Original subtitles

♪Having survived the winter I'm expecting the flower season♪

♪Smiling in a spring breeze I'm immersed in it♪

♪Whose breath warmed my cold heart♪

♪And stirred up ripples♪

♪A figure may be reflected in my eyes♪

♪Bring back numerous memories♪

♪Through my life I've endured hardships for love♪

♪With you My mind is still and peaceful♪

♪Don't blame fate and providence♪

♪And the merciless fortune♪

♪Wandering in the world of mortals like it's a game♪

♪Risking my heart♪

♪Isn't to be regretted♪

♪I'll exchange it for the love of my life delightedly♪

=A Dream of Splendor=

=Episode 34=

It's a painting

depicting the night banquet held by Xue Que, Transport Commissioner of Xichuan Region.

The man in the seat is Xue Que.

The others are his music performers.

Your Majesty, please look carefully.

Doesn't the female drummer

look familiar to you?

She just

looks like my empress.

Is this your so-called evidence?

Do you know

slandering the Empress is an unforgivable capital offense?

Your Majesty, you promoted me.

So I'm not scared of death.

Your Majesty,

Wang Ai likes to hide clues in his paintings.

Look, Your Majesty.

In this painting, the pattern on every performer's dress

hides her name.

The other day, I came to the Palace

and ran into Her Majesty.

I felt like I saw her somewhere before.

Later, I saw the name "Liu Wan" on the drummer's dress

and I felt suspicious.

After verification of all sides,

I finally dared to tell you about this

even if I knew this was inappropriate.

Your Majesty,

when the late emperor made Her Majesty your concubine,

she was from a decent family, according to the imperial edict.

But if she was Xue Que's music performer,

she turned out to be a pariah.

If she served customers with her body,

she was in no way chaste.

If she deceived Your Majesty,

she was in no way loyal.

Shut up!

This is a load of codswallop!

My empress is

chaste and loyal.

She has a very good reputation

in the imperial harem!

How dare a minor official like you

humiliate her without evidence!

Your Majesty, the Empress is dissolute.

She deceived the late emperor and then you.

Her offence is inexcusable.

Get lost. Get lost!

Somebody!

Throw him out!

Aye.

Stay away!

Your Majesty, I always know

that you and Her Majesty get along well and love each other.

But I work for you, Your Majesty.

I was first the Third Graduate and then a censor.

I have to impeach Her Majesty even if this may offend you.

But I'm doing this to rectify virtues!

I don't want you to keep being deceived

by such a humble lady

and let her do harm to our nation!

Your Majesty,

I have no supporters in the court.

It's been only a few days

since I resumed my post in the Eastern Capital.

If you think

I'm deliberately slandering the Empress,

I will apologize with my life.

He... He's bleeding so much.

Your Majesty,

honest advice is always hard to take.

But ancient wise emperors

were always generous enough to take it.

Pan'er,

I have some confusion.

You didn't do big business before.

But why are you so familiar

with opening a restaurant

in such a different way?

I'm not very familiar, actually.

I used to work in the Music Bureau.

I went to many restaurants.

As I've seen a lot of them,

I manage to have different ideas.

Take ordinary restaurants for example.

They want everything to be perfect.

I can do different kinds of things,

but can't do any of them perfectly.

So, I have to make things special.

Speaking of dishes,

chefs at Pan House

make better dishes than Sanniang.

But our feature

lies in the favor of Jiangnan Region.

The food is fresh and exquisite.

It's not limited, either.

When customers grow tired,

we'll change it into the flavor of the northwest in three months.

Speaking of wine,

we can't make wine, anyway.

We have to use the medium-quality wine bought from Li Qing's tavern.

But as we put expensive spice in it,

the wine tastes very special.

Yinzhang's pipa and games in Wazi

can be seen in all restaurants,

but not all of them and not quality ones.

I just present them

in a new way.

Good point.

This is how I usually instruct He Si and other subordinates.

I tell them that the coach of the ball

is not always the best player.

However,

he must be very experienced.

He knows how to arrange players

and how to attack or defend.

This makes him the backbone of the team.

Sounds interesting.

Pan'er,

you're good at doing business.

