Original subtitles

(In Chang'an, court officials kept dying one after another.)

(I buried myself in autopsies,)

(never imagining that at such a moment)

(His Highness would be harmed and be infected with syphilis.)

(His was weak to begin with.)

(I'm worried for him.)

(Every case and clue,)

(points back to this baffling illness.)

(Can I really make him well again?)

♪Embark on a farewell without saying goodbye♪

♪Build a bridge between life and death♪

♪Hear a voiceless declaration♪

♪Break disguises, cross illusions♪

♪A fleeting life and delusions♪

♪The surface always conceals♪

♪Separate cause and effect♪

♪A twisted path, rising and falling♪

♪Seek the path amid the hazy unknown♪

♪Writing oblivion with a sharp blade♪

♪No matter how far, I gaze at the light♪

♪Fearing no wild lands, I press on♪

♪To see the tides of the world once more♪

♪The deeper truth is buried, it grows♪

♪Until it is set free♪

=The Imperial Coroner S2= (Adapted from Idle Girl's The Constable's Wife)

(This story is entirely fictional.)

=Episode 14=

(See the Wind and Listen to the Rain)

Your Highness.

Bad news. His Majesty is at the Three Judicial Offices.

He has reached the Two Merits Hall.

(Two Merits Hall)

Chu Chu, coroner of the Three Judicial Offices. At your service.

Where is Xiao Jinyu?

Commandery Prince An is

a little unwell.

He is unfit to be here.

A little unwell?

And I was never informed?

Since when is syphilis considered a "little unwell?"

Xiao Jinyu truly commands loyal men.

The Three Judicial Offices are sealed tight.

You are conspiring

to deceive everyone.

This is outrageous!

If Jiang Daohai had not accused him before me,

I would still know nothing.

I placed great hopes in him.

Others accused him of abusing his office,

using investigations as a cover

to frequent pleasure quarters.

I never believed it.

Yet he took me for a fool!

After his investigations,

there were only more cases.

Xiao Jinyu's crime cannot be forgiven.

- Your Majesty, calm down. - Your Majesty, calm down.

Then tell me.

How should I calm it?

Should I abolish the Three Judicial Offices instead?

Your Majesty.

This matter is entirely my fault.

His Highness was at the Music Office for investigations.

As for how he contracted the illness,

it was because I failed to cleanse myself after an autopsy.

He was already weak in health.

When the sickness took hold,

he was drawn into it.

Your Majesty.

All responsibility

is mine to bear alone.

Very well.

Guards.

Your Majesty!

Your Majesty.

Commandery Prince An requests an audience.

Has he lost his mind?

At a time like this,

he still wants to see me?

Have Physician Qi treat his head first.

His Majesty must already know

that I contracted syphilis.

What should we do?

Your Highness.

We cannot provoke

His Majesty further.

Wu Jiang.

Yes.

I oversee the Three Judicial Offices.

It is my duty to protect them.

No matter what happens,

as long as I live,

the blame shouldn't fall on you.

Chu Chu means more to me than my own life.

I regard all of you as family.

His Majesty came in fury today

to make a show for certain people,

and

because of the string of cases.

The Three Judicial Offices must give an answer.

Your Majesty,

Commandery Prince An has a plan.

Please set your mind at ease.

He says

that recent murder cases have surged in the capital.

The Three Judicial Offices are pursuing them at full strength.

Clues have emerged,

however faint.

But too many are involved.

The case itself is deeply tangled.

It cannot yet be concluded.

I was careless,

and caught an illness.

I have disgraced the royal family.

I will accept any punishment.

But the deaths of these four

mustn't be ignored.

I cannot ignore them.

I was fortunate to have

Your Majesty's trust.

I would never forget that.

I know

the court is full of conflicting voices right now

and how difficult it is for you.

Even so, I ask that you trust me once more.

Allow me to explain everything in full.

Very well.

I would like to see for myself

what he still hopes to say

now that he stands at the edge.

Summon Xiao Jinyu.

Yes.

Your Highness.

How could His Majesty doubt you?

