Cut the excuses.
Where did this stinking man come from?
How dare he step onto the Manor grounds!
Hasn't he heard that
all men who come without permission
will have their legs amputated by me
to be used as fertilizer?
I am Duan Yu.
I seek asylum within your Manor.
I had no intention of intruding.
Please, Madam, forgive me.
Your surname is Duan.
Yes.
Such a rude person.
I shall amputate his feet first,
then dig his eyes out
and sever his tongue.
Let's go!
Madam!
I...
Xiao Si.
Madam.
lt wasn't easy to obtain these four Manyue Mountain tea plants.
Take good care of them.
Yes, ma'am.
The wind is strong on the lake,
so these flowers have been in the ship's
hold for a few days without sunlight.
Be sure to place them in the sun
with some extra fertilizers.
Yes, ma'am.
What are you laughing at?
I'm laughing at you.
You don't understand mountain tea flowers,
and yet you insist on planting them.
A fine specimen like this,
falling into your hands...
What a pity! What a pity!
I don't understand mountain tea flowers...
Don't tell me you do?
This is Man Luo Manor.
We have all kinds of Man Luo flowers planted within and without the Manor.
Saying I don't understand mountain tea flowers...
Common flowers and weeds can grow in the wild by themselves.
These four tea plants are phenomenal.
If you, an amateur, can succeed in keeping them alive,
then my name is not Duan.
Then tell me, what is so different
about my four tea plants?
How should I plant them, in order for them to grow well?
If you wish to learn,
you should have the mannerism of someone asking a favor.
If you wish to force me with beatings,
then you can ask me again
after you amputate my legs.
And amputating your legs is a difficult thing?
Xiao Si!
Cut off his left leg first,
and send it to the fertilizer room to be made into fertilizer.
Madam!
You cannot!
This man is extremely stubborn.
lf you force him like this,
then he'd rather die than say anything.
Then forget it.
That's right.
You must treat me well.
When I'm finally in a good mood again,
I might even consider
teaching you how to grow these flowers.
What nonsense are you spouting?
What is so special about these
four tea plants of mine?
Go ahead and tell me.
If you're right,
then I can start treating you well.
Madam, you said these four tea plants were all Manyue plants.
You had it wrong from the beginning!
You don't even recognize these flowers,
so how can you cultivate them?
Let me tell you...
This one is known as "Hiding Flaws With Blush."
This one is "Clawing a Beauty's Face to Scratches."
"Clawing a Beauty's Face to Scratches"...
What a strange name.
Which one is it?
If you insist upon asking, you need to be more polite.
Very well.
Xiao Si.
Instruct the kitchen
to prepare a banquet at Yun Mian Hall to welcome this gentleman.
Yes, ma'am.
This way, please.
The Duans of Dali are well-known martial artists.
So why are you not versed in martial arts?
There are too many Duans in this world.
Only the royal family learns martial arts.
An ordinary citizen like me
wouldn't learn something like that.
You are merely an ordinary citizen?
Yes.
Then, do you know any of the
royal Duans from Dali?
I don't.
Earlier, when you were introducing the various types of tea flowers to me,
it opened my eyes.
These four white mountain tea plants...
The botanist in Su Zhou called them all "Manyue."
But you said that
one of them is "Hiding Flaws With Blush,"
and another is "Clawing a Beauty's Face to Scratches."
Can you tell me
how did you differentiate them?
The large white flowers
with the black spots are Manyue.
The black spots
are like the craters in the moon.
The other large white flowers
with two olive-seed-like spots
are called "The Slender Eyebrows."
That's a good name.
There are some wine red speckles on the petals here.
So, "Hiding Flaws with Blush."
If the petals have a smudge of green and strips of red
then it is "Clawing a Beauty's Face to Scratches."
But if there are more red strips,
then it's not called that;
It would be a "Lovable Railing Leaner"!
Madam, think about it.
A beautiful woman
would naturally be serene and elegant.
If her face were scratched
because the beauty always fought with others,
then what beauty would she have?
Are you making fun of me?
l wouldn't dare!
l don't know how I offended Madam.
Take him away!
From now on,
let him become a flower cultivator
and fertilizer administrator at the Manor.
He is never to leave!
Yes, ma'am!
