Mr. Wang, what made you so upset?
The world we live in is deeply troubled. Taxes get heavier day by day.
People can’t afford them anymore.
The emperor takes men...
to build palaces and walls.
Half the men in our village are gone. Who will tend to the crops in the fields?
And who will pay the imperial tax?
But you, you're at least nobility. You don't need to fear anything...
Corvée service.
A nobleman ought to accomplish something.
I can’t live as a tenant peasant, nor a laborer.
Now, just eat this. Don’t choke on it.
Han Xin...
what are your plans for the future?
I have an idea.
In Huaiyin County, we need horses.
Within a hundred-mile radius, there is only one horse ranch.
Even officials have to walk here.
I want to buy some horses from the north, and I plan to buy mostly mares.
I will buy six mares and two stallions.
It should take about three months to get here.
I’ll put them out to stud on my way back.
Then when I come back to Huaiyin, I’ll have 12 horses at least.
Then I’ll sell one or two of them to feed myself.
I’ll continue to breed the other horses.
And it won’t be long before I have my own breeding ranch!
That sounds like a fine way to keep yourself.
What are you waiting for?
-You should get ready and go. -I don’t have any money.
Well, I know you have a large and noble family.
-Ask them for some. Pay them back later. -They won’t loan me money.
The problem right now is in the north, where should I get the horses?
You have no money and no supplier.
This wonderful plan in your head is whimsy.
All right, all right. It’s not what I really want anyway.
Then what is it that you really want?
I’m still not sure yet.
Fine! Fine!
You don’t want to tell me, so I won’t ask you.
Eat up. Please.
Here.
Thank you.
It’s going to rain. You should go home.
But the sky is clear now! How could it start to rain?
You’ve been here all afternoon. What are you watching?
The ants.
You’re an adult, and you watch ants fight for a whole afternoon?
Ants are very interesting.
When ants fight, they're orderly, never chaotic.
Pincer movements. They have tactics.
-It’s just like watching two armies fight. -You're quite a strange man.
My name’s Ji Tao.
-What is your name? -Han Xin.
Han Xin, how do you know that it will rain soon?
-Did you divine it? -Yes, I did.
Ji Tao, it’s going to rain!
-Let’s go home now! -Coming!
-Well, I’m going home now. -Okay.
Thank you.
Mrs. Wang,
I hope I’m not too late for dinner.
You have a lot of nerve!
You know very well that we’re not exactly rich.
We can hardly feed ourselves.
And what’s more,
you’re here every day asking for food.
You’re going to starve us if this keeps up!
Even leftovers would be fine for me.
Leftovers? Leftovers?
A-Huang, A-Huang...
Good boy, good boy, good boy. Eat all you can,
you need strength to guard our house.
When you have a dog, it at least watches your door.
But taking care of a man? Three meals a day...
and absolutely nothing in return! You’re better off raising a dog!
Here you go. Eat up. Eat your food. Good boy.
Han Xin...
you’ve finished eating?
My friend, I won’t be coming tomorrow. The truth is that I might not come again.
Han Xin, you’re really leaving?
I feel that I have imposed on you for too long.
But why would you suddenly say this?
It must have been that awful wife of mine. She must have said something rude again.
Did she upset you?
You shouldn’t blame your wife for this.
It’s time I gave some serious thought to the future.
Good. If you think so, I won’t force you to stay.
A good man goes where he must.
Han Xin, you're a talented man. I know you’ll accomplish something big.
-Goodbye, my friend. -Goodbye, my friend.
Come on, everybody. Come with me.
Ji Tao, Ji Tao!
-How much is this? -Move along.
How much is this?
-Did you hear me? -Hey, Ji Tao…
You’re crazy!
So, what should dad buy you today?
-Dad, I want the horse. -Sure.
-You like it? -Yes.
Hello. How much is your straw horse?
You can give me whatever you think it’s worth.
What I think it’s worth? You’re out of your mind!
Come on. Let’s find something over there.
-I want that one! I want that one! -Go.
Ji Tao, look. That’s that crazy guy you know.
No wonder I haven’t seen him lately. He’s been down here!
Let’s go say hi.
You’ll never find any vegetables fresher than these!
Hey!
You told me you sold horses. I guess this is what you meant.
