There are MiGs waiting for you.
If you want to die, go ahead, all of you!
Wei-xun and I don't wish to see you anymore.
Don't stay in Taiwan.
You don't have the right to demand a thumbprint.
Do you know?
Those people who catch spies
love to make them rat on each other.
BASED ON PAI HSIEN-YUNG'S WORK A GREAT LITERARY FIGURE OF TAIWAN
Qing has gone to the U.S. Blame it on her.
They won't be able to find her anyway.
Wei-cheng and you should get your story straight.
What if Qing wants to return to Taiwan?
We don't have time to worry about that.
I can wait for Zhi-jian if he goes to prison.
But what about Wei-cheng?
What if he messes up when someone comes and questions him?
Look at him.
Look at the state he's in now.
Do you think he can take it in prison?
Can you wait until he is released?
Qian-yi, listen to me.
Mrs. Jiang.
My parents gave me two sea bass.
I'd like to give you half.
Cook something nutritious for Wei-cheng.
Mrs. Jiang.
Somebody went to the restroom, that's all.
Don't let any more aunties come here. Understand?
Do you understand?
There are all cells. They want to harm your father.
Okay.
Go to sleep.
RENAI EAST VILLAGE
So, you got in touch with your cousin through Qing?
Is that what everyone in the village did?
Yes.
This is really suspicious.
I wonder why Qing reappeared
in Taiwan and became friendly with everyone.
That's what the communist spies do.
I don't think she's a communist spy.
She just wanted to help. She was too enthusiastic.
I don't think she herself realized that.
I need to wash my hands.
Your husband's at the Military Court,
because his comrade decided to defect
after contacting someone in Hong Kong.
Isn't he at the guesthouse?
Not anymore. He has been transferred there.
You'd better think carefully regarding Qing's matter.
The person who came wasn't your uncle but your former servant. Is that right?
Yes.
Did you get in touch with him through Qing?
Yes.
A suspicious person flaunted her connection with Hong Kong to you.
Why didn't you report her to the authorities?
She wasn't suspicious or flaunting anything.
She just wanted to help her friends.
That's how a lot of people get in trouble. Do you know that?
If something bad happens, who'll take care of your husband?
I'll mark her as your friend. Are you sure about that?
She's not my friend.
She's just an acquaintance.
The country will not blame you for your carelessness.
Think carefully.
Is there anything else that's suspicious about Qing?
Guard.
Come here.
Come in to take a short break.
Is there anything else that's suspicious about Qing?
Do you know?
Qing was your daughter's home tutor in your former village in Nanjing.
That mere fact makes her very suspicious.
Hi, little girl.
-Come here. -Hey!
-We were just talking about your tutor. -Don't touch my daughter.
During the retreat, Qing went to Dongbei by herself.
Heading for the communist zones?
They're showing a movie today, go.
Go!
My superior told me to show this movie.
It's a movie about a female spy.
Everyone in the village has to watch it.
Hey, madams.
Could you please sit closer to the front?
Why are you sitting so far in the back? Move to the front.
My mom is under investigation.
No one wants to sit close to me.
Come on.
You used to be close to each other.
How could you evade her at a time like this?
Goodness.
Actually, we weren't very close.
We met in Nanjing.
After we came to Taiwan,
she appeared again, out of nowhere.
She got in touch with us out of the blue
and asked us
whether we wanted to contact people in the Mainland.
Where did you meet her in Nanjing?
Renai East Village.
That doesn't sound right.
Wasn't your husband working in ground handling?
I thought in Nanjing, only pilots could live in the Air Force Village.
Renai East Village.
I was the lieutenant colonel.
Don't betray Qing,
Zhen Guo's wife.
What are you talking about? Betray whom?
When we got married,
there were some problems with my husband's legs.
I was in Nanjing to look for a friend from university,
who's the current head of this village.
I begged her to take my husband and me in.
That's how I ran into Qing.
Did the mechanical training program accept disabled people?
His disability wasn't as severe back then.
