Original subtitles

You're finally here.

Yes, Master.

I came to see you.

Where is Xie Huai'an?

We survived.

Huai'an is alive too.

He told us you would appear here.

So we came.

Master is from Tiemo.

He wanted to kill Xiaoqing and me.

Go on.

Life or death,

end it cleanly.

Master.

Put away your weapon.

You raised us through more than ten bitter years.

Will you not even spare

a moment to look at us and hear a few words?

Thrust. Block.

- Like this? - Food's ready.

Come taste Chef Ye's cooking today.

If it's bad, it's free.

Hurry, come here. Stop practicing.

I'm starving.

Wow. Your cooking is really good.

- Master, let us drink well tonight. - Good.

Xiaoqing.

Mind your manners. Master hasn't taken the first bite.

- Thank you, Master. - Master.

You spoil her.

Aren't you afraid she'll go unmarried?

Here.

Thank you, Master.

Here, Zheng. Eat more.

- Xiaoqing. Let's toast Master together. - All right.

We wish Master good health.

- Good. - Master, a toast to you.

Good.

Things have come to this.

What more is there to say?

The people of Chang'an.

The people of Tiemo.

Is the difference so great?

Forty years ago,

I once had a son and a daughter.

The winter in Tiemo was too harsh.

They did not survive.

Later, war broke out again.

I fled in panic.

After that,

I received orders to enter Chang'an as a shadow guard.

I then served under General Liu Ziwen.

A few years passed.

In Basong Town,

I found you and Xiaoqing.

I raised you to adulthood.

Taught you martial arts and medicine.

I once believed

that I had another pair of children.

But…

But I cannot forget.

I cannot forget what I have just said.

War came again.

I fled in haste.

During that evacuation,

I never had the chance to bury my children.

If my homeland were still there,

if the house had not collapsed,

my son and daughter's remains

must still be there.

With such memories in my heart,

how could I cling to our past?

Master, thank you for raising me.

We understand now.

We have no right to resent you.

None of us has the right to hate one another.

If hatred must exist,

let it be toward the merciless heavens.

Children, rise.

If you intend to stop me from killing Xie Huai'an,

then you must take my blade.

Master.

Master!

You were the ones who brought the rice.

Back at Cangshui River,

I saw Master slip out at night,

so I followed.

Only then did I learn that Master kept two memorial tablets hidden in a cave.

I did not know whose spirits you honored,

but we thought they must be dear to you.

So Xiaoqing and I

would go there to pay respects from time to time.

Now we understand.

They were Master's children.

But Master,

we are your children too.

Master,

we are your children as well.

Master.

Master.

The people of Chang'an.

The people of Tiemo.

Is the difference truly so great?

But Master,

we are your children too.

Master.

We are your children too.

When Chang'an falls,

even in winter,

no Tiemo people will go hungry again.

If only you were born in such a time,

how wonderful it would be.

What should I do?

My children…

What should I do?

Your identity has been exposed.

As for your two disciples, how do you plan to deal with them?

Your Majesty must know why I followed you back then.

Of course I know.

Because your children died in the winter of Tiemo.

Tiemo's winters are bitterly cold.

So many children never survive the harsh season.

I believe you will not betray us,

because your children watch over you

from the heavens.

My children's bodies…

My own son and daughter

weren't even laid to rest.

Where else is there for me to go?

Is it you?

White Hair.

You win.

Mr. Long.

My father once told me

that in a village at the foot of Wuxi Mountain,

before a house,

there stood a stone hut of pale ash wood.

There should be…

two children's remains buried there.

Seven years ago,

I went to Wuxi Mountain and saved Pu Nichuan.

I also visited that stone hut.

Rest easy.

Your children…

have been laid to rest.

In every letter, you wrote about how you endured hardship

and wandered far and wide.

Looking at you now, you have held up well.

White Hair,

your father and I shared one wish.

We only hoped you could live safely,

long enough to grow old and gray in peace.

Child,

come back alive.

The King of Tiemo is gone.

He cares nothing for your life or death.

Let's go.

Take it slow.

‪-Come on. ‪-Let's move.

Xiaobing. You don't want to leave, do you?

Even if I don't, I must.

I fear Tiemo's attack as well.

But I still gave someone my word, and haven't fulfilled it.

Let's go.

Xiaobing.

What are you two doing?

Sir, His Majesty ordered me to protect you.

If I give my word, I will see it done.

My sister and I will escort you to Huzhou.

Look at these troubled times.

Why must you two take such risks?

War is coming. It's the same wherever we go.

Huzhou is farther away. Perhaps the war won't reach there.

- Sir. Don't feel indebted. - No…

In times like these, common folk should help each other.

Will this do?

It will.

Huzhou is far, so maybe we can avoid the war.

Food, clothes, and expenses on the road will all be my responsibility.

- Sir, don't stand on ceremony. - No.

You may command me along the road as you wish.

Serving tea, fetching water, massaging legs, just call me.

Treat me as you would your own son.

Sir, are you alright?

I'm fine. I'm fine, child.

Xiaobing, Xiaoding. Come.

Take me to Huzhou.

- Let's go. - Let's go.

Come, over here. Come.

Come on. Let's head off.

How is it? Are you alright?

Sorry to keep you waiting.