Madam!
BLUEMAX
The tea flowers of these kind are the best.
Cousin...
You haven't visited me at the Manor in such a long time.
How are you doing?
I'm fine.
Oh, right.
You asked Ah Zhu to give me a message.
What is the matter?
Cousin, what have you been doing lately?
Nothing much.
Ah Zhu has already told me.
Why are you keeping it from me?
Since you already know everything,
then why are you asking me?
You are practicing the skills of the Beggar Sect, right?
It must be hard work.
It's all worth it, since I am doing it for the glory of my ancestors.
But the skills of the Beggar Sect cannot
be mastered through shortcuts.
Some of the skills require speed, while others--
I know what to do!
Don't worry about me.
I know you're doing this for my own good.
If there's nothing else,
I'll be going.
Don't go, cousin!
Cousin!
Lady.
Don't be sad.
Who is planting flowers here?
My Lady.
It was the order of Madam Xiao Shen Feng
that I plant some tea flowers here.
Who are you?
Sister Goddess...
I've missed you so much.
Your disciple, Duan Yu,
pays his respect to Master.
What are you doing?
My Lady,
He's the bookworm Ah Zhu brought here.
He said he knew how to cultivate tea flowers,
so Madam believed his nonsense.
You idiot.
Who asked you to address me with such familiarity?
Why did you call me "Sister Goddess"?
What else should I call you
if I don't call you Sister Goddess?
My surname is Wang.
Call me Ms. Wang if you like.
No, no, no!
There are so many ladies by the name of Wang.
A lady as beautiful as a goddess, like yourself...
If I don't call you Sister Goddess,
then I'll call you Goddess Wang!
That sounds so unrefined.
How about Princess Man Luo?
Not good.
Great Song,
Dali,
Laos,
Tu Fan,
and Xi Xia...
Which country would be without a princess?
And which one is comparable to you?
But nobody has ever told me
whether or not I am beautiful.
ln the Manor of Man Luo,
other than my mother and me,
the rest are all maids and servants.
They only treat me as a mistress to serve.
Who cares if I am beautiful or ugly?
What about outsiders?
What outsiders?
You should get out into the world.
Once others glance upon your beautiful, heavenly face,
they will praise you to the ends of the earth,
and even worship you.
But I've never gone outside before.
My mother would never allow me.
Even when I go to the Pavilion of Returning Waters to read the books,
I wouldn't meet any outsiders there.
Only some of my cousin's friends.
But...
They're not like you,
so silly and clumsy.
I see.
What a pity.
This is truly a pity.
That was Sir Mu Rong just now?
Yes.
He is my cousin, Mu Rong Fu.
I hear that he has great fame in the world of martial arts.
Have you heard of him before?
Do you mean that Sir Mu Rong
has never praised you for your beauty before?
When he is together with me,
he only speaks of martial arts scrolls
or the affairs of the country.
But I...
I despise martial arts.
I only forced myself to read
many books of martial arts so I could complement him.
Frankly speaking, I have absolutely
no interest in these at all.
That's great...
I hate martial arts, too.
My father and my uncle are always
making me learn martial arts.
But...
I could never get the hang of it.
I would rather sneak out than train.
Actually...
You're quite remarkable since you are willing to read
so much to please your cousin.
Ever since my uncle passed away,
my mom has been quarrelling with my aunt,
so she won't even allow my cousin to visit.
We can only meet in secret.
But even at our rare meetings,
he's still thinking of the scrolls
and affairs of the country.
What about your father?
He died before
I was even born.
I never even met him.
Your aunt is the elder sister of your father...
your uncle is her husband...
so your cousin is your aunt's son.
Yes.
I am my mother's daughter.
He is my cousin.
Look at how silly you are!
Saying such useless words.
All right.
I've spent too much time here.
I have to go.
Mother.
What did you wish to speak to me about?
If it has anything to do with the Mu Rong family,
I will not listen to it.
Mother...
This time...
how are you intending on punishing Ah Zhu and Ah Bi?
Those two servant girls?
The longer they stay in the Mu Rong family,
the worse they get.
They even dared to bring a strange man to our Manor.
I'll have to chop off their arms.
Mother...
Ah Zhu and Ah Bi really
have their reasons this time.
