Original subtitles

♪See the price paid in blood♪

♪Binding half a lifetime of fate♪

♪Watch her tear apart with her own hands♪

♪The cold haze of a humble life♪

♪Trading it for robes of splendor♪

♪Every step is on a blade♪

♪To the eyes of the world♪

♪She's a bird, a flower, a plaything♪

♪But with one sweep she scatters the clouds♪

♪Till bones and all fade into smoke♪

♪A game within a game, a fate beyond fate♪

♪Who makes the move? Who listens?♪

♪Behind this mask♪

♪She plays out every soul♪

♪Each encounter and each step fraught with danger♪

♪Set a wild fire ablaze♪

♪Burn away these chains♪

♪Let this frost flower fulfill its fate♪

♪Take a single chess piece♪

♪And wager heaven and earth♪

♪Pierce through hypocrisy's false mask♪

♪Stir up a mighty storm♪

♪Watch her break free and stun the world♪

[Adapted from the novel Where the Mask Ends on Jinjiang Literature City]

[Original Author: Xiao Jiaren]

[Where the Mask Ends]

[Episode 30]

[Baihu Hall]

Her Ladyship has a few heartfelt words for you.

Listen carefully, General.

Before entering the palace,

she gave the people 200 homing pigeons.

You may order your men to shoot them down,

but if even one pigeon

makes it out of the city,

war will break out.

Once word spreads that the Crown Prince killed his father to seize power,

the regional garrisons and princes

will all rise against him.

How will you withstand them, General Han?

If you want the Crown Prince to take the throne,

you must negotiate with Her Ladyship.

She's cautious indeed.

She knew this rabble

couldn't keep her alive,

so she prepared a fallback plan.

Very well.

I'll negotiate with her.

All of you,

wait outside!

If I didn't know

you'd just lost your husband,

I'd think

you were about to get married.

That outfit

is quite dazzling.

Don't I look beautiful?

You do.

In this lifeless court,

you're the most dazzling flower.

A pity you're poisonous.

Let's get to the point.

You're helping the Crown Prince seize the throne.

He'll never spare my mother or me.

I'd like to ask you

to protect my entire clan.

Liu Shuo

has probably been captured by Grand Commandant Zheng.

You two led troops into the palace at night.

You clearly intended to rebel.

The Crown Prince will be justified

in crushing your rebellion and taking the throne.

If we can settle this without bloodshed,

I'd rather avoid a massacre.

Now,

everyone's life

depends on your decision.

What do you want, General?

You and the Crown Prince are mortal enemies.

To save you and your mother,

there's only one way.

You must become my wife.

I've only just lost my husband,

and you want me to remarry?

Drop the act.

I've seen right through you.

Deep down, you're selfish,

cold-hearted,

and ruthless.

No one wants to rise in the world more than you.

Didn't you marry Lu Zhuo for power?

Whatever he could give you,

I can give you too.

I've plotted against the Han family several times.

We have no shortage of bad blood between us.

I'm afraid you'll break your word

and settle the score later.

Others worship you as a goddess,

but I want that goddess in my arms.

Why plot for your brother

when you could plot for your own husband?

Wei Rao,

I'm giving you one final chance.

Refuse,

and I'll order everyone in the city killed.

The first to die

will be your own mother.

Think carefully.

I'll marry you.

Really?

You...

You...

You vile woman...

Poison!

He knew I kept a blade beneath my pillow.

Rather than blame me for it,

he even gave me this ring.

How could you ever compare to him?

Xiao!

Now!

Noble Lady Wu'an acts on His Majesty's orders to crush the traitors.

Lay down your weapons before the Zi hour,

and your part in the rebellion will be pardoned.

Anyone who continues to side with the rebels

will be killed!

Your Highness,

the Empress Dowager is confined to Changle Palace for now.

Your Highness,

you mustn't hesitate now.

Search!

Find the Imperial Seal at all costs!

Guard His Majesty.

That's oil.

Wei Rao, what are you doing?

Your Highness,

you've stormed the palace in the dead of night.

What exactly do you intend?

To kill the wicked consort and rid Father's court of evil, of course.

Your Highness, we've searched everywhere.

There's no sign of the seal.

Where is it?

His Majesty is gravely ill

and allows only me to attend to him.

I'm the only one

who knows where the Imperial Seal is.