His Majesty belongs to all officials.

If he trusted me without question even now,

the Three Judicial Offices would truly be in danger.

His Majesty needs a way out.

More importantly,

a reason to trust me.

Xiao Jinyu.

I am baffled.

You insist on a thorough investigation in the capital.

After all this digging,

what have you actually uncovered?

You have fallen ill yourself,

and stirred the entire city into chaos.

That is precisely

why I know I was right.

Right about what?

Oh?

Should I reward you for it?

Just as Your Majesty said,

if the Music Office murders

were truly as simple as they appeared,

we would not have caused such turmoil

by investigating them.

What we see now proves the opposite.

There must be more to it.

Always more mysteries.

So what exactly is it?

What could be worth pushing you this far?

Enough kneeling.

Stand up.

Much obliged.

Eunuch Jinbao.

This…

Chu Chu once said

that without direct contact,

syphilis cannot be transmitted.

Yes.

Your Majesty.

These are three bodies we recently examined.

All three had shown signs of syphilis before death.

They are Qinxiang,

Wan Qianshan,

and Zhao Fengming.

Chu Chu.

Your Majesty.

All three bore external sores,

but during the autopsies,

we found that only Qinxiang's organs

showed signs of true syphilitic infection.

Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming

did not die from syphilis.

They were poisoned.

Poisoned?

Like Zhao Fengming,

Wan Qianshan died from ingesting the same toxin.

So you suspect deliberate poisoning.

Yes.

But why choose these two?

They held opposing political views,

yet both were top laureates of their year,

young and exceptionally capable.

They were pillars of the state,

known as the Twin Stars of Great Tang.

They often opposed one another openly.

Behind them stood the civil and military factions.

Each side praised its own champion,

but in truth used them to voice

their own agendas.

Both have died in quick succession at the Music Office.

Both were marked with signs of syphilis.

This was enough to cause public uproar,

and shake the people's faith in the court.

It also drives a wedge

between the civil

and military factions.

Even my own infection

was part of their calculations.

The timing of my illness,

and how quickly the news spread,

were far too precise.

It all feels deliberately arranged.

You mean to say…

Yes.

Just like Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming,

the syphilis I contracted was also

caused by poison.

Don't worry.

You are saying

that the true culprit behind the Music Office case

is someone from Nanzhao?

Then, the case of Master Shenguan

is connected to all of this as well?

Yes.

Zhao Senyao, who harmed Master Shenguan,

was approached by Nanzhao ghost guards.

They sold him

elixirs said to extend one's life.

They chose Zhao Senyao

because he oversaw

the appointment and transfer reviews

of military officers below the eighth rank.

This matter runs deeper than expected.

Nanzhao's plots and schemes

have already reached

into our military appointments.

They seek to erode the state at its core

and shake the foundation of the realm.

When will we finally uproot

this parasite that hides behind superstition?

Leng Yue is now investigating.

We will have news soon.

Xiao Jinyu.

Are you determined

to pursue it to the end?

Yes.

Even if it pushes you

into the very eye of the storm?

I am already in it.

Xiao Jinyu.

Do you understand

that this involves relations between states?

If anything goes wrong,

I...

I must

place the peace of Great Tang above all else.

Do you...

Do you understand?

I do.

I will give everything I have

with no regrets.

Your Majesty.

Allow me to investigate alongside Commandery Prince An.

Chu Chu.

You serve in the Three Judicial Offices.

When orders are given,

you are to obey.

There is no need to petition me again.

I am not asking for an order.

I ask to pursue this case with Commandery Prince An.

If anything goes wrong,

you may punish me alone.

That way,

the cost of calming the situation is kept to a minimum.

I understand

Your Majesty's difficulty.

Commandery Prince An carries a heavy responsibility at court.

If anything happens to him,

the court will fall into chaos.

I am only a coroner.

My life weighs almost nothing.

Yet I am a coroner personally appointed by Your Majesty.

This is my duty.

Let me investigate together with him.

If the worst should happen,

Your Majesty will have a choice that preserves the greater good.

Your Majesty.