They didn't do it on purpose.
Please let them go.
How do you know they didn't do it on purpose?
You're afraid that if I chopped off their arms,
your cousin would no longer care for you.
ls that it?
But this time,
I'm doing it precisely because I don't want him to care for you anymore.
Mother!
He is your own nephew!
Why do you hate him so much?
Even if it was Aunt who offended you,
you have no reason to hate Cousin!
All right.
I do not wish to say any more.
You may leave now.
Yes, Mother.
Mother!
I'm begging you
to let Ah Zhu and Ah Bi go.
Just order them to never
return here in the future for any reason.
That's enough.
I've already made up my mind.
No amount of begging with change it.
I know why you hate Aunt...
and why you hate Cousin.
Ms. Wang!
What's wrong?
My mother said that she would chop off
Ah Zhu and Ah Bi's arms because of you.
What?
She wouldn't listen, no matter what I said.
What should we do?
Ms. Wang, please,
help me think of something!
Mother wouldn't give in.
How can I be of help now?
She obviously wants to go against my cousin.
This time, my cousin is going up against the Beggar Sect.
He may be in danger.
I thought I'd ask my mother to help him,
but now, it looks like
that is impossible.
Mr. Mu Rong is in danger.
You know so much martial arts...
Why don't you go help him?
I only know the theories.
I don't know how to apply them.
And besides, how can I even leave?
My mother would never allow me to go.
Then, just sneak out!
Don't let your mother find out.
Just like me.
Sneak out without anybody knowing.
You are right.
All right.
Let's rescue Ah Zhu and Ah Bi first.
Then we'll go with them together to find my cousin.
So it's you, my Lady.
Please come in.
Yan-mama,
my mother asked me to come
to bring Ah Zhu and Ah Bi to her.
She has something to say to them.
Is that so?
All right, my Lady.
Help me tie them both up together.
Then you can take them away.
Here is the rope.
Yan-mama!
What are you doing?
Madam Wang has already said
she would kill these two girls to make plant fertilizers.
How could she change her mind?
My Lady,
you underestimate me.
Who are you?
Sir Duan!
Forget about who I am.
Let Ms. Wang go!
You little rascal!
What are you doing?
Let go!
Let Ah Zhu and Ah Bi go first!
All right!
Sir Duan,
How is it that you know the Great Astrological Vacuum?
It's such a ruthless skill.
Oh...
This is my family's Six Sun Melting Snow skill.
It's completely different from the Great Astrological Vacuum.
After all... after all...
when there is evil, there is good.
You cannot put them together, can you?
Hurry!
Let's go!
Hurry!
Where should we go?
We're going to find my cousin.
Right.
We'll go find our master.
Sir Duan,
what about you?
Me?
I'm willing to accompany and protect you three ladies.
All right.
Then first, let's return to my place,
the Pavilion of Fragrant Waters.
Then we can go find Master.
Ms. Ah Zhu.
What is it?
Wait.
Why are there so many boats
outside my house?
Who's here?
Let's go take a look.
What tricks are the Mu Rong family up to now?
They left an empty house.
There's not even a single soul around!
I think they must be afraid of us,
so they found some hole to hide in.
No matter what,
I'm staying here
until that moron shows his face.
Let's go in.
Who are you people?
What are you doing here?
I am the owner of this place.
What do you think I'm doing here?
I'd like to counter by asking
who you people are?
What you're doing here?
You're the owner of this place?
Then that's great.
You are the Lady of the Mu Rong family?
l am but a servant.
How could I be a Lady?
And who might you be?
You haven't told me yet.
Get your master out here.
Our master has left on a journey.
Whatever business you have with him,
you can just tell me.
I am Yao Bo Dang, the caretaker of the Tai family stronghold in Yun Zhou.
I've heard of your great name.
You're just a young girl...
what could you know?
The most famous skill from the Tai family stronghold in Yun Zhou
is the Sword of Five Tigers Breaking Doors.
Tai Gong Wang the senior created this
sword skill with 64 stances.
Later, his descendants forgot five stances,
so only 59 stances were passed on.
May I inquire as to how many stances you have learned?
How did you know that the Tai family stronghold's
Sword of Five Tigers Breaking Doors has 64 stances?
The books recorded it as thus.
