Wild Ambition Bloom Episode 22 Recap
> Wild Ambition Bloom Recap
After Chu Shaohua claimed Wen Zhiqiu as her fiancé to avoid becoming Wang Guodong's eighth concubine, Wang Guodong pointed a gun at Wen Zhiqiu, threatening to make her fiancé "history" with one pull of the trigger. Chu Shaohua bravely stepped forward, telling Mr. Wang to come at her instead, as Wen Zhiqiu had nothing to do with it.
Enraged, Wen Zhiqiu declared to Wang Guodong that he could handle a loss of "a mere 20,000 silver dollars," implying he'd rather forfeit the seized medicine than let Chu Shaohua be degraded. Chu Shaohua tried to calm Wen Zhiqiu, asking what he was doing and if the matter concerned him. Wen Zhiqiu retorted that as her fiancé, it was his business, to which Chu Shaohua challenged if she had agreed to marry him.
Wen Zhiqiu angrily told her to shut up. Trying to de-escalate the tense situation, Chu Shaohua asked Wang Guodong for time to consider his offer, promising not to take too long. Wang Guodong, pleased, accepted the gold bars from Wen Zhiqiu, deeming them a wedding gift for Chu Shaohua and himself, which left Wen Zhiqiu speechless with fury. Kang Erniu expressed her shock and urged Chu Shaohua not to accept Wang Guodong's demand to become his eighth concubine.
She recounted a heartbreaking story of a seventeen-year-old girl from a film company who was tricked into becoming his sixth concubine. Once married, the girl faced relentless cruelty from Wang Guodong's first wife and constant infighting among the other concubines, making her life utterly miserable. Chu Shaohua confirmed her refusal but worried about Wang Guodong's determination to marry her.
To help, Kang Erniu offered to ask Mu Ziru to speak with Wang Guodong, believing his connections with the Qing Gang, who were "pretty tight with the police," might persuade Wang Guodong to drop the idea. Chu Shaohua thanked her, but Kang Erniu brushed it off as unnecessary between friends. Wen Zhiqiu discussed the situation with Xia Yuan, affirming his decision to forfeit the 20,000 silver dollars worth of medicine rather than capitulate to Wang Guodong's demands.
Chu Shaohua, present at the discussion, questioned why she, as the general manager, shouldn't be involved, pointing out the significant financial losses. Xia Yuan agreed with Wen Zhiqiu's concern about Wang Guodong, warning that Wang Guodong would not back down, as he had "destroyed whoever stood in his way" for "power and money." He suggested Chu Shaohua "lay low" in the Northwest, acknowledging that they had no better immediate solution.
However, Chu Shaohua was reluctant to leave Shanghai, where she had built her business, and was frustrated that Wen Zhiqiu was still using the "fiancé" excuse, especially when he claimed he wouldn't "live down the shame" if people thought he "sold my fiancée for profit." She adamantly declared she wasn't going to the Northwest. Meanwhile, Mu Ziru, at Kang Erniu's behest, went to lobby Wang Guodong. Wang Guodong was surprised by the "serious pull" that brought Mu Ziru to him.
Mu Ziru, appealing to Mr. Jin's sake, asked Wang Guodong to "let this one slide." Wang Guodong asked if Chu Shaohua was Mu Ziru's girlfriend, to which Mu Ziru replied she was a friend of his girlfriend. Wang Guodong then asserted his determination to "have her, no matter what," boasting that "every woman in Shanghai is within my reach."
He instructed Mu Ziru to tell Chu Shaohua that if she wanted to avoid the fate of Tang Yuelian, she should comply. He also sent a message to Wen Zhiqiu, stating his resolve to marry Chu Shaohua, regardless of who was sent to lobby him.
Despite Wen Zhiqiu's attempt to send Chu Shaohua to the Northwest on the pretext of a pharmaceutical deal, offering to abandon the seized medicine by stating "I can handle it," Chu Shaohua saw through his intentions, unwilling to lose the 20,000 silver dollars worth of product. Just as an invitation from Wang Guodong arrived for Chu Shaohua, Kang Erniu frantically urged her to flee, as Mu Ziru had already arranged an escape car and boat.
