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Guardians of the Ancient Oath
[This story is purely fictional.]
Episode 28
Ming Yefeng.
Do you have to do it today?
Your Majesty.
Prime Minister was also present
when you
promised me before I left.
Will you go back on your word?
Suiting the action to the word
is the ancient rule of Lang.
Please keep your promise.
According to the ancient cases,
Great King should keep his promise.
If you go back on your word,
it’s the same as disobeying our ancestors.
You have made your promise that day.
Why are you still reluctant to abdicate?
Aren’t you afraid of the wrath of ancestors?
Wuluolan!
Ming Lai!
Do you still
regard me as the Great King?
Only General Wanqi
can command and control
the whole Shuchi
and lead us to prosperity.
Please comply with public opinion
and abdicate.
Your Majesty,
Lang attaches great importance
to our promise.
Today,
I have no appreciation for the actions
of General Wanqi.
But your word carries weight.
If you give up the throne now,
you will not offend the ancestors.
Please think about it.
How could you…
Your Majesty, please keep your promise
to hand over the crown.
Ming Yefeng
is not the suitable one to the throne.
I can’t watch him
to ruin the future of Lang.
Arrest this unfilial son!
Take them down!
How dare you!
Who dares to disobey the Chosen One?
He who surrenders will be spared.
Elder Huyu,
you know
the common rites of Lang the best.
How should we deal with it
if the Great King breaks a promise?
If the Great King breaks a promise,
he will lose the support of the people.
God bless Lang to live long and prosper!
Did Marquis Zhenbei
not go to the court again?
Your Majesty,
the funeral of
Princess Jingguo will be held in three days.
Then
what have you got to report today?
Your Majesty, Your Highness,
report from the north.
Morahan, the Great King of Lang,
has signed
to abdicate his crown.
The General Wanqi,
Ming Yefeng will take the throne.
Abdicate?
According to rules,
the credentials of the new Great King
will be sent to Ye City within a month.
How could Ming Yefeng
suddenly become the Great King?
Your Majesty,
according to ancient cases of Lang,
when the former King is still on the throne,
pontifex will ask for the God’s will
and choose the one to become the next King.
The next King
should be someone brave and wise.
When the former King passes away,
the pontifex will pray
for forty nine days.
Then the new King can ascend the throne.
Lang is a warrior nation,
not a state of etiquette.
It’s hard to believe
that they could have an abdication.
Whether it’s an abdication,
or a usurpation, it’s their own business.
It is imperative that
the new King, Ming Yefeng
has grudges with our Yo.
After he takes the throne,
how should we
get along with Lang?
Ritual Minister,
you belong to the Official Department,
as our worship etiquette honored guide.
How do you think of that?
Your Highness,
I think
Ming Yefeng
is always against our Yo.
I’m afraid that he will cause trouble.
In your opinion,
what should
we do to deal with that?
From my perspective,
war does us no good.
I still
remember the words of the two Prime Ministers
on the court days ago.
I don’t dare to talk nonsense.
What I want to say is
if we can settle down our own situation,
the outside will submit to us.
That means if we want to convince others,
we should behave ourselves.
Now,
our country just experienced
a long rest.
We still have some military and financial affairs,
people's livelihood and other matters to do.
It’s not our best choice
to fight against Lang now.
But we should prepare a solution
and keep an eye on their actions.
So, Your Majesty, Your Highness,
please prepare the provisions and fodder
and get the army ready.
In this way, we can play to the score.
That makes sense.
Then, Ritual Minister,
what do you think we should do?
Your Majesty,
war preparation is the necessity of the country.
Official should be selected to prepare the storage
of military grain and the recruitment of soldiers.
I would like to ask Your Majesty to choose
a suitable person for that position,
who will be in charge of the army.
This is the most important thing
for us to do at present.
Ermian's counter insurgency
is the last attack of the King
on me.
He tries to wipe me out.
I'd like to remind you that
you'd better think clearly
and plan ahead
so as to avoid being implicated.