I'm the head of 12 Guilds.

We both play the ball.

We play dice, too.

Why don't you be my girlfriend?

Anyway, Gu Qianfan...

All right. All right.

Fine. I'll stop.

Don't hit me.

I don't mean to flirt with you.

Never mind. Forget it.

Wait.

Instead of thinking about this,

why don't you find a quiet place and think about

how to get more business opportunities for Yong'an Restaurant?

I'm too stupid to find business opportunities.

If I could have good ideas,

what would I need you for?

He Si, are you loafing round?

See how I'll punish you!

Officer Ouyang broke his skull.

There's extravasated blood in his head.

Luckily, his life is not in danger.

He's kind of straightforward.

I won't punish him, then.

Have the Imperial Physician send him back to his house

where he can recuperate.

Ask him to speak less and stay indoors.

Give him a hundred gold coins.

Aye.

Your Majesty, are you having a headache again?

Mm.

Do you want some pills?

Go. Go get the Imperial Physician.

Aye.

Your Majesty, please wait.

The Imperial Physician is coming soon.

I can't wait.

Bring him here now.

My head is to explode.

What are you waiting for?

Get him here!

- Take care, Your Majesty. - Take care, Your Majesty.

Your Majesty, I have something

that may relieve your pain.

Wine?

Hurry.

Come on.

Don't do stupid things.

Minister...

Your Majesty, please drink some.

What's this? I...

I haven't tested it yet.

Come on. Give it to me.

Your Majesty, this...

You!

Minister Lin, what's this?

Wine. Styrax Curcuma Wine.

Styrax and Curcuma are special spices from Nanyang.

The wine activates blood circulation, and relieves pain and depression.

It's said that drinking this wine

will make you feel as great as God.

It worked.

It indeed worked.

- Take care, Your Majesty. We'll take our leave. - Take care, Your Majesty. We'll take our leave.

(I've been trying my best to cover for my empress.)

(Why can't the officials just let her go?)

Your Majesty,

Her Majesty heard you didn't feel well

and she's waiting out there...

I won't see her.

I don't want to worry her.

Aye.

Your Majesty, would you like some soup?

No.

You...

Ask Lin Pin to get me

more of this wine.

This wine

has a strong aroma and is mellow.

It heals my headache, too.

I wonder if he kept this wine personally

or bought it somewhere.

Your Majesty,

it's Styrax Curcuma Wine of Yong'an Restaurant.

Where the Flower and Moon Banquet is held?

Yes.

What did he just say?

Feel as great as what?

Drinking this wine will make you feel as great as God.

Sounds interesting.

Very well. You do it.

Buy some wine for me.

Ah?

What?

Am I asking for too much?

No.

I asked Minister Lin about the wine.

It's the secret wine in Yiyuan Pavilion of Yong'an Restaurant.

It's only sold to customers who have meals there.

Minister Lin went there for the second time

so he was given a little pot of it.

I heard Chamberlain Chen also wanted to buy the wine.

But the owner Ms. Zhao rejected him

because it was against their rule.

Even Chamberlain Chen was rejected?

The owner of Yong'an Restaurant

seems to be dauntless.

Yeah.

Ms. Song is another owner of Yong'an Restaurant.

She's the coach at the Pipa Branch of the Music Division.

At Minister Xiao's birthday banquet,

Minister Ke wrote "strength of character"

on her pipa.

Ke Zheng seldom writes anything for people.

But he wrote something for a music performer?

Yeah.

Your Majesty, when you feel better,

you can summon her to perform.

I don't want to wait.

I'm going right now.

Let's enjoy the pipa and wine.

We can also experience

how great it feels.

Ah?

Come on.

Does it sound surprising?

No, not at all.

Is this the register of people going in and out?

Yes.

(Register of People Going in and out of the Imperial Palace)

(With the pass, Matron Cui left with four palace maids...)

(With the pass granted by the Empress, Matron Li left in a carriage...)

Keep a close eye.

Don't let anything go wrong.

Aye.

Is your foot all right?

I'm good.

By the way, Kong Wu,

are you married?

My child is already three years old.

When you quarrel with your wife

and she doesn't let you explain,

how do you usually make her happy?

