I used to gaze at the mountains and the sea.
The vault of heaven opened all of a sudden.
Do you know love can last a lifetime?
A willow is no match for the wind,
the sea is no match for a mote.
We wait for our love to last forever
until we're grey-headed.
I'm playing a sorrowful tune on the lute.
But I've got no one to appreciate my music.
A beauty is reduced to a lonely life.
With tears in her eyes, she's reluctant to leave.
Time elapses so quickly.
The vermilion gates and the green tiles have long gone.
I hope you'll show pity on me
and allow me to exist for love.
I'll be reincarnated time and again for you.
All I ever want is to be part of your life.
Even if it's just a dream,
I'd love to indulge in it and never wake up.
I come for you, my love
is the tenderest dialogue.
The mortal life is transient, but my love for you is permanent and always the same.
Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty Episode 25
Yinxiang,
look at that trotting horse lantern.
Doesn't it look much like the one
you once gave me?
No, it doesn't.
The one we got that time
was quite unique.
This one is no match for it.
What if I want it?
Then I'll get it for you.
Sir.
Watch carefully.
Actually,
you could have just given me the title and nothing more,
Why did you show up on our wedding night?
I married you.
That makes you my wife.
Am I right?
That doesn't count.
Slow down.
Uncle Yinxiang.
Hello,
Hongli.
Did your father bring you to the temple fair?
I came here with my mother.
Where's your mother, then?
Why did she let you run around?
My mother was offering incense in the temple,
So I came out with Armo to play.
Good health to you, Your Highness.
Let's forego formalities.
Alright, Hongli.
I've got some business to deal with.
So go and play with your nanny,
alright?
Alright.
Goodbye, Uncle Yinxiang.
Let's go.
Don't worry.
Everything is alright.
Watch out!
Wei.
What's going on up ahead?
Wei.
Is she alright?
Wei, are you alright?
Are you alright?
You take Hongli leave first.
Yes, Your Highness.
Come on.
Come on. Let's go.
The servants love her and respect her,
and we have sewed this covering cloth,
on which there embroidered
the red phoenix and sunrise pattern she loved.
Pray she will be like a red phoenix,
forever shining with auspicious light
and coming to another life in fire.
That person
is Wei.
I thought you watched her cremation.
Merciful Buddha.
Please keep milady safe from harm.
She's such a kind lady.
Please keep her safe from harm.
Stop babbling.
It's annoying.
Doctor,
how's she doing?
Don't worry, Your Highness.
This young lady is fine.
She passed out after being hit
in the forehead.
I've applied medicine to her wound and she's no longer bleeding.
But it might take some while for her to come to.
All she needs is a good rest.
Thank you, doctor.
Shun'er,
go with the doctor to get the prescription filled.
Yes, Your Highness.
Doctor,
this way, please.
If I hadn't taken you out,
you wouldn't be suffering now.
It was my fault.
Your Highness,
Imperial Doctor Chen asks to see you.
Imperial Doctor Chen?
It must have been Yinzhen's idea.
I'll send him away, then.
No.
I'll go and see him.
Take care of Wei for me.
My greetings, Your Highness.
Imperial Doctor Chen, you came here
at Yinzhen's behest, didn't you?
On learning that a servant girl at Your Highness's mansion
got injured while saving his son, His Highness
sent me here to give her treatment.
Please go back and tell Yinzhen
that he doesn't need to worry about a mere servant girl.
I appreciate his kindness but must decline the offer.
Your Highness...
I'll take good care
of my people.
Your Highness,
Imperial Doctor Chen has returned.
So soon?
Yinxiang didn't allow him in.
He said that he'd take care
of his people.
But Your Highness,
Yinxiang isn't usually like that.
What's so special about the girl
who saved Hongli
that Yinxiang would decline your offer?
It doesn't matter who she is,
now that he'll take care
of everyone in his mansion.
We tried our best and that's enough.
Your Highness,
maybe I should go visit him
in person.
Don't be meddling.
You Highness.
Go back and take a rest.
