The Vendetta of An 长安二十四计 - Discussion - Episodes 8-9
The Vendetta of An 长安二十四计 - Discussion - Episodes 8-9
🔥Welcome to the episode discussions for The Vendetta of An! Join us as we walk down the long road to revenge...
🗡This is the post for episodes 🩸 8 and 9 only 🩸 please use spoiler tags for episodes or previews of episodes beyond these 🗡
Discussion Schedule: Posts will follow the Youku regular VIP schedule. Posts will go up in late afternoon/evening Pacific Time.
Youku Airing Sched: 2 eps/day through 12/19. 1 ep/per day on 12/20 and 12/21. After that not announced yet.
Links all discussions at bottom of post
Host Notes:
Digesting this drama is taking up so much of my brain 😂 For Sword & Beloved I was writing my recaps right after watching the eps but I'm finding for this show I need to go do other stuff for a while and let the show sink in before sitting down to write.
... Previously on The Vendetta of An ...
Fun fact: Han Ziling is played by Liu Yitong, son of Liu Yijun aka the Emperor Xiao Wuyang.
[Details Reference Corner]
🐕Character Flashcards: the title cards for characters introduced in each ep (not every character has gotten one)
^(❗spoiler note: if you are watching these eps slower than release schedule, the flashcard post will contain pics from all aired episodes)
📅Timeline: based on our current knowledge of events
Update: no new info these eps, see post for 6-7 for timeline.
⚔Rogue's Gallery: Huai'an's kill list of those complicit in murder of his father.
Update: Qingyi confirmed as not dead, instead he was captured and imprisoned. Although not shown clearly, I assume it was by Commander Wang and Imperial Guard after the Qingyi-Huai'an-Liu Ziyan stabbing showdown.
❌Dead: Pu Nichuan, Liu Ziyan, Wei Qianting
❗Captured: Qingyi
❓Whereabouts unknown: Yan Fengshan, Hooded Figure
Episode 8: war and peace
lmao I really thought I was gonna be succinct with this summary and failed miserably, each scene was so dense and I wrote down a lot more dialog than I have for past eps
[Key Events and Character Moments]
Opening Scene: Marquis Gu Ya and his attendant Wumei are atop one of the walls of Chang'an. Wumei asks him why he wants to check the city defenses when the Emperor's army is already guarding the city. Gu Ya responds that sometimes he misses the north (aka his home and his days of being a soldier).
New Con Man In Town: In a market street we meet a new character, Wang Pu of Huben Army. He is lying to various merchants to get what he needs for less money than they are asking. He scams his way into a coach ride up into the mountains and then hikes into the wilderness, arriving at Yulong Ridge to visit the Mysterious Person. He introduces himself and Mysterious Person seems wary, asking "Huben sent someone here again?"
Wang Pu sets about making soup with his discounted market purchases. Mysterious Person is trying to suss out the newcomer and they talk about Liu Ziyan. We find out Liu Ziyan spent 3 years with Mysterious Person because he was trying to kill him, but he was cautious, and never found the right opportunity. I had assumed Huben was the group holding Mysterious Person captive but if Liu Ziyan was sent to secretly assassinate him and allowed to take his time with it, seems like a different force is that play here as well.
Wang Pu has come with a message for Mysterious Person which he delivers with the help of his lamb soup, which reminds Mystery man of his home in Wuxi.
"Even lamb from Wuxi can be bought in Chang'an, the world is at peace. If you stay here, then the world can stay at peace," says Wang Pu.
"I prefer the tea of Chang'an now," he replies.
Hmmm.... let's note how many times someone declares the world is at peace in this ep.
Your host got distracted by the beautiful set design and had to keep rewatching the scene to pay attention to what they were saying: The Emperor (Xiao Wuyang) and Gu Ya are playing go and discussing schemes in front of a gorgeous painting of a mountain landscape. I just really loved all the colors at play here.
They discuss the hunt for Yan Fengshan and what he is likely up to right now. They speculate if he has Xiao Wenjing under his control he could use the deposed emperor to gain allies from amongst the regional military commanders and other nobles. Concerned about military power going to General Yan, they come up with a scheme. Gu Ya is the general of the Baiwenhu Army, he will hand over control of the army to the Emperor in front of the commanders, a power move to force them to do the same to prove their loyalty.
