Original subtitles

[Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty]

[Episode 17]

Dugu Xiashu has

slept for 12 hours.

If I'm not mistaken,

after Dugu Xiashu is awake,

he will not believe that Qinghong is dead,

nor will he admit that

he has killed his wife and Liu Youqiu.

You are right, Commander.

He completely overturned

his previous confession.

Brother,

I'm ready.

When you get to Nanzhou Prison,

you have to listen to Dugu patiently

about his experiences in his dream

or in reality.

Draw them on paper

to help him recall

which are dreams

and which are reality.

Got it.

Headman Huang, lead the way.

Yes, sir.

Please.

If you think

you are innocent,

and you want to clear your name,

you must tell the truth

without hiding anything.

Understand?

This...

Why are you a girl?

It's so inconvenient.

At a time like this,

don't mind

about such matter anymore.

I'm Commander Su's sworn sister.

Do you know that

my sworn brother is Detective Di's disciple?

Di Renjie's disciple?

Yes！

The name of Detective Di is praised

because

he won't wrong any innocent person

or let any bad guy go.

Commander Su was taught by Detectice Di.

You should have faith in him.

What are these?

What a mess.

Xijun,

this painting is the weirdest

among all your paintings.

This is

Liu Youqiu and Qinghong

secretly dating at Dugu's house.

This is

Dugu Xiashu

arguing with Liu Youqiu.

And this is

Qinghong threatening Liu Youqiu

to take her away,

or she'll tell their affair

to Dugu Xiashu.

The last painting is

Liu Youqiu killing Qinghong with a kitchen knife,

as he was too embarrassed.

These are his dreams.

No.

Dugu Xiashu said that

these are not dreams

nor reality.

But these scenes

somehow

kept appearing in his mind.

So I drew it.

The one who killed Qinghong was Liu Yougiu?

There is no evidence

to support this hypothesis.

Fed has cured his delusion,

but now he is hallucinating again.

Is Gudu Xiashu

joking with us?

The rain in Nanzhou

makes people

unconscious.

It's not strange to have hallucinations.

You two have been here for so long,

have you ever had hallucinations?

I've hallucinated of wandering around the Stone Bridge Mountain.

I...

I've hallucinated of returning to Chang'an.

Brother,

are my paintings

useless

for solving the case?

No.

It's very useful.

Your paintings have

proven Chicken Fed's inference.

Dugu Xiashu's mental state

must be having some problem.

The root of it

might be someone was plotting against him.

Qinghong was killed by Liu Youqiu,

but Liu Youwang is dead now.

Will you suspect me

for blaming everything

on the dead?

According to the clues,

and deducing of time,

the possibility of Liu Youqiu as the murderer

is highly unlikely.

No.

It was definitely him.

Although I didn't see it with my own eyes,

but if I tell you this,

you won't doubt it.

What?

You still have a secret?

That painter is a woman.

I can't say it.

You have told her about

the adultery between Qinghong and Liu Youqiu.

What else can't you say?

I...

I really can't say it.

Guards!

Torture him!

Commander Su,

I learned something

from Dugu Xiashu.

Some people are only afraid of punishment.

For these people,

it's best to use corporal punishment.

Alright.

Minister Lu,

I'll leave him to you.

Okay.

Alright!

I'll tell you!

Everything started two months ago,

when Qinhong brought me

some clothes at the Confucian Temple.

It's you.

How do you know...

I knew that you will come today,

so I came to pick you up.

Where is he?

He went to buy candles.

I'll wait for him here.

No way.

If you gets sick,

the person who is buying the candles

will blame me.

Let's go.

It's my honor

to hold the umbrella for you.

Let's go.

Thank you.

Watch the steps.

Madam,

please go to the eastern hall to rest.

I'll wait for him in the courtyard,

and we'll then go in together.

No, Madam.

There's fire in the eastern hall. It's warmer.

If you freeze yourself,

I will be blamed.

Come.

Let's go.

Let's go.

I don't know why.

I was afraid that time.

What are you afraid of?

