Original subtitles

Father.

Haven't I told you before?

Whether in public or in private,

you should just call me "Master."

"Our bodies are gifts from our parents."

This life of mine is

entirely a gift from you, Father.

Had you not taken me in

as your student in Jiankang

and guided me so diligently,

I would never have reached where I am today.

Everything I believe in and aspire to

has also been nurtured by your teaching.

I would never dare show you anything but respect.

Good.

My good son.

You are every bit a son of the Xie family.

You've done well these past few years.

You used the reform as a pretext to reshape the salt and iron monopoly

and clear the waterways.

The people will remember you

and support you.

But the reform

was ultimately initiated by Xiao Wuyi.

If you want to become

the true ruler of the realm,

you must sweep aside

anyone who stands in your way,

one by one, like dust.

[Key to the Phoenix Heart]

[Episode 22]

Xiao Wuyi,

you need to learn to take what you want.

♪ One glance from near stirs my heart ♪

♪ This fleeting moment ♪

♪ Tugs the threads woven by fate ♪

Xiao Wuyi.

♪ Bound tight evermore ♪

Do you hear me?

I hear you.

Good.

You're really drunk.

I'm not.

I still have a New Year's gift for you.

What do you think?

♪ You know my resolve to live and die together ♪

♪ Believe in my persistence that I won't run away ♪

♪ You know I'm unyielding ♪

♪ Don't give up or dodge ♪

My red steed.

♪ You know me, seeing things through from start to finish ♪

My Miraculous Craft has made a lot of money,

♪ You see my move under rebellious cover ♪

so I redeemed it.

You're going to the battlefield,

so you need the finest horse.

♪ You know me, I'm willing to be with you till the end ♪

It can bring you home.

♪ Burn the fire in my heart ♪

Yaoyao.

♪ Sincere hearts remain as of old ♪

I'll do my best...

to spend every New Year with you.

Wait, not this one.

I have a Hetian white jade crown

that Yaoyao gave me.

Today

is the day she'll be officially invested.

I want to wear that one.

Yes.

To Prince Jing'an's Mansion.

Grand Tutor Xie,

have you heard?

Something terrible happened at the grain canal.

The Xiao family embezzled funds for the canal.

They replaced river sand with mud and silt,

causing the grain canal to collapse,

and nearly 100 laborers were killed or injured.

The County Sheriff has hanged himself.

The outraged crowds have already reached Jiankang.

There are so many guests today.

Yes.

Congratulations, congratulations.

Please come in.

Why have so many

officials' families come to attend the ceremony today?

Congratulations, congratulations.

Did you invite them?

Of course not.

It must've been Wuyi.

I didn't.

Then...

Father, don't worry about it.

It's not every day Wuyi throws such a grand affair.

Of course they came to help him make a good showing.

His Highness Prince Qi has arrived!

-Your Highness. -Your Highness.

Congratulations.

I'm not late, am I?

Your Highness has arrived at just the right time.

Thank you.

From now on,

we are no longer brothers,

but ruler and subject.

Who is beating the drum?

This must be a grave injustice.

Someone is sounding the Petition Drum.

Petition Drum?

It's struck only when the people

have suffered a great injustice

or when enemy forces are invading.

Anyone who dares to strike that drum,

whether their accusation is true or false,

must first endure 30 strikes of the cane

to prove they're not making a false accusation.

Wouldn't that leave them dead or crippled?

Therefore, unless someone has genuinely suffered a serious injustice,

no one would risk their own life like this.

Something major is about to happen at court.

It has begun.

My Lord!

Who is it you intend to accuse?

We accuse the Commander of the Beifu Army,

the Heir of Prince Jing'an, Xiao Wuyi,

and his brother, Xiao Yao, supervisor of the grain canal works.

What?

My Lord, please seek justice for us!

The auspicious hour has arrived.

We respectfully invite Prince Qi, the Regent, to bestow

the imperial decree and seal upon the Consort of the Heir of Prince Jing'an

and read out the proclamation of investiture.

Report!

Where are the accused, Xiao Wuyi and Xiao Yao?

I pay my respects to Your Highness.

Your Highness,

I have no wish to disrupt

the Heir's Consort investiture ceremony.

But the Petition Drum has been struck.

According to the laws of Ye,

the main culprits must be detained immediately:

Young Lord Xiao and Eldest Young Master Xiao.

Please forgive the offense.

How insolent!

