all escape attempts. Hua Rong confidently accepted the wager, shaking Qin Shang Cheng's hand to seal the oath.
Yue Feng expressed his concern, but Hua Rong assured him she would escape and return to rescue him. Hua Rong set sail, but the nautical chart she had memorized proved to be incorrect, and a dense fog quickly enveloped the sea. She was thrown from the boat into the water. When she regained consciousness, disoriented, she believed she had drifted to another island. She wandered around until she encountered two menacing wolves, forcing her to climb a tree for safety.
Qin Shang Cheng arrived just in time and gave her a knife. She used it to cut down a beehive, sending the bees swarming and scaring away the wolves. As she gloated, she slipped from the tree, but Qin Shang Cheng swiftly caught her. Hua Rong confronted him, asking if his persistent attempts to keep her on the island meant he had fallen for her.
She quickly dismissed the notion, declaring her admiration was reserved for peerless heroes like Yun He, not a pirate like him. Later, Hua Rong, having secretly eaten a grilled chicken Qin Shang Cheng had prepared, fell asleep contentedly. A venomous snake then approached her. Without hesitation, Qin Shang Cheng shielded her, taking the bite himself and becoming poisoned. Hua Rong awoke to find him injured and frantically called his name.
