I beg you, don't climb out of the well.
I know I'm the culprit.
But if you scare me to death, who will burn joss money for you.
So it's you.
What do you mean?
You still want to run?
We heard everything. So you killed Xu Shumei.
You went into our accounts office to steal.
So you'd have money to buy antique jade.
You followed me?
Don't blame my wife for doing that.
You committed a crime, made a mistake and aroused suspicion.
Runzhi treats you like her own sister. You made her a scapegoat?
You're just going to sit back and watch her get executed. Are you human?
You better tell us what happened.
Talk.
OK. I'll talk.
That night after you had all gone to bed I went into the accounts office to steal.
When I came out, I saw her there.
What happened then?
We bargained.
But we couldn't agree on the cut. So we fought.
What did you kill her with?
A hairpin.
Where's the hairpin now?
I hid it under the tree.
Don't think you can get away.
Ever since I killed her, I haven't been able to sleep at night.
I always feel that she's staring at me from somewhere.
Honey.
Xu Shumei will follow you around for the rest of your life.
Found it
Good. There's concrete evidence now. You don't need to say anything.
Let's take her to court. Go.
Go.
So the killer is Mrs. Su's good friend Liu Yue'e.
There were so many twists and turns.
Thanks to Officer Su's persistence, Mrs. Su has been proven innocent.
You should say I had foresight. I insisted on locking up Mrs. Su
so that the killer would relax and make mistakes.
Your trick to trap the killer was smart.
But on second thought,
I still doubt if Liu Yue'e is really the killer.
Could it be possible that...?
I heard that the wooden hairpin used to kill was found.
Let the Ministry of Justice conduct the investigation then.
You heard? Did you go see Su Dongpo?
I'm a good girl.
You said I shouldn't go to Su Mansion.
So I haven't been.
Your Majesty,
the butler at Waterside Cottage is Officer Su's brother-in-law.
That's why master knows what's going on.
I see. Why didn't you mention that before?
Why would I talk about someone else's family affairs?
That's more important.
Right. Do you like the cups and plates?
I like everything you pick.
I wish the wedding day could come sooner. Then you'll forever be mine.
Su Mansion.
Mom.
Mai.
I miss you so much.
I miss you too.
Why are you so much thinner?
Don't worry. Dad has prepared a lot of food for you today.
Really?
Yes.
Honey.
Master.
Sis Runzhi.
Sis Mi.
You're home?
It's really great that you're home. We were so worried. How's Liu Yue'e now?
Why mention her? She went to visit you in jail.
I thought she had repented. Actually she's incorrigible
Master, do you know who will try this case? Can you please mitigate for Yue'e?
Sis Runzhi, you almost got beheaded because of her. You still want to help her?
But she and I grew up together.
Honey, there's concrete evidence. She's guilty.
Even if she gets sentenced to death, she's asked for it.
No one can help her.
Mom, don't be so upset please.
I'm not.
I've made this for you.
What?
I used the fur on the collar of two cotton jackets to make this.
You don't need to worry about the cold anymore.
Thank you, Mai. You're so nice and lovely.
We're so glad you're home.
Let's go worship and pray in a couple of days.
OK.
This is really so surprising. I can't believe the killer is Liu Yue'e.
Your wife is really smart. Otherwise Mrs. Su would have been executed.
Honey saved Sis Runzhi and found the person who killed Shumei.
I hope Shumei will be grateful to her.
I knew the lioness was a shrew. I didn't expect she'd be so fierce.
Hey, I want to buy a bun.
Walk.
What do you guys want?
Brother Jichang?
Walk...Walk faster...
Walk faster.
Hey, what's the matter?
Walk.
What do you want?
You have to repay.
What do you mean repay?
You're still pretending?
Stop it.
What's going on?
His wife owes us money. He has to pay for her.
Wait a second. I divorced Liu Yue'e a while ago.
Were no longer husband and wife. Her problem is not my concern
I don't care.
That woman was arrested right after she borrowed money from us.