Chief, did you...?

There is no good way.

Just remember one thing, keep pestering her.

Besides,

you have to make her always worry about you.

As long as she cares about you,

torturing yourself will always work.

Young Master, I have a question.

You used to

hate Ms. Zhao, right?

Why do you take orders from her now?

I count on her to make Yong'an Restaurant prosper.

Even so, she can't keep ordering us to do odd jobs all the time.

Zhao Haohao often lost her temper, too.

You were never as docile as you are now.

They're totally different.

Zhao Haohao ordered me about

just because she was a drama queen.

She didn't think I pampered her or loved her

unless I yielded to her.

But Pan'er is different.

She orders me about

for the good of Yong'an Restaurant.

Got it?

Oh.

Hey!

Sir,

are you coming to Yong'an Restaurant?

Yes.

Do you have a reservation?

No.

But we have Finance Minister Lin's name card.

Please kindly let us in.

His name card doesn't work!

Without a reservation, we can't...

We can't give you

the private room in the east with the best view!

But you can have one in the west!

Anchor the boat, please.

This is against the rule.

Thank you.

Don't be silly.

Why would we reject profits?

Go. Get the private room ready.

Oh.

This way, please, sir.

All right.

Pan'er, we've got an honored customer.

This way, please.

All right.

Watch out for the wet floor.

It's all right.

Go.

Rain Room. Come in, please.

Rain Room.

It's a good name.

Bring them all the best dishes Sanniang makes.

Who is that old man?

Why could he come in with a mere name card?

What old man?

Didn't you notice the husky voice

of his valet?

Throughout the Eastern Capital,

what kind of men needs to speak like that?

I'm sure

this man is richer than me.

Let's make a lot of money from him!

Thank you.

(Upright and Ambitious)

(Renewing of Mind, Talented and Virtuous) Sir, what would you like to order?

We have...

We don't need to see the samples.

We don't need the menu, either.

Just make three or four specialties

of the Flower and Moon Banquet.

And the amazing Styrax Curcuma Wine...

A pot of that, please.

You turn out to be gourmets.

What tea would you like, sir?

Dragon and Phoenix Ball Tea.

What about you?

Me?

People's tastes vary.

Don't bother about me.

How about this?

Your voice sounds a little bit husky.

Have some Licorice Drink to moisten your throat.

Please wait a moment.

Look. This room is elegantly decorated.

It gives a feeling of human touch.

These calligraphy and paintings look offbeat, too.

I quite agree.

This seems to be

a very good restaurant.

But Your Ma...

By riverside are cooing...

A pair of turtledoves.

Great.

You flatter me.

You've made progress.

I asked Sanniang to cook the dishes

for their meal herself.

But Pan'er,

who is that man?

Why must we treat him so respectfully?

I don't know who he is.

But I smelt the ambergris

from his robe.

I only smelt it from the pomander

Princess Qian gave Yinzhang.

He just looks like a big shot.

We must entertain him more warmly.

If the imperial clansman thinks highly of our restaurant,

maybe His Majesty will come tomorrow.

Right?

Styrax Curcuma Wine.

Moonlit Night over the Bridges.

It's made from fresh lotus root paste.

Where Can Seafarers Find Fairy Isles.

Tastes great. Great.

Isn't it just abalone in tofu?

I hear each piece costs 50 strings

in your restaurant.

You just gave it

an elegant name.

Isn't it way too expensive?

Poems in the Book of Poetry

eulogize the same people and things.

Court Hymns

are for kings and nations.

Ballads, however,

are only for common people.

This is great.

You've read the Book of Poetry?

A little bit.

The dishes are good.

Interesting.

But these are not dishes

for the Flower and Moon Banquet, right?

Besides,

why isn't Ms. Song playing pipa

in this room?

Oh, you noticed that.

When you came in,

I saw you putting your hand on your forehead.

And you ordered

Styrax Curcuma Wine.

I guess

you don't feel very well.

So, without your permission,

I asked our chef to make a few more signature dishes.

Moonlit Night over the Bridges.

It's made of lotus leaves and mints.

Where Can Seafarers Find Fairy Isles.

