Original subtitles

[Eastern Palace]

Last night,

Princess Consort had many drinks at Princess Ningshuang's place,

and got in a fight with the Crown Prince till the small hours.

His Highness is still asleep now.

I have an urgent matter to report.

Attendant Gao, may I trouble you

to wake His Highness up?

Lord Gongsun,

are you trying to get me in trouble?

You know how angry

when His Highness is awakened.

This is a pressing emergency

that concerns His Highness's safety.

If something goes wrong,

can you bear the consequences?

Is it that serious?

Listen,

it's about Huo Xiangjiu. She...

You wait here.

Your Highness,

has His Highness got up yet?

I have an urgent report to give.

You need to wait till he wakes up.

All will be too late by then!

Out of my way!

Why are you so annoying?

Your Highness?

Your Highness.

Your Highness?

That gave me quite a fright,

Your Highness.

What is it now?

Your Highness,

I have an important issue to report.

What's so urgent

that you must tell me before I get up?

Lord Gongsun has found out

that Huo Xiangjiu is the daughter of Huo Zhongren,

the registrar of the Bronze County.

[Eternal Love of the Fox]

Have you had

enough of hangovers yet?

What does this have to do with hangovers?

You never eat on time

or have regular meals.

How can it not affect your health?

I'm quite young.

What could possibly happen to me?

Besides,

even if I get sick,

I'll be healed by you, right?

Just now,

you simply held my hands like this,

and I immediately got well.

Don't underestimate the power of handholding.

Hands connect to one's energy base.

The five fingers

correspond to the Five Elements.

Two people's interlaced fingers

forge the union of the Five Elements in them.

When that happens,

renewed vigor arises.

Nonsense.

Isn't the compatibility

of two people's Five Elements

decided by their birth charts?

Regardless of birth charts,

once two people's fingers interlock,

the Five Elements in them just harmonize.

Does handholding...

really have that much power?

Of course.

When hands are held,

many things can be achieved.

What kinds of things?

A wide range

of things.

Mom,

since I'm a nine-tailed fox,

I will

certainly marry foxes in the future.

These are all your daughters-in-law.

They'll give birth to many little foxes

as your grandchildren.

Anything wrong?

You pervert!

What was that about?

How terrifying!

Why would I have that kind of thought?

Le Ning?

Who upset you?

Where are you going?

Your Highness,

what can I do for you?

You took advantage of me.

You think you can just walk away?

Your Highness

must be mistaken.

I'm a eunuch. How...

You're not a eunuch.

No, no, no.

I couldn't have done anything to her.

Your Highness,

although...

we are disheveled,

at least we're still dressed.

Obviously, nothing happened between us.

Even though we didn't do anything sexual,

we did lie in the same bed

and have physical contact, right?

On top of that,

you're not castrated, which means

you gained entry to the palace through deceit.

That adds to the gravity of your crimes.

Now,

there are two options for you.

One

is death.

The other one...

I choose

to go for a third option.

Then your life

will be in my hands.

From now on,

you must obey me.

If I tell you to go east,

you can't go west.

If I ask you to drink,

you can't do otherwise.

All those...

sound like slim pickings.

Can Your Highness

give me some leeway?

This is as good as you can get.

What more can you ask for?

Your Highness,

I helped with the reconciliation

between you and the Old Madam.

Given my contribution, slight though it was, can we both

make a small compromise?

What compromise?

Let's pretend nothing happened.

You call that a small compromise?

Your Highness,

countless people would love to do your bidding.

Why must you choose me?

Because you're fair-skinned.

What?

No more crap.

Which option will you choose?

If you choose the first one,

I'll have Xiangjiu collect your dead body right away.

What a vicious woman!

Such a crafty devil!

This vixen has me in her clutches now.

I'll definitely suffer badly.

Xiangjiu is on good terms with the princess.

I should ask her to put in a good word for me.

Right.

I should talk to Xiangjiu.

Master,

I saw Huo Xiangjiu

run out of the room like crazy.

What did you do to her?