I'm crippled?
Did Wei-cheng hit you?
He just had to vent.
When will it be our turn to take it out on them?
You had no choice but to say he was crippled.
If the entire wing was killed in Dongbei,
who would have saved him?
What do you want?
Go away!
This is my house.
Stay away!
Mo-ting, go to the office and do your homework.
We're just curious.
What did your mom and Mrs. Jiang tell the defense officials?
Why were people told to move after the defense officials left?
Those transferred were ground handling staff
and school instructors. They can no longer fly.
Zhao-jun.
This is among us women.
Go back to the base.
All the pilots who have been transferred, step forward.
Step forward.
Lieutenant Colonel is not at home.
You allowed your wives to surround his house.
Don't you want to live anymore?
You sent letters to the Mainland. Yet you blame others?
Well, everything was fine. I wonder who ratted on us.
They transferred us without even questioning us.
But your mom is fine even after being questioned.
I'm fine, too. Am I also a suspect now?
Our classmates were planning to ask you about it yesterday.
-Seriously? -Mr. Gu.
Being transferred to the military and preparatory academy,
to a flight instructor, that's equivalent to being grounded.
We can't fly for the rest of our lives. We know we made a mistake.
But we want to know who it was that ratted on us.
-You came in a group to surround me. -Mr. Gu.
Let go of me! Don't you know military ethics?
Which batch are you from?
What's going on?
Uncle Jiang.
In the past,
no one in the 11th Wing would disrespect my wife.
Go away!
Or I'm going to call the security patrol right now.
Our ex-lieutenant colonel has spoken.
If anyone still wants to enter his house...
Try it if you dare!
It's all right.
Those who are supposed to move have moved, right?
You're lingering after the show.
It's best to gather
The flower early, handsome
That's her.
Qing.
She's too far away.
I can't see clearly.
That's fine.
The shows on stage are not good.
The good shows usually happen backstage.
Today we'll walk toward the East
Tomorrow, we'll walk toward the West
Just like the river flowing from the mountain
Don't touch it.
It's a gift from my sister.
I accidentally broke it in a show the other day.
It took me a while to get it repaired.
Then you've got to be careful.
It's a sign.
And signs often become true for women.
You'll offend someone.
You and your sister will fall out sooner or later.
No, we won't.
My two sisters love me most.
Then what are you doing here?
They spoiled me.
That's why I hang out with the wrong crowd.
Then, do you want to do more than that?
Join the brigadier for supper later.
The army?
Forget it.
My sister, you found me again.
Don't come near me.
If you want to ruin your life, why don't you go far away to do that?
Ms. Zhu from Jinling Girls' College of Arts and Sciences.
What do you want?
Is a captain asking for my autograph?
There are more autographs waiting to be signed.
I'm not going to sign it.
I'm also a dependent of the air force.
Where's your proof?
I've burned it.
I have burned the box and the will.
That means you have no proof.
They asked me to help them send letters.
I'm not a spy for the communist.
This is what your two friends said about you.
Their names are Wei-xun Zhou and Qian-yi Qin.
When you were at Jinling Girls' College,
you used the opportunity to be a home tutor in the village.
You slowly got close to everyone.
The government and everyone moved to the south,
but you went to the north.
Then you reappeared in Taiwan.
You went to the village to reunite with your old friends.
I went to the north to look for my husband.
During the retreat, you went to the north.
How did you manage to leave the communist's territories?
I ran into an air force wife whom I had met earlier.
Bao-ru Deng.
She helped me at the checkpoint.
The communist's checkpoint.
What?
So you know some of the communists?
How did you manage to come to Taiwan?
How did I manage to come to Taiwan?
I slept with the military police.
I slept with sailors.
I slept with them in exchange for a boat ticket.
I still remember.
My two sisters used to say
when I had nowhere to go,
I could go and look for them.
How do you keep in touch with your agency after you came to Taiwan?
I will release you when you give me two names.
When your two friends were giving their statements,
they were really frank.