I have never had a different idea
since I decided to follow you.
People of Baize
will never go back on our words.
Our tribe has been with General for years,
and we have been connected.
Please don’t try us again.
But please tell us
what your next plan is.
We will advance and retreat together with you.
That’s right.
Lang’s future
relies on you now.
We have already recognized the current situation.
Please give us your order.
Good.
I need you
to train the army in Shuchi
and wait for my victory.
At that time,
the future of Lang
will be changed by us.
At your service.
This is what you want?
He is interesting.
Your Majesty, Your Highness.
It’s not good to the people if we don’t
rectify the resources to secure them.
It’s not the best
policy at the moment.
I think,
Lang is having a new King.
The most urgent task for us
is to adjust the internal and external strategies
rather than make enemies with them.
That makes sense.
Although what Prime Minister Pang
said makes sense,
it’s too naïve.
Lang is not a kind one.
Shouldn’t we
take measures
against them?
I didn’t mean that.
Alright, enough.
Stop arguing about this.
Just arrange someone to deal with it.
Ritual Minister,
do you have someone to recommend?
Your Highness,
He Yao has been guarded the border for years,
and has accumulated a lot of military experience
during his time as a general in Li City,
which is incomparable.
After he returned to Ye City,
he was also in charge of Finance and taxation.
Among
all the candidates of this position
in the country,
no one can be better than him.
I’m willing to help Your Majesty.
Marquis Zhenbei is in mourning, not here.
Yes.
Marquis Zhenbei should be
the best choice for this position.
That’s right.
Mother,
what do you think?
Good.
He Yao has been stationed at border for years
and he knows Lang well.
He did a good job in his position.
He is indeed a great choice.
Your Majesty, Your Highness,
this position is in charge of military expenditure.
It’s of great responsibility.
It should be…
Prime Minister Pang, you just said
that it’s no need to set this position.
Why do you suddenly
have a candidate to recommend?
I think,
if we will set up this position,
there is
another one who is capable for it.
It’s Marquis Zhenbei, Baili Hongxuan.
I also think
Marquis Zhenbei, Baili Hongxuan
is capable for the position.
Baili Hongxuan
followed Duke Pingyuan since childhood.
His ability is
suitable for the position.
I also recommend
Marquis Zhenbei to take this position.
You all think
Baili Hongxuan is more suitable?
It’s up to Your Highness.
Is that the attitude to let me decide?
General, General.
Can you wake up?
You have been in bed
since you came back from Ye City.
Many people and matters
are waiting for you.
Master Ji Qiu
asked Xiaotong
to take you to learn tricks days ago.
General? General?
Xiaotong said
it’s really important.
You have to go.
General?
Ge…
What should I do?
I can’t let Xiaotong down again.
Mother,
Prime Minister You is a senior.
He recommends Hongxuan,
because Hongxuan
is capable to take the responsibility.
Prime Minister You is always close to Hongxuan.
Your Majesty,
the court is in public.
It’s an important thing to recommend candidates.
You can’t recommend someone because of
your private relationships.
Is it right for an official to
guard private benefits in such a public way?
Your Highness,
I don’t understand it.
We are offering right advice.
How could it be
our private benefits?
You don’t understand?
Prime Minister Pang is in your late age.
I’m sorry I didn’t notice it.
It's really against our
great virtue of respecting the old.
Your Highness,
I don’t understand.
You have devoted your life
to our country.
Now you are in a bad condition.
I admire your hard work
You’d better retire and go home
while you’re still able to walk.
Your Highness, please think it over!
Prime Minister is the former…
You are the head of the Supervision Agency,
a venerable official as well.
You have been working so hard.
You can retire together with him now.
This…
Your Majesty.
Mother, you…
We don’t allow anyone to
gang up for selfish interests.
Son,
this is what you
have to deal with in years.
Reward those who are loyal
and punish those who caused trouble
without any hesitation!
“Respect the king and conquer other nations.”
That means you should respect the King first.
