Wild Ambition Bloom Episode 1 Recap
> Wild Ambition Bloom Recap
In 1916, the bustling Qizhou herbal market drew crowds. Chu Shaohua and her friend Kang Erniu explored the vibrant stalls. Chu Shaohua, captivated by the array of traditional Chinese medicines, found herself lingering. When Xia Yuan, the owner of Shouyuan Apothecary, arrived with his wife, people respectfully parted, inspiring Chu Shaohua to vow to one day become as influential as him. As she watched the couple depart, she realized Kang Erniu had disappeared.
While searching for her friend, a horse pulling a cart full of herbs became startled, stampeding through the panicked crowd. Chu Shaohua, witnessing a small girl named Niuniu trembling in the path of the runaway cart, bravely rushed forward and pulled her to safety. Niuniu’s mother quickly arrived, expressing her gratitude. Chu Shaohua then helped the carter gather the scattered herbs, noticing the Huangqi was, in fact, alfalfa roots. She discreetly followed the cart to Tang's Apothecary.
At Tang's Apothecary, Chen Dashun was about to purchase the suspicious herbs. Chu Shaohua quietly advised him to compare prices before making a payment. Tang Yaoji, the owner, became enraged, yelling at her for meddling in his business and calling her a jinx. Unfazed, Chu Shaohua publicly exposed his fraudulent practice of selling dyed alfalfa roots as Huangqi, detailing the tell-tale signs on the herb's surface and cross-section.
Tang Yaoji, after examining the goods, claimed he was framed by the Qizhou Trade Guild and that the Guandong Trade Guild, which he represented, never sold fakes. He pointed out the crude and sloppy secret mark on the sacks, which he argued was a forgery. Chen Dashun, witnessing Chu Shaohua's sharp eye, was deeply impressed.
Chu Shaohua eventually found Kang Erniu, who had bought her a fried flatbread, but looked flushed and admitted she had something to tell her in a few days. Upon returning to her family’s Chichun Apothecary, Chu Shaohua discovered her elder brother, Chu Shaozhong, had purchased eight sacks of Huangqi for 400 silver dollars, confident of a 50-dollar commission upon resale.
He dismissed her concerns about not using a reputable broker like Anke Hall, assuring her that he had personally inspected the "real" goods and avoided the broker's commission. When Chu Shaohua questioned where he got such a large sum of money, he vaguely mentioned using family accounts and "finding a way to raise some more."
Meanwhile, the conflict over the fake Huangqi escalated between the Guandong Trade Guild, led by Yang Sanye, and the Qizhou Trade Guild, led by Xia Yuan. Xia Yuan, denying direct involvement, revealed he had strategically spread word that he would buy Huangqi at a high price. Chu Shaozhong, lured by the offer, became caught in Xia Yuan's trap when he tried to sell the stolen Huangqi.
Xia Yuan then handed Chu Shaozhong over to Yang Sanye to restore the Guandong Trade Guild's reputation. Despite Chu Shaozhong's desperate pleas that he had paid 400 silver dollars for the Huangqi, he was tied up on Yaowang Temple Street for three days, facing public humiliation and eventual execution. Chu Shaohua rushed to his side, pleading with the angry crowd to stop throwing rotten vegetables and eggs at him, and promised to save him.
Chu Shaohua attempted to speak with Yang Sanye but was turned away by a guard who mentioned the Guandong Trade Guild's secret mark on the sacks. Determined, Chu Shaohua sought information from her brother, learning he bought the Huangqi from a Mr. Huang from the northwest, who had stayed at the Yunlai Inn but had since left.
She then tracked down carter Dazhu from the Tongda Carriage Firm, who remembered transporting the eight piculs of Huangqi from a household in Maliu Village, fifty li south. Reaching the deserted house, Chu Shaohua found alfalfa roots, dyes, tools, and sacks bearing crudely forged Guandong Trade Guild marks, confirming it was the fake Huangqi production site. The landlord corroborated that a man from the northwest, not Chu Shaozhong, had rented the property.
Armed with irrefutable evidence, Chu Shaohua confronted Yang Sanye once more. She argued that if Chu Shaozhong were truly involved, she wouldn't have exposed the fake Huangqi at the market. She presented the evidence from Maliu Village—the leftover materials and the sacks with their sloppily forged Guandong Trade Guild mark, identical to the ones at Tang's Apothecary.
She logically pointed out that if her brother had indeed intended to forge the mark and swap the goods, he would have replaced the sacks when selling the real Huangqi instead of leaving the incriminating evidence. Chu Shaohua concluded that her brother had merely bought stolen goods unknowingly and that by punishing him, Yang Sanye would be letting the real culprit go free. Convinced by her sharp reasoning and irrefutable evidence, Yang Sanye released Chu Shaozhong.