Today, at the investiture ceremony,

I'd like to see who dares arrest them!

The Ministry of Justice never

makes arrests without evidence.

The grain canal in Hexi has collapsed,

causing over 1,000 casualties and public outrage.

Our investigation found

that County Magistrate Wei Min, a man of humble birth,

was personally promoted by Young Lord Xiao.

In his home,

we found years of correspondence between him

and Young Lord Xiao and Eldest Young Master Xiao,

along with 1,000 taels of gold.

Moreover, the letters reveal evidence

that the Xiaos embezzled the canal repair funds

and abused their power for personal gain.

Commandant of Justice, if the sons are guilty,

shouldn't the father be guilty as well?

You may arrest the two of them,

but you'll be taking me too!

I'd like to see which of you dares!

Take Prince Jing'an,

the Heir, and Eldest Young Master Xiao

to the Court of Judicial Review together.

Yes, Your Highness.

Order the Three Judicial Offices to send officials

to conduct a thorough investigation at the grain canal.

If they have been wronged,

I will ensure justice is done.

If they are guilty...

I will never allow anyone

to escape the law.

Prince Jing'an, please forgive the offense.

Young Lord Xiao, please.

Don't worry. I'll be back.

Your Highness, please bestow the decree and seal.

Your Highness, please proceed with the investiture.

[Court of Judicial Review]

Young Lord Xiao, you seem so composed.

Are you that certain

I won't find conclusive evidence against you?

There is a list in my residence

recording every official

who has ever attempted

to bribe me.

I've already sent a copy to the Eastern Palace.

Now I'll hand the original copy of the list to you.

If such a list really exists,

why didn't you mention it earlier?

Today, before the public,

the Petition Drum has been struck,

so you've come bearing the will of the people.

Whether the accusations are true or false,

they must go through the Court of Judicial Review's process to convince everyone.

If I hadn't come, it would've damaged your reputation.

And by coming,

I placed my bet on your competence.

In that case,

I should be thanking you, Young Lord Xiao?

There is one more thing

I'd ask you to consider, Commandant of Justice.

Please go on, Young Lord Xiao.

I've long heard that you're strict and impartial.

However, my father is elderly,

and my elder brother's leg is badly crippled.

Neither could endure torture.

Moreover, every order regarding the grain canal work

was issued by me.

If torture is to be used,

I'm willing to endure it in their place.

Xiao Wuyi, don't shield me!

Since I dared to come in,

I am not afraid of interrogation!

What do you mean by "elderly"?

I'm sturdier than the two of them put together!

Interrogate me if you must!

Rest assured, everyone.

If this turns out to be a frame-up,

I will absolutely restore the good name of

your household.

I entered prison

precisely to see

just how far

the person behind all this is willing to go.

Yuanji.

Mother had some calming tonic

and is asleep now.

The letters and ledgers in the household

have all been seized.

Could it be that the Ministry of Justice

has been acting under someone's orders,

trying to frame us?

I don't think so.

Commandant of Justice Lu, who came today,

was newly promoted last year.

During these years of reform,

while serving in the provinces,

he punished commoners who cheated in the marketplace

and sentenced noble clans who seized land by force alike.

He's a ruthless but upright official

who enforces the law without favor.

Since he personally came to make the arrest today,

he surely wouldn't act without evidence.

The plaintiffs

accuse the Beifu Army of embezzling

and taking bribes during the canal repairs,

and cutting corners on the work—

which caused the grain canal to collapse

and killed many conscripted laborers.

Yao would never do that.

Letters, ledgers...

Nanxing.

My Lady.

You have a photographic memory for the accounts.

You've been helping me with the accounts these past years.

So help me reconstruct them.

Yes.

Ledgers...

Letters...

Handwriting...

What's wrong, Yuanji?

Nothing.

I just suddenly realized

I haven't seen Qing Long and Yan Yue around.

Right, where are they?

Xiao Wuyi and Xiao Ju have been imprisoned.

Have you prepared

the forged correspondence I asked for?

Afraid it'll be exposed?

For the Xiao family,

this will be a capital offense.

They deserve it.

I won't go back on my promise to you.

I've already requested Prince Qi's approval

to reopen the Lantai gathering.

Get up first.

Come on.

Zhaolin,

when the time comes...

you'll be a student of mine,

and no one will ever

look down on your background again.

Thank you,

Grand Tutor Xie.

Are those people

helping you cook the books

actually trustworthy?