What could I have done to her?

Who knows what you did to her?

Master!

I plan to bring in

some reliable dogs from outside the palace,

make them smell datura, and have them

conduct a search with us in the palace.

It'll speed up our investigation.

At the moment,

there's a trickier task

than finding Xiangjiu's father.

What is it?

Last night,

I saw the Stomach Spirit.

You stay away from her.

Feng Mochen,

I bet you know

I'm not afraid of you.

The Stomach Spirit?

Why would she show up?

Is she going after Huo Xiangjiu?

Yes.

Her target is exactly Xiangjiu.

Oh my!

T-T-This...

is

terrible news.

The Stomach Spirit never appears without cause.

Now that she's out on a hunt, Huo Xiangjiu...

will be in danger.

Is the information accurate?

Yes, without a doubt.

No wonder Huo Xiangjiu always

meddles in others' affairs.

It turns out she takes from her father.

Look, my son

simply seized some houses

and abducted a few women

in the Bronze County.

He didn't lay a hand on

Huo Zhongren's house or his daughter.

Why did Huo have to intervene?

He was just going out of his way to cause us trouble.

What a hateful man.

You shouldn't have fooled around with women

before working in the royal palace.

Your Highness,

that's just what men do.

I knew I wouldn't get to

do that again once I entered the palace.

Besides,

that son of mine...

How many sons do you have?

Everyone has a past.

That son of mine

has been diligent in his duty

to rake in money

for Your Highness

and Lord Gongsun,

hasn't he?

All the gold and silver he's got

have been spent

currying favor with officials

and fending off the other princes.

He hasn't kept a penny for himself!

Huo Xiangjiu came to the palace with the purpose

of finding her son...

You interrupted my train of thought.

She is looking for her father

Huo Zhongren, who vanished into thin air

right after infiltrating the palace.

Lord Gongsun,

did you do something to...

Attendant Gao, watch your mouth.

Although Huo Zhongren

is a low-ranking official,

he was appointed to his job by the court.

How would I dare to kill him at will?

Lord Gongsun.

If my father were dead,

I wouldn't hesitate to eliminate my opponents

and stain the palace with blood.

But my father is still alive now.

I have no choice but

to succumb to many constraints.

How very odd.

Neither did Your Highness

nor Lord Gongsun kill Huo Zhongren.

Why is he, or a trace of him,

nowhere to be found

in the palace at all?

In fact, compared to Huo Zhongren, Huo Xiangjiu is a bigger threat to us now.

If she ever finds out

your son's connection to us,

she will surely hold us accountable

for Huo Zhongren's disappearance.

What's worse, Lord Feng has her back now.

Even Princess Ningshuang

has become close friends with her.

We'll be in for a real disaster.

In the beginning,

I meant to get Huo Xiangjiu to our side.

But now it seems

we have to silence her forever.

But she's always with Lord Feng.

I'm afraid it's not that easy

to get rid of her for good.

Killing

becomes effortless

with the right weapon.

Your Highness sounds very confident.

Has

the right weapon been found yet?

Princess Consort

had a drinking party with Feng Mochen,

Huo Xiangjiu, and others at Ningshuang Palace last night.

This proves

she has gained trust from those people.

And trust...

is the best weapon of all.

Come on, piggy.

Have some melon.

Look how much my baby is enjoying it.

Red Dragon,

this is

your salary for this month.

Lady Zhao,

why is it only 2 tales of silver?

You were late for roll call 3 times this month.

I was only late for 3 days.

How could you deduct 3 taels from my salary?

You can't take out your frustration on me for being punished

by Lord Feng and the Crown Prince.

Cut that nonsense!

Only 2 taels of silver for you.

Take it or leave it.

Go away if you don't want it.

Next!

I'll take it.

Piggy, come on.

Have some melon.

The Mentor of Virtue, Compassion, Benevolence, Rectitude,

Harmony, Wellness, Nurturance, Felicity,

Illumination, Preparedness, Solemnity, Humanity,

Reverence, Admiration, Dedication, and Nobility

has arrived.

