Original subtitles

♪So this is what love is♪

♪I want to transform into a butterfly and pretend to meet you by accident♪

♪Gentle yet playful♪

♪You are as sweet as honey and as beautiful as springtime blooms♪

♪Yes♪

♪I have secretly fallen in love♪

♪My eyes are filled with longing. I can't help but care deeply about you♪

♪In this lifetime, I'll practice hard♪

♪To master your enchanting worldly charm♪

♪You are like a love story, a poem, a dream, and a stunning view♪

♪The unparalleled and everlasting love in this world, all that touches my heart♪

♪Your dress brushes past the copper bell♪

♪Laughing foolishly, feeling fortunate to have met you♪

♪Cherry blossoms fall into my heart♪

♪You are like a mood, sometimes happy, sometimes mad, and sometimes sunny♪

♪I'm the happiest when I think of you and I want to pick the stars for you♪

♪I'll be gentle with you for the rest of my life♪

♪You make me want to be close to you♪

♪Let's travel together to the ends of the earth♪

♪There's a girl, playful and unique♪

♪A smile of hers can make the whole street bloom♪

♪How could the world ever let down a pair like us, unmatched in the world?♪

♪The world is no longer fun. I don't want to explore it without you♪

♪There's a girl, mesmerized by the spring breeze♪

♪Like falling petals meeting flowing water, hoping for eternity♪

♪I shall confess my love for you♪

♪There is someone♪

♪I really like♪

♪You are like a love story, a poem, a dream, and a stunning view♪

♪The unparalleled and everlasting love in this world, all that touches my heart♪

♪Your dress brushes past the copper bell♪

♪Laughing foolishly, feeling fortunate to have met you♪

♪Cherry blossoms fall into my heart♪

♪You are like a mood, sometimes happy, sometimes mad, and sometimes sunny♪

♪I'm the happiest when I think of you and I want to pick the stars for you♪

♪I'll be gentle with you for the rest of my life♪

♪You make me want to be close to you♪

♪Let's travel together to the ends of the earth♪

[Practice Daughter]

[Adapted from An Yimo's original novel, The Charming Thief Princess]

[Episode 14]

Once she gets better,

she'll definitely go to the Huacai Hall to...

I'm already here.

I need to see her and talk to her.

- Only then can I rest assured. - Your Majesty.

I'm afraid she'll infest you.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

Now that Miss Mei is sick,

I'll leave you alone.

Get some rest.

Take care, Your Majesty.

This old woman

not only went to the Eastern Palace

but also came here to find me.

Are you okay?

Shan.

Who is she?

Why did you bring her here?

She is... She...

It's hard to explain.

Simply speaking,

we must come to the palace together.

Otherwise, we'll both be in trouble.

Be honest with me.

Is she threatening you?

No. No.

She can't threaten me.

It should be the other way around.

Why do you talk and behave

like a completely different person?

Oh... By the way,

what's in this box?

I almost forgot.

What is it?

It's all your favorite food.

Here.

What is this?

It is a Stewed Melon with Longjing Tea.

What melon? What tea?

It's premature melon.

After soaking in the spring water the whole day,

it is then stewed with West Lake's Longjing tea

for the time of a stick of incense.

Finally, drizzle it with sesame oil.

So complicated.

It must be delicious.

How come you don't know about it, but she knows.

Isn't this bitter gourd?

It's premature melon.

This used to be your favorite food.

You haven't had it for a while. Are you not used to it anymore?

Have some more.

I'm not hungry right now.

It's not easy for you to come to the palace.

Have some to gain more energy.

I can eat all this stuff whenever I want.

You have some.

One must respect seniority.

You go first.

Go ahead.

Here.

Have some.

You go first.

You have some.

You have some first.

If you don't eat, I'll be mad.

I especially prepared this for you.

Tasty.

Very delicious.

By the way,

it's been a while since you came to the palace.

Why is there still no news?

What news?

I noticed that Her Majesty

doesn't like you very much.

How can you become the Crown Princess like this?

The Crown Princess?

Don't forget what your father told you

before you left for the palace.

You have two older brothers back home

who have always been good kids.

If you can be the Crown Princess,

you'll be able to help them one day.

Stop it.

So you ask Mei Yushan to come to the palace

for that purpose.

That's also for your own good.

You...

Are you really going to use Shan

to gain glory for the Mei Family?

She said that for me.

Shan.

I'm sad to hear you say that.