The 4 other military commanders are: Beitang, Fanyang, Long'an, and Zhenxi. They will be invited to the palace next month for this plan.
When the Emperor questions Gu Ya about relinquishing his family's personal army he says, "there is no war in this world, we don't need an army anymore."
Gu Ya also wants to know if the person the Emperor chose over his suggested candidate (Han Ziling, a scholar, implied to have been killed by the Emperor moments before Huai'an entered the palace) was "White Hair." The Emperor responds,
"White Hair*,* I haven't heard that name in a long time... the last member of the Liu Family. Yes, it was him. His father founded Huben army, using him to defeat them is the suitable choice."
On their way out of the palace, Wumei and Gu Ya talk about the Liu family and 'White Hair,' saying he was born with all white hair that later turned black. Gu Ya says they were friends in the past and he hopes to see him again.
I couldnt quite get a read on Gu Ya here, whether he was hoping to see Liu Zhi/ Huai'an again for a positive reason or if he has some lingering resentment.
After Gu Ya leaves, Chancellor Gao shows up as if he was listening just off screen. He says Gu Ya is a man aware of the bigger picture, a rare quality. The Emperor says "do you think he won't realize this all part of our schemes?" Gao responds, "It is my scheme, he won't begrudge your majesty at all."
Keeping House: Huai'an is sitting in the courtyard looking at Bai Wan's painting of him. Xiao Wenjing is in the kitchen cleaning up. Ye Zheng asks him about this and they talk about how Bai Wan is letting them stay in the house. Xiao Wenjing is enthusiastic about housekeeping and says he is going to learn to cook from Ye Zheng, who is skeptical of this ambition.
I guess they finally ran out of wood to chop
Ye Zheng and Huai'an talk about Xiao Wenjing within earshot of him. Huai'an says "Every time I see his face, I'll be reminded of Zhang Mo... I need to get along with him in another way."
Later that evening Wenjing comes to Huai'an's room and presents a letter he wrote for Zhang Mo's wife. Huai'an is doing his 'not even deigning to open his eyes' move again. Xiao Wenjing says he wants to atone for his crime. Huai'an responds,
"It's the loss of a life. How do you atone for it?"
Huai'an tells him that with Liu Ziyan dead and Qingyi captive (I knew it! I knew he was still alive somehow lol) Yan Fengshan will surely act again. When he does they find a breakthrough and perhaps Xiao Wenjing can be of use then. The deposed emperor agrees,
"When the day comes, I won't blink, even if I die."
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark: Atop a rampart in the city somewhere, a group of soldiers are sitting around a big cook pot. We are introduced to two of them, Pengtou and Shan, of Baiwenhu Army. Pengtou is telling a story about a man who got sucked into the ground by a giant spooky hand and then his wife has a dream her husband is coming back to find her... when SUDDENLY! Their General, Gu Ya, arrives to gently scold them for goofing off (and not inviting him to eat porridge).
hard to see in this pic but I loved the printed fabric in their uniforms
Gu Ya clearly knows his men well, knowing that Shan doesn't like the jump scares Pengtou always includes in stories. The comradery is clear as Gu Ya and Wumei join them by the fire.
We cut to the market where all the shops have closed up, Wang Pu is back and spots a child looking around, asking where everyone went. Wang Pu tells him "something good will happen tonight" in a super normal not menacing way then breaks into the butcher shop for him and gives him the pork he needs for his mother. He tells the kid to run home because later there will be "absolute chaos."
I bet Huai'an is gonna hate this dude when they meet
Gu Ya is carried down off the ramparts by his soldiers, he tells them to sleep well at sunrise when their shift is over. Back in his carriage Wumei asks him about the soldiers, noting that she doesn't see him smile very often like he is now. He says he feels relaxed among the soldiers, he grew up in the army. He is looking forward to handing over military command to the Emperor so that he can "be free." He repeats the early sentiment that it is peace time saying that no battle is on the horizon and that no one will die. Idk I kind of think the ep saying it 1x was enough foreshadowing, 3x is kind of over doing it.
On the ramparts Pengtou is carrying a bucket complaining about dish duty (he is not as eager as Xiao Wenjing apparently) and then gets suddenly shot with an arrow through the chest. Shan finds him and is able to shout a warning just before being killed himself.
