Original subtitles

[English subtitles are available]

[Under the Microscope]

[Episode 6]

[Yanzhou]

[Yanzhou Investigation Bureau]

Master Lu.

He went in, he went in.

You saw the two of them enter

the Investigation Bureau with your own eyes?

I asked the person sweeping the floor,

he said it was the two of them.

Strange.

[Yanzhou Investigation Bureau]

Didn't they go back to Renhua?

Why did they come to Yanzhou?

Dispute between Yang Dachun and Yang Erchun

over family property.

Although Yang Dachun is not the family's biological son,

he took care of his parents, was respectful and filial,

and never neglected his duties.

He is no different from a biological son.

With the elderly parent dying of illness,

the family's property should be divided equally.

Yang Erchun’s complaint is rejected.

Next case.

[Fengxing Regional Inspector - Liu Jing]

What the hell is written here?

This was obviously written by a lawyer.

This is pretentious and full of bluffs.

Exaggerating a small matter like this.

You want to take advantage of me?

You wish.

Rejected.

This was written by Zhuang Santi!

This bunch of lawyers only know to manipulate lawsuits,

and instigate disputes.

They just want to cause chaos,

I hate these people the most.

Leave!

Next case.

What should we do, Shuai?

He doesn't like

what Mr. Zhuang wrote.

I still have with me the previous memorandum.

The one that Prefect Huang edited?

Mr. Zhuang said

this is badly written.

If he doesn't even like the one written by Mr. Zhuang,

how could he accept this one?

Why are you still here?

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Well, Inspector Liu.

Stop.

We submitted the wrong memorandum earlier.

It's actually this version.

[Although it was accepted in the past, it should not be acceptable.]

[Although it was accepted in the past, it should not be acceptable. As a citizen of the Eight Counties... and of Renhua County...]

You two,

come with me.

This memorandum of yours

is rather interesting.

Looking at it,

it's obviously written by two different people.

One is the main writer,

and the other one is the editor.

You have such a sharp eye.

The main writer of this memorandum

is my friend here, Shuai Jiamo.

As for the person who edited it,

he...

is the Prefect,

Huang Ningdao, am I right?

How did you guess?

Although Brother Huang and I are of different ages,

he was originally

an Investigating Censor.

After listening carefully to you

recount the details of the discussion earlier,

Prefect Huang

is also in a difficult spot.

He is only asking for external support because he has no choice.

Then will you still

take this case?

I inspect every region in Fengxing

so as to deal with regional malpractices.

This memorandum relating to the silk poll tax

is reasonable and clear.

This matter is within

my area of authority.

If I don't take it,

I may be accused of failing to do my duty.

The Investigation Bureau shall officially take this case.

So when can I go to

the Archives of the other seven counties

to go through their documents?

What?

My friend here tends to be a little too straightforward.

Here's the thing.

When we were discussing previously,

Shuai proposed for us to

go to the other counties' Archives

to go through their documents.

But we were stopped.

Actually this is easily solvable.

As long as Prefect Huang

goes over to the other counties to have a look,

we'll have the full picture.

If I ask them to open the Archives,

they have no right to stop us.

So when are we going to

view the documents?

After I finish settling all the matters

in Yanzhou Prefecture,

we will set off immediately

to inspect Jin'an Prefecture.

That's great!

Both of you don't know

how dedicated Prefect Huang is.

He was afraid that I wouldn't take this case,

so he specially attached this bulletin

under the memorandum.

I thought this bulletin

accidentally got stuck under it.

Not only did you fools

not understand it,

you even went to find

a bad lawyer

to write such a lousy indictment.

You nearly

made all of Prefect Huang's efforts

go to waste.

Read it carefully.

If you can figure it out,

everything will be clear.

If you can't,

whatever I say will be useless anyway.

You can leave now.

I have other work to attend to.

Let's go.

There's another question I don't understand.

If this case is won,

it won't bring any benefit

to both of you.

But if the case is lost,

both of your reputations will be ruined.

Seeing as the two of you are working so hard

on a thankless task like this,

there must be another reason behind it.

This has nothing to do with me.

I'm just going along

with Shuai.

What about you?

If the numbers are wrong,

they should be corrected.

Is there anything wrong with that?

Shuai,

I still don't get

the secret that lies

behind this bulletin.

What's wrong with it?

