Original subtitles

Move it!

Let go of me!

Help! Help!

Help!

Someone, please help!

Leave her alone or you won't be spared.

You dare to fight me?.

I see you don't want to hurt her. Otherwise, I'd have killed you.

Don't be rash.

You're right.

I'm chief of the Mati village. This is my son.

- Why did you kidnap her?. - She's the magistrate's daughter.

But kidnapping her?. Don't you fear lmperial law?.

- We'd give up our lives. - We've suffered drought for years.

The lmperial Court exempted us from taxes,

but the magistrate still takes our crops.

What can we do?.

So we kidnapped his daughter, to loosen his grip on us.

If he doesn't, she will die with us.

I pray for your understanding.

This is outrageous! It's complete insanity!

Liang Tong, did you find out who kidnapped the Lady?.

Yes, it is the chief of Mati village, Gao Baoshi,

his son, Gao Jixian, and a man named Li Juren.

- They've got her at the mill. - Take a team and bring her back!

Yes, sir!

Master Xin, take a second team along.

Yes, sir!

Have no mercy on those ruffians.

But make sure the Lady is safe.

Master Yan, victory is certain if you go with them.

Just a few bumpkins. Master Qian and his gang will suffice.

Get going!

Master Yan.

Ling Long.

You're not going?.

I'm here to protect,

not to kill.

Madam is very kind, even to servants like us.

But I'm also from the Mati village.

And Jixian's been my friend since childhood.

I also heard they're at the mill.

Do you think they are safe?.

It's fate.

Do you think we can deal with that hypocrite now?.

That bastard thinks this place is so remote,

even the Emperor can do nothing.

He has no respect for the law, only for corruption!

He kills people like ants!

So why do you challenge him?.

We're forced to! When villagers can't give provisions,

they are taken away and killed.

This is all the rice we have. What more can I give him?.

We die anyway, so we have to fight.

Master Gao, let's finish this rice.

My brother can bring us more later.

Jixian!

I heard they lost the border war, and General Lu died in battle.

Minister Yuan took the lmperial sword to the border

and he'll pass through this way, so we've petitioned for an audience.

To Minister Yuan

...misconduct of the county magistrate...

Minister Yuan is a good official. I'm sure he'll treat us justly.

But we might not get an audience.

Maybe I can help.

Wait a minute. I don't even know your name or where you are from.

I'm Lu Fang. I broke through enemy ranks and came here.

General Lu is your...?.

My... Iate grandfather.

Master Lu, I didn't know.

Please excuse our rudeness.

Jixian.

Bow to Master Lu.

- Master Lu! - That's all right.

With the crisis our country is in, let's not worry about formalities.

I'm trying to see Minister Yuan in Peking.

I leave tomorrow.

If I meet him on the way, I'll tell him of your situation.

Many thanks!

Master Lu must be very tired. You should have a rest.

I'm sorry this place is such a mess.

It's very nice. On the battlefront, we didn't have things this good.

Master Xin, you could handle this alone,

but our Lady is still in their hands.

You distract them from the front,

and we will ambush them from the rear.

Master Gao, government troops!

Release the Lady and none of you will be executed.

What about our crops?.

Release her first.

No! The magistrate must come himself and tell us he will exempt us.

If you remain stubborn, we'll storm the place.

We have orders to show you no mercy.

One step closer and I'll kill her.

Madam!

Fool! How dare kidnap our Lady! I'll kill you!

Who are you?. Mind your own business!

It's everybody's business. And who are you?.

The bodyguard of the county magistrate.

He allows you to behave like this?. What corruption!

I can see you want to die!

Liang Tong!

Anyone else?.

Get going!

Thanks for your help. Without you, we'd all be dead.

Many thanks, Master Lu.

This young man is pretty good.

Before things got so bad,

everyone in the village learned some martial arts.

But we cannot win against these bandits.

When you leave tomorrow, I don't think we can...

I've killed a few of them and made things more complicated.

- I'll wait here for Minister Yuan. - Thank you so much.

Later on, I'll teach you a few moves.

Thank you! Thank you!

- Bow properly to thank Master Lu. - Thank you, Master!

- You're useless! - Yes, sir!

- Where's Master Yan?. - He went out.