Hand over the seal, and I may leave your corpse intact.

I want to see my daughter.

Everyone in my life,

including my mother,

my father,

and my grandmother,

had something they wanted,

and it always mattered more than I did.

Only he was different.

He stayed by my side

and cared for me.

Even though I pushed him away again and again,

he'd always hold me close again,

never caring what it cost him.

In this world,

he was the only one who put me first.

No one could ever replace him.

But you

killed him.

How dare you kill my husband?

The truth is,

in life or in death,

he belongs to me.

I want this love to last through every lifetime,

never to fade.

So why should I fear death?

Wei Rao,

don't...

Don't worry.

Once I've killed you,

I'll kill the Crown Prince!

Han Liao tried to turn

Qi Zhongkai and me against each other.

So I devised a plan to fake my death

and lure the enemy in.

That day in Death Valley,

I led my men out along a path on the cliff face

and left a body I'd prepared in advance in my place.

General Lu has fallen,

taking the Huta soldiers with him!

In every lifetime,

she will always be my wife.

As for you,

you can go to hell.

Your Highness,

Noble Lady Wu'an is trying to burn General Han alive!

Rao! My Rao!

Where is the seal?

I swear on my honor as Crown Prince

to spare you and your daughter. I'll keep my word!

One last lesson for you.

Break your word,

and even if you win the throne,

you won't keep it.

The seal is buried

in the peach grove southeast of Xuanshi Palace.

Go and dig it up yourself!

Hurry!

Rao!

Find the seal!

Yes.

The Crown Prince gave his word.

- All of you, go! - Rao!

But I didn't.

Rao!

Rao!

Rao!

Shoot!

Rao!

General Lu!

Rao!

Mother!

We've followed General Lu's plan

and secured the Imperial City.

Zheng Tan has been captured.

Rao!

Seize the rebel leader!

Charge!

What did you...

What did you just call me?

I heard everything.

You offered the Imperial Seal

in exchange for my life.

How could the Imperial Seal

matter more than my precious daughter?

Everyone, stop!

Aman,

Wei Shu is gone.

Go.

Find her.

When the Fourth Prince was brought into the palace,

I said I wanted to come and have a look too.

I'm glad

I came.

Make her suffer every punishment

she inflicted on those innocent girls

before sending her to the scaffold.

Let go of me!

Let go!

I'm the Crown Princess!

A lowly woman like you has no right to judge me!

Where's Wei Rao?

Tell her to come and speak to me.

What?

Is she afraid?

That's because she's a night-soil woman.

A night-soil woman!

Let go!

Had my sister been in your place tonight,

she'd have marched straight into the palace

and held the Emperor hostage to command the princes.

But to settle a private grudge,

you went straight to Zhuyu Estate

and wasted your best chance.

You're too foolish and shortsighted

to be a worthy opponent for my sister.

Take her away.

Wei Rao!

Come out!

My voice sounds awful.

Xiao,

the guilty have been punished,

and those who died unjustly

can finally rest in peace.

They will.

And I wish you, Lady Hongxian,

all the happiness you hope for

and a smooth road ahead.

I was blind drunk last night

and couldn't come to your aid in time.

Please forgive me, Father.

I've arrested every member

of the traitorous Zheng family.

Better to arrive late

than to join the wrong side.

Liu Shou

has committed high treason

and violated the bonds of family.

He is stripped of his rank

and ordered

to take his own life.

On an auspicious day, I shall inform the ancestors

of the appointment of my fourth son, Liu Shuo,

as heir,

to secure the realm.

So that's it.

You were waiting until Liu Shuo was strong enough

to inherit the throne

before deposing me.

You foresaw trouble in the palace

and immediately sent men to protect him.

From beginning to end,

only Liu Shuo's hands remained clean.

Father,

how could you be so biased

and so unfair?

Guards.

Liu Ding,

if you dare harbor treasonous thoughts,

let his fate be a warning.

I would never dare, Father!

Wei Rao.

Your Majesty.

I've seen

all that you've done.

You've carried on your father's legacy,

stayed true to your country,

served its people,

and remained loyal to your sovereign.

You've quelled the rebellion and protected the throne,

rendering great service to the realm.

I hereby name you Princess Protector of the Realm

and add 5,000 households to your fief.

I thank Your Majesty for this honor.

Rise.

Lu Zhuo.

Your Majesty.

