My Lord, it's an empty city.
We can't see Qin banners anywhere.
You think it's some kind of trap?
Did they receive news that Zhang Han surrendered to Xiang Yu and ran away?
Impossible. Our messenger only just told us Zhang Han's surrender.
They couldn't have fled that fast.
You only know that Zhang Han surrendered
but do you know the reason?
They were defeated, so, they surrender.
C'mon, use your brain.
He has 200,000 warriors. With such an advantage,
why would he surrender?
You mean, there was a coup d’état in Xianyang.
My Lord!
-Lu Wan's here. -Lu Wan's here.
-My Lord -What have you found?
My Lord, Zhao Gao wants to ally with us.
Ally?
-Ally? -Yes.
Zhao Gao has killed Huhai and appointed Ziying the king of Qin.
He has also ordered their warriors to retreat to Xianyang.
You mean, there's no one in Wuguan Pass?
Exactly.
He wants to ally us now?
He must be dreaming!
He has missed the best time to ally with us.
My Lord, now that both our men and horses are exhausted.
We can take this opportunity to rest.
We can't rest yet.
Time is of vital importance for us. We should not forget King Huai promised...
to be the first to Xianyang.
Tell our men that we'll set off to Xiaoguan Pass,
post-haste.
Once we are there, there will be food and wine, and women, too!
Yes. Let's go! Warriors, let's go!
Your Highness.
Well then. It seems you're here to check up on me.
These days many guests came here seeking for posts.
I never thought...
this narrow house...
could be crowded by so many guests.
I have a few servants in this house. I can only rely on you.
It is my job, sire.
I'm still worried...
whether this is a disaster or an opportunity.
Don't worry about it.
The world has been disarranged by Zhao Gao and Huhai.
You've suffered so many years.
For people's sake, you must pull yourself together.
Don't worry just because Zhao Gao appointed you king.
You value me too much.
I am just trying to stay alive.
But you're right.
I'll step up, I won't let my ancestors down.
Your Highness, I brought you two people.
-Your Highness. -Your Highness.
You need not follow royal etiquette.
-Thank you, your highness. -Thank you, your highness.
Your Highness, this is the daughter you left here,
the youngest princess.
My daughter?
You've grown up!
It's my fault. My Fault!
I thought you were killed.
Come here. Let me take a close look at you.
Father, all these years...
Princess Chenxi hid me in the palace to keep me alive.
I missed you so much.
-I've heard you're not mad? -No!
-That's wonderful! -I see.
-I believe our good luck has arrived. -I see.
Who is he?
He's Han Tan.
He was once an official. He witnessed what happened.
Now he's taking refuge here.
Zhao Gao rebelled.
He meant to usurp the throne after killing Emperor Huhai.
But now, he has appointed you the king.
I have yet to figure out what he's scheming.
Your Highness, Zhao Gao admitted in the palace hall
that he forced the emperor to die.
But he didn't appoint himself the king.
Do you know why?
He fears that the ministers will oppose him.
If he usurped the throne, he might be criticized and punished.
Therefore he has to appoint you the king.
Your Highness, do you know that...
Wuguan Pass has been conquered?
What? Where did you get this news?
After Huhai was killed, I arranged some spies in Zhao Gao's house.
The loss of Wuguan Pass didn't happen as mentioned in the report.
We were not defeated in the battle
but the guards in Wuguan retreated without a fight.
They left an empty fort for the Chu warriors.
Zhao Gao presented Wuguan as a gift to Liu Ji.
Though I'm willing to give my life to save Qin...
I can't disobey heaven's will.
Am I'm also being cursed by heaven?
Your Highness, it's not the time to be depressed.
Zhao Gao has no blood relationship with the late emperor.
How can he hold such an important post?
He thought he had everything in his control
so he intended to sell our state to Chu.
But hasn't he appointed me king?
Your Highness,
Zhao Gao did this to have you as his puppet,
and to placate other ministers.