It's made of abalones.

They both work perfectly to relieve internal heat.

And Styrax Curcuma Wine is strong.

All together they make up a perfect meal.

It's so scrupulous of you.

Thank you for not blaming me.

As for pipa...

It's not that Ms. Song is loafing.

Actually, I think you're a quiet man.

So, I asked her to play the pipa outside the room

to harmonize with the night scenes.

Why do you think I'm a quiet man?

Because when I have a headache,

I don't want Ms. Song to practice pipa in my room, either.

Even if she's the coach at the Pipa Branch.

I'll just kick her out.

That's interesting.

Be seated and let's chat.

Ma'am,

what shall I call you?

Zhao is my family name.

The first name among Hundred Family Surnames.

What a coincidence!

We share

the same family name.

I'm honored.

You appear to be a long-lived and lucky man.

I'm a mere civilian.

All I can do is fill your cup here.

Where are you from?

I'm from Dengzhou.

I grew up in Qiantang County.

I've been in the Eastern Capital for less than half a year.

Qiantang County?

There's a Transport Assistant of Liangzhe Region,

Yang Zhiyuan.

He lived in Qiantang County, too.

Do you know him?

Chief.

Chief, something is fishy.

At sunset,

a carriage went out through Gongchen Gate.

Duty Officer Chen in the carriage held the token from His Majesty.

Guards at Gongchen Chen didn't dare to check the carriage, then.

But just now in the Imperial Garden,

two palace maids said

that His Majesty seemed to have left in disguise.

Did His Majesty ask for dinner tonight?

No.

It's the duty of the Imperial Guards to protect His Majesty.

But if His Majesty gets in trouble out of the Palace,

we can't get away, either.

Well, let's go separately.

I'm going to ask the Imperial Guards on duty.

And you...

Gather all the spies in the Eastern Palace to track down that carriage.

The bit of the imperial horse has double rings.

It's easy to tell.

Mr. Yang Zhiyuan is a good man.

Unfortunately, he died young.

Do you know him, too?

I often visited him before.

You often visited him?

I had a teahouse in Qiantang County.

It was a graceful place, too.

So, sometimes I served as a middleman

to identify paintings at his house.

He was a good customer.

He bought many masterpieces from me,

including Jing Hao's Snow Cottage,

Wang Ai's the Night Revels,

and Huai Su's Copybook of Chess.

Unfortunately,

a big fire burned all the works.

Burned...?

You sold the Night Revels to him?

The Night Revels was owned by a Mr. Xue.

He had a gambling debt in Qiantang County

and mortgaged the painting in my teahouse.

Wang Ai

drew a lot of paintings about night revels.

Even I have viewed quite a few.

I wonder

which one you sold to him.

You must be setting me up.

In Wang Ai's life,

he only painted one piece of the Night Revels.

Because after he painted it,

someone said that he copied

Gu Hongzhong's Night Revels of Han Xizai.

In a fit of anger,

Wang Ai said he would never draw anything like that again.

You think I just made that up, right?

I'll draw one.

Tea Art?

Yes.

But I prefer to call it Tea Painting.

The painting is as long as five chi. [*Five chi equals 1.6 meters.]

The host sits in the middle

with guests on his sides.

Here are some dancers.

And here's a bright moon.

Is this the painting you viewed?

It's a pity that the Tea Painting is too rough

to present the girls' Whirling Dance.

How long have you practiced the Tea Art?

Not a very long time.

For seven or eight years.

Sir,

when did you view the Night Revels?

I don't remember.

What a pity!

That big fire

burned so many famous paintings.

Don't laugh at me for feeling sorry.

When I asked the old artisan to remount the Night Revels,

It cost me a big sum.

Simply the green brocade

and the red sandalwood scrolls

cost me a string of coins.

Good. Very good.

I have other customers to entertain.

Please enjoy your meal.

All right.

He's indeed from the nobility.

He didn't speak loudly,

but he sounded rather powerful.

By his side, I felt...

Get out immediately.

You must find Chen Lian right now,

at whatever cost,

and ask him where Gu Qianfan is.

I've got

an utmost emergency

to tell Gu Qianfan to his face.

