~ Chun Hua leaves Qiu Yue + What is wrong with Xiao Bai? ~
Synopsis:
Back at Feng Ming Manor, after Xiao Bai clarifies that Chun Hua wasn’t hurt, he questioned Liu Feng as to why he hadn’t kidnapped her, asking whether Qiu Yue was still alive and by her side. When Cai Cai assured him that Chun Hua was alone, Xiao Bai turned to her and raised his voice, asking how she could lie to him too, insisting to go in search of Chun Hua that very moment. Because Xiao Bai still had to rest and recuperate, Liu Feng stops him and promises to bring Chun Hua in front of him within three days. However, Xiao Bai reacted impulsively and pushed him away with his sword, stunning both Liu Feng and Cai Cai. When he realised what he had just done, Xiao Bai vocalises his thoughts, telling them that it was weird how he had been so worried for Chun Hua but once he knew that she was alright, all he wanted to do was to kill her. His eyes then turned red again as he said that even though they couldn’t be together in life, they will be together in death, Chun Hua would be buried at the Xiao family’s ancestral grave. Cai Cai was standing behind Xiao Bai and quickly knocks him out with the hilt of her sword. At that moment, Leng Ning enters the room and tells them that the medicine’s components had been analysed and there was indeed something wrong with it. There was an additional herb of monkshood, which has the properties of dispelling the cold and relieving pain. It would’ve been alright for normal people to take it but Xiao Bai’s Feng Ming Sword used Pure Yang vital energy and with the added factor that his vital energy was currently roaring, it will be akin to adding oil to fire if he continued to take the medicine. As such, Pu Er and Li Yu have now landed on their suspect list. After that, Liu Feng tells the two girls that Qiu Yue had abducted Chun Hua.
Liu Feng later returns to Ba Xian Residence and in a bid to test Pu Er’s reaction, tells him about Xiao Bai’s strange behaviour. Pu Er had anticipated Liu Feng’s return and had personally prepared the herbs for the calming medicine. Liu Feng then asked him for a prescription so they could make more of the medicine themselves and Pu Er quickly writes it down for him. As Liu Feng leaves, a scowl appears on Pu Er’s face.
Liu Feng returns to Feng Ming Manor and discusses the situation with Cai Cai and Leng Ning. They are all under the impression that Qiu Yue was the one behind Xiao Bai’s current condition and had leaked news of the rebellion in Qian Yue Cave and his missing status because they had gotten close to finding out who Mr Shi was. They then decide that uncovering Mr Shi’s identity was of utmost importance and Liu Feng tells them that he will return to Ba Xian Residence once more.
Back at Qian Yue Cave, Chun Hua elaborates that Ye Xing Zhu had thought that she had killed Gu Xing Zhu but he had survived. Qiu Yue tells her to trust him because Gu Xing Zhu’s motives for telling her all this wouldn’t be that simple but Chun Hua corrects him – she didn’t believe Gu Xing Zhu but she believed her own experiences, he had made use of her before. Qiu Yue attempts to change the subject and calm her down, saying that she was very useful, she had taught him about the mid-autumn festival and about mooncakes. She was very cute and could make him smile, she had a lot of tricks that he could’ve never thought of and she took care of him when he was injured. With a foreign coldness in her eyes, Chun Hua narrates to him everything that he had done.
First, he had gotten her to infiltrate Feng Ming Manor to steal the Xin Fa. When Qiu Yue tried to protest that he had stopped it later, Chun Hua retorted that it was only because Xiao Bai had learned the last move and he didn’t need it anymore.
Second, he had allowed her to get kidnapped to Chuan Qi Valley to test if Fu Lou’s weakness was indeed You Si.
Third, on the day of the Longevity Fruit auction, he had kidnapped her to Qian Yue Cave, causing Xiao Bai’s attention to be diverted, resulting in the many deaths when the auction spun out of control. Qiu Yue once again tried to explain that he had only wanted to test Xiao Bai but his words fell on deaf ears.
Fourth, he had used Pu Gong Ying to kill Chief Feng and almost caused Cai Cai’s death. Chun Hua shoots down Qiu Yue’s denial, exclaiming that he had the antidote with him and besides, who else would have been able to create that poison?