I am willing to investigate alongside Chu Chu.

We are in this as one.

You two…

Your Majesty.

It is getting late.

You have also summoned the envoy from Xinluo.

Return to the palace.

(Two Merits Hall) Move the carriage.

Your Highness.

Thank you.

You are the finest coroner in Great Tang.

This is a battle

we will not lose.

Your Highness.

You did not sleep well last night, did you?

Sharp eyes, Physician Qi.

An old problem.

Your Highness's pulse

does resemble poisoning.

But this toxin

is one I have never seen before.

As for an antidote,

I will need time

to study it carefully.

Thank you for your trouble.

Your Highness.

Your Highness.

Vice Minister Jing.

Zhao Senyao has taken ill.

What happened?

He suddenly broke out

in a cold sweat.

His body began convulsing.

He keeps drooling and crying,

and his face has turned pale.

He looks completely dazed,

muttering nonsense.

Does syphilis really cause this,

even in its later stages?

That is impossible.

These symptoms

have nothing to do with syphilis.

Ghost guard! Ghost guard!

I want to see the ghost guard!

Young Master Zhao.

Calm yourself.

Let me see the ghost guard.

Your Highness.

This is no time for persuasion.

Just knock him out already.

Open the door.

Ghost guard...

I want to see the ghost guard.

Physician Qi.

Be careful.

This young man's illness

is truly unusual.

What do you mean?

Judging from his sores and pulse,

he does appear to have syphilis.

But

syphilis does not cause full-body convulsions.

This looks far more like poisoning.

Then, is it possible

that besides syphilis,

he was also poisoned?

That would mean

he,

Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming, and even Commandery Prince An,

were all given the same poison.

It's all right.

Your Highness.

- Your Highness! - Your Highness!

Your Highness!

What's wrong, Your Highness?

Your Highness.

- Your Highness! - Your Highness!

Your Highness.

Please have some.

Physician Qi said His Highness is stable for now.

You needn't worry too much.

Leave it there.

I will eat shortly.

Let me stay and attend to you.

You have been exhausted.

If you fall ill as well,

His Highness will only worry more when he wakes.

Lian Qiao.

It suddenly struck me

I've been busy every day with matters of the Three Judicial Offices,

and have hardly spent any proper time with him.

Don't worry. I will eat.

At a time like this, I won't be willful.

♪Palm lines carry the memory, leading us out of every winding turn♪

♪If two hearts can fly as one then storms are part of the way♪

♪Looking back the sky has already cleared♪

♪Your branches entwined with mine, bound together in mutual reliance♪

♪Rugged roads become the paths of sun and moon♪

♪Fireflies like stars circle through the seasons♪

♪Shining with the hope of dreams, this world is no longer in rags♪

♪Only by holding you in my heart do I dare embrace fear♪

♪Quietly waiting for rumors to fade♪

♪Together we face the tides of fate♪

You're awake.

How are you feeling?

Slowly.

♪Like sinking into the deep sea♪

♪The first breath upon awakening♪

Sorry to worry you.

Based on what we've guessed,

perhaps...

Perhaps

I will suffer the same fate as

Zhao Fengming and Wan Qianshan.

Don't worry.

I am still perfectly fine.

And Zhao Senyao is still alive.

That means this poison,

when it takes effect,

may only disturb the mind,

and not necessarily be fatal.

True.

If it is poison, there must be an antidote.

An antidote…

- Ghost guard. - Ghost guard.

The fact that Zhao Senyao is still alive

might really be because

the ghost guard gave him the medicine.

But who poisoned you?

No idea.

I have met too many people recently.

It will be hard to trace.

What matters most right now

is to obtain some of that

so-called life-extending medicine.

Once we have it,

there may be

a way to neutralize the poison.

We will look for it together.

Your Highness.

You promised to grow old with me.

Don't break your word.

I never will.

Your Highness, Princess Consort.

Are you finished speaking from the heart?

May I come in to report something?

As if I can stop you from coming in.

I followed your instructions

and withdrew everyone from the Music Office.

But you said the killer would make another move.

Why pull everyone back?

