Previously…
In Generation to Generation: Drama Recap Episodes 11 to 18, Cai Zhao figured out that Mu Qingyan had lied to her that he was dying, so she left the Li Sect. However, as the saying goes, “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”
Recap Episodes 19 to 23
Episode 19
Mu Qingyan and Cai Zhao were brokenhearted and missed each other terribly. To comfort his master, You Guanyue brought pretty girls but Qingyan rejected them all. Elder Yan Xu nagged him to marry a woman from the Li Sect to secure the sect’s future and produce an heir.
Cai Zhao was also depressed, but she was busy arguing with fellow disciples who were prejudiced against the Li Sect. Because of her defending Qingyan and his people in front of the Qingque Sect, her master called her to talk. He used a disturbing legend, “Skin-Painted Demon,” to warn Cai Zhao about Qingyan’s deceptions and to link it to her aunt. Cai Zhao asked Uncle Lei for confirmation. Uncle Lei only knew that the “demon” had once been a close companion of Cai Pingshu, but he didn’t know the “demon’s”identity. Why did I have a feeling that this “demon”, Cai Pingshu’s best friend, was actually her secret lover?
Song Yuzhi’s father came to give lavish gifts to Cai Zhao since she found a cure for his son. Seeing that, Lingbo felt disheartened. Her own father kept delaying her marriage to Yuzhi. Lingbo tried to leave the sect. Thus, the rumor spread that Yuzhi and Cai Zhao had tried to elope. Cai Zhao was angry at the rumor and challenged anyone to a duel.
Cai Zhao’s fiancé, Zhou Yuqi, arrived with more gifts to finalize their wedding. Although forced into the marriage, Cai Zhao received many hints against it. Yuzhi came and told her she was like an eagle, one that couldn’t be confined in a cage. Yang Xiaolan bid farewell because her father wanted to marry her off. But Xiaolan admired heroines like Cai Pingshu, wanted to fight the marriage, and advised Cai Zhao to follow her heart. Finally, when Yuqi’s confidante, Min Xinrou, came to see Cai Zhao bringing gifts, Lingbo quipped that Min Xinrou knew so much about Yuqi’s personal interests. She hinted to Cai Zhao that Min Xinrou might like her fiancé. Cai Zhao knew about it. She asked Lingbo back, what if Lingbo were her:
Episode 20
The news of the upcoming marriage between Zhou Yuqi and Cai Zhao made Qingyan anxious. He thought of using the Zhiwei Method to heal himself. Luckily, he was informed about the rare Purple Jade Golden Sunflower, which could also heal him. This rare Sunflower was brought to the Chang Fort by Lu Chengnan.
Cai Zhao received a mysterious message that the Jade Sunflower had been taken by Lu Chengnan to Chang Fort, so the massacre might be related to him. It happened that the one-year memorial of the massacre was coming. She told Yuzhi about the message, so they arranged for everyone to pay homage to the Chang Sect.
When the students arrived, Qingyan, You Guanyue, and Shangguan Haonan had finished searching the Chang Fort and found no Jade Sunflower. Some students were surprised to see Chang Ning again. Qingyan reintroduced himself as Mu Qingyang from the Li Sect. Lingbo was enraged, especially since she used to bully Chang Ning and wanted to fight him. Cai Zhao knew that her fellow disciples were no match for Qingyan, so she managed to separate both parties.
Qingyan bought the only inn in town and set his room and Cai Zhao’s room next to each other. At night, after Cai Zhao returned from paying homage, he went to visit her. Initially, she was still angry because he kicked her out of the Li Sect, but her anger soon subsided when he brought her favorite wonton. He asked her not to marry Yuqi. They also talked about the Chang’s business. Uncle Chang told Qingyan before he died that the men in black didn’t come to kill him, but to find whatever they were looking for. Definitely, Chang Fort held a secret. They ended up arguing when Qingyan accused the Six Sect people of being hypocrites. Later, Qingyan also met Yuzhi and Qingyan warned Yuzhi about not approaching Cai Zhao because he was betrothed to Qingbo.
Things changed in the morning, tho. Yuqi, who was delayed because Min Xinrou was sick, finally arrived and apologized to Cai Zhou. Now it was obvious that Zhou Yuqi and Min Xinrou had mutual feelings for each other. Cai Zhao said that she recognized their feelings, so she wanted their wedding to be postponed. She reasoned needing to find the Jade Sunflower to cure Yuzhi and to investigate the Chang Sect’s massacre. Qingyan was eavesdropping next door, and he was happy with Cai Zhou’s decision. Cai Zhou knew he was next door and confronted him afterward. They shared a quiet reflection of their feelings while holding hands through a hole.
