Original subtitles

[Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty]

[Episode 24]

Where is governor's daughter,

Yingtao?

Her father was buried,

but she is not here.

That's ridiculous.

Father!

Father.

You died miserably.

The government is incompetent.

The officials dare not to arrest the murderer.

But I

will avenge

your death.

Miss Yingtao.

The dead can't be revived.

My condolences.

Bury the prefectural governor first.

We'll discuss the rest later.

Since Governor Li's daughter is here,

it's time to bury the coffin.

No.

What? No burial?

Why?

Why can't he be buried?

Su Wuming.

You want to stop my father from being buried?

The headless corpse in the coffin

is not Governor Li.

Nonsense!

Commander,

don't say like that.

Yes, Brother Su.

It's good to be careful with your words and actions.

Administrator Gu, please give the order.

Open the coffin.

Commander, are you crazy?

This matter concerns the reputation of Ninghu.

I'm right here.

Who dares to open the coffin?

If anything goes wrong after opening the coffin,

Su Wuming is willing to go to prison.

Everyone can testify.

Open the coffin!

How can you open the coffin?

That's ridiculous.

Yingtao.

You just arrived at Ninghu

and met Governor Li.

Let me ask you.

Can you be 100 percent sure

to tell if this is your father?

This...

There are rough skin and calluses

between this man's left thumb and index finger.

I don't think

they are caused by holding a brush pen for years.

It should be caused

by holding a knife or something alike.

As far as I know,

Governor Li is good at writing poems and articles.

His calligraphy is even better.

He's a pure scholar.

How did such a person

have a hand like this?

The prefectural governor became an official through the imperial examination

almost in his fifties.

He must have taken the exam many times.

During that period, he farmed with hoes.

What's wrong with that?

What you say makes sense, Minister He.

But I asked Lu Yong.

Xiao Qi, the assassin he hired,

is a left-handed swordsman,

and has a red birthmark

on his left hand.

My father doesn't have that.

Unbelievable.

Did I investigate in the wrong direction

from the beginning?

Commander Su means

Governor Li is not dead?

I can only say

this headless corpse

is Xiao Qi, the assassin.

What happened on earth?

On the day of the incident,

Xiao Qi sneaked into the villa.

We don't know

whether he killed Governor Li or not.

But he encountered an accident.

His head and the right arm

were bitten away by a giant alligator.

It's so scary.

What's going on?

We may ask Li Si to identify the body.

Li Si.

Administrator Gu.

This case is very strange.

Please allow me

to assist Minister He in further investigation.

Minister Zeng, what's your opinion?

Since Commander Su is so intelligent,

you should grant him the permission

to investigate.

But the Double Third Festival

will come in ten days.

Why don't we solve the case after the festival?

Our attention should be given

to the God Sighting Ceremony.

Of course, this is just

my own opinion before I retire as an official.

What Minister Zeng said is reasonable.

The Double Third Festival is indeed

a big day for Ninghu.

But it remains unknown whether Governor Li is alive or not.

He can't...

It's my first to come to Ninghu.

I can't help

in preparing for the God Sighting Ceremony.

Why don't we set the Double Third Festival as the deadline?

I will clarify the facts of the case before the festival.

Won't that be in ten days?

Commander Su.

If you can't find out the truth before that,

you will have no choice

but to be put into prison.

Why should he be imprisoned?

It is right for Commander Su to open the coffin.

You have no say in that.

This case concerns a lot.

If we can't find out the truth,

someone has to take the responsibility.

Besides,

Commander Su himself said

he would find out the truth in ten days.

I didn't push him.

Then I'll do as you say.

Okay.

And He Xi.

If you can't solve this case,

you won't be able to get away with it.

How could this happen?

Let's go.

It's so scary.

All right.

Let's go.

Commander Su.

How dare you say yes to that?

There are legends

in every place.

Ninghu is located in the lake area.

It's called the Homeland of Alligators, or Tuo God.

Because of these legends,

it's not uncommon for people to worship Tuo God.

But what's uncommon is

that some people, in the name of Tuo God,

rob money and property,

and harm the people.

What's worse,

many officials

collude with these criminals.

Is this place

still the Ninghu of Tang?

