~ Rescue turned assassination & Big cage = freedom? ~
Synopsis:
The scene opens with Xiao Bai and Liu Feng sparring with bamboo sticks. Liu Feng easily unarms and wins Xiao Bai because he was distracted by his worry for Chun Hua. As they discussed the fact that many days had gone by without word from the spy, Chief Leng stops by to report that Qiu Yue was becoming suspicious and that they would have to put the plan on hold. That night, Xiao Bai impulsively went to Qian Yue Cave to look for Chun Hua and Liu Feng tagged along because he was worried. They arrive at the foggy lotus pond pavilion and split up to find the entrance to Qian Yue Cave. However, the both of them ended back at where they had separated and Xiao Bai had wanted to continue searching for Chun Hua but Liu Feng advised that they should return to Feng Ming Manor for now.
Ye Xing Zhu reports back to Qiu Yue that Chun Hua had been digging through her food as if she were looking for treasure. Gu Xing Zhu then enters the hall to report that there were groups of people camping out at Qian Yue Cave’s vicinity, adding that Chun Hua’s presence had put them directly at odds with Feng Ming Manor, commenting that it wasn’t favourable to them. Ye Xing Zhu promptly tells him off, saying that Qiu Yue had his own plans and that he shouldn’t interfere. After Gu Xing Zhu excused himself, Qiu Yue asked Ye Xing Zhu what she thought his plan was. She replies that Feng Ming Manor, Chuan Qi Valley and Qian Yue Cave had been in a standoff for too long. The good sects had suffered heavy losses from the Longevity Fruit auction event and Chun Hua was a good chess piece that could trigger a change. Qiu Yue narrowed his eyes at her as he told her in a firm voice that Chun Hua is his sister, not a chess piece.
It was soon time for breakfast and after checking that she was alone, Chun Hua dumped out her rice, finding another note. Before she could read it, Qiu Yue came looking for her and she quickly hid the note in her clothes. Qiu Yue suggested that they played a game of chess but when Chun Hua told him that she didn’t know how to play, Qiu Yue used the pieces as an analogy, with the black piece representing him and the white piece representing her. He told her that in order to be with the white piece, the black piece had racked his brains, thinking that if he confined the white piece, everything will be fine. However, the black piece soon realised that he was too different from the white piece and the more he tried, the more the white piece suffered. Chun Hua then asked if he had thought about what to do next. Clenching his fists, Qiu Yue replied that he didn’t know. After Qiu Yue left, Chun Hua reads the note which told her to meet at the lotus pond at 5-7am.
Later, Ye Xing Zhu reports to Qiu Yue that she had found poison in Chun Hua’s food that morning. Even though they still had no idea who the culprit was, Qiu Yue ordered for the servant that brought the food to Chun Hua to be killed.
That night, Chun Hua had a dream that Xiao Bai came to rescue her. Qiu Yue then appears and Xiao Bai stabs him. Chun Hua wakes up with a start, relief settling in when she realised it was just a dream. However, she soon finds herself tearing up uncontrollably and she is confused, feeling that she should be happy if Qiu Yue died, reminding herself that her husband is Xiao Bai.
Morning came around and Chun Hua headed to the lotus pond to meet with her rescuer but bumped into Gu Xing Zhu on the way. He watched her scurry away, commenting that the further she ran, the more confused Shang Guan Qiu Yue’s heart will be. Upon meeting Ling Yang, Chun Hua was immediately alarmed when he showed her a black chess piece. Just after she comments that the agreed signal was a white chess piece, Ling Yang wields his flute to attack her. Qiu Yue appears at that moment, shooting his hidden weapon to wrap around her waist and pull her away from danger. Instead of trying to attack or escape, Ling Yang plays a flurried tune on his flute but Qiu Yue soon has him in a choke hold, snapping his neck before throwing him into the lotus pond.
Qiu Yue tells Chun Hua that Ling Yang had been sent to kill her, telling her about her poisoned breakfast and showing her a note that said that the Longevity Fruit was with her at Qian Yue Cave. Hearing this, she insists on returning to Feng Ming Manor to thrash things out with Xiao Bai. Qiu Yue quickly knocks her out by hitting her acupuncture points and ordered Ye Xing Zhu to settle her into bed.