Where to?.

To Choi's restaurant to relax, I suppose.

- Have him come back! - Yes, sir.

Liang Tong, ask Master Yan to come back.

All of you take a rest, too.

That man we encountered is very skilful.

Maybe far better than Master Yan.

I have a friend named Hanrui.

His nickname is "Eight-handed Master." Very skilful!

He has excellent men with him.

If we were to pay them enough money, then...

Good. Where are they?.

At Eagle Castle, eight miles out of town.

Take 300 coins from the treasury and go there.

If they handle this matter well, I'll pay them a lot more.

My Lord, don't worry too much.

They won't dare to harm our Lady.

No, they wouldn't dare.

But Minister Yuan is at the border. He'll be here in two to three days.

We have to settle this matter quickly. If he hears of this, we're in trouble.

Yes, sir.

Why isn't Yan here?. Never there when I need him.

I released him from jail to be my bodyguard

because his Kung Fu is good. He owes me.

See how he repays me now?.

My Lord, we still have a few bandits in jail. Maybe they can...

Bad idea! One Yan Ziqing's enough. If we have any more...

There is a difference between them.

Yan Ziqing wants to be a hero, killing in the name of justice.

These are real bandits. They only want money.

Pay them well and they'll do whatever you want.

Naturally, they're not reliable, but neither is Yan Ziqing.

So we should let them keep an eye on each other.

I am a real man,

and I have formidable skills.

Don't drink too much.

What are you worried about?. The night has just begun.

I'm just saying I don't want you to get drunk and grumpy.

Where's your mistress?.

She's inside. Please take a seat.

No, I'm here for Master Yan. Is he here?.

Yes.

Tell him an urgent matter awaits. We need him to return immediately.

Who's she?. I've never seen her before.

The daughter of Gao Baoshi.

Her family is poor. She just started work here.

Gao Baoshi.

Who is it?.

Someone from the station requires your return.

What for?.

The magistrate needs you urgently.

It's your duty to the magistrate. You must do your best.

Come on.

The magistrate thinks you have talent.

He wants to hire you. What do you say?.

- Are you lying?. - Silver coins don't lie.

Agree, and you'll all be released.

A handsome reward awaits you.

All right.

My Lord.

I've already spoken to them.

Good.

You'll each get 1 0 silver coins

to go and kill a man at the mill.

And another 1 0 coins upon your return.

And whoever rescues my daughter gets 50 more silver coins.

We're not like him! We want to work for you!

Good. Master Yan, you go with them.

If anyone tries to conspire against me, kill him at once.

Now let's get to work.

We're innocent! We've been wronged!

Shut up!

We've been wronged.

Who's that?.

No-one knows where he's from.

He injured two men outside the station,

and when we arrested him, he didn't resist!

He said he can eat in jail. Now he awaits your orders.

Bring him over.

Hey, you! Come on out.

Be quick! Our Lord wants to speak to you!

Quickly!

Pull him out.

Get up.

What's your name, friend?.

Huang Liang.

I'm Yan Ziqing.

This man came to jail just to get some food.

My friend, I see that you're very skilful.

If you work for me, not only will you get food,

I'll also reward you handsomely.

Food is all I need.

Master Yan, take him along, too.

Mr Wang, you have a large family. You need this food.

Save it for yourself.

No, please take this to Master Gao.

Even if we don't have enough, they need food very badly.

I'll go now.

I heard the Magistrate sent fighters and guards to the mill.

Be careful.

I understand.

You're not going to fight them!

Don't worry, it's just a precaution.

Master Lu, have some corn porridge.

Jixian, you take it.

No, Master, you take it.

Master Lu, you crossed enemy lines in remote territory.

You must be hungry. I insist you have it.

A student must obey his master. I order you to eat, you must eat.

Take it.

- Please eat. - No, you eat.

No, Father, you eat first.

Don't want to eat?. Here, you take it.

Now you should understand why they kidnapped you.

Have you ever seen people so hungry?.

Something you didn't want is precious to them!

And still your father demands provisions from them.

It's true that they kidnapped you.

But can you blame them?.

When we fought at the border, thousands of us were weak and tired,

surrounded by 200,000 Qing soldiers.

We lacked the strength to even lift our weapons.