Straw horses are horses.
-Yes, they are. -They can gallop, too.
It’s for you.
Out of the way! Move! Move!
-Hey, Chief! Hey, Chief! -There’s bad news!
Hey chief!
-Hey, Chief! There’s bad news! -Hey, Chief!
There’s bad news! That crazy guy is back. He’s making eyes at Ji Tao now!
He has a stand over there!
-God damn it! Come on! Let’s get him! -Let’s go! Let’s go!
He’s right there. Over there. Ji Tao is there too!
-Thank you. -Hurry! Hurry!
-Move! -Looks just like a horse.
-Hey, don’t you go! -What? This…
Sonny...
who said you could set up your shop here?
-No one forbade me. -Well, I forbid you!
And who are you?
-He asks who I am? -How dare he!
If I told you...
I’d scare you to death!
You want to leave? Too late.
Pay me, then you can leave.
I didn’t sell a single one. No money here.
No money?
Then you can pay me with your stuff.
-Yeah! -If you really want a toy for a child,
you can have it.
Why would I want this?
-It’s not long enough to wipe my ass with! -Damn right!
What I mean is that thing you have in your hand there.
Family heirloom. Not worth your time.
No. I want to see it!
-Give it here! -Give it here!
It’s not a bad sword.
But I can’t stand to see a man like you walking around my streets with a sword.
Then you can look somewhere else.
Hey! You think you’re gonna take those books, too?
You haven’t heard the emperor’s orders? All the country’s books should be burned.
And you read books in public?
You have a lot of nerve, right?
-That's right! -I’m surprised you’re so well informed.
Burn the book then.
Fine.
All right, a question...
do you know what you’re supposed to do with a sword?
Swords have many uses. Let’s talk another day.
I want to go home.
Hey, hey, I asked you a question!
Glaring at me?
He’s glaring now! All right! I like it!
That’s more like a real man.
You listen here...
swords are for killing and for bloodletting!
Right, I got it.
-Will you let me go now? -No, not yet!
Since you know that swords are for killing people,
you shouldn’t just carry it around.
If you have the guts to carry it, you should have the guts to use it.
So...
right now, you take this sword...
and kill me.
-But I don’t kill. -Hold on...
If you don’t want to kill me today...
then you’re going to crawl away from here between my legs!
Right! Get in there! Do it!
-Got the guts? -Do it!
-Do it if you’re a man! -Do it!
Do it! Do it! Do it!
Where are you going?
Do it!
Do it! Do it!
-Do it! -Do it if you’re a man!
Mister! Mister!
-Look at him! -Go! Go!
Get in there!
-Do it! -He’s doing it!
He’s pathetic! What a loser! Can you believe this guy?
I know! He’s useless!
Did you see that? Did you see that?
Chief, he knows how to use a sword.
Ji Tao, don’t cry.
Hey lady! You’re scaring all my fish away!
Well, excuse me, but...
you don’t even have any bait on your hook!
It's not my fault that you haven't caught any fish!
There is bait.
But the fish here are smart. They avoid the hook and eat the bait!
Then, what are you waiting for?
Get off your butt and go find yourself more bait!
Not yet. The hook probably still smells like bait.
You see that?
Poor fish. It’s an unfair world we live in.
Either you eat me or I eat you.
But if I do eat you, I still won’t be full.
Son, you seem hungry. You can have this.
-I’m all right. I can get some fish. -I’m not so sure.
You’ve been sitting here the whole day, and I haven’t seen you get any fish.
Take it, have the food.
-Take it. -I'm fine. I mean it.
-Just take the food. -I can get some fish. I'm not hungry.
Hey, young man,
I come here to bleach and wash silk every day.
I'm getting on in years.
My stomach isn't what it once was. So if you're hungry,
every afternoon, around this time, you can find me here.
On your ocean voyage, did you meet your great sage?
Is the elixir here?
Your Grace...
I have gone to lands far away, and distant shores,
in search for the elixir of life.
I almost reached the fairy land of Penglai,
but each time a giant shark emerged from the depths
and made great waves that stopped the boats I hired to reach it.
The fairy isle was before my eyes...
but the shark could not be stopped.
All my efforts were made in vain.
Your Grace, we offered sacrifices.