Shuo is Wei Rao's brother.

In the future, don't treat him merely as your sovereign.

Treat him as your own brother,

guiding him whenever he strays and supporting him wholeheartedly.

I shall do all I can

to live up to Your Majesty's trust.

Father.

Shuo,

in three days,

I shall

preside over your coming-of-age ceremony.

[Xuanshi Palace]

An emperor's mind

is truly unfathomable.

Last night, he wasn't only testing the deposed Crown Prince.

He was testing you too.

Testing me?

Your Highness,

General Lu,

shouldn't you be thanking your matchmaker?

What do you mean?

The plan was to test your feelings,

but Lu Zhuo refused to go along with it,

so I gave him a stronger dose

and tied up Zhao Song to stop him from sending word.

Otherwise,

how would we have learned your true feelings?

You...

Lu Zhuo,

you owe me your thanks.

Where else could you find

such a selfless man

who asks for nothing in return?

So that's what happened.

Yes,

I certainly owe you my thanks!

The general repays kindness with violence!

Your Highness,

mind your manners.

Tell me.

When did you wake up in the coffin?

Just in time

to hear you say that our bond is unbreakable

and that you can't live without me.

All right, all right. I was wrong.

How can you cast me aside after all I've done?

Wait up!

I know.

- I was wrong. - Your Majesty,

why not set state affairs aside for now

and go to the retreat palace so you can recover?

No.

[Xuanshi Palace]

I must

see Shuo

secure on the throne.

Otherwise,

I won't be able to rest in peace.

Shuo is still young.

The regional princes

won't respect his authority.

To secure his throne,

he'll need his sister's standing with the people

as well as

the support of Lu Zhuo and the others.

[Xuanshi Palace]

In early summer the following year, the Emperor dies.

Crown Prince Liu Shuo ascends the throne,

ushering in the Xihe era.

[Xuanshi Palace]

[Duke's Residence]

[Fourth month of the third year of Xihe]

♪Through this endless world, how many times must I wander♪

♪Till all my longing turns into a poem?♪

To kill at close range,

you can't rely only on tricks like hidden weapons.

This move

is called Redirecting Force.

♪Gladly, I linger here with you...♪

Be serious.

♪You're the hazy moon beyond the clouds...♪

Like this?

I'm not showing you.

You'll only blame me again.

♪Even amid flashing blades, I know no fear♪

♪You're the willow mist of spring...♪

My brave and mighty general,

am I doing it right?

♪Old dreams fade with the rain. Why seek shelter elsewhere?♪

♪With you beside me, all is well♪

[Songyue Hall]

Your Highness, Hongxian has sent a secret message.

His Majesty fell from his horse while hunting and was badly injured.

She asks you to enter the palace at once.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

Rao,

you're here.

Mother cried so hard she fainted.

I've had her taken back to her palace to rest.

His Majesty has been waiting for you.

It was getting late,

and the weather in the mountains turned.

I advised His Majesty to return,

but he insisted on hunting down that wild fox.

Then we encountered a bear.

Who knew there would be a bear there?

It suddenly charged at us

and killed two guards.

His Majesty...

His Majesty needs to rest.

Please leave, Prince Fu.

It was him.

It was him!

He led His Majesty into those woods.

His Majesty had just ordered him to leave for his fief,

and then this happened.

Rao,

he's the culprit.

Rao.

I'm here.

What do you want to say?

When Father died,

he told me to be kind

to my only remaining brother.

Though you urged me time and again to kill him,

I always showed him leniency.

I know.

I know you did.

For three years,

he was cautious

and respectful in every way.

But all along,

he was lying low,

waiting for his chance.

Tomorrow

is the day the regional princes

come to the capital for their audience, once every three years.

Stop talking.

You need to rest.

Your Majesty...

Shuo...

Your Majesty...

I thought

I'd live to 100

and have time to become a good emperor,

to work with you

and bring about an age

of peace and prosperity.

I never thought...

I never thought

I wouldn't live

to see tomorrow's dawn.

Your Majesty...

Rao.

I'm here.

Rao.

I'm here.

I...

I'm so afraid.

Don't be afraid.

I'm here. Don't be afraid, Shuo.

It's not fair.

It's not fair.

Shuo.

Your Majesty...

Shuo.

Shuo!

Your Majesty!

Your Majesty!

What ominous signs?