Fifth, he was the one who had instructed Mr Shi to release the ‘Book of Sins’ which caused Fu Lou and You Si’s death. After that, he still wasn’t satisfied and used it to break apart her and Xiao Bai, adding that Xiao Bai returning the Stone Lotus must’ve been part of his plan too. Chun Hua had started to cry and when Qiu Yue took a step towards her, she took a step back, maintaining the distance between them. Qiu Yue then explains that the book was just a public letter and that he wanted her to leave Xiao Bai because he liked her, adding that he won’t lie to her anymore because he wants to be with her, promising to treat her well. Chun Hua refuses to listen to what he was saying, retorting that she was just a chesspiece and when Qiu Yue denied it and reminded her of the reason he had gotten severely injured during the rebellion, Chun Hua brushed it off as a trick of his to win her heart. Unable to get through to her, Qiu Yue decides to show her something.
He brought her back into the Ice Gorge, telling her that only the leader of Qian Yue Cave will know about this place but that she wasn’t the first outsider to be there. Many years ago, Nan Xing He had a secret passage constructed after he had stumbled across this place and later invited his sworn brother, Xiao Min. When Nan Xing He later found out that Xiao Min was a spy, he didn’t kill him. Qiu Yue paused his story, commenting that with such a moral standing, didn’t it surpass that of the current good sect? Then, with the ruse of a negotiation with the good sects, Xiao Min had back-stabbed Nan Xing He. Nan Xing He was thirty three when he died, along with his young son and hundred thousands of Xing Yue Religion disciples. Qiu Yue then threw her a question, asking what she would define as good or evil. Chun Hua replies that good would be helping the common people and evil would be massacring people wilfully. Qiu Yue then asked what she would consider the good sect killing so many Xing Yue Religion disciples and Chun Hua replied that it was good because she assumes that the evil sect must’ve done lots of evil. Qiu Yue then explains that ‘evil sect’ was just a title that the good sect leader gave to the sects who refused to follow him, adding that Nan Xing He had just wanted to live a carefree life. Chun Hua also ignores this point, saying that Nan Xing He was really powerful and Jianghu would’ve been in danger if he couldn’t be controlled.
Chun Hua recalls that there was a hidden poem behind a hanging scroll in the Xiao family ancestral hall, supporting the fact that Xiao Min hadn’t forgotten about his sworn brother. When Chun Hua comments that unlike his cunning and ruthless ways, the good sects wouldn’t harm the innocent if there was no need, Qiu Yue points out Nan Xing He’s young son and You Si, asking if they were innocent or if they needed to die. He then tells her that they (Xing Yue Religion? or Qian Yue Cave?) could’ve been good sects but they weren’t given the chance to. When Qiu Yue tried to explain that he was just trying to create more order in Jianghu so that they could live carefree and peaceful lives like she wanted, Chun Hua sarcastically questioned if what meant was that he had made use of her for her own good. Sensing that he had lost his Chun Hua, Qiu Yue becomes desperate and promised to listen to her and slowly change his ways, telling her that if she resented him that much, she should also make use of him – make use of him to keep her safe. Chun Hua instead requests that he let her go.
Qiu Yue leads Chun Hua out of the Ice Gorge and in one last attempt to change her mind, he tells her that the world was dangerous and he wouldn’t be there to protect her anymore. Chun Hua instead tells him that once she left, she wouldn’t be associated with Qian Yue Cave anymore, promising that she wouldn’t set him up and asking that he not make use of her in any of his schemes. Qiu Yue agrees with a look of resignation.
Ye Xing Zhu returns to Qian Yue Cave only to be met by Gu Xing Zhu at the entrance. She immediately draws her sword at him and in contrast to her cold demeanour, Gu Xing Zhu smiles weakly as he tells her that he had helped her to eliminate a thorn in her flesh. Ignoring her demands to tell her what he had done, Gu Xing Zhu instead tells her that he wouldn’t let her end up like him – with an unrequited love – before impaling himself on the sword she held towards him. Ye Xing Zhu was shocked speechless as Gu Xing Zhu reminisces the first time he had seen her (right there at the entrance of Qian Yue Cave), collapsing to the ground before he could finish his words.
