The Romance of Tiger and Rose Episode 2 Recap
> The Romance of Tiger and Rose Recap
Chen Qianqian awoke to find herself still surrounded by Zi Rui and her attendants, a realization that filled her with dismay. She believed she was trapped in a dream and even suspected Han Shuo of altering her script. Having attempted suicide return to reality, her failure now left her anxious about the impending production start and her unfinished screenplay.
She recalled that in her original story, Chen Chuchu was destined to overcome great hardships to ascend the throne, with auspicious signs and an open heavenly gate marking her coronation. Qianqian suddenly speculated that her only way back to her own world was to witness this event, which in turn meant she needed Han Shuo's assistance to help Chen Chuchu become the City Owner.
Immediately, Qianqian sought out Han Shuo, only to discover he had been imprisoned and was slated for execution that very day. In his prison cell, Han Shuo was seething, wishing he could capture Chen Qianqian and her mother to subject them to a gruesome death by a thousand cuts. However, he was forced to restrain his anger for the sake of obtaining the Dragon Bone, a rare Huayuan City treasure crucial to his plans.
Qianqian rushed to the City Owner, pleading for Han Shuo's release and proposing that he marry Chen Chuchu instead. The City Owner flatly refused, expressing her suspicion that Han Shuo, as Xuanhu City's sole heir, harbored ulterior motives for marrying into Huayuan City. Despite Qianqian’s attempts to reassure her that Han Shuo had no intention of poisoning her, the City Owner questioned why Qianqian, usually resilient to alcohol, had collapsed after just one drink the previous night.
Qianqian, desperate, blurted out a lie, claiming she was pregnant with Han Shuo's child. Though angered by Qianqian's reckless disregard for her noble reputation, the City Owner, unwilling to chastise her beloved daughter too harshly, conceded. She sent Sangqi to tell Han Shuo that he would be pardoned and released if he acknowledged the child. She also strictly warned Qianqian to keep the alleged pregnancy a secret until enough months had passed.
Han Shuo was subsequently released from prison and showered with various gifts, predominantly green-colored items, including a jade scepter, a peacock feather fan, green mandarin duck silk, green tea, glazed bottles, and a gilded jadeite headdress. Sangqi explained that in Huayuan City, receiving a green headdress was a commendation for a husband being virtuous, amiable, and generous. Han Shuo, however, interpreted the "green" gifts as a blatant insult, signifying he was a cuckold.
He struggled to contain his fury, particularly when Qianqian brazenly told him not to nitpick, as the child would not bear his surname anyway. She went on to emphasize that everything they used—the house, the daily expenses, the servants—belonged to her, and since he couldn't even help deliver the baby, he had no right to complain. Han Shuo, shocked by the Huayuan custom of children not taking their father's surname, could only express his outrage.
Determined to avenge his perceived humiliation and remove the "bastard" child, Han Shuo secretly ordered his subordinate to proceed with their original plan: poison Qianqian. The poison, designed to be ingested at noon and take effect at midnight, was placed in a specific "glazed plate." Unbeknownst to Han Shuo, Qianqian, remembering the original plot where she was poisoned, decided to counteract any such scheme.
When Han Shuo, as per Huayuan custom, began diligently serving her food during dinner, she grew suspicious. To ensure she wouldn't inadvertently eat the poisoned food, she ordered all the dishes to be served in glazed plates, believing this would make it impossible for Han Shuo to pinpoint the target. Han Shuo, realizing his subordinate had poisoned "a" glazed plate among many now being used, found himself in a predicament.
He had to diligently serve Qianqian every single dish, as she enthusiastically devoured the meal. Frustrated and unable to act, Han Shuo could only watch. Qianqian, still suspecting he was trying to poison her, eventually flipped the table in anger and declared she would go to the City Owner's mansion for dinner. Han Shuo's subordinate later explained that Qianqian's whimsical order to use all glazed plates had inadvertently foiled their carefully laid plan.
At the City Owner's mansion, while warning Qianqian about proper dietary restrictions for a pregnant woman, the City Owner noticed the intact gecko cinnabar on Qianqian's arm. This instantly exposed Qianqian's lie about being pregnant. Enraged, the City Owner chastised Qianqian for fabricating such an important matter for a mere prisoner and for disgracing her noble family.
Qianqian immediately fell to her knees, tearfully confessing her "love" for Han Shuo, claiming she had fallen for him at first sight and could not live without him. Softened by her daughter's display of affection, the City Owner, though still displeased, spared Han Shuo's life. She warned Qianqian to keep her husband in line and prevent him from causing trouble, or face consequences herself.
Feeling like she was "treading on thin ice" and viewing Han Shuo as a "time bomb," Qianqian resolved to push him towards Chen Chuchu to get the story back on track and reach the finale, thus enabling her return home. She summoned the city's top storytellers, her "predecessors," to discuss her story, using fruits as metaphors for her characters: a "banana" for Han Shuo, an "apple" for Chen Chuchu, and an "orange" for herself.
She explained that the "orange" (herself) was supposed to die on the wedding night, allowing the "banana" and "apple" (Han Shuo and Chen Chuchu) to fall in love. But now, the "orange" had survived. The storytellers offered various suggestions, including drastic plot twists or simply "removing" the "orange" from the story.
Qianqian rejected these "violent" and "simple and crude" ideas, suggesting a more "technical means"—a "hero saves beauty" or "beauty saves hero" scenario to spark Han Shuo and Chen Chuchu's romance. To execute this, Qianqian brought Han Shuo to Lin Qi's Music and Dance Academy, known for its male performers. She boasted about Han Shuo, prompting Lin Qi to challenge her to a competition to determine the most talented man in Huayuan City.
Qianqian confidently put Han Shuo forward, and Lin Qi countered with Su Mu, the academy's renowned male beauty. Qianqian found herself captivated by Su Mu's appearance, praising him openly, much to Han Shuo's annoyance. Su Mu performed on the Qin, while Han Shuo delivered a powerful sword dance, filling the courtyard with flying petals. Qianqian anxiously waited for Chen Chuchu to arrive. Suddenly, Han Shuo unexpectedly thrust his sword towards Qianqian.
Just in the nick of time, Chen Chuchu appeared, deflecting Han Shuo's blade and sternly reprimanding him for daring to attack Qianqian. Zi Rui quickly informed Han Shuo of Chen Chuchu's identity, prompting Han Shuo to quickly snatch Qianqian's fan to conceal his face. Qianqian tried to intervene, explaining to Chen Chuchu that she had forced Han Shuo into the competition, provoking his attack.
However, Chen Chuchu asserted that a husband should respect his wife and obey her completely, not resort to violence. She continued to fight Han Shuo, tearing his clothes in the process. At this moment, Pei Heng arrived and stopped the fight. Qianqian was momentarily stunned, recognizing him as her favorite character from her original script—Huayuan City's most handsome scholar and her former fiancé.
Pei Heng pulled Qianqian aside, scolding her for her unruly and willful behavior, for disrespecting their broken engagement, for forcibly marrying Han Shuo, and for then humiliating him by bringing him to the Music and Dance Academy and comparing him to the performers. Qianqian broke down, crying that she was lonely and helpless, with no family or friends, constantly "treading on thin ice," and that she had only made such "unwise decisions" out of a desperate desire to return home.
She even admitted to liking Pei Heng and apologized for her actions. Pei Heng was taken aback by her uncharacteristic apology. Overhearing Qianqian's apology and the entire humiliating spectacle, Han Shuo, consumed by rage, secretly ordered his subordinate to deploy archers to ensure Chen Qianqian would die of arrow wounds that very night.