However, Wang Guodong had already sealed off all "waterways, roads, train stations, and docks" with police orders to capture her if she tried to escape. Chu Shaohua, disturbed by Wang Guodong's tactics, inquired about Tang Yuelian. Kang Erniu revealed that three years prior, Wang Guodong had set his sights on the student Tang Yuelian. When she refused his advances, he orchestrated her brutal assault by a gang of thugs, driving her to suicide out of shame.
The public believed it to be the work of common criminals, unaware that Wang Guodong was the "real mastermind." Kang Erniu added that while there were those who could take him down, they lacked the "guts or the will." Despite the danger, Chu Shaohua steadfastly refused to run. She explained that she had worked tirelessly to "build something here in Shanghai" and leaving now would mean "being left with nothing."
She also feared that her escape would lead Wang Guodong to target Wen's Pharmacy, Wen Zhiqiu, Mu Ziru, and Xia Yuan, going against "everything I stand for" by dragging "innocent people" into the conflict. Xia Yuan tried to reassure her that they could protect themselves, urging her to at least "lay low for a while," but Chu Shaohua remained resolute. When Wang Guodong explicitly stated that "only you're invited," Xia Yuan immediately recognized it as "a trap."
However, Chu Shaohua remained undeterred, proclaiming, "Since they've set the stage, we'll play along." Wen Zhiqiu, distraught, impulsively offered to go in her place and marry Wang Guodong, causing Kang Erniu and Xia Yuan to call him "insane" and warn him not to let anger guide him. Wen Zhiqiu even suggested, "Worst case, we'll die together."
Chu Shaohua argued that Wang Guodong was a "scumbag" "not worth risking our lives for," hinting at a larger strategy: "we can add fuel to the fire, and then pull the rug out from under him." Despite Xia Yuan's warning that she was "heading straight into danger," Chu Shaohua invoked the proverb, "Nothing ventured, nothing gained." Xia Yuan agreed that if they could "get what we want," it would be "worth the risk."
Chu Shaohua declared her final decision: she would not run, she would not be humiliated, she would not abandon their goods, nor accept "baseless accusations," and Wang Guodong would "face the end on his own." With Chu Shaohua's unwavering resolve confirmed, her friends reluctantly let her proceed. Against Wen Zhiqiu's suggestion to "Make her ugly" to deter Wang Guodong, Chu Shaohua instructed Kang Erniu to use "everything you've got" to "make me look my absolute best."
Before she departed, Wen Zhiqiu once again expressed his worry, urging her to change her mind. Chu Shaohua, however, was confident, assuring him that she knew how to "flip the board" and would "walk out with the last laugh." She revealed her ambition, stating her hope that "tonight won't be for nothing" as she had "come to an understanding" with a powerful figure, though he was "still weighing his options."
Xia Yuan, Wen Zhiqiu's partner, expressed his belief in Chu Shaohua and ensured their contingency plan was ready. Wen Zhiqiu had a gun ready, and he and Xia Yuan had stationed people around Wang's mansion. Their intricate plan involved Chu Shaohua smashing a window if in danger, triggering a power outage, a fire at the back door, gunshots, and a fake call about Jufeng Trading Corporation being robbed, all designed to create chaos for her escape.
Wen Zhiqiu even offered to rush in, gun blazing, if necessary, an idea Xia Yuan dismissed as "suicide." Chu Shaohua, witty even in danger, told Wen Zhiqiu, "you know what's scarier than death? Dying with you," before heading into the mansion. Upon arrival, a guard demanded an invitation, which Chu Shaohua presented. Inside, a servant attempted a "standard procedure" search. Chu Shaohua, declaring she was a "guest, not a prisoner," retorted, "Is this how Wang's Mansion always treats its guests?"
When the servant confirmed, "Always," Chu Shaohua threatened to "rather go home." Wang Guodong then appeared, remarking on her "temper," and, upon her insistence that a date shouldn't feel "like a lockdown," he made an exception, waiving the search. Chu Shaohua, in a display of confidence, removed her overcoat and handed it to a servant, assuring Wang Guodong that she wasn't carrying any weapons, even sarcastically asking if she should "keep going" and remove more clothes.
