Young Blood Episode 35 Recap
> Young Blood Recap
Yuan Zhongxin questioned why Prince Zhao would approve of Lin Mosheng. Xiaojing explained that despite his unappealing appearance, Lin Mosheng was the esteemed president of Binzhou's Chamber of Commerce, considered both young and accomplished. When Zhao Jian met Prince Zhao and Lin Mosheng alone, Lin Mosheng presented her with an expensive golden hairpin. Despite her strong dislike for him, Zhao Jian reluctantly accepted Prince Zhao’s suggestion to accompany Lin Mosheng for a flower viewing.
From outside, Xiaojing wondered why Yuan Zhongxin didn’t intervene, unaware of Yuan Zhongxin’s affection for Zhao Jian and his personal belief that he was not worthy of her. During their outing, Lin Mosheng made unwanted physical advances toward Zhao Jian. However, Zhao Jian’s formidable martial arts skills swiftly put an end to his attempts, leaving him battered on the ground.
Lin Mosheng had even arranged for an ambush of guards, but Zhao Jian easily dispatched them all before giving him a thorough beating. Yuan Zhongxin soon found himself restrained by Prince Zhao's household staff. The Prince confronted Yuan Zhongxin, explaining his actions. Worried for Zhao Jian’s future after he is gone, he had been desperate to find her a husband.
Knowing she fancied Yuan Zhongxin, whom he deemed unsuitable, he chose Lin Mosheng hoping to divert her affections, but was disappointed by both Lin’s character and Zhao Jian’s complete rejection of him. The Prince admitted that he had orchestrated the letter from Wang Kuan and Xiaojing to summon Yuan Zhongxin, having noticed how much happier Zhao Jian had been since his arrival. He then pressed Yuan Zhongxin to be truthful about his feelings.
Yuan Zhongxin confessed his affection for Zhao Jian, which pleased Prince Zhao. He then laid out terms for marriage, including Yuan Zhongxin residing in his mansion and not restricting Zhao Jian’s ambitions. Yuan Zhongxin, however, stated he could not marry her. The Prince attempted to negotiate, even suggesting their child could bear the Zhao surname, but Yuan Zhongxin remained firm, explaining that he felt Zhao Jian was out of his league.
Prince Zhao dismissed this as inferiority due to Yuan Zhongxin's background, but Yuan Zhongxin clarified that his reluctance stemmed from a fear that marrying her could endanger her life. A shocked Prince Zhao questioned if Yuan Zhongxin was planning a rebellion, to which Yuan Zhongxin insisted his reasons were complex and confidential. He promised to return for Zhao Jian after settling his affairs, should she still be unmarried, though he admitted he didn't know how long that would take.
Zhao Jian, who had been listening from outside the room, then entered. Feigning ignorance of their conversation, she asked what they were discussing. Yuan Zhongxin quickly deflected, claiming they were merely discussing the weather, and asked why she had returned so soon from her flower viewing. Zhao Jian then revealed she had beaten Lin Mosheng, explaining his malicious behavior. A servant arrived with a letter from Lin Mosheng.
The Prince, enraged, read that Lin Mosheng intended to participate in the upcoming engagement civil examination to win Zhao Jian’s hand. Prince Zhao explained that he had established this examination for worthy suitors to compete for Zhao Jian’s hand, but he was furious that Lin Mosheng, despite his recent misdeeds, dared to participate. Zhao Jian explained that Lin Mosheng was threatening to spread rumors damaging her reputation if he was denied the opportunity.
She proposed letting him compete, confident that his incompetence would ensure his failure, thus discrediting him. The next day, during the engagement examination, Lin Mosheng attempted to cheat by having a network of scholars in the backyard relay answers through a bribed servant. Xiaojing, observing this, promptly exposed his scheme, leading to his immediate disqualification. Yuan Zhongxin, who also participated, completed all his answers.