I think the sages know why we came, and have no reason to refuse.
So to get the elixir,
we must kill the shark.
Then tell me...
this great shark, how can we slay the beast?
That is beyond my abilities, Your Grace.
The shark is 100 zhang long, and several zhang wide.
Never mind killing it, simply escaping it is a difficult task.
If this great shark can be killed...
can you visit the isle of Penglai?
Not only can we obtain the sage’s elixir, we can bring the immortal sage back.
He can travel the world with you, and share his tales of heaven.
-Wei Liao... -Your Grace.
You're a wise man.
Have you ever seen the great shark?
I have not heard of it, nor have I seen it.
I find it strange.
Last night, I dreamt of fighting a monster...
and it defeated me.
It claimed to be a god of the sea.
But this sea god appeared…
to be only a common man.
Could this and the shark be somehow related?
Your Grace,
I believe the monster was indeed a sea god.
That was no lie.
Humans were modeled after...
gods' images and souls.
Perhaps the shark is the god’s body,
and the monster is the god’s soul.
That’s exactly what I think.
-Wei Liao! -Your Grace!
Bring me one hundred brave and skilled archers.
Give them the finest bows.
I shall lead them into the sea.
We will find it and kill it!
Qin Shi Huang led 100 of his best archers...
to find the sea god and defeat it.
They slew it and returned.
Xu Fu then set off to Penglai again to find the sage.
However, he was never heard from again.
The emperor refused to believe he was fooled.
He waited and waited...
day after day...
until one day he lost patience...
and returned west.
Do you wish to serve my will?
Then why do you fear the darkness?
-Hurry. Go! -Go! Hurry!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
-Keep up! -I mean you! Hurry!
-Hurry. -Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
-Hurry. Go! -Go! Hurry!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
-Hurry. Go! -Go! Hurry!
Hurry!
I mean you! Hurry!
Hurry.
-Hurry. Go! -Go! Hurry!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Don’t fall back!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up! Hurry.
Huzi!
Go!
Hurry!
Go!
Go! Go!
Don’t stop!
Hurry!
I mean you!
Keep up in the back!
Hurry!
Go!
-Lu Wan! -Yes!
-Is this the right path? -It’s the right path.
-Let’s go. -Move!
-Keep walking! -Now! Keep moving!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up!
Hurry.
This is wrong. We just went in a big circle!
-Lu Wan! -Ji, I’m here.
Didn’t you say it’s just 100 miles?
How the hell did we get back to this road? You’re going to get us killed!
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Keep up! Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry!
Go!
Ji! Ji!
Three more got away!
-Three more escaped? -Again? So what now?
When we get there, how can we explain this?
Let them go! Let them go!
We’re dead anyway! There's nothing we can do!
Hey Ji, we can grab some men from the village.
Bullshit. Who will let you?
-Grab whoever to make up the numbers. -Yeah.
Let’s keep going.
-We just have to grab a few! -No. Just let them go.
Hurry.
Don’t stop! Hurry! Keep up! Hurry.
Thirty-two, 33, 34, 35...
Ji, I counted them all. Five more escaped.
Again? Another five?
-In total, we lost more than ten of them? -That’s correct.
Listen, guys...
never mind the escaped men.
We won’t get to Lishan on time either.
With all the rain, and all the time we’ve been lost...
we’re a few days late now.
Qin law says if we’re a day late, we die.
Legally, we’re dead men.
Go to Lishan, and we will all be killed.
-So what should we do now? -Ji, you tell us, we’ll do it.
All right then.
I’d rather die to save your lives. I say we scatter.
Tell all the men to leave.
Liu Ji, freeing corvée laborers? For that, your clan will be killed.
I can kill you right now for talking like that!
Then I’ll kill you first!
-Stop there! Nobody move! -Go!
-Stop! -Stop!
-Don’t move! -Stop!
Nobody move!
Release them. Release them. Let them go.
Release them all! Everyone!
Release them.
Gentlemen...
we can’t go to Lishan.
For one thing, some of us have escaped. Also, we would be arriving late.
Going there means you will die.
We have no choice. The first person they’ll kill will be me.
I have to run away.
As for you,
if you want to run, you can run. I won’t stop you.
Come with me, up to the mountain...
you might die there, too.
If you go back, they will definitely kill you.