So you have to repay it for her.
Hey...
Stop it. He's not the debtor. Liu Yue'e borrowed money from you.
You should go to jail and ask her to repay.
Stop harassing other people or I'll have all of you arrested.
Who are you?
He's Qin Shaoyou, a government official. I'm the jail supervisor Hong Si.
I'll beat up you two...Ouch...
Do you want to be arrested?
No...Help...
There's a court nearby...Get lost.
Let's go...
Brother Jichang, did Yue'e borrow the money?
Brother Jichang, are you OK?
Thank you, Brother Shaoyou.
My ex-wife killed yours. But you still helped me. I...
That's a separate issue.
They shouldn't ask you to repay for her.
Are you supposed to be Name for Shumei's death too?
This isn't your fault.
But Yue'e ended up like this. I'm responsible.
Was your wife this fierce before, if you don't mind my asking?
Si, don't ask...
OK. Just forget my question.
Goodbye.
A woman mustn't marry a bad husband and a man mustn't marry a bad woman.
Life's really a joke.
It seems you're talking about me too.
No, I'm not. Hey, what should we do with the IOU?
IOU. I, Liu Yue'e, have borrowed from the financial institution of Gao Litai.
20,000 copper coins.
The monthly interest is 30 percent, payable every month.
I will pay back in full both the principal and interest in three months.
In witness whereof this agreement is executed
On the 15th day of June in Year Ji-Mei.
This is odd. Look at the date.
Yue'e had just stolen several hundred thousand copper coins.
Then she borrowed from a loan shark again a couple of days later?
Why are you here? Who told you to come?
Don't worry. Shumei didn't come into my dream.
I came on my own accord.
What do you want?
Your creditors asked Chen Jichang to repay your debt because he's your husband.
Oh? He and Damei are so much in love.
Now he has a chance to repay my debt for me
They can face this problem together.
Why did you borrow from a loan shark?
I needed money.
You needed money?
You had stolen several hundred thousand copper coins from Su Mansion.
That can last a long time.
It's easy for the frugal to become extravagant but not vice versa.
I'm a spendthrift. I wear nice clothes and eat good food.
I use the best things.
It's so easy to spend all those several hundred thousand copper coins.
You only borrowed a small sum of 20,000 copper coins.
It's exactly what you paid for the deposit
to buy the piece of antique jade.
That piece of antique jade costs 200,000 copper coins.
Where were you going to get the money to pay the balance?
I could borrow again.
Borrow again? I've asked the prison guards.
They said you only have several tens of copper coins.
When you were thrown in jail.
You can't even afford to pay interest to the loan sharks.
Who would lend you money again?
I can go gamble in a casino.
You keep asking me questions. I may not have any money on me,
but how do you know if I'm not actually hiding a lot somewhere else?
You keep asking and asking. Do you want to steal my money?
Fine. Tell me how you spent those several hundred thousand copper coins.
When did you spend the money? Who saw you spend it?
Enough. Even the Ministry of Justice didn't interrogate me like you.
Who's authorized you to do this?
I suspect that you're lying.
You borrowed from a loan shark after stealing money from the accounts office.
That doesn't make sense at all.
Are you keeping something from us? You better tell me the truth.
I've already told you guys everything. What else do you want me to tell you?
I don't think you're the killer. You didn't kill Shumei.
Are you crazy? Go see a doctor if you are.
I've made a confession already. There's physical evidence too.
The case is closed. Why do you want to reopen the investigation?
Do you really hate your ex-wife so much that you don't want to avenge her?
You don't want her to rest in peace?
You insist on clearing the name of a murderer? Get out of here. Go.
Guards, I'm being harassed. Throw him out.
Sir, please.
Go.
From what you said, what that lioness said makes sense.
You think so?
Sure. If you want to spend all your money, the best way is to gamble.
You'll lose whatever money you have. But there's something I don't understand.
She borrowed money. Why didn't she borrow a larger sum?
Why borrow just enough to make a deposit? That's really odd.
I think so too.