When Prince Zhao declared Yuan Zhongxin the winner based on his perfect score and urged him to marry Zhao Jian, she intervened. Zhao Jian unexpectedly disqualified Yuan Zhongxin, revealing that the answers he submitted were actually hers, secretly provided to him by Prince Zhao. She explained she had deliberately included errors to ensure her father would not simply marry her off against her will. Prince Zhao, surprised by her cunning, was left to ponder her true motives.
Later, Yuan Zhongxin confronted Zhao Jian, articulating his understanding that her true motive for sabotaging the marriage process was to maintain her father’s will to live by giving him a reason to worry about her future. Zhao Jian confirmed his deduction, expressing surprise at his perceptiveness. Yuan Zhongxin suggested this was not a sustainable long-term solution.
Zhao Jian then playfully challenged Yuan Zhongxin to consider marrying her as a "try" to see her father's reaction, but Yuan Zhongxin quickly refused, still constrained by his unrevealed personal difficulties. Yuan Zhongxin was later attacked by Lin Mosheng's henchmen, who admitted Lin Mosheng had ordered the assault. The furious Prince Zhao vowed to kill Lin Mosheng, but Yuan Zhongxin suggested they discreetly beat him to teach him a lesson.
Before they could act, Zhao Jian arrived with shocking news: Lin Mosheng and all his guards had been found dead, seemingly by bladed weapons. At the Lin mansion, they found everyone killed by a single, precise strike to the throat. Imperial guards then presented Liang Zhu as the murderer. Liang Zhu explained that after his previous attack, he had been tracking the mysterious military personnel.
He found them at the Lin mansion, already in the act of killing Lin Mosheng and his guards. He then engaged and killed the two military personnel himself. Yuan Zhongxin inspected the bodies of the two "military personnel" and discovered hidden poisons, realizing they were not ordinary soldiers but secret agents. Zhao Jian noted that one of Lin Mosheng’s guards was missing, suggesting he might hold crucial information about the murders. The Seven Sages gathered to discuss the escalating situation.
Wang Kuan revealed that numerous beggars and rogues in the market had also been found dead, all killed with the same single-strike method, leading them to suspect a connection to Lin Mosheng's death. Believing the secret agents' ultimate target might be Prince Zhao's mansion, Wang Kuan instructed Yuan Zhongxin to remain and guard Zhao Jian.
Back at the mansion, Yuan Zhongxin learned that someone had once again torn down the marriage recruitment notice, passed the examination, and left a mysterious sand table as a gift for Zhao Jian. Zhao Jian was clearly fascinated by this gift and the anonymous sender, which stirred a sense of jealousy in Yuan Zhongxin. Later, Prince Zhao once more pressed Yuan Zhongxin to marry Zhao Jian, emphasizing that he would cancel any other engagements if Yuan Zhongxin agreed.
Yuan Zhongxin, however, steadfastly refused, reiterating his conviction that marrying her would inevitably lead to her death. He acknowledged that if Zhao Jian eventually found another suitable partner, it would simply be his destiny. Yuan Zhongxin and Zhao Jian pursued multiple lines of inquiry into the murders. They investigated Lin Mosheng’s mansion, finding his account books filled with routine market reports, indicating his legitimate business dealings but offering no immediate insight into why he was targeted.
They also sought information on the missing guard from the leader of the local beggar community, a young boy. Zhao Jian discovered that Yuan Zhongxin had previously paid the boy to secretly report on her activities. The boy informed them that the missing guard, named Li Zhen, was seen heading to the eastern region, likely to acquire false identification to flee Binzhou.
During their investigation, Xue Ying reported a startling connection: the same beggar leader had entered the Wuwei Army camp using a military token. Following up on the lead from the boy, Yuan Zhongxin and Zhao Jian visited a master of false documents. They coerced the master into revealing that Li Zhen had indeed procured a false pass and family register under the name "Lu Fei" a short while ago.