At any rate, we’re alive right now.
If you think you trust me, then come with me.
And if you don’t...
then go your own way.
So, this is goodbye.
-Move. -Ji! We’re with you.
Let’s go.
Come on! Let’s go! Come on!
Hurry! Keep up!
-Everybody, cheer up! -Hurry!
What’s all this about?
Liu Ji killed officers, released prisoners, and ran away.
His family is liable. You’ll be arrested,
and punished alongside him, when he's caught.
-Go. -Yes!
Move! Get going!
Move! Move! Move!
-Mom! Dad! -How dare you!
How dare you!
Hurry. Go.
Go.
Open up.
Mr. Xiao...
I’m sorry for this.
Don’t worry. Your child is safe and healthy.
I know that, Mr. Xiao...
I know you had my daughter sent to my mother’s house.
Thank you so much, Mr. Xiao.
I don’t know what I can do to thank you.
It was nothing. I owe you that much.
I knew Liu Ji would encounter danger on this trip.
I had hoped that he would bear the journey’s pain,
and that he would return, and we could move on.
But it seems misfortune has found him...
now you, and your whole family, are caught up in this now.
I feel guilty for that.
But now, I can't do much to help. I can’t get you out of here.
You’ll have to stay here and endure this.
You needn’t worry about me, Mr. Xiao. I can take care of myself here.
I know what you’ve done here, and I'm grateful.
I thank you.
Liu Ji is not stupid.
He must have had no choice but to make such a rash mistake.
I am Liu Ji’s wife. I ought to share his fate.
So I have no complaints at all.
I will be fine.
The magistrate is my father’s friend. He won’t give me a hard time.
Mr. Xiao...
I fear for my father-in-law.
He's too old for all this.
After such a jarring shock as this, I worry about his health.
If anything happened to him...
Although my husband hasn't mentioned it, I know that in his heart,
he worries about his father more than anyone.
The most important thing now is to make sure he is kept safe.
You are a good friend of my husband...
so I hope you can help us protect him.
Thank you.
Rest assured, I’ll look after him well. Don’t worry.
Thank you.
Take care of yourself.
What will you do? What do you want?
Now listen, I’m here to untie your chains.
No. Don’t do that. Don’t do that.
This is imperial law. We can’t defy it.
Don’t worry. Don’t be afraid.
Now...
some of this food should make you feel better.
I won’t eat. I won’t eat. I know this is my last meal.
We haven't even had a fair trial. Why are you killing me so soon?
You poisoned the food! You’re going to kill me!
How could I do such a thing?
Sir, I beg you, I beg you!
-No, no, just listen... -Please sir,
-Listen... -I’m terrified of poison!
Don’t force me to drink poison! I’d rather starve to death than do that!
-That’s better than being poisoned! -Mr. Liu,
-I beg you… -Mr. Liu,
your worries are unfounded. I promise not just a good meal this time,
I promise every meal from now on will be good.
But why?
I’ve never seen anything like this. Don’t lie to me.
I want the whole truth from you, otherwise I won’t…
-I’ll die before I eat! -Mr. Liu,
I won't eat it.
All right then, the truth is that Liu Ji is a good friend of mine.
I have to do my job, so I can’t release you.
But as long as I live, I will keep you alive.
I will treat you like my own father.
I won’t let you die here.
Are you telling the truth?
Is this true?
-Come. -All right then.
-Let me untie you. -Thank you, thank you, sir.
How did my son ever make such generous friends as you?
Mr. Liu! Mr. Liu!
What? Food without wine? This won’t last at all.
Now come on. I know it’s not the best liquor,
but it tastes fine to me.
Are you also a friend of my son?
Mr. Liu, I wouldn’t dare call Liu Ji just a friend.
Liu Ji is like my older brother.
-Your older brother? -Right.
I don’t understand. When did my son learn to make...
such generous and kind friends?
Great. Great.
Come on, come on! Hurry up!
Mr. Liu, Mr. Liu...
Sir, I'm Zhou Ke, and I've come to pay my respects!
I'm Liu Sheng, and I give you my respect!
I'm Huang Er, and I give you my respect!
Great.
-Well, pour the wine. -Great.
Good, good.
Subtitle translation by Chia-Chin Wu