How come His Highness got so worked up
over an injured maid servant?
Yinxiang.
Can I have a word with you?
Yes. It calls for further discussion.
About what happened yesterday,
give my best regards to the girl in your mansion.
I wonder if she's recovered from her injury.
Don't worry about it, Yinzhen.
What happened yesterday
was an accident.
Think of it as our way of repaying your kindness.
I've got to be off now
if that's all.
You plan to renovate the Imperial Ancestral Temple?
That's right,
father.
As I see it,
the Imperial Ancestral Temple has been
seriously damaged due to long-term disrepair
as well as the recent heavy rains
and thunderstorms.
The Imperial Ancestral Temple houses
the memorial tablets of our sage ancestors.
It's key to the fortune of the Great Qing Dynasty.
We cannot afford any mishaps in this regard.
Thus I request Your Majesty's consent to its renovation.
The Imperial Ancestral Temple is a foundation laid by our ancestors.
It does need renovating.
Father,
while I agree with its renovation,
I believe it'll be better
if the Crown Prince is in charge of the project.
The Crown Prince is the heir to the throne,
so it's right and proper for him to be the supervisor
of the renovation of the Imperial Ancestral Temple.
Besides, this move will enable him
to pay tribute to our ancestors on your behalf
and to show people our Crown Prince's determination
to handle every situation in person.
Put the Crown Prince in charge?
Yes.
Crown Prince,
it's time for you to fulfill filial duty on my behalf.
It also conforms to the will of Heaven and popular sentiments.
I shall leave it to you, then.
The Ministry of Revenue shall fully cooperate with you.
I believe that
you'll do an excellent job.
Yes, father.
I'll do my utmost to cooperate.
The Crown Prince should have snatched away that plum job.
It'll be harder for us to draw the Ministry of Revenue
over to our side.
Yinsi,
don't get too frustrated.
The Crown Prince has lost power,
so it doesn't really matter if he's put in charge
of the renovation of the temple.
We should be glad that Yinzhen missed the chance,
or it'd bring us greater trouble.
Yes, Yinsi.
The Crown Prince is a good-for-nothing now.
He's of no importance.
That's right.
Yinzhen didn't win over the Ministry of Revenue this time,
which means we're open to future opportunities.
But Yinxiang's behavior was strange.
He looked spirited
and energetic as usual.
But instead of supporting Yinzhen
as he used to, he suggested
that the Crown Prince should take charge.
Yeah.
I was surprised, too.
Yinxiang looked quite cheerful.
He's moved past his grief over his wife's death so quickly.
Who knows?
Perhaps
he's gone mad.
I've got a different opinion
about the Thirteenth Prince's situation.
What do you mean?
It's not that the Thirteenth Prince
has moved past his grief over his wife's death.
He's discovered that his wife
has come back to life, I reckon.
What?
She's become a zombie?
You mean that girl's still alive?
No way.
We watched the Thirteenth Princess Consort
get incinerated at the crematory.
Sister-in-law,
don't make an irresponsible remark.
I didn't.
Why are you so sure about it?
Because I saw my sister with my own eyes.
You did?
I wasn't the only one who saw Wei.
The Fourteenth Prince saw her, too.
Yinti,
is that true?
Yes.
I thought I saw Wei the other day,
but when I took another look at her,
I found that she was just a strange girl
who looked a bit like Wei.
I guess my wife missed her sister so much
that she mistook the strange girl for her sister.
Yinti,
you're sure she wasn't the Thirteenth Princess Consort?
Yes, I am.
Maybe he's right.
Maybe I made a mistake.
Yinti,
how could you even make up this excuse?
It only convinces me
that the woman in the carriage that day
must have been Wei.
Good health to you, Noble Consort Nalan.
What's going on?
I've never seen you so flustered.
What happened?
Your Highness,
I've been burdened with a secret.
I can only turn to Your Highness
for advice.
Stand up.
Tell me what it is.
Your Highness,
I saw a figure on my way home
with His Highness the other day.
And the figure looked like...
It looked much like...
Whom do you mean?
