Original subtitles

=Tigers Sniff the Rose=

(Based on the novel of the same name by Yiren Kuikui)

=Episode 37=

What brings you here?

Chunhua.

I'll protect you.

This time,

if we can get through this,

no one will ever trample on us again.

Wenji.

What's happened?

Wenji.

I'm a little scared.

Is it about the Princess?

What's happened to her?

It has nothing to do with her.

With the famine,

some refugees have stirred up trouble.

Really?

Then why did you look so frightened?

Did I

look frightened just now?

You imagined it.

I'm just exhausted.

I've spent all day on the coronation.

What coronation?

Tomorrow,

Prince of Jin will become the new emperor.

Him? The Emperor?

That doesn't matter.

What matters is

what you'll become,

and what I'll become.

Tomorrow,

you can move into the palace.

Then we can see each other often.

Someone!

Your Majesty.

Why is there ceremonial

music?

Your Majesty.

It's the coronation music.

Coronation?

The Crown Prince has taken the throne?

I never issued such a decree.

Didn't you order me

to deliver the decree for approval?

And now,

Prince of Jin has ascended the throne.

Prince of Jin?

Why him?

You...

You...

It was you!

You...

It was you!

You...

How dare you!

Your Majesty, you're confused.

The decree

clearly named Prince of Jin.

Your Majesty.

Guards!

- Please look after your health. - Chancellor Liu...

Where is Chancellor Liu?

Wanyao!

Your Majesty,

it's time for your calming tonic.

I won't drink it!

I won't! Guards!

Guards!

No! I won't drink it!

Thanks.

What's going on?

Why all the secrecy?

Listen to me.

I just came from the east.

Take my advice.

Don't head east. It's dangerous.

The Shence Army went east.

War's coming.

Impossible.

If that were true,

we're so close to Tongguan.

How could we have heard nothing?

Well, maybe there's nothing they can do.

True enough.

They say our new emperor

isn't very bright.

You can say that again.

Come on, let's eat.

Dig in.

Excuse me, gentlemen.

When did we get a new emperor?

You're a woman.

It's only natural you wouldn't know

about affairs of state.

Then please tell me,

which prince took the throne?

Of course I know that.

It's...

the Prince of Jin.

Come on, let's get back to our food.

Eat up.

(Jifang Pavilion)

Why did you stop?

Keep fighting!

(Xun)

March straight on Tongguan!

Your Majesty,

here are the latest military reports,

and memorials from the prefectures.

Put them down.

No, no.

Not here.

Take them to the imperial study.

This is where we are.

This is Tongguan.

And this is Sheng'an.

If Prince of Jin has become emperor,

he won't be able to stop the rebels.

But why him?

And why so suddenly?

No one even sent word to me.

What is Chancellor Liu doing?

When we get back to Sheng'an,

we'll find out the truth.

Who would have thought

a princess's hands

could grow so calloused?

Those are from reviewing memorials.

These are from practicing swordplay.

Keep up!

Don't stop! Keep moving!

Over here! This way!

Quick! Be careful!

Watch yourselves!

Let's take a look.

Mother, I'm scared!

Hurry! Hurry!

Sir, where are you going?

Come on!

Sir!

What's happened?

Young lady, you again?

Go home, quickly!

Behind us,

many soldiers have fought their way over there!

I heard Tongguan has fallen!

I can't stay and talk!

Your Highness,

Sheng'an needs you.

There's no time.

Tongguan has fallen.

Sheng'an is in chaos.

The rebels have seized the key pass.

Sheng'an's current defenses

can't hold them off.

Yan Shang,

I can't return to Sheng'an with you.

♪I ride through endless sands without rest♪

♪Frost stains my sleeves; The setting sun lights towers♪

♪Wild geese fly south through late autumn♪

♪May the endless wind linger for me♪

(Yan Shang.)

(Who knows if we'll)

(live to meet again)

(in this lifetime after this parting.)

(I'll wait for you in Sheng'an)

(to come home.)

♪Whose eyes have seen the smoke of war?♪

♪I'll ride into battle♪

♪Blood stains my sleeves as I stand firm. Never will I fall behind♪

♪I bow beyond the frontier walls♪

♪May you live a life free of sorrow; May the moon shine on us forever♪

Yan Shang,

this time,

let me tell you a story.

