Luo Shu wants to discover the cause of the fire that destroyed her home years ago and killed her parents. Qi Menglin does his utmost to help her. Luo Shu opens her heart to him and recounts in detail her tragic childhood. She was sold by “Re Yazi” to the Qin family, and Qin Yi took her in. However, the steward did not want her because she was very young and weak. Even though Qin Yi pleaded on her behalf, nothing came of it. The Fifth Concubine (Wu Yiniang), however, took a liking to Luo Shu and taught her music, calligraphy, painting, etiquette, and needlework. Shortly after, the Fifth Concubine left the Qin family for Mingke Fang, forcing Luo Shu to go with her. Luo Shu did not want to leave and begged Qin Yi to intervene, but he ignored her and even drove both the Fifth Concubine and Luo Shu out of the Qin family.
Luo Shu always regarded Qin Yi as an older brother, but he exploited her trust to bring down the Fifth Concubine, and from then on, she resented him. Some time later, Qin Yi became the head of the Qin family and went in person to Mingke Fang in Linfen to bring Luo Shu back, explaining that back then he had no other choice. Still, Luo Shu refused. After hearing this story, Qi Menglin is very moved and advises Luo Shu to forget her unpleasant past.
Early in the morning, Luo Shu goes to see Uncle Guo and Aunt Guo, hoping they might know something about the people who came after the fire asking questions about her family. They do not recognize those individuals. Uncle Guo recalls that on the day of the fire, Luo Shu’s father went to the Changsheng gambling den and won a lot of money, then bought chicken, duck, and fish to celebrate. Meanwhile, Qi Menglin heads to the barracks to ask the armory chief about the whereabouts of “stone lacquer” (shiqi) from thirteen years earlier. The man pretends to know nothing and tells Qi Menglin to see Governor Qi for approval.
Lian Qi has been following Qi Menglin all this time and had already arranged for the armory chief to keep the truth hidden. Uncle Guo and Aunt Guo also lie to Luo Shu: their son is under the Qi family’s control, and they have no choice. Luo Shu goes to the Changsheng gambling den and asks the owner directly. He’s about to tell her everything when suddenly a group of constables appears and arrests him without explanation.
Qi Menglin rushes home and tries to get help from his eldest brother, but only gets scolded. His second brother, Qi Yanjin, sides against him, warning him not to barge into the barracks or investigate old cases for Luo Shu. Luo Shu comes looking for Qi Menglin for help. He suspects that the Taiyuan authorities arrested the gambling den owner, so he takes her to see Sun Qian, the son of the Taiyuan prefect.
Once Sun Qian hears Qi Menglin’s story, he takes them both to the government office. They discover that Zhao Naixian dispatched the constables to the gambling den after receiving fifty taels of silver from a drinking companion to carry out the arrest. Qi Menglin and Luo Shu return to the gambling den, but the owner is still missing. They are about to leave when an employee receives a dart-delivered message asking for help. Sun Qian arrives in time with more constables and rescues the owner.
Luo Shu presses the owner to tell them what happened thirteen years ago. He recalls a regular patron who brought Luo Qingfeng to gamble; Luo Qingfeng won a lot of money and died that very night in the fire. The owner does not know who that patron was—he only remembers the man’s physical appearance.
Luo Shu returns to her room, and a worker brings her her favorite butter pastries, claiming that Qi Menglin ordered them. Qi Menglin then arrives and picks one up to eat. Luo Shu finds it suspicious and tests it with a silver hairpin, discovering it is poisoned. The more she thinks about it, the more suspect it seems. Qi Menglin agrees—it suggests that someone in his own family might be tied to the fire at Luo Shu’s home. Luo Shu believes Qin Yi is very suspicious. Qi Menglin swears to help her learn the truth, and the two devise a plan to “lure the snake out of its hole.”
Qi Menglin tells Lian Shu to prepare a carriage and orders two attendants to accompany Luo Shu to Fahua Temple, making a point of speaking loudly. As soon as Luo Shu arrives at the temple by carriage, someone tries to attack her from behind, but Qi Menglin catches him in the act and pressures him to reveal who is behind it. He refuses to talk. Then Luo Shu spots someone on the mountain and sets off in pursuit with Qi Menglin. The person flees in panic and ends up falling into a trap. Qi Menglin recognizes him as Lian Qi, who is close to Qi Yanjin.
Qin Yi presents Qi Yanjin with an incredibly valuable jade piece called a “jue.” Qi Yanjin is delighted. Seizing the opportunity, Qin Yi demands that year’s salt license and produces one hundred thousand taels of silver, proposing a future 30–70 profit split. Qi Yanjin makes excuses to put him off. Qin Yi threatens him, but Qi Yanjin remains unruffled and reminds him not to harm Qi Menglin.
Qi Menglin returns with Lian Qi to confront Qi Yanjin, insisting that Qi Yanjin tried to poison Luo Shu and then sent someone to assassinate her. Qi Yanjin denies it, saying he only ordered Lian Qi to follow her because he did not trust her. Qin Yi eavesdrops outside, smiling in a sinister way. Not wanting Qi Menglin to be implicated, Luo Shu hurries off to pack her belongings. Xuezhu rushes to find Qi Menglin and sees Qin Yi outside listening at the door; she goes straight in to tell Qi Menglin.
Qin Yi leaves in annoyance. Qi Menglin wants to stop Luo Shu from leaving, but Qi Yanjin holds him back and advises him to stay away from her. Qi Menglin only cares about Luo Shu and, in frustration, declares he will leave with her. Unable to dissuade him, Qi Yanjin finally promises to help investigate the Luo family fire and the death of Luo Shu’s parents.
Qin Yi intercepts Luo Shu and offers to help her uncover the truth, but she ignores him. Lian Shu settles Luo Shu in an inn and assigns guards to protect her, though Qi Menglin remains uneasy.