Once Inspector Liu looked at the bulletin,

he understood everything.

It's almost like a riddle.

Is that important?

Sometimes I really envy

how naive you are.

Think about it.

Earlier Inspector Liu asked you

why you are doing such a

thankless task like this.

Zhuang Santi asked you this too.

Cheng Renqing also asked you this.

Prefect Huang and the other county magistrates

also asked you.

But my answer stays the same.

What matters is not your answer,

but that everyone thinks

you must stand to gain other benefits

from instigating this issue.

But I don't.

That doesn't mean that other people don't.

Think about it.

Revolving around this silk tax case,

I think everyone

has his own motive.

Brother.

These two are so crafty.

They are actually following an official's palanquin.

How are we supposed to make our move?

Usually no civilians are allowed

to follow along with an official's palanquin.

Who is sitting in the palanquin?

It's not an official of Yanzhou.

I think he was called the...

Regional Inspector.

The Regional Inspector?

This is the way to Jin'an, right?

Yes.

This is bad.

Keep following them.

I'll make a move first.

Inspector,

here is the map.

Which part of Jin'an are we at now?

Lanxi County.

It's only slightly over 20 li to the county town.

Lanxi.

Jiande.

I understand.

We won't

stop here today.

Let's move faster later

and rest once we reach Lanxi County.

Lanxi is good.

It's comfortable staying in Lanxi.

Furthermore, I think it only takes a day

to go back to Renhua from Lanxi.

We're not going to Renhua for the time being.

Where are we going then?

We will set up the Regional Inspection Bureau

in Lanxi County,

and conduct the trial on the spot.

Then we should probably tell Prefect Huang

and Magistrate Mao about this in advance.

If we inform them in advance,

and they link up in advance,

what effect would there be?

Finish your water,

and we'll set off immediately.

I'm Lu Feilong!

Open the gates!

[Renhua]

It's Master Lu.

According to the rules,

we can’t open the city gates at night.

I need to see Master Fan urgently.

We really can't open the gates.

Let me pull you up by rope.

Hurry.

Hurry up.

Okay.

Slow down.

Slow down, slow down, slow down!

Slow down, slow down, slow down.

[Lanxi]

How great.

Great.

Absolutely great.

Magistrate Mao really understands

the essence of swordsmanship.

Out of the hundreds of county governors in Ming,

in terms of governance,

I may not be one of the best.

But in terms of fighting skills,

I can be considered

one of the top few.

Magistrate Mao.

Magistrate Mao.

Something happened.

Something happened.

How dare you!

Who are you?

How dare you occupy the county office and cause trouble?

Magistrate Mao.

With this outfit of yours,

I thought you were going to join the army.

That's none of your business.

Who are you?

I am the Regional Inspector of Fengxing,

Liu Jing.

The Regional Inspector?

Impossible.

I didn't receive any official document saying that

the Inspector was coming to our county.

The document has already been sent to Renhua County.

I decided impromptu

to set up an investigation bureau in Lanxi.

If you don't believe me,

I have the official seal, the imperial edict,

and documents from the Censorate.

Go ahead and verify it if you want.

Fine.

[Notice from the Censorate Granting Travel for Inspection]

It really is true.

Inspector Liu.

You're so sneaky.

How could you just spring a surprise visit

without telling me?

How is that befitting of an inspector?

Magistrate Mao.

You don't look like a magistrate either,

dressing like you're ready for a fight.

This is what I wear for my morning exercise.

I didn't know you were coming.

I'll go back and change first,

before coming back to discuss matters with you.

I'll wait for you.

Magistrate Mao.

Magistrate Mao.

Magistrate Mao.

Just say whatever you have to say.

Can't you see I'm busy?

Someone saw Shuai Jiamo.

He came together with Inspector Liu.

What?

When did they get on the same side?

I...

I don't know.

Go.

Go to Zhuge Village immediately

and find Cheng Renqing

for me.

Understood.

Go.

Inspector Liu.

I am under the Emperor's orders

to inspect the eleven prefectures of Fengxing.

I plan to set up a Regional Inspection Bureau

in Lanxi County in order to

go through the records and oversee lawsuits.

Since it's His Majesty's order,

I offer my full cooperation.

Very well.

Magistrate Mao, please rise.

I currently have

a case on my hands.

Is it the silk poll tax case

filed by Shuai Jiamo?