Mulan joined the army for her father.

Zhaojun married a foreigner for her country.

I am simply asking you

to help your brothers get a brighter future.

There's nothing wrong with that.

Mulan joined the army because her father was old.

Zhaojun's marriage was also absurd.

A country actually

asked a woman to take all the responsibilities.

The Western Han Dynasty gained peace through that.

But no one cared about

whether the bride was scared and upset.

You've taught Shan how to write and play the guqin

since she was a child.

Is it only to ask Shan

to sacrifice herself to support her brothers?

I didn't say that.

She said it for me.

Anyway.

Millions of women

have done such things before.

So your daughter

has to repeat someone else's tragedy?

Exactly.

Shan, listen.

The Crown Prince is intelligent, upright,

and handsome.

I really don't understand

what's so wrong with you marrying him.

No.

Marriage should happen between two people in love.

I said all I had to say.

It's getting late. I need to go home.

Now you know why my parents asked me to enter the palace.

Will you despise me?

Nonsense.

How could I despise you?

I actually envy you.

In fact,

I envy you,

because your mother

comes to visit you when you're ill.

What's wrong?

When I was a child,

I always asked my three fathers

about my mother's identity

and her appearance.

They all got tired of me.

So they'd avoid me.

I just wanted to know who I really was.

I wanted to know

if it was really like what others said

that because my mother didn't like me and hated me,

she abandoned me.

These awful people.

I am here for you.

No one can ever hurt you again.

I will be there for you, too.

No one can hurt you.

You didn't see her face clearly?

The room was quite dark.

She ran away as soon as Mrs. Mei arrived.

Why do you suddenly want me to keep an eye on that maid?

I hope this has nothing to do with Douzi.

Otherwise,

there will be a huge trouble.

Ladies, please wake up.

Her Majesty summons you.

She's already at the Chongwen Academy.

She's already at the Chongwen Academy.

Douzi.

Where is my braised pork leg?

Douzi, wake up.

I'll take beggar's chicken, lotus duck, and pig's kidney

to go.

The dishes are ready.

Where is the pork leg?

Ladies, please wake up.

Her Majesty summons you.

She's already at the Chongwen Academy.

Greetings, Your Majesty.

The palace opens this academy

to teach and enlighten

everyone of you

to understand what to do

and what not to do.

It's only been a few days since you've been here.

Yet someone has already caused trouble.

The whole palace is

now gossiping about it.

I thought I got away with it yesterday.

Why does she come to pick on me again today?

I have to punish you today

to set an example.

Someone coming.

Arrest Mei Yushan...

Mei Yushan's

maid.

Stop! Stop! Let go of her.

What crime did Mei commit?

What crime?

A capital crime.

What happened?

Why are you so happy?

Her Majesty came to the Guixiu Pavilion today.

I guess she was here to punish Mei Yushan

for making the Crown Prince fall into the water.

My Lady, you may not know.

It wasn't Miss Mei who was saved by His Highness.

It was her maid, Mei.

Mei?

Are you sure?

It seems that a maid is going to draw all the attention of the Crown Prince

whom you are trying to get close to.

She doesn't deserve it.

My Lady, I feel so sad for you.

But there is one person who can help you.

Who?

Your Majesty.

May I report

something to you?

It was her that Yao saved?

Yes.

Someone saw it that day.

Right after that maid went over,

they somehow fell into the water.

The person His Highness saved was

that maid.

A maid could actually

make the Crown Prince risk his life for her.

There is one more thing.

I don't know if I should say it.

Say it.

On the day of our arrival at the palace,

that maid

spent several hours in the Eastern Palace.

In the end, it was her lady

who took her away personally.

Now I see

why Yao was so afraid of me finding it out.

Exactly.

Although she is just a maid,

she is quite smart

and knows how to get close to men well.

Maybe

it is because His Highness has feelings for her

and worries she might be punished,

he has kept the whole thing a secret.

If she really wins His Highness's heart,

well, her status will be elevated.

She'll completely change her life.

In this Imperial Harem,

there are too many maids who want to elevate their statuses.

But often,

they end up failing in doing so.

It's really Miss Mei.

What is going on?

It's been found.

Can it be...

Do you know what you're guilty of?

I don't know.

You pulled your lady to pretend a fall into the water,

trying to seduce the Crown Prince, didn't you?

I didn't.

That's not the truth at all.

What do mean by pretending?

So annoying.

Someone coming.

Yes.

