-My Lord. My Lord! -What?
I checked our men earlier and found 200 of them missing.
What?
Two hundred of our men are missing.
-Where are they? -Did they desert our group?
No. They're very loyal to Liu Ji. They'd never run away.
Find them! Find them now! Cao Can, go with him.
-Yes. -Check thoroughly.
How far are we from Hangu Pass now?
Quite far. Our front-line has reached Dangcheng.
HANGU PASS
Lord, we set off unsupported. If we don't go faster,
-we won't arrive at Hangu on time. -We can't go any faster.
We've 40,000 warriors, spread into far too long a column.
We're an easy target, and we're already missing people!
In that case,
tomorrow, gather all the warriors at Gaoyang to regroup.
What is this?
Lord, they are your distant cousins. They've come for your help.
Xiang'er!
-What's going on? -Father, I was just looking for you.
Do I have a distant aunt from Dai County?
Dai County?
-Right. -How'd that be possible?
She's in the room, and she keeps saying
she married one of your brothers and has a baby.
A baby?
There was another baby that was born about ten years ago in Liyang.
How could I have relatives in Qin?
I don't know.
But we've already got 30 relatives. They all come to get your help.
Father, what if we have our family’s servants make them leave?
No. Let them stay here.
But we can't afford to feed them.
I'm not the man who I was then, exiled and living on the run.
Let them stay.
Sure, I guess it's okay.
-Is the emissary from Qi still here? -He's been here the whole time.
Princess, it's late. You should rest now.
Princess, Chongxin waits to see you.
Invite him in.
My respects, Your Highness.
Rise, sir.
Thank you.
Princess, Zhao Gao has just fallen asleep.
Sorry to bother you so late.
It's all right.
These days, I've been wanting to talk to you about something.
Really? By the way, princess,
my messenger hurried to General Zhang's military with your letter.
I think General Zhang Han has read your letter already.
Thank you for your help, sir.
Not at all. I think it's my turn to show thanks to you, princess?
Thank me?
Yes, princess.
I made just the slightest revision to your letter.
You revised my letter?
No, princess! I didn't revise it.
It's the same words of your original letter. I only added
that General Zhang Han should return to Xianyang immediately.
What game are you playing?
You can have Zhao Gao's position. Why call Zhang Han back here?
Princess, I told you that day.
What I want is not to replace Zhao Gao.
What good it is for me to replace him?
Princess, you underestimated me.
You mean…
You mean you'll stage a coup?
From the rebellions of Chen Sheng and Wu Guang,
I don't know much, but I did learn one saying,
“Are kings and nobles given their status by birth?”
Why, princess? Haven't you heard of this?
General, I'll tell you the truth.
I have disobeyed you.
I arranged some spies not only on the front-line
but also in the palace
in Xianyang, and requested them to collect information for us.
Sima Xin.
I told you before.
In my camp, we only deal with war, never involve politics.
But the information is of crucial importance for you.
If we did not have this information,
I'm afraid it'd be difficult for us to save Princess Chenxi.
Princess Chenxi shares my attitude.
She has never involve herself in palace politics.
How can she be endangered all of a sudden?
In order to save you, she intends to assassinate Zhao Gao.
What?
I've arranged with Chongxin and he saved the princess this time.
I'm on familiar terms with Chongxin.
But what's going on in his head,
I am not so sure.
The princess shouldn't do such foolish things.
She shouldn't be so impulsive.
The princess worried about your safety.
She had to do it.
And now, you can save neither yourself,
nor the princess. How could you save Qin?
Sima Xin, if you say such things again, I'll crush you with military law.
Your real enemy is in the royal palace!
Not on the battlefield!
Huhai is under house arrest
and he is practically mad.
Ziying is exiled somewhere and has no way to return.
As for Zhao Gao...
because you are dealing with Qin enemies far away
instead of dealing with your enemies at home,
Zhao Gao had the chance to commit these misdeeds.
I think...
Qin will be wiped out sooner or later.
It's not something that can be decided by a person or a general.
General, you should have a plan for your future.
I'll take my leave now.
GENERAL, PLEASE COME BACK TO XIANYANG IMMEDIATELY
Make way for King Huai!
It's that idiot again.
Calm down. It's just a fly buzzing its wings.
Your Majesty.
You'll soon set off to battle.
That's what men of Chu should do.
I'll be waiting right here for your return.
You'll win the war.
Then I'll celebrate with you and prepare drink for you.
Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!
Look at him. What a show!
Don't be angry.
Ying Zheng has done nothing much in his life.
But he did make a wise decision once.
What wise decision?
I expect to take up my sword and go with you next time.
This time I entrust Song Yi to be with you.
A general is rewarded
by his exploits in the battlefield.
Yu'er, don't worry.
