Original subtitles

=Love Beyond the Grave= (Adapted from the novel by Li Qingran)

=Episode 27=

♪Between black and white,\Nripples crossed♪

♪Light encountered shadow♪

♪It pierced the darkness and the time♪

♪The unbreakable fate♪

♪Suddenly cracked♪

We meet again.

Foxy.

♪Listen, all sounds are roaring♪

♪As cold ice turns into tides♪

♪A century's loneliness melts dreams♪

♪Following fate's guidance♪

♪By fate, our moments were exchanged♪

♪The heart wakes up all of a sudden♪

(I must have lost my mind.)

(Why is she here?)

What a surprise.

To see General Duan here as well.

What a coincidence.

Vice Minister Fang is here too.

I will not disturb you two, my lords.

Suyi will take her leave first.

It seems

that General Duan

has already taken a liking to

Minister Wang's daughter.

As for whom I favor,

is that what you want to know,

or is it the Duke

who wishes to know?

What do you think?

General Duan,

Fang Xianye,

so you truly mean no good.

You want to steal from my Third Brother

his marriage selection match.

You, come with me.

Third Brother, go after her now.

Go on, quickly.

Come here.

Fang Xianye.

Don't you dare hinder Third Brother.

Miss Duan,

Neither is wed,

so how am I in the way?

Besides, Miss Wang

may not favor Young Master Duan.

Third Brother's affairs

are not yours to meddle in.

Third Brother is far better than you.

Even if Miss Suyi rejects Third Brother,

she still would never choose you.

Nothing is settled yet,

so why speak with such certainty,

I...

Anyway,

stop hindering Third Brother.

Do not be upset, miss.

Then I,

shall take my leave, Miss Duan.

strolling through the garden.

- I - shall take my leave first.

Wait.

How do you know the Six-Petal Flower Knot?

Only my Third Brother can tie that knot.

Why are you so annoying?

Why do you copy my Third Brother in all things?

You copy him in marriage selection,

And now even his flower knot.

You do have a sharp memory.

Little trinkets.

Come look, come see.

Weren't you at the Gong Yan?

Why are you back so soon?

I already did what my old man asked.

So I left.

What are you doing here?

I...

I went to Duan Mansion for Senior Brother.

I heard he had gone to the banquet.

I left word at Yuzao Pleasure House.

Senior Brother is still not out.

Go wait for him. I'm leaving.

Why are you following me?

Aren't you waiting for Senior Brother?

He

likely won't be out anytime soon.

I'd better head back first.

Your home is that way.

I can get back from this way too.

How was today's Gong Yan?

Not much to speak of.

Did you meet anyone

interesting there,

or see anything unusual?

No.

That Gong Yan was terribly dull.

Let's go drink at Yuzao Pleasure House.

Sure.

I heard Yuzao Pleasure House

A new batch of fine wine just arrived.

With your poor head for drink,

you still know Yuzao Pleasure House?

What fine wine would you know there?

I kept an eye out just for you.

That's what true brothers are for.

Come on.

Move, move. Hurry up.

- Brother Zhou. - Brother Li.

Brother Zhao.

It has been far too long.

Indeed, far too long.

How have you been of late?

I have been well enough.

A few days ago, I read your prose.

You honor me. You honor me.

Old Ancestor.

You have returned.

Did you gain anything from it?

Today, at the Gong Yan,

I have left marks on those with deep obsessions.

They now bear my marks.

Use your station as Imperial Preceptor

to draw close to them.

Gather their obsessions.

Yes.

When you approach them,

look into them with great care.

Song Xingyu will likely, as before,

forge a pact with such people.

If we find this Gong Yan,

we may find Song Xingyu.

Old Ancestor,

you truly have a way with things.

Old Ancestor,

did you see it today?

That Duan Xu,

he was so attentive to that young lady.

What was that young lady called again?

Her name is

Old Ancestor,

isn't this the life

you wanted for him?

Why take it out on me?

Go do what you should do.

Less talk about the rest.

Yes.

Third Brother, I'm coming in.

Third Brother,

from how you reacted today,

have you taken to Wang Suyi?

Can you help me meet her?

I... Miss Wang and I

do have some acquaintance.

The Embroidery Society I run,

she often attends.

I still owe her a

Suzhou Embroidered Round Fan.

I'll deliver it tomorrow

and ask her for you on the way.

This Venerable One is here.

Where are you?

Old Ancestor,

I am truly sorry.

I still have to wait for the medicine.

Please look around first. I'll come soon.

You would make this Venerable One wait?

I am innocent too.

It is all Ziji's fault.

