Thousand Years For You Episode 19 Recap
> Thousand Years For You Recap
Gu Beixi inadvertently disclosed to Chieftain Yu that Lu Yan had nearly killed Yu Dengdeng. Chieftain Yu, enraged, scolded Gu Beixi for speaking out of turn. Dengdeng quickly dismissed Gu Beixi's statement as nonsense, assuring her father that no such thing happened. Chieftain Yu then turned to Dengdeng, questioning her involvement in the missing persons case, stating, "It is the spirit worm's doing."
Lu Yan, recognizing Chieftain Yu's knowledge, appealed to him to share information to help clear Peng Dahai's name, who Chief Bai had accused of being the murderer of the missing members of the Spirit Clan and detained at the police station. Chieftain Yu, however, insisted he would only speak to his daughter and demanded Lu Yan leave the room.
Dengdeng apologized to Lu Yan for her father's temper, but Lu Yan calmly said he had overheard their conversation and was not upset. After Lu Yan left, Chieftain Yu began to recount the events. He told Dengdeng that three months prior, members of the Spirit Clan approached him for help regarding disappearances. Initially unconcerned, he soon noticed a growing number of people vanishing from the Mysterious Market and Yingdu, estimating over a hundred missing.
One day, he discovered a Spirit Clan member who had been completely consumed by spirit worms. The Spirit Clan member's body was extremely weak, almost transparent, and his energy was rapidly dissipating. Despite Chieftain Yu's best efforts, he couldn't prevent the energy from draining. Before vanishing entirely, the Spirit Clan member used his last breath to mention the Changle Tavern in the Mysterious Market.
Chieftain Yu concluded that these were not kidnappings but rather Spirit Clan members devoured by spirit worms. Following this lead, Chieftain Yu went to Changle Tavern to investigate. He quickly realized that while the tavern owner sold spirit worms, he lacked the capacity to breed such a large number. He feigned being a major buyer, requesting fifty worms, knowing this would force the owner to contact his supplier.
Chieftain Yu then staked out the tavern, waiting for the supplier to appear. He later observed the tavern closing, but a blue lantern was prominently displayed, which he deduced was their signal. While waiting, he felt an intense itch all over his body. He eventually spotted a suspicious figure and followed them back into the tavern. To his horror, he found the tavern owner dead inside.
As he pursued the killer, he was knocked unconscious, only vaguely recalling that the assailant wore a trench coat, similar to Lu Yan's. Dengdeng immediately defended Lu Yan, asserting he could not be the murderer. Lu Yan presented an account book from the tavern, pointing out that it only listed about a dozen transactions, far fewer than the hundred or more missing individuals Chieftain Yu mentioned.
This led him to believe that there were other shops in the Mysterious Market also dealing in spirit worms. He proposed that if the lanterns were indeed the signal for these illicit transactions, they should find a vantage point in the Mysterious Market that night to observe which shops lit lanterns after closing, allowing them to track down the suppliers and exonerate Peng Dahai.
Dengdeng then pressed Chieftain Yu about her true parentage, asking if she was his and her mother's biological daughter. Chieftain Yu initially reaffirmed that she was, but Dengdeng then manifested her spiritual energy, a trait exclusive to the Spirit Clan. Seeing this, Chieftain Yu finally confessed. He revealed that he and his late wife found Dengdeng as a solitary child at the foot of Qingquan Mountain.
Their own daughter had died young, so they adopted Dengdeng, raising her with great care. He admitted to keeping her true identity a secret all these years, hoping she could lead a peaceful, ordinary life. Dengdeng, deeply moved, embraced Chieftain Yu, assuring him that regardless of her lineage, she would always be his beloved daughter. Chieftain Yu accepted her words, visibly touched.
Dengdeng stated her intention to join the investigation, despite her father's protestations, explaining that as Lu Yan was her "concubine" and Peng Dahai her apprentice, she had to go personally. She invoked Chieftain Yu’s own wisdom: “Overcome one obstacle at a time, take one difficult step at a time.” Lu Yan reminded her to be cautious, unlike her previous recklessness.
As Dengdeng and Lu Yan prepared to leave, they encountered Lv Er and a group of armed Qingquan Stronghold members, including Daqian. Lv Er explained they had heard Dengdeng was detained at Bai Mansion and came to rescue her, despite their limited weaponry compared to Bai Mansion's significant arsenal. Dengdeng reassured them she was fine and had located her father.
