Against The Current Episode 31 Recap
**SPOILER ALERT**
Table of Contents
TL;DR (Quick Overview)
Lanxiang outmanoeuvres Zhao Xingtang without spending a single coin, trading a clever lesson in secret female wealth for Ji’er and Xiaopu’s freedom, then sends the newly freed women off toward a new life in Quanzhou with a heartfelt, tearful farewell. Quietly pawning her own jewellery and earning back the money by secretly writing plays, she leaves Jinqi impressed once more, though still no closer to winning her heart.
A Negotiation Begins
Following the confrontation, Zhao Xingtang admires Lanxiang’s transformation, remarking dryly that she truly knows how to get what she wants, having gone from sparrow to phoenix by marrying Lin Jinqi. Lanxiang points out plainly that Zhao Xingtang didn’t invite her simply to discuss birds and status. What she really wants to know is whether Lanxiang was aware of the library incident.
She dismisses everyone else present and tells her directly, after all this time, it hardly matters whether she knew or not. Zhao Xingtang insists she likes getting to the bottom of things, accepting setbacks so long as she understands exactly what caused them. Lanxiang admits she did know the truth back then, but never spoke of it to anyone, because she simply wanted to leave the Lin residence alive and return to her parents.
An Impossible Price
Zhao Xingtang declares she’ll happily sell Ji’er and Xiaopu’s indentures for thirty thousand taels, knowing full well no ordinary person could raise such a sum. She points out that as the Young Madam of the Lin household, Lanxiang should be able to manage it easily.
Lanxiang answers sharply that even Zhao Xingtang, as the granddaughter of Grand Secretary Zhao and former head of the Lin household, could never have produced ten thousand taels, so how could a former maid possibly manage triple that?
She reminds her she has no imperial favour of her own and isn’t Jinqi’s cherished favourite, and points out that Zhao Xingtang’s real aim seems to be making things difficult for Jinqi rather than for her, though Jinqi doesn’t even know who Ji’er is.
A New Angle
Zhao Xingtang shrugs, telling her to take her time raising the money, she’s in no rush. Lanxiang counters that she is, and that Ji’er was purchased by a Dai family shopkeeper, meaning any money paid would simply flow to the Dai family, not to her. Zhao Xingtang insists as Madam Dai, the family’s money is her money.
Lanxiang asks pointedly whether the Zhao family’s earnings, then, belong to her as Young Lady Zhao. Cornered, Zhao Xingtang asks what she’s actually driving at. Lanxiang explains she has an idea worth trading for Ji’er and Xiaopu’s freedom, one that would let Zhao Xingtang keep wealth she earns truly her own, belonging neither to the Dai family nor the Zhao family.
A Bitter Truth About Women’s Wealth
Zhao Xingtang bitterly reflects that sons and daughters born of the same parents are treated entirely differently, sons inheriting family property outright, daughters receiving only a small share through marriage in the form of a dowry, one that can be taken back at will.
A woman obeys her father at home and her husband afterward, no matter how capable, and not a single coin she earns truly belongs to her. Lanxiang answers that perhaps this is because history’s rules were written almost entirely by men, who could never truly understand women’s hardships. Zhao Xingtang challenges her directly to prove her idea, promising both indentures if it makes real sense.
A Story Reframed
Lanxiang tells a story from a book, during Emperor Shengzu’s reign, the Xu brothers of Chun’an divided their family property, leaving the youngest brother’s widow only an old servant. She sold all her jewellery for twelve taels of gold, and the servant carried it into the mountains to trade in lacquer.
Twenty years later, she’d built a fortune worth tens of thousands in gold, handing it all back to heer madam, who became the county’s wealthiest person. Zhao Xingtang scoffs, accusing her of showing off her education. Lanxiang explains the story is usually told to praise the servant’s loyalty, but viewed from the widow’s perspective, it reveals something more strategic.
Servants could legally engage in trade but couldn’t own private property, so whatever they earned technically belonged to their master, giving the widow a way to accumulate wealth without her husband’s brothers ever learning of it. She points out that Qingxiang’s indenture is held by neither the Dai nor Zhao family, meaning the same method could work for her.
Zhao Xingtang, still wary after being outmanoeuvred once before, confirms she holds it herself. Lanxiang explains this method won’t produce thirty thousand taels overnight, but from now on, every coin Zhao Xingtang earns through it will belong to her alone.
An Offer Declined
Impressed, Zhao Xingtang hands over Ji’er and Xiaopu’s indentures, admitting she misjudged Lanxiang, that it’s Jinqi who doesn’t deserve her. She even proposes going into business together, insisting that with the Zhao, Dai, and Lin families behind them, they could earn fifty or even a hundred thousand taels. Lanxiang thanks her warmly but declines, explaining her ambitions lie elsewhere.
Zhao Xingtang adds one last stipulation, she promised to return the indentures, but never promised Ji’er could leave that day, unless Lanxiang can knock a chuiwan ball into the hole, otherwise she’ll have to return another day. Lanxiang, though inexperienced, succeeds, and Zhao Xingtang is genuinely surprised she managed it. Ji’er and Xiaopu are freed, and Ji’er, overcome, realizes at last that she truly is free.