I'm afraid that

if I follow him to the eastern hall,

I'll see something unbearable.

Did you follow them?

If my guess is right,

he would still go to see it.

Yes.

I went to see it.

That's because

Ji Xiang knows the rules,

and he evaded from the scene.

Otherwise,

I can't follow them.

Madam.

Are you wet?

No.

You're drenched.

I'm so sorry.

Let me dry it for you.

Thank you, Madam.

It smells good.

What did you say?

I said,

you smells so good.

It's all because of that damn rain!

What does this have to do with the rain?

Of course it does.

If it wasn't raining,

Qinghong wouldn't have been wet from the rain,

and Liu Youqiu wouldn't have took advantage of it.

Why don't you blame the umbrella?

Why don't you blame the umbrella seller and the umbrella maker?

I... I do.

That is why since then,

whenever I see an umbrella seller,

I'll buy all the umbrella.

I'll then break all of them

by stepping on them one by one.

What about later?

What had happened?

Later,

I found that Qinghong is bringing me clothes

more often

at the Confucian Temple.

Until not long ago.

Why are you here again?

What do you mean?

Can't I come to see you?

Did you do

something shameful,

or had you hide a beauty here?

I mean,

you just brought me

clothes recently.

Can't I come again?

I want to see

what you are doing

all day here.

Madam.

Liu Youqiu,

why are you

imprisoning him here?

You've misunderstood.

We were studying hard in the Confucian Temple

in order to pass the exams.

That's enough.

You are just wasting your time

for nothing.

What do you mean by wasting time?

How am I wasting my time?

Yes, I've failed twice in the exams.

But as the saying goes,

passing the Mingjing is easy,

yet passing the Jinshi is hard.

The Imperial Court

will only hire twenty to thirty people

each year.

Even if I passed the Jinshi exam at 50,

I'm still considered young.

50 years old?

Are you going to

study with him here until you are 50?

Madam, stop arguing, both of you.

I'll make you two some tea.

Don't fight.

Later,

I drank the tea made by Liu Youqiu,

and I passed out.

I slept for four hours.

When I woke up,

Qinghong had already gone home.

I was wondering.

I was angry at that time.

How could I have fallen asleep?

The tea?

Yes.

Tea.

I suspect that Liu Youqiu

has put something else in the tea.

He then did that to Qinghong.

What did you do then?

A few days later,

I asked Liu Youqiu for a favor.

Liu Youqiu,

do you have the first volume of my Zhaoming Collection

with you?

I...

No.

No.

Did I left it

at home when I went back last time?

I need to go back home to get it.

What's wrong?

My stomach hurts.

I wonder what was Jixiang thinking.

He insisted on hunting some pheasant

to cook for us.

He must not have washed it clean.

Are you okay?

I'm fine.

I'll be fine after a rest.

Why don't you go

and get the first volume of the poem collection

for me, is it okay?

Were you testing him on purpose?

Yes.

I must figure out

whether

they have an affair or not!

At the beginning,

Liu Youqiu pretended to be unwilling to help me.

But, he agreed soon.

By doing this,

even if there was nothing initially,

something might happen

when the time comes.

I understand that,

but I couldn't control myself.

I was even

having a slight expectation.

What were you expecting?

I was expecting

them to really have an affair.

Dugu Xiashu,

you're crazy!

Because I care too much about her,

I'm willing to let her cheat on me first.

By doing this,

I'll feel

better.

You...

And then?

The first volume of the poem collection

is not here.

Where did he put it?

I think it's been raining for too long,

and his brain is not working properly

soaking in the rainwater.

It's not his brain soaking in the rainwater.

The poem collection was burned by me as firewood.

The poem collection is full of selected poems.

One scroll of it is worth thousands of kilos of firewood.

The fire is really big.

Do you mean the fire burning in the kitchen,

or your burning desire?

Liu Youqiu,

how dare you!

It's raining heavily.

Even if I'm timid,

I would like to do something presumptuous.

Although I didn't hit him

with the rock,

after Liu You Gu returned to the temple,

I questioned him.

