Original subtitles

=To Kill a Songbird=

(Adapted from Shen Xiaoguan's Bird Kills Seven People)

=Episode 3= (It's Hard to Tell Who's A Better Actor)

(The Next Day)

Miss. Have you received news from Magistrate Lu?

Where shall we go now?

Find someone for me.

I'll handle the rest.

Alright.

Why did you coerce me

to come here?

Why did your servant boy

overturn my boat in the water

a few days ago?

What are you saying?

I don't understand.

You understand.

Your series of schemes were quite clever,

but you picked the wrong person.

You never should've

pin it on me.

It seems you insist

I explain everything one by one.

Very well.

Let's start from the beginning.

The day I fell in the water,

the weather was perfect.

There's not a single breeze.

If there was no wind,

could my boat have been alive

to flip on its own?

Since Fan Jili is dead,

why did someone see him in the streets?

And whose charred corpse

was that?

Your imagination

is vivid.

Why would I do such a thing?

Good question.

It was

to use me as a witness.

First, you subdued Fan Jili,

then found a corpse to burn as a stand-in.

The next day, you staged my fall

and rescued me.

Then you place Fan Jili in a carriage,

(Fan) parading him through the city

so that everyone would see.

In this way,

Fan Jili died in the afternoon,

and you couldn't have traveled to the western suburbs.

Suspicion against you is naturally cleared.

What if the corpse had been found earlier?

That place is deserted.

Only a woodsman passes the abandoned house every noon without fail.

You must have

investigated it.

It's all calculated.

How about this?

I'll count to three.

If you can't convince me,

I will have you prosecuted.

County Magistrate Jiang.

Magistrate Lu is in that teahouse.

He must covet my lady's beauty

and intends to commit a crime.

Three.

You have no proof.

If I examine the corpse,

determine their age, gender, and burial duration...

Two.

Instead of arresting directly, you act secretly.

You must be up to something.

What do you want?

Just speak plainly.

Great.

Here's the deal.

I want you

to take those pretending boys

and leave Huachang County.

You...

Toad venom aroma

takes effect in about a quarter of an hour.

Sir.

You don't think

I enjoy listening to all this nonsense,

do you?

This is news I just bought from a broker in the capital.

A top scholar.

Accomplished in both civil and martial arts.

Wrote poems and painted at Tunhai House.

Famous in the capital.

Praised by influential officials.

You were sent to a small county like ours.

You're likely to rise quickly.

A person so skilled in currying favor and avoiding harm

cannot truly be a fool.

If I don't take precautions,

then

you'd be a fool.

(Whether for the people of Huachang County)

(or the prophecy of that day,)

(such scum and disaster)

(cannot be allowed to remain.)

Wait.

You cannot kill me.

I'll count to three.

If you cannot convince me,

I will act on you first.

Your fake corpse is in my hands.

(If you kill me,)

(the fake corpse matter will be exposed.)

(Someone will then trace Fan Jili's whereabouts.)

(Your plan)

(will probably fail.)

This item is called Don't Defy.

When it acts up, you'll be in heart-wrenching pain.

Within these 12 days,

I must be able to freely enter and exit the magistrate's office.

No matter what method you use.

Magistrate Lu.

Are you inside?

Sir.

What are you doing?

Don't come any closer.

Prepare a carriage.

Sir.

Fan Jili from Huachang County

seems to have suddenly died.

How did he die?

I heard he was burned alive.

Noted.

There's another matter.

Speak.

The one surnamed Lu from the capital

has taken office in Huachang County.

Keep a close eye on him.

Yes.

(Huachang County Magistrate Office)

(Huachang County Magistrate Office) I disturbed you.

My apologies.

County Magistrate Jiang.

It's this room.

Cooperate if you don't want to die.

Sir.

What are you doing?

My lady is born weak.

(Gathering Auspiciousness With the Sun) No need to trouble Master Jiang.

Are you alright?

Miss.

Have Huiyi guard the carriage.

Fan Jili was inside.

If someone inspects carefully,

they might discover something.

Yes.

You...

Don't worry.

He's not capable enough.

(Jiang Chun.)

(What exactly is your link to the Thrush Case?)

You reacted well just now.

Doesn't it fit

your lecherous reputation perfectly?

I've cooperated as much as I can.

You've entered the county magistrate office too.

What's your next move?

(This person is trouble anyway.)

(He should be dealt with sooner)

(to prevent future problems.)

Now,

help me find someone immediately.

You have the nerve to give orders.

Who?

Jiang Chun.

This is

a bamboo comb.

How do I use it?

You've never seen one?

I thought young ladies would all have one or two.

Is that so strange?

I've never used one.

Do I use it like this?

What you want has arrived.

Ms. Li.

Please come in.

I heard some noise when I was outside

and knew you've woken up.

That day at Xuezhao Residence,

you faked spirits to swindle people.

I won't take back

calling you a demoness.

However,

what just happened

wasn't your fault.

I didn't expect Lu

to bully in broad daylight.

He's the local official here.

You might find it hard to stand your ground here after this.

If you want to escape his harassment,

I have some money.

Take it.

Leave Huachang County immediately.

If I must leave,

I can stand anywhere.

But I have things I must do.

I cannot leave.

Thank you for your guidance.

Can you speak a bit closer?

♪A thrush's song pierced the endless night♪

♪Blood splattered on the bamboo cage, reflecting the cool moonlight♪

♪Thirteen years of frost and snow sealed the old study window♪

♪I twisted the needle, prying open the past♪

♪A cold stone marrow pressed against my palm♪

♪My older brother lay buried afar♪

♪Flames licked across that place♪

♪A list of righteous hearts♪

♪Who laughed in the dark at the panic?♪

♪I'm the shadow caged within as well as the flying light♪

♪Only when hatred burns out do we know how scorching our obsessions were♪

♪You said you'd die if you hit a stone♪

♪Yet you crashed into my fate's web♪

♪Pear blossoms fell all over the wound on your shoulder♪

♪The wind in the bamboo forest dispersed the hexagrams♪

♪The thrush carries the past away♪

♪I stand at the end of the fireworks and gazed♪

♪You lifted a lantern to illuminate♪

♪That page♪