Wang Guodong quickly declined, inviting her to "come in." Outside, Wen Zhiqiu's anxiety grew, repeatedly checking the time, asking if dinner should be over, and lamenting, "I should have gone with her." Xia Yuan, also concerned, noted Wen Zhiqiu's unusual tension. Inside, Chu Shaohua found Wang Guodong's banquet fare and expensive wine "stuck in the past" and more suited for "a state banquet than a date."
Wang Guodong presented her with three plates of valuables, which she dismissed, stating she could earn "that much in a single year." She declared she would marry him without needing his money, perhaps even "throw in my entire net worth," but only on her terms. She stated she couldn't marry someone "who's not on the same level," demanding to "take a look at your assets" to determine if he was "worth trusting you with my life."
Wang Guodong agreed, leading her to a secret room brimming with treasures. Chu Shaohua, however, was drawn to a box of ledgers, asserting that while physical wealth was "dead assets," "only the money in the ledger is liquid," representing "your real wealth." Wang Guodong, initially hesitant because "my ledgers are a bit different from others" and seeing them would "bind her to me for life," eventually relented.
Chu Shaohua quickly scanned the ledgers, which detailed Wang Guodong's extensive opium smuggling operations under the Jufeng Trading Corporation. She confidently claimed she could "double your income last year" if she managed his accounts, attributing Wen's Pharmacy's rapid success to her joining "half a year ago." Wang Guodong, envisioning a partnership where he held "the power" and she made "the money," was thrilled and eager to proceed.
But Chu Shaohua introduced her final condition: she would be his "one and only legal wife," demanding he dismiss all his existing concubines and promise not to take any more. Wang Guodong angrily refused, calling it an "absolutely out of the question" demand. As Chu Shaohua turned to leave, Wang Guodong tried to stop her, accusing her of "pushing it." It was then that Chu Shaohua revealed she had poisoned his drink, dropping a pearl from her earring into it.
She calmly informed him that the poison was "about to kick in" and without the antidote within "half an hour," he "won't live to see tomorrow." A panicked Wang Guodong immediately ordered his guards to "Search this wretched woman and find the antidote!" Chu Shaohua scoffed, asking if they expected her to carry the antidote. She declared she had "hidden it somewhere safe" and "no one knows where it is" but her.
When Wang Guodong threatened her with a gun, she defiantly told him, "In 29 minutes, we'll meet in the underworld." With time ticking down, Wang Guodong, desperately ill, was forced to let her go. Outside, Wen Zhiqiu, consumed by worry, was moments away from storming the mansion. Xia Yuan tried to reason with him, asking if he would be "saving her or putting her in more danger."
Just as Wen Zhiqiu was about to rush in, Chu Shaohua emerged safely, and Wen Zhiqiu instinctively rushed to embrace her. Back inside, Wang Guodong summoned Dr. Tang, who was unable to administer treatment without knowing the specific poison. With only "three minutes" left, Wang Guodong despaired, believing he was going to die. Just then, a servant arrived with a package from Chu Shaohua containing a hawthorn berry. Wang Guodong devoured it.
He also read a note from Chu Shaohua, thanking him for the hospitality and declaring it "a lovely evening." Wang Guodong, surprised and impressed by her audacity, muttered, "Didn't expect that. Really impressive." Chu Shaohua and Xia Yuan met with Mr. Lu to discuss taking down Wang Guodong. Mr. Lu immediately recognized Chu Shaohua, recalling how she helped him "win back those three chips" at a casino a year prior.
Chu Shaohua presented a detailed account of Wang Guodong's illicit finances, revealing that his Jufeng Trading Corporation had accumulated approximately 23 million silver dollars in profit from opium smuggling between last year and October of the current year. She provided specific dates and amounts of large transfers, including monthly payments to an account codenamed "Wendao," 350,000 pounds sterling remitted to Carlowitz & Co. on March 13th, and 830,000 US dollars transferred under Mr. Sassoon's name on June 22nd.
Initially skeptical of an "outsider" having such private information and recalling "that many numbers out of thin air," Mr. Lu's doubts were dispelled when Xia Yuan vouched for Chu Shaohua's capabilities. Mr. Lu then confirmed that his own intelligence corroborated her findings, noting that 23 million silver dollars was "enough to outfit three full divisions."