It's the Mentor.

One Bam?

Greetings, Mentor.

Greetings, Mentor.

Step aside.

Mentor,

you've risen to prominence now.

You've not only gained Lord Feng's favor,

but also

fraternized with the overweening

Princess Ningshuang.

I heard that you had

a drinking party with Princess Consort

last night.

As I said before,

clearly,

you have the look of someone

bound for wealth and prosperity,

which indicates you'll succeed sooner or later.

I was right, wasn't I?

Enough!

Knock it off.

Last month,

I worked here for 15 days.

Shouldn't I be paid for that?

Yes, of course.

I heard...

you boldly withheld Le Ning's salary. Was that so?

Mentor,

you got it wrong.

It wasn't like that.

I just made a calculation error

back then.

Here you are.

Your salary, 5 taels of silver.

It's yours now, Mentor.

Mentor...

Oh, right.

Mentor,

Le Ning is a good friend of yours.

This is for Le Ning.

Le Ning, come here!

Take it.

Thank you, Lady Zhao.

That's not right,

Lady Zhao.

Mentor got full pay for finishing half a month's work.

I was only late for 3 days,

yet more than half of my salary was deducted.

How dare you compare yourself with Mentor?

Do you think I'm abusing my power here?

I've always been a fair and just administrator.

Mentor did 2 maids' work

when she worked here.

The salaries

for 2 people working 15 days

amount to 5 taels, and 30 days to 10.

Mentor spent 15 days working here,

so her pay is 5 taels.

Aren't I being fair?

Aren't I?

Lady Zhao!

Come with me.

Yes.

Move!

Shut up!

Don't you speak ill of my good friend.

The two of us are...

-kindred spirits. -Kindred spirits.

Crazy dog.

Where is Xiangjiu?

She's not here.

Where has she gone?

How would I know?

Why does she have to run around?

You really are

shameless and despicable.

How can you drool over another woman when you're already with one?

What kind of nonsense is that?

I didn't share a bed with Princess Ningshuang.

I meant Xiangjiu and Le Ning.

Why is Princess Ningshuang involved?

She's not.

The princess is by no means involved.

Besides,

how is Le Ning part of this now?

Le Ning has a crush on you.

Don't tell me you didn't know.

What does she have to do with me?

I'm not into her.

You're not into Le Ning?

Are you insane or what?

Le Ning is wonderful. Why don't you like her?

Do you mean those who aren't into Le Ning are all insane?

Then are you insane?

Of course I'm not.

So you're into her?

A dog's love

is different from a human's.

The notion of love in the human world

is far too narrow.

Then tell me.

What's so great about your love?

When I love someone,

I devote my all and ask for nothing in return.

As long as my loved one is happy,

I am happy.

As long as my loved one is fine,

I am fine.

It's just like how I treat my master.

That's how dogs show affection.

Of course!

I can't be describing humans, can I?

You lose your mind

when you see a pretty face.

You're easily swayed

[Fucang Palace]

when you see money or beauties.

You humans can never

resist any kind of temptation.

You're biased.

Give me an objective view then.

I can't speak for others,

but at least I'm sure

Xiangjiu is nothing like what you said.

She is...

a real accentric.

She is a very nice person.

There are too many bad people.

So good people seem like eccentrics.

Where on earth has Xiangjiu gone?

How am I supposed to know?

How can you not know?

She and Master didn't even come back last night.

How would I know where she's gone?

The two of them were out all night?

It had happened before.

It had happened before?

How many times has it occurred?

[Cold Dish: Heartbreaker]

[Imperial Servants Bureau]

During all the time I stayed here,

I not only worked diligently,

but also often took on extra workload

after working hours.

Even so,

never did we receive our salaries in full.

But now,

you've given me a whole month's salary

for working for only 15 days here.

I understand.

I'll make up for your pay

that was docked.

Oh, right.

Le Ning will have her deducted salary back

-as well. -Really?

Really.

I always keep my word.

Xiangjiu,

that's quite a fortune.