Why did you do that?

Tell me. Why!

Liu Youqiu,

you have to make it clear today.

Are you crazy?

Yes.

I'm crazy!

I'm crazy because of you!

Liu Youqiu,

I... I'll kill you!

Although I didn't do it,

Liu Youqiu was frightened.

He went to find Qinghong immediately.

I know

he must be trying to persuade Qinghong

to elope with him.

But that woman,

she is my wife after all.

She must have rejected him,

and then was killed by him.

It's like this.

That's right.

Yes.

This is how it happened.

Liu Youqiu has killed Qinghong!

Liu Youqiu has killed Qinghong!

My head hurts.

My head hurts!

My head hurts!

What's wrong?

My head hurts!

It hurts!

Hey, you two.

Stop asking.

Even though he has slept well,

he can't be in an anxious state.

Dugu Xiashu,

rest for a while.

What would you like to eat?

Hot rice porridge is the best.

I'll ask them to make some.

Hurry up!

It is hard to distinguish between the true and the false

based on what Dugu Xiashu has said.

To distinguish the truth,

Minsiter Lu might need to

go out again.

Understood.

[Confucian Temple]

Is Brother Jixiang there?

Are you stealing the chicken?

I...

I'm hungry.

If you really want to eat,

you can just hunt the pheasant

with Jixiang together.

There is no need to sneak around and steal like this.

He refused to take me with him every time.

Then follow him secretly,

and see how he catches the pheasant.

Learn from him, and you can hunt yourself.

Why ask for help?

You're a grown man with healthy limbs,

but you live on begging.

Don't you feel ashamed?

I...

If I see you stealing again,

I'll flog you.

No.

Leave.

Greetings, Your Honour.

Brother Jixiang,

I'm sorry

for entering your house

without your permission.

It's okay.

Just now,

I saw Dong Lang

leaving sneakily.

He must have brought you here.

Yes.

Brother Jixiang, what are you doing?

It's winter in Nanzhou.

Even though it is not as cold as the north,

it's still gloomy and cold here.

I've made some clothes

to withstand the cold.

You look nice and proper.

I also heard that

you loves reading.

Why didn't you

work outside,

but chose to live at the Confucian Temple

like a wandering wild crane?

It's a long story.

Life doesn't turn out

the way you want it.

I am fortunate enough

to make a living

by finding this job here.

What can I do for you,

My Honour?

I want to ask you

about something recently.

It was raining that day and Qinghong came here.

Dugu Xiashu told us about this.

I'm afraid that

if I followed him to the eastern hall,

I'll see something unberable.

That's what

Juren Dugu said.

What?

He lied?

It's not the case of lying,

but the it's totally different from what had happened.

What had really happened was that Qinghong came here that day,

and found out the secret of the two Jurens.

Secret?

It's my fault.

I hesitated from telling

Commander Su the truth the last time,

because I wanted to

maintain their reputation.

This is a matter of life and death.

I've been regretting it these days.

Can I have another bowl of rice porridge?

Stop eating!

Why did you hit me?

What else can I beat you for

except for the things you've done.

Lu Lingfeng,

why did you hit him?

You had met Ji Xiang?

Yes.

After all the story this person told

us earlier,

the one that he mentioned that

he cares too much

is not Qinghong,

but Liu Youqiu.

Why can't I understand what you've said?

It didn't rain that day,

and there was no such thing as

Qinghong and Liuyouqiu shared an umbrella.

It wasn't Dugu Xiashu who saw

Qinghong and Liu Youqiu flirting,

but it was Qinghong who saw

Liu Youqiu and Dugu Xiashu filrting.

They still found out about it.

You'll interrogate him yourself.

You...

Dugu Xiashu,

what Minister Lu said just now...

They found out.

They found out.

Master, have a sip of tea.

He committed suicide to escape from punishment!

What he had done had nothing to do with me!

Su Wuming.

As the Military Commander of Nanzhou,

you have to supervise the judicial system.

I will accept

whatever punishment you sentence me to.

He could not have done the things

you said.

He has admitted it.

