Original subtitles

[Episode 2]

[Bofeng]

Everyone.

Today's special at Bofeng is Miss Situ's favorite Spring-Autumn Pastry.

Crafted from fruits of different seasonal blooms,

it's yours for just ten taels of silver.

You can also enjoy Miss Situ's signature brews.

Please choose as you please.

- I want it! - I want it!

I was wondering what that strong sheep smell was.

Isn't this Wen I expelled from the Women's Academy?

You stinking shepherd, why are you doing odd jobs in a place like this?

I wonder if Yan Fu Zhi is running a restaurant or a charity house.

Exactly! This restaurant will be run into the ground sooner or later.

Catch her!

Let go of me! What are you doing?

What do you want?

Let go of me! Let go of me!

Only Yan Fu Zhi and Meng Ting Hui dared to disobey me in the Academy.

Now, you work for Yan Fu Zhi.

Isn't that just picking a fight with me?

Mei Er, I'm just here to do odd jobs.

Please.

How dare you call me Mei Er?

This sheep stench is giving me a headache.

She needs a good wash.

Let go of me! Let go of me!

Didn't they say Yan Fu Zhi has your back?

Let's see if she'll come to help you.

No!

No! Please, I beg you!

Stop!

Please!

Let's go.

What exactly did Wen do to you?

How could you be so ruthless?

You're finally here.

I heard you hired someone named Situ Xue, who's very popular here.

Go call her out.

I highly doubt there's anyone in Shazhou more beautiful than me.

Get out!

Smash Bofeng!

You...

If you dare to smash it,

just forget about doing silk business with the Yan family ever again.

Mei Er.

Wen has no power or influence, but the Yan family is the wealthiest here.

- Stop! - They do carry some weight in Shazhou.

My uncle is the Governor of Shazhou.

And behind him is the Left Chancellor, Lord Xu.

If you don't even have the guts to do this,

go back to your silk shop right now.

Don't embarrass yourself in front of me.

Get lost!

Stop! Let go of her!

Smash! Smash it hard!

Stop!

My face...

Let go of me!

Blood? My face...

Let go of me!

You dare hit me? Are you tired of living?

Where is your good friend now?

Why isn't she here to save you?

If I don't see Situ Xue today,

I will turn Bofeng into ruins.

Stop! Aren't you looking for me?

Let go of her.

Miss.

When did you come back?

That's none of your business.

I'm here to do something I've always wanted to do.

Meng Ting Hui, it's actually you.

You lowly orphan. How dare you pose as the top dancer of the capital?

Jiang Mei Er, I'll give you a chance.

Kowtow and admit your mistake.

Pay double compensation.

Otherwise,

we will perish together today.

You think you're worthy?

Meng, you've got an exam to take. It's not worth to risk your life.

To deal with a maniac, I naturally need crazy tactics.

My life is worthless.

Taking you spoiled descendants of officials down with me

is more than worth it.

Jiang Mei Er, didn't you want to turn Bofeng into ruins?

I'll help you.

Let's burn us all to death.

Meng Ting Hui, you madwoman!

Scared now?

Weren't you happy when you were bullying others?

Meng Ting Hui, you've gone too far!

Mr. Song, do you want to die with them?

I'll grant your wish.

Mei Er,

she's been stealing, cheating, and just cruel since childhood.

We don't need to risk our lives against her.

You useless fool!

My patience is running out.

If you don't kowtow, apologize, and pay compensation now,

then we all die together.

- Meng Ting Hui, I was wrong. I'll pay. - You...

Fu Zhi, take the money.

Mr. Song,

who do you think is more beautiful, me or Jiang Mei Er?

You are more beautiful! You are the most beautiful!

So what about Jiang Mei Er?

Jiang Mei Er is an ugly one,

like a toad and a dung beetle.

Just a slobbering fool.

You useless fool!

Meng Ting Hui, Yan Fu Zhi, I was wrong.

She forced me to do this.

She once scalded me with boiling water too.

You two useless ones!

Meng Ting Hui, I'll kill you!

I was wrong. Meng Ting Hui, I was wrong.

I'll also pay for it.

Take off all your jewelry.

Okay.

Here. Help me take it off!

Is that enough?