Master Shaoyou, Master Hong.
Gao Xing, what are you doing? Why are you carrying so much dirt?
Master Su told us to fill and level up the well this morning.
That's why we took some mud from the rear garden.
I'll get back to work.
What's the matter? You found something?
Gao Xing.
Gao Xing...
You're still walking away?
Stop.
You walked away even though we told you to stop? Put it down.
OK.
Come over...
We'll? You've found something suspicious?
The fatal wound suffered by Shumei
was caused by a long and hard object piercing the nape of her neck.
Why are we steaming the chopstick?
Dr Shi...
We're dissolving the bloodstain coagulated on the chopstick.
It will enable me to find out whether it's human or animal blood.
The chopstick has just been steamed. There should be water droplets on it.
I think there's alum on the chopstick.
Alum? Alum is solid. How can it attach to the chopstick?
You heat it with water and it'll dissolve.
Dr Shi confirmed that there's human blood on the chopstick.
The chopstick was dug up in the rear garden.
The shape of the chopstick matches the wound found on Xu Shumei.
In other words, this chopstick is very likely the murder weapon.
It's highly likely.
If this chopstick is the real murder weapon,
what about Yue'e's wooden hairpin? How do you explain that?
I've checked all the shops in the capital that sell wooden hairpins.
I finally found a shop that sells the wooden hairpin in question.
The shop owner told me that he clearly remembers that
Liu Yue'e bought a wooden hairpin at his shop.
Why did he remember so clearly?
Because every time she goes there,
she mocks him by saying that he only sells cheap hairpins.
That's why the shop owner didn't understand why she would buy from him.
That left a deep impression on him.
But the point in question is
Liu Yue'e bought this wooden hairpin after the murder.
So Yue'e is not the killer. Why did she confess than?
Wait a second. This is getting so complicated.
Let's talk about the chopstick first.
You think it's the real murder weapon because there's blood on it.
Having blood on it doesn't mean anything.
Do you have more substantive evidence?
Oh, Dr Shi also told me that there's alum on it.
Alum?
Let me help you stop the bleeding.
The bleeding has really stopped.
Right.
Why is it so effective? What is that?
It's alum.
It's Sis Mi.
Sis Mi?
She has the habit of using alum.
Sis Mi.
Who is it? Is it Sis Runzhi?
Yes.
Give me a second. I need to put on some clothes.
Just a second.
Sis Runzhi, what is it?
You asked someone to buy wolfberries and angelica roots.
I can't find them in the kitchen. Where did you put them?
Oh, wolfberries and angelica roots? They're in the kitchen cabinet.
I remember. I'll show you where they are.
I know where they're stored.
OK.
Let's go...I remember where they are.
Hurry. She’ll be back very soon.
I used to hate the scent of angelica roots.
But after having them, my health has really improved a lot.
I have to listen to the doctor and eat something nourishing.
That's true. Women need nourishing food. Here it is.
OK.
Oh?
What's the matter?
Wolfberries...
They're not here?
This is strange I put them here Why are they gone?
Brother Dongpo, I've found something.
It's alum.
Why is there this herbal pot?
I guess it's for dissolving the alum.
There's blood on it.
I think so.
Let's presume Xu Shumei climbed in over the wall.
Then she went into the accounts office to steal money.
She ran into Sis Mi when she was trying to escape.
To stop Sis Mi from telling us what she had clone, she fought with Sis Mi.
They kept struggling and somehow came into this room.
During the struggle, Sis Mi killed Shumei by mistake.
Then she dumped the body into the well and covered it.
If Xu Shumei was really killed in this room,
there must be some traces here. Let's look for that.
OK.
There should be some traces. Look for them.
OK.
Lift the cabinet.
That's dried blood.
This is weird. Why can't I find them?
Did Chun Hua put them somewhere else without telling me? Let me ask them.
OK...Oh, Sis Mi. So you put them here, right?
Right. I forgot that I had put them there.
Sis Runzhi, how many bowls of mutton soup do you want to prepare?
