Original subtitles

Classic of Mountains and Seas:

The Great Wilderness West Classic records

there was a Kingdom of Women.

The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions further states

in the Eastern Kingdom of Women, women had always been the rulers.

Men were only responsible for warfare and farming.

Later, it's unclear in which country or era,

the Rong Family migrated and settled in Linji.

They claimed to be descendants of the Kingdom of Women.

They cultivated tea plantations to prosper the land,

and also opened maritime trade routes.

For over 400 years,

their wealth overshadowed the realm,

and their influence rivaled that of feudal lords.

Thus, they were known as the Tea King, the Rong Family.

Many talented men drawn by their fame, married into the family,

making it a remarkable spectacle of the time.

Let go of me.

You're nothing but a dog of the Rong Residence.

What are you doing?

[The oldest daughter of the Rong family, Rong Shanbao]

Miss Rong.

It's that slut's fault!

It was that slut who seduced me.

She was the one who tempted me!

It's all her fault.

Mr. Wang,

you've overstepped.

Miss Rong!

Miss Rong!

Miss Rong!

Miss Rong!

[Butler, Cheng Guanyu]

Bitch!

You bitch!

Why did you seduce me?

Why did you seduce me?

Miss Rong.

This bitch seduced me.

I was blinded.

I'll never dare again!

Please forgive me.

You know,

I've always been fond of you.

After all, you are skilled in poetry and writing,

clever, adaptable,

and considerate.

Miss Rong.

It was them!

They framed me.

They want to take my place!

Miss Rong,

we can't let this matter ruin the affection

we've shared all the time.

Expel him from the Rong Residence.

Come on.

Don't be afraid.

Yi,

our Rong family has over 300 more

tea plantations of this scale.

in the south.

The tea farmers we support are beyond count.

Only this newly opened plantation...

All the precious tea transplanted here

would wither within 3 months.

It pains me greatly.

I specifically brought you here at great expense

from Yunnan,

so you could personally nurture the tea from your homeland.

I am relying on you.

Miss Rong.

Mr. Wang was chosen for you

by the Old Madam.

I free so sorry.

I submit to your judgment.

He has a low character.

Let's not speak of him.

Since ancient times, fine swords are gifted to heroes.

From now on, whoever you fancy,

or whatever treasure you desire,

just tell me.

Take good care of my tea for me.

I will grant

all your wishes.

I'm willing to serve you.

I would do everything for you.

Yi, look.

Tea is our lifeblood.

Within three years,

I want every barren mountain here

to become a sea of tea.

[Glory]

[Three years later]

Be careful.

Heavy snow is coming soon.

-Granny. -Hurry up.

Granny!

Granny!

Granny!

Are you okay, Ma'am?

Quick, get up first.

Here are you.

Thank you.

Excuse me,

how to get to Linji City?

Miss, that's still a long way off.

Looks like heavy snow is about to hit.

You can't travel now.

Why don't you

come into my shop for a cup of hot tea

and wait until the storm passes?

Come inside first.

It's freezing cold out here.

You'll freeze

to death!

Thank you.

[Zhang's Tea Shop]

He's so heavy.

[Lu Jianglai]

Tell me.

Where are the kidnapped women hiding?

Constable Liu!

Bandit is here!

Go get him!

Bandit is here?

Who dares

cause trouble here?

Come out and face me!

Constable Liu.

You must be tired from patrolling late at night.

Lord Lu?

Lord Lu,

why are you here?

I'm visiting incognito tonight.

I’ve already identified the suspect

in the case of the missing women in Chunning County.

Arrest him now!

Yes, sir!

Arrest him!

Quickly return to the county office,

and fetch the official sedan to escort Lord Lu back.

Let's go.

Congratulations, My Lord.

My Lord, you are so wise

and have foresight.

You solved such a major case so soon after taking office.

A promotion is surely just around the corner!

It's mainly my fault.

I was negligent in handling the case,

forcing you to take such a risk alone.

I truly deserve ten thousand deaths.

I beg your forgiveness.

Liu Ben!