Yuzhi also told Lingbo that he wanted to break their engagement, which was not received well by her. He was motivated by his argument with Qingyan last night. Afterward, he went to see Cai Zhao and told her about his breakup with Lingbo, and that he wanted to be more attentive to her in the future.
Episode 21
Yuzhi wanted to confess to Cai Zhao, luckily, Fan Xingjia interrupted the moment. The love competition continued at the Chang family cemetery, when Qingyan, Cai Zhao, Yuzhi were looking for the Purple Jade Sunflower they thought might be hidden there. They found Lu Chengnan’s body in a coffin, with his chest and ribs shattered by Nie Zhe’s signature technique. But no Purple Jade Sunflower around. When they walked out of the cemetery, they found their fellow students were captured by Nie Zhe and his men, who demanded that they hand over the Purple Jade Sunflower. Cai Zhao pretended an explosion as the Sunflower and threw it at them. Nie Zhe and his men ran away, and the students were released. However, Lingbo, who was jilted earlier, was angry seeing Cai Zhao together with Qingyan and Yuzhi. She accused Cai Zhao of toying around with two men while being engaged to another man. I started liking this Lingbo, though she was unlikable in the beginning. I’m glad she had another man, Dai Fengchi, secretly liking her. Her father, who kept delaying her marriage to Yuzhi, was right, she shouldn’t marry without love.
When Yuzhi and Min Xinrou came to thank Cai Zhao for the meds she gave, Cai Zhao saw that the couple loved each other. She thought about breaking off the engagement, but she was bound by duty crap to her family and sects. Qingyan called her after she met the couple and told her more about the secrets of the past. As I already guessed, her aunt Cai Pingshu most likely was in a secret relationship with this “painted skin demon,” and he most likely came from the Li Sect. He guessed that the Shi Brothers, tomb raider siblings, knew about it and asked Cai Zhao to investigate together. However, she was more concerned about the man in black, because she was not suspicious that he came from the Six Beichen Sects.
Before the Qingque Sect group returned, Qingyan asked Cai Zhao to meet for the last time, tempting her with persimmon cakes she used to eat with her aunt. He reiterated that he didn’t want her to marry Yuzhi, over his dead body. Qingyan kissed her passionately, which made her blush and run away. Now you know why I put the above featured image. This was the chair kiss that we saw in the teaser several months ago, which drew much anticipation to watch this drama.
Qingyan also orchestrated a “play” in the market for Yuzhi and Min Xinrou to watch. They were stopped by a “couple” who fought in the busy street, trapped in a miserable marriage because they were forced to abandon their lovers. Min Xinrou was moved; she broke up with Yuzhi instead and ran away. While walking by himself, Yuzhi was stopped by Cai Zhou’s peers, Fan Xingjia and Ding Zhuo. They threatened him to break up with Xinrou, or they would fight him on behalf of Cai Zhou. After the bullying, Yuzhi was attracted by a fortune teller who said that his future marriage was doomed.
Episode 22
The “fortune teller” was none other than Mu Qingyan’s subordinate, You Guanyue. He gave the heavy-hearted Yuzhi an incense to relax his mind, and Yuzhi revealed that he and Xinrou had been in love for many years. However, the elders arranged the marriage between him and Cai Zhou. His mother said that this would secure his future leadership in the Zhou Sect, so Yuzhi could only agree.
You Guanyue then gave Yuzhi a tea that could make him bold and do what he needed to do. I didn’t know what kind of infusion Guanye gave Yuzhi; he decided to find Cai Zhou, who was still thinking of Qingyan’s passionate kiss earlier. Yuzhi kowtowed many times until his head bruised, hitting the floor, asking Cai Zhou’s forgiveness and willingness to cancel the marriage. Meanwhile, angry Fan Xingjia, hiding behind the curtain, and happy Qingyan next door, were listening to their convo. Yuzhi cited that he felt insecure with Cai Zhou’s bravery and martial arts skills, and preferred a gentle and virtuous wife instead… which was Xinrou. Cai Zhou officially agreed and let Yuzhi go. Xingjia was angry at Yuzhi’s decision, but the scheming Qingyan smirked next door, and his henchman Guanyue promised to let the whole jianghu know that Cai Zhou and Zhou Yuzhi had broken up. I had to capture the scheming Mu Qingyan’s smirk below!