When Liu Ji arrives, he'll present the royal family to Liu Ji.
Your Highness, think about it.
if Zhao Gao didn't have plans to take control of the state,
why would he negotiate with Chu leaders?
Once Chu warriors reach Xianyang, you will no longer be king.
You'll only be a Zhao Gao's puppet.
Your Highness, you should take action immediately.
Otherwise, Qin's fate, will be in the hands of that eunuch!
Please do what's best for our land and kill Zhao Gao.
It's the time to end this!
I never had interest in political tactics.
All I've been doing all these years is trying stay alive.
What should I do at a moment like this?
Han Tan, do you think,
the ministers who hold the military power are loyal to Zhao Gao?
As far as I know...
the commander of the palace guard promised his loyalty to Zhao Gao.
So did the commander of the special forces.
Zhao Gao also promised to promote both of them to be generals.
And the governor, Yan Le, is Zhao Gao's son-in-law.
If that's the case, if we act rashly, we'll effectively be killing ourselves?
Not necessarily, Your Highness!
Though Zhao Gao controls some of these warriors,
they are still Qin warriors after all.
They've been loyal to the royal family for generations.
If Zhao Gao is killed...
they'll be loyal to you.
There's no other choice.
Your Highness?
Then let's do it.
Tell me. What's next?
Tell him you're ill.
Before Zhao Gao leaves the palace, he'll come see you.
As long as he enters here,
we won't let him out.
Father and I are descendants of Qin emperors.
We'd rather die than be enslaved.
All right. Let's do it!
Father-in-law, Ziying sent a message saying he's ill.
He wants you to pay him a visit.
He's ill?
What made him ill?
He's not strong.
He barely made it through fasting for five days.
He actually considers himself a real king.
That's too bad for him.
I'm not going. I appointed him the king.
What right does he have to request my visit?
It's because you appointed him the king
that your visit would make other ministers respect you.
Reports from the south. Liu Ji has taken Wuguan Pass.
Now he's marching toward Xiaoguan Pass.
Before the Chu warriors arrive...
we might as well let Ziying be king for a few more days.
You're right.
He is the king after all.
Premier.
No need for pleasantries. How is the king recently?
He's severely ill. Seeing you will raise his spirits.
Follow me.
Premier, my father's migraine has lasted for several days.
He shouldn't be bothered by so many people.
Please enter the room by yourself.
You can stay here and wait.
You, follow me.
Your Highness, I heard you're ill.
Please forgive me for coming late.
Premier, thank you for coming.
Please come closer.
Yes.
Tomorrow
will be your inauguration day, as we have decided.
I wonder if you'll be able to attend the ceremony.
I must attend.
Tomorrow is my inauguration day. I must go.
Guards! Guards!
What are you doing?
How dare you? How dare you betray me?
Kill him.
Your Highness!
I've been-- I've been loyal to you, Your Highness.
Why do you--
Why do you return my kindness with ingratitude?
In the afterlife, I wonder,
what you'll say to the first emperor and Meng Yi.
Zhao Gao, one must repay kindness with kindness.
Though your father helped to build Qin,
the first emperor repaid you plenty.
As the son of a servant...
you've gotten more than enough respect from the second emperor.
He took you as his father. But how did you repay him?
Ziying...
you're a cunning man.
I regret for I have belittled you.
Indeed!
I have done some evil things.
It was me who concealed the death of the first emperor.
It was me who killed your father.
And it was also me who killed that fool Huhai!
It was me who killed all the members of your clan...
loyal and good generals...
hid the war from the emperor, and manipulated the court.
It was all me!
To me...
you are nothing at all!
What a world! What a royal court!
They are all in my pocket.
Even if I die, it's all worth it.
Because...
my people will remember me as a hero!
Because your ridiculous empire was brought down
by a silly old hideous eunuch!
A eunuch ruined everything!
All of you!
