Original subtitles

(Zhan Zhao Adventures)

(Episode 20)

Did Uncle die of illness?

How come no one in the martial world ever mentioned it?

Illness?

He wasn't that lucky.

Life in the martial world is full of fighting and killing.

You are always living on edge.

One day, you take someone's life,

the next day, someone else will come for yours.

My uncle was murdered?

I don't know.

Some time ago,

Shengyun Manor was attacked.

Several skilled fighters entered the manor

and went on a killing spree.

They captured him.

And no one has heard from him since.

When my son Si Yuan and his men found the body,

it had been lying out in the open in a ravine for several days.

Did they find out who the killer was?

Si Yuan didn't want me to worry.

He only said

that he had a revenge plan in mind.

But I'm worried about him.

Seeking revenge will only bring more killing and put him in harm's way.

Enough of that.

Please, sit.

I just saw you coming out from the yard next door.

What were you doing there?

That's my friend's old house.

We were handling some business.

If you don't have a place to stay,

why don't you move in with me?

No, thank you. I appreciate your concern, Aunt.

He said Cuixi Forest in the back mountains, right?

Yes.

I heard correctly.

Master!

Master, you need to come quickly!

Master, there's a huge commotion at Qinghui Hall!

Jin Xue Wen... He's returned and signed up for the Suwen Tournament!

What?

When Steward Xu saw the name on the roster,

his face darkened.

He started arguing with the visitor, and the quarrel escalated.

Now, a crowd had gathered around Qinghui Hall.

Oh no, I've been tricked.

He says his name is Jin Xue Wen,

the ninth young master of the Jin family.

Strange. I've never heard of anyone by that name in the Jin family.

- Neither have I. - Right?

You're too young to know that case. There was such a person.

He committed a crime years ago and died in prison.

- He died in prison? - He's been dead for over ten years.

What? Dead?

Then who's the one kneeling there?

I remember now.

My grandfather told me a long time ago that this case was suspicious.

Jin Xue Wen was probably wronged.

I heard that the case wasn't even concluded back then.

But the Jin family did nothing to help.

That's how that ninth young master ended up dying of illness in prison.

Is that true?

Yeah.

I've always said it, these big wealthy families are no good.

- Exactly. - That's right. Nothing good.

Why hasn't the head of the Jin family shown up?

Is he hiding?

Is the Jin family feeling guilty?

I heard that as soon as the name Jin Xue Wen was written down,

the old steward nearly passed out.

Nonsense!

I'm going to smash that mouth of yours!

Old man.

At your age, you really shouldn't be running like that.

Slow down.

Let go!

You think I don't see it?

You're all in cahoots!

Move! Move!

Third,

that debt collector has come back!

Mr. Xu.

Since you know who he is,

why waste words arguing with him in front of outsiders?

Everyone who has no business here, leave.

Break it up, break it up! Everyone out!

Out!

Are you leaving or not? Out!

- This tree is pretty. - It really is.

Out!

- Third... - Mr. Xu.

Leave us.

Becoming the head of the family really changes a person.

Quite the airs you put on now.

I remember back then, you wouldn't dare boss people around in the house.

You used to act so gentle and refined.

What's the matter? Done pretending?

So it really is you.

Little Seventeenth.

You're alive.

Sounds like

you even sent people to look for me after the shipwreck.

You were afraid I hadn't died, weren't you?

You've been gone for years.

The moment you came back, you kidnapped the descendants of our family

and forced me to use our family's precious treasure.

How vicious.

Not as vicious as you.

Outwardly saving people,

but secretly colluding with the Tang Sect to harm them.

Head of the Jin family, how capable.

Relax. I have no proof.

Just wanted to scare you.

You caused such a huge commotion as soon as you returned.

What do you want?

Didn't anyone tell you what I wanted?

I'm here for the Suwen Tournament, of course.

You left home when you were ten.

Your medical skills have long been neglected.

What makes you think you can compete in the Suwen Tournament?

It's true I've neglected them.

But I'll only be embarrassing myself.

What's it to you?