You, me, Damei and Xiaomei. One each. Hey, Brother Shaoyou.
Sis Runzhi, Sis Mi, have you seen my wife?
She went to Spring Wine Restaurant this morning.
She didn't tell me. I'll go back to the room to wait for her.
Xiaomei is really sharp to find out that Yue'e is the killer.
Otherwise I would really become a scapegoat.
This is in the past already. Let's not talk about it anymore.
But I still feel so bad.
Yue'e and I grew up together. She doesn't seem like a killer at all.
No killer would admit she's a killer, right?
But I dreamt of Shumei these past couple of nights.
She looked really unhappy.
It seemed like she wanted to tell me something.
If Yue'e is really the killer,
what does Shumei want to tell me in my dream?
Could there be a different story?
What are you going to do?
Me? I'm going to do planchette writing at Song Long Temple tomorrow.
I hope God will give me some hints.
If Yue'e is not the killer, I want to know who is.
Is planchette writing effective?
Yes, it is.
Brother Jichang met an expert earlier. My husband didn't really believe in it.
But the expert said I wasn't the real killer.
That's why he kept digging.
Sis Mi, why don't you come with me tomorrow, OK?
No, I don't feel well. I don't want to go out.
Well, there's enough angelica roots. You can make it now.
I have a headache. I want to get some rest in my room.
Get some good rest then. OK.
As soon as I mentioned planchette writing, Sis Mi got really nervous.
Then she made an excuse and left.
Si Mi is really a suspect.
But she's so gentle and meek.
She's so obedient and submissive to Brother Zhe too.
She doesn't seem like a killer at all. Does she have some untold difficulties?
Whatever her difficulties are, she still shouldn't kill.
It's against the law to commit murder. It's a capital offence.
Master, do you really want to turn her in?
She and her husband love each other so much.
This will be a severe blow to Brother Zhe if you do.
Xu Shumei was a big liar while she was alive
I can't believe she's caused you guys so much trouble even in death.
I'm so sorry, Brother Dongpo.
This isn't your fault. You didn't want this to happen either.
Sis Mi is family. Yue'e and I grew up together.
I really don't know what to do.
It's simple Justice trumps everything. Liu Yue'e maybe wicked and a shrew.
But if she really didn't kill anyone, I have a duty to clear her name.
If I ask Sis Mi to turn herself in, I'm sure Brother Zhe will support me.
But what if she won't listen to me and I have to take her to court?
Will Brother Zhe be mad at me for that?
Hey, I can't worry so much. I should do the right thing.
Sis Mi...
Master Su...You want to see Madam Mi?
Yes.
She just got changed and went out.
She suddenly went out? Did she find out what I'm going to do?
Su Mansion.
Ah...
What? You're panicking like this. It's so easy to tell you've got a problem.
Are these the maps?
I've drawn the last two maps.
Are you going to release my younger brother now?
Let me see.
If there's no problem, I'll release him.
But if there are problems, I'll give his dead body to you.
No. You promised
you would release him if I drew these military maps for you.
You've already killed someone and seen a corpse.
What are you afraid of?
I killed someone by mistake all because of you guys.
Don't put the blame on us. No one told you to kill Xu Shumei.
But you're lucky.
Wang Runzhi didn't become a scapegoat. Now it's Liu Yue'e.
You're really so lucky.
Sis Mi.
Brother Dongpo.
Sis Mi, so you killed Xu Shumei.
What's the relationship between you two? What are you plotting.
My late wife was her sister-in-law. She's my sister-in-law.
We're extended family.
As for our plot, you won't have a chance to find out.
Brother Dongpo...Wake up...
Where is this place? Where are we? Hey, open the door.
You don't heed to shout. They locked us up in here.
Tell me what's going on. Why did you kill Xu Shumei? Why?
That night I was drawing pictures in my room until very late.
So I went to the kitchen to get some water.
As soon as I left my room, I saw you walking in your sleep.
Shumei was somehow there too. She got so scared when she saw you.