Have you not noticed

that the Three Judicial Offices have been tied down

by the syphilis case?

You mean

the culprit

intentionally drew us into this,

and forced us to act by his plan,

cornering us?

Exactly.

They could have done what they did to Zhao Senyao.

They could have

used poison to corrupt our officials.

Kept them alive,

forced them into bribery,

selling offices and favors.

But instead,

they killed Zhao Fengming and Wan Qianshan.

All of this

was to use the fall of the Twin Stars

to stir public outrage.

To spark infighting between civil and military factions.

And to make the people

lose faith in the court.

When you put it that way, it does sound logical.

The most ingenious part of this poison

is that it creates sores identical to syphilis.

People avoid speaking

of such an illness.

Those who suffer from it are ashamed to seek treatment.

From the moment the Three Judicial Offices took this case,

we were already trapped in a deadly bind.

And after I was poisoned,

if you had not held your ground,

the Three Judicial Offices would have collapsed from all sides.

The person behind this understands human nature well,

and knows how to exploit it.

All of this is likely meant

to conceal a far greater goal.

In the end,

everything began with Qinxiang.

I remember how she died.

She was strangled and drowned in a washbasin.

Such brutality

against a defenseless woman

feels more like interrogation by torture.

Yet no drugs

were left behind in her room.

They acted carefully.

Before silencing her, they made sure

she held no hidden evidence.

So what could have driven them

commit such brutality against her?

And why would Qinxiang choose death

rather than submit?

Qinxiang's weakness

was her family.

They went after Jing Yuan.

But he was just a young monk.

Was he really worth such trouble?

There is another.

Xie Huaiding.

Is General Xie at home?

He went out.

Was he meeting someone?

How do you know this, Vice Minister Jing?

Where did he go?

Well...

He never told us.

Cavalry General Xie Huaiding was appointed

by His Majesty

(Map of Chang'an) for the Jiaozhou front.

Here.

(Music Office) They control Great Tang officials here.

The moment we pulled out,

they began to move.

Let's go to the Music Office.

What is it?

Nothing.

The Music Office still stands,

but Qinxiang is gone forever.

Let's go.

(Music Office)

Your Highness.

We are here to find General Xie.

Do we really have to dress like this?

If we came in official robes,

they would have

shut the doors before we even arrived.

Why is Jing Yi not here yet?

He is already inside.

Let's go.

(Music Office)

I am here.

Where is she?

General.

Have some patience.

She is safe.

As long as you do me a small favor,

I will naturally

return her to you.

Would you like to hear a tune?

No need.

Sir, you seem tense.

Why such a heavy temper?

Let me help ease it.

Leave!

General Xie.

Vice Minister Jing?

Why are you here?

Your Highness.

He got away.

Commandery Prince An.

What?

Has the Three Judicial Offices begun spying on me as well?

You misunderstand, General.

The one who asked you here

meant to take your life.

General,

I saw it just now.

You also have the red blotches of syphilis.

Nonsense!

I have never set foot in such places.

How could I have syphilis?

General, you are mistaken.

You were poisoned.

This poison causes

red blotches identical to syphilis.

Lord Zhao and Lord Wan both died from it.

If I am not mistaken,

there is poison

in this pot of tea as well.

That is why I stopped you from drinking it.

His Majesty said

someone was trying to rot Chang'an from the inside.

Could this be what he meant?

Who did it?

Nanzhao?

There is no proof yet.

It must be them.

No wonder.

I suddenly developed rashes,

and within days, someone came to me,

insisting I had syphilis.

He even told me

to buy my life back.

Did he call himself a ghost guard?

How did you know?

That little wretch spun a wild tale.

One look and I knew he meant no good.

He even tried to strike a deal with me.

He claimed he could give me his ghosts as soldiers,

and guarantee me victory.

A load of nonsense.

I drove them out at once.

But

I kept the evidence.

I seized their medicine.

This pill looks strangely familiar.

You should recognize

that ghost guard as well.

Zhou Han.

Exactly.

General, would you tell us

why they asked you to meet them here?