He said it himself.

They found out.

Even though he said it,

it was all because of you scaring him!

If what I said is not true,

why didn't he refute me,

yet he killed himself instead?

Why didn't you refute it

when you were expelled from Chang'an?

Didn't you think of suicide as a solution

when you had noting left to care about!

You!

Xijun, that's too much.

Xijun's words may hurt,

but they make sense.

Lu Lingfeng, calm down.

Listen to Xijun finish patiently,

OK?

That day, I‘ve listened to Dugu Xiashu

for 12 hours.

I did feel that he was hiding something.

But he loves Qinghong deeply,

that can't be fake.

The person he cares about the most must have been Qinghong!

It can't be others.

And it certainly can't be a man!

Lu Lingfeng,

I don't think the twisted love you said

is true.

There must be something.

Dugu Xiashu is weak

and sensitive of his own reputation.

His suicidal act

can't prove that he'd pleaded guilty.

For the words Xijun just said,

you don't have to take it seriously.

But should we

think about it carefully again?

Since the beginning of the case,

did we miss any details so that we...

How about this?

Let's enjoy the tea

while we meditate for an hour.

Xue Huan, pour your master some tea.

Why don't you let me die?

Let me die.

I want to see Qinghong

and Liu Youqiu.

I want to ask them about everything.

If you die,

you won't know anything!

To be honest,

death is much easier than living.

When I was young,

I'd suffered way more than you did.

Hear me out.

You have to live no matter how hard life treats you.

Commander Su!

Minister Lu!

Commander Su! Minister Lu!

What's the rush!

Did Digu Xiashu kick the bucket?

No. Look at this.

This is the reply letter from Linzhou.

Ten years ago,

there was a cat burglar

named Ling Jian.

He committed many cases of

murder and theft there,

including the city treasury.

This person is good at using iron needles as hidden weapons.

Every shot from him is meant to kill.

He disappeared ten years ago,

and had not heard from him yet.

Could it be that this Ling Jian came to Nanzhou?

There's another news

I heard on my way here.

Liu Youqiu's father

burned himself to death at night.

Burned himself?

Yes.

He should be mourning for his son too much.

He was too sad.

I've sent someone over.

After burning, with the help of his neighbours,

the fire has stop spreading.

But...

he still died.

He was burned after he died.

After he died?

The coroner hasn't arrived yet.

If they check carefully,

it's not hard for them to find out.

If a living person encounters a fire,

in his frightened flight,

he will inhale the ashes from the fire,

and the ashes will stick in his nasal.

However, there were no ashes found

in his nose,

nor in his mouth.

This means that

he was killed first

and this house was lit later.

The murderer is indeed cruel.

This case may be related to the previous case.

What do you think?

When I was meditating,

I thought...

I also thought of what I might've missed.

Follow me.

[Wende Hall]

Greetings, Commander Su.

Where are you going?

I was enlightened by Minister Lu yesterday.

I want to go to a bigger place

to broaden my horizon,

and do things I should do.

I'm nearly 40.

I hope it's not too late.

I see.

Actually,

I saw that you liked reading,

and I really admire you.

If you really have ambition,

can you stay for a while,

so I can recommend you to my higher-ups.

Maybe you can

get a job immediately in the prefectural governor's mansion.

Thank you for your appreciation.

I do want to be an official,

but I don't want to rely on others.

After all, I've been studying hard

since I came to this temple.

I want to see

if I can do it myself.

Fine.

Then I wish you for a bright future.

Thank you, Commander Su.

Go.

Stop!

Give me your money!

My money?

I don't have anything for you to rob.

It's not raining now,

but you're holding an umbrella.

You must be up to something.

Says a man

who is wearing a bamboo rain hat,

and a straw rain cape on a sunny day.

I am a robber.

I must hide my identity.

But you? You must be using the umbrella

to hide all your valuables.

Give it to me now,

If you still want to live!

I'm just a scholar.

I don't have any valuables.

A scholar?

Do you think you can pretend to be a scholar just with your bookish outfit?