Take Miss Mei aside.

So noisy.

Miss Mei.

Don't touch me!

You want to put yourself over the top

and elevate your status.

In your dreams.

I indeed fell into the water.

But I didn't pretend.

I don't know how to swim.

If His Highness hadn't come to save me that day,

I must have been dead.

If what Your Majesty said was true,

I could have used other safe methods

to seduce His Highness.

I'd have plenty of chances to try it again and again.

Why would I risk my life for just one chance

that is not worth the candle?

Mei is so intelligent.

She knows how to argue.

I would have been so angry.

How dare you talk back to me?

Tell me then.

Do you secretly

have a crush on the Crown Prince?

Absolutely no.

Why should I believe whatever you say?

Your Majesty,

I just found this

in her room.

Please have a look.

Why is this in the palace?

I gave it to that woman, didn't I?

If you don't have a crush on the Crown Prince,

then what is your reason for hiding

[Nangong Yao] his jade plate?

Don't worry.

This is all for your safety.

Your Majesty,

I have something important to report.

Go on.

Your Majesty,

yesterday Mei caught a cold.

I worried about her so I went to visit her.

But I accidentally heard her whispering in her dream

saying the night His Highness moved into the Museum,

it was she who stole the Moon Spirit Pearl.

How does she know the Moon Spirit Pearl?

Do you have any proof?

I found this in Mei's room.

It is...

What is this?

Mr. Bai.

Is that the pearl you've been looking for?

So it had been

with her the whole time.

Why did she steal the pearl?

Do you still remember

the fishtail-shaped birthmark I told you?

If it really were her,

that prophecy

would be completely right.

How dare you!

Do you confess?

I would never confess something

I didn't do.

That pearl is...

She couldn't have stolen anything.

Miss Mei, please stay out of this.

In this palace,

all the people who can survive are intelligent somehow.

An evil maid in the Guixiu Pavilion

dared commit two crimes.

Arrest her.

Guard Xingshi,

why are you in such a hurry?

I need to talk to His Highness. It's urgent.

His Highness left the palace early in the morning.

He's not back yet?

It was about the fake refugees.

He didn't say when he'd be back.

I've always been merciful.

I never once lynched anyone.

But this maid has an evil intention.

If I don't severely punish her,

she will cause more trouble in the future.

Hit her with paddles fifty times.

Then throw her out of the palace.

Stop it! Stop it!

I won't allow any of you to touch her.

I am the ruler of the Imperial Harem.

Don't I have the power to

punish a maid?

Hit her.

Douzi, move aside.

I won't.

Douzi.

Mr. Bai, it'll be fine.

I won't.

Get that maniac out of here.

- Hit that maid to death immediately. - Miss Mei...

- Please move aside. - Move aside.

They'll pull Miss Mei away.

After being punished so heavily,

she won't survive...

So stubborn.

I won't move aside.

It will remove a hidden danger

- for His Highness. - Hit them both.

Move aside, please.

Go away.

You want to show that you two are close, right?

Hit them both.

Douzi, move aside.

It hurts.

What to do?

It's...

Stop.

Your Highness.

Why are you so panicked?

Please hurry to the Chongwen Academy.

Miss Mei and her maid were arrested.

What?

Bai Ye respectfully greets Your Majesty.

What are you doing here?

Seeing Miss Mei, a weak lady,

be hit like this,

I can't bear it anymore.

So I'm here to beg for your mercy,

Your Majesty.

You're a sinner yourself.

How could you beg for mercy for others?

Your Majesty,

I know as a sinner, I'm in no place to beg you.

The only thing I can count on

is this Waning Moon Pendant.

Your Majesty,

the Emperor gave this as a gift to Bai Ye in his early childhood.

His Majesty once said

this thing could save him from any disasters.

Trying to intimidate me with the Emperor.

After the prophecy of Shengdong,

I swore to His Majesty

that I'd break the prophecy for the Crown Prince.

The Emperor gave this token to me then.

I have taken it with me all these years.

And now,

I hope this Waning Moon Pendant

can protect Miss Mei from any harm.

Thank you, Your Majesty.

Little Diviner,

It's not worth

saving me with such a valuable token.

Don't worry.

No one can save you today.

Nothing can be accomplished without rules.

Even if the Emperor himself is present today,

he can't protect you.

Bai Ye,

this thing is so precious.

I advise you to keep it safe.

What are you waiting for?

Hit them.

Yao is here.

Here comes the Crown Prince.