Most of us died there.

But you live the good life, sucking blood from the poor.

I know you're not part of this.

A lady like you would know nothing of suffering.

Is this your gold hair pin?.

It's worth a year's income for this entire family.

A villager!

Hey, boy! I dare you to come out and fight me!

Brother, he isn't worth fighting.

- Let me go. - All right.

Come on, then!

Let me send you to hell!

- You're Master Lu?. - Huang Liang?.

My young master is here. Whoever wishes to fight may fight me!

I just witnessed how good Huang is.

This gentleman seems to be very skilful also.

I'd like to have a round with you.

At least I'll have something to report upon my return.

Very well.

Yes.

Excellent. I'll go report on my mission.

Master, you're amazing!

Yan is the magistrate's bodyguard. He's the best of them all.

He isn't like the others.

I tried my best

and I only just beat him.

This is brother Huang, who also fought at the border.

Master Huang.

I didn't have much to eat in jail.

I found this on the road. We can share it.

Brother Huang, you just got out of jail?.

Yes. After leaving the battlefront,

I was very tired and hungry.

All of us consider General Lu to be a hero.

But the battlefield

has drained my spirit.

When I came here, I had absolutely nothing.

How can a man like me stoop to stealing?.

So I made a big fuss outside the government building

and thus found myself food and lodging.

The county magistrate is short of fighters,

so he got the prisoners out.

I never thought I'd meet you here.

Master Huang, where did you get this?.

- On the road outside the village. - And the man who carried it?.

He was dead!

Brother!

The man who carried this bag...

was my brother!

He was trying to bring us food.

See the mark on the bag?.

My sister-in-law sewed it.

Brother!

Li, please don't be so sad.

We have only our fate to blame.

This man is really something. Even I couldn't beat him.

If my Lord wants to take him, we need someone else.

My Lord, be patient. We don't have control over him yet.

If we press him too hard, it will ruin our plan.

But this man is getting worse and worse!

Yan and the boy didn't have a fight. It was a game.

Some of our friends are in hiding to avoid capture.

If you pardon them, our brother will take them all out.

Count on me. We'll rescue the Lady.

All right, go and find them.

If you can settle this matter, I'll pardon and reward you all.

Yes.

- My Lord. - What?.

I have news.

The Mati villagers have made a petition against you.

They plan to present it to Minister Yuan when he passes through.

How dare they defy me!

My Lord, we are officials.

We can use the bandits to deal with these people.

My Lord, this is our big brother, Sheng.

Very good. I'll give each of your men ten silver coins.

You can do whatever you want at the Mati village.

And when you grab that petition, another hundred.

But don't say that I sent you.

It's dawn - it'll be quiet there.

Go right away!

Those bandits can deal with the peasants.

But against that boy at the mill they can do nothing!

They've held my daughter a whole night!

Liang Tong just made a suggestion.

When he went to get Master Yan at Choi's, he saw a young woman -

the daughter of Gao Baoshi.

- We'll kidnap his daughter. - She's no match for mine!

Of course, Gao Baoshi's daughter is no lady,

but all parents are the same.

We'll take Gao's daughter to the mill and force them to release our Lady.

Excellent. Act immediately!

Who's here so early?.

Open the door!

Do you hear me?. Open the door!

Don't be afraid. Open the door. Let's see who has such nerve!

Open.

- My Lord. - It's her.

Take her.

Take her away.

What's the matter?.

Yan Ziqing. I'm glad you're here. Come with me.

Go!

Help!

- That man killed my brother. - Be careful, he's very skilful.

Surround him!

Let's go!

Mister, don't go. You're hurt.

It's not serious.

Thank you for saving my life.

It's nothing.

And step!

Thank you, Master.

Thank you.

Go!

Father!

Sister!

- One more step and she dies. - Sister!

Release our Lady and we'll release her!

Release her first!

Absolutely not! Release our Lady first.

No! Don't release her!

How dare you! Beat her!

Jing Yu!

Are you going to release our Lady?.

Father, this man's a hypocrite.

He only looks after himself. If you release her, will he spare us?.

Beat her!

Sister!

Stop it!

I'll let her go!

If you do,

you will all die!

One more word and I'll kill you!

Father, don't release her!