They were trying to frame you.
Think carefully.
Help yourself.
Is there anything else suspicious about these two people?
I want to see my two sisters.
Have some food first.
You can't get an early release only by writing repentance letter.
I'm writing a letter.
Stop writing.
You'll bring bad luck to your relatives.
I'm writing to strangers.
"I, Qing Zhu,
unknowingly became a spy for the communist.
I deeply regret what I have done.
I will never trust other people easily.
I will not trust even my own sisters."
Why did this happen?
How would I know she didn't end up going to the U.S.?
She went to work as a singer in the arts team.
Let's part ways.
Qian-yi.
You can't leave me alone to face all of this myself.
I have only you now.
I can't take it alone.
When she was caught, she even called me sister.
She wore the earrings that you gave her.
You also had a hand in this.
Wei-cheng left Zhen behind in Dongbei.
And now we're leaving her behind in jail.
Two countries are fighting
A fight between two superpowers
Each taking its own throne
Brave troops
-Inspector Ma. -Yes?
This matter is resolved, right?
Almost.
We're waiting for defense officials to vet the autobiography
that the colonel wrote when he came to Taiwan.
I won't hand him over.
Just give Zhi-jian's details to them and shut them up.
Let them conduct an investigation for show,
so they have something to report.
They saw Wei-cheng's name in the autobiography.
Then they found the same name
in the list of ground handling personnel in the 11th Wing.
Cases that have arisen from other cases
might yield an unpredictable outcome.
They are very excited now.
Don't meddle in.
Just let nature take its course.
Otherwise, come December,
your name will be dropped
from the lieutenant shortlist.
You might even get dragged into the situation.
The colonel from the guesthouse
has to face the judge and prove his innocence.
He has to testify to prove his innocence.
Inspector Ma.
Is there a solution to this problem?
My two lieutenant colonels are in huge trouble.
It's a difficult matter to deal with.
I won't join you in your acting anymore.
I helped you bring the Security Bureau people back.
The information I just shared with you
is my final repayment for your help.
I will walk on my own.
Chief.
You've been selected to participate in the hearing.
I'm screwed.
Who else has been selected?
Inspector Ma. I don't know which unit he's with.
Okay.
Chief, this is Qian-yi.
Chief, please...
Witness Zhi-jian Shao.
This is an old case.
Let's go through this quickly.
Yes.
You have to be honest in your testimony.
Your malfeasance case is still open.
Don't ruin your own future.
Gong, why are you...
Silence!
Gong...
Let's start.
Wei-cheng Jiang,
former lieutenant colonel of the 11th Wing
is alleged to have abandoned the battle in Dongbei.
He retreated without permission.
He got his entire wing killed.
In order to avoid punishment by the Military Court,
he changed his name after coming to Taiwan.
We have arrested him.
According to all the evidence,
he is a communist sympathizer.
-He might have been helping... -I didn't support the communist.
I didn't.
Please present the evidence.
ACCUSED DOSSIER
"In the battle in Dongbei,
he made radio contact with me.
He told me that it'd make no difference
whether our wing was there or not."
Zhi-jian Shao.
After you came to Taiwan, you were being asked
by the superiors
to explain the 11th Wing's unauthorized retreat.
This led to a great loss in the battle in Dongbei.
Your confession.
Read it out.
"At the time, the Army was under heavy attack.
There was chaos on the ground.
And our anti-aircraft artillery
had been captured by the communists.
It became difficult for our wing to provide close support.
Because the lieutenant colonel of the 11th Wing, Wei-cheng Jiang,
ordered the wing to retreat,
the army was surrounded by the communists and was unable to retreat."
Inspector Ma.
If you could help my former subordinate get out of this,
I would be really grateful to you.
As I told you, I've repaid what I owed you.
When I helped the people from the intelligence station to retreat,
there were more than just people on the transport aircraft.
I saw
five Cadillacs,
eight generators and crates of goods.
Were these goods turned over to the state when they arrived in Taiwan?