If you've watched a lot of TV then it can be easy to spot the trope of 'side characters suddenly introduced and/or given details about their lives because they are gonna die soon' and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. It worked for me here, I felt the impact of their deaths even though we'd only just met them.
A red flare goes up in the sky and we see shots of Gu Ya and Huai'an noticing it from their respective locations. Xiao Wenjing joins Huai'an and says he recognzies it as the Baiwenhu Arrow of Command. Back to Gu Ya where he tells his coach and escort to hurry.
The fight atop the ramparts is short lived, Baiwenhu clearly outnumbered. out They are quickly cut down, their bodies thrown off the wall. Below, other men arrive to move the bodies into carts and quickly run off with them.
As Gu Ya's coach comes to a stop it's revealed what the Huben forces have done, piled up all the corpses of his soldiers in the middle of the street for him to see. It's really horrible.
The next part made say 'what the fuck' out loud at the TV. Huben assassins were hiding amidst the corpses (having donned the Baiwenhu armor) and jump out to attack.
We find out Wumei has some skills as she dives into the melee. Gu Ya is surrounded by men to protect him and watching the fight, I think he knew his forces were doomed from the start, he seems frozen, wishing he could fight back but he can't.
the fabric print of Wumei's outfit is also really neat
Wang Pu gets through his men and holds a dagger to his throat then orders the fight to stop. It does. Wang Pu says he just needs to take Gu Ya somewhere, doesn't plan to kill him, and will return him when he is done.
Huai'an arrives on the street just after they leave. He tells Wumei he knew Gu Ya and he can be the one to rescue him. Tells her they are probably taking him to Hidden Soldier Alley.
A New Scheme in the Works: Huai'an goes to Chancellor Gao and tells him of his plan to rescue Gu Ya. Gao is concerned that Huben army might try and turn Gu Ya to their side and tells Huai'an to kill him if that happens. Huai'an says Gu Ya would never defect to those who killed his soldiers and hopes Gao doesn't plan on abandoning someone who helped him (meaning Gu Ya's plan to handover his army). Gao responds, "I might ... or might not do that."
At Bai Wan's, Huai'an is once again sitting in the courtyard, this time contemplating a small dagger in a bamboo sheath. Ye Zheng is nearby sharpening a blade. When a breeze knocks over some laundry hanging on a rack, Ye Zheng calls to Xiao Wenjing to deal with it. Xiao Wenjing has lost his enthusiasm of housework already and says,
"Living is just working and working without any break."
"Perseverance is a virtue, young man." Ye Zheng replies.
Huai'an shocks them both by announcing he is leaving, he plans to infiltrate Hidden Soldier Alley to rescue Gu Ya.
[Thoughts and Notes]
Someone in the comments had pointed out that Pu Nichuan called Huai'an 'White Hair' before he died, now we know why!
Where is Da Huang? I was hoping she'd move into Bai Wan's house with them.
📜Schemes and Secrets: Liu Ziyan supposed to assassinate Mysterious Person, Gu Ya plan to hand over army, Emperor and Chancellor Gao behind the scenes, Weng Pu ambush(es), Huai'an rescue plan
🩸Bloody Blades: oops I forgot to look at the swords during the fight scenes
Episode 9: hiding in plain sight
[Key Events and Character Moments]
Opening Flashback: Child Huai'an and a younger Zhu Zhilong are at a desk, Huai'an is having his pulse taken. He says he never gets sick and doesn't understand why he has to come here every month. Zhu Zhilong reminds him that he was born with all white hair that has only recently turned black, and being born with white hair means half your life will be spent in hardship. They keep checking on him to make sure he is alright. Huai'an says of this future, "what, as long as the other half brims with sweetness."
Scheme Prep Shopping List: We pick back up in the courtyard where Ye Zheng and Xiao Wenjing, despite frequently jibing at each other, are on the same page about Huai'an. They both express dismay at his plan since he only just recovered from being near fatally stabbed.
Later Huai'an draws himself a map of Hidden Shadow Alley and Xiao Wenjing comes in to ask what he can do to help. Huai'an considers his offer and then agrees, there are in fact some things he needs help with.