Jing Yu!

Sister!

You killed my daughter, I'll kill yours!

Father!

Don't!

Wei Huaire, I'll cut her up bit by bit!

Master Lu!

Minister Wei, listen!

You've rescued my daughter. I'm so grateful...

Stop!

Please...

If I release your daughter,

you must promise not to prosecute them,

and exempt them from taxation of their provisions.

Your daughter is under my control. Make up your mind.

I agree to the second condition.

But these men kidnapped my daughter and threatened me.

If I pardon them, how can I remain county magistrate?.

You want to kill them?.

Because of you, I won't kill them, but they must be punished.

How?.

At least 1 00 lashes.

Very well. I'll take the 1 00 lashes for them.

Master Lu!

What do you say?.

- All right, it's agreed. - You won't go back on your word?.

You think I'd break a promise made in front of so many people?.

Master Lu, don't...

Are you sure you won't regret this?.

My word is my word.

Jixian.

Give this sword to Huang Liang. Ask him to wait for me at the mill.

Yes, Master.

Lady, please.

Let's go.

I hope Master Lu is not falling into a trap.

I'll wait here for news.

You go back to see if everything's all right.

We've been away from home for only two days.

70,

71,

72,

73,

74,

75,

76,

77,

78...

79!

80...

81!

82!

83...

84...

85!

86!

87!

- 88! - Father!

- 89! - Wen Zhen?.

Father, stop it! Stop it!

How many?.

89 already.

Make it 1 00.

90.

91.

92!

93!

94!

95.

96.

97!

98.

99!

1 00...

- 1 00 lashes, my Lord. - Lock him up.

- Father! - Stay out of this.

Father!

Let's go.

Father, Master Lu is my saviour. How can you treat him like that?.

He sided with those crooks.

He is also the son of General Lu Jingsheng.

And...?.

General Lu sacrificed his life for the country. You can't...

Now that I know who he is, I can't release him.

Minister Yuan is coming. He's a friend of the Lu family.

- If I release him, he'll report me. - Then what will you do?.

I'll let him starve to death.

Father!

Wei Huaire didn't keep his word.

That traitor!

- Where's the petition?. - It's with the village chief.

Gao Baoshi, the one in the mill.

Come, follow me.

Someone's there.

It's him.

Stay where you are!

Give us the petition!

Father, let's go!

Get the petition!

The petition isn't on him.

We'll return to the station.

Wait for me here. I'll deal with them.

How did it go?.

We killed Gao and his gang.

Where's the petition?.

I have it, but...

1 00 silvers isn't enough.

How much do you want?.

3,000.

3,000 is a large sum. We'll need to arrange it.

It's not prudent for you to wait here.

Name a place and we'll deliver it. How's that?.

Good, we'll wait in the bushes up the hill.

I'll give you the petition upon payment.

- If you please. - Let's go.

Adviser, do you mean...

Master Qian already got the men.

So I was thinking...

If you please.

Ling Long sewed this for him.

They've been very close since childhood.

Because of their poverty, Ling Long was sold to the station as a maid.

I buried his brother yesterday.

Now I bury him.

It's my fault.

No.

You helped us to drive those bandits away.

If it hadn't been for you...

You didn't know they would come back.

What you don't know...

I was...

Take this money.

Master Huang, where are you going?.

To rescue Master Lu.

Don't go.

That traitor broke his word.

The Gao family was killed. He won't spare Master Lu.

Don't go. It's too dangerous.

I must tell you something.

I didn't mean to kill him.

Big brother, if Wei brings us the money,

what about that petition?.

It's simple. Once we get the money,

we'll leave.

Are you sent by Wei?.

And the money?.

Wei sends one word: Kill!

What's happened?.

We think Huang Liang is trying to rescue Master Lu.

Lady, Huang is here to rescue Master Lu.

Excellent!

But he may not know the way to the prison.

I'll show him.

Lady, what are you doing?.

If you can save Master Lu, I'll consider you my saviour.

Lady, please don't say that.

Don't move. Who are you?.

I'm the Lady's maid, Ling Long.

You... are?.

Ling Long?.

I have something for you.

Jixian?. He...

He was killed by the magistrate.

If you want revenge, show me the way to the prison.