I was searching for a woman named Lv Ying.

Half a month ago,

someone said there was news of her here.

You wanted to see Lv Ying?

You know her?

Where is she?

(Weiguo Temple) Lv Ying fled the Xie Residence years ago

and later gave birth to a child.

General.

Master Jing Yuan already knows.

He wishes to see you as well.

All these years,

Lv Ying changed her name,

and struggled just to survive.

She was killed because of me.

Even our son became a monk.

And I knew nothing.

My wife and child suffered.

Yet I lived on like a useless man.

How do I even face him now?

Amitabha.

Honored patrons.

Little Master.

We learned you stayed in the capital.

Forgive us for troubling you.

The delegation said

they would return together.

I have just brewed tea.

Would you like to come in for a cup?

When she entrusted me to my master,

she asked him to tell me

that my birth father

was an upright and courageous man.

You did not betray her trust.

Nor do you need to apologize to me.

Though I have left the mortal world,

to know that

I was loved by my parents

still brings me peace.

There will always be regrets.

General,

do not trap yourself

in the past.

Are you really

not coming home with me?

Sir, please have some tea.

Then,

I will soon depart for Jiaozhou City.

Would you be willing to come with me?

Sir,

please drink the tea.

Then in the future, may I still...

Fine tea.

There is nothing amiss.

The aroma suggests

several warming and restorative herbs.

It resembles Heavenly Rejuvenation Pill.

Heavenly Rejuvenation Pill?

I often give this medicine to His Highness.

I even have one here.

The weight feels slightly different.

I am ashamed.

I am getting old.

My hands tremble.

I can't tell by touch alone.

What is this?

It does not seem herbal.

Rather, it seems...

It's pungent.

Like powder burned from shells

or crustaceans.

White powder.

I investigated all the women of the Music Office.

Indeed,

many of them

bought scented powder from Qinxiang

to attract patrons.

The culprit used these women

to spread the powder,

targeting the noble youths they wished to control.

Once the poison took hold,

these young men

developed red blotches resembling syphilis.

And since they

frequented pleasure quarters and the Music Office,

they naturally assumed

that they had contracted syphilis.

Zhao Senyao was the same.

He did contract syphilis,

but what flared up was the poison.

Even Qinxiang never realized he had been poisoned.

He was terrified and dared not seek treatment.

At that moment,

the so-called ghost guard would appear.

With a face that looked reborn,

they spun tales of extending one's lifespan.

So they used women

to poison officials and nobles of Great Tang.

Those men then depended on the so-called life-prolonging pills

and were thus controlled.

If someone refused to comply,

they used a stronger dose

and killed them.

Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming were prime examples.

This both threw our court into chaos

and intimidated the remaining noble houses.

Those women never knew they were accomplices.

Even if they learned the truth,

it was too late.

They fell deeper into the darkness.

Anyone who tried to resist,

like Qinxiang,

was silenced.

What a vicious scheme.

Have you found the ghost guard?

Any clues left behind?

The ghost guard vanished.

They seemed to know our every move.

So, even the Three Judicial Offices there was...

Your Highness.

Your Highness.

Do you recall the white powder I found

on Wan Qianshan's clothing?

I do.

I compared them.

That powder

is identical to the substance

coating the ghost guard's

life-prolonging pills.

I also consulted medical texts.

Zhao Senyao's earlier symptoms

closely resemble Five-Stone Dust addiction,

but this poison is far stronger

and causes red blotches.

Five-Stone Dust circulated for five hundred years.

Millions took it.

Hundreds of thousands died from it.

That is why it was banned during the Zhenguan era.

(Ban)

If this poison is even more addictive

than Five-Stone Dust,

then Great Tang

and its people

will suffer devastation

beyond measure.

So the so-called life-prolonging pill is poison after all.

But that doesn't add up.

Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming were killed instantly.

Why has Zhao Senyao survived after taking it for so long?

Both Wan Qianshan and Zhao Fengming

had severe swelling

in the throat,

and there was clear pinpoint bleeding in the organs.

That means what they ingested was a large dose

of poison taken directly.