If I skip the medicine, she won't let me out.

I'll be there at once.

Old Ancestor, look,

she's calling me again.

I'm going now.

Forget it.

I'll count this as a day off.

Here, hold it tight.

Thanks.

Miss, would you like a sugar figurine?

I can make one on the spot.

Baskets for sale, baskets for sale.

Sachet ornaments.

Welcome inside, honored guest.

Your wine. Please enjoy.

Young Master Duan.

You finally made it.

Come.

Young Master Wang.

Miss Wang.

Sorry to keep you waiting.

I was wondering

why Miss Wang would

ask to meet at Yuzao Pleasure House.

So it was Young Master Wang

who chose this place.

Bringing your younger sister here,

are you trying to embarrass me?

Young Master Duan, you jest.

I heard

you're a regular at Yuzao Pleasure House.

and Luoxian, the lady of this house,

have long been close as well.

Since you mean to get to know

my younger sister better,

it is only natural

to bring her into your daily life.

Besides,

for men to seek pleasure

is common enough at home.

I understand you.

And look at my sister.

A noble lady, graceful and poised.

Why would she mind

your confidantes?

What a pity, though.

I asked Luoxian here today.

She is likely waiting

quite anxiously by now.

Young Master Duan,

you must take good care of her.

my younger sister

I will take good care of your sister.

Luo Xian,

Since we parted after Gong Yan,

Have you been well, Miss Wang?

Thank you for your concern,

I've been quite well.

Truth be told, you did not wish

to come here and meet me, did you?

- I... - Though you said nothing to your

brother, you mind it a great deal,

that men come to drink courtesan wine,

do you not? Young Master Duan,

you truly see through people,

and grasp much from little. I admire it.

But I can also sense

that you do not seem

so eager to know me either,

am I right?

It's raining.

Yes.

A sudden summer rain.

(sugar figurine)

Who are you?

Where did this rake come from?

You forgot me that quickly?

I am Duan Xu.

Xu as in Fenglangxu.

My courtesy name is Shunxi.

He Simu,

So you recognized me.

Foxy,

How did you know it was me?

Who else makes crow sugar figurines?

You've come to Nandu.

Why didn't you tell me?

I came to Nandu on my own business.

I didn't come here for you.

Why would I tell you?

Then you weren't going to see me?

Nandu is only so big.

Of course we'd run into each other.

What a surprise, General Duan.

Why are you holding my friend

and not letting go?

Imperial Preceptor,

have you finished

your official business?

Old Ancestor,

Miss He,

why buy another sugar figurine?

You cannot even taste it.

Yet you still like such things.

Mind your own affairs.

Your health is so poor,

yet you chose a rainy day to roam.

Do you think your life too long?

I...

We all have our quirks. Let it be.

Let's go.

Come on.

Taste it for me.

Is it sweet?

Here, take it.

♪Memories trail like a shadow♪

♪Scattered reflections\\Nsink into my heart♪

♪If I could softly call you like this♪

♪As gentle as a fleeting embrace♪

♪Though apart, my thoughts still swirl♪

♪A lifetime is given for a name to be remembered♪

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

♪Hope we'll experience them together♪

How did you recognize me?

Who else makes a crow sugar figurine?

(Just now, you were so far away.)

(I couldn't see clearly at all.)

(I couldn't even tell what)

(He Simu was holding in his hand,)

(let alone make out a crow's shape.)

(Exactly.)

(How did I know it was you)

(How, in but a moment)

(Among countless plain, strange)

(mortal shells)

(I knew the soul within)

I am but unworthy.

The Lord of Myriad Spirits.

(I have known this soul)

(for no more than half a year)

(Everyone says)

(forgetting)

(is something exceedingly)

(easy to do)

(Perhaps one day, when my temples gray)

(and I reach the age Father spoke of)

(when childhood bonds fade from mind)

(will I still, in the vast crowd)

(know her at a glance)

(By the time that day comes)

(Even if I know her)

(Would I still, like today,)

(run after her without a thought?)

♪There are passions and pains♪

♪Hope we'll experience them together♪

(She was the first girl)

(I ever gave my heart to)

(the very first)

(to awaken me)

♪Grows dim and fades away♪

(and the first one)

(who came for me)

(in that pitch-black darkness)

(and led me home)

(The first girl who made me)

(feel the world's beauty)

(and its pain because of her)

♪Worth more than any barren land♪

♪I might as well\\Nspend the rest of my life♪

(The one who always called me Foxy)

(and said, I'll protect you)

(But do not love the girl I am.)