Speak.
It looked much like Wei.
Wei?
You mean your sister Wei?
She's still alive?
I saw it with my own eyes.
I dare not lie to Your Highness.
Your Highness,
Wei committed suicide by imperial order.
I saw His Highness
incinerate Wei's body.
I don't know
how she deceived everyone and survived it,
but it's deceiving the emperor.
All my family will be implicated
if it's exposed, Your Highness.
I heard about the Fourth Prince's arrangement
of Wei's cremation.
How dare Yinzhen
and Yinxiang
deceive His Majesty
and the world
to save a woman?
When she was in the palace, Wei used to flirt with men
and encourage the princes to fight for her favor.
And now she's still causing trouble.
What a femme fatale!
Wei used to be wayward and showy,
harboring evil intention at Consort De's palace
and provoking the Fourth Prince
and the Fourteenth Prince to fight for her favor,
which gave Consort De a real headache.
And now she's still stirring up trouble.
Consort De?
Hasn't she been domineering
thanks to his sons' prominence at court?
I believe
Yinzhen must have been involved in this.
What good sons Consort De has raised!
Don't be afraid.
Since you've reported this to me
and that you knew nothing about it,
I will explain the matter to His Majesty
for a proper resolution.
A million thanks, Your Highness.
Your Highness
has lifted this burden from my mind.
Wei and I are sisters,
but our characters vary greatly
and we never got along.
It's been such a pleasure for me
to confide in Your Highness.
Your Highness is like family to me.
I'm glad to hear that.
Don't worry.
You can come to me for advice
if you're in trouble in the future.
You don't have to hesitate.
Come on.
Take it easy.
I knew you wouldn't like the bitter taste.
Bitter is sweet
when you're with me.
I see you've become
even more honey-mouthed.
Come on.
Your Highness,
Your Highness Consort,
The Fourteenth Prince
just had this delivered here,
bidding me to hand it to Your Highness in person.
Why did Yinti give me a cloak?
He didn't give this cloak
to you.
He gave it to me.
To you?
He knew it?
I guess so.
The Fourteenth Prince
found out that Prince Consort is still alive?
What shall we do?
Did he send us this cloak
as a threat?
No.
He wouldn't have done so
if he wanted to expose me.
He sent us this cloak
to remind me
that I can no longer conceal my survival.
You're right.
This place is no longer safe, I'm afraid.
Qixiang,
help Wei pack up.
We're leaving.
Where are we going?
To the suburbs.
You're in good mood to enjoy, Your Highness,
pondering over a losing game on your own.
They say I got an intelligent woman as wife.
It was indeed a brilliant move.
But haven't you heard a saying
that offense is key at the beginning of a game
and defense is key towards the end.
I came a bit late
and thus let Your Highness gain the upper hand.
But defenses can be lame.
Even if you moved first,
I won't be lagging behind for long.
I guess it's not late
to continue the triumphant pursuit.
Your Highness
might as well leave it to Shun'er.
Please don't busy yourself.
What's the matter?
Am I doing a bad job?
No. No. No.
Well done.
But the shreds are a bit too thin.
It's alright.
What matters is the taste.
I promised Wei that I'd prepare kabobs for her,
so I'll do my best to fulfill my promise.
Go and see what Wei's doing.
Tell her I'll be ready in a minute.
Yes, Your Highness.
Your Highness, shall we open the door?
Yinxiang.
What's the occasion?
What has brought my three brothers
here in my suburban retreat?
What?
We're not welcome here?
Of course you are welcome.
I fear that this suburban house might be
a bit too small to entertain my brothers.
I don't want to be disrespectful.
How so?
Yinxiang,
you're too modest.
We're brothers,
so let's do away with formalities.
Well, your suburban retreat
looks pretty cozy.
It looks nice
and quite unique.
This retreat looks nice,
and Yinxiang's complexion looks even better.
Yeah.
Yinxiang must be
having a wonderful time here,
since he's in the mood for this novelty.
Could it be that he's keeping a mistress
in this retreat?