They don't know

what they're doing,

nor do they know who they're working for.

Excellent.

Are you alright?

Let's go!

Hurry.

Mr. Liu,

since when did you become Grand Tutor Xie's lackey?

You knew I collected rare books.

Xiao Yao, Xiao Wuyi,

and even Prince Jing'an had all borrowed and annotated them.

So you used me to obtain

the handwriting of every member

of the Xiao family by borrowing books from me.

Back then, when you gave me a deed of debt...

I offer this deed of debt

as proof

that I'll surely repay the debt someday.

When you said you'd repay me for saving your life,

you'd already thought of how you could use me?

Absolutely not! I...

I admire you.

But I didn't dare to tell you.

I knew all along.

I've frequented the bookstore these past couple of years.

Could you really not tell how I felt about you?

It's precisely because I know

that I'm even more aware I'm not worthy of you.

Whether you were the Consort of the Heir of Prince Jing'an back then

or are the head of the He family now,

I was never worthy of you.

I'm merely a commoner,

full of ideals.

Anyone can trample on me.

Only Grand Tutor Xie.

He promised me.

As long as Xiao Wuyi falls

and the noble clans revive the Lantai gathering,

he'll give me an official post.

You're the third child in your family.

You once studied at Luming Academy

and were classmates with my second brother.

Back then,

I often secretly put on my second brother's clothes

and sneaked into the academy to sit in on lectures.

We got to know each other over time.

We shared the same interests

and often studied together.

It was only then that my brother told you

I was actually a girl.

You were shocked yet delighted

and said you'd return home and ask your parents to arrange our marriage.

But just at that time,

my aunt, Empress Dowager He,

was choosing someone from the clan

to marry into Prince Jing'an's household.

But I was in love with you.

After my aunt found out,

she sent people to kill you.

I thought

you were dead.

But I never imagined

that day at the bookstore...

Pei Runheng?

I'd see you again.

Impossible.

You definitely got the wrong person.

You were born in the Year of the Tiger.

There's a plum blossom-shaped scar on your left arm.

You got it when you were protecting me from wild bees while we were

picking mulberries in the back mountain of the academy.

And your handwriting.

I would never mistake it.

Then why didn't you tell me sooner?

In the second year after I married into Prince Jing'an's household,

Empress Dowager He found a pretext

and convicted your family.

Your father and brothers died,

and your mother, in her despair, took her own life along with your sister.

I'm a daughter of the He family.

Our families have long been bound by a blood feud.

I didn't dare let you remember the past.

I foolishly convinced myself

that as long as I didn't speak of it,

we could have a fresh start together.

But I never expected...

I never expected

you to be deceived and used by Xie Huaigui.

Runheng, you can still turn back now.

My right hand is ruined.

I can no longer prove

that those letters and ledgers were forged by me.

You are living proof.

Jiayu.

What exactly is the crime Grand Tutor Xie intends to pin on the Xiao family?

Treason...

and collaboration with the enemy.

Tell us everything you know.

At this point,

Runheng,

for the sake of the person you once were,

don't keep going down this road.

Third Alley, Shanghe Ward.

The scholars who forged the letters and ledgers

are all hidden there.

If you move quickly,

you might still be able to save some of them.

Too late again.

The outcome is not yet decided.

Prince Qi, don't you think you've come a little early?

These past few days,

the evidence has been piling up—

Xiao Yao's corruption in the grain canal project,

and Xiao Ju's sale of military supplies and leaking of military intelligence.

Not just your family—

many of the common-born officials you promoted

have been dragged down with you as well.

Now, the public in and out of Jiankang is outraged,

demanding severe punishment for your family

and a strict investigation of common-born officials.

Do you think you still have a way out,

Crown Prince Wenxi?

From the day His Majesty returned the Phoenix Heart Token to you,

I was certain of your identity.

From supervising the grain canal

to charges of treason, it's exactly

the same pattern as the downfall of the An and Lu families back then.

Grand Tutor Xie has certainly put a great deal of thought

into choosing the Xiao family's crimes.

So you really do know the truth behind the An-Lu case.

And since you know,

you should also realize

that Grand Tutor Xie isn't leaving you any way out.

Xie Jiayu acted fast

and found the one who forged the letters and ledgers.

But that man's hand is ruined.

He can't testify.

For the sake of our past brotherhood,

I can spare your whole family...

I won't agree to the conditions you're about to propose.