Just wait and watch your little kingdom fall apart!
Shut up, you goddamn silly old lackey!
What happened? Who killed them? What's wrong? What happened?
Zhao Gao is a traitor. A manipulator.
A terrible tyrant. He committed regicide!
I have killed him just now.
Zhao Gao is dead. Now the king has taken control.
Please follow our king and be loyal.
Long live the king. Long live the king.
Princess! Princess!
Has the king inquired about our military situation?
My father is not born to be a king.
But he has no alternative.
He knows nothing about battle.
As his daughter, how can I remind him of that?
I understand.
Although you cannot advise him on this matter...
you can be a help for our state.
What can I do?
Now that those 20,000 warriors of Liu Ji are approaching Xiaoguan Pass.
That's the last gateway to Xianyang.
If we lose Xiaoguan Pass, Xianyang will be easily attacked.
Then everything here will be destroyed.
If you hadn't reminded me, I would've forgotten that we're in danger!
The warriors at Xiaoguan Pass are from our Xianyang battalion.
They were once the most powerful.
But things have changed.
During Huhai's reign, these warriors were everything but dismantled.
I fear they'll not fight to death.
Then, how do we encourage them?
I'm afraid words are ineffective.
We should learn from the first emperor.
Reward the courageous
and kill the timid.
All right. Do as you said.
Send an order to Xiaoguan Pass right away.
Yes. I'll arrange it immediately.
Mr. Zhang! Mr. Zhang!
Mr. Zhang, what is your strategy this time?
We can't stay here any longer.
Persuade them to surrender.
It's their only choice!
Qin's is collapsing, Chu rising! Anyone who protests will be killed!
It's not that simple.
Do you have any other idea?
Things are always changing.
For Chu warriors, what you've said is right.
But consider.
What would Qin warriors think upon hearing that?
They might be angered, and morale will soar.
You're right.
Yes.
Then what should we do?
We should retreat.
We shouldn't expose ourselves to our enemy.
Otherwise they may find our weaknesses.
That would hurt us greatly.
Bullshit! All our warriors are prepared...
and waiting to attack. How can we retreat now?
Don't forget what Jiu Ji said.
Xiang Yu is approaching!
Mr. Fan, we shouldn't rush into battle.
We should strengthen our forces, wait for a right moment...
and win the war with minimal effort.
Send my orders. Retreat 2.5 kilometers.
This-- this is your strategy?
Yes.
Subduing our enemy's general is top priority.
We must know more about our adversary.
Am I right, Lu Wan?
I heard that their current general is a son of a butcher.
-General Fan. -Yes?
How about you? Why do you fight?
I-- I'll do what Liu Ji tells me.
Of course, I fight to stay alive.
Then, what's the point of staying alive?
So that I can eat and drink as much as I wish and get a lot of gold.
Eventually, I'll marry a girl.
Generals, in your minds,
how should we deal with
this general of Qin?
I think... if he's a man of uncompromising nature,
I'm sure we can persuade him with logical reasoning.
Mr. Zhang, I can be an emissary to persuade him.
-Zhou Bo, you can't be the emissary. -Why?
Lu Wan, each of us has our ways of persuading others.
But to persuade this general of Qin,
I think nobody but you can fulfill the mission.
As for such a task,
I think only a thick-skinned asshole like me could be qualified.
All right. I'll send some warriors near Xiaoguan Pass.
That'll make the general feel like he's in danger.
Otherwise, he may not worry enough about his safety.
Okay. Let's do that!
As for how to persuade him, I hope you can think it over.
We are counting on you.
Thank you for your trust.
Guys, I'll bring you good news!
General.
Chu's emissary asks to see you.
-Let him in. -Yes.
My respects, General.
Guards!
Seize his possessions, take him away and kill him.
-Yes. -Yes.
I can kill myself. Don't bother them.
But before I die, I have something to say.
Seeing you fight, I know you are not an ordinary soldier.
