Original subtitles

♫ Raising the wine cup, I toast to the boundless sky ♫

♫ In talks and laughters are vast mountains and rivers. ♫

♫ Love and hate, debt and feuds, have all dissolved. ♫

♫ Where's my soul's hometown and my kindred spirits? ♫

♫ Seasons rolling by, we dream for harvest. ♫

♫ Warriors and warhorses howl across the sky. ♫

♫ If only I could turn into the wind, ♫

♫ to blow away all the pain in mortal coil. ♫

♫ I toast to the blue sky, to courage in solitude, ♫

♫ to migrating gooses, to boats heading home. ♫

♫ With even three thousand days and nights, ♫

♫ Will it be enough to drain this cup I toast to peace? ♫

[Swords into Plowshares]

[Episode 38]

Kuangyin.

In the northern prefectures,

what are the troop numbers and military readiness of the various armies?

The Zhenning Army is stationed in Chanzhou.

The Tianxiong Army in Damingfu.

The Tianping Army in Yunzhou.

And our Henghai Army in Cangzhou.

Each army stationed in its prefecture has at least five thousand elite troops

and over ten thousand auxiliary soldiers.

The troops in other prefectures range from two thousand to three or four thousand.

The northern defenses cover over a dozen prefectures

with a total force of over sixty thousand.

Your Majesty, during the court discussion earlier,

the proposals from the ministers and the Commander were all fair and reasonable.

Now that summer has just begun, the summer grain is not yet harvested,

and Southern Tang and Western Shu remain unpacified.

It is indeed not an opportune time for a northern campaign.

Select personnel from the Palace Command.

I will make an inspection tour.

Your Majesty's tour requires accompanying ministers,

guarding Imperial Guards, traveling officials, and ceremonial guards.

[Zhao Pu, Secretary of the Guide Military] Preparations would take at least

[Zhao Pu, Secretary of the Guide Military] ten days to a month,

and we must notify prefectures and counties along the route to arrange security.

To depart tomorrow is indeed rather hasty.

We depart tomorrow.

The Imperial Guards have not even been selected.

The Emperor's inspection tour would require at least provisions for over a thousand people.

All expenses for food and drink, vegetables, cloth, seasoning,

must be prepared.

To set out tomorrow,

how can we possibly be ready?

All battalions of the Palace Command will have deputy commanders remain in charge.

We ten comrades, from our respective battalions,

will each select a squad of elite troops to assemble a hundred armored soldiers

to escort Your Majesty on the tour.

A hundred escorts for the imperial procession? Well... Kuangyin.

Is that clear?

Return to your camps and prepare.

But...

Yes, yes, yes.

Yes.

All are peaceful.

The world is at peace.

Is the Marshal here?

Please come in, Sir.

Sit.

Those two military orders just now

also come from the Analects?

They originate from the Spring and Autumn Annals of Mr. Lü.

You boast that with half of the Analects one can govern the world.

Why then, when issuing military orders, do you not use the Analects instead?

In the chaotic era of the Spring and Autumn period, even the Sage

could not find the words for peace and tranquility.

Peace and tranquility...

Marshal,

why such deep worry?

In my youth, I was full of ambition and vigor.

My heart was filled with thoughts of achieving merit and establishing a career.

But now,

my rank and position grow higher daily,

yet my desire for fame and achievement grows ever fainter.

I just wonder, before I finally close my eyes,

whether I will be able to see the appearance of a peaceful age.

Marshal,

the current Emperor is no less than a sage ruler like Emperor Taizong of Tang.

Given enough time,

he will surely quell the chaotic world and bring about peace.

The world has been in chaos for so long.

To encounter a good Emperor,

is not easy.

The world was not thrown into chaos by one person,

nor can it be governed by one person alone.

Throughout history, order and chaos could never be the affair of a single individual.

Pu, recite it for me once more.

That poem by Bai Juyi.

The Dance of Seven Virtues, the Song of Seven Virtues,

passed down from the Wude era to the Yuanhe era.