Magistrate Mao, not only are you skilled in martial arts,

you can even tell the future!

This matter will impact

national tax revenue,

and is no small matter.

You...

should think carefully.

These two thieves...!

Shuai Jiamo claims that

the silk poll tax

amounting to 3,530 taels,

was due to the reallocation of funds

to supplement provisions a hundred years ago.

This should have been equally shared between the eight counties,

but after the 16th year of the Chenghua reign,

this tax burden fell only on Renhua County.

Shuai Jiamo.

You said there is evidence to back this up?

Yes.

We just need to check

the Archives of Lanxi County,

and look at the tax records

from the 11th year of the Chenghua reign

to the 16th year of the Chenghua reign.

The truth will be revealed then.

Who are you to decide? What's your name?

I'm Shuai.

You...

I'm the one investigating the case now.

I need to open the Archives.

On what basis?

On what basis?

On the basis of the order of the Imperial Court.

I am under orders to inspect Fengxing.

My most important duty

is to go through records.

I have to go through

every single document and file

across the eleven prefectures of Fengxing.

Why should Lanxi County

be exempted from that?

Magistrate Mao,

you've been trying to push this off repeatedly.

Is there really something you're trying to hide?

If you try to stop us again,

I will file a complaint against you!

[Archives]

This way please.

I'll stay here to keep watch,

let's see who dares to get in the way of our work.

These two scribes here

are my trusted aides that work for me regularly,

I'll let them help you too.

How long do you think you will need?

Within three days.

Why are you here?

I'm from Lanxi County,

why can't I come?

Why are you so unfriendly?

If I didn't

advise you previously,

Shuai Jiamo would

probably be sent

to somewhere far far away.

Thank you

for your advice previously.

Since you're in Lanxi,

why don't I do my part as a host,

and find you

somewhere comfortable to sit?

I'm watching the cat here.

Just leave.

From this gate here,

head out,

walk a hundred steps to the east,

and you'll see a place called Lanfang Pavilion.

The wine and music there

are exceptionally good.

Especially their cherry yoghurt iced drink,

it cools you down and quenches your thirst.

Outside of Lanxi,

you won't find a place

where you can have that anymore.

Young Master Feng.

Since Shuai Jiamo won't be

done with his matters anytime soon,

you have to wait anyway,

so why don't you go to Lanfang Pavilion to wait?

After eating,

have some drinks and enjoy some music.

I have two lovely ladies there,

and they're really good at...

I'm not going.

With all your sweet-talking,

who knows what you're up to?

It's a pity you won't get to witness my two ladies'

skills at playing cards.

Forget it. I won't force you.

I'm leaving.

Cheng Renqing.

Young Master Feng, show your cards.

-Let me. -Let me help you with it.

Let me.

Let me do this one.

You lost.

Young Master Feng is so lucky.

Young Master Feng,

why don't you stay in Lanxi for a few more days?

There are a few more good places

that are worth a visit.

How long I stay here

will depend on how fast Shuai

does the calculations in the accounts.

-What are you afraid of? -Cheers, Young Master Feng.

Let him investigate it himself.

We'll enjoy ourselves.

Shuai Jiamo

is not a calculating person.

He won't be jealous of you.

Of course Shuai isn't the calculating type.

But Inspector Liu on the other hand...

Forget it.

I won't get in the way of Shuai's matters.

Inspector Liu looks like the type that is

upright and righteous,

and he's efficient at what he does.

He should be a pretty capable official.

He is definitely efficient

at getting things done.

But I'm not so sure about him being

upright and righteous.

He must have his motives

for taking on this case.

How can you tell?

This case of ours

was previously rejected

when we were at Yanzhou Prefecture.

Later on,

we submitted another memorandum.

When Inspector Liu

saw the bulletin stuck on the back

of the new memorandum,

his attitude completely changed.

Bulletin?

Without this bulletin,

he would never have taken this case.

I've been flipping that bulletin around

multiple times to try and

figure it out,

but I still don't understand what's special about it.

What is a bulletin?

You don't know much, do you?

Let me show you.

This is a bulletin.

This bulletin

talks all about national affairs.

What happened in each province

every month,

it's all written in...

Cheng Renqing, you sneaky rat!

Cheng Renqing.

Give it to me.

Give it to me.

Give it to me.

You always play tricks on me.

Look at you.