Speaking of keeping mistresses,
how could I compare with you, Yin'e?
I'm just enjoying peace in here.
I'm afraid this place isn't really peaceful.
Yintang.
Yinxiang, how dare you...
Stop.
We're brothers.
Fist fights among us are most disgraceful.
Yinsi, you wouldn't have come here
if you treated me as your brother.
You may run for a while,
but you can't hide forever.
What if you can't find
the person you're looking for?
No way.
What if it's true?
Then I'll cut my head off
and let you sit on it.
OK.
It's a deal.
Go ahead, please.
Yintang, Yin'e,
did you find the person you're looking for?
Yinxiang,
you're so crafty.
Ignore him.
We should hurry.
Yin'e, didn't you promise
to cut off your head and let me sit on it
if you failed to find the person you're looking for?
You forgot it so soon?
Stop. Come off it.
Yinxiang,
allow me to apologize to you on their behalf.
We're sorry for bothering you.
Let's go.
Yinsi,
we had the place heavily guarded.
How come we heard no reports
if someone sneaked out?
While Yinxiang was stalling us in the courtyard,
his people must have smuggled her out.
Could Minghui have given a false alarm?
No way.
Minghui is Wei's sister;
she must have been right.
Words alone are no proof.
We have to catch that girl.
Yinxiang is a clever man.
It's not surprising we failed to catch her.
Yinsi,
you mean...
Well,
where do you think
Yinxiang could have sent her?
Luckily, His Highness
was far-sighted enough to have a carriage
ready in the secret path.
My Lady,
please don't worry.
The Eighth Prince would
never guess we're on our way home
even if he knew you're alive.
It's Minghui, not Yinsi,
that's upsetting me.
She won't let me off
if she knows I'm still alive.
Nothing ventured,
nothing gained.
A bold move may work wonders.
Your Highness made such a clever move.
But why don't you take a closer look
and see if I have a chance
to turn the tables?
Your Highness,
I only know how to play chess,
but not how to comment on moves.
How do you think
we should comment on this situation?
He who is one step ahead of his rival shall win.
He who is one step behind shall lose,
even if he's won a piece from his rival.
Oh, no.
Wei.
A patrol.
Many guards are patrolling the gate.
Get off the carriage to get questioned.
All luggage must be opened for an examination.
Milady,
what are we going to do?
Shall we go back to His Highness?
No.
We can't go back.
They've figured out I'm headed back to the capital,
so they must be searching for me along the way.
We'll get caught if we go back now.
What shall we do, then?
His Highness will kill me
if I fail to escort you back home.
Stop. Stop.
Where did that carriage come from?
Your Highness,
you haven't decided what move to make yet?
It might be too late
if you don't make up your mind.
You're married to me,
but I don't know you well enough.
We've got years ahead of us.
I'll try my best to keep you company.
Since I don't know you well enough,
I won't let you know me well enough.
Let me teach you another trick.
Don't rush at the critical moment.
Be slow and sure.
By now
Wei must have entered the capital.
You sent your men to rescue her?
Nice to meet you.
That was close.
How lucky that the Fourteenth Prince's servant
mistook our carriage for theirs.
What a joke!
It wasn't a careless mistake.
It wasn't?
So he did it on purpose?
Why would His Highness save us?
How dare you harbor a criminal
who committed lese majesty?
Speak.
I see.
You married me
to make me a substitute for my sister
to sate your lust.
You still think of me like that?
Your Highness,
you've been an excellent actor
these days.
But I'm not a doll
left to the tender mercies of others.
How could I let off the person
Your Highness wants to save?
What are you doing?
Playing chess, of course.
Why can't you let her off?
Checkmate.
Miss Wei.
Eunuch Li.
Long time no see.
Now please follow me.
His Majesty wants to see you.
Your Majesty,
please put your health first
and don't get angry
at the contemptible traitor.
Considering that she'd turned herself in to save her husband,
I showed mercy and absolved her family.
Who knew that she'd return kindness with ingratitude
and deceive me with her alleged death?