A lethal toxin with no protective coating.

But the pills Zhao Senyao took

were also poisonous,

only they were

encased in a non-toxic outer shell.

After ingestion,

the body first digests the shell,

and only then does the poison release.

That is why Zhao Senyao survived long-term use.

First, the dosage was limited.

The second, the shell weakened

the poison's effect.

But poison is still poison.

Taken over time,

death is inevitable.

And once the drug is cut off,

the suffering is unbearable.

It can even cloud the mind.

Taken in small amounts,

it creates addiction.

Taken in excess, it kills outright.

That's the essence of it.

Take it and you feel clear-headed. Stop and you suffer.

Add the illusion of resurrection and ghostly messengers,

and the scheme becomes terrifyingly convincing.

Your Highness was poisoned.

It must have been their doing.

They meant to control and destroy you.

But you caught it early

and denied them the chance.

That ghost guard spoke with a Nanzhao accent.

And Nanzhao's hidden agent, Peacock,

has never been identified.

This is the same group,

stirring chaos in our land.

Which means capturing that pill-selling ghost guard

is now our top priority.

(Secures the Realm)

Nanzhao's methods are truly despicable.

You now command the Annan Army.

You are already a thorn in Nanzhao's side.

Who knows how many Nanzhao spies

are buried in Chang'an as we speak.

They will stop at nothing to strike at you.

General, please take every precaution.

My thanks, Commandery Prince An.

I understand.

If Nanzhao thinks it can disrupt Great Tang

with these tricks,

then my Frost Halberd

will never allow it.

- Long live the General! - Long live the General!

On this march to Jiaozhou,

as long as I draw breath,

Nanzhao will not set foot in Great Tang.

You command the Annan Army now.

You are already a thorn in Nanzhao's side.

They will stop at nothing to strike at you.

Then my Frost Halberd will never allow it.

- Drive out Nanzhao! - Drive out Nanzhao!

- Protect Great Tang! - Protect Great Tang!

- Drive out Nanzhao! - Drive out Nanzhao!

- Protect Great Tang! - Protect Great Tang!

Hear me, people of the realm.

Hear me, my soldiers.

The sun stands high.

The auspicious hour has come.

The armies of Jiaozhou...

Are fierce as tigers and wolves.

Our weapons are always ready.

Beacons blaze across the horizon.

Our ranks stand firm and ready.

- Our blades reach far and wide! - Our blades reach far and wide!

- General! - General!

A single piece of fruit.

A fruit handed over by a five-year-old child.

And my great general is dead.

Good.

Well played.

The Three Judicial Offices and the Capital Prefecture

have joined forces to investigate.

That mother and her daughter were used.

By the time we found them,

both had already been silenced.

♪Time drips away like fading crimson scent♪

♪The hardships of arrival pass in a fleeting blink♪

♪Palm lines carry the footprints of memory♪

♪Leading us out of every winding turn♪

♪If two hearts can fly as one then storms are part of the way♪

♪Looking back the sky has already cleared♪

♪Your branches entwined with mine♪

♪Bound together in mutual reliance♪

♪Rugged roads become the paths of sun and moon♪

♪Fireflies like stars circle through the seasons♪

♪Shining with the hope of dreams♪

♪This world is no longer in rags♪

♪Only by holding you in my heart do I dare embrace fear♪

♪Quietly waiting for rumors to fade♪

♪Together we face the tides of fate♪

♪Turning the course of heaven and earth♪

♪This love was never easy♪

♪So life and death will not part us♪

♪Like sinking into the deep sea♪

♪The first breath upon awakening♪

♪This bond will never waver♪

♪So we stay together till our hair turns white♪

♪I ask time itself to hold the pen♪

♪And write the ending of eternity♪

♪This love was never easy♪

♪So I believe without doubt♪

♪Like a thousand sails passing by♪

♪Reaching shore at the first light of dawn♪

♪This bond will never waver♪

♪So joy and sorrow are no longer ours to choose♪

♪I will prove it with the rest of my life♪

♪Together at the edge of the world without an end♪