The last laugh will not be his. Let him do what he wants.
Once the war begins,
all these warriors will only obey your rules.
Thanks for your instruction.
From now on, Song Yi will be your commander.
All of you will follow his command.
Down with those tyrants! Down with the Qin!
Fight. Fight. Fight.
I will not fail you, Your Majesty.
Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight!
What we want is not just honor for a day. Don't forget that.
Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight. Fight!
Liu Ji!
My lord. It's clear now.
Our 200 men who were missing were all killed.
What? Who killed them? Who?
I don't think it's the Qin.
Qin soldiers never bury those they kill.
Those 200 soldiers were killed and buried.
They were not buried deep, and it seems they were buried in a hurry.
-My men found some valuable clues. -Go ahead.
Fifteen kilometers behind us, there is a large group of refugees.
They've been following us around for a while.
I suspect they killed our soldiers.
Refugees?
Refugees wouldn't something like this.
They would kill Qin soldiers. Why kill our soldiers?
They can't be refugees.
I hope it was done by those refugees,
or even the Qin soldiers. That would make things simple.
Mr. Xiao.
We should not forget who we're really dealing with.
Who?
Fan Zeng.
Reporting.
What's wrong with Song Yi?
His chariot has too many flies.
No wonder I didn't see any flies.
He gathered all the flies in his chariot.
It's not an easy task!
What happened?
General Song Yi
drank and ate and dirtied his chariot and it ended up attracting flies.
Well, that certainly shows his true colors!
Send my orders.
We will rest in Anyang.
General, Song Yi ordered that we'll rest in Anyang.
We're still far from Julu. We only left Pengcheng a few days ago.
How can we afford a rest here?
Mr. Fan, you're well learned. Why would he give us this order?
I am shallow in knowledge. Pardon me for I do not understanding his intention.
Ziqi.
Yes.
Go and ask Song Yi why do we have to rest here.
Yes.
Your Majesty.
You're finally here. Hurry! Get out of the palace
and tell any civil or military officials you see!
Tell them their emperor hasn't gone mad!
Tell the commoners
that their emperor is under house arrest.
Tell them to come and save me.
I almost forgot.
This is the late emperor's royal jade.
With this, they will believe what you say,
and they'll come to save me. Hurry.
What?
You actually believe Zhao Gao?
You take me as a lunatic, too?
I've worked in the palace for over 40 years.
I wouldn't believe that you are mad, Your Majesty.
That's great. Hurry.
Your Majesty, after the late emperor died, all of his maids in the palace,
with or without children, were killed. Do you know why?
Some were to accompany the late emperor.
Some were killed because they knew too many palace secrets.
Right. That latter group you mentioned, those palace maids,
whom may or may not know these palace secrets
were silenced by death.
Do you know how I avoided the same fate?
The moment the emperor died, I took off my socks and shoes
and wore nothing but my disheveled hair, and went to chop firewood
as well as cook meals for the eunuchs.
I smeared my face with the charcoal.
Why? Are you crazy?
I'm not.
It's precisely because I wasn't mad that I could keep my head clear,
stay convincing and escaped execution.
You mean... I should also pretend that I'm mad?
Yes, Your Majesty.
If you want to live, do not try to make them believe that you're not mad.
You should make Zhao Gao believe that he's driven you to lunacy.
This is the only way you can survive.
It seems...
I have no other choice now.
I've just thought of someone.
I understand now.
What do you mean, Your Majesty?
When Fusu was killed,
he left a child named Ziying. I didn't kill him.
For one thing, he and Chenxi supported me.
For another, he went mad.
He slept in the horse stable,
ate straw, only went out at night and babbled incoherently.
At the time I felt pity for him and wanted to get rid of him.
So, I released him.
I finally understand.
He was forced into it.
Year after year of acting insane.
How miserable indeed.
Ziying, I blamed you wrongly.
Now it's my turn to pretend that I'm mad.
Please, figure a way to find Ziying.
Tell him to save me. Even if he refuses to save me...
I hope he will at least save our country.
Late emperor, did you ever expect things would ever get this bad?
Don't tell this secret to others.
Secret?
This secret can make the sky change its color and the ground trembles.
The secret is who I am.
Huh? You're you, aren't you?
Yeah. I am me indeed.
And me is myself, but who is myself?
That's way deep.
Wait.
Listen.
-The beans are shouting. -Huh?
When the beans are growing, they shout as they grow.
People grow them in Spring and harvest them in Summer.
Only me and your cow understand.
My cow?
See?
Your cow knows. She's listening to us right now.
You naughty boy! Take the cow to pasture!
Why are you talking to the madman?
Mom, he's not crazy.
-I say! No crying! -Ouch!
I don't even know who I am.
I'm insane! I'm a lunatic!
Let's go.
The cow is calling.