She has the greatest disregard for the emperor
of Great Qing and its law.
Please forgive me, Your Majesty.
I shouldn't have upset Your Majesty
by informing Your Majesty
that the contemptible traitor's still alive.
Rise.
Thank you, Your Majesty.
It wasn't your fault.
And I won't let off
the culpable one.
Your Majesty,
the criminal has been brought here.
Bring her in.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Greetings, Your Majesty.
Good health to Your Majesty.
Aren't you supposed to be dead?
Yet you're alive
and back.
Why did you come back?
That day you took all the charges on yourself
and sought death in order to save Yinxiang,
and I granted your wish.
I often felt sad
about your death.
But you should have wantonly
taken advantage of my kindness
and collaborated with each other to deceive me.
What an unpardonable crime!
Your Majesty,
nobody else was responsible for this capital offense.
I'll take full responsibility alone.
How are you going to do that?
Yinxiang is a very affectionate lad,
but since I'm the ruler of this empire,
I can't let personal considerations
rule over the law.
I sentenced you to death,
so why did you come back to stir up trouble
and sow discord among the princes?
Does Your Majesty think
the Imperial City would be perfectly peaceful
without my presence?
I came back
for Yinxiang.
The punishment for lese majesty
means more than a sentence death.
Don't you dread it?
Yes, I do.
But I dread even more that my beloved
may feel heartbroken and depressed
over my departure.
So I had to come back.
Your Majesty has people to protect.
So do I.
It's human nature.
I won't show mercy to you again
despite your clever talk.
You fooled me once.
I won't give you a second chance.
Take her away
and lock her up.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Your Highness.
What's going on?
Your humble servant
has failed to protect the Thirteenth Prince's Consort.
Please punish me, Your Highness.
I was escorting the Thirteenth Prince's Consort back
and we managed to lose the Eighth Prince's henchmen,
but when we arrived at the mansion,
we found Eunuch Li standing at the gate.
He said His Majesty wanted her in the palace.
It was an imperial decree.
How dare I defy it?
So I had to helplessly watch
Eunuch Li take the Thirteenth Prince's Consort away.
Your Highness,
please don't blame Shun'er.
I was also to blame.
Father knew it, too?
Yes.
What shall we do now?
Wait here.
I'll go out for a visit.
Are you going to the palace to plead for the Thirteenth Princess Consort?
No.
I'm going to visit the mansion of the Fourth Prince.
Your Highness,
The Thirteenth Prince has arrived.
Yinzhen.
Yinxiang, if I'm not mistaken,
you came here at this hour
because of Wei.
Yes, I did.
We'd been guarding against Yinsi,
fearing that his clique might find Wei,
but we failed to take father into consideration.
I was too careless.
Yinzhen, you needn't apologize.
Yinsi managed to persuade father
to throw Wei into prison
in the hope of alienating father from us.
Wei is just a thorn
stuck between father and me.
It's so deeply stuck
that it can't be pulled out without bloodshed.
Don't worry, Yinxiang.
It was entirely my idea
to rescue Wei
unbeknownst to father.
It had nothing to do with you or Wei.
I was going to explain everything to father.
Maybe there's some room for maneuver.
You mustn't do that.
Yinzhen, do you think Yinsi,
with this incriminating evidence in hand,
would easily let us off?
You'd get yourself implicated for nothing
if you went to the palace to tell the truth.
That'd be exactly to our enemy's liking.
We'd lose the whole game.
How do you plan to save Wei, then?
By not trying to save her.
What?
Saving Wei isn't the most important thing now.
Helping father understand the situation is.
We'd walk right into their trap
if we rushed to save Wei.
Father will pardon Wei
once he sees that Yinsi has been
taking advantage of his authority.
You're right.
Father is still in a fit of anger
and hasn't sorted out the matter.
Once he does,
he won't let Yinsi have things his way.
You're right.
I'm so glad that you're still clear-headed,
Yinxiang.
Otherwise my reckless action
would get us all into serious trouble.
Yinzhen, you're too modest.
Our most urgent task now
is to cooperate with each other
to tide over the crisis.