I'll go find Chen Lian now.

Give my order to Lei Jing.

Ask him to cooperate with you

and verify

whether Ms. Zhao just said

is true.

One more thing.

Don't get the Capital Security Office involved.

Aye.

Everything is tough.

I know very well

about the Empress's past.

But officials keep making an issue of it.

I feel so bad.

Don't worry, Your Majesty.

Anyway,

if Ms. Zhao can prove that the painting is fake,

she'll make a great contribution

and Scholar Ministers will have nothing to argue, right?

Just because she made you tea,

you're already putting in a good word for her?

I don't dare.

Think about it, Your Majesty.

Ouyang Xu was well prepared to see you.

But you came to Yong'an Restaurant

on a last-minute plan.

If you hadn't mentioned Mr. Yang Zhiyuan,

I'm afraid Ms. Zhao

wouldn't have said the following words.

Your Majesty, you heard about this painting before.

But it's understandable

that you got angry when seeing it personally.

When Censor Qi returned to the Eastern Capital,

he voluntarily offered the auspicious thing.

Your Majesty, there must be something fishy.

In the past decades,

you've learned something from me.

No offense,

but Her Majesty adopted Prince Sheng

under your secret command.

Now, you're in poor health.

If Her Majesty falls from power because of this,

a young prince and powerful officials...

I don't even dare to think about it.

Go.

Aye.

Sir, why are you already leaving?

Do you not like the dishes?

Don't get me wrong. The dishes are great.

But the headache

just hit me again.

Chi, go get a pot of Styrax Curcuma Wine.

Take it as a treat, sir.

Please frequent here for the wine.

I will.

You're indeed a wise businesswoman.

Go. Go get the wine.

Commissioner,

Commandant Chen found that carriage

near Yong'an Restaurant

and some Armed Imperial Guards.

When my father was tired,

he often had a headache, too.

Why don't you try the hot compress

with a handkerchief soaked in boiled ginger soup?

Maybe it'll work.

Sure. I'll try it when I'm back home.

Your restaurant

looks very good.

Could you tell me

why a girl like you

wanted to open a restaurant?

One of our waitresses is named Zhaodi.

My name is Pan'er.

The two names have the same meaning,

"Expecting a son."

Because only men can have a career.

But women like us aren't inferior to men.

Why must we be born to be humble?

According to the restaurant guild,

women can't be the owner of a restaurant.

But I insist on being one.

And I'll do better than male owners.

You remind me of a lady.

Your tone is

just like hers.

You're my empress.

We're a unity.

Who dares to convict you?

Ke Zheng did.

Qi Mu does now.

All these Scholar Ministers

think I'm usurping your power.

They can't wait to kill me.

Did this lady

have any career later?

She's helping me

manage a large family

and she's doing great.

So, she's your wife?

Then you should protect her more.

It's hard for a woman to manage a family.

Besides, whoever manages a family

easily offends others.

Is anyone protecting you now?

Someone did.

But no one does it now.

He must be a bad man, then.

Perhaps.

But he was nice to me once.

At least, he didn't mind that I was a pariah

and he truly wanted to marry me.

So,

I don't want to hate him.

You used to be a pariah, too?

Yes.

You can't see that, huh?

So, I always wish

His Majesty health and happiness.

If he hadn't granted an amnesty,

I wouldn't have been able to come here

and experience the prosperity here,

not to mention this big restaurant.

Oh, yeah.

Sir!

Sir!

Sorry to have kept you waiting.

It's Styrax Curcuma Wine, the specialty of our restaurant.

Here's your wine.

All right.

Thank you.

Miss, don't bother to walk us out.

We should go.

Money, money.

I'm sure we made money from this meal.

That man has good taste.

He ordered a table of dishes.

It's all right to give him the extra wine.

Pan'er.

Yes.

Zhaodi asked me to tell you something.

Chen Lian told her

that the customer was His Majesty.

His Majesty?

What about Gu Qianfan?

Did Chen Lian say where he is?

According to Chen Lian, His Majesty left the Palace secretly.

Commissioner Gu must have been informed

and he's coming this way.