Hand over the Beifu Army and the Phoenix Heart Token,

and write a divorce agreement.

I want you to tell Xie Jiayu yourself

that you want to divorce her.

Do you honestly think that's possible?

I think it is.

Xie Jiayu is her own person.

Her life

and her feelings

should be hers to choose.

You're forcing her to come back to you—

is it because you love her

or because you hate me?

That was Xie Jiayu's own wrong choice to begin with.

I'm merely giving her

a chance to choose again.

Li Yizhi.

You shouldn't have dragged the Xiao family

and all those common-born officials into this.

Do you really think all those commoners you promoted

are people of both talent and good character?

Cruel and corrupt officials mostly come from humble origins.

The common people have long since grown to despise the reforms.

Even if everything you've done was meant to save the realm,

then tell me—

how many people can truly understand your intentions?

And how many would actually appreciate them?

All you'll get is more and more people

wanting you dead.

And you don't fully know

this father of yours either.

Xiao Ju was not dragged into this.

He and your birth mother

were both perpetrators of the An-Lu wrongful case.

He's selfish and cowardly

and will abandon all moral principles for his own interests.

The downfall of the Xiao family

is inevitable.

If you really want to protect Xie Jiayu,

divorce is the only path left.

The grain canal collapsed, the Xiao family embezzled,

Xiao Wuyi was imprisoned, and the ruler and his subject became estranged.

You're very smart.

You know that the truth of the An-Lu case

is Xie Huaigui's real obsession

and that if he learns

Xiao Ju knew of the injustice back then

yet concealed it,

he will never let the Xiao family go.

Xiao Wuyi has been imprisoned.

Are you happy?

If he dies,

Xie Jiayu will be left without anyone to rely on.

Your brother is now the Regent in name and in fact.

You can also return to Southern Ye.

I belong

to you now, Your Highness.

And I'll never go back in this life.

Without Xiao Wuyi, the Beifu Army

has lost its fighting spirit.

It'll never again be a match for Your Highness's Black Eagle Army.

From now on, the border will be secure.

I should congratulate Your Highness.

Is that so?

You're helping your brother eliminate his greatest rival,

and yet you still find such a pretty way to put it.

Your Highness,

all the warriors participating in today's mounted archery contest

have arrived.

The cattle, sheep, and Ye slaves have also been brought into the arena.

I know.

Then let me help Your Highness change.

Lejun.

What's wrong?

My child...

Our child?

You did this on purpose.

You didn't want him.

You didn't want our child, did you?

I...

didn't...

Lejun. Lejun!

We were still a step too late.

We only have Liu Zhaolin as a witness,

but his hand is ruined.

I'm afraid his testimony alone won't convince anyone.

Not too late.

At least now we know who's behind it.

Jiayu.

There is something

you need to know now.

If Xiao Wuyi keeps pushing himself like this,

he probably won't even last

another year.

Xiao Wuyi didn't mean to keep it from you.

Then how is he

now?

It's well controlled.

In enclosed spaces or in the dark at night,

it worsens.

But he's learned to live with it.

What worries me most now

is that the Court of Judicial Review will use torture.

I heard from Yuanji

that Commandant of Justice Lu is a harsh official.

If Xiao Wuyi's condition worsens...

there's no telling what will happen.

For now, the priority is finding a way to get him out

as soon as possible.

[Grand Tutor's Mansion]

[Xie]

Third Alley, Shanghe Ward has been emptied.

Grand Tutor Xie, you've fabricated charges.

You framed the Beifu Army commander who bled

for this nation as a traitor who colluded with the enemy.

When you wake in the middle of the night,

doesn't your conscience ever trouble you?

Yaoyao, you're thoughtful.

A troubled conscience?

I'm only doing to him what he once did to others.

You mean...

Prince Jing'an framed the An and Lu families?

He knew there was an injustice in the An-Lu case,

yet he concealed it.

How is that any different from framing?

And Xiao Wuyi.

Since he is Crown Prince Wenxi,

he naturally must atone for

the sins committed by his birth parents.

Yaoyao, concocting an unjust case

might be unfair to others,

but to the Xiao family

and Crown Prince Wenxi,

it's Heaven's will.

Heaven's justice always comes full circle—

this is retribution.

Father.

What really happened

to the An and Lu families back then?

Just as the Xiao family is experiencing today.

[Prince Jing'an's Mansion]

My Lady, how did you know

about the mechanism in Grand Tutor Xie's study?