I fell into their trap once
on account of my recklessness,
and it nearly cost Wei's life.
None of us is going to die a martyr's death this time.
I'll let those people who've kept framing us up
pay the price.
We can't allow ourselves
to always be the prey.
We should be the predator this time.
Your Majesty,
The Thirteenth Prince seeks an audience.
He must be here to appeal to my mercy.
I won't see him.
Your Majesty,
His Highness said he didn't come to plead.
Instead, he's got something to show Your Majesty.
What is it?
Bring it here.
Ask him to come in.
Yes, Your Majesty.
His Highness is summoned to the hall.
Greetings, father.
My best regards, father.
Hold your tongue
if you're here to beg for mercy.
I didn't come to beg for mercy.
Nobody can change father's mind
when father's decided on something.
What is it, then?
Why did you bring me
this object?
Father,
this balance scale
is a weighing instrument
and it signifies authority.
The pivot of the balance scale
is like an emperor's absolute power,
and the weights on its arms can be compared
to the forces that balance the imperial power.
If the two parties
are well matched,
then the balance scale shall enjoy stability.
But when one party is as heavy as a mountain
and the other as light as a feather,
the scale will lose its balance.
It will lose its former impartiality,
justice and authority.
What are you trying to say?
Father,
some people are trying to disturb the balance of the scale.
Some crafty villains are doing evil for personal gain
by taking advantage of the imperial power.
If things continue this way, the scale will fall apart
and both the throne and the imperial power of Great Qing will be under threat.
Crafty villains?
That's an alarmist talk.
The imperial power allows no violation or exploitation.
What nonsense!
Please don't be angry, father.
I was telling the truth.
The truth?
You were trying to intercede for that woman.
You knew I would say no,
so you cooked up this sensational theory
to divert my attention,
didn't you?
As I made clear from the beginning,
I didn't come here for Wei
but for the stability of the Great Qing Dynasty.
My words would be to no avail
if father insists on having Wei executed.
But father, have you wondered
why Wei has been pushed
to the forefront time and again?
How could it be a mere coincidence?
There must have been some ill-disposed people
trying to use Wei's situation to stir up trouble.
I see what you mean.
You mean that someone wants to kill Wei
through my hands.
You repeatedly mentioned some evil doers.
Then tell me
who they are.
Father,
if Wei's offense is exposed,
Yinzhen and I will be the first to be affected,
and the only ones to profit from that
would be Yinsi and his clique, who have been on bad terms with us at court.
Given Yinsi's current momentum,
nobody at court could serve as counterbalance to his clique
if Yinzhen and I should suffer a setback.
Then the balance father has been carefully maintaining
will be disturbed.
The dominance of Yinsi's clique
will become a great threat.
Yinsi is your elder brother.
You're so readily suspicious of him?
Father,
I beg you to give me some time.
I promise to show you
who's fanning the flames of disorder at court
and setting up a clique for selfish purposes.
OK.
I'll give you half a month to do that.
If you can't provide any proof by then, I'll punish you
for making false charges against your elder brother
and for deceiving the emperor.
Yes, father.
I'm sitting on the rooftop.
The breeze kisses my face.
I feel it light.
The scenery is gorgeous,
but I feel so lonely.
You and I
live in two different spaces.
In your space it's also spring.
There's also a gentle breeze.
There's also this beautiful scenery.
Your face is close to mine.
I can feel your breath.
Your smile has been engraved in the azure sky.
On the lonely rooftop I find no trace of you.
Engraved in my mind
is your tearful face.
I'm no stronger than you.
Deep inside, I'm weeping.
But I want you to remember
my smiling face.
Your face is close to mine.
I can feel your breath.
Your smile has been engraved in the azure sky.
On the lonely rooftop I find no trace of you.
Engraved in my mind
is your tearful face.
I'm no stronger than you.
Deep inside, I'm weeping.
But I want you to remember
my smiling face.
I'm no stronger than you.
Deep inside, I'm weeping.
But I want you to remember
my smiling face.