She immediately went into my room. Back I was scared too.
I was afraid Shumei would discover my secret.
As soon as you had waked away, I immediately went into my room.
But she was already looking at my painting.
How dare you come here? Why are you going through my things?
Give it back to me. You want to run?
What are you doing? Let go of me.
There was no one around in the middle of the night.
I dumped her body in the well.
Then I buried the chopstick in the rear garden.
You said you were afraid that Xu Shumei would discover your secret.
What was the secret was? What are those landscape paintings tor?
I'm sorry. I can't tell you.
Why? You still can't tell me now? We're both trapped here.
If you can't tell me now, when can you tell me?
They kidnapped my younger brother.
They said they would kill him if I didn't comply with their requests.
I really didn't have a choice. I had to do this.
What did they ask you to do?
They asked me to give them military intelligence on the capital.
I had to use alum to paint the details in nine landscape paintings
so Liao State would know the situation in our capital.
Then they can man an attack on us.
This is outrageous.
I knew Liao State has always coveted our land.
I'm sorry. My younger brother and I have got your family into trouble.
You've even been captured by them. I'm sorry.
Don't be so harsh on yourself. You didn't want to do this.
You only did it under duress.
Did that bad guy Cheng Zicai make you do this?
Actually he was just acting on orders. The real mastermind is Qin Cao.
What did you say? Qin Cao?
She's the head of the spies from Liao. Cheng Zicai and I are just her tools.
Oh, no. His Majesty is taking Qin Cao as his concubine today.
Master wants to see you. Come with me.
Brother Dongpo.
Don't be rude to Officer Su.
Officer Su, please try the wine from Liao State.
It's sweeter than Song's.
Cut the pretense. You're a spy from Liao.
Why did you give me ginseng and bone-setting medicinal cream from Liao
since they're so precious?
It's my honor to hellp you, sir.
Help me?
You captured my sister-in-law's younger brother.
You forced her to be a spy for you. You say you're helping me?
Ignore triﬂes when doing big things. I serve my emperor like you.
The only difference is that we serve different governments.
Too bad a beautiful woman like you is a crook.
I assist the emperor in ruling Song and providing for the people's welfare.
But you're trying to invade my country and take our land.
The Song emperor is fatuous and incompetent.
It's not worth giving up your life for him.
The Liao emperor is talented and ingenious. He's an astute leader and a good emperor.
If you'll agree to join us, you could be our prime minister.
He's talented and ingenious. So he can invade Song?
So he's a good emperor? That's sophistry.
I'm telling you this for your benefit and your people's.
When our troops come, you'll all be killed.
But if you're our prime minister,
your people will surrender without putting up a fight
due to your reputation.
There will be less unnecessary casualties.
Don't even dream about it.
I'd rather die than betray Song or His Majesty. You had better quit.
Why do you insist on degrading yourself for such a lousy emperor?
Yes, I'm degrading myself. I'm asking for it.
It's better than serving you brutal people from Liao.
Brutal? I'm from Liao too. Do you think I'm brutal?
Qin Cao, do you know what you're doing?
If you weren't brutal, would you be invading other countries?
How can you get Song if you don't kill people? Tell me.
So that's how you see me.
Yes. Because you're from Liao State. You're even a spy from Liao State.
You people from the Middle Kingdom always think of us as barbarians.
You people want us to submit to your sovereignty
or you'll send troops to wipe us out. Aren't you guys brutal too?
Shi Jingtang ceded
the 16 prefectures of Yan and Yun to our ancestors.
But then you guys didn't honor the treaty. You sent troops to get the land back.
Aren't you guys brutal?
That's just an excuse.
The 16 prefectures of Yan and Yun had always been our territories.
In the past decades, Song hasn't send any troops to attack Liao.
Whether you surrender or not, I will become an imperial concubine today.
I will carry on influencing His Majesty so you two will continue to be at odds.
I've got this military defense map too.
It's only a matter of time until Song is conquered.