She instructed Lv Er to go to Bai Mansion, contact Gu Beixi, and wait for them there with Chieftain Yu, sending the rest of the group back to the stronghold. Back at the Mysterious Market, Dengdeng and Lu Yan continued their surveillance with Xin. Dengdeng grew impatient when no lanterns appeared, questioning their initial hypothesis. Lu Yan instructed Xin to take a break.
Xin, observing Lu Yan and Dengdeng's synchronized movements and natural chemistry, remarked that they looked like a perfect couple, like zither and harp, and were meant to be husband and wife, a comment Dengdeng appreciated. Moments later, a blue lantern was hung outside the tavern. Lu Yan cautioned Dengdeng to be vigilant, suggesting the person hanging the lantern might be in disguise. They then saw a child moving between the tavern and a nearby pharmacy, exchanging a box for money.
Dengdeng criticized the worm dealer for exploiting children. Lu Yan explained that such "operating under the shadow" tactics in a bustling market were necessary for large-scale, illicit spirit worm dealings that had caused widespread fear in Yingdu, implying that multiple parties were involved. They followed the child to the pharmacy, which had a large warehouse in the back. Just as they apprehended the pharmacy owner, a fire suddenly broke out outside, prompting calls for help.
Lu Yan quickly secured the long-ear spirit creature and ordered him taken to Bai Mansion, dismissing concerns about the fire, stating it wasn't necessary to check the pharmacy for worms. Meanwhile, at Bai Mansion, Chief Bai was celebrating Bai Shiqi's birthday and sought to finalize her marriage to Gu Beixi. Bai Shiqi, however, revealed to her father that Gu Beixi was in love with someone else.
Gu Beixi then directly confessed to Bai Shiqi that his heart belonged to Dengdeng, having grown up with her, and that he had already spoken to Chief Bai about breaking off their engagement. Bai Shiqi, acknowledging they were both struggling in unrequited loves, gracefully accepted, finding solace in the feeling of loving someone. Gu Beixi informed her he would be leaving Bai Mansion the next day and urged her to forget him and start a new life.
Lu Yan and Dengdeng arrived at Bai Mansion with the apprehended long-ear spirit creature. Chief Bai, impressed by their capture, still demanded concrete evidence and a confession before releasing Peng Dahai. Dengdeng promised to deliver both before the birthday banquet concluded, provided they were given a place to interrogate the suspect. Chief Bai agreed, promising to release Peng Dahai once the evidence was presented and the criminal officially imprisoned.
In the interrogation room, Dengdeng employed harsh methods, including a chili-water soaked whip, but the suspect remained defiant, claiming he only sold life-saving herbs and had no knowledge of spirit worms. Gu Beixi joined the interrogation, using ear-piercing torture. The suspect eventually admitted to hearing about spirit worm trade in the Mysterious Market but maintained he was just a regular herb seller. Xin expressed concern about the lack of physical evidence due to the fire.
Lu Yan then revealed his foresight: he had already retrieved a spirit worm from the pharmacy before the fire. He explained that normal pharmacies organize herbs by weight, but he found lighter herbs on the bottom shelves, suggesting the shelves had been rearranged to conceal something on top. Faced with this undeniable evidence and the lingering effects of a spirit worm within him (which Lu Yan noticed by his neck twitching, similar to sick animals), the suspect confessed.
He revealed his superior was known as the "King of Worms," whose true name was unknown. He stated that the King of Worms could control all spirit worms and their hosts, dictating their actions. The suspect also mentioned that a previous subordinate was killed by the King of Worms for violating the "no-business-with-humans" rule. He described the King of Worms as wearing a trench coat, with an unseen face, and making strange noises when he walked.
He claimed he, too, was controlled by a worm and therefore not acting of his own free will. Dengdeng decided to hand the suspect over to the police, reaffirming their resolve to save Peng Dahai and then confront the King of Worms to prevent further harm. Dengdeng shared the good news with Chieftain Yu and Lv Er, expressing joy at the prospect of a family reunion back at Qingquan Stronghold after celebrating Peng Dahai's release.
However, when Lu Yan suggested he would stay to continue the investigation while Dengdeng returned to the stronghold, Chieftain Yu's mood soured. He became angry again, reminding Dengdeng that Lu Yan had once tried to kill her. Dengdeng attempted to explain it was a misunderstanding, but Chieftain Yu dismissed it, asserting that living with such a person was dangerous and demanded Dengdeng write a divorce letter to Lu Yan on the spot.