Kowtow and admit your mistake.

Move aside.

Your kowtow was too light. I didn't hear it.

I've done everything you said.

Can you let us go now?

Why are they all dusty and disheveled?

They look so pathetic.

What are you looking at? There's nothing to see!

You go first. Go!

Move aside!

[Bofeng]

120.

40.

20.

10.

10.

Meng, over three hundred taels.

Apart from treating Wen's injuries,

it's enough to renovate Bofeng entirely.

Who knows how much these parasites have exploited the people?

Might as well rip them off.

Just consider it as robbing the rich to help the poor.

Send the money to Wen tonight.

Don't delay her treatment.

Okay.

But Meng, you scared me to death just now.

What if...

It was fake.

This specially designed phosphorus powder was prepared for Situ Xue's performance.

It just happened to come in handy.

Meng,

I'm sorry for dragging you into this.

Shazhou is a place that devours people.

Only through the Imperial Exam can one get out.

Besides, Jiang Mei Er won't let us off.

It's trivial that Bofeng got smashed.

If it affects your Provincial Exam...

I study to become an official,

just to protect those I want to protect.

I couldn't protect Xiang ten years ago.

If I fail to protect you again today,

I'd rather not have this official position.

If only you were a boy.

I would definitely marry you.

Fu Zhi, be gentler. I can't breathe.

No, I won't let go.

I won't let go for the rest of my life.

You will surely soar to great heights.

And then, we'll go to the capital together.

Fu Zhi.

After all that commotion with Jiang Mei Er, I almost forgot.

I made your favorite apricot skin cakes.

Xiang loved apricot skin cakes the most.

In a few more days,

it's her death anniversary.

When the time comes, I'll go with you.

Close the doors and windows!

Beware of thieves and robbers!

[Night watch]

Close the doors and windows!

Beware of thieves and robbers!

Let go! Let go of me!

Let go of me!

Let go of me!

Let go of me! Let go!

Let go of me!

Let go of me! Let go!

Let go of me!

Xiang!

We meet again, Miss Meng.

You really are a swindler who'd kill for money.

I was just protecting myself.

Master, you are too narrow-minded.

To deal with a weak woman like me,

you go to such lengths. Aren't you afraid of the ridicule?

Weak woman?

Master, you've seen her.

The Left Chancellor ordered you to return to the capital tonight.

Wait for me outside.

Master, it's getting late.

Get out!

Keep a close watch. We must get the master back to the capital tonight.

Yes!

I am narrow-minded?

If Huo An weren't my man, I would have already died.

You betray others and are so scheming.

Even if you become an official, you will be a treacherous one.

You have so much power,

yet you don't go after Heihu Crew and Ding Chong,

but pick on a woman like me. Is that all you've got?

You dare deceive me?

You're dead meat.

Why do I always run into you, you jinx?

- If you want to leave, just leave. - Go!

Can't you use the outside door?

You broke all my doors and windows.

How am I supposed to do business?

Fine! If you leave, don't ever come back.

Don't let me see you again.

You shameless fool.

You jinx.

Don't come back! You're shameless!

Chase!

Miss Meng, you are quite the scold. Are you quite satisfied now?

To help you escape,

I had to make my insults sound genuine, so they'd believe it's real.

We're even now.

Can we ever be even?

I'm thirsty. Serve me some tea.

Still putting on airs while being chased?

Ding Chong exploits the people and commits all kinds of evil.

Why don't you go to the capital and file an imperial complaint?

You make it sound easy.

Without Ding Chong's travel permit,

not a single fly can slip out of Shazhou.

Those who snuck to the capital were intercepted and killed midway.

It is a pity that His Majesty sits upon his throne,

surrounded by flattery, but blind to the hardships of the people.

The Left Chancellor holds all power in the court.

What His Majesty sees and hears is all filtered.

It's not that His Majesty doesn't know the hardships of the people,

but that someone deliberately conceals them.

His Majesty

is also not in control of his own will.

The two chancellors' cliques are completely tangled up,

always spouting about old-school propriety.

I bet they despise the idea of women engaging in politics.

Yet, His Majesty insists on using women as a blade

to shatter this decaying system.

In the future, he will also embrace talents of humble origins

and enact institutional reforms.