You look more like a bandit to me.

Do I know you?

No.

I just don't believe that you're a scholar.

I was a bandit for the first half of my life,

but I want to be an official for the rest of my life.

Can't I?

If that's the case,

recite that unappreciated scholar's article,

Preface to Tengwang Pavillion.

If you recite one word wrongly,

I'll cut you one more time.

Preface to Tengwang Pavillion.

Good article.

Unfortunately, I don't have the time.

But since you want to hear it,

I can recite one paragraph,

which is also my favorite part.

Alas!

I am ill fated,

and my life id full of frustrations.

Feng Tang grew old quickly

and Li Guang had difficulty getting promoted.

Jia Yi was unjustly exiled to Changsha.

Was it because there was no wise emperor on the throne?

Liang Hong had to seek refuge at the seaside.

Was it because there was no good government in his time?

Fortunately, what supports one is the belief

that a man of noble character always contented with his lot.

Old as one is, he gains vigor with age

and by no means wavers in his aspiration.

Poor as one is, he is all the more determined in adversity

and by no means gives us his ambition.

One heeps his integrity even if he has drunk the water of the spring of Avarice

and is cheerful even is he is confronted with misfortune.

Though the North Sea is far away, one can still get there with the help of the strong wind.

Though the morning is gone, it is not too late to make up the loss in the evening.

Meng Chang was noble and honest,

but his devotion to the country was futile.

Ruan Ji was unruly and untrammeled,

but he burst out crying when in dire straits.

I

am an insignificant scholar of a low official position

and am of the same age as Zhong Jun,

But unlike him,

I have no opportunity to serve in the army.

I will follow the example of Ban Chao, who threw aside the writing brush to enlist in the armed services

and I admire Zong Que who made up his mind to seek a military career by braving the wind and waves.

Old drunkard！

Grab the spear!

Using a hidden weapon in front of me?

Sword!

What's the rush?

You are good in literature.

Why don't you continue to recite that article.

I haven't heard enough.

Minister Lu is a martial arts master.

I can't kill you.

But the helper you brought,

I must kill him.

Fed, hide!

Don't come over!

Don't come over!

You!

I told you not to come over.

Sit!

Should I call you Ji Xiang

or Ling Jian?

I don't understand what you're talking about.

You've been disappearing from Linzhou for ten years.

Why did you come to Nanzhou to commit a crime?

And killed three people

at once?

Do you have any evidence?

This man

was once a general of the Imperial Guards.

With his martial arts skills,

he would have captured you with no trouble.

He just wanted to force you to use hidden weapons

in front of the public.

After the second autopsy,

and comparing the steel needles,

Qinghong was indeed killed

by your hidden weapon.

Killing one people is already a capital crime.

Do you still have to hide

your crime of killing Liu and his son?

You can't hide it even if you want to.

This is what we found

in your bag.

The letter,

which Liu Youqiu's father wrote to his old family friends in the capital.

This letter has paved the path for Liu Youqiu

to become a imperial scholar.

You must have stolen it

before you set Liu's house on fire.

You're just a dogsbody who loves to read,

a bandit daydreaming

to become a imperial scholar.

Do you really want to go to Chang'an?

I only hate you and Lu

who have came to this place,

and stopped me from being an official in the capital.

Shut up!

If a bandit like you

can be an official,

isn't that a huge disgrace for the Tang Dynasty?

But what I don't understand is

how I

give myself away.

The way you catch the pheasant.

I confess.

I am from He County

and have been an orphan since young.

My master took me in

and taught me the skills of martial arts and hidden weapons.

After that, my master died in a clash.

I became an outlaw living in the forest after I avenged him.

In order to avoid the chase,

I ran to a temple in Linzhou and changed my name to

Ling Jian.

But I couldn't stand the tedious life,

so I became a cat burglar.

That double life of being

a monk by day and a burglar by night,

has given me great pleasure.

But when I reached 30,

I felt that

everything was boring.

So I retired and came to Nanzhou.

I donated my money

and built that Confucian temple.

What did you say?

