In 224 BC,
the state of Qin conquered six vassal states of the Zhou Empire.
Qin’s king appointed General Wang Jian to lead the invading force.
The invasion greatly endangered the Chu.
Before this war, Chu General Xiang Yan defeated Qin warriors in several battles,
earning him the title "Protector of Chu".
But in the war of 224 BC, Xiang Yan
and his 100,000 soldiers confronted the 600,000 warriors of Qin.
The war continued for a year.
Xiang Yan’s forces severely weakened Qin...
but were far outnumbered, and met their end.
In his last moments,
Xiang Yan swore an oath...
that would change the future.
Chu is broken, yet will smite Qin!
In 221 BC,
King Ying Zheng of Qin conquered Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, and Wei.
For the first time, China was unified under one ruler.
Ying Zheng proclaimed himself the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty.
He abolished the Zhou fiefs and organized the country into prefectures and counties,
unified transport and written language,
and went on frequent inspection tours to make his authority known.
On every tour,
he was accompanied by civil and military officials and thousands of warriors.
The imperial flags waved in the wind,
and weapons gleamed in the sunshine.
The gigantic carriage
embodied the unrivaled authority and dignity of the emperor.
Get it! Kill it!
Who tried to harass me? You'd better come back!
-After him! Stop! -Stop! Stop!
Who are you?
-Stop! -Stop him!
-Get him! -Catch that man!
-Hey there! Selling your meat? -Sure am.
Damn it! Who was that? Stop right there!
Son of a dog! You ruined my ribs!
-Fan Kuai! -What?
Stop him! He tried to harass me!
Hey, you! Don’t run!
Move! Out of my way!
You! Get down from there now!
Hey! Get down! Get down!
Catch that man!
-He’s over there! Quick! -I can’t run anymore. Stop him for me.
If you do, I won’t charge you for the wine!
Leave it to me! Hey, you jerk, come back!
On the roof!
Hey, who are you? What are you doing?
Move! Move!
Stop! Stop!
Yes! Get it! Get it!
Get it! Do it! Kill it!
Kill it!
What’s going on?
-Who is he? -Stop!
Stop!
Fan Kuai, what's all this?
That bastard stepped on my meat! I’ll kill him! I’ll castrate him!
-Help me catch him! Now! -Go!
Count me in! Let’s go!
Who the hell he is?
What’s happening?
Stop! Stop! Stop!
Get down! Get down! Get down!
Stop!
You know what?
You could have harassed anyone’s lady, you know?
But you had to pick on mine.
That must have taken some guts! Where did you touch her?
Was it good? Was it fun?
Just who are you? Where are you from?
Still won’t tell me?
You asleep?
Deal with him.
Let me deal with him.
Watch.
Will you speak up?
Holding your breath? Try it.
Hold it in! Just try it! Will you talk?
Still holding it?
This is what happens! Take this!
Take that!
Will you talk? Will you talk? Will you talk?
Stop it.
Ms. Cao
it’s your turn now.
I'll kill you! You like it? You want more?
-Had enough? -That’s too soft. Pinch!
All right, you step back.
I’ll take off his testicles
-if he still won’t talk! -Enough!
Enough. Which one of you is in charge here?
Who’s in charge here? Who’s in charge here?
What do you want?
I’ve got something to tell him.
Untie him.
Hey, everybody out.
-Let’s go! -Let’s go.
Are you in charge?
What the hell is that thing?
-Who is that guy? -Who knows? Seems important.
Ji...
we might be in trouble.
What happened?
-Lu Wan, go and bring Mr. Xiao here. -All right.
Chancellor. Chancellor.
Do we need to submit all these? The emperor is already very busy.
The king wants them.
I was told to hand them to him.
It’s up to you whether you give them to him.
Minister Zhao Gao has reports to submit.
-Proceed. -Yes.
What's out there?
Your Highness, there’s an eagle.
An eagle circling my carriage. What does it want?
Chancellor, do you know the reason?
It wants to bask in your divine might.
Yes.
It’s gone.
It’s been shot down!
Emperor, it’s been shot down!
-Who shot that eagle? -Who shot that eagle?
It was me, Zhang Han.
Bring it to us.
He is quite skillful with the bow.
He's quite skillful indeed.
The emperor said you are quite skillful with the bow.
All thanks to your divine presence.
Premier, where are we now?
We are in Pengcheng.
Chu lands. How are the people here?
Since unification, they lead peaceful lives.
Yes.
This way, Mr. Xiao.
-Hey! -Oh, Mr. Xiao...
Liu Ji, what’s going on?
Come inside.
What’s going on?
I’ve never seen that badge before. What is it?
-Take a look at it. -You stay here. I’ll go in and check.
Mr. Xiao is here. That means we’re onto something big.
What is it?
Mr. Xiao, what is it? What is it?
What’s the problem?
-Mr. Xiao? -Come here!
-What’s going on? -Come here!
