This Thriving Land Episode 24 Recap
> This Thriving Land Recap
Ning Xiuxiu felt indebted to Lulu and decided to repay her. She and Feng Dajiao went to see her brother, Kejin. Kejin was delighted to see her ask for help, acknowledging her stubborn nature and expressing his happiness that she finally asked for his assistance. Ning Xiuxiu insisted on writing an IOU for the twelve silver dollars she borrowed, believing in keeping clear accounts even among family.
Kejin offered more money, even from their father, but Ning Xiuxiu refused, insisting her brother's money was his own. Afterward, Ning Xiuxiu and Feng Dajiao visited Lulu. Feng Dajiao clearly distanced himself from Lulu. Ning Xiuxiu explained they were there to repay a debt, presenting fourteen silver dollars, which included the twelve for the scammed seedlings and a two-dollar deposit Lianye had recovered from Ning Xueshi.
Lulu only accepted the two-dollar deposit, claiming the seedling scam was her bad luck and she would bear the loss herself, as earning twelve dollars was not difficult for her. Ning Xiuxiu then pressed Lulu on her departure, asking when she would leave the Ox Temple Village. Lulu stated she was waiting for her brother, Xiaohu, to pick her up. Later, Ning Xiuxiu was delighted to see the red sage seeds sprout, celebrating with Zhuzi and his wife.
Ning Xiuxiu seized all opportunities to diligently learn herbal knowledge, finishing the herbal books Zhao Changming had given her and taking many notes. Zhuzi's wife expressed amazement that medicinal seedlings could yield more money than grain, and initially believed ancestors who planted them must have been wealthy. However, Zhuzi's wife then offered an alternative, suggesting ancestors might have planted them out of necessity because grain wasn't enough to eat, and medicinal herbs then provided sufficient income for food.
Ning Xiuxiu agreed that earning more money was the true importance. She promised to be the first to transplant the seedlings. Meanwhile, news spread that Glutton Fei, returning from an unsuccessful venture to Guangdong, arrived home weak and begging for food due to a locust plague and floods. His sudden return worsened Yin Zi’s mother’s already severe illness, leaving Yin Zi in despair. Soon after, Lianye rushed to Ning Xiuxiu, distressed and with a bruised forehead.
She revealed that Lulu had opened a gambling house in the village, and Kejin had become completely infatuated, losing all their family's money and even pawning Lianye’s gold jewelry. Kejin had pushed her when she tried to stop him and had not returned home all night, reportedly staying at Lulu’s. Ning Xiuxiu immediately went to the gambling house with Lianye.
Upon their arrival, Kejin, terrified of his sister, tried to hide, but Lulu encouraged him to stay, promising to handle Ning Xiuxiu. Lulu brazenly denied Kejin’s presence, challenging Ning Xiuxiu to search her room, even under her bed and in her blankets, threatening to publicly disgrace Kejin as village chief.
Unwilling to cause a spectacle, Ning Xiuxiu chose to preserve everyone’s dignity and simply told Lulu to relay the message to Kejin to go home quickly, emphasizing they should no longer have any contact with each other. Ning Xiuxiu then advised Lianye to seek help from their father, Ning Xuexiang, who was still out of town but expected to return soon. Ning Xiuxiu realized Lulu was still pursuing Feng Dajiao, using her brother Xiaohu as an excuse to stay.
She couldn't stand by while Kejin spiraled further into gambling. Ning Xiuxiu had already tried confronting Lulu, but Lulu was hostile. Ning Xiuxiu then implored Feng Dajiao to convince Lulu to leave Ox Temple Village, believing that since Lulu was pursuing him, his words might have more effect. Feng Dajiao was reluctant to get involved, as he wanted to avoid Lulu after the trouble she had already caused their family.
However, after Ning Xiuxiu’s persistent soft persuasion, and her gentle taunt about women from all directions coming for him, he agreed to go to Lulu the next day. The following morning, Feng Dajiao went to the gambling house and urged Kejin to go home. Seeing Feng Dajiao, Lulu’s spirits lifted, and she invited him into a room, offering him a drink. Feng Dajiao firmly refused, insisting she shut down the gambling house and leave, calling it an improper business.
Lulu refused to comply, explaining she needed to earn back what she had lost to help Xiaohu get married and build a house, stating she only ran a gambling house and took a cut. Feng Dajiao accused her of harming people with her business and questioned if her waiting for Xiaohu was merely a pretense.
After Feng Dajiao pressed her to leave, Lulu, though noting he seemed more concerned for Ning Xiuxiu’s comfort than his own, proposed a deal: if he would drink a pot of liquor with her, she would leave. Left with no other choice, Feng Dajiao reluctantly agreed. Meanwhile, Zhuzi, having lost all his money gambling, returned with an antique bottle, claiming it was from the palace, hoping to pawn it for more funds.
