[English subtitles are available.]
The Sleuth of Ming Dynasty
Episode 22
Dora.
What's wrong with your legs this time?
It's nothing serious.
Look at this.
How about it?
It's amazing, right?
It's a recipe for mutton soup.
Is there any difference from our previous one?
Yes.
The mutton you can buy in Yunhe is from goats.
The meat texture is different from the sheep on your prairie.
Actually very different.
The water qualities are also different in the two places.
So if you want to cook goat meat right,
you need to simmer it with the skin
and the bone marrow plus these ingredients together.
So that you can get rid of the goat smell and increase the umami.
The most important thing is
to sprinkle a handful of ground pepper before the soup is out of the pot.
So amazing!
Coming!
Here you go.
Sir,
this is too much.
Your meal doesn't cost that much money.
This is my payment in advance.
So next time I come, you can put my bills on account.
So delicious!
I will come here every day.
I want to pay in advance, too!
Here.
Let's take turns to pay.
Me, too!
Hey, take my money!
This soup is really good.
I will come often.
Thank you for bringing so many patrons to
that mutton soup restaurant.
Cheers.
We're so close.
Don't be like strangers.
Come on.
Try the mutton.
Absolutely delicious.
I heard Dong say
the customers at the mutton soup restaurant have been lining up to the intersection.
Although I have confidence in the taste of the soup,
I still feel if this is a little bit exaggerated.
I've been there when it comes to chasing girls.
Listen to my advice,
OK?
Isn't it easy to make a woman happy?
Everyone has his or her needs.
As long as you give her what she wants,
it's impossible for her not to be happy.
Mr. Ma,
I always think you are a man of great wisdom.
I'd like to rely on your help
in my future career.
You are giving me too much credit.
I am just a businessman.
How can I let an official
to rely on me with his career?
You don't have to be so formal. Me and you are like brothers.
You came all the way to where you are today
starting from scratch.
I am sure
you must have friends in higher places.
We are destined to become good friends.
I'd love to
get your help
to look after me.
You don't need to see me off.
Be careful on your way home.
Goodbye!
How did it go?
Did you get anything from him?
This Ma Lin
is an sly old fox.
He was very cautious.
I tried to sound him out a few times
but still didn't find anything useful.
But we have to find a way to crack him.
He still doesn't trust me enough.
We have to create an event
to make him believe that I'm on the same boat with him.
What event?
It probably won't work
if we use our usual way of thinking.
But we can follow that person's way of thinking.
Who are you talking about?
That person.
Redeem the chicken cup immediately.
Sir.
We have a problem.
Sir!
You and I have known each other for more than three years, right?
How time flies.
Look,
we have had a good cooperation
since the bombing in the capital three years ago.
Sir!
I was framed!
I would never dare to harm you
even if I was 100 times braver.
No!
Relax.
Look,
there are still so many coins.
Let's take it slowly.
Soft work yields fine products.
Let me tell you a story.
Once upon a time,
there was a little eunuch who made a mistake
and was brought to his master for punishment.
After she asked him why he made that mistake,
she didn't punish him,
instead she told him, "Remember,
if something is important to you,
you have to hold on to it and never let go.
Only in this way
can you have a chance to have it forever".
Then she asked the eunuch
if he liked the chicken cup in her hand.
The eunuch said he liked it.
Then she said, "Okay.
From now on
you will keep this cup for me".
Since that day
this cup
had been kept by the eunuch by heart
until one day
you lost it.
Sir!
I can swear with my whole family's lives that
this has nothing to do with me!
Sir.
I knew
your cup must be something priceless.
So I had been taking care of it with caution.
But I didn't expect to be robbed.
Those robbers were decisive and professional in their actions.
Obviously, they came right after this cup.
Sir!
I never hid it from you.
I knew that something serious was going to happen,
so I reported to you immediately!
Please have mercy.
Only few people knew about the cup.
You still insist that
it was stolen by robbers?
Sir!
It's really not me!
I don't think
your word is credible.
Sir!
Please spare my life!
Have mercy!
Sir!
Have mercy!
Say it, who was it?
It seems that he really doesn't know anything.
Shang Ming, don't push me too far!
I always respected you
but how dare you tell on Noble Consort Wan to Her Majesty?
What should she do about it?
Mr. Wan, don't be so furious.
Sit down.
Mr. Wan,
you got my intension wrong.
My move was not aiming at Her Highness.
What's the big deal with a cup?
Even if Her Highness lost it,
at most
she would be lectured by Her Majesty and His Majesty.
