Unchained Love Episode 17 Recap
> Unchained Love Recap
Early one morning, Rong Bao, the steward from the Prince of Nanyuan's residence, arrived at Mengyun Pavilion with several beauties, a gift from the Prince who supposedly empathized with Chief Xiao Duo's solitary life. Bu Yinlou, overhearing this, was incensed. Confident that the principled Xiao Duo would never accept them, she was shocked when he took in all the women.
Standing just outside, a furious Bu Yinlou missed his true intention: to knowingly accept the Prince's spies so he could feed them fabricated information. Still seething, Bu Yinlou went to Xiao Duo's room to vent her anger but found she couldn't bring herself to smash anything, as she had personally decorated the entire space. Just then, the newly arrived women entered. Bu Yinlou, seeing an opportunity, decided to trick them.
She pretended to be Xiao Duo's long-suffering lover and fabricated horrific stories about his sadistic hobbies. She claimed Xiao Duo enjoyed "painting" by lashing people with oil-soaked whips, creating "plum blossoms in snow" with their blood. To amplify their terror, she alleged that previous women who served him were fed to a dog named Eunuch Ba—so-named because "eight" (bā) women had already met that fate.
Feigning fear, Bu Yinlou urged the women to run for their lives, successfully scaring them all away. Afterward, Bu Yinlou confronted Xiao Duo, calling him audacious for accepting spies. She then playfully demanded that he compensate her now that the beauties were gone. Meanwhile, in the capital, Emperor Murong Gaogong studied texts on governance, declaring his intent to centralize all authority and eliminate threats to his rule, especially the Prince of Nanyuan.
He remained confident that Bu Yinlou would be pleased to see his future achievements. A message arrived from Xiao Duo in West Shu, reporting that the Prince of Nanyuan was colluding with gangs to sell salt and illicitly forge weapons. He requested to extend his stay for further investigation. The Emperor approved, ordering Xiao Duo to seize all military power held by the Prince, Yuwen Liangshi.
Elsewhere, the Emperor's sister spoke with the Prince of Nanyuan's brother, asking if he was worried now that Xiao Duo was in West Shu. The Prince's brother acknowledged that both his sibling and Xiao Duo were formidable, anticipating a difficult struggle between them. Back in West Shu, the Prince of Nanyuan was enraged that Xiao Duo had returned the beauties, viewing it as a blatant show of disrespect.
He ordered Rong Bao to probe Xiao Duo further under the pretext of discussing wedding arrangements for his marriage to Bu Yinge. During the preparations, Consort Dowager Duan oversaw the dowry inventory, while Bu Yinlou learned of a local West Shu custom from her maid: a bride must personally make a new pair of shoes for the groom to wear on their wedding day, symbolizing their lifelong companionship. Intrigued, Bu Yinlou was inspired by the tradition.
She decided to make a new pair of boots for Xiao Duo and playfully told him to "take off," startling him into unfastening his robes before she clarified she only meant his boots. As she meticulously measured his feet, a jealous Xiao Duo asked if she had made shoes for others. Bu Yinlou explained that besides her mother, he was the first.
She recounted how she and her mother used to make and sell boots to earn money, as her mother disliked using her father's allowance. Touched by her past hardships, Xiao Duo firmly told her that she was the first person he had ever willingly allowed to make shoes for him and that he had plenty of money, so she would never have to endure such struggles again. Bu Yinlou stayed up late to finish the boots.
The next morning, Xiao Duo discovered them by his bed and, overjoyed, immediately tried them on. Later, when he had to go out, he carefully took them off and set them aside. His joy deepened when Rong Bao, reporting on wedding details, mentioned the custom of the bride making shoes for the groom, confirming for Xiao Duo the profound meaning behind Bu Yinlou's gift.
On the wedding night, Bu Yinge, now the Prince of Nanyuan's concubine, told him she believed Bu Yinlou and Xiao Duo were having an affair. She presented "evidence" from their journey, such as Bu Yinlou living at Xiao Duo's residence and their joint leap into a river during an attack. The Prince, remembering reports that Xiao Duo had a secret lover, saw an opportunity.
He planned to confirm the affair and use it to fracture the Emperor's trust in his most valued official. He ordered Rong Bao to invite Bu Yinlou to the residence, under the guise of a sisterly visit, to detain her and test Xiao Duo's reaction. Bu Yinlou immediately sensed a trap and sent Cao Chun'ang to inform Xiao Duo.
Deducing the Prince's plan was a public test of his feelings, Xiao Duo decided not to fall for it and simply returned to his residence. At the Prince's residence, Bu Yinlou, suspecting the Prince was using her to bait Xiao Duo, played along with Bu Yinge's attempts to detain her with a mahjong game.
When Bu Yinge tried to provoke her by claiming Xiao Duo spoke ill of her, Bu Yinlou feigned outrage, declaring their closeness was a pretense and that she had long disliked his arrogance. She skillfully proceeded to win all of Bu Yinge's dowry at mahjong. As the night wore on, Rong Bao finally announced that Xiao Duo was not coming. Victorious, Bu Yinlou departed with her winnings.
Back at Mengyun Pavilion, she gleefully shared her spoils with her staff but was told Xiao Duo was already asleep. However, after Bu Yinlou retired to her room, Xiao Duo emerged from his, his face grim and deeply troubled.
