Truth or Dare Episode 12 Recap
> Truth or Dare Recap
Lord Nocturnal-elf found himself embroiled in a fight where Bao was also involved. During their struggle, Bao's blade accidentally sliced open a bag, revealing a cascade of white, crystalline illicit salt. Bao realized, "So they're illicit salt smugglers! No wonder their kungfu is so high." The salt dealers then shouted at Bao's group, "Who are you people? Don't get in the way!" Taking advantage of the chaos, Bao and his mountain bandits seized the illicit salt and fled with it.
Lord Nocturnal-elf was then left to fight Wang Biao alone. Xiao Wanzi secretly followed, helping with her slingshot from the shadows. However, Wang Biao discovered her and struck her with a poisoned dart. Hearing Xiao Wanzi cry out, Lord Nocturnal-elf rushed to her side. Wang Biao smugly declared that his dart was poisoned and demanded that Lord Nocturnal-elf kneel for the antidote.
Lord Nocturnal-elf responded, "Give me the antidote," but Wang Biao retorted, "I have the antidote, but why should I give it to you?" Lord Nocturnal-elf then pleaded, "This has nothing to do with her. Give me the antidote. I'm all at your disposal." Seeing Xiao Wanzi's pained expression, Lord Nocturnal-elf resolutely threw down his sword and knelt before Wang Biao, despite Xiao Wanzi's desperate cries of "No!" Wang Biao then ordered his subordinates to "Hit him!"
and they swarmed Lord Nocturnal-elf, kicking and punching him. Xiao Wanzi, heartbroken, repeatedly begged them to stop. Wang Biao approached, intending to unmask Lord Nocturnal-elf. At this point, Lord Nocturnal-elf could no longer tolerate it. He snatched the antidote, administered it to Xiao Wanzi, and then bravely fought back with his knife, driving away Wang Biao and his group. This battle severely depleted Mei Shiqing's strength. Xiao Wanzi, with great effort, helped Mei Shiqing to a cave to rest.
She felt deeply guilty, apologizing and saying, "It's all because of me. I got you into trouble. Otherwise, you wouldn't have got hurt." Mei Shiqing reassured her, saying, "Silly girl. You saved me. You're not causing me any trouble." Noticing it was getting late, Xiao Wanzi suggested they "slum it in here tonight" and went to find food for them. Bao returned to the mountain stronghold with a cart of smuggled salt.
Nan Batian, seeing him, prepared a banquet to celebrate. Bao explained that they had planned to ambush a silk trade caravan but Lord Nocturnal-elf appeared. During the fight, he discovered the caravan was actually smuggling salt, so he took advantage of the chaos to seize the goods. Nan Xiang defended Bao against Wu's skepticism, causing Nan Batian to believe Bao for Nan Xiang's sake.
Bao then gave Nan Xiang some of the stolen silk, saying, "Nan Xiang, you can choose these cloths at will. Make new clothes." Nan Xiang was thrilled, exclaiming, "Xiao Bao is still the one who dotes on me the most!" Nan Batian, convinced Bao was finally showing interest in Nan Xiang, gleefully thought that "Xiao Wanzi is finally left to me."
Nan Xiang, however, spoke ill of Xiao Wanzi, calling her a "vixen" and a "toad," which angered Nan Batian, who then dismissed her. Later that night, by the campfire, Xiao Wanzi asked Mei Shiqing why he had chosen to become Lord Nocturnal-elf. Mei Shiqing revealed that he lost his mother when he was young, killed by a "gang of bandits," which fueled his hatred for evil and his mission to punish the evils and do good deeds.
He also uses this identity to find his mother's murderers. Xiao Wanzi, moved by his story, promised, "I'll be your company." She then subtly inquired about his relationship with A Rou. Seeing her concern, Mei Shiqing explained that A Rou was a girl he rescued from a "dirty troupe" and took in out of pity, placing her at Felicity Tavern due to her business acumen. He used the tavern as a private meeting place.