But things will be different for Wang Zhi.
Although this little punk is in charge of the Western Depot,
he is, in essence,
still a minion of the palace.
A minion dares to sell the objects from the palace,
especially something His Majesty gave him.
What crime do you think he will be charged with?
He'll be beheaded.
If we wait,
soon we will see the day the little punk dies.
This Wang Zhi is really something.
He has arranged Tang Fan
to be transferred to the post of Yunhe prefect governor.
It's clear that he wants to cut one of our finance sources.
If we don't get rid of him quick,
that kid will
get rid of us
one by one.
But I am not sure
if I don't report it to Her Highness...
You have to think about this carefully.
If you tell her,
we might lose an opportunity to
eliminate Wang Zhi.
Mr. Shang,
I still have a question.
How did you know
he pawned the chicken cup?
Mr. Wan,
if I say
someone sent this cup to me,
will you believe me?
I don't believe it.
You old fox never tell us everything.
I believe it.
Mr. Shang,
"coincidences" happen a lot
in this era.
Then who sent you the cup?
Mr. Wan,
if I tell you I don't know who that was,
will you believe me?
I do.
Cheers.
You were late.
So much work to do.
I can't be as free as you are.
I have sent the cup to Shang Ming.
Here you go.
This...
Come on.
I get you something extra
as a gift.
My precious.
Give us our salary!
Sir, we have a problem!
Sir.
We have a problem!
Those silver workers are on a strike again.
Again?
How is this possible?
I have arrested Li Mao and Ertao.
Without the two leaders,
who organized them to go on a strike this time?
So...
Someone must have let the cats out of the bag.
Sui Zhou!
What's wrong with you?
You can't do such a small thing right!
I can't trust you with any important job.
Sorry, sir.
Please give me severe penalties.
These silver workers
have to learn it the hard way!
Ok!
Get the team ready!
I'm going to teach
these arrogant unruly people a lesson!
Mr. Ma.
you need to do me a favor.
What is it?
Help me build a bigger prison.
I will arrest many more people this time.
Sir, you can't do that!
Don't be impulsive.
Why can't I arrest them?
These people make troubles every now and then.
Our Yunhe prefecture government
has to bustle about to fix their problems.
They are bold, arrogant, with no respect to the law and
to me, their governor!
How can I tolerate that?
Sir.
Don't be angry.
It's not worth it to get angry for the mob.
Sit down.
Sit down first.
Someone!
Serve some tea to your master.
Take a seat.
About this,
I still think we need to look at the long term aspect.
You said you want to arrest them.
That's easy.
But once they are all arrested,
who will work in the mines and the mint?
If we can't produce enough silver for the annual quota
to the royal court,
you and I will be held responsible.
We're both
in this together now.
Mr. Ma,
you are quite right.
I let my anger get to me.
What do you think we should do about it?
Our top priority
is we can't let them go on a strike whenever they like
and let them resume work as soon as possible.
During the shutdown, every second is a loss of money.
Mr. Ma, you are right.
That being the case,
I have an idea.
Please do share.
Since these things were instigated by Li Mao,
I'll think of a way
to let him get on board with us.
Then these silver workers will listen to our orders
and get back to work.
But I have to tell you,
Li Mao is immune to both soft and hard tactics.
The "good cop bad cop" thing also won't work.
I'm afraid...
Trust me.
I will talk some sense into his stubborn head.
Then I'll trust you with the mission.
I'll go to jail to see Li Mao.
I am here waiting for your good news.
Mr. Tang.
Mr. Li, I'm coming to you for tea.
Please take a seat.
This tea is good.
Mr. Tang.
How did it go?
This Li Mao is really tough!
I tried to move him by both reasons and emotions.
But he just refused to give in!
I'm furious.
It seems that we have to torture him.
I'll see how long he can play the tough guy.
No, Mr. Tang.
A pretentious scholar like him
is as stubborn as a donkey.
But his body is also very fragile and weak.
If you torture him and
something goes wrong,
it will be harder for us to suppress the silver workers.
Why don't you think patiently
about what Li Mao needs and wants?
Like what I said,
as long as you find the needs of the other party,
you can strike any deal.
I've learned so much from you.
Mr. Ma, you are right.
I will try again.
I'm counting on you on this job.
This time is playing Go?
Let's play it.
Sure.
Mr. Tang.
Li Mao agreed to cooperate.
I promised the conditions he wanted.
You are really amazing !
Then we shall hit the iron when it's still hot
to see how much he wants.