It should be accurate, right?
The five missing skills are
White Tiger Leaps the Brook,
A Roar of Change,
Divisive Attack of Will,
Male Heroes Gather at the Mountain...
And the fifth skill should be Mutual Blessings Cautiously Bestowed.
Isn't that right?
These five stances
are the most important in our sword skill.
They've been missing for years.
Even I don't know these five skills,
so how could a little girl like you know?
The Sword of Five Tigers Breaking Doors of the Tai family
lacks those five skills.
Caretaker Yao strives to help,
but probably can't remember any more.
This lady here...
how are you related to Mr. Mu Rong Bo?
The elder Mu Rong was my uncle.
What is your great name?
You have a deep knowledge of martial arts.
I would have to ask the lady to guess.
Then please show me some moves.
Just based on your words alone,
l can't guess it.
Of course.
This is the Formation of Thunder.
I think your expertise is in Qinggong and secret weapons.
Formation of Thunder is the principal skill of the Qingcheng sect in Si Chuan's Qingcheng Mountain.
Qing's Nine Strikes
and Cheng's Eighteen Breaks...
they are difficult to predict.
Is your surname Sima?
Mu Rong of Gusu...
Your martial arts is peerless.
You live up to your name.
l am Sima Lin.
My lady, are there really nine strikes in Qing
and are there really eighteen breaks in Cheng?
That's a good question.
I've always felt there should be ten strikes in Qing,
since the shapes of the metal herb and the metal lotus
dictate that their usage must be different;
you cannot group them together.
As for the eighteen breaks to the city...
The three skills of destruction for sign, shield and armor
aren't anything special.
It is as if they were purposely used to make the number equal eighteen.
It's probably more suitable to call it Fifteen Breaks.
All right.
You've tested us enough.
What are you doing here?
Surely you can tell us now.
Of course we have an important agenda.
We must meet the master of the Mu Rong family.
If Sir Mu Rong is not around,
we will continue to wait here.
Who the hell do you think you are?
You think you're fit to wait here?
Is it Third Brother Bao?
No, not at all!
I'm not Third Brother Bao.
You're not Third Brother Bao?
Your "not at all" gave you away at once!
What do you mean, "not at all"?
Mocking us...
Come out now!
Third Brother Bao,
you came just in time.
These people barged into Sister Ah Zhu's house.
We were just discussing how we should deal with them.
Sima Lin from Qingcheng.
What is your name,
so that I can--
You think you are fit to ask
my name, just the two of you?
Did you not hear what Ms. Wang said?
This is the house of my younger sister, Ah Zhu.
What right do you have to barge in here?
You, Bao...
I'll give in to you.
I know that I am not your match.
But today, I came to seek revenge for
the death of my junior disciple.
Whether or not he really died by the hand of the Mu Rong family...
I'll have to ask you to tell me the truth, Mr. Bao.
Mr. Bao the Third,
I, Sima Lin, did not come here
for anything else
but to ask this:
Was my father really killed by the Mu Rongs?
What a joke!
A couple of worthless pieces of meat like you...
Why don't you take a good look at yourselves and see if you're worthy?
How dare you interrogate me, Bao the Third?
Normally speaking,
I'd carve you into strips
and feed you to the dogs.
But I'm afraid I'll dirty my sister's
Pavilion of Fragrant Waters.
Forget it.
All of you, get lost now,
before I lose my temper.
Get lost!
Let's go!
Stop!
Sima Lin.
Yao Bo Dang.
Wash your ears out and listen properly:
Whether it was your stupid father
or your bumpkin of a disciple,
neither of them were killed by the Mu Rongs.
Master Sima.
Master Yao.
The Mu Rongs of Gusu have no quarrel with you.
If we really killed your people,
why would we spare your life?
Just like now,
If Third Brother Bao wanted to kill all of you,
it wouldn't be a difficult matter.
Therefore,
someone must have done this deed secretly
and pushed the blame onto us.
Please everybody,
carefully investigate the matter again.
Well?
What should be said has been said,
so why are you still loitering around?
Let's go!
Who is this fellow?
Shall we make him get lost too?
This is Sir Duan from Dali.
Today, Ah Zhu, Ah Bi and I
were caught by Yan-mama.