If you pass the Imperial Examination,

will you dare denounce the Left Chancellor as hidebound one before the court?

More than that.

Darkness exists because someone in the court holds an umbrella for it.

One day, when I enter the Throne Hall,

I will burn those umbrellas with my own hands.

Not yet an official, yet daring discuss state affairs recklessly.

Do your best in the Provincial Exam.

See you again.

May we never meet again.

He's actually a capital official.

[Sacred Ancestral Hall]

[Sacred Ancestral Hall] Your Majesty, during five days of seclusion,

you only have one vegetarian meal every day.

I am truly worried about your health.

You must eat properly.

The Left Chancellor has arrived!

Lord Xu.

Lord Xu, you absolutely must not enter!

Without His Majesty's decree, no one is allowed to enter Sacred Ancestral Hall.

You...

Lord Xu, please don't make things difficult for me.

Move aside!

Close the door.

Lord Xu,

you're still not resting at such a late hour?

Have you come specially to bring me a chicken leg?

I'm about to starve to death here.

Ridiculous!

His Majesty has gone wild in Shazhou.

Set off for Shazhou immediately.

Bring His Majesty back in five days.

Lord Xu, just the journey to Shazhou takes more than five days.

Take my token.

Travel day and night.

All post stations along the way will prepare fast horses for you.

Five days? I...

You impersonated His Majesty. This is an unforgivable crime.

You should be executed immediately.

Five days. Just five days.

[Shazhou] Your Majesty, I am late.

How is the military situation?

Currently, Shazhou has ten battalions stationed.

But all the city barracks are dilapidated and unmaintained.

Rusted armor and weapons in the army are beyond counting.

The money allocated by the court has never been used for military equipment.

Under the name of a military fortress, Shazhou has been bleeding the court dry

for endless rations and funds every year.

Xu Ting has indulged them completely, giving whatever they ask for.

Even now, the soldiers remain weak, and the horses are still feeble.

If there is even one corrupt official in the court,

and a whole region of Ning Empire rots.

Your Majesty, excluding the journey back, we have two days left.

What should we do next?

Ding Chong and the Ministry of War are in cahoots.

They are all Xu Ting's henchmen.

I'd like to see

how many more dirty dealings are buried under the sand of Shazhou.

- Here, Miss. - Thank you.

Take your time.

Okay.

Private room number one upstairs.

Gentlemen, here's your wine. Please enjoy.

Okay, come on. Cheers!

Meng. Meng,

look at this lively atmosphere.

I thought it would be quiet for a while after Jiang Mei Er made such a scene.

I didn't expect business to become even more prosperous.

Your stepmother dares not to push your father into forcing you to marry, right?

Of course.

I want them to watch closely.

Who says women can only serve their husbands and raise children?

We can also thrive in business.

Why depend on others?

Ms. Yan, you have great insight.

Seeing the business of Bofeng thriving, I can rest assured.

I'll hurry back to the Academy to review and prepare for Provincial Exam.

Yes, Meng. Focus on the exam.

We'll go to the capital together.

You'll pass with honors.

I'll open a branch. Not one thing can be missed.

Definitely.

I'll walk you out.

Officers, you've also come to Bofeng to eat?

There are private seats upstairs. This way, please.

[Notice]

By order of Governor Ding.

Bofeng's food and drink are unclean,

and the building is dilapidated.

It is hereby sealed, effective immediately.

Nonsense! Bofeng was just renovated recently.

And I personally oversee the food and drink.

Insolent!

The government received multiple complaints. How dare you argue?

All unrelated persons, leave now.

Fu Zhi,

they are deliberately making trouble because of Jiang Mei Er.

We can't argue against the authority.

Who is in charge here?

You still have your exam. I am in charge here.

I'm looking for Meng Ting Hui.

I am Meng Ting Hui.

You impersonated Situ Xue to swindle the people,

illegally amassing wealth.

By order of Governor Ding, you are to be taken to the Shazhou Prison.

Your document states sealing, not arresting.

The people of Shazhou are watching outside.

So much nonsense.

If you want to arrest someone, arrest me.

Bofeng is mine. It has nothing to do with Meng.

She's going to take the Imperial Exam in a few days.