A New Beginning for Ji’er
Lanxiang brings Ji’er, Xiaopu, and Zhi to a clean, comfortable inn, promising to fetch hot water herself. She hands Ji’er and Xiaopu their indentures along with signed deeds of emancipation, explaining Yuchan will accompany them to the county office to complete the formal procedures. She offers to act as their guarantor, so they can register either in the capital or back in Jinling.
Ji’er declines both, overwhelmed with happiness, insisting the only family she has left is Xiaopu and Lanxiang. Lanxiang, surprised she doesn’t want to look for her parents, learns from Xiaopu the painful reason why.
Ji’er had secretly left all her savings from customer tips with her parents, hoping they’d save enough to buy her freedom, but when she went to see them, she discovered they’d already used the money over a month earlier to buy freedom for themselves and their two sons, then vanished without a word, leaving her behind. Zhi comforts her, suggesting the money can be considered repayment for raising her, leaving neither side owing the other anything from here on.
A Dream of Quanzhou
Ji’er reveals that she and Xiaopu had agreed long ago that if they ever gained their freedom, they’d move to Quanzhou. She describes the coastal city as unlike anywhere else, home to enormous seagoing ships, exotic goods, and people of many different backgrounds, where women can establish independent households and support themselves through trade rather than relying on a man.
While scholars and respectable ladies look down on such women, merchants care only about profit. Ji’er explains she wants to start over completely, not as a maid of the Lin residence, not as Young Lady Shuang, not as Concubine Lv, but as Lv Ji’er alone. Zhi asks whether she can join them, and Ji’er welcomes her warmly, confident she no longer cares what others think of them.
The three agree to go together, though they’ll still need Lanxiang’s help to get registered. Lanxiang promises to find a way, and Ji’er, overwhelmed, admits she almost doesn’t want to leave her, but insists she won’t put herself through hardship again, from now on she’ll be the one to treat herself best.
A Surprise for Jinqi
Meanwhile, Yuchan makes Jinqi’s bed and tells him, to his astonishment, that Lanxiang managed to secure Ji’er and Xiaopu’s freedom from Zhao Xingtang without spending a single coin. He asks how she did it, and Yuchan relays what Lanxiang said, that as a fellow woman she understood Zhao Xingtang’s pain, and found a solution to it.
Jinqi then asks whether Lanxiang understood his hint about assisting with registration in Quanzhou, and Yuchan assures him she couldn’t possibly have missed it, given his connection to the Assistant Commander of the Quanzhou Garrison. When he wonders aloud why she’s instead borrowing law books, Yuchan suggests he simply offer to help outright, solving her problem while easing his own conscience.
A Search for a Legal Path
Lanxiang, Yuchan, Gantang, and Bai Gao pore over legal texts, searching for a way to establish Ji’er and her companions in Quanzhou. The laws prove daunting, establishing an independent household is difficult even for men, requiring senior clansmen’s consent and a neighbourhood guarantor, and far harder for women, who may be permitted only if they hold no male dependents and own taxable land or property.
Female households can even be abolished entirely if deemed to hinder labour obligations. Ownership of property shouldn’t prove difficult given they plan to run businesses, but the guarantor requirement remains the real obstacle, since respectable community members would likely refuse anyone with a scandalous past.
A Husband’s Offer
Jinqi arrives and the maids withdraw. Lanxiang admits no amount of reading will solve the problem, and reluctantly asks for his help. He tells her there’s no need for such formality between husband and wife. He reveals he’d already written to an old superior from Jinzhou, now Assistant Commander of the Quanzhou Garrison, and that all she needs is to write a letter of introduction to the commander’s wife, Madam Xu, who can arrange everything locally.
Grateful, Lanxiang thanks him, admitting she has no way to repay him. Jinqi answers simply that all he wants is for her to be his wife, and she points out that she already is. He tells her that isn’t quite what he means, he wants her heart as well. Lanxiang replies, deadpan, that she’s right here, wondering where else her heart could possibly be. Jinqi sighs, telling her she’s far too clever not to understand exactly what he means, and leaves.
Farewell at the City Gate
On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth month, Ji’er and her companions prepare to depart for Quanzhou, though Lanxiang gently asks why they can’t wait until after the Chinese New Year and travel once the weather warms. Ji’er answers warmly that New Year is for family, and her family is right there with her, so wherever they go, that’s where they’ll celebrate.
Even if they stayed, they couldn’t spend the holiday’s eve together anyway, so they’d rather set off early. Lanxiang asks them to write once they arrive, and Xiaopu offers to write first since she knows a little, promising Ji’er will learn too, handwriting quality aside.
Lanxiang and the maids give them a final gift, some old clothes to keep as mementos, and Ji’er discovers hidden inside three padded coats sewn gold leaves worth five hundred taels of silver. Lanxiang tells her to wear them close once aboard the mule cart, explaining they’re for the journey. Gantang, Xiaolian, Baogai, and Yuchan add their own gift too, pooling together another fifty taels.