# 1 on the list, a gold Huben coin which serves as a token for entrance to the alley. He sends the deposed emperor to get one from Qingyi and we get visual proof that he is in fact alive. In the prison, Xiao Wenjing follow's Huai'ans advice of using the other captured Huben soldiers lives as leverage to convince Qingyi. He has half of them executed in front of Qingyi's cell. Unlike the housekeeping, Xiao Wenjing seems to take to this task easily. He was an Emperor an after all, ordering people to be killed is part of his entitled inheritence. Qingyi hands over the coin before the next round of executions can take place.
After returning from the prison, Xiao Wenjing is looking sad at Huai'an's desk leading me to wonder which is the performance, this sadness or his behavior in the prison.
#2 on the list, a new identity which Huai'an says Shen Xiaoqing has already got covered. We go to a new location, Taiyiji Clinic. Inside Shen Xiaoqing has a man with grey hair tied up to a chair, she says his name is Wang Xing. He is a Huben member who has recently arrived in town and fits other necessary criteria: similar age and build, no martial arts, no close friends, but does have a wife. They use threats against his wife to get him to cooperate.
Wang Xing is a skilled forger, so to be brought into town, Huai'an realizes something must have happened to Huben's previous forger. Huben needs a resident forger to make passes for them entering and exiting the city.
Don't worry, I bought you a flatbread stall: Ye Zheng is still worried about Huai'an's plan to take this on solo and Xiao Wenjing and Shen Xiaoqing are worried about Huai'an's plan to have the deposed emperor stay the clinic with Shen Xiaoqing while Huai'an is away. Xiao Wenjing volunteers to watch over Wang Xing athe Liu Family Dungeon instead. Meanwhile, Ye Zheng is going to be undercover running a food stall just outside the alley so he is nearby as backup. Zhu Zhilong arrives to join the prep party, unlike the others he doesn't try to talk Huai'an out of it, instead posing a question,
"You just risked your life and are going to do it again, have you thought about it?"
A father's legacy, a father's words: Zhu Zhilong helps Huai'an dye his hair to match Wang Xing (arguably to look even better than Wang Xing's). As he does, Huai'an answers the question Mr Long had asked him as he entered,
"Huben Army was built by my father's own hands. What they can do, I've learned by ear and eye. What they cannot, I've taught myself much. I know what I"m doing Mr Long."
Mr Long says he covered his wounds for him with fish maw and fake skin. He reminds Huai'an how he was born with all white hair and says,
"Both your father and I share one wish. We only hope you live safely to see your hair turn grey once more. Child, come back alive."
couldn't help but think about Huai'an's dream of his father here as well
Outside, Ye Zheng and Xiao Wenjing are startled by Wig Change O'Clock, and Huai'an tells them not to worry, he will dye it back to black when the mission is done.
Into The Woods: Before entering Hidden Solider Alley, Huai'an needs to do one more thing: throw himself down a rugged mountain hillside. (At least it wasn't a cliff?) Ye Zheng and Xiao Wenjing are even more upset with him now, but he says he needs the wounds as part of his scheme. He chose the hill carefully so he would be hurt but not that hurt.
As they say their goodbyes for now, Huai'an also reveals part of his disguise is picking up Wang Xing's habit of chewing a bitter plant called 'Bitter After', a common habit of northerners.
Hidden Identity Alley: Huai'an makes his grand entrance to the alley, tossing the gold coin to Old Woman Gatekeeper (who just is in this alley 24/7??). She asks him to wait for his contact, and he stands calmly, eyes closed, chewing on the Bitter After. Old Woman Gatekeeper's go to move is also calmly hanging out with her eyes partially closed, but she seems skeptical of this newcomer. A man with a cart comes down the lane and passes by Huai'an, his face partially covered. He whispers 'you're chewing the wrong part' and Huai'an acts unconcerned, 'what's it to you?'
was he really chewing the wrong part or was that just a coded signal
We follow the man with a cart and see he is a trash collector, he goes into a courtyard full of baskets of refuse and starts unloading his cart, tossing some items from a basket into a large furnace. Another man enters and we get their both their names. The trash collector is Li Sangeng and his friend is Di Lu. They talk briefly about a newcomer that is expected the if he might be dangerous. Li Sangeng mentions that Yan Fengshan is nervous someone will come to rescue Gu Ya.