Justice should be held for all.

How dare you, Shen Chong!

As the Chief,

you even don't know

whether Li Yu is dead or not.

How incompetent and useless you are!

Please forgive me, Tuo God.

I will send someone to investigate it.

Investigate?

Su Wuming has investigated it for you.

Chief Shen.

It's reasonable for Tuo God to be angry.

If Li Yu is still alive,

even if he doesn't have

the so-called Records of Worshippers of Tuo God,

he's a living testimony.

Yes.

I will dispatch someone to find Li Yu.

Tuo God.

Isn't that Su Wuming

so despicable?

Despicable?

We need to thank him.

If it's not because of him,

we wouldn't have known that the dead is not Li Yu.

To thank Commander Su,

I will invite him

to practice immortality within my stomach.

Yingtao.

I hope you can answer me honestly.

Where were you before you got to Ninghu?

Does this have anything to do with this case?

Let me do that.

Li Yingtao.

What are you calling me?

I mean

I'm used to being called

Yingtao.

Yingtao.

You're good at flying darts.

Last time,

you hit the wicked with only one dart.

This is not a dart.

It's a sleeve arrow.

Isn't it more powerful?

That's why I'm suddenly curious.

Your father, Governor Li, is good at poetry.

Why did he ask his daughter to practice martial arts?

If you don't want to answer,

let's start

from the Records of Worshippers of Tuo God.

My mother died of illness when I was young.

My father swore to pass the imperial exam.

So when I was eight,

he asked a Buddhist nun

to bring me up,

so that he could

go to Chang'an for the exam.

After that, the Buddhist nun

became my master

and taught me martial arts.

That's it.

Three months ago,

Li Si, my father's servant,

found me.

I was told that my father became a prefectural governor,

and he asked me to meet him at Ninghu.

But at that time,

my master was seriously ill,

so I couldn't come here immediately.

More than half a month ago,

she passed away.

After I arranged her funeral,

I came to Ninghu.

Go on.

It was the second day after I came here

when we met at the Temple of Tuo God.

I've learned from the people

that my father is a good official

who devotes himself to the people.

However,

he was controlled by the Worshippers of Tuo God.

Governor Li joined the Worshippers of Tuo God.

Is that true?

Yes.

Rumor has it that

I'm a member of the Worshippers of Tuo God.

[Li Yu, Prefectural Governor of Ninghu]

What do you think?

I don't believe it.

Although I just arrived in Ninghu,

I can see

this so-called divine shrine

is actually an evil one.

What they said is true.

You are sensitive.

A few years ago,

Worshippers of Tuo God did something good for the city.

But now it has changed

to an evil shrine that sabotages people.

Then why do you join them?

Because your father

wants to do something extraordinary

for the people of Ninghu.

If I didn't join the shrine,

I wouldn't be able to write

Records of Worshippers of Tuo God.

All the evil deeds they have done,

including how they ripped off money

from civilian traders,

are recorded.

And I also write down

the tricks they used

when they collected taxes for the government.

These are all

recorded clearly in it.

No wonder the members of the shrine

want to kill your father.

My father told me

he hid one of the Records

in the Temple of Tuo God.

He wanted me to bring it

to the procurator's office in Chang'an.

He said in Ninghu,

he had no one to trust.

On that rainy night,

you went to the Temple of Tuo God outside the city

to find

the Records, right?

That night,

Lu Yong wanted to burn the temple,

but was battered by Shen Chong and his subordinates.

Later,

you pretended to be Tuo God

and scared Shen Chong away.

I dared not delay.

So I wanted to take the Records

directly to Chang'an.

Who's that?

He's sneaking in the dark.

He must be Lu Yong's accomplice.

Arrest him!

Yes.

Daughter of Governor Li?

You just arrived in Ninghu.

Why are you sneaking around?

You are planning to do

something shameful, aren't you?

Take her down.

Get her!

I didn't think I would be able to escape that day,

so I hid the Records

in a tree cave.

But the next day when I went back to look for it,

nothing was left there.

That night,

if you hadn't gone to the temple,

I would have taken the Records

to Chang'an.

No wonder you didn't trust me

to the extent that you used ecstasy incense on me.