For I am the wish you cannot fulfill.

Take me out of

your wish.

♪A dream I'm lost in♪

(How ironic.)

(My original wish)

(was to live as an ordinary man,)

(free of the All-Knowing's shadow,)

(and learn to live like everyone else.)

(I tried so hard to do that.)

(But now,)

(everything has turned away from)

(the wish I first held)

(and gone the opposite way.)

(Spirit Lord He Simu)

(has become my new wish,)

(the most shocking wish of all.)

(I, Duan Xu,)

(will have no one but He Simu.)

Hejia Fengyi.

Your gift for divination

has truly grown by the day.

You asked me out for this moment?

What a coincidence, isn't it?

Who knew we'd run into him?

How has Duan Shunxi been lately?

Probably not too well.

After he returned from the battlefield,

his military command was stripped.

He was given an idle post

in the imperial court, doing nothing.

No one knows

if he was hurt on the battlefield.

He still looks somewhat weak.

Drenched in rain in this weather,

he may well fall ill.

As for falling ill, I know it well.

Men like him, who usually seem

so strong and healthy...

Once a person falls ill,

it can hit like a mountain collapsing.

It is perilous indeed.

One lapse, and a small ailment grows.

Then a life is lost.

You said too little.

Does your whole body ache?

It surely does.

Old Ancestor, you know me best.

What?

Afraid I will doom him with my words?

Easy, easy.

I did not use spellcraft just now.

And even if I had,

it would only be

to pray for his well-being.

I know.

You know?

Then you simply care for him,

and cannot bear hearing him die.

If you're unwell,

then speak a little less.

How are you anything like Aunt?

Perhaps

because she's pretty.

Old Ancestor,

you asked me before,

how mortals live in Guixu.

I almost thought

he had become your beloved.

But after Duan Xu returned to court,

one look from me,

and that resentment

was heavier than the spirits'.

I had assumed

he was frustrated in court.

But then,

seeing how he grabbed your hand,

I finally understood.

It spelled out four clear words.

Troubled by matters of the heart.

You should count yourself fortunate.

You're in the Imperial Preceptor's Manor now.

That saved your life.

Old Ancestor, forgive me.

I saw how you were just now,

so calm and unreadable.

I take it you've turned him down.

Then it has nothing to do with you.

From what I saw, he and Miss Wang

were getting along very well.

Looks like the feeling is mutual.

I suppose he'll soon forget

a four-hundred-year-old,

worldly and seasoned woman like you,

and turn to a fair beauty instead.

Old Ancestor.

Old Ancestor.

You have to hear the truth sometime.

How was any of that the truth?

How was that not the truth?

Aren't you over four hundred?

They were clearly distant and polite.

But you called me over on purpose,

to stir things up and sow discord.

Who taught you to wag your tongue?

They are not in love at all.

I see.

So that's the real point here.

But Old Ancestor, don't forget,

she

is the one Duan Xu asked to marry.

You do have a silver tongue.

The task I assigned you,

have you finished it?

Have you found Song Xingyu?

Rest assured.

I've already been screening

those you've left marks on.

But, Old Ancestor...

You know the state of my health.

We must wait for an auspicious day.

Otherwise,

what little life I have left

will be worn down even more.

If my body is harmed,

what am I to do?

A bustling place like Nandu,

all splendor and temptation,

yet as far as the eye can see,

there's no spiritual aura or spirits.

Could it be

this is tied to Song Xingyu too?

I'll give you the obsessions tomorrow.

Let's leave it at that for today.

Old Ancestor,

where do you actually stay?

Come find me tomorrow night.

Where am I supposed to find you?

Third Brother.

You had an umbrella with you,

so how did you get this drenched?

I just did not use it.

The rain was pouring, and you still

would not use it. What if you fall ill?

Why are you so careless

with your own health?

Exactly.

You knew full well that without it,

you would be soaked, yet you refused.

You also know you should live well,

yet you refuse to do that too.

You really have lost your senses.

Third Brother,

is something the matter?

I have fallen for a young lady.

Is she a lady from Nandu?

No, she is not from Nandu.

I met her on the battlefield.

She did not come back with you?

She comes from a good family.

If I were to be with her,

I would have to marry into her home.

Then,

does she

care for you?

She turned me down.

In her eyes,

let alone the Duan clan of Nandu,

even Great Liang, or all under heaven,

means nothing at all.

What kind of lady is she?

A lady unlike any in this world.

- Third Brother. - You wanted me?

Your friends are here for you.

I've seated them in the hall with tea.

All right.

Jingyuan,

have you had dealings

with the wife of the Minister of Revenue?