The bean is calling!
Don't underestimate them!
That's the way of the world!
The world is big old' stalk of beans!
My lord!
My lord, we found out what happened.
The so-called refugees following us are warriors of Mr. Wei.
They're lead by the Marquis of Gangwu.
From Mr. Wei's camp?
We bear no grudge against each other.
Why would he kill our men?
Perhaps King Huai doesn't trust us and sent his men to spy on us?
No. King Huai sent us here.
What's more, if he didn't trust us, they could just follow us.
Why would his men kill?
If it's not King Huai, it could only be Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu? Impossible.
This group of men is very cunning.
During the day, they hide as refugees in order not to be found.
They only come out during the night.
They always keep a distance from us.
It seems that they plan to kill our men.
The next place could be by Xiaoguan Pass.
Bring me the map!
First, we need to know who they are and what do they want!
Here.
We'll wait them at Luoguo Valley.
Got it!
Mr. Fan, it's the same as yesterday.
Song Yi said he already had a plan in his heart.
When I asked him the detail, he refused to answer.
It's been almost ten days. He's repeating himself.
Song Yi acted just like a merchant.
He's always talking about his love for Chu
and his loyalty to King Huai.
But it seems that he's covering his own hide.
Mr. Fan.
I heard that in order to help his son, Song Yi sent emissaries to Qi.
And emissaries from Qi come here more and more.
And Anyang is closest to the state of Qi.
What a fraud he is!
Yes.
Remember.
Do not tell Xiang Yu about this.
Xiang Yu wanted to be the first one to reach Xianyang.
If you tell him,
we do not know what he'll do to Song Yi.
Then, our armies will fall apart.
But, we've almost consumed all of our provisions.
We couldn't find any granary in Anyang or villages nearby.
Our soldiers went to look for food.
They found edible herbs in the nearby mountains.
But now the wild herbs are almost gone.
Our soldiers will have to starve.
Even worse, it's getting colder by the day.
We've no warm clothes for them.
And Anyang is basically just a big desolate marsh.
Few trees grow here.
There's not enough wood burn in our fires.
Look.
General.
What is Song Yi thinking?
What strategy is this?
We've been held up here for 46 days already.
My warriors live for battle not for hunger or cold.
These men should be tigers. They aren't stray dogs.
Where's Song Yi?
These days, he's always hosting emissaries from Qi.
At the moment, he's drinking with them in the military camp.
What?
How can he feast at a time like this?
General.
The wine from Chu is mellow and sweet.
-Drink up! -Lord, Please.
Drink. Drink.
Please, general.
Good wine.
Hello there, Song Yi.
The Lord of Lu!
Don't call me that.
I'm a general.
We serve at pleasure of King Huai, sent us to Julu to save Zhao from siege.
But now...
instead of fighting...
you're here drinking the night away!
How can you abuse the king's trust?
Calm down, general.
Do you know the gadfly?
What do you mean?
I know you're expecting to reach Julu to fight Zhang Han's army.
But you know now Zhang Han is a gadfly.
If you hit him barehanded, you'll miss him.
Worse still, you can't kill any of the lice and fleas at his side either.
Now with Zhang Han's army surrounding Julu of Zhao.
Even if he succeeds, he will be fatigued.
So why not wait and attack him while he is fatigued?
Then we're sure to win.
Sometimes...
haste may lose a war.
As for how to fight on a battlefield,
I'm definitely not as experienced as you.
But for the strategies of wars,
I think you…
may not be as intelligent as I am.
Come on. Drink.
My soldiers are starving!
This is a war! Soldiers meant to suffer in a war!
If soldiers can't take starvation, they can't win battles!
Even if you're right, minister Song Yi,
while you are here giving a banquet to treat these emissaries from Qi,
don't you feel any guilt that our soldiers are suffering?
General.
King Huai entrusted this mission
to me instead of you.
Hosting these emissaries is also in the interest of Chu.
It's true that some of our soldiers
are complaining because of cold and hunger.
It only shows that they are not as loyal to Chu as they should be!
General.
For these kinds of soldiers,
you should probably punish them.
Come, gentlemen. Please drink. Drink.
-Please. Please. -Please drink.
Just drink.
Enjoy your evening!
-Please. Please. -Good. Drink!
Report!
Reporting.
Liu Ji's forces are attacking Qin soldiers in Licheng.
I didn't expect such a good opportunity so soon!
Listen to me. March on at full speed.
We'll cross the valley ahead. Don't let them find us.
Yes.
It's a trap. We're ambushed. Retreat!
Move it. Move. Hurry.
Kneel down.
Mr. Xiao, I'm a general in Mr. Wei's camp.
How can you do this to me?
Why do you follow us in secret?
Why do you say in secret? I'm ordered to be here.