Bai Juyi, a minor official of the Yuanhe period,

watching the dance and listening to the song, understood its intent.

When the music ended, he bowed and presented his thoughts.

Taizong raised a righteous army at eighteen.

With white banners and yellow axes, he pacified the two capitals.

Capturing Wang Shichong, killing Dou Jiande, he cleansed the land.

By twenty-four, his achievements were complete.

At twenty-nine, he ascended the throne.

By thirty-five, he brought peace to the realm.

How swiftly was success achieved and order established?

The speed lay in opening his heart and placing trust in others.

The remains of fallen soldiers were collected with silk.

Starving people who sold their children were redeemed with shared gold.

Thus we know it was not just skill in war or seizing the moment,

but moving people with sincerity,

that wins their hearts.

We respectfully bid farewell to Your Majesty.

I, Imperial Academy Medical Officer Tao Chong, pay respects to Minister Fan.

You are on duty today?

Yes.

Urine is reddish and scanty.

The skin has a yellow tinge.

There is fever and a bitter taste in the mouth.

Signs point to possible ascites.

What is your diagnosis?

This indicates damp-heat stagnation,

a manifestation of illness in the liver and spleen.

How severe is it?

What is the treatment?

We should clear heat and promote diuresis.

Speak plainly. Do not embellish or conceal anything.

Since ascites is already present, there must be liver depression and qi stagnation.

If not addressed in time,

I fear there may be

danger of heat forcing blood to extravasate.

Our conversation tonight must not be spoken to a third person.

I understand.

Kuangyi?

Master Pu.

One hour ago,

Minister Fan summoned Imperial Doctor Tao Chong to the administrative hall.

His Majesty tonight should be staying in Chanzhou.

Is...

Minister Fan,

unwell?

For an Imperial Doctor to diagnose the Chancellor

must be granted by the Emperor.

Fan Zhi strictly adheres to protocol

and would not commit such an overstep.

So not Minister Fan.

It is His Majesty.

His Majesty...

Currently in Chanzhou, how many troops are available?

Five thousand.

How many can be mobilized to follow tomorrow?

In haste...

two thousand can be gathered.

Fine, two thousand.

Inspect the troops. They will follow me as guards tomorrow.

When exactly did you know His Majesty's illness?

Such a critical matter. Why have you kept it a secret?

He is not ill.

At least,

for the generals of the Imperial Guard, he must be in good health.

When the Emperor has left the capital,

The Palace Command and the Imperial Guard should be ready at all times to march north to welcome.

We can order Zhang Yongde to lead troops stationed at Chenqiao,

and Li Chongjin to lead troops stationed at Chigang.

These are not the most urgent matters.

His Majesty is touring the north.

How are the provisions and supplies being prepared?

The accompanying retinue is only a little over a hundred people.

We can issue orders along the way for each locality to prepare their own,

which should be sufficient.

Sit down and listen to me.

Not to mention a hundred people,

even if it were fifty times that, or a hundred times that,

the preparations would still not be enough.

At the very least,

we must prepare provisions and supplies for an army of fifty thousand.

Only then will it be sufficient.

Where would these fifty thousand troops come from?

From the moment the Emperor left the capital, the situation has already been set in motion.

An army of fifty thousand is still my most conservative estimate.

We would rather overprepare than fall short of what the vanguard needs.

Zhao Pu.

Madam.

[Lady Du, Zhao Kuangyin's mother] My son employs you as an advisor

[Lady Du, Zhao Kuangyin's mother] to serve the court and His Majesty.

[Lady Du, Zhao Kuangyin's mother] He did not bring you here

[Lady Du, Zhao Kuangyin's mother] to bring ruin upon our family.

Mother, please calm down.

Master Pu is also...

Quiet!

Not for you to speak.

Kneel.

Madam, I beg your forgiveness.

I have been presumptuous in devising this plan,

not only for the Zhao family, but also for the Guo family.

How so?

His Majesty's health is failing.

Preposterous!

Madam, please discern the truth.

Where did this come from?