It's thanks to him that we were rescued.
Come.
Cheers!
Sometime ago,
there were many people in the martial arts world
who died by their own famous skills.
It must be some petty asshole
with some kind of enmity toward the Mu Rongs
who secretly did all this,
pushing all the blame
onto the name of Mu Rong of Gusu instead.
Then, who do you think
would have this animosity toward us?
First,
it can't be Shaolin.
Those monks would never kill their own.
Second,
it can't be the Beggar Sect.
Their Deputy Chief Ma was also
killed by the Throat-Lock skill lately.
The Throat-Lock skill is the skill Deputy Ma was famous for.
But just like Shaolin,
the Beggar Sect couldn't have sacrificed their own deputy chief
just to make us seem guilty.
Brother Duan.
You keep nodding your head,
so I'm sure you think Mr. Bao the Third
is saying reasonable things.
No, not at all.
First,
I only nodded once.
I did not continually nod.
Second,
I only meant to agree with the facts,
and not to say your statements were reasonable.
This move of yours
is letting me having a taste of my own medicine, eh?
What?
Did you want to come
under the mantel of the Mu Rongs of Gusu?
Have you set your eyes on
my house's Ah Bi?
Third Brother...
You're talking nonsense again.
It's not like I offended you.
I received a messenger pigeon from the Master.
The Beggar Sect has a lot of disciples headed for Jiangnan.
Most of them are against us.
Feng the Fourth wanted to fight,
so he went on ahead to Wuxi
to meet up with the Master.
I was afraid the Beggar Sect would carry out a sneak attack on this place,
so I rushed back to take a look.
After that, I'm rushing over there too.
Master has sent news.
He snatched it away.
The Master sends word
that a lot of experts have suddenly
appeared in Xixia.
We don't know if they are friend or foe.
He wants me to take Ah Zhu and Ah Bi
to check out the situation first.
Ms. Wang, will you come with us?
Of course I will!
But...
But why would the Hall of Yipin in Xixia
be against us as well?
Our enemies are becoming more and more.
With Ms. Wang traveling with us,
she'll only need to glance a few times
and we'll be able to completely understand the enemy's background.
When this matter is over,
we will rush to Jiangnan
to meet up with the Master.
Really?
That's great!
Let's set off now.
I'm just afraid that if Ms. Wang comes with us,
the next Madam Wang sees me,
she will give me a fierce lecture.
You're always sitting here!
I can't speak freely at all!
You, Duan!
You should just go ahead.
We're having a discussion here.
We don't need your extra pair of ears
or your extra mouth.
When we go fight,
we won't need you there, either,
just sitting around, watching the show.
Ms. Wang.
Ah Zhu, Ah Bi.
I'll be taking my leave.
See you again.
Mr. Duan,
it's already so late.
Where will you go?
You're not familiar with the
water routes here.
Why don't you
stay here for the night,
then leave tomorrow?
It won't be too late then.
Today or
tomorrow...
I'll have to leave anyway.
Farewell.
Wait.
l'll have my servants escort you through the lake.
There's no need.
Just lend me a small boat.
I will paddle my own way out.
That Tu Fan monk today,
I don't know where he came from.
We'll have to look into that, too.
When we meet up with Cousin,
everything will become clear.
BLUEMAX
Sir, what will you have?
Just some small dishes and a bottle of wine.
All right.
Coming!
Sir,
your wine,
your dishes.
Please enjoy your meal.
Waiter!
Put that gentleman's tab
on my own.
All right.
Reporting to the Chief!
The other party will be meeting tomorrow morning
at Huishan Liang Pavilion.
It seems a little rushed.
I thought they would meet three days later.
But...
the opponent seems to know our people haven't all shown up yet.
They even sarcastically
said that they didn't dare honor the appointment,
and that they don't have to go tomorrow.
Tell the brothers
that tonight, at midnight,
we will gather at Huishan.
We'll get there first
and wait for them to come.
Yes, sir!
My friend.
Please come and have a drink with me.
Sure!
Might I ask your name?
Why do you ask when you already know?
Let's enjoy a few big bowls of wine first.
When we fight each other later,
there won't be anything to talk about.
My friend, you must have the wrong person,
to think of me as an enemy.