You're the donor of the construction of that temple?

Is that hard to believe?

Since the temple was built,

I have been staying in the temple

as a dogsbody.

Although there are scholars in Nanzhou,

but only a few people

came to worship in a year.

Most of them left after burning some incense sticks.

I was enjoying the peace.

Who would've thought?

Three years ago...

Put it down.

You can leave now.

-Yes. -Yes.

Sir, what are you...

Please call me Juren Dugu.

Greetings, Juren Dugu.

I'm going to study here and prepare for the exam.

Help me choose a room.

Take the money.

From now on, you should

take care of my meals everyday.

The Confucian temple is a place to enshrine and worship Confucius.

I couldn't refuse

to let him stay and study here.

So I made up a lie

that the temple was haunted

to scare him away.

Ji Xiang,

didn't you say that there's a ghost in the temple?

Where is the ghost?

Could it be a female ghost?

I've been waiting for her for half a month.

Why isn't she here yet?

It must have been the righteous in you

that scared her away.

You said the temple was haunted

because you don't have Confucius in your heart,

although you live in the Confucian temple.

What do you mean?

The sages said

"Confucius does not talk about any extraordinary things, feats of strength, disorder, and spiritual beings."

You

should study more in the future.

Don't believe in

the demon and ghost any more.

Take it.

Since then,

I often borrowed books from Dugu Xiashu.

I gradually fell in love with studying.

The King of Qin has the intention of conquering the whole country,

claiming possession of the world,

claiming possession of the world...

sweeping the four seas,

and annexing the whole universe.

Back at that time,

with the Shang's help,

internally, he established the law,

encouraged farming and weaving,

and constructed defensive and offensive equipment.

Externally, he practiced a strategy of balance and made the lords fight among themselves.

As a result,

the Qin easily took over the land west of the Yellow River

That's right, that's right.

I am stupid.

Don't say that, you're doing great.

When I studied The Faults of Qin,

I was younger than you,

but I didn't memorize it as fast as you.

You are a genius.

I, the burglar who've committed many crimes,

was praised by Dugu Xiashu.

You are a genius.

I was so happy

that I couldn't sleep for three days and nights.

From then,

I had an idea

deep in my heart.

Others can all study for the exam,

why can't I go to the capital

and take the exam to become an official too?

Dugu Xiashu failed the test twice.

That's because he's not gifted enough.

If I study hard for a few years,

I'll succeed in one blow.

In that case,

the rest of my life

would be distinctly different from the first half of my life.

Isn't this kind of distinct-seperate life

more exciting

than the double life I used to have?

So, you, the burglar

began to study hard

in the temple.

Until one day...

♫The storm rises with no reason♫

♫In the night of illusions♫

♫I go into the maze♫

♫In a world of prosperity♫

♫A heart burns with obsession♫

♫With the darkness rising♫

♫I can't stop wandering through the night♫

♫With light in my heart, I'm not afraid of the storm♫

♫It's because of justice♫

♫That I seek a truth for this long, lonely night♫

♫The heaven and earth are held together by a strong will♫

♫The people are in peace♫

♫Carving right and wrong into a clear heart♫

♫The truth♫

♫Will reinterpret this justice♫

♫Even if there is fog♫

♫Even if there are invisible waves♫

♫I'll tell the story of the fate♫

♫Tell the love of the world♫

♫For the memory of grace♫

♫And the resentment is not yet over♫

♫The rivers and mountains are immortal, the clouds are overturned♫

♫To be consoled by the truth, even with thorns on my back♫

♫It's because of justice♫

♫That I seek a truth for this long, lonely night♫

♫The heaven and earth are held together by a strong will♫

♫The people are in peace♫

♫Carving right and wrong into a clear heart♫

♫The truth♫

♫Will reinterpret this justice♫

♫Even if there are a thousand sails, it's not a waste of time♫

♫What I am afraid of is the unrighted wrong♫

♫What is the meaning of life and death?♫

♫I'll paint the sunshine into the landscape♫

♫The spirit of righteousness♫

♫Exists for the one I care♫