Clerk Ye from the Imperial Medical Office

was recommended by the late Marshal.

How dare you!

The current Emperor's favor and authority are his alone.

He absolutely cannot tolerate any turpitude.

If this were exposed now,

not only would this Zhao family be at risk,

I fear that even within the nine clans, none would be spared.

Madam, please listen.

I have already consulted with doctors.

According to the symptoms described on this paper,

the patient has at most,

only six months left to live.

I, Pan Mei respectfully welcome the imperial carriage.

How many troops are currently stationed in Yuancheng?

Three thousand armored soldiers.

Tomorrow, how many can accompany the imperial carriage as guards?

Three thousand.

Good.

You have one day to organize these three thousand troops.

Tomorrow, they will follow me as guards.

Yes.

Marshal!

You cannot enter!

I have not yet reported it!

Tw- two Ministers, the Marshal, he...

Everyone, leave.

Marshal Zhang.

Ministers.

It has only been ten days since His Majesty left the capital,

and he has already passed through Hua, Chan, Xiang, and Bo prefectures.

Mobilizing troops along the way,

what is the current situation?

Currently, accompanying guards' number has exceeded twenty-eight thousand.

The remaining forces are still continuously assembling.

The troops in the north have almost been completely drawn away by His Majesty.

I, recently, have sent several memorials, urgently delivered to him,

but have yet to receive a response.

The troops in the north are meant to defend against the Khitan.

If His Majesty continues like this,

the northern defenses will develop a huge gap.

Two Ministers,

you must find a way to persuade His Majesty not to.

Don't you understand yet?

The purpose of His Majesty's northern tour,

is not at all about northern defense.

A northern campaign...

has already become a reality.

His Majesty's health is unwell.

The true reason of him being so determined to tour now, is for a northern campaign.

The inspection tour is a pretense.

A northern campaign.

Besides this, what other method is there to stir up the stagnant pool of the capital?

Besides this, what other method is there to mobilize the empire's troops?

Besides this, what other method is there to make the commanders and marshals

of the Palace Command and the Imperial Guard Command

turn their minds from within the capital towards the outer garrisons?

Madam, just consider it.

With His Majesty's sagacity, how could he not know that now

is not the opportune time for a northern campaign?

It's just that his health can no longer hold on.

Lord Zhang has controlled the Palace Command's military authority for six years.

Both inside and outside, he is the foremost among military officials.

His every word and action can shake the altars of state and the ancestral temple.

Once Lord Zhang causes trouble after His Majesty's passing,

emulating Shi Jingtang, who used his status as Emperor Taizu's son-in-law, to usurp the throne,

could a six-year-old child emperor,

a fledgling heir,

hold on to it?

The Marshal and his son have received the state's favor for two generations, from Emperor Taizu and the current Emperor.

Once Lord Zhang seizes the Guo family's realm, may I ask you, Madam,

should the Marshal remain loyal to the Guo family,

or fulfill his filial duty to the Zhao family?

These words, Chief Secretary Zhao,

have you spoken them to Kuangyin?

What kind of person is the Marshal?

Regarding such internal matters, why would I need to explain them to the Marshal?

The Marshal transferred all the comrades generals in the Palace Command out of their posts.

A dignified commander was made a squad leader.

He escorted His Majesty outside with only a hundred cavalry.

If he hadn't discerned the stakes involved here,

why would he resort to such a strategy of feigning incompetence and clarifying his own stance?

Secretary Zhao,

what do you intend to do?

If my inference is right,

Lord Zhang, Marshal Li and other meritorious relatives and senior ministers,

should have realized by now.

Within ten days, they will mobilize the capital's imperial guards

and rush to the Emperor's side for service.

If that is the case,

there is one matter that must be arranged early.

What matter?

The old Marshal has guarded the capital for many years.

He has benefited many officers above and below, and comrades in the army,

forming many connections.

I request you, Madam, to order the Lady to prepare gifts

and have Kuangyi come forward to visit and console them one by one.

Nothing needs to be said.