Ji’er protests she can’t possibly accept it after everything, understanding how much the sum must mean to them, but Gantang insists she keep it, framing it as a loan she can repay once she’s established herself. Overcome, Ji’er admits she’d promised herself she wouldn’t cry, wanting to leave happily and smiling, only to have them undo her resolve. Everyone shares tears together.
Nanke urges them to hurry, warning that if they miss this caravan, the next one to Quanzhou won’t depart until spring. Ji’er and the others leave, calling out promises to live well, reminding each other to take care.
A Secret Sacrifice Discovered
Jinqi discovers Lanxiang sold portions of her dowry and pawned her jewellery to fund Ji’er’s journey. Jiugao worries he’ll be furious, but Jinqi insists he isn’t angry at all. Yuchan and Jiugao rush to defend Lanxiang, explaining she’d quietly given the three women three hundred taels from her dowry, then had Baogai pawn her jewelry for another five hundred.
She converted the money into gold leaves sewn inside old padded coats, waiting until parting to hand them over, afraid Ji’er wouldn’t accept otherwise. Jinqi reflects wryly that despite being one of the Emperor’s most trusted officials at the height of his career, his own wife had to pawn her jewelry for five hundred taels. Yuchan clarifies it was only temporary, redeemable within three months, and Jiugao adds that such arrangements are common among wealthy capital families.
Jinqi reassures them he’s not angry, admitting he’s simply curious how she plans to redeem the jewelry in time. Jiugao points out she now has no private savings left, and suggests he think of a way to help her.
Yuchan insists confidently that Lanxiang will find her own way, and when Jinqi remarks he isn’t even that confident, she reminds him plainly that he’d doubted she could free Ji’er without his help too, and she’d proven otherwise, saving Ji’er without spending a single coin. Jinqi takes the boldness in stride, and says they’ll simply find out in three months.
Three Months Later
Lanxiang visits Ting Lizi, troupe leader of the Xiaofurong Troupe, teasing her gently for not visiting sooner, though Lanxiang explains she’d stayed away to avoid seeming like she only came for money. This time she admits she’s come both to cure her homesickness and collect money. Ting Lizi hands over fifty taels, bringing her total to one hundred fifty taels over three months.
She explains that before Chinese New Year, her master gathered opera troupes from Jinling, the capital, and Suzhou to stage a new play together, The Tale of the Feathered Immortal, which became an instant sensation, so popular that ladies now feel obligated to invite troupes to perform it at their residences just to keep up with social conversation. In three months, the troupe has earned as much as they usually would in an entire year.
Ting Lizi notes that even Scholar Shouyi of Qixia Academy praised the play for blending southern tunes with northern lyrics while bringing something fresh, and that many outsiders suspect the playwright, credited as Shen Rugu, is actually Mr. Lu writing anonymously under a changed style.
She asks Lanxiang directly whether that’s true, but Lanxiang deflects, insisting she merely helps keep accounts and it wouldn’t be appropriate to speculate about her master’s intentions. Ting Lizi lets it go, noting she heard Lanxiang still needs to visit the pawnshop, and sends her off with an invitation to return for a performance when she has time.
A Debt Repaid
Returning home, Lanxiang is about to go redeem her pawned jewelry when Yuchan tells her Jinqi has already done it for her. She apologizes for troubling him and hands him five hundred taels of silver, insisting he accept it. Jinqi tells her there’s no need for such formality between husband and wife, but she answers that a true gentleman keeps money matters clear.
He assures her he never blamed her for giving the money to Ji’er, and confesses he’s simply curious how she raised so much in only three months. Surprised Yuchan and Jiugao hadn’t told him already, Lanxiang explains she’s Mr. Lu’s student, and naturally, she’s been writing plays for performers.
She acknowledges that a Lin family wife writing plays would likely be seen as improper, potentially even condemned for corrupting public morals, but explains this is what she wants to do, a decision she made long before their marriage. Jinqi is stunned.
Against the Current Episode 31 Recap: My Thoughts
This entire episode was fantastic, watching Lanxiang navigate one challenge after another. Her whole exchange with Zhao Xingtang was so fun to watch, even Xingtang was taken aback by how clever she was. It would have been great if Lanxiang had taken her up on that offer of going into business together. Her face when Lanxiang managed to sink the ball was priceless.
The entire storyline of Ji’er gaining her freedom and planning her future was wonderful too. She’s found freedom, but understands the challenges still ahead. That goodbye scene had me crying like a baby, so beautifully written and shot, bittersweet farewells all around. The generosity of Lanxiang and the maids was incredible. How would anyone ever repay that kind of kindness?
Twice in this episode Jinqi was surprised by Lanxiang’s resourcefulness, first securing Ji’er’s indentures without spending a single coin, then raising five hundred taels through writing plays. It clearly shook him, and none of it upset him at all.
The only thing that upsets him is that no matter what he does, she won’t give him her heart. Even when he helped with the Quanzhou recommendation, she was grateful but didn’t treat it as a step toward love. Their romance remains completely one-sided after all this time, and Jinqi is still trying his best, still so patient.
I loved this episode. No angst, no pain, just a woman doing her best to help a friend, and doing it so generously. The female friendships were lovely. I hope we get to see a successful Ji’er in later episodes.
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