Back at Feng Ming Manor, a patrolling guard finds a body. After confirming with Chief Leng that the body was Ling Yang’s, they were all worried for Chun Hua. Cai Cai commented that now that the spy’s identity had been revealed, Qiu Yue will kill Chun Hua. Liu Feng interjects that if that were the case, there should be two bodies dumped there. Xiao Bai worries that Qiu Yue’s plan was to torment and humiliate her first. Chief Leng then makes a guess that Qiu Yue and Chun Hua must be accomplices because Ling Yang would know better than to expose himself before rescuing Chun Hua. Chun Hua must have betrayed them. Liu Feng speaks up for Chun Hua, saying that she was just a weak young lady and it was possible that she had been intimidated into it. Xiao Bai is angered but helpless, ending the debate by insisting that he would only hear it directly from Chun Hua.
Chun Hua wakes up in her room, only to find that she has a Ice Silkworm Thread tied to her wrist. Ye Xing Zhu explains that she was free to roam Qian Yue Cave and that the thread will ensure that she wouldn’t be taken away by someone else. Chun Hua mopes, opening the box that contained the Longevity Fruit and taking out two white chess pieces. Muttering to herself, she asked what Qiu Yue had experienced that he would call trapping her in Qian Yue Cave, freedom. Later, she goes to the lotus pond and coincidentally meets Qiu Yue there. She tells him that she would still be able to escape and wrestles with the thread, causing it to cut into her wrist. Qiu Yue brings her back to her room and heals her wound before telling her that she could go anywhere in Qian Yue Cave, which was much better than when he was young, where he had been locked alone in a cold place. Luckily, his captor had left him a Xin Fa incantation before leaving otherwise he might not even know how to speak. He then told her that he would never hurt her but Chun Hua responded with cynicism and disbelief, mocking the fact that there would be a time that he would be so pitiful. After taking advantage of her and holding her captive, he’s saying that he’s keeping her safe? She requested once more, to be allowed to return to Xiao Bai.
The Longevity Fruit is sent back to Feng Ming Manor and the four youngsters start to worry and speculate about what had happened – Why wasn’t Qiu Yue interested in the Longevity Fruit? – Had Chun Hua told him that it was a fake?
As Chun Hua was combing her hair in her room, Qiu Yue came and tried to help her but Chun Hua pushed him away, commenting that people would laugh if they saw Qian Yue Cave’s leader combing a lady’s hair. Qiu Yue comments that he would kill whoever dared to laugh. Frustrated, Chun Hua asked him why he doesn’t kill her? Was she still of any use to him?
Thoughts:
Firstly, the timeline is whack and I’m very confused.
Ling Yang was such a fail. Lol. The scene where Qiu Yue used his hidden weapon string thing to pull Chun Hua to safety was so beautiful! The way Chun Hua floated, the slow motion, it was so elegant.
Chun Hua digging through the food is too cute. The part where she dumped out the rice, I don’t know why but the little lump / ball of rice looked so cute as it fell out lol (timestamp 7:06 😂)
Also, Chun Hua is frustrating me…her body is definitely giving her signs that she likes Qiu Yue – crying after having a nightmare about Qiu Yue dying – but she’s ignoring them all! She says Xiao Bai is an emotionless block of wood?! I say she’s a whole tree! Did they not have relationships in Year 2169? Maybe humans rely on technology so much that things like romance are non-existant idk? but how can she be that oblivious?! Gahhh! She should still have some analytical thinking skills right? Like → Why am I crying? Because I’m sad. Why am I sad? Because Qiu Yue died. Why am I sad that Qiu Yue died? Because I don’t want him to die. Why don’t I want him to die? Because I’ve come to care for him. Ta-Dah! But noooo…she’s like “Xiao Bai is my husband.”
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♢ Lyrics for “Unfinished Moment” ♢
of Nutmegs and Kookies 