Iron Widow

Zetian and Shimin meet with Qiu over a potential partnership and contractual deal for Qiu to handle their celebrity image. Qiu tries to tempt Shimin with alcohol, which Zetian narrowly saves him from consuming. Qiu has Shimin dismissed so that he can go over the contract alone with Zetian. Once he has her alone, he demands that she strip naked and read the contract aloud while he records her. Qiu demands this because, like many men in Zetian’s society, he needs to exert control over women’s bodies. Zetian is at first repulsed by this and considers dropping the contract, but instead, she complies while keeping her dignity intact, knowing that this humiliating compromise will eventually give her the upper hand over Qiu.

Qiu arranges a risqué celebrity photoshoot for Zetian and Shimin designed to shock, outrage, and intrigue the Huaxian public. It has the desired effect as the Huaxian internet goes wild over the scandalous photoshoot, but Zetian knows that the fame from such staged events won’t last and decides that she and Shimin need to undergo a Crown Matching ceremony in order to outdo the other two Balanced Matches in notoriety.

Zetian finds herself in Yizhi’s apartments, waiting for him, and idly wonders why the gods in the Heavenly Council don’t come down from their orbiting ships to help humans in the fight against the Hunduns. When Yizhi returns, the two talk about the messy situation between the two of them and Shimin. Yizhi believes the three of them can work as a throuple, a relationship with three people. Yizhi believes that love is “infinite” and that loving more than one person is possible, and Zetian makes it clear that she came to Yizhi’s apartments to have sex with him. The two talk about Yizhi’s fantasy of living together in a cabin in the mountains, alone and unbothered by others. Zetian and Yizhi become intimate, and Zetian lets go of the lifetime of misogyny that indoctrinated her with the idea that sex is filthy and that her body belongs to others.

Zetian relives some of Shimin’s memories in her sleep. She learns that An Lushan forced Shimin’s alcohol addiction onto him as a method of control, compelling him to continue piloting the Chrysalis in exchange for more alcohol. Worried for Shimin, Zetian bolts up from bed and goes to check on him in the middle of the night, accompanied by Yizhi. Zetian apologizes to Shimin for the way she has treated him; she now believes that he fought harder than she ever gave him credit for. Shimin deduces that the two slept together because they showed up together at his door at an odd hour. Shimin is unresponsive to Zetian’s apologies and slams the door in their faces.

The Crowning Ceremony plans are set in motion for Zetian and Shimin. The duo must participate in photoshoots with the other Balanced Matches, which leads to animosity between Zhu Yuanzhang, Xiuying’s partner, and the other pilot pairs. Yuanzhang hates the Rongdi, and Shimin is part Rongdi while Qieluo is full Rongdi. Yuanzhang hurls racist epithets at the two while Zetian watches in confusion. Zetian reveals that they are headed for her home village to conduct a photoshoot in the rice terraces where she grew up.

Zetian returns home a completely different person after being gone for a month. Her family has been harassed and tormented by the other townspeople because of her murder of Yang Guang, and Zetian has refused to send them money in retaliation for their poor treatment of her. After an argument with her father, Xiuying talks to Zetian and attempts to give her a “baby-blessing doll” that is made from Zetian’s baby blankets and is supposed to bless a woman who is entering into a new marriage. The doll angers Zetian, but Xiuying convinces Zetian to make amends with her family and move them to a new life in Chang’an. Zetian is particularly angry at the women in her family, which Xiuying believes she is wrong to do. Zetian realizes that perhaps she is too judgmental of others for not being able to free themselves from their oppressive situations as she has.

Later, Qieluo confronts Zetian and calls her a coward for appeasing her family. Qieluo believes that women like her and Zetian should never be kind to their abusive families and declares that the decision will come back to haunt Zetian.

The day before the Crowning Ceremony, Zetian finds herself torn between the two viewpoints offered by Qieluo and Xiuying. She does not know which of the women is right and struggles with how to resolve the situation with her family.

The Crowning Ceremony begins, and Shimin is gifted a crown like all the other pilots, an honor that he had previously been denied. The ceremony is a roaring success and cements the two in the public eye as a celebrity pilot couple and the two strongest pilots in Huaxia. Zetian spots Qiu and Lushan at the ceremony and vows to kill both of them someday for their mistreatment of the trio.

After the ceremony, Shimin and Zetian return to their appointed marital suite. Zetian decides to broach the topic of developing a romantic and sexual relationship with Shimin due to her conversation with Yizhi. Shimin is apprehensive at first, believing it would mean Zetian is cheating on Yizhi, whom he knows she loves. Zetian shares Yizhi’s explanation on the infinite nature of love, putting Shimin at ease about his feelings toward her and Yizhi.

Zetian has more dreams of Wende that night, while Shimin’s dreams let him experience the pain Zetian feels every day when she walks. Shimin explains that while Wende’s spirit pressure matched his, they were too equal, and it resulted in Wende being lost in his mind and dying in the Chrysalis. This information causes Zetian’s revelation that the women in a Balanced Match must necessarily be stronger to survive the men they are paired with. Wende’s death proves to her that the yin and yang seats in the Chrysalises are somehow rigged against women. She and Shimin decide to investigate further and obtain the information from the strategist An Lushan by any means necessary.

The next day, the counterattack to reclaim the Zhou province is officially announced. The day before the counterattack is launched, Yizhi, Zetian, and Shimin devise a plan to kidnap An Lushan. Shimin and Zetian take the strategist to a secluded room and torture him on camera until he confesses the truth about the Chrysalises: that they are rigged to make sure the girls die and the boys come back safely. The yin seat is intentionally hampered to ensure that the girls are passive batteries for the boys to steal their qi and power the Chrysalises. The truth horrifies Zetian and Shimin, causing the two to kill Lushan and hide his body. Zetian intends to show the film of his confession to the world immediately after she reclaims Zhou.

Later, under the pretense of cooking together, they reunite with Yizhi and tell him the truth about the Chrysalises. Yizhi comforts Shimin, who is distraught over all the women who have died because of him. Yizhi and Shimin share a kiss before the battle begins.