Prepare some food for me, please.
I'll go to play the good cop now.
Okay!
You are my good buddy.
Let me prepare
some food for you.
Mr. Li.
Mr. Tang.
These poem collections are my favorites.
So I want to share with you.
What do you think?
They're indeed good poems.
Mr. Ma, as you expected,
we did it!
Yes!
But did it how?
Li Mao required us to let Ertao and other silver workers go,
and sponsor him to open a private school.
And you also need to fund
the children of the poor families to go to school.
I have no problem to pay money.
But running a private school...
Why?
Mr. Tang,
I'm worried
if Li Mao will take this opportunity
to incite the people again.
The children are very easy to be brainwashed.
What if he gets into the mind of
another young man like Yuancong?
Mr. Ma, you don't have to worry about this.
I have completely convinced Li Mao.
As long as he gets money,
he will abandon
his previous theories little by little.
And I believe
running a private school is a good move for you.
We can take this chance to
control the children of the silver workers.
As long as you contribute,
and give them some benefits like tuition and fee waivers
to further ease the relationship with the silver workers,
the trouble this time will surely go away.
Mr. Tang, this is brilliant!
You made the best use of the circumstances
and solved all the problems naturally.
Mr. Tang.
In the future, we shall share weal or woe
and watch each other's back.
Of course!
Great.
Mr. Tang and Mr. Sui.
I don't know what else
I can do for you?
Mr. Li, why didn't you ask me why I did these things?
After we were locked in here,
Mr. Sui came by.
He didn't scold or torture us,
instead he treated Ertao's wounds.
In the past few days, I have also had a good diet and been taken good care of.
I really can't see anything
vicious or malicious in you guys.
And I heard
today the silver workers are still on a strike.
Yet you have been hanging out with me all day again.
So I guess
you have a plan.
I am not a man of much talent.
But I can still be a company
to read poetry and drink tea with.
Thank you for your trust in me.
I just followed my intuition.
To be honest, I don't know why,
but I have a hunch that
you may be the one who can save Yunhe.
I'll remember your hope and trust in me.
Sorry you were locked behind bars the past few days.
Mr. Li and everyone else can leave now.
Thank you.
You are my good buddy.
We cooperated well together
and you're a loyal friend.
Isn't your good buddy Mr. Ma?
Mom!
They are back!
Yes.
Do you want to know what it says?
Yes!
From now on,
the silver mint will open an auxiliary school
without any restrictions.
All children can come to study in the school.
This is great!
Yes.
Don't cry.
At this place
no one will feel sorry for you
no matter how sadly you cry.
Are you a bodhisattva?
Sister Bodhisattva,
you are so beautiful.
Just as beautiful as my mom.
Where's you mom?
She's with the Bodhisattva now.
Are you hungry?
What's your name?
Wang Zhi.
From today on, you will work for me.
Wang Zhi,
you have to remember,
in this palace,
you have to smile.
Only by smiling can you survive.
Your Highness, did I annoy you
so you don't want me anymore?
You've been in the palace for so many years,
I just saw your tears during the first time we met.
What's going on this time?
You shed tears when you hear a good news?
Your Highness taught me to always smile.
I have always kept that in mind.
You little fool.
I know you don't want to leave me.
But His Majesty is heaven, earth,
and he's my life.
Now there is no one he can trust.
So we need a trustworthy person to take care of him.
I don't want to let you go, either.
But I will only feel at ease
when I know you are working for His Majesty.
I will take good care of His Majesty for Your Highness.
When I am not around serving you,
Your Highness must take care of yourself.
You too.
Remember,
be cautious in everything you say or do.
This chicken cup is my gift to you.
When you miss me,
you can look at this cup
as something to remember me by.
You don't have to come to send it personally.
You could just ask one of you men to do it.
What's going on?
Noble Consort Wan.
Yes, Mother.
Did you bring
the chicken cup?
I did.
Here you are, Mother.
Why does this chicken cup
look strange to me?
I hardly think so, Mother.
That explained a lot.
There was a coincidence
that few days ago
I also found a chicken cup outside the palace.
This chicken cup was originally a memorabilia to celebrate Your Majesty ascending to the throne.
They were supervised and made by the Ministry of Works
and restricted to be used in the palace only.
It's absolutely impossible for the folk to possess it.
If an authentic cup is sold outside the palace,
it's already wrong.
If someone
tries to pass a fake off as an authentic one,
that will a big crime of deceiving His Majesty.
This fake is quite convincing.
But what a pity.
A fake is a fake.