Come here!
Do you know what you’ve done?
He’s an imperial marshal!
What?
-He’s an official? -The emperor is on tour.
He sends scouts ahead to the places he’s visiting,
and they report back to him.
If he reports this to the court,
not just you, the whole village is dead!
I'll be implicated too.
What should we do?
Fool!
It's all your fault!
There’s no use arguing about it now! We have to do something!
This isn’t a problem at all.
Now watch this.
This...
Careful.
It's a misunderstanding! He's a friend.
Now, friend,
would you like to drink with us?
Oh!
Get some wine! Hurry, hurry.
-How? -No idea.
Let's go.
-What? -Ji knows what to do.
I don’t know either. Wait and Liu Ji will explain.
Huhai, why does the emperor take you on every one of his tours?
Maybe I’m not really good for much.
Maybe your father
and my brother, Fu Su...
He’s smart and capable,
and me, I’m the youngest son.
And I’m not capable in any field,
so all I can do is follow my father touring around the empire.
That isn’t true.
I think the emperor likes you most, so he takes you everywhere.
Actually...
Actually, it’s because of my mentor, Zhao Gao.
But he’s just a eunuch.
Don’t say that!
Right now, nobody is closer to the emperor than him.
The palace, do you know how huge it is?
There are 270 halls!
Where the emperor sleeps at night, and who is with him,
what he likes to eat, what his interest are,
only he knows all that.
Zhao Gao is the emperor’s shadow!
Do you think Premier Li is talented?
Futile!
Without him, lots of things are just impossible.
And me? Zhao Gao was the man who raised me.
My dad also made Zhao Gao my teacher.
He likes me. So I get to join the tour.
Is he that powerful? Somehow, I doubt it.
The Prince speaks the truth.
What do you mean?
Princess, you should believe what Prince Huhai is telling you.
Don't offend Zhao Gao.
General Zhang, how dare you take such liberties?
I know you shot the eagle.
-Who do you think you are? -Sorry, Princess.
I worry that you’ll get into trouble if you offend Zhao Gao.
You should mind your own business.
You know, General Zhang’s wife died not long ago.
Chenxi, you can marry him.
Huhai, stop making jokes about me!
Zhao Gao?
Yes.
Do you know why I decided to take this tour?
You have unified the six vassal states.
All the people of the empire wish to see their emperor.
And you, yourself...
wish to appease public sentiment.
No.
In the palace,
I often struggle to fall asleep.
But in the carriage, I can usually sleep fine.
It's probably caused by the incessant swaying. The swaying.
The swaying.
Your Highness, now would be a good time to rest.
All right, enjoy your drinks!
-Drink, Officer. -Officer.
-Drink!
-Officer. -Please take some food.
Thank you, thank you. Okay, okay.
Sir, this is a simple country village.
People are kind, and we hate wicked deeds.
We were rough with you, we're sorry,
-and we ask your forgiveness. -Sure, sure!
-Liu Ji... -What?
Your men offended him, so you ought to make it up to him.
It’s this man right here, this rude brute!
-Apologize to our friend! -Sir, please drink.
Sir, I’m just a dog butcher. I'm a bit harsh.
I hope you don’t take it to heart. Now drink!
Well, you sure do look tough!
-Good! -And you too, Lu Wan!
Here, my friend, let's drink. Let's drink.
-Sir, let’s drink! -Okay, okay.
Oh!
Now, everyone,
-let’s all drink with our new friend! -Yeah! Let’s drink!
Friend, please, you first.
You, drink with our new friend.
Your turn! Your turn! Come on, drink.
This is Heaven's good will.
Here, let’s drink!
-Come on, guys. -Yes, let’s drink! And you, drink!
You're impressive.
You've coaxed him.
I was the cause of all this, so it has to be me to fix it.
Or else...
it’s going to cost us all our lives.
What's your plan?
It’s you.
-Me? -Think about it.
This started because of you, so you are the only one who can stop it.
What can I do?
I'd like to discuss that with you.
Don’t get angry.
Okay?
You promise?
Say it!
I’m thinking...
Liu Ji!
-That is disgraceful! -It’s my life!
I don’t care about shame!
I want to keep my life, your life,
Mr. Xiao’s life, and all the villagers' lives.
What is shame to me?
-But, damn it, I’m your woman! -I know that!
But what good is honor if we’re dead?
Our lives come first.
All you have to do is exactly what I just told you,
and he won’t be able to get to you.
Really, there’s no way it’ll happen.
Don’t worry. When have I ever lied to you?
And also, if he tries to force anything on you, I’ll be nearby.
I’ll break in and kill him, I swear!
I swear!
No way.
Then...
I’m begging you.
Listen, it’s fine!
Nothing will happen. Okay?
Now you’re crying? I was afraid you’d cry.
Look, okay then.
Fine, forget it!
I guess we’ll die.
You have no regret?
What?