Tell me, what's your post in Liu Ji's camp?
I have no post.
I only serve him tea or water.
General, what I want to tell you is that
Liu Ji has 50,000 warriors...
and 30 generals.
50,000 warriors?
It's almost the number of your warriors.
This number is why we shouldn't fight?
May I have a seat?
Please.
General, actually I don't regard you as a Qin general.
Nor do I regard myself as a Chu emissary.
As far as I know, you're not a noble in Qin.
Before you joined Qin army, you were the same
as Liu Ji.
You're wrong.
I know you intend to draw me to your side.
You surely know that Xiaoguan Pass is a place of strategic importance...
and fear you cannot take it.
Even if by some stroke of luck you do conquer it,
you'll have a Pyrrhic victory on your hands.
Am I right?
You're wrong. Liu Ji sent me to give you a present.
You've made a grave miscalculation!
Guards!
Have him beheaded.
-Yes. -Wait.
General...
since I am going to die,
I'd like to know why you want to kill me.
Let me tell you.
You think because I'm not a noble,
I covet money and jewels.
So you brought these jewels to bribe me.
Damn it!
How could I join Liu Ji only for money and girls?
General, only a knave thinks of others in terms of his own desires.
Liu Ji hates to see more your warriors killed in the name of a failed state.
He hates to see so many families lose their sons or husbands!
What if I refuse?
Of course, if you refuse this peace negotiation...
Liu Ji will not attack you himself.
He'll find some else to attack you.
Who?
Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu?
Xiang Yu is a brute.
I'm sure you've heard of him before.
He's a noble of Chu,
and hates Qin people most.
No matter what, whether he wins or loses,
he'll bury all Qin refugees alive.
I wonder how you could fight him then.
But, if you join Liu Ji, then things will be easier.
He promised to take all of you as brothers. He won't kill any of you.
Plus, you can still lead your men.
And he will not interfere in...
how you command them.
As you expected,
when I referred to Xiang Yu,
his face was unmoved,
but he was greatly frightened.
If I were him, I would also join Liu Ji.
Great!
You did well in making an empty show of the strength of Chu warriors.
But they are officials from Qin.
Right. They are Qin officials!
You mean,
these Qin generals still have misgivings about their safety, correct?
You're clear about their law.
If they join us, their family will be eliminated.
I worry that later they'll go back on their word.
You didn't see how frightened he was.
I think Xiahou Ying is over-analyzing.
I understand your concerns.
Qin has a stern law system, but have you considered,
what does Zhao Gao's behavior tell us?
It tells us Qin law had perished along with the first emperor.
Their rules have vanished in a puff of smoke.
Send my orders. We'll enter Xiaoguan at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow.
Yes sir!
Stay alert.
Yes!
Is Liu Ji's camp over there?
Yes.
Lu Wan didn't lie to us.
Look at the lights and banners all over the hill.
How old are you?
Seventeen.
Anyone left in your family?
My two brothers were killed in battle. My mom is at home.
Report!
Reporting, General. The envoy from Xianyang has arrived.
Let's have a look.
Everyone be careful.
Did they change their mind?
No. I promise they won't.
Send my orders. March 200 feet and stop.
Two hundred feet? Then the arrows can reach us.
Send my orders. Violators will be executed.
Everybody, come on!
Shoot!
-Mr. Zhang. -No retreat! Violators will be executed.
Mr. Zhang, are you crazy?
Come back. Do I need to bring him back?
Not necessary. He knows what he's doing.
Orderly, how many feet have we arrived?
150 feet.
Withdraw and return to camp!
This is weird.
Fan Kuai, how far can this bow shoot?
This kind of bow is used by Qin warriors.
An ordinary warrior can shoot as far as 200 feet away.
200 feet? How far could it reach if a man shoots from the city wall?
He can shoot at least 300 feet away.
300 feet?
Lu Wan, you visited Xiaoguan Pass.
