Episode 23: Lan'er is like Goku: she just won't die, and Li'er Maybe Consummates?

So in this episode Jing masters the super secret technique, Qin attacks Zhao, and Li'er and the emperor may or may not have consummated. It just isn't clear. 1.beginning where we left off, Li'er has Qing'er make up a bed for the emperor on the floor (!) and he yanks her down beside him and she doesn't protest. They sleep on the steps together (uncomfortable) LOTS of flashbacks 2.The next day Li Si, at court, suggest that the emperor annihilate Han since it is so weak. He also suggests it would be good for morale. In contrast, Han Fei suggests they attack Zhao because Han is not a threat. he urges the emperor to focus on Zhao and Qi, because if he topples the biggest powers, then everyone will fear Qin and all the alliances will crumble on their own. Li Si then suggests that Han Fei is protecting his home state... 3.Later, the emperor plays a game of chess with Li'er. He asks her what she thinks. This is a crucial scene because the emperor refers to her as wife, and she doesn't challenge this, when normally she would be like 'I'm not your wife'. Also, it shows how they are settling into a comfortable routine, now that it seems like he respects her opinion and listens to her. She tells him that everyone at court has an agenda they are pushing but she believes that Han Fei is genuine and has no ulterior motives, regardless of what he says. She believes that he is completely loyal to Qin. However, she tells the emperor that he should be decisive and not allow others to pull his strings, essentially he has to make this choice on his own and no one can tell him what to do. 4.Then the Queen Dowager comes in, and the emperor looks annoyed but then we see that apparently Li'er dotes on her and has been stopping by to give her gifts. Li'er is very patient with her and takes her advice, however strange or eccentric it is to make her happy. 5.I love the cutscenes to Jing because it is very interesting that in the midst of Li'er finally getting comfortable, the emperor's plan of unity becoming closer to a reality, Jing is training to upend all of this. So Jing has a ridiculous training scene that I will admit is a bit boring but I think it's important because I think this shows us exactly what moves he will use when he ultimately confronts the emperor. 6.Meanwhile, the emperor and Li'er get into a bit of a dispute. It's very petty, and it is clear that Li'er is annoyed and overreacting: she assumes the emperor is irritated that she cares about his mother and also reminds him that she doesn't want to be the king. the emperor says fine, I won't mention it anymore and calmly leaves. Li'er is sort of left looking like the bad guy, and it annoys her a lot. she can't stop talking about it to Qing'er while Qing'er is clearly sympathetic to the emperor 7.Back to Jing. He learns the technique and goes to Lan'er but Lan'er is passed out and looks dead. Very dead. But she isn't. She wakes up and tells Jing that he should save Li'er but before she dies she wants to tell him that she loves him. And then it looks like she dies. In a panic, Jing breaks them out.... 8.And then we cut back to Li'er who is still complianing about this petty argument while Qing'er brushes her hair. The emperor sneaks in, takes over, and pretends to be Qing'er while brushing her hair. she is surprised to turn and see him. We get a scorching kiss, and then he carries her to bed...and then its morning and they are holding one another with their clothes on>>>?? I can't tell if they consummated or if they are just cuddling. 9.Back to jing--I guess it's important because Li'er is essentially getting it on with the enemy while Lan'er is for all purposes dead--but she isn't! She revives and is surprised she is alive. Then Bao Ye shows up and has a knife to Lan'er's throat (Jing was distracted by a poem that is probably important). Then Yi Hou Young, Bao Ye's teacher appears. T hey basically want to learn the technique. Jing fights them, but remember, he is weak. Lan'er springs into action and gets stabbed protecting Jing, and then they somehow escape, and somehow she isn't dead yet. 10.The emperor summons Fan Wuqi, another general, and gives orders to attack Zhao. He tells his men not to bother returning if they fail. And then a narrator tells us that Wuqi is very successful and Zhao takes a major hit, loses 100,000 men, and it's just not good for Zhao (so he took Han Fei's advice) 11.Meanwhile, Li'er runs into Lady Jing who is ill. She breaks down into tears...and in the next scene she is in Ru'er's chambers, uninvited. I WONDER WHAT SHE LEARNED? Ru'er is barely civil, and Li'er tells her not to bother preparing anything (it's like Zheng fights to unify the states while Li'er fights to unify the harem) 12. Li'er tells her that she met lots of women while her grandpa worked for the state in Wei and she learned some sorcery (China is notoriously superstitious and ghosts are not really mentioned in shows) and tells her that she learned Jing is upset because she miscarried. She tells her that a child from a miscarriage turns into a dark ghost and hangs around and she has come to see if the ghost is perhaps haunting Ru'er. Ru'er naturally panics but the message is a clear warning to Ru'er to stop the b.s. and stop hurting others--I can't think of a show with so many warnings to one person. I mean in Empress of China you don't get a warning you just die. 13.The show ends with the emperor and prince Yan and Li'er playing archery. After this, li'er speaks with Yan and asks why he lost on purpose. He tells her that it is really hard to be living in the palace and powerless to help your people. he tells her that its hard to be around the emperor, knowing that while he is your friend, it is essentially an act and he is a slave. (the implication is also that Li'er must understand how he feels, being a woman in the harem). It also seems like Yan makes it clear he respects her a lot and Han looks very uncomfortable with this conversation. 14. Yan is last seen playing chess with the emperor....

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