If my former subordinate
is unable to get out today,
we'll all go down together.
The second witness.
This is the last time I'm helping you.
We're even after this.
My people found out
since the 11th Wing was investigated after someone defected,
the other wing captains of the air force
have met in private to complain about the injustice.
They want to file a joint complaint.
You should wait for the right moment and use this card.
"Lieutenant Colonel of the 11th Wing, Wei-cheng Jiang
was late in responding
to a combat order
to Dongbei."
Late in responding?
It's written that he refused to fly.
He refused to fly?
That's what the interrogator forced me to write.
That's not what I meant.
Sir!
-Zhi-jian. -Sir!
Once I arrived in Taiwan and got off the plane,
I was taken by the military police to the guesthouse
to be interrogated on the 11th Wing.
Chief told me to write this
to save me, Wei-xun and Mo-ting.
He also told me that we would deal with the rest later.
If I use this card,
won't Wei-cheng and Zhi-jian get in trouble too?
High risk, high reward.
It's either you win it all or you lose it all. It's up to you.
Sir! Chief just told me to explain.
-I didn't know it would come to this. -I know.
What are you doing? Silence.
Zhi-jian, Gong.
Don't worry.
I understand.
Have a seat.
Wei-cheng Jiang.
Do you plead guilty?
Wei-cheng Jiang.
On the battlefield,
you retreated without permission. You wanted to go home.
Because of you alone, the entire wing was wiped out.
Do you have no regard for your brothers?
Their bodies were blown to pieces
on the snow-covered ground of Dongbei.
They were scattered in that wasteland.
Can you live with your conscience?
Do you still refuse to plead guilty?
I...
I'm sorry.
I have let my brothers who fought together with me down.
I let them die in the cold in Dongbei.
I...
I plead guilty!
Judge, please take him into custody immediately.
Hey!
Why so? He's a useless man. Why do you still need to lock him up?
Chief Fan.
This case was never formally filed.
It arose because of the investigation of the 11th Wing.
I've put a lot of effort into getting the Americans
to agree to supply us with the latest jets.
And now this happens to him.
Great.
The three captains that we wanted
to send to the U.S. for training now refuse to undergo it.
Two other lieutenant colonels have announced that they want to quit.
Everyone is very unhappy about the purge of the 11th Wing.
And you want to send their lieutenant colonel to prison?
This will cause an uproar.
And that will be impossible to calm.
Then could you please
provide the names of these dissatisfied officers
so we can prevent further trouble and restore order?
That's unnecessary.
At the military meeting next week,
I will report
that we are trying to catch communist spies within the air force.
We arrested a crippled former lieutenant colonel to fulfill the quota,
which has caused everyone to panic and be demoralized.
Everyone is passively protesting and refusing to undergo training.
There's no way we can conduct the training.
I'll ask the superiors
to order all lieutenant colonels to be arrested and handed over to you.
Let's leave our airspace unguarded.
Sounds good?
Inspector Ma.
Yes, sir.
You have a lot of experience dealing with spies.
What do you suggest we do?
The case of retreating and refusing to fight
should not be so serious now that we're here in Taiwan.
Our aim is to give our men assurance to prevent such incident from happening.
The lightest sentence would be demotion
while the heaviest would be immediate dismissal.
That's what happened to several generals in the army.
Regarding his sympathy for the communists,
it's possible that his retreat
had to do with his support for the communists.
But we do not have enough evidence to prove that.
I suggest we refer to old cases
in which our men were given another chance.
But abandoning one's wing is a serious case of dereliction of duty.
I suggest that we should make his original superior,
Chief Fan, act as his guarantor.
Chief Fan.
Are you willing to be the guarantor for the accused, Wei-cheng?
I will be his guarantor.
Wei-cheng Jiang.
You've pleaded guilty and repented. You're spared from imprisonment.
Your repentance letter. Acknowledge it right now.
Chief.
Let this be a lesson to you.
The state is granting leniency.
Haven't you repented?
Military police, take him into custody!