We are facing with foreign aggression now.
But someone still hatches a sinister plot.
Your Majesty,
you have to think about it.
Mother, you are right.
I learned a lot.
I announce that, He Yao will take the position
and be in charge of the army
from now on.
Thanks, Your Majesty, Your Highness.
Baili…
I heard that you are still waiting for me.
Why should I wait for you?
Aren’t you already so great?
You are still mad?
Don’t be angry.
I just…
Something happened to my family.
I was annoyed that day.
So I…
What happened?
Nothing special.
It’s already settled.
Are you sick?
Let me see.
No, no.
I’m fine.
I have… I have handled it.
Don’t worry.
You don’t want to tell me.
You still don’t treat me as your friend,
do you?
No way.
Here is it.
From now on, I will tell you
everything.
Really?
By the way,
you haven’t been to Ye City, right?
Let me tell you.
There are so many interesting things there.
I will take you there next time
when we got time.
I don’t buy it.
It’s true. I won’t lie to you.
And,
next time you come to see me,
don’t climb the wall again.
Because
it’s bad for a girl to fall down
or get hurt.
How do you know that I climbed the wall?
Hou Zhengze!
Hou Zhengze
told me.
Fine.
Then, next time I go to see you…
You can ask Hou Zhengze
to tell me.
Xiaotong, is it Hongshuo?
Yes, I’m here. Master.
He has been waiting for long.
Get in now.
OK.
Wait for me.
OK, I will.
Master.
Prime Minister Pang is here.
[Great Zhou Princess Jingguo Baili Hongyi]
I see.
Ming Yefeng has taken the throne of Lang.
We still don’t know
what he will do to Yo.
But, unfortunately,
I have to say goodbye
although I still worry about it.
Hongxuan,
I will
retire tomorrow as well.
From now on,
I can’t help you anymore.
I failed to live up to
Duke’s expectation.
But,
He Yao is in charge of military
and declared to fight against Lang.
He looks arrogant and aggressive.
Fight against Lang?
In the future,
He Yao will expel more his enemies.
Hongxuan,
you should be more careful.
I’m sorry that I let you down.
When Duke Pingyuan was alive,
I promised him that
I would help you.
I failed.
I’m sorry to disappoint you.
Hongxuan,
He Yao is so autocratic
and that will do no good
to the people.
His Majesty is still young,
if he is deluded by He Yao,
he will be used.
Hongxuan,
you have to do something.
In the present situation,
the more you hide your ability,
I'm afraid he will only become more arrogant.
Whether Yo will be in peace
is up to
your plan now.
I understand what you
want to say.
I will send people
to escort you back to hometown secretly.
I, Baili Hongxuan,
will never disappoint my father.
Then,
we will leave now.
Farewell.
Take care.
Congratulations, Your Majesty.
My success
this time all thanks to you.
I appreciate that.
Thanks, Your Majesty.
You have done a great job today.
What else?
Today,
all the heads want to discuss
about the ceremony of enthronement.
The enthronement
is always arranged
by the priests and elders.
Let them handle it.
Your Majesty,
I have a request.
Go ahead.
What the former king said that day
makes my worried.
Blood without filth will long live our clan.
This is the ancient rule.
Lang
can’t betray the ancestor’s will.
So
you are discussing about this?
Your Majesty,
that witch
is a cursed and
ominous one.
The enthronement is coming.
That witch
shouldn’t be here.
Your Majesty,
we are taking
the future of Lang into consideration.
Are you really
worrying about our future?
Your Majesty,
please eliminate that witch.
Nonsense!
If I won’t eliminate her
and I want to protect her,
what will you do?
Your Majesty,
please think of the whole clan!
You rise and fall together with me.
I appreciate that.
But what are you doing now?
Threatening me?
We don’t dare to.
Stop arguing about that.
Li Ruo is my family.
I have to keep her with me.
Your Majesty!
Ridiculous!
How could a young girl
lead the whole Lang
to a disaster?
Isn’t that you think too highly of her
and belittle yourselves?