Inside, Feng Dajiao drank heavily, repeatedly urging Lulu to leave. However, Lulu, seeing his inebriation, went back on her word and refused to depart. Enraged, Feng Dajiao, fueled by alcohol, overturned the gambling table and stormed out, yelling for them to gamble. Ning Xiuxiu waited anxiously for Feng Dajiao, who did not return.
Zhuzi, in a desperate attempt to continue gambling, tried to steal the land deed, only to be caught and violently pursued by his wife, who wielded a knife and accused him of stealing their family's precious dowry bottle to gamble and then getting it smashed. In his frantic escape, Zhuzi revealed that Feng Dajiao had gotten drunk with Lulu, overturned the table, and then fled.
Soon after, Lianye rushed to Ning Xiuxiu, reporting that Ning Xuexiang had returned and was on his way to the gambling house to confront Kejin. Ning Xiuxiu accompanied Lianye, hoping to find Feng Dajiao there. At the gambling house, Ning Xuexiang stormed in, brandishing a large stick, ready to strike Kejin without explanation, calling him an ungrateful, profligate dog. Lulu intervened, trying to calm the enraged Ning Xuexiang. Ning Xuexiang dragged Kejin out by his ear.
But Lulu demanded that Ning Xuexiang repay all of Kejin's gambling debts and the damages caused by Ning Xuexiang and Feng Dajiao, threatening to move into their home if he refused. Ning Xuexiang vehemently denied any responsibility. Ning Xiuxiu seized the opportunity to ask Lulu about Feng Dajiao’s whereabouts. Lulu, maliciously, claimed Feng Dajiao was drunk and asleep in her room and dared Ning Xiuxiu to go in and see.
Realizing Feng Dajiao was likely too embarrassed to return home drunk and that Lulu was intentionally provoking her, Ning Xiuxiu gathered Feng Er and his wife (Feng Dajiao's parents) to search for him. After searching extensively, they finally found Feng Dajiao lying unconscious in the street. Lulu soon appeared, and Ning Xiuxiu, furious, confronted her, accusing her of intoxicating an honest, straightforward man and asking if she was satisfied seeing him suffer.
Ning Xiuxiu then challenged Lulu to a drinking contest, proposing that if Lulu lost, she would leave the village, but if Ning Xiuxiu lost, Feng Dajiao would be Lulu's. Lulu confidently accepted the challenge, agreeing to meet the following evening at Turtle Hill, each bringing their own liquor, stating that whoever didn't come was a dog. The next day, Ning Xuexiang asked his helper, Kuangzi, about Kejin's behavior, being reassured that his son was now staying home and behaving.
Ning Xuexiang then became preoccupied with a faint, "strange" fragrance on his clothes, which Kuangzi claimed not to smell. He later visited his hired laborers, including Li Datou, a tenant, who was trying to earn money for corn seeds. Ning Xuexiang refused Li Datou's request for higher wages, asserting that as a tenant, he should work for free and that there were plenty of others if he refused.
Ning Xuexiang then took the leftover steamed buns, leaving the laborers with less food. Lulu, meanwhile, worried about the dwindling number of gamblers, as Ning Xuexiang’s recent disruption had scared off Kejin and many other men whose wives had forced them back to their farm work. Later, Ning Xuexiang encountered Yin Zi digging wild vegetables on his land.
He initially teased her, giving her a flower and taking one from her, but then allowed her to continue, promising to prevent Kuangzi from chasing her away. He then offered her some steamed buns and took the opportunity to touch her inappropriately, causing Yin Zi to run away in fear.
When Yin Zi’s younger sibling reported their mother was struggling to breathe, Ning Xuexiang sent medicine and dried sweet potatoes to Yin Zi's family via Kuangzi, instructing Yin Zi to request more money from him for future medical needs.
Soon after, Tietou secretly brought Yin Zi a small bag of cornmeal, but his mother discovered it and publicly berated Yin Zi, accusing her of enticing Tietou to steal grain and of being a temptress who should find a man who could feed her entire family. Yin Zi, deeply hurt, ran home in tears, watching her siblings joyfully eat the sweet potatoes while silently enduring her own pain.
That evening, Ning Xiuxiu and Lulu met at the agreed spot for their drinking contest. Ning Xiuxiu built a fire, stating it would allow them to speak honestly. Lulu, with a hint of challenge, questioned if Ning Xiuxiu thought she wouldn’t dare come to her territory. Ning Xiuxiu suggested they swap liquor jars, explaining that Feng Dajiao had been completely incapacitated by a single jar of Lulu’s strong liquor, and she didn't want Lulu to suffer the same fate.
Lulu, suspicious, asked if Ning Xiuxiu feared her liquor was watered down, then dismissed Ning Xiuxiu's explanation as a futile attempt to intimidate her. They both agreed to drink from their own jars and to accept defeat gracefully.
Ning Xiuxiu then lifted her first bowl of liquor, downing it completely, expressing her heartfelt gratitude to Lulu for being righteous and buying the red sage seedlings for Feng Dajiao, acknowledging that she would always be indebted, regardless of the outcome of their contest.