Hold on.
Wei-cheng, you're so useless.
Give your thumbprint.
All right.
Didn't you always want to go home?
You're in this situation because you wanted to go home.
You can go home after you give your thumbprint. Do it!
I can't, Chief.
Do it!
If I do it, I will be a communist. I'm not a communist!
You are. You are a communist!
-I'm not! -You are! You slipped.
But everything will be fine after you do it.
You've turned over a new leaf!
Do it!
-I can't! -Zhi-jian!
Do it!
I'm sorry, sir!
I shouldn't have betrayed you.
Please just do it.
I'm really sorry, sir.
You can go home after you repent.
If you don't do it, you can't go home!
Zhi-jian, I can't do it!
-Repent. -I can't.
If I give my thumbprint, it will be the end of me.
Gong.
Sir.
Do it.
If you don't, what will happen to your wife?
Please do it.
I can't!
Do it.
Person who makes the confession, Wei-cheng Jiang
Here.
Uncle Jiang.
Wei-cheng.
I've pleaded guilty.
I've become useless.
This way.
Don't cry.
I'm back.
Mo-ting.
Lady Zhou.
Mo-ting, I'd like to borrow your English dictionary.
Is it that urgent? It's so early.
I want to leave the wing.
I have to pass the entrance exam for maintenance training.
Are you going to leave the 11th Wing?
Zhi-jian is all right now. He's coming back soon.
I'm ashamed of myself.
When I first came to Taiwan with Vice Captain,
I was interrogated by the military police and forced to write a confession letter.
At the time, Chief said to me,
"You have to take care of what's in front of you first.
Blame everything on Lieutenant Colonel."
So Vice Captain and I
wrote our letters.
KEEPING INFORMATION CONFIDENTIAL FROM SPIES IS EVERYONE'S DUTY
Nobody knows
where the cells in this village are hiding.
Qian-yi!
Zhi-jian had no choice.
When I first came to Taiwan,
I was also interrogated by the military police.
Maybe they're like what the biology textbook says.
They're everywhere in nature.
They'll reproduce and change their forms.
They will change their own appearances and styles
as well as those of the things surrounding them.
Zhong.
What were you up to, sneaking around the village with a man?
Did you rat on us?
Don't spout nonsense, okay? I didn't rat on anyone.
He's the boss of my bicycle repair shop.
What boss? Did you state that when you applied for a house?
Why did I have to? He's not related to me.
You must be the informer.
Move out tomorrow.
Are you crazy?
-Say that again? -Are you crazy?
You, cell!
Then I heard
that cells use code words.
They write weird letters
in the middle of the night.
Then they send the letters to someone with a weird name.
I need to make sure it's clean.
Chief said your father will return soon.
Are you and Lady Qin cells?
You blamed the letter delivery to the mainland on Qing.
Go to school.
Or I will hit you.
Just hit me.
I want to know the answer.
I'll apologize when Qing returns from the U.S.
Until then, there's no need for the question.
I won't answer your question.
The only answer is your father's safe return.
Go to school.
I wonder what's the brand of the lamp at the court.
It was so bright.
It showed everyone's true colors clearly.
All right.
Now that things have come to an end.
The 11th Wing's number will be removed
so that the communists will stop using it in their broadcasts.
The MiG brought down another Mustang.
But they didn't know
the aircraft that they shot down
was planning to surrender.
The number of the 11th Wing...
I caused us to lose it.
Anyone from the 11th Wing
who had direct contact with family and friends in the mainland.
has been transferred.
Just in time for the jets.
It's the right time to reorganize this Wing.
If not now, then when?
However,
the changes are not relevant to you anymore.
Here.
They've handed down administrative sanction.
I have been discharged.
You wrote quite a few letters to those two friends of yours.
Haven't you got any reply?
Why are you doing this?
There's no need for you to oppose me.
Just give two names and you will be released.
What about this?
You're not guilty.
Just give us one more name and you'll be released.
Eat it.
Eat.