I know this very well.

I once interrogated Lu Yong

in the Ninghu Prison.

The Records you hid in the tree cave

was found by Lu Yong in the escape.

He was so proud of himself or even complacent

[Records of Worshippers of Tuo God]

that he sent it to Gu Wenbin.

He didn't expect that Gu Wenbin

gave it to the Shrine.

Is Administrator Gu

also from the Shrine?

He's always sophisticated.

So it's not surprising whether he is or not.

Yingtao,

how many copies are there

of the Records?

My father only told me

there was one in the Temple of Tuo God.

So the top priority

is to find Prefectural Governor Li,

be he's alive or dead.

Does Governor Li

have any relative in Ninghu?

Before Yingtao came to Ninghu,

Governor Li was alone.

There was no prefectural governor's mansion built for him.

He just lived in the backyard of the government office.

Yingtao.

Does your father

have... have...

any confidante?

Commander Su, what do you mean?

My father is the Prefectural Governor.

He does not indulge in merry-making.

Do you have the habit of wearing makeup?

What do you think?

It seems not.

I have

a piece of gold foil,

which is found

in your father's villa.

This is the most popular one in Chang'an.

It is applied on huadian, the plum makeup.

Why do you have it?

Are you sure?

Sure.

When I was in Chang'an,

I used it quite often.

This is the most popular in Chang'an.

But you practice martial arts,

and don't have the habit to wear makeup.

So I suspect

before your father died,

a lady from Chang'an came to the villa.

That's impossible.

Alright.

Before we find Governor Li,

all are just guesses.

Yingtao.

You may stay here for the time being.

Minister He is reliable.

Don't show yourself in public

in case you get yourself into trouble.

There is indeed a secret tunnel,

and a female corpse.

Female body?

Is there a huadian on her face?

I think so.

What do you mean by that?

You two were in the same coffin.

You were so close to each other.

How could you not see it?

The light was really dark back then,

and it was under the mouth of Tuo God.

I...

I was in no mood to observe her.

[Bishui Pavilion]

How is this possible?

Does it come back to life?

Turn around.

I, Li Si,

raised a giant alligator in the villa.

I let it bite the prefectural governor, Li Yu, to death

just to take possession of the woman from Chang'an.

That night,

the meal Commander saw I preparing

[Li Si]

was also sent to that Chang'an woman.

But she just didn't obey.

So I killed her.

Where is Li Yu's body?

He seems to mean

that he sank the body into the lake.

Then answer me.

What is the background

of that Chang'an woman?

He bit his tongue and committed suicide.

That means Li Si has admitted

all the crimes.

He who excuses himself accuses himself.

Li Yu must be alive.

Minister He has sent people

to search the whole city.

But there's no news yet.

Do you want to

stay in prison forever?

Commander, please spare my life.

I have no choice.

If I don't be their eyes and ears,

I'll be thrown into the Swamp of Alligators.

Worshippers of Tuo God again?

Remember,

nothing in this world

can be a reason

to hold the candle to the devil.

Let him go.

Let's go.

You ask me to identify the body?

Whose body?

It should be the body of a Chang'an woman.

That's a joke.

I've already told you

I didn't know any woman from Chang'an.

My father

would be less likely to know her.

I'm not going.

So I carried the body

here.

I don't know her.

I've never seen her before.

Li Si said

he killed your father

and this woman from Chang'an.

And he

has bitten his tongue and killed himself.

What did you say?

Uncle Si...

He is dead.

Uncle Si.

[Tomb of Li Si]

Su Wuming.

I'll pay you back

the money you bought the coffin for Uncle Si.

No need.

Li Si's death

is obviously hiding something.

Can you tell me

what he wants to hide?

This is very important for me

to solve this case.

If you can find my father,

I will tell you everything.

Are you sure

your father is still alive?

What did you say?

My father is not dead?

Take me to see him.

He has arrived at a safe place.

He said he would stay in Ninghu.

He told you not to look for him,

but to leave here quickly.

Uncle Si,

leave with me.

No, I still have something to do.

I can't leave any trouble

to master.

One more word you say

gives me

one more clue.

Don't you want me to solve this case?