You're using his name.

You're using Jin family's name.

You came here on purpose to embarrass us, didn't you?

Yes.

I came precisely to embarrass Jin family and make things hard for you.

So either I embarrass the Jin family at the Suwen Tournament,

or you hand over the antidote to Nightmare Sky.

Your choice.

Nightmare Sky?

What are you talking about?

I've never even heard of it.

Stop pretending.

I'm asking you to hand over the antidote, not to make it.

Guess why I said that.

Zhan Zhao.

Come out, Zhan Zhao.

Zhan Zhao must have put you up to this.

Am I right?

I even saved his life once.

And this is how he repays me.

I came here on my own.

What does this have to do with Zhan Zhao?

And stop saying you saved his life.

I'm certain

the one who used Naiheyin to save Zhan Zhao wasn't you, but Fourth Aunt.

So stop taking credit for it.

Zhan Zhao is courteous and proper.

He's brought gifts to visit my Fourth Aunt.

You can't rebuke him.

Oh, Third,

you really aren't very bright.

You've fallen for the diversion tactic twice.

Little Seventeenth.

Fourth Aunt.

Little Seventeenth.

When Zhan Zhao told me about you earlier, I didn't believe him.

I thought you had died

15 years ago.

It's all in the past now.

See?

Strong and healthy.

Yes.

You've grown so much.

Heaven finally showed some mercy

and spared a poor child like you.

Don't just stand out here. Come inside with me.

Alright.

Wait.

You can't leave yet.

You were so busy trying to save the Jin family's face

that you forgot to ask why I was kneeling here, didn't you?

My reasons for coming back this time are,

first, to reclaim my identity as a member of the Jin family;

and second, to apologize to Fifth Granduncle

for kidnapping the Jin family descendants.

I knew

that you would keep the matter of Naiheyin Pill being used up

completely under wraps;

otherwise, you'd lose too much face as the head of the Jin family.

Fifth Granduncle already knows about it.

He ordered you to kneel here for two hours before going to see him.

Fourth Aunt,

Fifth Granduncle is being quite fair.

I've received my punishment,

so naturally, he should accept his too.

Come on.

That old steward earlier was probably trying to remind you about this.

Too bad

you didn't let him finish.

You've got terrible luck.

It's about to rain.

(15 years ago)

Stop kneeling.

You've done everything you could.

You're still just a child.

This is really hard on you.

If my brother dies,

I won't have a home anymore.

As long as I'm here,

this is your home.

Come.

In the entire Jin family,

you're the only one who has ever truly been kind to me.

I still remember everything from before.

After the shipwreck back then,

Jin family did send people to look for you.

They said you...

It's all Jin family's fault for not searching for you again,

leaving you to fend for yourself out there.

All these years, you must have suffered so much.

It's fine.

I roamed the martial world and learned plenty of skills.

Fourth Aunt,

I came back this time because I need something from the Jin family.

Zhan Zhao has told me about it.

The poison those people were given is called

Nightmare Sky.

Have you heard of this poison?

Well...

Perhaps I have.

I can't quite remember.

I'm really not sure.

The way things got so tense between you and Third earlier,

was it also about this?

Although Third's medical skills are exceptional,

he's not some immortal healer.

There are times when even he can do nothing.

If he's refusing to help,

perhaps it really is beyond his abilities.

No.

He can definitely cure this poison.

Why are you so certain?

I can't go into the details of why.

But I urgently need the antidote to save people.

Please, try to think of something.

I'm just a woman.

I'm afraid I can't be of much help.

I'll try to talk to Third again.

As for the Nightmare Sky,

let me have a look at it.

I did come from a family of physicians, after all.

Fourth Aunt...

It's getting late.

I'll go tell the kitchen to prepare dinner.

You should stay and eat here tonight.

Fourth Aunt,

I want to stay at the Jin Residence.

Of course.

Since you've come back, stay a few more days.

This used to be your Fourth Uncle's study.

After he passed away, it's been empty.

I still have the say over this room.

You can stay here without worry.

Let them pretend to be your attendants and stay with you.

