The Vendetta of An Episode 25 Recap
> The Vendetta of An Recap
Xie Huaian is relieved to find Ye Zheng and Xiaoqing alive after the Tiemo forces seize control. Ye Zheng explains that Xie Huaian’s prediction was accurate, allowing them to locate Zhu Zhilong. Determined to resolve their complicated bond, Ye Zheng and Xiaoqing decide to confront their master one last time.
When they meet, Zhu Zhilong immediately prepares to strike, but Ye Zheng pleads with him, asking if he can truly discard the twenty years he spent raising them and teaching them martial arts and medicine. Memories of their past life as a family surface, recalling shared meals and their master’s protective nature. Zhu Zhilong finally reveals his true identity and the source of his bitterness.
Long ago in Tiemo, his two children died from cold and starvation during a harsh winter. Driven by the desire to ensure the Tiemo people would never suffer again, he infiltrated the Central Plains as a shadow guard under Liu Ziwen. Though he initially felt he had gained a new son and daughter when he found Ye Zheng and Xiaoqing in Basong Town, his loyalty to Tiemo and the trauma of his past eventually overrode his affection for them.
When Zhu Zhilong strikes, wounding Ye Zheng in the abdomen, he is stunned to find that his disciples never intended to fight back. He learns that the rice offerings he frequently found at his children’s secret memorial tablets were left by Ye Zheng and Xiaoqing, who had discovered the cave and paid their respects out of love for him.
Xiaoqing’s tearful cry that they are his children as well shatters Zhu Zhilong's resolve, and he stumbles away in a state of deep remorse. At the riverbank, Zhu Zhilong reflects on the futility of the war. Xie Huaian appears and delivers a final piece of news: years ago, his father, Liu Ziwen, had discovered the remains of Zhu’s children in the stone hut at the foot of Wuxi Mountain and provided them with a proper burial.
Knowing his children were finally at rest, Zhu Zhilong commits suicide to join them. Meanwhile, Xiaobing and his sister Xiaoding fulfill a request from Xiao Wuyang by finding the shopkeeper, Master Zhang. They decide to escort the old man to safety in Huzhou. Xiaobing promises to cover all expenses and care for the shopkeeper like a son, believing that common folk must protect one another during this national crisis.
Xie Huaian leads Ye Zheng and Xiaoqing to Ronghua Alley to seek refuge with Cen Weizong. Living a quiet life making fermented vegetables to earn the trust of his neighbors, the former high-ranking official provides the group with porridge and security. Cen gives Xie Huaian a ledger of reliable contacts, a list that has been instrumental in keeping Xie safe since he was a child.
It is revealed that Cen Weizong was the one who saved Ye Zheng from Su Changlin in the past, and that Xie Huaian’s father had once saved Cen’s life by warning him of a military mutiny with a red ribbon. At the outskirts of the capital, a weary Xiao Wenjing arrives at the Wuyang Army camp. He presents a wooden box containing the severed arm of Xiao Wuyang, whose identity is confirmed by a distinct scar.
Acting as a messenger for the Tiemo, Xiao Wenjing warns the generals that the Tiemo army has already reached the outskirts and has shadow guards positioned within the city. He delivers the final ultimatum: if the Wuyang Army attempts to storm the city, the Emperor—Xiao Wuyang—will be killed. With a massive Tiemo force of two hundred thousand closing in, the fate of the empire hangs in the balance.