Just leave behind a share of goodwill and favour.

That is enough.

Inspector,

do make sure to protect His Majesty's safety.

Two Ministers,

please rest assured.

In such haste, we have barely gathered these three to four thousand men.

What is His Majesty thinking?

How can a war to destroy a state be fought like this?

Even you and I feel this battle is being fought too hastily.

I imagine

the entire Liao

will be even more caught off guard.

Military Governor of the Tianping Army, Acting Grand Marshal, Concurrent Chancellor, Han Tong.

Yes!

Military Governor of the Wuning Army, Concurrent Chancellor, Wang Yan.

Yes!

Commander of the Imperial Guard Cavalry, Gao Huaide.

Yes

Reporting to Your Majesty, it's three quarter past Mao hour. All generals are present.

Today, all generals,

should first rest well.

Tomorrow morning,

follow me north to attack Liao and recapture the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun.

Yes!

In the year 959 AD,

Guo Rong, Emperor Shizong of Later Zhou, left Bianliang under the name of inspecting.

On April the sixteenth, he arrived in Cangzhou.

That same day, he issued an edict to campaign north against Liao.

The Zhou army advanced in several columns, their momentum unstoppable.

Within forty-two days, they successively captured

Yijin Pass, Waqiao Pass, and Yukou Pass, three crucial passes,

as well as Yingzhou, Mozhou, and other prefectures.

By the first day of the fifth month, the lands south of the passes were fully pacified.

On May the second,

Guo Rong advanced north from Waqiao Pass,

reaching Gu'an and gazing north toward You and Yan.

He intended to press on in a single push to capture Youzhou.

Gu,

Marshal Zhang led troops to capture Yingzhou.

Late Lord Feng can now return to his hometown.

What has happened?

[The Inspector shall be the Emperor.]

Where did it come from?

Does it matter?

The Emperor's northern campaign this time had no forewarning.

At first, under the guise of an inspection tour, he traveled with a minimal retinue.

Only the Commander of the Palace Command, Zhao Kuangyin,

led a hundred cavalry as escort.

Along the way, he summoned troops from various prefectures and garrisons.

By the time he reached Yexia, he already had twenty to thirty thousand soldiers.

Within a month or so, the army swept down upon Mozhou and Yingzhou.

The main force of the capital's imperial guards mobilized later,

but also joined the imperial carriage at Yingzhou.

A northern campaign is a national war. It should not be treated with such casual recklessness.

Did the Central Plains increase taxes last year?

They have not increased taxes for four years.

It is not a major campaign.

Indeed, it is not a major campaign.

When the Emperor attacked Southern Tang and Western Shu,

he used over two hundred thousand troops each time.

The Liao is a great power.

Its palace tents stretch far, its armor and weapons are sharp, with a million archers.

It cannot be defeated by a small force of thirty to fifty thousand.

The Emperor's move this time is likely more of a probe, to test the waters.

More than that.

Great King.

The Chancellor's and the Marshal's Office have deliberated.

Regarding this northern expedition, we Wuyue should maintain calm.

As long as Southern Tang's troops show no unusual movements,

we can be as usual.

Where has the Emperor's carriage reached?

Waqiao Pass.

His troops are pressing toward Gu'an, Zhuozhou.

Now these thirty thousand men come from three armies and seven prefectures.

Each region or army contributes two to three thousand, or three to five thousand.

These armies have never had a chance to train together.

Once they set foot on the battlefield,

I fear chaos from conflicting orders will ensue.

We

would collapse without a fight.

This Xijin Prefecture is the location of administration for the Liao's Nanjing Circuit.

The Liao have managed this place for a long time.

Their troops and equipment are no match for ordinary armies.

Moreover, our supplies and provisions are still en route.

If we charge ahead recklessly, we risk our supply lines being cut.

Since we marched out on the Xinyou day,

we've taken three prefectures and two passes in over ten days.

Now is the time to press home our advantage.

How can we hold ourselves back, and let our momentum fade and exhaust itself?

Marshal Han is absolutely right.