They've got some quick wits.

Tonight, let them feel things out

and gather some information first.

(Fifth Granduncle, Elder Clan Leader of the Jin Family)

Come in.

Third,

get up.

Fifth Granduncle.

You used Naiheyin Pill to save someone's life.

I don't blame you for that.

But hiding it from me

and keeping the clan elders in the dark,

that deserves punishment.

I accept the punishment.

Little Seventeenth said that you colluded with the Tang Sect.

Do you have anything to say in your defense?

Tang Sect?

He's just spouting nonsense!

Can't you see?

He came back this time

with the sole intention of getting revenge on us.

After all was said and done,

we didn't really put in the effort to find him after the shipwreck.

It's only natural

for him to hold resentment.

If he merely resents me for abandoning him out there,

I'm willing to apologize and make amends.

But he's clearly making baseless accusations,

slandering me without evidence.

And those people with him, none of them are good.

They're all in cahoots.

They won't stop hounding me.

Why would they hound you like that?

Third,

could it be you really did something bad after all?

Fifth Granduncle,

I've spent my entire life healing and saving people.

How could I possibly do something bad?

If you'd rather believe outsiders than me,

then there's nothing more I can say.

Thank you both for inviting us for drinks.

Come on, don't be shy. We just like making friends.

Bottoms up! Have some more!

A little more. It's good stuff. Drink up.

Here, some more.

Look at all of you, drunk and red-faced!

Just a few cups of wine in,

and you're already running your mouths.

Do you not want to keep your jobs here?

I want all of you out of the estate tomorrow!

Get out of here!

You two little rascals,

why are you still here?

Fourth Madam invited us to stay for dinner.

Yes, she even asked Bai to stay overnight.

Old man, don't just stand there. Come join us.

You've chased everyone off, but there's still so much food left.

Come sit with us. Don't be shy.

What's got you so happy?

We got some information.

The servants said that Jin Zhen Ping has a habit

of writing down antidote formulas and keeping them.

But Jin Zhen Ping and the old steward showed up

before we could get them to tell us where he hid them.

Who is that old guy?

Dressed like a servant,

but he acts like he owns the place.

As soon as he started talking, everyone at the table scattered.

Xu An has served the family for three generations.

Even Jin Zhen Ping has to address him respectfully.

Who would dare cross him?

We would.

White Rat, don't worry.

Leave the antidote to us.

We'll find it for you.

Alright.

We'll go to Huaihua Alley again tomorrow.

This is where that girl was killed.

Did you ever come here after your brother was arrested?

No.

You were only ten back then.

I suppose you were too scared to go inside.

From the arraignment to the verdict,

Xiang Cai was in charge of everything.

So there's a lot I don't know.

Do you remember what happened around the time of the murder?

What evidence did the county office use to arrest your brother?

I remember the day before the murder,

Xiang Cai took me to the neighboring county to visit relatives.

We didn't get home until noon the next day.

As soon as we arrived, I heard that someone next door had been killed.

Step back.

Step back.

What's going on here?

Why are there so many officers here?

Someone's dead.

That girl who lives in this courtyard was killed last night.

Died horribly.

Move aside, let me through.

Children aren't supposed to look at dead bodies.

Bad luck.

Fourth Uncle already let me watch autopsies before.

He even taught me to identify human organs. I'm not afraid.

If only your brother had half your drive.

The sun's already high in the sky,

and he's still not up.

He must have been drinking again last night.

The Suwen Tournament is just a few days away.

Instead of reviewing his medical texts and formulas,

all he does is fool around.

You're still in bed? Get up.

What happened to you? Why are you so filthy? Hurry and clean yourself up.

Did you... Did you get into a fight?

Why is there so much blood?

I didn't fight.

Just a small injury.

A small injury? That's so much blood.

Where's your outer robe?

Outer robe?

I left it in the study. It was too dirty.

You can just throw it away for me.

Still saying you didn't fight?

Look, you've been scratched up!

Whose daughter did you harass this time?

Finally ran into someone you shouldn't have messed with, huh?