She will never have the qualification again.

Take her away.

[Tea Law, Volume 4] Meng.

Meng.

[Bofeng] Meng!

Why is she arrested?

- Can we come to Bofeng to eat in the future? - Meng.

This way please.

Darn Ding Chong.

Shazhou is arid. Water is cherished like gold.

For a mouthful of water, people would sell their own children.

He actually squanders it like this.

What are you talking about?

We said that the golden-threaded nanmu wood in your mansion

is probably hard to find even in the imperial palace.

The Governor said,

"The things His Majesty uses are good, but ours must have even better."

Please.

Master, I'll go kill him right now.

Good! Today's dance is the best.

I'm in a good mood. Everyone gets a reward.

Mr. He from Beijian has arrived.

I am He Du, from the largest Fu trading house in Beijian.

I've come to Shazhou for the first time to do business.

I heard you're powerful, so I came specially to pay a visit.

Doesn't seem like it.

Mr. He, what exactly brings you to Shazhou,

the godforsaken place plagued by successive years of drought?

Whether it's dry or not all depends on the Dragon King's mood.

In Shazhou,

aren't you the Dragon King who commands the wind and rain?

Mr. He, your approach is indeed extraordinary.

Tell me. What business are you in?

The business I do is something ordinary people dare not do.

Governor Ding, to be honest with you,

I specialize in taking the paths the court forbids.

I love doing business with daring people the most.

However, Shazhou has its own rules.

Here come the rules.

Mr. He, you are a man who knows the situation.

So is my business in Jiuyou City secure?

In the territory of Shazhou,

even if the Death wants to claim a soul, he must ask me first.

Look.

[Capable Minister of State]

Personally bestowed by the Left Chancellor.

Capable Minister of State.

Now, even His Majesty listens to the Left Chancellor.

With his backing,

I have final say in Shazhou.

So you are favored by Left Chancellor.

Then why are you still stuck in Shazhou?

With the Left Chancellor's power,

recommending you to serve in the capital would be easy.

You mean promotion?

That's all meaningless stuff.

I'm way more free and happy here.

In the capital, I have to kowtow to His Majesty.

While in Shazhou, everyone has to kowtow to me.

Governor Ding, you live freely.

You've enlightened me.

So my business deal...

Uncle, Uncle!

- Uncle. - Brother.

Uncle, have you caught that madwoman Meng Ting Hui yet?

Can't you see I'm meeting a guest?

A bunch of you from noble families can't even handle an orphan girl.

How embarrassing!

Brother, all of Shazhou belongs to our Ding family.

How can we let Mei Er be bullied by an orphan girl?

We absolutely can't stand it.

I can't stand it, Uncle.

Alright, alright.

I've already sent people to arrest her.

You know, crushing an orphan girl is easier than stepping on an ant.

Why don't you thank your uncle?

Thank you, Uncle.

I just got a new treasure. Take it.

- Thank you, Uncle. I'll be going then. - Alright.

Thank you, Brother.

Go ahead.

This niece of mine has been spoiled by me.

Magistrate Wang.

[Travel permit] Get Mr. He his Jiuyou City travel permit.

Yes.

Thank you, Governor Ding.

Master, please follow me.

Stop.

Mr. He, don't forget.

You must pay this much tribute every month.

If you're short by one coin, the wild dogs in Shazhou are very hungry.

[Shazhou Government Office]

That corrupt official Ding Chong

is not only greedy, but also treats human lives like dirt.

Master, you know that female prisoner?

We must close the net tomorrow.

Yes.

This is the deed to the estate under my name.

Go pawn it to ransom Meng.

Here, and this too.

Miss, this is the last dowry your mother left you.

Meng is in trouble because of me.

I can't just sit back.

If Mother were here, she would surely agree with what I'm doing.

Ding Chong just wants money, right? I'll give it to him.

Careful. Hurry up and go.

Yes.

- You've got some nerve! - Madam.

How dare you take the property of our Yan family!

This is my dowry left by my mother. What does it have to do with you?

Yan Fu Zhi,

everything in our Yan family was earned by your father.

Yet, you betray your own people to work for outsiders.

How dare you!

I'll beat you to death!

How dare you bully my mother!

