Jiang Changyang and His Majesty went on an undercover patrol and met Cheng Qing in a secluded area in the mountains. Initially, His Majesty intended to demote Cheng Qing to Luoyang in front of Prince Ning, but in reality, he wanted Cheng Qing to secretly investigate the corruption and favoritism in Luoyang. Cheng Qing did not disappoint and uncovered that the Chen family was embezzling money and seizing the people’s land in Luoyang. The Chen family’s influence extended to all six ministries, all backed by Prince Ning. Therefore, the Chen family knew Prince Ning inside out. To remove Prince Ning, the Chen family must first be dismantled. However, this requires finding the right opportunity and ensuring that Prince Ning has no chance to intervene. Meanwhile, Mudan was demoted to a lowly status in the military, facing starvation and constant disdain. Fortunately, a mute woman became her support, and together they often went to the hinterlands to forage for wild vegetables to survive. When Mudan found a toxic plant called Mao Geng, she warned the mute woman not to eat it.
As they were talking, they heard drums and whistles coming from the military camp. The mute woman showed a look of fear. It turned out that the camp was using lowly slaves as targets for new recruits to practice swordsmanship, which is how the mute woman’s sister died. Mudan narrowly escaped the massacre; sharp arrows only grazed her arm, while others were either pierced in the necks, dying instantly without a chance to see the light, or hit vital points, leading to swift deaths. Enraged, Mudan couldn’t help but scold the general for his callous disregard for human life. The general retorted that he was protecting the legitimate citizens, not these forged lowly slaves. Later, Mudan decided they couldn’t live in constant fear of being shot daily. She intentionally picked the poisonous Mao Geng and mixed it into the wild vegetables fed to the soldiers. That night, many soldiers in the camp were poisoned, writhing in pain.
Mudan carried detoxifying and emetic herbal medicine outside the barracks, asking who was suffering from stomach pain. Weak soldiers came out, barely alive, and begged for a bowl of the medicine. The camp’s physician discovered that Mudan was knowledgeable in herbal medicine; the concoction she made effectively induced vomiting. General Yuan realized that Mudan’s efforts to save others were no ordinary act. Seizing the opportunity, Mudan expressed her desire to survive, highlighting her knowledge of herbal medicine, literacy, and accounting skills, and stated she didn’t want to die at the hands of the new recruits enforcing military discipline. The physician and the new recruits pleaded on Mudan’s behalf, and eventually, General Yuan granted her request. His Majesty returned to Chang’an first. Meanwhile, Jiang Changyang and Chuan Yu lingered in Luoyang to eat the porridge Mudan had mentioned. They encountered an elderly man seeking his last bowl of porridge. From his words, Jiang Changyang recognized him as Mudan’s father and agreed to exchange a honey-coated roasted pastry for his final bowl of porridge.
Liu Chang was wholeheartedly concerned about rescuing Mudan from the military camp. However, the letter he wrote to her had already been intercepted by the county lord. Upon seeing the letter, the county lord became even more furious and was determined to ensure He Weifang’s death. Inside the camp, the officials fabricated a baseless charge to brutally kill the mute woman. Mudan covered the mute woman with her own clothes, believing that such a pitiful girl shouldn’t be left to roam the wilderness exposed. Later, Mudan was assigned to help in the kitchen, where she encountered soldiers with malicious intentions. She fought back desperately, causing those soldiers to suddenly fall ill, allowing Mudan to escape with her life. Jiang Changyang received a letter from Xu Jiu and Yun Niang informing him of Mudan’s situation. He immediately rushed to the military camp on horseback, nearly mistaking the body covered with Mudan’s clothes for hers. Fortunately, the girl was not He Weifang.
Upon arriving at the kitchen, Mudan had already escaped, and the new recruits she saved came to her aid, making Jiang Changyang’s arrival seem like the icing on the cake. Later, Jiang Changyang reprimanded General Yuan, realizing that he wouldn’t divulge the mastermind behind the events, who was the Lord of Ji’an County. Left with no choice, Jiang Changyang had General Yuan escorted to the Ministry of Personnel to await punishment. In reality, it wasn’t just luck that saved Mudan; the mute woman had overheard General Yuan’s intention to harm Mudan and risked her life to inform her, allowing Mudan to ingest the medicine beforehand. However, the mute woman was brutally killed. Jiang Changyang comforted Mudan and took her out of the military camp. As Mudan hesitated, she called out to Jiang Changyang from behind.