Xiao Wanzi playfully complained about the expensive sweet and sour spare ribs at Felicity Tavern, which Mei Shiqing offered to put on his tab. After this conversation, they rested. Mei Shiqing was later jolted awake by a nightmare, reliving the traumatic memory of his mother being attacked and killed by bandits, with her warning him to stay hidden.
Xiao Wanzi woke up and, seeing his pale face, comforted him, promising, "I'll definitely help you find the killer and revenge on them. No matter what happens, I'll always be with you." She recalled him mentioning seeing "only a walking stick" in his dream. Meanwhile, at the mountain stronghold, the celebration left many drunk. He Yizhi, seeing the lax security, urged Lu Yingyao to escape with him.
However, a drunken Bao arrived at Lu Yingyao's door, proudly announcing that he had kept his promise and "didn't kill anybody." He then stated, "I smell like alcohol now. You don't like it for sure. I won't come inside." Lu Yingyao, telling him to rest, watched as he collapsed, falling asleep at her doorstep. Concerned, she gently moved him to her bed.
As she prepared to leave, she bid a sorrowful farewell to the sleeping Bao, expressing her gratitude and hoping he would soon leave the stronghold and find a better life. Just as He Yizhi and Lu Yingyao began to leave, they overheard Wu plotting to frame Bao. Wu ordered his subordinate to place two boxes of goods in Bao's room, hoping to implicate him and prevent him from becoming Nan Batian's successor.
Lu Yingyao, unwilling to let Bao be framed, decided to abandon their escape plan. He Yizhi, unable to return empty-handed or leave Lu Yingyao, also stayed. Lu Yingyao and He Yizhi immediately returned to Bao's room and woke him, informing him of Wu's plot to hide stolen goods and frame him. Bao, though still somewhat drunk, quickly grasped the danger.
He then rallied his subordinates, found the two boxes of goods hidden by Wu's men, subtly incapacitated Wu's men with a drug, and successfully swapped the illicit goods, returning them to Wu's men's room. Bao later thanked Lu Yingyao, saying he had never met someone as kind and beautiful as her.
Lu Yingyao expressed her understanding of his struggles and urged him to leave the bandit life, but Bao lamented that "it's easy to join a gang, but hard to get free." The next day, Mei Shiqing and Xiao Wanzi continued their journey, and were eventually found by Siheng, who quickly escorted them back to Mei Manor. Meanwhile, Wu approached Nan Batian, subtly trying to accuse Bao of wrongdoing.
He reported that Bao's underlings were seen moving two boxes of goods into Bao's room, implying he was hiding smuggled goods, a grave offense in Dragon Stockade. Bao then arrived with a plate of fresh fruit, subtly outshining Wu's offering of leftover fruit. Nan Batian confronted Bao with Wu's accusation. Bao vehemently denied it, affirming his loyalty and the integrity of his men, and accused Wu of slandering him. Nan Batian decided to search Bao's room.
To Wu's surprise, nothing was found there. Seizing the opportunity, Bao demanded a thorough search of the entire stronghold to ensure fairness. Nan Batian agreed, stating, "Now that things have come to this point, we ought to make a thorough investigation." He then asked Bao, "What if we do find goods in your place? What are you going to do?"
Bao replied that if it were his fault, he would admit it, but if someone intended to set him up, he would not let them go. Under the watchful eyes of everyone in the stronghold, Wu's subordinate, Tiezhu, was found with the incriminating goods in his room. Bao sarcastically praised Wu's 'thief crying "stop thief"' tactic and his 'righteous sacrifice of relatives,' questioning why Wu had escalated the situation.
Wu, still defiant, denied any involvement and swore an oath of innocence, sparking a brief brawl between his and Bao's men. Nan Batian, putting an end to the chaos, sternly reminded Wu that "a country has its law and our stockade our rules," and with Tiezhu being his subordinate, he had to decide his fate.