I was mischievous as a child

and stumbled upon the mechanism by accident.

You know what's inside the box, My Lady?

No.

But they must be extremely important to Grand Tutor Xie.

Qizhou, Qingzhou...

And Luzhou.

Where did you go?

After His Highness was imprisoned,

Qing Long and I were ordered to go to Luzhou to find someone.

Who?

Prince Qi's adoptive mother, Madam Wang of the Lu family.

Originally, she'd always been under His Highness's control,

but she was poisoned at some point.

We were still a step too late.

A step too late again.

Actually, Her Highness Princess Yunzhao

also sent me to these three places

to look for Madam Wang of the Lu family.

It was shortly after Prince Qi was appointed Regent.

That's also why

I didn't go to Lingfeng Fort with Her Highness.

What did Mother send you to do?

To investigate Prince Qi's true identity.

For Mao, for our family,

you must be this pawn.

I finally understand

why Lejun killed my mother,

why my father and mother

divorced after I got married,

and why my mother never approved

of Mao and me being together.

I understand it all now.

[Shezhang Hall]

I, Xie Jiayu, Consort of the Heir of Prince Jing'an,

pay respects to Regent Prince Qi.

Let her in.

The corruption and treason of

Prince Jing'an's family have all been confirmed.

No matter how badly you want to save him,

Xiao Wuyi has no other choice

but to hand over the command of the Beifu Army

and write a confession.

I came today

to give you something.

[Li Mao's Lineage Investigation]

Xiao Wuyi has known your true identity all along.

If he wanted your position,

it would've been his long ago.

You trust him that much?

The facts speak for themselves,

whether you believe them or not.

And if I keep you here,

then all this evidence

will mean nothing.

Yaoyao, don't force me.

I'm not the Li Mao I used to be.

If I can't get what I want,

then we'll all go down together.

I'll give you one last chance.

Take off those robes of the Heir's Consort,

leave Xiao Wuyi,

and stay by my side forever.

Okay?

No.

I also have the letters exchanged between Grand Tutor Xie

and your wet nurse over the past dozen years.

He still doesn't know

that I took the letters.

I'll give you three days.

If, after three days,

Wuyi and the rest of the Xiao family have not returned

and if the Court of Judicial Review has not cleared their name,

then this record of your true identity,

along with the letters between the Grand Tutor

and your wet nurse over the past dozen years,

will be spread throughout Jiankang.

Mao,

whether I'm the Heir's Consort or not,

I'm still Xie Jiayu.

Whether I'm with Xiao Wuyi or not,

I won't choose to enter the palace with you.

These past few years, I've traveled to many places

and lived very happily.

Don't stay trapped in the past

and let it become your obsession.

You were never this kind of person.

[Court of Judicial Review]

Yaoyao came.

When did you

start suspecting my true identity?

From the moment Prince Changsha mutinied to force the abdication

and you were suddenly pushed to the position of Regent.

I thought

it was at least after Lejun got rid of Princess Yunzhao.

I didn't expect it to be even earlier.

That night,

when I saw you in Jiankang Palace,

I was wondering:

Grand Tutor Xie had been plotting for a long time,

so why did he choose you specifically?

As expected,

His Majesty immediately sent people to Qizhou

to investigate your true identity.

Princess Yunzhao's Shadow Envoys also went

and found out the truth they shouldn't have.

But at that time, why didn't you...

Why didn't I expose you

and make this crime of deceiving the emperor public?

Because you and I have the same ambition.

What I cannot accomplish,

you can accomplish in my place.

I don't need an incompetent good man

standing in that position.

Ambition, ruthless methods—

whoever holds that position needs both.

I don't think there's anything wrong with your origins.

You don't care about the throne,

but you need a helper.

So you chose me.

For your ambition,

I lost Yaoyao.

I lost the life I was meant to have!

I am not willing to be your puppet,

and even less willing to accept that Yaoyao remains so devoted to you.

She loves freedom more than anything,

yet she's willing to be bound to your side

and give everything for you!

Those noble clans thought that making peace with Northern Qin

could buy a corner of peace and prosperity.

But that's only a fleeting prosperity confined within Jiankang's walls.

Beyond the city,

countless people on the Northern Border

still live amid war.

If we don't eliminate Northern Qin

and reclaim our lost homeland,

there can never be true peace!

Yizhi,

these were your own words

while you were fleeing here.

It was you who forgot.

The person who chose you

was never me...

but yourself.