You're Master Huang?.

I'm here to help you rescue Master Lu. Follow me.

Search everywhere!

They're coming. I'll stop them.

You go rescue Master Lu.

Ling Long, why are you here?.

Well... Can't I just come to see you?.

Oh, yes! Please, come in.

Ling Long.

My Lady sent me to rescue you.

Where can Master Han be?.

Adviser, send more men to take Huang Liang, dead or alive.

- Master Xin. - Yes, sir.

Check that Lu is still locked up.

Master Yan, you should be helping.

Master Yan!

You...

Go.

Wen Zhen.

- Have you seen Lu?. - No.

Have you heard anything?.

Why did you rescue me?.

Why did you rescue me?.

Go now. Quickly!

Back off! Let me handle this!

Master Lu has been rescued. Try to escape!

Go over there!

After him!

Check both ways!

Master Lu, are you all right?.

Yes.

Master Lu...

Be very careful.

I don't know if we will ever...

meet again.

I'll be back.

Master Lu...

I'll come back and thank you.

Go now.

Master, the Lady is on our side.

Go quickly.

Lady, hurry back to your room.

- Where is he?. - I lost him. Search everywhere.

Let's go!

What are you doing here?.

Waiting for you. I boiled some water.

You're hurt!

I'm all right.

Attend to him first.

How is it?.

Give it to Master Lu first.

- You don't hate me?. - You didn't do it on purpose.

He thought I was one of Wei's men.

So he took the first strike...

I reacted too fast.

I understand.

We killed all of Sheng's gang.

Still the petition was nowhere to be found.

- Thank you, all. - You're welcome.

Not only did we lose Huang Liang, but Lu also escaped!

It's dawn. Minister Yuan comes today.

- What should we do?. - The problem lies with Yan Ziqing!

You're right. My Lord, he let Huang Liang go.

Even if Ling Long released Lu, she couldn't have killed Master Qian.

Look what he has done!

He is a traitor. We have to kill him!

- Where is he now?. - Same place as ever.

I ask you all to execute this traitor,

as well as Lu and Huang Liang. They must have the petition.

You two, find Yan Ziqing.

Brother Hu, brother Zhu...

We'll look for Lu and Huang Liang.

Let's go.

How come you're up so early?.

- I'm leaving. - Why?.

I killed Master Qian last night,

and I let Master Lu and Huang Liang go.

They don't know this yet. But if I stay here,

I'm afraid...

I'll go with you.

I don't know where I will go. Will you be able to bear the suffering?.

I don't mind. I want to be with you.

Ziqing.

Is there someone else?.

I can't even take care of myself. Who else would I be seeing?.

As long as I'm alive,

I won't allow you to leave me behind.

You run this business.

Can you give all this up?.

I can.

I'll pack and go with you right now, Ziqing.

My Xiao Qing!

Ziqing...

After I die...

I will never leave you again.

I'll follow you...

everywhere.

- Master Lu, how do you feel?. - Much better.

Thank you both for taking care of me.

Look.

I got this from the stream outside.

It's fate.

If Minister Yuan can rid us of this tyrant,

Gao and his family will rest in peace.

Have some porridge.

I'll dry this.

I'll take her back.

You rest a bit. I won't be long.

All right.

- Who is it?. - It's me, Yan Ziqing.

Yan, brother!

Thanks for rescuing me last night. I'm so grateful.

Things are bad. Wei sent his men to attack me before dawn.

My woman was killed.

I need your help.

It's all my fault. I'll do whatever is in my power.

I'll kill him to take revenge.

- How are you feeling now?. - I've recovered.

I'll leave a word for Huang, and we'll go.

- Many thanks. - Not at all.

"Brother Huang,

I'm going with Yan to the station to exact revenge.

Lu Fang."

So Yan and Lu went to the station. We'll look for Huang Liang first.

But there's no one's left at the station. We'd better return.

Right!

I can't take you back. I must follow them to help Lu and Yan.

No, it's much too risky.

Those men look tough. I need to lend a hand.

But...!

I can't abandon my friends!

Tell the truth, Wen Zhen.

Did you ask Ling Long to release Lu?.

I...

Wei Huaire, you're a criminal.

I'll avenge the villagers of Mati. It's time for you to die!