Our victory lies in catching them off guard, attacking where they least expect.

If we must have everything perfectly ready before we act,

then by the time we've finished our meticulous planning,

so will the Liao.

Once the Liao are fully prepared,

this battle,

will be much harder to win.

You all make valid points.

Kuangyin.

Yes.

Accompany me on a walk outside.

You all continue the discussion.

Yes, add more firewood.

Old sir.

Herding sheep?

Local?

I'm from Baishizi Village.

Very close to the pass.

Every day I herd the sheep,

walking from the village to the pass.

By the time we get there, they're all well-fed.

Good rainfall this year.

How's the harvest?

Wasn't good in previous years.

The Khitans don't know how to farm.

They forced us to pull up the perfectly good seedlings and plant grass instead.

But, it's been much better these past few years.

Up north, they changed the high official.

Life

has slowly improved.

Otherwise,

how would I have the means to feed so many sheep?

Here, sir.

Sit.

Tasty.

Sir, do you know

that now the Han Emperor's army has come?

What's that to me?

Every day, I just need to feed my sheep well.

The Han Emperor has come to reclaim the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun,

to restore our Han rivers and mountains.

Han Emperors

change too often.

Who knows

which emperor has come this time?

The emperor here is a barbarian, but at least they're all Yelüs.

After all, it's the same family.

Han Emperors...

who knows

what their surname is now?

Does this place have a name?

Illed-Long Terrace.

You!

Don't you want the meat?

It's yours.

Your Majesty.

A crude villager understands nothing of righteousness or principle.

Please do not take his foolish words to heart, Your Majesty.

The villagers have their own wisdom.

If we can destroy the Liao this time and unify the northern frontier,

then his words naturally hold no weight.

But if we cannot take this Youdu Prefecture,

this place will become the border between two states.

Warfare will rage back and forth.

In that case,

for that old man,

it would be better to let the Yelü family

remain as emperor for the time being.

After all, life is still manageable.

To put it plainly,

what common people want

is nothing more than peaceful times.

If my health were robust,

perhaps this time I would press on with a final surge and take the risk,

to restore to the people of the Sixteen Prefectures a rightful and lasting peace.

But as things stand now...

Your Majesty.

I will not bring another wave of war

upon the people of the north.

Now that the three passes are secured and the people become more hopeful,

we bestow fine titles to pacify the border regions,

to respond to Heaven and people's will and set an example for the future.

Change Waqiao Pass to Xiongzhou,

and Yijin Pass to Bazhou. Station troops to guard them.

Appoint Acting Grand Tutor and Military Governor of Zhen'an Army, Han Lingkun,

as Commander of Bazhou and Military Governor of Yicheng Army;

Observation Regent, Chen Sirang,

as Commander of Xiongzhou.

to lead troops to garrison them.

The state values tranquility. Heaven's way abhors excess.

When two armies clash,

arrows and stones are merciless.

What crime have the common people in the city committed?

I cannot bear to see such devastation.

Considering our long absence from the capital, we should return swiftly to calm the people.

Effective immediately, the army shall return to the capital in triumph.

Let this be proclaimed for all to know.

Let the responsible authorities implement it.

Long live Your Majesty!

A cup of warm wine in peaceful times...

What does it truly taste like?

It's like that lamp's oil is spent. Medicine can no longer reverse the course.

[The Inspector shall be the Emperor.]

Zhang Yongde.

Your Majesty.

Enter.

Yes.

Your Majesty.

Chancellor Fan is on night duty at the Secretariat-Chancellery.

In the name of the two bureaus, he has drafted an official order,

to transfer several commanders from the Palace Command and the Imperial Guard out of the imperial city.

Among them,

Marshal Zhang is to patrol north to Chenqiao, and Marshal Li is to reorganize the Jinmingchi camp.

If I had ten more years...

Ten years from now,

such arrangements

might still be of use.

But now, to strive for this with my failing strength...

it is merely better than doing nothing.

Summon

Zhang Yongde for an audience.

Yes.