Today,
all the heads are here to discuss.
You, just a General Qiantong,
came without invitation.
Is it polite?
From now on,
tribe Tilisan
will be charged by me.
Since you are all here,
I should let you know this
and ask Your Majesty
to give me the appointment someday.
This…
Good.
Prime Minister has devoted himself for years.
The position
of Tilisan’s leader
should have been handed over to you earlier.
Thank you, Your Majesty.
I still have one question
to ask Ming Lai.
The reason why
you said this girl
is ominous
is just because of a prediction many years ago
that “Blood without filth will long live our clan.”
But look,
this girl
is already twenty years old.
If she has
the ability to destroy Lang,
then our clan
should have been ruined for twenty years.
Master.
Tao Shen,
send this letter to Ming Yefeng secretly.
This…
Any question?
Ming Yefeng
has already been the new King of Lang.
He is the new King,
that’s why he has value.
Rise.
You and I are no longer
master and servant.
Tao Shen,
your ancestors
had followed my family for generations,
especially your father.
I have never
forgotten their death.
My father died for Duke
with no regrets.
General Qiantong, what you said
is too much.
Ming Lai, don’t forget that
this girl
just accompanied
our King
to win a victory.
If she really gets something,
I think
it could only be the magic of miracle.
As you said,
this ominous girl
has a talent and magic power?
Then what do you think
of our ancient rules?
Of course
I remember our ancient rules.
But I think
instead of quarreling
over a groundless
rumor here,
let’s calm down
and see what the current
situation of Lang is on the grassland.
Outside,
we are
surrounded by Baisen, Ximo
and Yo.
At home,
each tribe has not yet achieved unity,
but there are also constantly internal friction.
For example, the Ermian’s rebellion
which we just settled down.
Nowadays, Lang is in crisis.
Therefore,
how to deal with that witch
is not important at all.
How to make Lang more prosperous
under the leadership of the new King
is the most important thing now.
Apart from this,
the discussion
of other things
is of no use.
You and His Majesty
are friends of life and death,
advancing and retreating together.
Can a few words
of incitement from the former King
disturb your determination?
You…
The prosperity of the Lang
depends on the efforts of the Lang’s people,
which cannot be shaken by
a few dirty words.
Let’s call it an end today.
From now on,
I won’t allow anyone
to discuss about this.
Both in front of me and behind my back
are not allowed.
Yes.
Dismiss.
You have just ascended the throne.
Your ambition has not yet begun,
but you are blamed by others.
Have you ever
thought about
the beauty's influence on you?
Don’t worry.
I have my own way
to break the rumors.
I have to warn you.
Don't get lost
in lust for beauty.
General Qiantong,
you have talked too much.
I’m leaving now.
My father left early.
Although I carefully maintained it,
I still turned the palace into a marquis’s mansion.
Not only is it no longer as prosperous as it was,
but it also goes from bad
to worse.
Don’t blame yourself.
In my mind,
Duke Pingyuan’s Mansion
is the foundation of maintaining Yo.
Today’s dilemma
is only temporary.
Past glory
is a thing of the past.
Now it’s different.
He Yao is favored by Empress Dowager
and get promoted.
I'm worried about the disclosure of Hongyi.
If he is aware of it,
he will not let it go easily.
The crime of deceiving the king
will come to me at any time.
At that time, I don’t know
what kind of involvement we will get.
Then, what do you plan to do?
I need a surprising army
to hold him back.
Ming Yefeng becomes the new King,
but his power in Lang
is not stable yet.
There has never been a case in Lang
that the former King hasn’t died
but he abdicates the throne to a new King.
So, I can know that
there is only one reason.
That is, the former King must have been
forced by Ming Yefeng.
This must
have something to do with Hongyi.
I want to protect my family.
And Ming Yefeng wants to
consolidate his power.
To keep the secret and stop the war,
we can join hands
with him.
You want to cooperate with him?
It’s just reciprocity.