Hit harder.

Hit harder.

Mother, greetings.

Are you also here to plead for mercy?

I am just here for the show.

Are you punishing them for what happened yesterday?

Exactly.

Then such light punishment

seems like a mercy already.

What do you mean?

I think they deserve a heavier punishment.

We can break their hands and legs

- or... - Nangong Yao,

what are you trying to do?

Noisy.

Shut her mouth.

Yes.

Stop talking.

Stop talking. His Highness has a plan.

Speaking of yesterday,

I just happened to be in the mood,

so I deliberately pushed Miss Mei into the lake.

Her stupid maid

tried to protect her and ended up falling into the lake as well.

But who knows after they got out,

Miss Mei showed me no respect at all.

I got angry,

so I scolded her in public.

I am the Crown Prince.

I believe I can push anyone into the river as I want, right?

Thus, I think you punishing them for me

is reasonable.

Do you know what you're saying?

Answer me this then,

about this jade pendant, how do you explain?

I asked her to take the jade pendant with her.

So they could kneel to it

and make up for their mistakes.

You're protecting them.

You should know

that I have concrete proof of

Mei Yushan's maid stealing the Moon Spirit Pearl.

Even if your father is here,

he can't protect her.

Your Highness, here.

This pearl was found in their room

at the Guixiu Pavilion.

This pearl was

originally placed in the eye of the Domestic Cat Monster.

Mother, you didn't know.

The Domestic Cat Monsters was very strange.

Its left eye was a pearl.

Its right eye was a bodhi fruit.

It was very uncomfortable for me to see them asymmetric.

So I just took it off.

Your Highness,

we found this pearl in their room...

I gave it to her.

Uhh...

What?

Must I have your permission

before I give anyone anything?

I wouldn't dare say that.

This pearl isn't worth anything anyway.

Since they liked it,

I just gave it to them.

Mother, if you are interested in such pearls,

I will find some more

and deliver them to you.

Enough.

You may leave now.

But I'm still interested in the show.

Go on.

Continue.

Now this is hard to deal with. We should think it through.

Leave off.

I'm afraid

what happened yesterday was a misunderstanding.

I will find out the truth

before I make a final decision.

Mother,

do we just let them go?

Disrespecting me is to despise the royal family.

We should punish them and their families in the heaviest way possible.

Nonsense.

Grand Chancellor Mei is an important minister in the court.

He's your father's right-hand man.

Then...

Why don't we punish Miss Mei to come to the eastern palace

to work as a maid for a few months?

I will punish her heavily.

You...

Mei Yushan contradicted me in public today.

Her punishment will be to stay in the Chongwen Academy

and copy the palace rules fifty times.

Her maid failed to protect her lady.

So she'll be punished together.

You have to kneel until the copying is finished.

Set off.

Take care, Your Majesty.

Luckily, Yao came in time.

Only you can protect her after all.

Say no more.

Keep your mouth shut about it.

I told you

I'm in charge of all her affairs.

Even if it's not true,

the Crown Prince really likes her.

I'll go get the physicians.

His Highness doesn't seem too happy.

Yeah.

Mr. Bai.

We saved the right one

but also saved the one we shouldn't save.

Que.

- Were you trying to get her killed? - Yes.

You stopped me like this.

Aren't you afraid people might see us?

Why did you dare to do so?

Last night...

I saw her throw herself at you.

It's not like what you think.

From now on,

without my orders,

don't take any action.

If you disobey me again,

I will send you away at once

and never meet you again.

Sir, because of a box,

you just recognize her as the princess?

Whether she's the princess or not,

she is very important to me.

I ran out of one bottle of ink,

yet I still haven't finished it.

You didn't steal that pearl.

Why did that maid

suddenly set you up for no reason?

Is it because of me?

Is it because Su Ruomei saw

Little Master and I get close,

she asked her maid to do such things?

That doesn't make any sense.

How did they know about the pearl?

Also, how did that jade pendant show up again?

I'm here on behalf of my mother.

Douzi, wake up.

The Empress is here.

Douzi.

Douzi?

Why does she send a man here?

Is she going to punish me again?

Here.

I brought you two cushions.

Go and rest over there.

Okay.

Here.

Eat something.

Get the chopsticks.

Yes.

Eat something.

I'll take my leave.

I don't want anything.