Can you stop making me sound like such a scumbag?

I've got something good to show you.

- Open the door! Open it! - Where did I put it?

Was anyone at your house last night?

Where did those injuries come from?

I got hurt while gathering herbs last night.

Gathering herbs in the middle of the night?

Who are you trying to fool?

Were you the one who killed the girl next door last night?

What?

- The girl next door? - Stop playing dumb! Did you kill her?

Officer, there must be some mistake.

Our young master would never kill anyone.

We found the murder weapon, along with bloodstained clothes.

What's going on here?

That's my...

That's my... On what grounds are you arresting him?

You can't just take him away!

Are you people...

You can't arrest me!

Do you have any evidence?

Brother!

The final verdict of the case

was that my brother coveted the girl and tried to force himself on her.

The girl resisted with all her might,

and my brother accidentally killed her.

Had he and that girl had any prior encounters?

I only saw them speak a few times.

But Xu An testified that

he'd seen my brother harassing her several times.

Was he telling the truth?

The girl was very beautiful.

I did see my brother speaking flirtatiously before,

trying to get close to her.

Memorize it.

Miss,

you just came back from outside the city, didn't you?

How did you know?

There's a flower caught in your hair.

This kind of flower can be used as medicine.

It only grows in the mountains outside the city.

You know medicine?

Of course. I was already treating patients when I was 16.

I see you pass by here every day,

always looking troubled.

What's weighing so heavily on your mind?

Miss, if you're in trouble, you have to tell me.

Neighbors should help each other. No need to be shy.

If you need anything...

Just ask me.

She's clearly not interested in talking to you.

Just give it a rest.

Can't you see how troubled she looks?

She must be dealing with something difficult.

Besides, we're neighbors.

She's a young woman living alone.

Shouldn't I show some concern?

And if she looked ugly,

would you still be this eager?

There are ugly men in this world, but no ugly women.

What would a kid like you know?

Memorize your acupuncture charts.

It's the fastest way to learn.

But that alone doesn't mean he would kill someone.

What do you think, Zhan?

You said they found the murder weapon, a dagger, in your house.

If your brother was drunk

and killed the girl next door in a moment of impulse,

yet still remembered to bring the weapon back and hide it,

then clearly he wasn't drunk enough to black out completely.

If that's the case, he should've immediately cleaned off the blood,

and disposed of the weapon and bloody clothes,

not just lain on the bed and slept soundly.

Yes, looking back now,

there were so many suspicious details.

Yet back then, I...

Is this inner room the study?

Bai, this book doesn't have a title.

Could it be your brother's notebook?

Don't read it!

Why not?

Uh...

I'll wait for you outside.

How could such book be left out in the open like that?

My brother had several books like this.

How would I know? I wasn't the one who left it there!

Keep your voice down.

Lady Huo might hear you.

With her hearing, she'll still hear me even if I whisper!

There's so much blood here.

That girl must've died in terrible pain.

The authorities said they found traces

of knockout incense outside the room.

They said the girl woke up in the middle and resisted with all her might.

My brother then slashed her until she was covered in wounds.

Even rapists in the martial world rarely

mess up when using knockout incense.

Your family is a lineage of medicine.

So how could he possibly fail at it?

Officer Zhan!

Come back with me now. We have to help Ming Zhu Er.

You've only been at this manor a few years.

If it weren't for me,

would you know the true colors of those two brothers?

His older brother committed murder.

There used to be a maid in the manor named Mei.

Jin Xue Wen chased after her every time he saw her.

One moment calling her "beauty that could sink kingdoms,"

the next comparing her to heavenly goddesses.

He praised her like she was some celestial maiden from the moon palace.

Mei wanted nothing to do with him.

He even tried getting handsy and touching her hair.

After touching it, he'd smell his hand.

Mei was terrified out of her mind.

A few months later, she quit and went home.

That's the kind of person he was.

How could the authorities possibly have wronged him?

And then there's his younger brother,

just some drifter from the martial world.

What wouldn't he do?

He's capable of all sorts of terrible things.