Why did you kill our men?
You need not deny that.
I know what you've done.
If you know, why do you ask?
Mr. Wei is an honest man.
He wouldn't order his men to do such a disgraceful thing.
You've been used.
Who used me?
Mr. Xiao, don't jump to conclusions.
My lord is not bloodthirsty. If General Xiang Yu caught you
you would've lost your head already.
Well? Do you want me to send you to Xiang Yu?
-This has nothing to do with Xiang Yu. -Then who sent you?
I know it's certainly not Mr. Wei's idea.
Nor General Xiang Yu's idea.
It's someone else's idea.
Whoever could that be?
The man who ordered you to kill us at Xiao Pass.
Tell me.
Is it Fan Zeng?
Don't waste your time on him.
His 5,000 men will be enlisted in our camp.
Marquis of Gangwu, you killed 200 of my soldiers,
so I must execute you to avenge them. Take him away.
Move. Go.
-Go! Go! -I refuse!
-Go! -I'll never give in to you!
-Go! Go! -I'll never give in to you!
Mr. Fan!
Song Yi left the town with a grand procession.
What happened?
As far as I know,
Song Yi has succeeded
in making his son Song Xiang the prime minister of Qi.
They're leaving the city to head for Wuyan.
He'll meet the Qi emissaries and send his son off.
What a pathetic man!
Mr. Fan, shouldn't I tell General Xiang Yu the truth about this?
If I keep it from him, I won't be able to forgive myself.
-All right. -Yes.
If this goes on, the Chu army will be lost.
Song Yi secretly held those banquets for the emissaries...
and stationed our men here for personal gain.
I had heard enough
of his deceiving words about how loyal he is,
loyal my shining ass.
I didn't want to be impulsive,
so I didn't take action before.
But now, I'm clear,
everything he did hurt us for his own good.
Yesterday you went over to his camp.
You requested for an explanation yet he still lied.
Early this morning, he released this military order for us.
What was he thinking?
Bold like a tiger.
Full of hatred like a sheep.
Greedy like a wolf.
Those who disobey...
must be executed.
Confronted with such an insult, our general remained calm.
He has changed a lot.
Indeed.
For all this while,
Song Yi projected himself as a virtuous gentleman,
yet he's done such great harm to our people.
The general has tolerated enough
yet he still swallows the insult. This...
Here.
Thank you, general.
It's too cold. I owe you much.
Thank you, general.
-Take it. -Thank you, general.
General, Song Yi is back.
Thank you, general.
-Continue giving these out. -Yes, sir.
Follow me.
General, wait!
General.
General. General!
General!
General, you shouldn't do this.
Do not follow me.
General.
The Lord of Lu, hello!
My Lord!
Stop there.
Do not move.
Anyone who moves will be killed!
This is Song Yi's head.
Song Yi colluded with Qi and intended to take Chu.
King Huai heard of Song Yi's plot and granted me
the imperial edict to kill him.
Any objection?
No.
It was General Xiang's family who elected King Huai.
If someone intended to rebel, we should kill him.
We have no objection.
Earlier when we were in the south,
before we crossed over the Huai River...
did we ever see such a cunning man as Song Yi?
Anyone?
Of course not!
Everything was to restore Chu! Back then our men were loyal to Chu.
My uncle Xiang Liang dedicated his life to Chu.
We should follow his example...
and take down the Qin tyrants. We do not fear to die for Chu.
We shouldn't stay here...
and live in shame, just a laughing stock.
My warriors!
Bear the future of Chu deep in your hearts.
Follow me
to rebuild the lost glory of Chu.
-Rebuild the lost glory of Chu! -Rebuild the lost glory of Chu!
Mr. Fan, where's Song Yi's son?
In the tent.
You caught him?
Well his head is there anyway.
When you rushed to Song Yi's tent in anger,
I knew you were up to something. So I sent Yu Ziqi
to stop Song Xiang on his road to Qi and kill him.
You're an intelligent man, Mr. Fan.
As you've decided to kill Song Yi,
I needed to remove every possible obstacle for you.
But I want to tell you something.
Please, Mr. Fan.
I hope next time you decide to take such action,
will you please inform me first about it?
Yes.
That will do.
Strange old man. But I like him.
Ji Bu, take the heads of Song Yi and his son
to King Huai and disclose their crime to him.
And I have some personal words for King Huai.
Tell King Huai…
My fellows,
Song Yi and his son intended to rebel.
While our warriors were on the way to battlefield,
he colluded secretly with Qi,
and intended to give away our lands to Qi.
King Huai is a wise king. While he learned the story,
he ordered General Xiang Yu to kill Song Yi and his son.
Their heads are here now.
-They should be killed! -Screw them! They should be killed!
Good. Well done!
Subtitle translation by Loretta Kok