You lead the county's public servants,

feed on the people's provisions,

yet dare to collude with evildoers

and plot against an imperial official?

How many lives do you have?

What do you mean?

Your were too eager for merit

and carelessly fell into the trap of thieves.

That's why you lost your life.

If you died,

the great credit for solving this major case

would land right on me.

Anyway, I have to thank you

for giving me

this colossal fortune.

Men!

Let's see Lord Lu off on his final journey.

Greetings, My Lord.

Who told you

our lord risked his life alone?

[Private Advisor, Feng Zhusheng]

Take him down.

There's one more here.

Take her back.

My Lord, they're locked up here.

They're officials! We're saved!

Help us!

Hurry up. Let's go.

Let's go. Thank you.

We're saved.

My Lord,

many are girls from other places,

on their way to the mountains to pick tea.

Take them back to the county office to register.

Then notify their respective families

to come claim them and close the cases.

Yes, sir!

Did you all hear that?

Lord Lu is sending you home.

Thank you, My Lord!

For those with no family to claim them,

arrange temporary shelter at the County Office first.

As for the woman who voluntarily served as bait tonight,

reward her with five taels of silver.

Yes, sir!

We can finally go home.

Yes, we can go now.

Let's go.

Be careful.

My Lord.

My Lord.

Another cellar has been discovered.

Dead bodies... piled to the top.

Corpse mud?

It's... it's corpse mud.

Immediately dispatch more personnel.

Gather all the county's coroners.

I will interrogate through the night.

Yes, sir!

I beg Your Lord to dismiss your attendants.

I have confidential matters to report.

Let's go.

I've run rampant in Chunning for 20 years.

Every county magistrate

has treated me

with courtesy and respect.

Lord Lu, you endured ten years of hard study

to earn your rank and title. It wasn't easy.

Take my advice:

don't dig your own grave

and ruin your future.

Release me now.

It'll be more convenient for both of us.

He was recommended

by Prefect Xu of Linji.

But with corpses piled like mountains,

if I let you go,

how can I explain myself to the Prefect?

That's easy.

He has told you

that my sister is Lord Xu's

most beloved concubine.

To be honest,

even if you arrest me,

later you'll have to release me unharmed

and send me back anyway.

Why not just release me now?

Later, I'll have a word with my brother-in-law,

Lord Xu.

I'll put in a good word for you.

Reporting!

How dare you, Liu Ben!

You dare to assassinate Lord Lu!

-My Lord! -My Lord!

Liu Ben seized a knife with malicious intent.

Fortunately, Lord Lu is blessed

and didn't fall into his trap.

He has been executed on the spot.

We are late.

Sorry to let you be frightened.

Carry the body back to the County Office.

Hang it for public display for 3 days.

I want everyone in Chunning County

to see the fate of those

who collude with bandits

and prey upon the people.

Yes, sir!

Hurry up and support him!

Serves him right!

Instant retribution!

[Rong Residence]

It's all Lu's fault.

If he hadn't interfered,

you would have lured the snake out of the hole,

and captured the mastermind

behind the abduction

of the mountain tea-picking girls.

This collusion between officials and merchants has a long history.

If they could truly follow this trail

and investigate further,

it might not be a bad thing

for the people.

Look into this newly arrived Lord Lu.

Okay.

Miss Rong,

the wheel tracks leading down the mountain

had been tampered with.

Time to settle accounts.

Did you see clearly? She's really back?

Hurry up, please.

[Young Master of the Rong family, Rong Shanchang]

Miss Rong.

You're back already?

But...

Is the day not yet upon us?

I had just descended Mount Guzhu

when I encountered a landslide.

Unfortunately, I then ran into bandits robbing people.

Not only did they rob the wild tea seeds,

they also tried to abduct and sell my maidservants.

So you don't know?

You encountered a landslide on your way?

How could you also have run into bandits?

Did you get hurt?

Sister.

It was the Young Master

who embezzled silver from the account.

Fearing the truth would come out during the audit in 7 days,

and hearing that

you had entered Mount Guzhu to seek wild tea plants,

he planned to delay you

a couple of days on the road,

so he'd have time to make up the shortfall elsewhere.