But in the spirit of enjoyment,
I'll toast a cup to you first.
You're pretty energetic.
But your wine bowl is too small.
Waiter!
Bring big bowls!
And ten big jars of good wine!
Sir...
can you finish ten big jars of wine?
This young sir is treating.
You don't have to save his money for him.
If ten isn't enough, we'll go for twenty!
Yes, yes!
Fill up two bowls!
All right
Let's drink up ten bowls first, what do you say?
All right!
l'll accompany you all the way!
But don't blame me if you
get drunk later.
Energetic fellow!
Come!
Good wine!
Cheers!
You can hold your liquor pretty well.
Interesting.
Come on.
Someone like me,
my wine drinking changes according to the company I keep.
A wine buddy thinks a thousand cups to be too few.
The people I've met these few days
were either shady and hesistant
or sarcastic and harsh.
Only you
can be said to be a man among the men!
I'll toast a cup
to you, my brother!
A wine buddy thinks a thousand cups to be too few, indeed.
One more!
Just like the sea!
Good drinking!
You've got a hero's drinking ability!
I don't think they'll even stop at twenty jars!
l've never seen anyone
drink so much in my life before!
Come on!
All right!
One more!
Counting back,
we've had about forty bowls.
You haven't drank too much.
Your mind is pretty clear.
You could say we're even.
lt may not be so easy
to decide on the winner.
But if we continue to drink,
I'm afraid I might not have enough money for the wine.
All right!
Come on!
Let's leave!
Let's go!
Thank you for your business!
My friend,
let's compare leg power.
All right.
Let's go!
Mu Rong of Gusu,
you live up to your name.
My name is Duan Yu.
Brother,
you've got the wrong person.
Are you not Sir Mu Rong Fu?
This is my first time in Jiangnan.
I've heard of Mu Rong's name everyday.
A pity, I have never met him.
You said that your name
was Qiao Feng?
It is.
My name is Qiao Feng.
I am from Dali.
This is my first time in Jiangnan.
It's an honor for me to be able to
meet up with a hero
like Brother Qiao.
So you're a disciple of the Duan lineage from Dali.
What are you doing in Jiangnan?
Well...
it's a long story.
Then tell me slowly.
Your wine tolerance is strong.
And you are energetic too.
You emit a heroic aura.
I have met countless people,
but there are few whom I have
been really impressed with.
Brother,
I wish to become sworn brothers with you.
What do you say?
I would be more than honored!
I, Qiao Feng...
I, Duan Yu...
Today, we swear a brotherly pact.
Although we were not born on the same day of the same month of the same year,
let us we die on the same day of the same month of the same year.
Big Brother.
My brother.
Big Brother,
I overheard in Songhe Inn that
you had an appointment with someone tonight.
Although I do not know martial arts,
I would love to go mingle with the crowd.
I wonder if you have any objections?
Of course you may come.
But the opponents are skilled and venomous.
You have to be careful for yourself.
l will listen to your instructions, Big Brother.
Let's go!
My brother,
since it is still early,
why don't we return to Wuxi
and drink some more
before we head for Huishan?
Big Brother,
our previous bet with wine...
actually, it was nothing but a facade.
I used my internal strength
to force the wine out through my fingertips.
Big Brother, you really had forty cups of wine.
I only had a bit of wine washing my stomach.
I say, my brother,
is that internal strength of yours
the Sacred Sword of Liu Mai?
It is.
I only learned it a while ago,
so I'm not very proficient with it yet.
Is that so?
I remember hearing my master mention
that the Duans of Dali have a superb skill
called the Sacred Sword of Liu Mai.
It can hurt people using incorporeal swords.
I didn't know if that was true or false...
Is there really such a skill in this world?
Actually, besides using this skill to cheat when
gambling on drinking with you,
there's really no big use for it.
Last time,
when I was taken hostage by that Tu Fan monk named Jiu Mo Zhi,
I was unable to fight back at all!
Everybody thinks too highly
of the Sacred Sword.
Big Brother,
I think wine hurts the body,
so you should stop drinking for tonight.
You give good advice.
But brother, I have loved wine since I was young,
and I get more energetic with wine.
Before meeting with the enemy tonight,
I must have a good drink.
Then I will meet them head-on.
Let's go!