[Bulletin - 4th month of the 7th year of Wanli's reign]

You couldn't snatch over the bulletin,

neither could you read the contents,

what use are you?

Magistrate Mao, why are you getting so worked up?

Although I didn't see the content,

but I immediately made sure

I caught the date and page number

written in the corner of the bulletin.

It was from the morning of the 4th month of this year.

Master Fan worked in the central government for a long time.

Is there anything hidden in this bulletin?

Let me see.

Mindi doing a remeasurement of the land.

This is what's happening in Mindi.

What does it have to do with us?

Keep reading.

Okay.

Let me see.

Magistrate Mao.

[Mindi calculating farm tax for the first time]

Undisclosed farmlands?

It says here that

the rich families in Mindi have constantly been

changing their farm fields to undisclosed farmlands

which they don't have to pay tax for.

In counties where this is the most serious,

one county can have

60% of land being undisclosed farmland,

with only 40% of the land being taxed.

Obviously, the imperial court is trying to

use this Remeasurement Policy in order to find

all of this undisclosed farmland

and increase tax revenue.

Who is the one in the court that can make this decision now?

His Majesty is still young.

Naturally Empress Dowager Li will be the acting regent,

and Grand Secretary Zhang will assist from the outside.

Grand Secretary Zhang has always been ambitious.

I'm afraid...

Most probably Grand Secretary Zhang

is testing the waters in Mindi.

Look.

It also writes here that

Mindi's Administration Commission said

the people of Min find this convenient.

This means they already completed the pilot test,

and Grand Secretary Zhang's next step

is most likely to be rolling out land remeasurement

across the country.

The prosperity we have here in Fengxing

may bear the brunt of it.

It's probably worse than that.

So,

is he doing it for money?

No.

What Grand Secretary Zhang needs the most

is an archetype.

Correct.

The situation over here

is much more complicated than in Mindi.

What Grand Secretary Zhang needs most

is a case happening in a region

that will allow for cooperation with the central government,

so that when they implement this in the future,

there will be much less resistance.

Inspector Liu is

harboring an ulterior motive.

The reason why he asked those two scribes

to accompany Shuai Jiamo

is not actually to help him,

but to secretly investigate our county's

fish-scale map register.

Inspector Liu

is really sharp.

He read on the bulletin that

land remeasurement has already been done in Mindi,

and immediately thought of Grand Secretary Zhang

wanting to implement it immediately.

At this crucial moment,

if a young regional inspector

can predict the Grand Secretary's concerns,

and roll out

the land remeasurement policy in Fengxing beforehand,

wouldn't he be making

a great contribution?

But I still don't understand,

what does this land remeasurement

have to do with the silk poll tax?

What's the crux of

the silk poll tax issue?

The unequal distribution of tax burden.

Shuai Jiamo keeps

repeating this phrase

every day.

My ears are sore

from hearing it so many times.

If the taxes are not evenly distributed, they will need to be redistributed.

To redistribute it,

you will need to reallocate the tax share

according to the land area of each county.

In order to calculate land area,

naturally you would need to remeasure

the land again.

So this is where Liu Jing's motives

are at.

This is a serious matter.

We should slowly come up with a plan to delay it.

If we rush into things,

it may lead to unpredictable outcomes.

Yes.

The number of gentrymen we have

in Jin'an and Fengxing,

how much land they own,

which of that land is legally bought,

and which are attained by means of trickery or force,

will Liu Jing even be able to investigate all of that?

How much of a ruckus would he have to make?

If Liu Jing manages to accomplish this,

he will definitely be greatly favored by the Grand Secretary.

As for what becomes of

the fate of Jin'an,

it will not be a loss to him anyway.

A vile person like him

wouldn't hesitate to ruin the stability

of a whole prefecture for his own career.

Why don't we just kill him off?

Maybe this is

just the start of it.

But no matter what, he must not get his way in Lanxi.

Otherwise,

it'll be a recipe for disaster.

Lower the sedan.

Tilt the sedan.

I heard that Zhuge Bagua Village

is famous for its fengshui formations.

Now that I'm seeing it for myself,

it is indeed well-deserving of it.

I didn't expect this small village

to have such outstanding natural phenomena.

The scenery of Zhuge Village changes throughout the day.

As the direction of the light moves,

the scenery changes with it.

The view is especially breathtaking at dusk.