I your subject, Zhang Yongde, pay respects to Your Majesty.

Rise and speak.

Thank you, Your Majesty.

What is your assessment of the northern campaign?

Your Majesty's campaign swept forward unopposed.

It shows the Khitans are troubled by internal strife and their power wanes.

If you recover,

and we gather ample troops and supplies, proceeding steadily,

within a year or two, we'll reclaim the Sixteen Prefectures.

The border threat can be quelled.

And the realm

will be in peace.

Your Majesty.

The floor is cold.

Your Majesty must mind your health.

Here.

If next year

we campaign against Yan and Yun,

how would you wage the war?

Even if we doubled our troops,

from this time, with double the funds and provisions,

reclaiming the sixteen prefectures would still be uncertain.

The key to the northern expedition is Youzhou, the Youdu Prefecture.

With Youzhou as the boundary,

fighting up to Youzhou is one matter.

But laying siege to Youdu Prefecture

is another matter entirely.

The former is a conventional campaign.

The latter

is a total war between states.

They are not at all the same.

In that case,

what strategy would you propose?

The last time Your Majesty considered the northern expedition,

Marshal Zhang offered counsel.

I believe it was sound.

First conquer Western Shu, then Southern Tang.

With Wuyue submitting,

muster a great army to destroy Northern Han,

and pacify Hedong.

Then rest and recuperate for two or three years.

Only after gatheirng three hundred thousand troops,

and after the court

has stored enough funds and grain for ten years of expenses,

can we even begin to speak of a northern expedition.

Slowly.

Easy now.

Take this.

Yes.

Kuangyin.

Here.

Your Rong...

is gone.

Marshal.

Marshal! Marshal!

Go.

The object in the box

was something Zhao Kuangyin himself

had once torn from the flagpole of the Hedong Military Governor's Office in Taiyuan, all those years ago.

After winding its way for twelve years,

it had now returned to his hands in this unexpected manner.

In his heart,

it was an utterly ominous object.

From Liu Zhiyuan to Guo Wei,

Heaven's will circles...

now it had come to his turn?

He was filled with dread and restless fear.

How is His Majesty today?

Your Majesty,

the ministers have arrived.

We pay our respects to Your Majesty.

Do you have any commands?

Remove Zhang Yongde

from his post as Inspector of the Palace Command.

Send him to an outer garrison.

Appoint

Zhao Kuangyin

as Inspector of the Palace Command.

Yes.

Third watch of the Zi hour. All is peaceful.

The third watch.

I have wronged many people.

First Luojia,

and now I have wronged you.

Your Majesty should rest early.

Take care of your health.

After I am gone,

if you meet someone suitable, someone you care for,

if you wish to marry,

then you should marry.

Do not remain faithful to my memory.

If you can

raise our children to adulthood,

that will already be worthy of our seven years as husband and wife.

Even if they no longer bear the Guo name,

I, in the afterlife,

will still remember your kindness.

What are you saying, Your Majesty?

Behind you,

aside from Minister Fan

and Commander Zhao,

who else can we, mother and son,

rely on in the days to come?

This is not for you to know,

nor is it for me to know.

Your Majesty...

has ascended to be with his ancestors!

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles stretch towering mountains. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles run surging rivers. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles cry warhorses. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles there are emotions unspoken. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, flowers are blooming along the road. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, gooses are returning to the north. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, we stand through storms. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, we hope for a safe return. ♫

♫ Tens of thousands of miles is not enough, ♫

♫ for a lifetime's sorrows and joys. ♫

♫ Tens of thousands of miles is not enough, ♫

♫ for the endless seas and rivers. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ love will overcome all barriers. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ we are together in life and death. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ the moon shines in the boundless world. ♫

♫ My heart has its hometown to return. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ who is the one crossing the waves with me, ♫

♫ with our hearts unrepentant, through countless lifetimes. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ oceans and lands witness that♫

♫ the world will be safe and sound. ♫

♫ Across tens of thousands of miles, ♫

♫ my heart is unchanging. ♫