We'll be rich.

What about

the other maids treated unfairly by you?

How amusing.

They're just a bunch of servants.

Why should I pay them back?

Lady Zhao is way out of line!

How could she do this?

We've been running around at her beck and call,

yet she repays us with malice!

-Exactly. -Yeah.

What an outrage.

How can she treat us like this?

Of all people, why do you compensate us only?

Mentor,

you know

the answer, right?

Don't you see you're of high status now?

I will let

your and Le Ning's names stay

on the payroll of the Imperial Servants Bureau.

But you don't need to work here at all.

I'll still pay you

your full salaries

on time every month.

I'm a real friend

to you, aren't I?

What a great idea.

Xiangjiu,

we'll get paid without working.

Where else could we get such a good bargain?

Be quiet.

A bargain indeed.

Lady Zhao,

is this how you manage the Imperial Servants Bureau?

Mentor,

many others do the same thing.

I don't care how other institutes are managed,

but things in this bureau

must change!

What do you mean?

Here's my decision.

You must

return all the salaries you withheld from everyone.

From now on,

pay what's due,

not a penny less.

Arbitrary deductions are forbidden.

Also, you must not

impose

extra

workload

without reason!

-Huo Xiangjiu! -What?

You've only been in the powerful's good graces for a few days.

You think you're a big shot now?

You got where you are today

by seducing Lord Feng and sleeping

with His Grace, didn't you?

That's ridiculous!

You wretched woman!

Even my mother has never hit me!

They're fighting in there.

We have to do something, right?

Yeah.

Of course we must do something.

Let's go!

-Go! -Go!

Let go of Xiangjiu!

Lady Zhao will pay us what she owes us.

We'll also receive salaries every month

from now on without working.

Isn't it nice?

What about the others?

How can we just sit back and watch Lady Zhao

withhold the other maids' salaries?

But Lady Zhao is offering us money with no strings attached.

However, one day,

we'll pay a steep price

for accepting this money.

That said,

won't it be a waste

of your current position

if you don't take advantage of it?

How about

we help all those maids to get back

their deducted salaries

and strive for

the rest time they deserve?

Think about it.

Seeking benefits for a group

versus for oneself only—

which holds more worth?

I can't beat you in this argument.

Anyway, I don't think it's wrong to gain as many benefits

as possible for ourselves, as long as

we're not harming others.

When you bend the rules

for profit,

you're already damaging the interests of others.

Fairness should be upheld not just to protect

ourselves, but everyone.

You may subvert fairness for personal gain now.

But you will wind up

being a victim yourself when some others do the same one day.

Xiangjiu!

W-What

is going on with you?

I apologize. Alright?

Xiangjiu.

Xiangjiu!

[Eastern Palace]

Honey,

you seem to be in a good mood.

Are you still mad at me

for what I did last night?

Lovers' quarrels are soon mended.

There's nothing to hold a grudge over.

You're a man of great talent and vision.

As your wife,

how can I let you be distracted

by a trivial matter like that?

As the saying goes,

a united couple

is invincible.

It seems last night's beating

has really worked.

It has worked quite well.

I heard

your good friend fell ill.

Why don't you pay a visit to her?

Just an innocent visit?

Put it here.

Go and have some rest.

I will take good care of her.

Xiangjiu,

get some good rest.

I'll visit you again later.

From today on,

you need to take medicine on time every day.

You'll have 3 meals a day,

following the diet I designed for you.

You must go to bed before 9 p.m. every night.

Also,

do not overeat.

Do not get angry.

Do not get sad.

Then

what's the point of living?

Observing my instructions

is your only choice.

Why?

You're in trouble now—

a prominent life threat.

[Stomach Spirit]

W-Why does she look exactly like me?

She

is the Stomach Spirit.

Why is she in this condition?

Do you remember what I told you?

Flowers can become spirits?

That kind of potential lies in everything.

She

is your stomach.

My... what?

Your own stomach.

Now,

I'm already failing.

The moment I shut down

will be the moment

your life ends.