But... he only dared to tamper with the wheel tracks!

You scoundrel!

Who told you to frame me?

Would I harm my elder sister?

Miss Rong, please see clearly!

Miss Rong is wise.

We truly tried to dissuade him!

But Young Master didn't listen.

Yes. Yes.

How would we dare to kill people?

Shut up!

Get up!

I am the eldest son of the main branch.

Let's go.

Who dares to touch me?

Just try.

You may leave now.

My dear sister,

it's just a few

lowly dogs that died.

Tomorrow,

I'll get you a few better ones.

Okay?

You treated human life as worthless grass,

being so heartless.

Just a few servants.

You were blinded by profit and insatiable,

plotting against superiors, showing no respect for elders.

Such injustice!

I swear to the heavens,

I only tampered with the wheel tracks!

What landslide and bandits...

Even if you lent me a hundred times the courage,

I wouldn't dare!

You should be glad you only tampered with the wheel tracks.

Otherwise,

by this time next year, the weeds on your grave

might be 3 feet high.

Kneel outside the ancestral hall for 7 days.

No one is to bring him any food.

My dear brother, get up please.

The ground is cold.

Every one looks down on me!

You know my luck in this life

has never been good...

Don't say that again.

Although we are family,

there is closeness and distance.

[The third daughter of the Rong family, Rong Yun'e]

No one can compare to the one

who is the very apple of Grandma's eye.

Only after Father pleaded repeatedly

could we follow her

in using the generational name character.

She is the moon in the clouds,

but you are the mud underfoot.

Just bear with it.

Coward!

The rain on the eaves' plantains won't kill you.

All of you are afraid of her,

but I'm not.

Sooner or later...

Greetings, Ms. Yan.

Lady Rong has already given the order:

Miss Rong's status is exalted.

Anyone who dares to challenge her authority,

disregarding rank and propriety,

[Butler, Yan Jingyi]

will be expelled from the Rong family.

Their life or death will no longer be our concern.

As for those in this courtyard

who plot misconduct or know but fail to report it,

give them 80 heavy strokes.

Then, deliver them to the County Office.

As for you, Young Master,

since Miss Rong has already decided your punishment,

you can just go kneel

outside the ancestral hall yourself.

[Governor's Office]

A mere county magistrate

dares to execute my wife's brother?

Your Excellency,

you must uphold justice for me!

Your Excellency, I'm the Chunning Magistrate,

Lu Jianglai, request an audience now.

[Governor, Jiang Yiqian]

Greetings, Your Excellency.

Lord Xu, you're here, too.

[Prefect, Xu Song]

Have you

received the letter so soon?

It's all that damned Liu Ben's fault!

Having received your great kindness and favor,

he should have been diligent and conscientious,

striving in his duties.

Yet he betrayed that kindness,

forgot righteousness, acted wildly and irrationally,

and slandered you as the chief bandit!

He also said...

What did he say?

I dare not say it.

Tell me.

He said last year,

he presented you with a pair of

priceless cricket pots,

30 jars of Huadiao wine,

10 kilos of Longjing tea.

For your concubine's birthday,

he gave 500 taels in silver

and sent you a theater troupe for 3 days.

Nonsense!

Yes.

I also angrily rebuked him:

"Lord Xu has noble character

and is extremely strict with his subordinates."

Last time I visited the Xu residence,

you didn't even accept a single tael's worth of gifts

or gatekeeper's tips!

How could you possibly covet his petty offerings?

But he, on the contrary,

started shouting even louder!

He said half of Liujia Village

works in the County Office,

all relying on

Lord Xu's numerous promotions and support!

He also said...

you had taken a fancy

to the daughter of retired Censor Fang

and wanted to kidnap her to be your concubine!

Nonsense!

l was precisely acting with urgency

for your concerns.

I feared that in open court, his foul words

would slander your clean reputation.

Once it spread publicly,

where would official dignity remain?

That's why it was a last resort

to execute him on the spot.

I believe you will surely forgive me.

You...

I'be been impudent.

I beg Your Excellency's forgiveness.

I will return right away and investigate strictly.

