Episode 13

Peony went out of the city to pick peony flowers and did not return until it was already late.Unexpectedly, on the way back, she accidentally bumped into Jiang Changyang, the flower and bird envoy, who was killing Xu Zuping of the Imperial Academy.After returning home, Mudan was so frightened and caught in the rain that she fell ill and stayed in bed for three days before she gradually recovered.However, from then on, she was often awakened by nightmares, in which Jiang Changyang was like a murderous demon and Xu Jijiu died tragically under his knife.

Wenqing's cousin worked in the Imperial College. When Mudan went to visit, he mentioned that he had met Xu Jijiu once and hoped to go in to express his condolences.Under the leadership of Li Yun, Mudan entered the condolence scene, and she was surprised to find that so many people respected Xu Jijiu.And Jiang Changyang, the murderer, came to express condolences on behalf of the saint, crying heartbreakingly.But when Mudan thought of Jiang Changyang's ruthlessness that rainy night, she became full of doubts about his sad performance.

Mudan learned from others that Jiang Changyang was once a student of Xu Jijiu, but since he gained the favor of the saint, Xu Jijiu had become increasingly alienated from him.Mudan recalled that when she was in Luoyang, the smooth reconciliation was all thanks to Jiang Changyang's help.Now, she knew that if the truth about Xu Jijiu's death was revealed, Jiang Changyang would never let her go.Therefore, she decided to remain silent.However, the fear of Jiang Changyang followed her closely, and she was eager to make money as soon as possible and move out of the backyard of Jiang's house.

Now, she was careful even when she went to Jiang's house to take care of Qiongtai Yulu. She only went when Jiang Changyang was not around, and she no longer had the joy and laughter of the past.Jiang Changyang noticed something strange about Mudan, went to find her specifically, and took out the clothes and fabrics found on the rainy night as evidence.But Mudan firmly denied that she had anything to do with it.

On the day of mourning for Xu Jijiu, Jiang Changyang saw He Weifang and asked Chuanyu to investigate her identity.After learning that Li Yun, the director of the Imperial College, was He Weifang's cousin, He Weifang quickly explained to Jiang Changyang, emphasizing that he was just a commoner who wanted to make a living.Jiang Changyang seemed to have dispelled his suspicion, but his words before leaving contained a threatening tone.

Soon after, Huamanzhu opened, and the front door was bustling with people.Shengyi planned to use the money he earned to redeem Mudan's mother's relics and return them to Mudan.Liu Chang asked Ying to go to control the flood, but King Ning refused.Later, he discovered that King Ning had never read his plan for flood control, and instead had people burn it directly.Liu Chang's dissatisfaction with Prince Ning deepened day by day, and he became even colder towards the Lord of Ji'an County.

Without Liu Chang's consent, the head of Ji'an County asked for leave from the Ministry of Household Affairs on his behalf, hoping to go to Lishan Mountain with him tomorrow.Liu Chang could not refuse, so he shied away from the dinner invitation with the county boss on the grounds that he had to deal with official business in the evening.In fact, he went to the restaurant to drink away his sorrows, and opposite the restaurant was a garden full of peonies.Looking at Mudan's busy figure, Liu Chang felt a deep nostalgia in his heart.When he went downstairs after drinking, he saw a male customer pulling Mudan, so he deliberately bumped him to save Mudan.However, this move aroused the other party's anger.When the other party saw that Liu Chang was just a small sixth-grade official, his attitude suddenly became arrogant, and he pushed Liu Chang to the ground and beat him severely.

It wasn't until the other party recognized Liu Chang's identity through the Prince Ning's Mansion Fish Tag that fell from Liu Chang's body that he was so frightened that he knelt down and apologized.Liu Chang didn't want to use his power to suppress others and angrily scolded the other party to leave.Mudan asked the boy to bring out the wound medicine to Liu Chang and reminded him not to delay the store's business.Liu Chang was deeply moved. Only Mudan always regarded him as the real Liu Zishu, no matter whether he was an official or not.Later, Mudan told Shengyi and Zhu Fu about her experience in Luoyang.Shengyi felt very surprised and sympathetic after hearing this, while Zhu Fu praised Mudan as a real hero among girls.