Is this really the bow used by Qin warriors now?
Yes. It's the kind of bow they use.
Do you mean...
You are confusing me.
Fan Kuai, today, our warriors…
almost arrived at where they can shoot us.
But none of them were killed, were they?
No.
Then, I marched on for another 50 feet...
but they didn't shoot me. Do you know why?
I don't understand. Why?
It means their defense...
is only for a show.
If we attacked them today,
Lu Wan's effort would be in vain…
and many of our warriors would be killed.
Am I right?
They didn't let us through or fight us.
How strange! Why do they take such a strategy?
Once Xiaohou Ying comes back, he'll tell me.
I'm back!
The arrow falls 300 feet away.
Take a look.
This arrow will explain.
Just as I thought. Let me read it to you.
Be seated.
“Liu Ji, please forgive us.
We would like to surrender the city.
But Zhao Gao was killed and now Ziying ascends the throne.
He sent us a message that if we surrender,
all of our families will be killed.
We don't know whether we should fight or surrender now.
We're lucky that you recognized our intention today.
And retreated.
Our position is indeed the most awkward currently.
Please find a way to help us.”
Generals, now you know what they mean.
Let's discuss what we should do next.
I can go there and talk with them again.
They've told us their concerns.
How can your persuasion dispel their worries?
Then, what's your idea, Mr. Zhang?
I think Lu Wan's suggestion is reasonable.
We should talk with them again.
But this time, we'll send another person as well.
Lu Wan, who is he?
He's our military counselor Zhang Liang.
My greetings.
I believe that this time...
you're not here to persuade me to surrender.
You took our gifts
on the condition that you surrender. But you broke your word.
Do you know that what you did will be despised by the world?
What you said is absolutely nonsense.
The world belongs to Qin.
You come to mislead us with what already belonged to us.
You think that sounds acceptable?
I think it's you that should surrender to us.
How dare you!
General, it's not quite as you said.
The tyrannical rule of Qin is what brought the world into chaos.
All rebels are reacting to Qin's harsh policies.
Since the death of the first emperor...
Chu warriors are stronger than ever.
I think soon Qin will be overthrown.
General, I've read your letter.
I understand your concern.
Therefore, I am here today to help you.
You are a military counselor for so many warriors
and yet you came to my camp yourself.
Don't you fear that we may kill you?
Yes, I am afraid.
But fear won't be of any use. What we need to do right now.
General, now we are in an awkward situation.
Fighting is not what we want.
But if you don't fight us, your king will punish you severely, won't he?
Yes. That's exactly right.
That's why we must have a battle.
A battle?
But... how can we fight?
Don't you know already?
Today, you've already shown us how to fight, haven't you?
I-- I've shown you?
Mr. Zhang, if we go on fighting this way,
and if the Qin warriors go back on their word,
don't you think we may be endangered?
Send my orders.
We'll shout “attack" but we don't fight for real.
If Qin warriors don't attack us, none of us is allowed to kill them.
Violators will be executed.
With the sword of our lord.
Yes!
-Lu Wan. -Here
Bring Mr. Xiao here immediately.
Yes!
Fan Kuai, march onward!
Attack! Attack! Attack!
Mr. Zhang! Mr. Zhang!
Here, I bow to you.
I admire you.
None of our warriors died or were wounded and we still won!
Lu Wan did a great job this time.
Compared with Fan Kuai, I only contributed a little to our victory.
You flatter me!
Generals.
Where are the surrendered generals of Qin?
They are outside. Please invite them in.
Please.
We admire your wisdom, Mr. Zhang.
In last night's battle,
none of our guards in Xiaoguan Pass were killed or wounded.
In this way, our warriors are kept alive,
and their families will also be spared.
You provided us a brilliant solution! Brilliant indeed!
That's what Liu Ji told us to do.
Meanwhile, I admire that you value your warriors so much.
You are indeed a great general.
Subtitle translation by Loretta Kok