♪It's your mesmerizing glance♪

♪Freezing the gentle breeze of the mundane world♪

♪Your gentle call awakens me from my unfinished dreams♪

♪It's hard to convey my love for you when fighting for the homeland♪

♪Our destined encounter♪

♪I am meant to accompany you on this journey♪

Shen Yu, Mr. Shen.

You're...

No need to panic, Sir.

I'm just here to deliver a message.

Then I'll leave.

Go on.

The crime that the thieves claimed pensions

could be a felony or nothing.

My master asked me to deliver a message.

He wants this case to end soon.

And your master is...

Liu Qinyuan. Mr. Liu.

The Crown Prince will hear the case again at Wu hour tomorrow.

Whether it's going to be a felony or not

is up to the Crown Prince.

You have solid evidence

of those thieves.

His Highness is in charge of the hiring.

Do you think His Highness

will discredit himself by making the decision?

This thing

happened in your precinct, Mr. Shen.

If one day

anyone makes an issue of this...

Uhh...

I wonder what Mr. Liu wants...

Force them to plead guilty.

Advance the execution.

It's...

Advance to when?

Chen hour.

If you do this right

and help Mr. Liu,

there will be rewards in the future.

But if you fail,

I'm afraid your career is coming to an end.

I need to see Mr. Liu.

Master, Shen Yu agreed.

[Liu Qinyuan] And the refugees and the sorceress?

Everything has been arranged according to your orders.

The Crown Prince hired thieves by mistake.

If they advance the execution to cover up for it,

the news will be spread out tomorrow morning.

We have the sorceress's daughter.

She dared not disobey us.

Good.

The execution tomorrow

will attract many refugees to watch.

This is a big trouble.

We might as well make it even bigger.

Ask our men to mingle with the refugees

and point out that the disaster is a sign of our country's destruction.

Then identify the Crown Prince as the cause.

Those refugees lost their parents, wives and children.

Just a little incitement

will make them do stupid things.

Very wise, Master.

By then,

even if the Crown Prince gets away with it,

the rumor of the country's destruction will make the people of Jixi

restless and worried.

We can then make a big deal out of it

and force him to abdicate.

By the way,

be very careful tomorrow.

There can be no mistakes.

Yes.

Master,

what else

should we plan ahead in the court?

Don't act rashly.

Liu Family has been serving the country for three generations.

We have a solid foundation.

The Empress thinks she can take me down with a few memorials.

That is naive.

Master,

I wonder

if I can say something.

Say it.

The Crown Prince is in His Majesty's favor.

The prophecy of the country's destruction

has been there for a long time.

But His Majesty has never thought about abolishing him

and choosing someone else as the Crown Prince.

Besides, after the Crown Prince came into power,

he's got a lot of ministers under his command

and built a foundation.

Why don't you pretend to submit to him,

instead of working with several ministers

against him secretly?

What do you know?

The Crown Prince is intelligent and upright,

which can make an ordinary person

worth working with.

But if someone like him becomes the Emperor,

he will not hesitate to eliminate anything

or anyone wrong.

What will happen to the ministers like me?

People are all greedy.

How many of us will be able

to keep our status?

Now it's hard to tell who will win.

Even if it's a gamble,

we have to take our chances

and try to destroy him.

That is very wise, Master.

Rest assured.

I will do my best to assist you

and bring us success.

Are you hungry?

Well...I'm not eating.

Let me help her.

Go lie down over there.

Hold on.

Isn't this the secret code between my fathers and me?

Little Master,

did you see someone outside the palace today?

I did leave the palace today.

I also interrogated

three thieves arrested two weeks ago.

Three thieves?

Why were they arrested?

They pretended to be refugees to claim pensions

and stole money from those refugees.

At Wu hour tomorrow,

I will have them decapitated.

Decapitate?

♪It's your mesmerizing glance♪

♪Freezing the gentle breeze of the mundane world♪

♪Your gentle call awakens me from my unfinished dreams♪

♪It's hard to convey my love for you when fighting for the homeland♪

♪Our destined encounter♪

♪I am meant to accompany you on this journey♪

♪Wishing for a bit more♪

♪So love feels even more real♪

♪You and I, each completing the other, year after year♪

♪Accompany me to explore the world♪

♪We walk together on bustling streets♪

♪My heart leans towards your warm embrace♪

♪We're both kites reclaimed from the edge of the sky♪

♪If it's an unfathomable fate, let me do it again♪

♪We're both misunderstood, yet we accept it willingly♪

♪Step forth boldly and join me without asking where we're heading♪