Mother!

Song, be good. Don't cry.

Tomorrow, your father will buy you a new one.

Take him to the master.

Yes.

You offended Ding Chong,

and the restaurant was sealed.

Do you know how much money will be given to Ding Chong to mend this relationship?

- Let's go. - Stop her.

Move aside. Move aside!

Let go of Miss Yan!

Don't you see it?

Would your father offend Governor Ding for Meng Ting Hui?

He's arranged a good marriage for you.

Just obediently prepare to get married.

Let me go.

I don't know what kind of spell that unwanted orphan girl cast on you.

At such a young age, she dared to lay a hand on Song.

She almost took your brother's life!

I have no brother!

You came into our place just few days after my mother's death.

It was Meng who accompanied me through those hard days.

I must rescue Meng.

I must let her take the Imperial Exam. Let me go!

Meng Ting Hui offended Ding Chong.

She will not walk out of that prison alive.

Forget about it.

Wait.

Aren't you just hoping I'll marry off, so you can monopolize the Yan family?

If you are willing to rescue Meng,

I will put on the wedding dress

and never mention doing business again.

You know to yield now?

Too late. Let's go.

Miss! Miss!

Let me out! Let me out!

Meng is about to take the Provincial Exam.

She can't be in prison.

She can't be in prison.

Bet big and it's one-two-three.

Bet small and it's three sixes.

- It's weird. Too weird. - It's weird. Too weird.

Drink!

- Come on. - Come on.

- Cheers. - Cheers.

Young lady, let's switch seats.

Your spot has good luck.

Wait.

Come here.

The higher-ups forbade giving her food or drink.

Now, you're making offerings instead.

Let's stop playing.

No one is leaving. Keep playing.

I heard that prisoners often die accidentally in the cell.

This time, Meng Ting Hui fell into my hands. She must be suffering terribly.

Walk faster. Stop dawdling.

Who else would I slap?

- Come on. - Come on.

Young lady,

when it comes to gambling, you are top-notch in Shazhou.

- Top-notch. - Top-notch.

- Impressive. - Impressive.

Just spar with me for a couple of days,

and your gambling skills will surely improve a lot.

Meng Ting Hui?

Meng Ting Hui, let's see how you can still be arrogant.

Don't expect anyone to come save you.

Yan Fu Zhi is in trouble now.

Bofeng is sealed.

She is currently confined to await her marriage.

The wedding dress is already prepared.

This marriage has been announced all over Shazhou.

Aren't you dying to get out and save your good friend?

Too bad. You don't have a chance.

I want you to be trapped here for life, suffering a lot.

[Dossier] Come on. Take a look.

After all this fighting,

the dossier still ends up in my hands, doesn't it?

Give the dossier back to me.

You really want to be an official, don't you?

Fair enough. With your lowly background,

you have no other way out besides the Imperial Examination.

But I'm different.

The backer behind my uncle

is the Left Chancellor, second only to His Majesty, above all others.

Above the backer, there is still the law.

If the court knows of your crimes,

they will surely eradicate you along with your backer.

Stop! Stop!

Stop!

Meng Ting Hui,

I can easily destroy the thing you treasure as precious.

The dossier is already destroyed.

You'll never set foot in the examination hall for the rest of your life.

Remember this well.

As long as my uncle is here,

you and Yan Fu Zhi will never have a day of redemption.

Meng Ting Hui, you...

Xia, hurry! Release the venomous snakes!

Xia! Meng Ting Hui, just you wait!

I'll come torture you every day!

I'll make you suffer a lot!

Remember. A top pickpocket takes money quickly,

without even leaving a red mark!

You try.

Ting Hui!

Move!

Ting Hui!

Help! Someone escaped!

Someone escaped!

A prisoner escaped!

A prisoner has escaped!

Who? Who escaped?

Meng Ting Hui. It's Meng Ting Hui.

Meng Ting Hui? Split up to search.

- Yes. - Yes.

Move aside!

Everyone, move aside!

Move aside!

Someone escaped from prison.

Hurry! Seal the city gates!

Close the gates!

Open the gates.

You entered the city so late. Where are you from?

From the capital. I'm here to visit relatives.

- Let's go. - Close the gates.