If there truly is someone spreading rumors

and confusing the public,

l will surely

dismember his bones alive!

Alright.

I know.

You may leave.

I shall take my leave.

Your Excellency,

Zhang's Tea Shop

has already yielded countless skeletons.

Without severe punishment, it'll be hard to appease public anger.

I think...

This is not why

I have called for you.

This Chunhua Ge Tie...

I've looked through it many times.

I really

can't put it down.

But now,

I should return it to its owner.

[Volume VIII of the Chunhua Ge Tie]

Take it back.

This is merely a copy

I made on a whim, practicing my skills.

I fear it would make people laugh.

It's my pleasure

that Your Excellency deigns to keep it for enjoyment.

Really? I didn't tell

this is a copy.

I couldn't tell at all.

The younger generation is formidable,

truly formidable.

However, as an official,

you should also remember

an old saying in officialdom:

"For those who do not wish for great darkness,

they must not be too stubbornly upright."

Everyone will be someone's successor,

and everyone also was someone's predecessor.

When doing things, always leave a bit of leeway,

and be more considerate of the dignity

of superiors and colleagues.

As the saying goes,

"Harmony up and down, all in unity,"

then everyone can do their work well.

Thank you for your instruction, Your Excellency.

I will surely remember it in my heart.

[Governor's Office]

My Lord,

where are we going next?

Back to the residence.

What an old fox.

Relying on Minister Xu in the capital

as his examiner,

and the Emperor favoring his writings,

how arrogantly and presumptuously

he has acted!

He completely disregards me at all.

A monkey sent from the capital

still can't jump out of the palm of

your hand.

Haven't you recently

been troubled by the old case of Wei family,

urgently seeking capable officials

to handle it?

Well now,

he's the perfect candidate delivered to you.

Raise the sedan!

[Madam Rong]

[Cousin of the Rong family, Shen Xiangling]

With sallow-dark face and short eyebrows,

how dare you present yourself here to apply!

Truly laughable!

Miss Rong is back.

Greetings, Miss Rong.

All right, we've seen them now.

All of you may leave.

Bao, come here.

Sisters having fun together but didn't call me?

Yunxi was afraid you wouldn't make it in time,

so she said she'd screen them for you first.

[The second daughter of the Rong family, Rong Yunxi]

What a rich, mellow tea fragrance.

[The fifth daughter of the Rong family, Rong Yunshu]

Thank you, Yunxi.

What a pity.

The quality of those just now

was all beyond redemption.

Truly a waste of effort.

Each family has sent over candidates.

They'll arrive in Linji in a few days.

There's no rush to make a choice.

How was your trip?

Thank you for your concern, Grandmother.

We encountered a landslide on our way back,

and lost two guards.

Really?

Miss Rong said

the best Zisun Tea

is on Mount Guzhu.

She also mentioned that deep in the forest,

there are hundred-year-old wild mother tea trees.

Grandmother placed great hopes on your trip.

She was just telling us earlier

how she hoped for your early return,

wishing for guests at the New Year tea party

to taste

the wild Zisun Tea.

What should we do now?

Yunshu.

The most important thing

is Miss Rong safe return.

The family of the deceased and injured

should also be properly comforted.

With the New Year approaching,

we must avoid any incidents.

No wonder everyone praises for your virtue.

Truly accustomed to being the good person,

being so considerate.

We could never compare.

But Mount Guzhu

has always been peaceful.

Who knows if someone

secretly tracked her movements,

intentionally targeting the Rong family?

In my opinion,

comforting the families of the deceased is important,

but uncovering the source of this trouble

is the most crucial.

Exactly!

That mountain path didn't collapse

earlier or later,

but just as Shanbao's carriage passed,

with a rumble, it collapsed.

You must be careful.

You'd better go to the temple

to change your fortune.

[The fourth daughter of the Rong family, Rong Yunyin]

Greetings, Grandmother.

Nice to meet you.

No wonder that maid fanning

looked familiar earlier.

So it was you deliberately dressed like that

to play a trick.

Only you could think of that.

Making them drink scalding tea earlier

was also your idea, wasn't it?