I do know Madam Wang,

we've crossed paths before.

We're on fair terms.

What is it?

Today, Young Master Wang

asked me to take Miss Wang home.

While I was speaking with Miss Wang,

I spotted a familiar face on the street.

I feared it was a spy from Northern Chong,

so I went after him.

In the rush, I neglected Miss Wang,

and failed to escort her home as promised.

All right, I understand.

I'll go visit Madam Wang at once

and apologize for Third Brother.

Wait, Third Brother,

don't you already fancy someone?

As for Miss Wang,

what do you plan to do?

Do not worry.

I have my own plan.

What brings you here?

Senior Brother.

Take a look, quickly.

Wu Shengliu

asked us to bring this to you.

Though the fighting has settled,

the border still sees unrest.

This was from Commandant Wu,

a wedding gift for your promotion.

He likely never expected

how things would turn out.

Judging by the style,

it belongs to at least a general.

Wu Shengliu did well.

Senior Brother,

are we staying in Nandu for good?

What I have always wanted

has been to reclaim

the frontier passes and rivers, the 17 Prefectures.

May the realm stay at peace.

May the people live in health.

Though Great Liang seeks no war,

Northern Chong still covets our land.

The moment they get a chance,

they will surely strike back.

We must prepare in advance.

Then when do we leave?

I cannot stay in Nandu another day.

Every day, I am stuck indoors,

learning embroidery and meeting suitors.

If this keeps going,

I will not even lift my blade.

I have been idle in Nandu as well.

Right?

Though Yunzhou and Yunluo are retaken,

Yunzhou's fine steeds

have yet to thunder across

the battlefield against Northern Chong.

And Luozhou's Tianluo Ore

It has yet to armor Great Liang's men.

Some matters

must be settled in Nandu.

(Yuzao Pleasure House)

This way, please. Right this way.

I'm telling you,

Take care now. Easy now.

I'll be coming back to find you.

Ah, you've arrived.

This way, please. Right this way.

Young Master Zhang, you've come.

Yuzao Pleasure House

Slowly now, slowly now.

Alright, come again next time.

Old Ancestor sure knows how to have fun.

You really became the courtesan queen.

Alright, please head inside.

Sure thing.

Alright, alright, alright.

You've already finished a whole jar.

All right.

Why hasn't it reached

closing time yet?

Heavens,

I must have slept in too late.

To think I'd get to see the Imperial Preceptor

come here for amusement.

Old Ancestor,

Old Ancestor,

Fine wine,

beauties,

tales of desire,

and obsessions at their peak.

Only Old Ancestor knows how.

Have you seen enough yet?

Just a little more, and I will.

Old Ancestor,

have you ever thought

what the magical artifact will be like?

(Yuzao Pleasure House)

(The Imperial Preceptor secretly meets Miss He, the courtesan queen.)

Welcome, my lord.

Please go upstairs.

You should leave now.

A spirit is here.

A guest has arrived.

Old Ancestor.

Something is wrong.

This spiritual aura...

It's very strong.

I'll get you out of here.

Greetings, sir.

May I ask,

what story you wish to tell?

The story begins with

a prince of unwavering devotion.

He was ennobled as a prince young.

He basked in imperial favor.

The court and the realm all believed

he would inherit the throne.

Yet history always leaves regrets.

His younger brother saw no hope

to vie for the heirship,

so he raised troops in rebellion.

The prince, bound by kinship,

tried to stop him, never knowing

it was a deadly trap

tailored just for him.

His brother cried thief himself.

That loyal prince became,

in a single day, a traitor to the state.

Courtesan queen,

do you know how the prince

met his end at last?

Yan, stop fooling around.

♪Between black and white, ripples crossed♪

♪Light encountered shadow♪

♪It pierced the darkness and the time♪

♪The unbreakable fate♪

♪Suddenly cracked♪

♪Between black and white, ripples crossed♪

♪Light encountered shadow♪

♪It pierced the darkness and the time♪

♪The unbreakable fate♪

♪Suddenly cracked♪

♪Listen, all sounds are roaring♪

♪As cold ice turns into tides♪

♪A century's loneliness melts dreams♪

♪Following fate's guidance♪

♪By fate, our moments were exchanged♪

♪The heart wakes up all of a sudden♪

♪Watch fireworks fall like stars♪

♪This bond is tangled into a thread♪

♪Worldly reflections fade into mist♪

♪Borrowing one fleeting heartbeat♪

♪You drew me into mortal dust, till I'm enamored with its charms♪

♪The heart wakes up all of a sudden♪