Original subtitles

[Strange Chronicles of Tang]

[Episode 14]

[Relief-from-Woes]

Under the flames, speak your true thoughts.

All present today shall be sincere inside and out.

Let lips speak and hearts dance to dispel the eternal night.

I'm an 80-year-old man.

I've served 4 dynasties with unwavering loyalty.

Yet I was framed

and nearly lost my life in prison!

In my youth,

I was once

the top courtesan in the Pingkang District.

When I got married,

I had half a chest of gold and silver

and countless jewels.

But I gave my life to the wrong person

and ended up all alone.

I should never have become a merchant.

I was never destined to make money.

Despite my vast knowledge,

I never found someone who recognized my talents.

I am like a diamond in the rough

with no one to unearth me!

What's the use

of writing good poems?

In all 110 districts of Chang'an,

only vulgar verses are popular!

I was wrong to marry so young.

And being born this beautiful

was my fatal flaw.

The phrase "to make fish sink and birds alight with one's beauty"

was totally made for me.

How could people say it refers to the 2 beauties, Xi Shi and Zhaojun?

How tragic.

Tragic.

Fortune has always smiled on me.

Throughout my life,

I've always met benefactors.

All I've said

are merely my speculations.

But Your Majesty, your safety

is tied to the fate of the Tang Empire.

Therefore, I humbly beg you

to cancel this journey.

If it is ultimately proven

that I have been seeing shadows,

I'll willingly accept punishment for deceiving the emperor.

Enough.

I have indeed heard

of the assassin group called Crimson Pact.

Since it's for my safety,

what crime have you committed?

However,

my heart has been troubled for many days.

How should I express it?

Your Majesty, you can speak here,

and let Official Lu relay your words.

I've spoken out of turn.

That's not a bad idea.

I'll share a story,

a story of a distant kingdom.

There was a prince

of little importance.

I say this

because he had many brothers

and even more cousins.

[Benign Governance with Ease]

His powerful grandmother

ruled the kingdom.

His grandmother despised his father,

so the prince's childhood

was spent confined in the deep palace.

His mother was falsely accused

of casting evil Gu spells and was executed.

The prince didn't even know

where his mother was buried.

After his grandmother abdicated,

his uncle became king.

But the power

fell into the hands of his aunt-in-law

and his female cousin.

Courtiers flattered shamelessly,

while the court sold official positions.

The court was in chaos.

The prince coldly observed everything

until his aunt found him.

Later,

some said he was bold and determined,

with great ambition.

But that was just hindsight wisdom.

I enjoy riding and archery,

but I love musical instruments even more.

If I were to speak my true aspiration,

I would want to become

the best musician in the world

to spend afternoons by the lake,

following my own rhythm

to gently strike the jiegu drum,

watching the sun slowly set,

and living out my days.

That was my greatest desire.

However,

fate

pushed me

into the eye of the storm.

On the night of Tanglong,

before giving the order for the final battle,

I was trembling all over.

I could feel my heart pounding violently,

as if it would burst through my chest.

At that moment, I knew

once the arrow was released,

there would be no turning back.

After the great battle,

the prince was named heir to the throne

and became king 2 years later.

But the real power

remained in his aunt's hands.

She was the one

who loved me most in my childhood,

or rather,

the only elder who ever showed me warmth.

I could respect her

and even follow her guidance.

But now I am the Emperor.

I can't be manipulated.

The Tang Empire must enter a golden age.

For this,

in the court,

I have to have absolute authority!

The prince never cared about power,

yet was pushed onto the throne.

He had few followers,

while his aunt

was surrounded by civil and military officials.

The blame lies only in

my misfortune of being born into the imperial family.

The court gained

a puppet emperor full of ambition

but with no way

to realize it.

Meanwhile, the music world

lost

a uniquely gifted musical genius.

Life is truly a sea of suffering.

And on each step,

there is suffering unique to that step.

I struggle to reach the shore,

but the shore

grows ever more distant.

The former prince

struggled to swim out of the sea of suffering,

yet he drifted further from shore.

My story is finished.

[Abode of Transcendence]

Tonight at the Relief-from-Woes Assembly,

all 12 participants have shared their stories.