Talk to us while you're eating.
Go back and think carefully after our chat.
Your two friends are all right.
Their husbands have been released.
They weren't tortured at all.
The husband of Qian-yi, former Lieutenant Colonel Wei-cheng,
declared that he would repent and was released immediately.
Wei-xun's husband, Lieutenant Colonel Zhi-jian Shao,
was discharged following an administrative sanction.
They've all reunited with their families.
But you're here all alone.
What's wrong?
You have no interest in my arrangements for you post-discharge?
This is a good one.
Chief of Taiwan Mining Company.
You don't like being earthbound?
All you need is a little perspective.
There's a gold mine here. Why would you refuse to dig it?
It's described as a coal mine.
Okay.
This is very good.
Section chief of the Taiwan Fishing Company.
From the skies to the seas.
You'll conquer the Earth.
This will complete your life.
Chief.
Can I be transferred to civil aviation?
I have asked the Civil Aviation Company.
They're all air force people.
They rejected you because of your support failure during the battle.
There's one last one.
Team leader of the Air Force Engineering Team.
We're now switching to jets.
The runway has to be modified.
The engineering team is expanding.
Do you want to join them?
I caused the 11th Wing to lose its number.
Am I still qualified to build the runway?
If you feel nostalgic for the old number,
you should go to the fishing company.
You can form the 11th Wing of offshore fishing.
Goodness.
Is the Air Force engineering team
also in charge of the village's reconstruction?
It's one of their responsibilities.
Then I will join the team.
This is a vacancy for a major.
Major it is, then.
I've flown for half my life.
It's time to stay on the ground to build houses.
I can help Wei-xun and Mo-ting
build a house with a restroom and shower.
That will make me feel better.
I want to go for a walk.
I will go for a walk with you tonight.
I want to go now.
I want to go out during the day
to bask in the sun.
Zhi-jian is back.
Let's invite Zhi-jian and Gong here for dinner tonight.
They are not allowed to come to our house.
They betrayed you.
They didn't have a choice.
You are Lady.
You shouldn't be so petty.
If it were me,
I would also betray them
to keep you safe.
Just like how you and Wei-xun
betrayed Qing.
This will end someday.
I'm glad you've been transferred.
You can build a house for us.
Let's have dinner together tonight.
We haven't had dinner together in ages.
I will buy some wine.
You should drink with Mom tonight.
Zhi-jian, Wei-xun.
Let's have dinner together tonight.
We haven't got together in a long time.
I'll get Gong to join us.
I'm glad to see you back here.
Uncle Jiang.
My father has just returned.
Whatever you have to say, leave it for another day.
Zhi-jian is back.
We've all changed.
We'll just have dinner at home.
Qian-yi, I don't want to trouble you.
Wei-cheng, let's go.
I will buy some wine.
Don't go to Lady Qin's house.
We will have dinner at home.
She found out.
Gong was here.
He was crying
when he told us that you and he betrayed Wei-cheng to save yourselves.
She's talked to me less since the incidents.
I will visit her in school in a couple of days.
Her teacher said she's been acting weird.
When there are group activities, she hides in the gym.
She's become more aware of things than she was before.
But...
She shouldn't be aware of these things.
I want to see Lieutenant Colonel.
Please come with me.
I can't go there alone.
We have to resolve this issue between us.
Should Mo-ting come with us?
No, she shouldn't.
I can't embarrass myself in front of her.
If I can't resolve this issue between Lieutenant Colonel and me,
she will carry the burden of the issue.
The 11th Wing,
Renai East Village,
and her father that she saw when she was a child
were not the way they are today.
Let me visit her in school instead.
You don't have to go.
When they saw me,
they got so scared.
It was as if they saw a communist spy.
Are you planning to tell her to accuse me
so that you can escape?
Who can escape?
Why don't I send those two pilots
to prison as well?
No!
We've done everything we could
for our husbands.
Salute!
The 11th Wing! You are dismissed!
Hurry!
Subtitle translation by Hui Hsing