Grandmother.

I just want to

share Shanbao's burden,

afraid someone might slip through unnoticed.

You, always playing tricks on people.

What can I do with you?

Grandmother.

Scalding tea is very troublesome.

Yunxi

insisted on drying it over charcoal fire herself

and got a huge scar on her right hand.

Although I couldn't help much,

serving tea personally

is my way of showing filial piety.

Your hand is scalded?

It's nothing serious.

Yunyin, young but shrewd,

loves to boast.

Don't talk nonsense in front of Grandmother.

Grandmother,

do you think my tea brewing skills

are up to par?

During the new tea picking season this year,

let me go to the tea plantation too,

alright?

Please?

Alright.

Lapsang Souchong is hard to come by.

To bring out its fragrance,

one must not only practice diligently

but also have heaven's blessing.

Using tea leaves picked on a rainy day,

even the most fragrant tea will retain astringency.

What a pity.

Xiuqiong, come in.

On this trip to Mount Guzhu,

I was fortunate to find 20 wild tea trees

in a remote valley.

I also obtained a packet of

the finest wild Zisun Tea

from the mountain villagers,

kept close to my body inside my garment.

I am fortunate not to have failed my mission.

Excellent tea.

Excellent tea.

Yunyin,

take the remaining tea leaves

to my room later.

Let's see how to handle them.

How to handle them?

We can only discard them.

We're not like some one,

born with a 'tea bone,'

able to identify hundreds of teas,

even resurrect

withered tea trees.

They can also distinguish

good tea leaves' grades.

Better save the effort.

What are you talking about?

Shanbao is your sibling,

who barely escaped death to return.

Instead of saying a few comforting words,

you're making insinuations

with pointed remarks.

Did she owe you in a past life?

Xiangling, are you born with six fingers?

Why are you intervening in others' affairs?

Our Rong family doesn't serve

pickled vegetables daily.

Why meddle upon opening your mouth?

Yunxi.

I have some Mengding Ganlu Tea

Grandmother rewarded me with.

Come to my place for tea.

Let's go.

Miss Rong, Miss Shen...

I...

Yunshu, go rest early.

Yes.

Born from the same mother as you,

yet siding with

the second and third branches,

constantly undermining you to please outsiders.

Truly possessed.

Don't I still have you who cares for me?

Let's go.

I'll tell you about my journey.

No time for that now.

Guess why

those door-god-like guards

stayed all night?

Madam.

The people around the Young Master

have been strictly investigated.

The landslide...

He...

doesn't have that capability.

The broken wheel tracks were man-made,

and the landslide was an accident.

But as for the gang of bandits,

should we continue investigating?

Who did it doesn't matter.

What matters is to

see how she handles it.

In moments of crisis and danger,

knowing how to adapt to circumstances

and draw out the enemy.

That shows my years of teaching weren't in vain.

But as the old saying goes,

"Kindness does not command soldiers."

To become the head of the Rong family,

she still has much to learn.

Miss, be careful.

You're upset,

why take it out on Yunshu with such strange anger?

Don't blame Yunyin.

It was my own carelessness,

not realizing the tea leaves were poor.

Rain-picked ones are easy to identify anyway.

How can it be your fault?

It's still because my eyes are no good,

I can only rely on smell and touch to tell,

ultimately delaying Yunxi's matters.

Doesn't Rong Shanbao

also just need a sniff to tell good from bad?

You little blind one,

getting delicate now!

After all,

it's all because that gang of robbers was too greedy.

We had them try to steal the tea seeds

to make Rong Shanbao lose face.

Who knew after taking so much gold,

they still weren't satisfied,

daring to kill and plunder,

causing such a huge disaster!

Shut up!

Didn't we just manage

to cover it up?

Don't mention this matter again.

Each family

has sent marriage horoscopes.

Yunxi, take a look quickly,

choose a good one early.

Yunyin, don't forget

the best one is surely reserved

by Grandmother for Shanbao.

Since ancient times, men die for wealth,

and birds die for food.

The Rong family

wants the most excellent heir;

others, likewise,

come for the benefits.