On their way home, Chu Shaozhong and Chu Shaohua were intercepted by loan sharks. Shaozhong confessed that 360 of the 400 silver dollars for the Huangqi were borrowed at a five li rate, due in half a month. Now, with the repayment three days overdue, the debt had swelled to 390 silver dollars, including principal, interest, and penalties. The loan sharks threatened to cut off Chu Shaozhong's hand and foot if the full amount wasn't paid within three days.
Distraught, Chu Shaohua’s mother and sister-in-law, Yan, panicked. Yan suggested selling the Chichun Apothecary, but Chu Shaohua fiercely resisted, proclaiming it their family's three-generation legacy. Her mother, however, heartbroken and desperate, agreed to sell it if it meant saving her son. Chu Shaohua, recalling her grandfather's wisdom about the Miracle Pills and his philosophy of self-reliance ("A man of honor always keeps striving, like heaven never stops moving"), vowed not to let the family legacy be sold.
She desperately tried to borrow money from neighbors, but only managed to secure a small sum. Soon after, a neighbor, Mrs. San, delivered news: Master Chen and Chen Dashun were coming the next day to discuss the marriage previously arranged by their grandfathers. Yan saw this as a lifeline, hoping the betrothal gifts could save Chu Shaozhong.
The next morning, as Yan tried to prepare a reluctant Chu Shaohua for the meeting, attempting to make her wear the old engagement bracelet, Master Chen and Chen Dashun arrived earlier than expected. Chen Dashun immediately recognized Chu Shaohua as the insightful woman from the market who saved him from buying fake goods, and was clearly pleased.
However, Master Chen, citing changing times and the younger generation's preference for free love, subtly tried to back out of the arrangement, expressing concerns about being entangled in the Chu family's current troubles. Yan, insistent, pleaded with him to finalize the marriage. Despite her efforts, Master Chen departed abruptly, leaving the family in despair.
Yan lashed out at Chu Shaohua, accusing her of deliberately sabotaging the marriage and of being selfish and ungrateful, while her mother tearfully begged her to save Chu Shaozhong. Unbeknownst to them, Chen Dashun confessed to his father his admiration for Chu Shaohua and her cleverness at the market, expressing a desire to marry her.
His father, while acknowledging Chu Shaohua's qualities, remained concerned about the financial burden of her family and decided to stall the marriage, hoping the Chu family would eventually withdraw. However, Chu Shaohua took matters into her own hands. She pursued Master Chen and Chen Dashun and proactively ended the engagement, returning the betrothal token. She eloquently explained that given the disparity in their families' fortunes, and to avoid future resentment, it was better to part ways.
She further instructed Master Chen not to yield to any demands from her mother or sister-in-law, clarifying that the breakup was her decision and that no compensation was expected. She even offered to handle her family if they persisted in their demands. When Master Chen offered financial assistance, Chu Shaohua politely declined, stating her father’s ruin and her brother’s recent troubles stemmed from easy money and unrealistic expectations, and that she would not accept unearned wealth.
Instead, she boldly requested a job, highlighting her skills in abacus, arithmetic, writing, and basic medicine. Impressed by her intelligence and integrity, Master Chen reconsidered. He not only re-affirmed the marriage but set the wedding date for the 18th of the fifth month, returning the betrothal token to Chu Shaohua. Later that night, Kang Erniu came to bid Chu Shaohua farewell.
She revealed she was eloping to Peking with Wu, who previously worked at Shouyuan Apothecary, explaining her earlier secretive behavior. Chu Shaohua expressed concern, warning her about the risks of leaving with someone she had only known for a month and the possibility of being let down. But Kang Erniu was resolute, admitting she was terrified of being trapped in her village, either beaten by her father or sold off as an old man’s concubine.
She saw eloping with Wu as her only chance to escape her fate and experience a different life, reminding Chu Shaohua of her own past fears of being confined. On the auspicious day of May 18th, as Chu Shaohua prepared for her wedding to Chen Dashun, her thoughts drifted to her childhood sweetheart, Xia Chu, Xia Yuan's younger brother. She remembered their secret vows and the whistle he had given her as a token.
He had encouraged her to pursue her dreams and promised to show her the outside world upon his return. However, news had arrived that Xia Chu, a revolutionary, had tragically died in an assassination attempt, blowing himself up. With a heavy heart, Chu Shaohua put away the whistle, a symbol of a past dream, and adorned herself with the bracelet from the Chen family, embracing her new reality.