[Abode of Transcendence]

Master,

please decide the final winner.

Life is complex, full of woes.

The 12 people each bear their own suffering.

There is no winner or loser.

They can together slay

the Ultimate Evil

which brings woes to the mortal world.

Please follow me, everyone.

What...

What are you doing?

You can't kill me!

I am the Chicken Master of Tang,

granted by the Princess herself!

You may go.

Go?

The Ultimate Evil has taken human form.

Slay him,

and for the years that follow,

there will be no more woes.

-Kill! -Kill!

-Kill! -Kill!

I'd like to see

who dares to harm him.

Lu Lingfeng?

Don't worry, Fei. I'm here.

Young man,

step aside.

Move.

Slay the Ultimate Evil,

and woes will be no more!

Slay the Ultimate Evil!

Everyone, calm down!

We've been deceived.

Look carefully.

He is clearly human!

That so-called Master

tricked us into killing a man.

He's the real evil!

I really am human.

My name is Fei Qiao, courtesy name Yingjun,

also known as the Chicken Master.

And

the Princess even appointed me

as the Chicken Master of Tang.

What's going on here?

-You're lying! -No way!

Listen to Master.

Kill him!

-Kill! -Kill!

Come with me!

Quick, take cover.

Be careful then.

Don't mind the old man.

Kill the young one!

Grand General!

You've arrived just in time.

Thanks to Xijun for drawing the map—

this place was truly hard to find.

Protect Fei!

-Yes! -Yes!

District Head?

Li Changgeng!

Where do you think you're going?

Light the fire!

These Ghost Birds fear fire the most.

Burn them with fire!

Yes!

Take off your mask now!

If I'm not mistaken,

the so-called Master's voice

was yours, wasn't it?

To produce

such an old and strange voice,

I'm curious

about what kind of face you have.

Ascension Forest.

I never thought

this place where I grew up

would be my final destination.

Chen Qian.

With your ancestral home in Xu County, Yingchuan,

you were born in Lantian, Yongzhou.

That's not you, is it?

Of course not.

The day when I couldn't respond to

your Southern Dynasty love poems,

I knew I had given myself away.

I planned to leave Chang'an after tonight.

Unexpectedly,

you came here.

Shouldn't it be the Emperor of Tang?

His Majesty is wise.

How could he fall for your schemes?

Something went wrong after all.

But where was the mistake?

You...

You're the new leader of the Crimson Pact?

You old man.

I saw you when I was a child.

I found you amusing;

otherwise, I wouldn't have let you

live until today

to play the role of the Ultimate Evil.

What a pity.

I was still too arrogant.

But don't be too pleased with yourself.

The next leader of the Crimson Pact

will come for you.

So you've tacitly admitted it—

you are the leader of the Crimson Pact.

Tacitly admit it?

I openly acknowledge it.

Don't think that after I die,

the Crimson Pact will disappear.

Just like after Beacon Fire

and Silent Ember died,

others would naturally replace them

to become the new Nine of the Crimson Pact.

The same applies to the leader.

As long as there's no Crimson Decree

after 3 years in the martial world,

the Nine will elect

a new leader.

You're so young,

yet fearless in the face of danger.

I deeply admire you.

But there's one thing I don't understand,

and I wish to ask in person.

This Relief-from-Woes Assembly began

2 months ago,

which took considerable effort,

yet sought no gold or silver.

It was all for today's situation, wasn't it?

You're a clever person.

I admit it.

Everything about the Relief-from-Woes Shop

was my scheme

and had nothing to do with others.

Since you plotted against His Majesty,

who instructed you to do so?

Or rather,

who hired the Crimson Pact for assassination?

Well,

I can't say.

After all, this is the rule of assassins.

But you kill

in the name of exorcism.

What kind of rule is that?

All those who died

in the Relief-from-Woes Shop

over these 2 months were evil people.

Some harmed their husbands,

some abused their wives,

some beat and cursed their parents,

some poisoned others,

or some trafficked children.

All deserved to die.

Therefore, after they died,

no one would report it to the authorities.

Isn't that right?

Except for today's traitor.

Everyone,

I must take my leave.

If fate allows us to meet again in the next life,

remember me.

Stop him!