Look at his servant boy,

a sneaky little mongrel who steals and cheats.

How dare you glare at me!

I'll smash your eyes!

Young Master!

What is this? What are you trying to do?

Are you alright? Are you hurt?

Don't worry, Young Master. Not a scratch on me.

That old man framed me. I didn't steal anything.

Framed you?

I caught you red-handed, and you still dare deny it?

You said you caught him red-handed.

Then where's the stolen item? Did you find it?

He was skulking around the library,

clearly trying to sneak in and steal something!

- But I didn't go inside. - Since you insist he stole something,

then let's go to the authorities and settle this properly.

Filing a false accusation means taking some lashes, you know.

You...

You injured my hand.

It hurts!

I can't move it. I can't be bothered arguing with you anymore.

Young Master, Jin Zhen Ping has been in that room for a long time.

Something feels wrong. We should go check on him.

Where are you going?

What, do you want a few more?

Fine. Fine. Just you wait.

Break it up! Everyone, get lost!

From now on, none of you are allowed near Jujing Hall.

And if anyone dares talk to them,

I'll break their legs!

You caused such a huge scene in front of Qinghui Hall,

and now everyone in my residence is gossiping nonstop.

So I had Mr. Xu tell them a few stories

to let everyone know

what kind of person Jin Xue Wen really was.

Since you've thrown your dignity away,

then stay here all you want.

Keep searching.

Search for what you came to find.

Just now, I was sorting through

some old prescriptions gathering dust in the corner.

That's when I remembered a patient I once treated.

He was also from the martial world,

and he had also been poisoned with Nightmare Sky.

I remember it clearly,

during the entire day,

he was lucid for no more than an hour.

The rest of the time, he was trapped in endless hallucinations.

In the end, consumed by those hallucinations,

he took his own life.

He was treated too late.

Medicine could no longer save him.

That's how he ended up that way.

Your two sworn brothers won't end up like him too, will they?

How long have they been poisoned?

Hand over the antidote!

If you kill me,

you'll be sending your sworn brothers to their deaths.

Just like 15 years ago,

when you personally sealed your brother's fate.

You've taken them to the old house several times now.

Found anything yet?

Your brother's bones have long since turned to dust.

Only now you think of overturning his case?

Isn't it a little too late for that?

From the interrogation to the final verdict back then,

you never showed up once.

I'd say you condemned your brother to death

even earlier than the magistrate did.

You really can't judge a person by appearances.

Look what he did to a decent young woman.

Even dying in prison wouldn't be enough to satisfy the outrage.

The younger one doesn't seem to be up to any good either.

Bet he's just like his brother.

- Definitely the same. - Exactly.

Pervert!

Hit him!

- Hit him! - Alright, enough!

Hey, hey! What are you doing? Back off! Go away!

Go on, get out of here!

Your brother's funeral arrangements are mostly settled now.

I had someone draft a petition.

See if it looks alright to you.

I was going to ask the Jin family about it,

but every last one of them avoided me.

Damn them all. They don't care about family ties one bit anymore.

I must be getting senile.

You're still so young,

how could you possibly understand all this?

In a couple of days, we'll set off

and appeal our case at the prefectural office.

You don't want to go?

You don't believe Ninth was wrongly accused?

Ninth may not have had the best reputation,

but there's no way he could have done

something as heinous as that.

You didn't even believe your own brother.

Why should the rest of us believe him?

And you want to hold Jin family accountable?

Do you really think you can?

The person who owed Jin Xue Wen the most wasn't anyone else,

it was you.

Jin Yue Wen.

If the case truly was a miscarriage of justice,

then the ones who wronged his brother were the real killer

and the corrupt officials who condemned an innocent man.

You can't blame a ten-year-old child.

So being young is enough to excuse him now?

I remember very clearly that ten-year-old child

kneeling outside the gates of the Jin Residence,

begging in the pouring rain for Naiheyin Pill.

I find it hard to believe that he was

actually concerned about his brother's life

when Jin Xue Wen was dying.