There’s nothing to regret.
Just do what I said.
Try to look happy!
Good! Yes!
-Another round! -come, sir, drink!
-Thank you. -Now, another round. Please! Drink!
Absolutely! Let’s drink!
Excuse me, friend.
She wishes to apologize to you.
I couldn't stop her!
Ouch! Doesn’t hurt.
Sit down. Yes, yes
Sir, to you. To your health.
Oh, oh, all right.
Drink it all!
Drink up! Bottoms up!
-Too little! Have more! -Good! Have more!
Here, I’ll feed you.
That’s drinking!
Now, folks, our friend has traveled far, and he needs his rest.
I think we should go.
Well, sir, good night! Have a good rest. We’ll all be on our way.
Goodbye. Farewell.
That’s all for tonight!
Have a good night.
-Goodbye. -Have a good rest.
-Goodbye, sir. -Come again.
-Goodbye, goodbye. -Take care! Take care!
Okay, okay.
Damn! How dare you trick me?
You want to lose your lives?
I'll kill every one of you!
I’ll be back!
Hey!
Why did it take so long?
He wanted it.
So you did it?
-He wanted it! -So what? You did it?
Who told you to do that?
What did I tell you to do?
I told him I was on my period.
He said he'll be back. I said I’d wait for him.
He pestered me for a while.
Then what?
You didn’t do it!
You didn’t do it! You didn’t do it!
You didn’t do it.
Hey, I’ll stay here tonight.
-Come on, let me stay. -Get lost!
What’s wrong with you? Hey!
I’m really having my period!
Let’s go.
Even if the emperor does come, they won’t let us see him.
We can't see him.
I’m not here to see him.
He should come and see me.
Let's not talk about this here.
Let’s go.
Hey, excuse me...
Move! Out of the way!
-You all right? Be careful. Easy. Easy. -That was bad.
Old man...
-I’m fine -You’re welcome.
-It was so dangerous. -What a strong man! Who is he?
He stopped the horses with his bare hands.
Don’t cry.
Thank you so much! Thank you so much!
It’s fine.
-Make way! Make way! -Make way!
-Make way!
Make way! Make way! Make way!
Yu'er, we should get out of here. Now!
Incredible! He reined in the two horses by himself!
Uncle,
we are the descendants of heroes.
I need to know when this fugitive’s life we are leading can come to an end.
Yu'er, you might not be aware,
but at peasant gatherings, a bit of excitement is normal.
The peasants are used to this.
It’s hard for us, we have to bear with it.
The sons of the conquered lands are scared witless of Ying Zheng!
It sullies Chu’s name to ally with them!
-But... -Uncle, we’d better leave separately.
Yu'er, speak in a low voice.
If an official hears you, we’ll be dead.
Also, this isn’t the right time. Listen to your uncle now.
-Uncle... -It's true.
The time isn’t right.
The time isn’t right?
For a group of worthless wretches cowering helplessly in the woodwork,
is there a right time?
Xianyang is on high alert. Soldiers patrol the town every day.
Every house locks its doors. These are all signs of weakness.
The Qin king believes that using force can win an empire.
That’s a fool’s fantasy.
So just wait.
It won’t take much longer for uprisings to begin.
Make way! Make way!
-Make way! -Come here!
Never forget the disgrace we suffered or the insults Chu bears now.
I won’t forget.
Remember,
rash acts will cost you your life, and will gain you nothing.
Our lives are at stake to earn our kingdom back,
not to succumb to frustration.
Good. Let’s go.
This is wine we made ourselves. It’s savory and mellow.
Today, we'll enjoy
-good food and drink ourselves full! -Fill up.
-Bring the wine! -Yes.
Enjoy yourselves! Drink until you can’t!
Yu'er...
Uncle, why are we licking the boots of these worms?
We bring them gold, jade, but they’ll betray us before long.
I know that.
Their self-respect was shattered by the Qin cavalry, blown to bits.
They come every month because there’s free flow of wine.
But, Yu'er, you should remember...
the day may come...
when they become our allies in an attack against Qin.
We should be kind to our friends, no matter how powerful we are.
I don’t think we need allies like these.
Hey, Xiang Liang...
-You’ve started! -Duke Xiang!
-All right.
-Go on. Keep drinking. -My respects, Duke. Good to see you!
-Don’t stop drinking. Go on. -Duke Xiang Liang.
Good to see you. Thank you.
I see Mr. Kong of Pingyuan isn’t here today.
I’ve heard he’s sick.
That’s absolutely right. My brother is not feeling well.
Oh, then I should pay him a visit.
No need, no need...
Xiang Liang, Seeing as Mr. Kong will recover soon,
there’s no need to make the trip.
Everyone, sit down and enjoy the wine!
I think sacrifices like this should be done away with.
If I remember correctly,
this gentleman is Mr. Peng from Huaiyang, right?
Subtitle translation by Li Ling Yang