In the end,

what they compete for is not the beauties,

but the tea mountains and silver seas,

and even the Tea King, Rong Family.

[Chunning County Government]

Oh no!

That Xu Song

actually wants to make you die!

It's just a wife-murder case,

how can it endanger my live?

You don't know the severity of this case.

I just checked the old files.

Wei Kejian and his wife, Madam Yang,

were always at odds.

On the 15th day of the first lunar month,

the two had an argument.

What to do?

Madam Yang angrily left home.

Wei Kejian searched in vain

and accused the Yang family of hiding his wife.

The Yang family counter-accused Wei Kejian

of beating his wife to death.

It's them!

They hid my wife!

With no corpse of Madam Yang found,

Wei Kejian was acquitted and released.

But the Wei and Yang families

became enemies.

Clansmen had several armed clashes,

with many casualties.

In March the following year,

when a beggar was digging for sweet potatoes,

he unearthed an unidentified body.

Verified by the coroner using the 'drip bone' method

and identified by the Yang family through personal effects,

it was indeed the skeleton

of Madam Yang, missing for a year.

I'm wronged!

Wei Kejian was imprisoned.

It should have ended there.

Why did it later become a doubtful case?

The problem lay with the presiding judge

at the time, Fan Wende.

Due to sudden heavy rain,

busy repairing collapsed houses,

he delayed the autopsy by three days.

The first examination said female;

another official sent for re-examination,

actually said it was a man.

The bones couldn't even determine gender?

There weren't bones.

Days of heavy rain washed away everything,

leaving only a few

incomplete bone fragments.

Besides jewelry and old belongings,

there was no other evidence.

The Wei family was bankrupted by the lawsuit.

Wei Kejian even went mad in prison.

The Wei clansmen kept appealing,

cries of injustice lasting for years.

His Majesty issued an edict for a retrial.

However, officials handling the retrial

at best lost their posts,

at worst paid with their lives and fortunes.

Several are still imprisoned to this day.

[Injustice]

Everyone in officialdom avoids it.

Prefect Xu

is clearly using public office for private revenge!

Tomorrow morning,

summon everyone involved to court.

I will interrogate them personally.

No way.

The Wei family insists

that on the day of the incident,

Madam Yang attended a banquet at the Rong family,

to celebrate the Lady Rong's birthday.

She enjoyed lanterns and wine until night before returning.

They also said she pretended to attend the banquet but really fled.

Later, she vanished without a trace.

She must have gone to the Rong family.

Then summon the Rong family for questioning!

It's the number one tea family in Jiangnan,

the Tea King, Rong family.

How can the government easily summon them?

We'll act on both fronts.

Send someone to Suzhou overnight

to invite Coroner Chen.

He served in the Ministry of Justice for 60 years.

Even if it's just a few bone fragments,

he can examine them.

Also take my name card,

invite Lady Rong as well.

If she wouldn't like to come,

then bring her by force.

[Zisun Tea]

Grandmother placed great hopes on your trip.

She hoped for your early return,

wishing for guests at the New Year tea party

to taste

the wild Zisun Tea.

Zisun Tea,

originates from Mount Guzhu in Changxing, Zhejiang.

Discovered in the Tang Dynasty by the Tea Sage Lu Yu

and recommended as tribute tea,

it was presented as tribute for nearly 1,000 years.

Because its color is purplish and its shape resembles bamboo shoots,

it is named Zisun Tea.

Lu Yu wrote in The Classic of Tea:

"Purple is superior, green is secondary;

shoot is superior, bud is secondary."

He classified it as top-grade tea,

giving it detailed study and records.

Literary figures like Du Mu, Bai Juyi,

and Su Shi

often praised it in poems and writings,

leaving a legacy for eternity.

Brewing Zisun Tea with Jinsha spring water

from Mount Guzhu

results in an emerald green color, orchid fragrance,

sweet taste, refreshing the mouth, with a rich flavor.

A cup of Zisun Tea

still carries the fragrance of a thousand years.

Its production technique is a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage,

and an important component of

China's traditional tea-making techniques

and related customs.