If not the Capital Security Office, the guys around His Majesty,

must be from the Office of Imperial Guards.

Maybe they're still nearby.

Ask Zhaodi to find Chen Lian

and tell him to withdraw his men.

They mustn't let His Majesty know

that his whereabouts have been exposed to the Capital Security Office.

All right.

Lend me your carriage.

We must stop Gu Qianfan before he arrives here.

We can't let him come here.

All right. I'll go with you.

Few people will be involved, then.

I'll go get the carriage. Wait for me at the alley door.

I don't mean to boast,

but in the Eastern Capital, few people drive better than I do.

Could you be faster?

You're in the carriage. Safety comes first.

Why are you holding a hamper?

My carriage is way too ostentatious.

Many people can recognize it.

In case people suspect anything,

I came up with a good idea.

(Yong'an Restaurant) With a lantern hanging there

and a hamper in hand,

people will only think

that I'm doing food delivery.

It's quite thoughtful of you.

By the way, when you see Gu Qianfan,

just get straight to the point.

Don't get soft-hearted.

Don't give him any chances, either.

Or you would be heartbroken again.

Yong'an Restaurant

uses such a luxurious carriage for food delivery.

It must be the one and only in the Eastern Capital.

Yeah.

(Yong'an Restaurant)

(Wang Feng, owner of Wang's Restaurant) Go purchase some good carriages.

The best ones.

Hang our lanterns on them, too.

Tomorrow, we'll also do food delivery like this.

Come with me.

Make way, please.

Pan'er!

Pan'er?

Get out of my way. I'm looking for someone.

Get out of my way.

Where has she gone?

What happened?

Are you all right?

I'm all right.

The Night Revels appeared again.

When that man mentioned Mr. Yang Zhiyuan,

I knew he must be the Emperor.

Later, I thought about it.

Ouyang Xu suddenly returned to the Eastern Capital,

probably because he found

the Night Revels that he thought he didn't have.

It's very likely

that His Majesty knew everything from him.

The painting...

The painting Ouyang Xu holds is authentic?

Then how dare you

lie to His Majesty?

I didn't have a choice.

That was an emergency.

I told Ouyang Xu

the Capital Security Office was looking for this painting.

And he's probably aware of our relationship.

What if he wants to take revenge

and tells His Majesty

that you work for the Empress Party

and try to exonerate Her Majesty?

Like you said,

the Capital Security Office must be loyal to His Majesty alone

and can't be involved in any political struggles.

So, I had to lie about the color of the front mounting.

We must convince His Majesty

that Ouyang Xu faked the painting.

Yang Zhiyuan and his family have been burned, anyway.

Dead men tell no tales.

Anyway, His Majesty doesn't know

I recognized him.

Two pieces of evidence.

One is from

his consort's nephew-in-law who impeached his empress.

The other is from

a stranger he ran across.

If you were His Majesty, who would you trust?

Nevertheless,

this is way too risky.

There are many flaws.

This risk is worth taking.

I'm telling you this

because only you can mend the flaws.

I'll leave the rest to you.

All in all,

you mustn't let His Majesty know

that you know his secret visit to Yong'an Restaurant tonight.

You already got yourself involved.

You know?

As such an insider,

don't you fear

that His Majesty may kill you?

Why did you do such a stupid thing?

Because once the Empress is convicted,

she'll be executed.

I used to be a music performer, too.

I understand she didn't have a choice.

Another reason...

I hate you,

but I don't want you to die.

Pan'er.

Ouch!

♪A feeling of depression♪

♪Falls on those will part just like moonlight♪

♪How can we forget each other♪

♪Wind blows and time flies♪

♪When the splendor fades away only the smell lingers♪

♪In the corner of memories there are sad moments♪

♪Emotions go on and on♪

♪Because time is short but love is hot♪

♪Stars wink for you♪

♪Romance is crazy about you♪

♪Who even waits for you♪

♪Until the end of her life♪

♪When I look back one day♪

♪I'll let go of everything♪

♪I'll hold your hand and never let you down♪

♪Ah Ah Ah♪

♪When our eyes get wet with tears for each other♪

♪Ah Ah Ah♪

♪I'll enjoy a simple life with you♪