The next day, Cai Zhou’s fellow disciples were in a serious mood about her broken engagement because the news spread everywhere. Cai Zhou thought Xingjia spread the news, but she realized Xingjia had passed out last night from anger. The only other option was the guest next door, so she went to confront Qingyan. He said he only helped her. He mocked her for at least Yuzhi was brave enough to acknowledge his feelings for Min Xinrou, but she did not. He knew she only had him in her heart. Qingyan persuaded her to go with him to find the Shi Brothers. He lamented that he could send out his subordinates to find them by throwing many places upside down, but that meant everyone knew he was looking for the siblings. Cai Zhou, again, was lured to investigate with him. She left a letter to her peers, stating that she needed time alone by herself, and urged them to go back to the Qingque Sect. When the disciples returned, of course, Master Qi didn’t believe it. Especially, since Qingyan’s entourage left at the same time as Cai Zhou did.
Their journey looking for the Shi Brothers was perilous through the mountains and rivers. When Cai Zhou was tired from walking, Qingyan held her hand and even carried her on his back. But the panorama was breathtaking. While spending the night on top of the mountain, Qingyan wondered if they could always stay like this, roaming jianghu, seeing the world, wouldn’t it be a beautiful thing? Cai Zhou quietly replied that it would, hinting that she would accompany him.
To track the Shi Brothers down, Cai Zhou tasted persimmons in every place they visited to find the specific taste she had during childhood. The Shi Brothers were her aunt’s friends, and they brought persimmons for her to make cakes. They narrowed it down to a certain town. Once arrived, they set up a stall, pretending to sell the Sunshine Blade, which was once Cai Shuping’s, at a very high price. One man was very interested but didn’t buy. The two followed him, but got trapped by Nie Zhe and his people. They were outnumbered, so they had to jumped down the cliff.
Episode 23
Cai Zhou and Qingyan landed safely after the fall. While resting, she deduced that Qingyan, again, schemed to make her set out on the journey with him to find the Purple Jade Sunflower, not for healing but for cultivating the dangerous Ziwei Method. Qingyan admitted he got the Beast’s saliva incidentally when Qian Xueshen tested the baby dragon’s saliva on him. They didn’t have much time arguing, since Nie Zhe’s men suddenly showed up. Luckily, a man suddenly pulled them to the rescue.
He was none other than Shi Tieqiao, one of the Shi Brothers! He recognized his friend’s niece. During their stay, Qingyan questioned him as to why they didn’t come when the Chang clan was massacred. Shi Tieqiao explained that Cai Pingshu had already warned Chang Haosheng to either build a massive army or hide entirely like the Shi Brothers. Uncle Chang didn’t listen to the warning, which caused the demise of his clan.
Before they could ask further about the Purple Jade Sunflower, Qingyan suddenly collapsed. He had suppressed his strength, but the fight with Nie Zhe’s men took its toll. He didn’t want to tell Cai Zhao, not to let her worry. She fed him some bitter medicine, so he asked her to make sweet pastries. In the kitchen, she met the other brother, Shi Tiefeng. He accidentally spilled the bean that the Purple Jade Sunflower had been given to Cai Pingshu’s friend, a former member of Li Sect.
Qingyan revealed the peaceful life in seclusion. When Cai Zhou asked if he would pursue the men in black, he asked if she wanted him to do it, because he noticed that the attack formation and the leader’s sword technique seemed to come from the Qingque Sect. Although Cai Zhou didn’t want to admit it, deep down she also noticed the similarities.
Shi Tieqiao cooked them a big meal and told them they had to go afterwards. He knew what they were looking for, so he shared the story on the Purple Jade Sunflower. He said that Lu Chengnan, the guy whose corpse was in the Chang family cemetery, gave the Sunflower to Cai Pingshu. However, Cai Zhou had never seen the relic before.
TL;DR
- Mu Qingyan and Cai Zhao met again at Chang Fort during the memorial of the massacre. Don’t miss the chair kiss!
- Zhou Yuqi broke off his engagement to Cai Zhao.
- Cai Zhao and Qingyan embarked on a journey looking for the Shi Brothers and the Purple Jade Sunflower.
Keywords: Generation to Generation, 江湖夜雨十年灯, Zhou Yi Ran, Bao Shang En