The folk porcelain kilns have been imitating the royal porcelains.
It is possible they followed suit and made this.
Mother shall not overthink it.
Your Majesty is right.
I misunderstood Noble Consort Wan.
Mother, don't mention it.
Let's not ruin the jolly mood.
Mother, try the dishes.
She specially found new recipes for your birthday.
That's very sweet of you.
Your Majesty,
I am a little tired.
I'll go back to my palace now.
I deserve to die.
You do.
Tell me.
What happened?
Yunhe's official silver ingots were mixed with lead
and were allocated into the frontier garrison's pay and provisions.
The Ministry of Revenue used loss in heat treatment to explain the unusual wear and tear.
General Chen Yue of Guangning
made a false claim of the military pay
to make up for what they owed the military material suppliers.
Because Chen Yue asked the Ministry of Revenue for payment many times but it
repeatedly prevaricated and delayed,
I came forward
to help him get the money from the Ministry of Revenue.
Therefore the deficit
was charged on my head.
I ventured to pawn
the chicken cup Her Highness gave me
to make up for the deficit.
You are supposed to be my eyes
and my ears.
If you can't see or hear clearly,
what do I still need you for?
This is the first
and the last time.
You can go.
Thank you, Your Majesty.
His Majesty is here.
Your Majesty.
As you were.
You may go.
Your Majesty.
I didn't punish Wang Zhi.
I just told him just this once and no more.
You were dragged into this while you did nothing wrong.
But I'm angry why you didn't tell me in advance.
Everybody was watching on today's birthday feast.
I almost couldn't cover it up for you.
What should we do if that happened?
I knew Your Majesty would protect me.
At that time, our son died early.
Just then you saw Wang Zhi for the first time.
That child was very clever
and you transferred your love to our son on him.
I understand that.
But you have to remember,
he is not really our child.
Your Majesty.
From now on
this cup is the authentic one.
What's wrong, Commander Shang?
He
tried to kiss ass but kissed at the wrong place.
Come on!
Have a cup of tea first!
Would you like to go in for some mutton soup?
You drink mutton soup like this every day,
you're not afraid you might have too much inner heat?
Where are you going?
Buy some snacks for Dong.
Then I want to eat sesame candy.
I'm waiting for you here.
Make it three.
Okay.
Sir!
I'm Yunhe's prefecture governor!
A governor!
You better let me go now,
or you will regret it.
You will regret it!
Mr. Tang.
Mr. Ma?
What happened just now?
These people just dragged me into the carriage.
What's going on?
Mr. Tang,
behind this door is another world.
Another world?
Don't tell me that's hell.
Not hell.
Heaven.
It may be a heaven
even beyond Mr. Tang's imagination.
But the road to heaven is not easy.
If you don't tread with caution,
with one wrong step
you will fall into hell.
Today is your
only chance
to see if you can enter heaven.
If you miss it,
you may miss it forever.
Do you want to make yourself extraordinary through adventures,
or down to earth
to be an ordinary person for life?
Mr. Tang, this is up to you.
Watch your step.
Mr. Tang, after you.
OK.
be careful
Take this,
Mr. Tang
This is a serious crime that may get everyone related to you killed.
High risk, high return.
Those who can make great success are never stopped by trivial things.
I believe Mr. Tang
and I have a common ground on this.
What if the provincial-level officials
find out?
I have taken care of
those officials in charge in the province.
What about those in the capital?
Related officials in all six ministries are also taken care of.
What about the cabinet?
How should I put this?
Everyone except His Majesty is taken care of.
What if His Majesty finds out?
The whole thing is like s string of money.
We are all tied to the string and in this together.
Someone will worry about how to keep His Majesty in the dark for me.
Mr. Tang, please come with me.
This box is official silver ingot mixed with lead.
Easy and steady!
One in and one out.
Behind door is the official silver mint.
We have been doing so
year after year.
-I... -You don't need to rush to make any decision.
I will show you around.
After you go back and
think about it carefully, we can talk about it.
Step aside!
Why are you here?
Sir, you suddenly disappeared
and I was afraid something might happen.
I am in the Yunhe's territory
with Mr. Ma.
What could possibly happen to me?
Mr. Ma,
I have to go now.
I'll let Ma Fu get you back.
It's OK.
I just ate a whole leg of lamb.
I was so full.
I can use a walk to help me digest.
OK. Then good night.
Think about
what we just talked about.
I'll be the host of tomorrow's banquet.
We must have fun drinking by then.
That's a deal!
Good bye!