Since Your Excellency has come to Lanxi,

you must definitely enjoy the scenery of

Zhuge Village at dusk.

You're right.

With the afterglow of the setting sun

reflecting on the Eight Trigrams Formation,

it's almost like you can feel how Zhuge Liang felt in his twilight years.

The double meaning encapsulated in 'the dusk of Zhuge'

is truly very clever.

Zhuge Liang devoted his whole life

to his promise to be loyal to his ruler

and to reclaim the Central Plains.

He is truly a fine example for us all.

Master Fan, you are my senior in working for the court.

With your famed reputation back then,

I am truly grateful to have

received your guidance today.

You're too kind.

The banquet has long been ready.

Why don't we head over now

and take our time to talk while eating?

Was this banquet

paid for by Lanxi County,

or was it paid for by you?

Sir,

this is a small gesture by the local gentry and I

to welcome you.

We wouldn't let the county pay for it,

please don't worry.

Please.

[Farming Silk Tax]

Mr. Shuai,

it's time to eat.

[If you don't obey me, Baoyu will die.]

♫ Young Lady, you're here ♫

♫ Young Lady ♫

♫ Burn the incense and boil the tea ♫

♫ Everything is ready ♫

♫ Young Lady, I invite you to go see the moon ♫

♫ Let's go ♫

Master Fan asked if the banquet is ready.

Of course it's ready.

Master Fan said,

Inspector Liu isn't the type who is tempted by money,

so I arranged for something else.

How smart of you.

Don't go too far later.

I may call for you anytime.

Later,

I won't be at the banquet.

Of course you won't be.

[Archives]

Where is Baoyu?

Have you found the evidence?

No.

Did you not find it?

Or did you not tell anyone?

I didn't tell anyone.

I like talking to honest people.

I don't have to think too much.

Give me the evidence,

and I'll release Feng Baoyu.

I'm nearly done with the calculations.

But there are still records in the regular tax documents

in Lanxi Prefecture's Archives.

Don't tell me about this,

I don't understand.

I'm saying that these are just copies,

I've put the original copies back.

Baoyu!

Let him go already!

You promised me.

How could you listen to

Lu Feilong?

It is a great honor to us that

Inspector Liu is visiting Lanxi,

and we must show our hospitality.

Please forgive us

if there is any oversight on our part.

Don't say that.

Master Fan was bestowed by the Emperor

a plaque inscribed with the title, 'County Sage of the Censorate',

and retired with the honorary title of 'Grand Master for Forthright Service'.

I should propose a toast to you first.

Please.

Shuai,

you're really an idiot.

How can you believe

what Lu Feilong said?

Once you got the jade,

you should have given it to Inspector Liu immediately,

and at least you could live.

It doesn't matter if I die,

I'm just a rich good-for-nothing.

If these original documents are completely burnt,

then truly no one will be able to

calculate the numbers in the future.

We're in such a dire situation,

why are you still thinking about this?

Us few are already old,

and are long retired from the court.

But we still have a few old friends

who are still serving in the imperial court.

If you ever

need any help,

just let us know anytime.

To be honest,

a good man is sociable, but is not partisan.

As long as we serve the Emperor loyally,

we can rest with a clear conscience.

A good man is sociable, but is not partisan.

Then who is partisan but unsociable?

Of course that would be

those who disregard the troubles of the court

for his own selfish benefits.

Quick, quick!

Get up, get up!

Find an exit!

Hurry up!

Hurry.

[Complete Works of the Silk Event]

Shuai, Shuai!

Wake up! Wake up!

Th-there's a bench over there!

Baoyu!

Fire! Put out the fire!

Quick, put out the fire!

Magistrate Mao, bad news!

Why are you so flustered?

Magistrate Mao.

The town in Lanxi County is on fire.

Where's the fire?

It's the Archives.

How timely that

it caught fire now.

Who is this fire meant for?

Inspector Liu.

What do you mean by that?

Don't you think this fire

can read people's minds?

It starts just as

someone wishes for it to start,

and it burns wherever someone wants it to burn.

Magistrate Mao, Magistrate Mao!

What is it?

I just heard that

both Shuai Jiamo and Feng Baoyu

were still in the Archives.

We don't know if they're dead or alive.

How ridiculous!

I do want to see for myself

whether Lanxi County

is still part of Ming's territory.