Please, for me, pardon my father!

Master Lu, Mr Yan. Please forgive me.

I'll release those in jail and exempt their provisions.

It's too late!

If you must kill my father, then kill me first!

He's untrustworthy. If you pardon him, you'll regret it later.

No. Mr Yan. This time I won't betray my word.

If you don't trust me, stay and bear witness.

When Minister Yuan arrives, I'll ask for his punishment.

Master Lu, I now know who you are. We're both officials.

Even if I'm guilty, it's Minister Yuan who should punish me.

It's not your place to kill me.

Besides, you're here. Where would I go?.

Shut up!

Mr Yan.

I'm wrong, but I did you a favour. Please forgive me this time.

Brother Yan, we will stay here.

When Minister Yuan comes, he will be punished.

We won't take action ourselves.

Thank you both.

Tell the Adviser to prepare a banquet

to honor these two heroes and to welcome Minister Yuan.

Please come to the second hall.

You organise the banquet. I'll double-check.

Quickly!

Please.

Please take a seat.

Once Minister Yuan is here, you will see I am sincere.

Our Lord's been captured by two men. You must rescue him.

Let's go!

Lock these prisoners up inside. Quickly!

Move this wooden cage away. Minister Yuan is coming.

Quickly!

Don't go, don't go.

They've gone inside. I have to go.

You were hurt last time. If you go again...

I'm afraid.

Loyalty is everything. I can't abandon them, even if it means death.

You...

Forget me

and go home.

I regained my life because of your generosity.

I'll right my wrongs, heaven be my witness.

This is their petition for Minister Yuan.

If you really regret what you did, then hand this to Minister Yuan.

I'll do as you say.

My Lord, we're ready to welcome Minister Yuan.

Good. Put this petition in a safe place. It's for Minister Yuan.

Yes, sir.

Our heroes can't be served this wine.

Tell them to get out the best wine.

Please take a seat, Master Lu.

- Tell the Lord the petition is here. - Yes, sir.

The red top is for the guests.

The blue top is for our Lord.

Don't mix them up.

Lady.

These bottles are different. Don't mix them up.

We won't.

This will help you to differentiate.

Pour wine for our guests.

Minister Yuan is arriving. Prepare to welcome him.

Let's toast before we welcome Minister Yuan.

I'll drink first, out of respect.

My friends, let's toast.

Get them! Dead or alive, you'll be rewarded!

Watch out!

Go!

Quickly!

Minister Yuan is here. Get rid of these two, quickly!

Lu, Yan! I am here!

Huang Liang!

Huang Liang!

Halt.

County Magistrate Wei Huaire welcomes our Minister.

The Minister's on a military mission. We won't stop to meet with officials.

Everyone return to their stations. Move on!

Our petition...

- Are you from the Mati village?. - Yes, madam.

Take it.

Brother Yan!

Put down your sword!

Take care, Lu.

No! Yan!

Minister Yuan has left. Kill these two men!

Father!

Stop it!

What are you doing?.

Lu and Yan spared you. Is this how you repay them?.

Get away!

Go!

Stop!

Order from the Minister! Take Wei Huaire.

Listen, everyone!

Stay where you are.

- Uncle Yuan. - My boy.

I heard you had broken through enemy lines and come here.

You're hurt!

It's nothing serious.

Please.

- This is Yan, he's a hero. - Minister Yuan.

Without him, I'd have died at the hands of Wei Huaire.

I regret to say that my companion, Huang Liang, was killed.

I tried to stop you,

but you had to come.

You had to come!

Wei Huaire, what is this?.

Wen Zhen, it's you who reported me?.

I reported you.

What about that petition?. You gave it to her.

Father, I begged you to release Master Lu and Mr Yan.

They spared you. Don't blame anyone but yourself.

So, for this Lu,

you betray your own father!

I acted in the name of justice, not because of anyone else.

You violated lmperial law and I had to choose between you and justice.

Now I must turn to Buddhism and become a nun.

Wei Huaire stole provisions and killed unlawfully.

He must be executed.

All those involved

must be arrested and punished accordingly.

Executioner!

Take the lmperial sword and execute Wei Huaire.

Yes, sir!

Subtitles by i t f c