The Lament of Autumn episode 25 recap: A knife and a bullet

In short

Lan Qing trades Ye Pingjun to Tong Chunhai for opium; Yu Changxuan kneels for her, she offers her own life, and he takes a bullet meant for her.

What happens in episode 25

Shaken, Ye Pingjun says she wants a quiet, free life. Yu Changxuan says he'll keep her at Fengtai for good and has her watched. She slips out in the rain; he carries her back, dries her hair and apologizes: Cai Fuhu and his son sold his men out to the enemy. His men also seize Cheng Jun's aircraft plans, engineers and pilots.

Desperate for opium, Lan Qing agrees to hand Ye Pingjun over to Tong Chunhai, and Ye Pingjun's rickshaw is taken off course. Tong Chunhai wants revenge: at an auction Yu Changxuan once held a gun to his head, and soldiers wrecked one of his kidneys.

Yu Changxuan comes alone, gives up his gun, kneels and lets himself be beaten. Told to stab him, Ye Pingjun turns the knife on herself and offers her life for his. Tong Chunhai fires at her and Yu Changxuan takes the bullet. Li Boren arrives and Tong Chunhai is caught.

While he recovers she feeds him, cooks badly for him and shaves him. She asks whether they loved each other before; he hesitates, then says yes. Zhao Baoru tells her about his two years at her bedside, and she agrees to move into the Yu home.

Why it matters

Ye Pingjun's feelings turn real, but they rest on his "yes," the biggest lie of the amnesia stretch.

Based on the episode synopsis, summarized in our own words: TVmao (电视猫) episode synopses