I said
I need a surprising army
for unexpected needs,
in case that He Yao will cause us trouble.
If what Hongyi said is true
that her parents’ death
has something to do with Duke,
will she…
[Great Zhou Princess Jingguo Baili Hongyi]
She won’t.
Although her parents’ death
has something to do with father,
it could only be joint liability.
The one who killed her parents
wasn’t my father.
What’s more, there was a war between them.
They served their own master.
There was nothing wrong
with my father's handling.
Even if Hong Yi
can't figure out the cause
because of hatred for a while,
she should have been able to understand it
after such a long time.
But I’m afraid it’s not that easy
for her to let it go.
Hongyi grew up
with me.
I know her well.
She will never forget the ten-year upbringing
and the
relationships between we three
brothers and sister.
She won’t give up on us.
Thank you for this.
Please rest assured.
I will send this letter
to Ming Yefeng secretly.
Go now.
Yes.
[Great Zhou Princess Jingguo Baili Hongyi]
We won’t be safe if the aggressors is still there.
Hongyi,
don’t let me down.
Congratulations, sister.
So to you, brother.
Baize has been in the remote area
and bullied by others for many year.
Finally
we got a strong dependence today.
It all thanks to
you efforts over
the years.
I need to thank you, too.
As a woman from Baize,
you are willing to do everything
to our people.
When the ceremony is over,
you will become
the Great Queen.
The happiness comes after suffering.
People on the grassland
will also look at us
differently.
Please worship our ancestors.
What are you doing?
Since it’s worship to the ancestors,
of course the daughter of Princess
should do it as well.
Since you didn’t
run away that day,
our lives
have been tied together.
Since we live and die together,
what are you hesitating about?
Princess Na Cheng
would also like her people
to accept you completely.
Brother!
Calm down.
Why are you laughing?
I’m laughing because
I looked down upon this great hero.
Miss Ba Yin, don’t you know that?
Miss Li Ruo has
a same tiger tooth necklace
as His Majesty’s.
It’s said that
Princess Na Cheng gave it to her.
It’s the sacred treasure of Lang.
Each of them have one.
What do you think it means?
Even if today
he can't make
Miss Li Ruo the Great Queen,
he will keep
the position of the
Great Queen vacant
to the one
he loves.
I just wonder
if this man
will regret his
choice one day.
But she is ominous!
His Majesty has said that
he doesn’t want to hear
the rumors about her again.
If you can’t bear it,
you are just pushing yourself to a bad end.
Sister, calm down.
We should wait for a right time.
I trust him
that he won’t forget
his responsibility of the Great King.
Please bless us!
Please bless us! Please bless us!
Your Majesty,
may our Lang
prosper
under your leadership!
Let’s enjoy the feast!
Thank you, Your Majesty!
Wish you can lead the grassland
to prosperity!
Come on!
-Enjoy. -Please.
Cheers. Cheers.
Come on.
Have some more.
Here. Come on.
Finish them all!
Cheers.
Why is she here?
Why?
How could she
sit in the camp with us?
Ruo,
are you going back to your room?
Yes.
Let me walk you back.
I can go myself.
I like to be alone.
Fine.
She left. She left.
Come on!
Let’s take
a toast to our Great King again…
Master,
what magic is it?
Carried by the earth
Between Liuhe
Within four seas
Under the sun and moon
Through all the stars
Discipline of four seasons
As far as the Taisui
It was born of gods,
and its objects were alien.
Live or die,
only a sage can understand it.
Master,
where are you?
I…
I can’t understand any of it.
In the months of spring, the God is Taihao,
the deity is Gong Mang,
which are the same in the rest of spring;
In the months of summer, the God is Yan Emperor,
the deity is Zhu Rong,
which are the same in the rest of summer;
In the months of autumn, the God is Shaohao,
the deity is Ru Shou,
which are the same in the rest of autumn;
In the months of winter, the God is Zhuan Xu,
the deity is Xuan Ming,
which are the same in the rest of winter;
Amazing!
It’s so great!