Is the porridge ready?

Sorry to keep you waiting. It's ready.

The Emperor of the Xiao line is now in the King of Tiemo's hands.

Chang'an now hangs by a thread.

Even on the brink, we still eat porridge.

The battle must have gone terribly.

It truly was a heavy defeat.

At least we still have porridge.

I thought I would never

see the Grand Preceptor again.

You will not see the Grand Preceptor.

What you see is Cen Pickles.

CEN WEIZONG

Ye Zheng. Eat your porridge.

You remember me?

Child, have a bowl. Warm yourself.

Old sir,

why is your courtyard full of pickles?

Winters are long.

Fresh food won't last in the cellar.

Pickling them brings out a richer taste.

I met your master when we were young.

After I retired from the world, we lost touch.

I remember when he took you two in,

he said he might live in Chang'an forever.

I naively believed

he would forget the past.

Now all has returned to dust.

Remember his kindness.

That is enough.

With that in your hearts, you will find peace.

Do not blame him.

You, and Gu Yu,

both remarkable people.

Gu Yu survived 30 days on dry buns alone.

I think you outdo him.

You could last 30 days without food or water.

This is Ronghua Alley, then?

Yes, and all the neighbors

around here are trustworthy.

For years, I bribed them with pickles.

Staying here should keep you safe for a few days.

You might not stay safe for long.

There is something I wish to ask of you.

I know.

I return to the palace tonight for duty.

Chang'an is about to change.

Please find a way

for that person to survive.

That child is no concern of yours.

I will see to proper arrangements.

What you should consider is a path of survival for yourself.

Ye Zheng told me you struck a bargain with Yan Fengshan's men.

If you defeat the Tiemo forces, they may take your head.

Yes.

If you defeat Tiemo, you die.

If you drive them away, you still die.

White Hair.

Have you ever wondered what you have lived for all your life?

If you can understand this,

then no matter whether there is a way out of your dead end,

your life will not have been in vain.

My thanks, Grand Preceptor.

The sky has yet to brighten.

Will you not take a lantern?

No need.

I walk as dust upon this world,

and heaven and earth bear the light for me.

I faintly sensed the Grand Preceptor was the one who saved me.

That night, after Su Changlin wounded me,

then…

Yes.

It was him.

The Grand Preceptor saved me.

Huai'an, he is someone we can trust, isn't he?

Fifteen years ago, the night the Lius were slain,

he should have died there.

My father hung a red ribbon on a tree,

warning him that the Huben Army had mutinied,

and thus he escaped death.

WANG'S CLINIC

Yan Fengshan and the King of Tiemo betrayed my father,

and betrayed the Grand Preceptor.

Those who share an enemy can at least trust each other.

The army has pushed 300 li past the North Office.

Yet the four regional commanders who hold great legions

have made no move.

No rations prepared, no troops mobilized,

as if they have chosen to sit and watch.

We have 200,000 soldiers, hardly a lone force charging deep.

And with Xiao Wuyang already in our hands.

Your Majesty, we can take Chang'an now.

- Hold on to it. - Thank you.

- Clear the way! - How much? Please warm up the flatbread.

Urgent military report to the central court!

Clear the way!

Watch the road.

- Urgent report to the central court! - Take care.

- Clear the way! - Lately, news has been pouring in fast.

They say the Tiemo people have reached the North Office.

And I heard at Changle Post outside the city, everyone was killed.

Could be the Tiemo people are already near Chang'an.

I also heard there's a place outside the city called Cangshui River,

and I heard many were killed there as well.

Truly too tragic.

These are troubled times indeed.

The war reports come faster each day.

Soon, the Tiemo will be here.

The commander, Xie Huai'an, is missing.

His Majesty's fate is unknown.

And so we wait here, letting grain and fodder go to waste.

If you ask me,

we should march north and fight the Tiemo head-on.

Did you read the report?

The Tiemo drove straight through.

The Baiwenhu Army fell quickly, and none of the regional commanders moved.

If we rush out now and fight, what if we lose?

Then what of Chang'an?

I believe His Majesty still lives.

I believe in Mr. Xie Huai'an as well, the one who holds the command.

He must have a plan.

Even Yan Fengshan, the man no blade could kill,

fell to him in the end.

Would the Tiemo be harder to fight than Yan Fengshan?

Maybe. But panicking will not help us.

We wait.

Military grounds. No unauthorized entry.

I request to see the generals.

The Wuyang Token belongs to Mr. Xie Huai'an.

Did he send you?

I…

No.

I come on behalf of the King of Tiemo.

Speak clearly.

Generals, you have followed His Majesty for many years.

The scar on the arm

is real.

This…

I believe you

recognize it.

Where is His Majesty?

Tell me.

Where is His Majesty?

The King of Tiemo

sent me here

with a message.

Chang'an will fall.

The Wuyang Army must not storm the city.

If you refuse,

His Majesty dies.

What? Impossible.

The Tiemo are still 500 li away.

Their shadow guards are already in the city.

They are using Huben tactics now.

The Wuyang Army must not attack.

If you do,

the Emperor will die.

When will the Tiemo strike?

I fear

we are already too late.

SILK AND SATIN

TAVERN

SILK AND SATIN

IMPERIAL GUARDS' STATION