As Qiu Yue and Chun Hua approach the entrance of Qian Yue Cave, they see Ye Xing Zhu and seeing Qiu Yue’s response, Chun Hua quickly tells him not to hurt her. Qiu Yue tells her that since she was leaving, she didn’t have a say anymore, adding that she could have a say only if she stayed behind with him. Chun Hua refuses. Ye Xing Zhu fell to her knees in apology upon seeing Qiu Yue but when she tries to explain, Qiu Yue cuts her off and angrily gathers his powers. Chun Hua quickly stopped him, telling him that Ye Xing Zhu was the only person he had left right now. Qiu Yue scoffs at this, telling her that he had always been alone. In the past, he still had her but now even she was leaving him. Qiu Yue soon turns his attention back to Ye Xing Zhu, bringing up her late arrival during the rebellion and Chun Hua quickly defends her again, bringing to his attention that she could’ve been with the rebels too – she was the one who had caused him to end up severely injured afterall. Before sending Chun Hua away, Qiu Yue tells Ye Xing Zhu to think of how she would convince him (that she wasn’t on the rebel’s side?).
Thoughts:
If my understanding of the timeline is correct, Qiu Yue was born wayyy after Nan Xing He died but the way Qiu Yue referred to him and the sadness in his eyes when he spoke about Nan Xing He…felt like he was speaking about someone close to him, like maybe his father…? Which isn’t possible? So why was Qiu Yue so emotional when talking about Nan Xing He?! Hm…
Qiu Yue’s expressions in this episode are heartbreaking…I don’t know anymore. I’ve seen the interviews and Hong Yi (Qiu Yue) mentions that he only cries at the end but I’m already wrecked by this episode so when he does cry, I’m pretty sure I’ll be done for. Also, I was outside when I watched the part where Qiu Yue was pleading with Chun Hua to stay, and do you know how many times I had to pause the video to collect myself?!
What makes it worse (at least for me, because I want to reach into my screen and shout the following points at Chun Hua) is that I can rationalise away all the five points that Chun Hua mentioned. For the first two points (Xin Fa & Chuan Qi Valley), it was right at the start and Qiu Yue was still in denial about his feelings for Chun Hua. For the third and fifth point (Auction & Book), nothing would’ve happened if it were not for the good sect’s greed in acquiring the Longevity Fruit. Meaning, if the good sects were actually good people, the deaths wouldn’t have happened. Like Qiu Yue had previously told Chun Hua, the more someone liked to make a clear distinction between good and evil, the more you have to be careful whether they have a layer of dust in their heart. Greed was the dust in many of the good sect’s hearts and they were willing to do anything to get what they wanted, even drawing their swords at each other. Qiu Yue wasn’t lying when he had tried to explain to Chun Hua that he was just trying to create order in Jianghu. As for the fourth point (Pu Gong Ying), we all know that Chief Leng was the one who had killed Chief Feng and the poison had been stolen from Qiu Yue’s secret room by Gu Xing Zhu. (and he had the cheek to tell Chun Hua it was Qiu Yue)
I was so shook when Gu Xing Zhu stabbed himself. Like…I didn’t expect that at all. Till the end, he still loved Ye Xing Zhu and did everything he could for her. From Ye Xing Zhu’s expressions, I think that even though she doesn’t return his feelings, she sees him as a friend/acquaintance of sorts and despite her harsh words, she had no intention to kill him.
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♢ Lyrics for “Unfinished Moment” ♢
of Nutmegs and Kookies 
Thanks for your recap. I’ve been reading it since the drama’s translation in Viki is so hard to understand the nuances. I think all the gaslighting that QY did is coming back to bite him. You can’t forget how he lied to her again and again. If he was evil, we would be screaming at CH for being stupid. Agree with you about LHY’s acting. Right after CH tells him that there was no future, you can see his desperation as the tears welled in his eyes. You can really feel his pain.
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