Qin Cao, my biggest mistake in life was meeting you. You're so horrible.
I let you took at these nine pictures because I want you to know
we've already completely mastered the situation in Song.
You guys don't have any chips now.
We do.
We should maintain peace and harmony between our two countries.
Otherwise West Xia State will take advantage of our conﬂicts.
Forget about West Xia State. Song is doomed.
Why don't you stay alive so you can do something for your people?
We must go our separate ways. I don't want to argue with you anymore.
We've captured you now. We can easily have you killed.
Why are you still so stubborn?
I will never be a traitor. I'm your hostage now.
You may do whatever you like. I'm not afraid to die.
Fine. Your wish is granted then.
Master, Qin Shaoyou has suddenly come.
He refused to leave even though I told him to.
He insists on seeing you.
Shaoyou, help.
Shut up or I'll kill him too. Put him back in the secret chamber.
Yes.
Put away the maps.
Yes.
Master, Officer Qin is here.
Officer Qin.
Miss Qin Cao.
You're here so early in the morning. What is it?
Brother Dongpo didn't come home last night. He knows you well.
So I took the liberty to ask if he's come to Waterside Cottage.
He did come last night. But I wasn't home yet.
When I came home, he had already left.
Did he say where he was going?
You don't need to worry so much.
All the officials are going to the wedding ceremony today.
Perhaps Officer Su has already gone home to prepare to go to the palace later.
That's possible. I'll go home and check then.
It's your wedding day today. I won't hold you up, Miss Qin Cao.
Cheng Zicai, you're worse than a beast.
You're just good at reciting poems.
But you keep repeating the same phrases when you scold people.
If you say another word, I'll put a bomb in your mouth.
It's really Brother Dongpo's sachet. Why was it caught there?
Cheng Zicai, I've already painted all the military maps
according to your instructions.
Why are you still holding my younger brother?
You've even captured Brother Dongpo. What do you guys want?
You've painted all the pictures. We no longer need you.
You can join your younger brother in hell. Get out of my way.
What did you say? You've killed my younger brother?
You guys have killed him? You gave me your promise.
You said you would release him after I painted the paintings for you.
You've killed him?
Would I be so stupid to waste money on keeping him alive?
That's so obvious. Get out of my way.
Where's my younger brother? My younger brother...
You want to save them?
I'll kill all of you with the bombs.
Watch out, Brother Dongpo.
Sis Mi.
Sis Mi...
I'm sorry, Brother Dongpo. I'm so sorry. I've gotten your family into trouble.
I deserve this. Please forgive me. Please don't tell my husband what I did.
I don't want him to know about this. I love him so much. Please.
Please tell him that I miss him so much. I'm waiting for him to come home...
Please give him this piece of jade. I'm sorry. I've hurt all of you.
Sis Mi...
Sis Mi, stay with me...
Sis Mi...
His Majesty says Qin Cao is gentle and meek.
She's virtuous and good.
So His Majesty is making her an imperial concubine.
She will stay in Tianhe Palace as her residence.
Much obliged, Your Majesty.
Your Majesty.
Your Majesty, Qin Cao is actually a spy from Liao State.
Su Dongpo, now can you talk nonsense during the wedding ceremony?
I've got evidence.
Your Majesty, these paintings were drawn with alum.
They record military intelligence
on the whole capital.
There are nine paintings in total. Qin Cao is the mastermind behind this.
Your Majesty, this is serious.
Please terminate the ceremony immediately and carry out an investigation right away.
Show me immediately.
Protect His Majesty.
Protect His Majesty... Your Majesty, you must get out of here.
Protect His Majesty.
Get out of my way.
If you want to kill His Majesty, you'll have to kill me first.
I said, get out of my way.
Qin Cao, your cover is brown. You can't escape. You better surrender.
I was so close to pulling this off. I can't believe you thwarted my plan.
Why didn't you kill me?
I've been keeping a secret all along. I can finally tell you now.
Don't say it.
If I don't, I'm afraid I will never have a chance to say it. I...love you.