I had been looking up info on the actors before watching this ep and noticied Liu Yitong credited as two characters so knew what was going on as soon as Li Sangeng was introduced. Oops...oh well. Mostly I was curious if the reveal would this ep, but of course our Huai'an also instantly figured it out.
Di Lu goes to fetch Huai'an and takes him to a workshop where paper is being made. He introduces Huai'an to the men there, saying h e will now be in charge of all their travel permits. Huai'an shows us he has prepared for his role and and provides feedback on their paper quality.
a good day for prints, I also like Di Lu's leopard print lining
Di Lu examines Huai'an's own travel pass, carefully inspecting the dates as Li Sangeng had advised, he notices a 3 day gap and interrogates Huai'an about it. Huai'an tells him about encountering a man on the road to Chang'an who recognized him and tried to force him to forge passes for him, they got into a fight. He shows them his (tumble down a hill induced) wounds and says he ended up killing the man... Liu Ziyan.
He has truly thought of everything.
Di Lu goes to the Hidden Solider Morgue and confirms Huai'an's story about how he killed the already badly wounded Liu Ziyan in self defense. He then warms up to Huai'an immensely, a lot of people wanted Liu Ziyan dead but couldn't do it.
there is a cut to Xiao Wenjing taking his turn as jailer for Wang Xing
Later Huai'an joins Di Lu and Li Sangeng for dinner and drinks, Li Sangeng acts suspecious of him and things are tense for a bit. We even get a close up shot of the simmering pot of food on the table to match the simmering tension in the air. I notice they are keeping Cheng Yi in lighting especially highlights the wig.
Di Lu got very drunk at dinner and Huai'an and Li Sengeng help him walk home. He is singing a folk song about Huainan which sounds familiar (we heard Zhou Mo singing it in episode 2). Huai'an asks him about the song and Di Lu says he learned it from a man in Huainan he used to deliver messages for. In fact, he was supposed to have killed the man for betraying Huben but when get got to Huainan, the man was no where to be found. We get a brief reminder flashback of Huai'an stabbing Zhou Mo with voiceover saying 'he needed to die once to be free'.
Di Lu says he liked Zhou Mo and when Huai'an asks him why he would kill him if he liked him, Di Lu seems surprised,
"Liking," he says, "has nothing to do with killing."
At Di Lu's home he is drunkenly trying to convince the other two to keep drinking with him, he is hanging on Huai'an for support and notices his neck wound has opened. He sobers up with realization. They all know Huben is after a man with a signature neck wound. Huai'an is calm, doesn't seem concerned at all to have been found out. Li Shengeng backs up slowly and closes the door to the courtyard as Di Lu gets a knife out.
Just as he is approaching the still calm Huai'an, Di Lu is stabbed in the back by Li Sengeng. Some nearby houses have second story windows and Huai'an notices light behind them, he and Li Sengeng communicate with looks alone to silence Di Lu. Le Sengeng clamps a hadn over his mouth and drags him to the side of the wall where no one looking down could see them, then stabs him again.
Li Sengeng looks shaken by what he has done as he drops the knife, blood pouring down his hand.
Huai'an kneels down to close Di Lu's eyes and says,
"It's a good thing you're here tonight, Han Ziling."
[Thoughts and Notes]
fun fact about your host, my hair is almost the exact same color as this wig, despite being close in age to Cheng Yi himself. It just runs on both sides of my family to go grey early. Anyway, I love whenever TV characters who are younger have grey or white hair (even if its more fantastical, like all white xianxia wigs).
📜Schemes and Secrets: Huai'an lying about hurting Wang Xing's wife, stealing Wang Xing's identity, Han Ziling alive this whole time
🩸Bloody Blades: Li Sengeng's knife at the end
[Reflections and Questions]
I love reading the discussions, there is so much great observation, analysis, and gif making going on. Thanks to everyone participating!
As we get deeper into this drama, express viewers who are ahead by 1 ep, please continue to be mindful of what info you know that we don't and use spoiler tags liberally. Everyone has been pretty good about it so far but just wanted to remind, thank you!
Links to Discussion Posts:
Index | Masterpost (Eps 1-3) | Eps 4-5 | Eps 6-7
Other useful links: Airing Schedule | DramaWiki | MDL | Weibo | Flashcards
Posted Dec 16, 2025, 2:51 AM UTC