It was probably to keep people from pointing fingers at him.

It was all an act.

And because of it, he won Fourth Aunt's sympathy.

She wanted to keep him in the residence,

to raise him herself.

Bai Yu Tang, what a clever move, killing two birds with one stone.

Shut up!

If you say another word,

I'll teach you a lesson for Bai!

You want to be friends with him?

Does he deserve it?

A man who couldn't even trust his own brother,

would he ever truly be your friend?

I'd like to be alone.

Let's go see Fourth Madam.

You'll return to the inn first.

Fourth Madam,

has there been any progress regarding the antidote for Nightmare Sky?

I'm afraid there's not much I can do to help you.

I heard Little Seventeenth and Third had another huge fight today.

I'll try to talk to him again.

Fourth Madam,

what Bai needs is the antidote,

not comforting words.

You once saved Zhan's life.

And Bai has always been deeply grateful

for how you cared for him when he was young.

They can't speak harshly to you, so I will.

After the shipwreck back then,

why didn't the Jin family continue searching for Bai?

Could it be you were all hoping he'd die out there?

No, of course not.

Whether intentional or not,

the Jin family left him to fend for himself.

You owe him for that.

Shouldn't you be doing everything you can to make it up to him?

When Bai came to your door,

he didn't ask for anything unreasonable.

He only asked the Jin family to save his sworn brothers.

Jin Zhen Ping has the antidote, but he refuses to save them.

And the Jin family elders are turning a blind eye to it.

Is this how a respected medical family

always treats people whose lives are at stake?

Or is it simply because he's Bai Yu Tang?

You once asked whether Bai Yu Tang had suffered a lot out there.

He told you it was all in the past.

But have you ever thought about

what a ten-year-old child wandering the martial world alone

would have had to endure just to survive?

He never spoke of those things because he didn't want to upset you.

He's worried sick about his sworn brothers,

yet he wouldn't pressure you for the antidote

because he didn't want to put you in a difficult position.

I...

Why do you keep looking around like that?

Steward Xu said Bai Yu Tang is capable of murder and arson,

that he'd do anything.

You humiliated him so badly in public,

so wouldn't someone like him try to ambush and retaliate against you?

Yet you still chose such a remote road to make house calls.

It's broad daylight.

If he dares to come, then let him come.

In fact, I'll think less of him if he doesn't show up.

Isn't he after the antidote?

Doesn't he want revenge on Jin family for Jin Xue Wen?

Let him come.

Don't just run your mouth and put on an act!

Master.

I'm so exhausted.

Why did you walk so fast?

Alright, alright. I wasn't trying to kill him.

I know how Jin Zhen Ping operates.

Those prescriptions in the library are his life's work.

He'd never actually burn them.

I'm following him to see his next move

and find the formulas he hid away.

But did you ever consider

that they only let you follow because they had already set a trap?

I noticed those people tailing us.

- The Tang Sect members... - Weren't a match for you.

Alright. Stop wasting time on Jin Zhen Ping.

We got the antidote formula.

I've sent someone to deliver

a copy of the formula to Xiankong Island right away.

Where did this formula come from?

Fourth Madam gave it to us.

You should thank Lady Huo for this.

She convinced Fourth Aunt?

When Fourth Madam sent someone to give it to us,

she said she figured it out herself after studying ancient texts.

She claimed it had nothing to do with Jin Zhen Ping.

In the end, she's still protecting him.

Never mind. What matters is that we've gotten the formula.

I need to go thank Lady Huo right away.

Not just her.

Ming Zhu Er is still upset about being falsely accused earlier.

You didn't forget that you promised to make it up to him, did you?

Why didn't you remind me sooner?

At least I could've brought him something.

Now I'm going empty-handed.

Too late for that.

Ming Zhu Er's been by my side since he was little.

I've never seen him suffer such humiliation before.

Go check on him quickly.

Come with me.

Grilled fish?

Quite a nose you've got.

White Rat, come over here. This fish is for you. You grill it.

What a feast.

Huo Xiao Mei, how exactly did you convince Fourth Aunt?