Li Yingtao.

Stop calling me that.

It's your job

to investigate cases and arrest criminals.

What does it have to do with me?

Unless there is news about my father;

otherwise,

don't come to me again.

There are still eight days to the Double Third Festival.

Minister He and I are in public.

You and Chicken Fed are under cover.

Try our best to find him.

Li Yu should not have left Ninghu.

Are you sure?

Because Yingtao didn't leave.

You still believe her?

There's no other clue.

What else can you do but trust her?

Fine.

After the Double Third Festival,

you will be imprisoned in Ninghu.

I'll take Fed, Xijun

and Xue Huan to travel around the world.

We will go wherever there is good wine.

As long as there is wine.

Sworn brother.

What are you telling them to do?

Why isn't there anything

for Xue Huan and me to do?

Ninghu

is very weird.

Worshippers of Tuo God are too powerful

and their background is unclear.

Don't go out unless you have something to do.

Xue Huan.

Protect Miss Xijun well.

Yes.

Tuo God.

The outbound water and land routes

are both monitored by our men.

As long as he's still alive,

he must still be in Ninghu.

Are there many places where people can hide

in Ninghu?

You have so many men,

but you still can't find Li Yu.

Chief Shen. You didn't put much effort into it, did you?

You misunderstand me.

I've always done my best

for Tuo God.

We've searched all over Ninghu.

Besides,

He Xi and Su Wuming

are also looking for Li Yu.

I've planted spies

around them.

If they find something,

we will get it first.

But after so many days,

they...

Have you searched Hanshan?

I...

Without Tuo God's permission,

how dare I go to Hanshan.

I allow you to search Hanshan.

Li Yu mustn't survive the Double Third Festival.

As you wish.

Mr. Zeng?

Minister He.

I know you've been working hard recently,

so I come to see you.

Mr. Zeng.

Please come in.

I

will resign from office.

Do you know that?

I've heard that.

Mr. Zeng has been working for the city for many years.

I'm really reluctant.

I wanted to invite Prefectural Governor Li

to attend my banquet for resignation.

But Prefectural Governor Li is dead.

No.

He's not dead. He's lost.

We can't find him.

Tell me.

We really can't find the prefectural governor

in Ninghu?

Yes.

I'm also thinking about it.

He hasn't left Ninghu, has he?

He

has probably left.

Otherwise, would the prefectural governor

go to Hanshan

with tramps and beggars?

Hanshan?

Why didn't I think of that?

I remember when Mr. Zeng was the Chief of Hanshan,

you caught three murderers

in Hanshan a day.

Yes.

That place is a mess,

and it's an important place under the worshippers' jurisdiction.

Prefectural Governor Li won't go there.

Commander Su.

[Commander's Residence]

There is no news of the prefectural governor in the city.

But there is still one place

for us to try our luck.

Commander.

Who is he?

He is my personal staff.

Where did you just shout in the yard

can we try our luck?

This...

Hanshan!

Hanshan!

Hanshan,

just like the Ghost Market in Chang'an,

is the best hiding place in Ninghu.

Before the Double Third Festival,

there will be Hanshan banquets

for three consecutive days.

Today is the first day.

Guess what?

Usually, officials and civilians in Ninghu

have nowhere to buy Tuo God Wine even if they have money.

In these three days,

they can drink freely in Hanshan.

It's Tuo God's treat.

That's great.

Tuo God may not be bad.

Fed.

Didn't I ask you to find wine?

If Prefectural Governor Li

loves wine as well,

he will certainly go.

Minister He. Is Hanshan the place

you just mentioned?

Yes.

Minister Lu has been secretly investigating Hanshan

for three consecutive days.

Tell me about the situation.

Hanshan is cold and slient during the day,

and lively at night.

This place is a mixture of good and bad

and there are thieves.

It does look like the Ghost Market in Chang'an.

In Hanshan,

many shops are usually closed,

and many houses are even ownerless.

The tramps can live anywhere.

As long as they put a lock on,

no one can get in.

So it's too hard

to find someone.

But

the three days before Double Third Festival from today

are different.

All the houses and shops

in Hanshan

are not allowed to be locked.