He deduced that "Wendao should be Qi Fuwan" and that the transfers corresponded to Wang Guodong's purchases of "7,000 rifles from Carlowitz & Co., and picked up five cannons from Sassoon." Challenged by Chu Shaohua if this information was "enough for you to make an immediate decision," Mr. Lu agreed to assist. His condition, however, was that Chu Shaohua "stay close to Wang Guodong" to lay the groundwork and wait for "the right moment" to strike.
Chu Shaohua accepted, sealing the "deal." Curious, Mr. Lu asked Chu Shaohua about her gambling strategy from a year ago. She explained it as a "game of probability," where doubling the bet after each loss ensures that one win covers all previous losses and yields a profit.
When Mr. Lu questioned her previous statement about the house being the real winner, she elucidated with an analogy: her 'Guanpu' sales tactic at a department store, where people would pay five jiao for a chance to win a ten-dollar pen, but often ended up with a cheap eraser, ultimately making the store the "real winner."
Impressed by her intellect, Mr. Lu remarked that her current role as a pharmacy manager felt like "a waste of talent," to which Chu Shaohua agreed, stating, "This is just the start."
Upon learning that Chu Shaohua had to "keep dealing with Wang Guodong" as per Mr. Lu's condition, Wen Zhiqiu, fearing for her safety, insisted she move into his home in the French Concession, a place where "even if Wang Guodong is full of himself, he wouldn't dare come here for you." Chu Shaohua accepted his offer of a room, then asked where he would sleep. He replied, "Next to you.
On the sofa," admitting that he hadn't wanted to "freak her out" by "blurting it all out." He then confessed, "I've been thinking maybe I'm falling for you." Chu Shaohua, however, dismissed his confession, stating she was "worn out" and needed to rest before retreating to her room. Wen Zhiqiu prepared a lavish dinner for Chu Shaohua, proudly stating, "It's your first time here. Of course I'm going to treat you right."
Chu Shaohua praised his cooking and his thoughtful nature, but teased him about being "too caught up in money" and encouraged him to find a girlfriend. Wen Zhiqiu turned the tables, probing if she had ever considered a "real relationship" and wondered if he would ever meet someone who "sees money as nothing." Chu Shaohua responded playfully, promising a "generous gift" and dinner if he ever did.
Wen Zhiqiu offered Chu Shaohua a dish made by the landlady, and she acknowledged its decent taste, though not as good as her own cooking. When he asked if she could cook, she confirmed, mentioning she "used to cook for my whole family." Wen Zhiqiu then pressed her, asking if she was "running from what you've been through, who you used to know, or maybe from the person you used to be," directly asking, "It was your husband, wasn't it?"
Clearly uncomfortable, Chu Shaohua abruptly ended the conversation, stating she was "tired" and wanted to rest, thanking him for dinner and leaving him alone. The next morning, a knock on the door startled them. Chu Shaohua stopped Wen Zhiqiu from answering, and Wang Guodong let himself in. Wen Zhiqiu immediately confronted him, reminding him that he was in the "French Concession" and "trespassing could land you in jail."
Wang Guodong, unconcerned, declared he was there for "answers" regarding the previous night's incident. Chu Shaohua, understanding the gravity, asked Wen Zhiqiu to "give us a little space." Wen Zhiqiu firmly refused, asserting, "This is my home. You're my fiancée. And you want me to leave?" After a brief argument, Chu Shaohua forcibly pushed him out, assuring him she could handle the situation and that she was trying "to protect you."
Wen Zhiqiu, still worried, agreed to wait outside the door, offering his pistol, but Chu Shaohua declined it. Wang Guodong's men then escorted Wen Zhiqiu, with Wang Guodong instructing them to "take care of Mr. Wen." Chu Shaohua politely offered Wang Guodong tea, but he simply replied, "Anything will do." When Wang Guodong asked for a cigarette, Wen Zhiqiu saw an opportunity to leave, stating he would go downstairs to buy a pack. Wang Guodong instructed his subordinates to "Follow him."