Didn't I succeed?

If I'd known,

I wouldn't have waited three years.

It was all just a woman's foolish fears.

I should've made my move long ago.

Lu Zhuo, what are you doing?

These are the imperial palace grounds!

How dare you act so lawlessly here?

Seize him.

Lu Zhuo,

I'm the late Emperor's son.

You can't kill me.

I want to see the Grand Empress Dowager!

I want to see the Grand Empress Dowager!

If the Princess Protector of the Realm wants you dead,

you must have committed an unforgivable crime.

You won't see the Grand Empress Dowager.

My Lord,

Prince Rong and 13 other regional princes

have arrived in the capital.

The Grand Empress Dowager has prepared a grand banquet

to welcome them.

Prince Fu

is the guest of honor.

It seems they've already chosen the next emperor.

Poor Shuo.

How despicable they are!

Let's go.

To Xuanshi Palace.

[Baihu Hall]

It's over.

It's all over.

The princes will enter the palace tomorrow.

With His Majesty dead,

the realm will fall into chaos.

Of the late Emperor's sons,

only Prince Fu remains.

Prince Fu is dead!

His Majesty loved his brother

and chose him to join him in death.

By now,

he's followed His Majesty

to the underworld.

But

Prince Rong is still alive.

The Grand Empress Dowager

will surely put her youngest son on the throne.

Once he takes the throne,

the Empress Dowager,

you, the Princess Protector of the Realm, and I

will all be doomed.

Oh, Heaven.

Why?

Why?

Why, whenever I think

things are finally getting better,

do you cast me back into the abyss,

driving me

into despair again and again?

How much more will you torment me?

How much must I suffer before you're satisfied?

Why?

Why?

Shuo!

Shuo!

Rao.

♪See the price paid in blood♪

♪Binding half a lifetime of fate♪

♪Watch her tear apart with her own hands♪

♪The cold haze of a humble life♪

♪Trading it for robes of splendor♪

♪Every step is on a blade♪

♪To the eyes of the world♪

♪She's a bird, a flower, a plaything♪

♪But with one sweep she scatters the clouds...♪

Open the doors

and all the windows.

♪A game within a game, a fate beyond fate♪

♪Who makes the move? Who listens?♪

♪Behind this mask♪

♪She plays out every soul♪

♪Each encounter and each step fraught with danger...♪

Issue my orders.

♪Burn away these chains...♪

His Majesty has passed away.

The Grand Empress Dowager is in mourning

and should not receive the regional princes.

♪Stir up a mighty storm...♪

As Princess Protector of the Realm,

I shall receive them instead.

♪Hearts turn cold, blades turn colder♪

♪A game within a game, who waits?♪

♪That night deep within the estate♪

♪She dares to challenge fate♪

♪See the snowstorms at the frontier♪

♪Sweep over all those gilded lies, ah♪

♪Cast off her bridal robes, even if♪

♪She burns into a wildfire across the wasteland♪

♪Together we'll guard this beloved, splendid world♪

♪Behind this mask♪

♪She plays out every soul♪

♪Each encounter and each step fraught with danger♪

♪Set a wild fire ablaze♪

♪Burn away these chains♪

♪Let this frost flower fulfill its fate♪

♪Take a single chess piece♪

♪And wager heaven and earth♪

[Xuanshi Palace]

♪Stir up a mighty storm...♪

[Xuanshi Palace]

Whatever trials and disasters may befall me,

I'll overcome them all.

I'll find a way to make them submit.

Everything will get better,

as long as I live.

As long as I live.

♪The candlelight suddenly chills the window♪

♪Whose shadow stirs the ripples in another's heart?♪

♪That sigh is soft yet thunders like a drum♪

♪And leaves the world around us strangely still♪

♪I've grown used to walking through the cold♪

♪I've seen the broken shadows beneath all the splendor♪

♪But like the wind you stir the calm within my eyes♪

♪Until this game of testing has no winner or loser♪

♪We're so close I forget how to breathe♪

♪Your gaze is like fire flickering yet searing my secrets♪

♪The sharpness I've hidden inside my weakness♪

♪Scatters into disarray the moment you lean close♪

♪We're so close I hear my heartbeat break free♪

♪Who lost their plan and who lost their breath in this moment?♪

♪Even if you'll still be far beyond my reach♪

♪At least right now there's only an inch between us♪