The Hanshan Banquet

is a feast

for all the sojourners.

Commander Su once deduced

that if Prefectural Governor Li was still alive,

he must be hiding in Hanshan.

If we want to find him,

we have to do it in these three days.

But I haven't seen the prefectural governor.

I'm afraid we need to depend on Minister He

and Yingtao.

When will the Hanshan Banquet

start?

It'll start as soon as it gets dark.

Minister He, please

take Yingtao with us.

Let's go to the Hanshan Banquet

tonight.

[Hanshan]

Come on.

Let's go.

Good wine.

Come on.

Hurry up.

It really looks like the Ghost Market in Chang'an.

I like it.

He Xi.

Why didn't you bring us here earlier?

The poor living in Hanshan

don't need to spend a coin here.

Who was so kind

to build Hanshan?

Worshippers of Tuo God.

Worshippers of Tuo God?

We come here this time

to get blessed by Tuo God.

Watch your mouth.

I don't like drinking,

so I can't remember the date.

If Mr. Zeng hadn't reminded me,

I wouldn't remember

that the three-day Hanshan Banquet had arrived.

Mr. Zeng is about to resign.

In the future, Ninghu...

That's right.

He was worried.

That's why he came to me.

I'll talk to you about it later.

Okay.

What's the Hanshan Banquet?

Three days before the Double Third Festival every year,

Tuo God will hold a banquet

at Goddwill House in Hanshan

and enjoy it with those who are blessed by him.

By the way,

sometimes, he throws money on the spot.

That's why tonight is

the most bustling time here.

Get out of the way!

Move! Move!

Give money to the poor?

Are the Worshippers of Tuo God so kind?

Who are you?

How dare you slander the Shrine!

Without the protection of the Shrine,

how can people like us

have a place to live?

I told you.

Watch your mouth!

We dare not slander the Shrine.

We come here

to burn incense

for Tuo God.

Yes. Yes.

That's more like it.

Slowly.

[Goodwill House]

Goodwill House

is the most bustling place

in Hanshan.

If we can't find

Prefectural Governor Li's whereabouts here,

it is hard to find him elsewhere.

Come on, drink.

[Tuo God Wine]

Fill it up.

To Tuo God.

[The house is full of guests]

To Tuo God.

OK.

Drink!

Great!

No one entertains the guests.

Isn't there any staff here?

They don't need to pay for anything,

so there is no staff.

The Tuo God Wine is here.

Tuo God Wine.

Is this real?

Of course it's real.

From tonight

to the Double Third Festival three days later,

there will be enough Tuo God Wine.

You can have as much as you like.

Look.

Others can't get it by any means,

but people here can drink freely.

Isn't it irritating?

Officer Ma.

Pour some wine.

This

is the place

where Tuo God lived before he was reborn.

So,

as long as you are naturalized in Hanshan,

all taxes will be exempted.

Prefectural Governor Li

likes this place very much.

He has patrolled Hanshan many times.

I've been drinking for half of my life.

I've never drunk

such mellow wine.

Drink it. Hurry!

It's really good.

No wonder it's exclusively for Tuo God.

Are you done?

Why are we here?

Right.

Don't drink too much.

We're here to look for someone.

But we have to finish it first.

This is Tuo God Wine!

Delicious!

He Xi.

Someone asked me to give it to you.

[It's dangerous here. Leave now.]

It's dangerous here.

Leave now.

It's dangerous here.

Let's get out of here.

Fed, stop drinking.

We have to go.

I haven't had enough.

I'll drink more.

Is it Prefectural Governor Li?

It is an indecent assault!

I...

I was trying to save your life.

You...

Are you hurt?

No.

I might be scratched by an arrow just now.

It doesn't matter.

Was that

really your father, Prefectural Governor Li?

It must be him.

I want to find my father.

You can't go out.

Don't go out!

Hurry!

The alligator's hearing is abnormal!

Don't move!

Fed.

Think about how to subdue this beast.

Do you think it's useful to ask this drunkard?

Tianzhu Incense is its favorite fragrance.

After smelling it, it will sleep happily.

Go find it.

Tell me

where we can find it now!

Tianzhu Incense?

♫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♫

♫Only for 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♫