All right.

I'm listening.

Once there was wood and iron.

The wood was made into a boat.

Men carried the iron aboard the boat.

They had nothing in common,

(Relay Station) yet they felt like old friends at once.

Sir!

Both were

filled with joy.

Bring a new horse.

♪So many clever schemes with a fan's wave♪

When the boat unloaded at the shore,

they parted ways.

Later,

the iron was forged into a spear,

which broke on the battlefield.

The wooden boat met a storm

and shattered against the rocks.

The broken spear became a hairpin.

And the wrecked boat's wood

was carved into a comb.

(Relay Station) Here's the horse.

They met again in a beauty's hair.

All right. Thank you.

And they were amazed to find

how much they had both changed.

Before long,

the beauty grew old,

and her household fell into decline.

♪I'll ride into battle♪

They were separated again.

♪Blood stains my sleeves as I stand firm. Never will I fall behind♪

Later still,

they grew smaller and smaller,

smaller than a finger.

The hairpin became a key,

and the wood a little door peg.

As the key turned in a lock,

it heard the wooden door peg

creak a greeting,

as if saying hello.

The key was delighted.

♪The battle rages, the road goes on♪

But one day,

the house caught fire.

The flames reached the doorway.

Soon,

it swallowed the key and wooden peg.

Then?

As for the ending...

I'll tell you

when we meet again.

All right.

I'll wait for you.

That traitor Mu Xun!

How has he already crossed Tongguan?

No! My head hurts!

I can't read any more!

Your Majesty,

the officials await your orders.

Why haven't you reviewed

the memorials from two days ago?

Good timing. You're here.

I have a question for you!

Since becoming the Emperor,

I've never enjoyed a single day of my life!

All I have are these messes!

You've set me up!

If you don't want to be the Emperor,

would you rather tuck your tail

and hide in your mansion

like you used to?

Had I known,

I might as well have let Mu Wanyao

deal with all these messes.

I propose

(Use smoke bombs against the enemy) this deployment near the capital.

If Your Majesty has no objections,

please approve my proposal.

Approved! Approved!

(Respectfully submitted by Liu Wenji)

Approved! Approved!

(Imperial Seal)

Attendant Liu!

Attendant Liu, wait!

Attendant.

His Majesty said...

His Majesty said to leave all this to you.

Oh, and

there's this too.

(Tongguan has fewer than 3,000 guards)

(Your report grieves me; war is near)

(I sent an urgent dispatch to Guo)

(Here's the evidence.)

(What's all the shouting about?)

(Xin'an Relay taken; 600-li alert Mianchi and Tongguan have fallen)

(There will still be news.)

(There will still be good news.)

(Mu Wanyao hasn't been captured.)

(So she's safe for now.)

(That's good news, at least.)

(Chunhua would be happy)

(to hear it.)

Excuse me.

Where can I buy butter cakes?

Over there.

(Zuiyue Tower)

Shang!

Shang!

Your eyes have healed?

Wenji.

All 117 letters,

I received every one.

You needn't say anything.

I know.

When did you get back?

Why didn't you tell me?

I could have welcomed you properly!

Wenji,

Prince of Jin

has taken the throne?

Shang,

this isn't

the place to talk.

Come back to the palace with me.

Come on.

(Liangyi Hall)

Shang.

(Universe in Harmony)

It can't have been easy to return

to the capital now.

(Universe in Harmony)

Was the journey dangerous?

Fortunately,

we made it back safely.

(Universe in Harmony)

The rebels are nearing Sheng'an.

Where is the deposed Crown Prince?

He's escaped.

No wonder the rebels are so brazen.

Mu Xun must be leading them himself.

What is Prince of Jin...

the Emperor, planning to do?

Wenji,

you must know that.

The deposed Crown Prince is a traitor.

If he dares attack Sheng'an,

then he must be executed

to uphold the law of the realm.

Exactly.

Locusts and drought ravage the land.

If war breaks out again,

countless innocent lives will be lost.

Yet all along my journey,

I saw no troop preparations in Sheng'an.

Why is that?

Wenji.

Troop deployments

are classified military affairs.

They're no concern of yours.

The danger is upon us.

How many Shence troops can still be mobilized?

I'm in command of the army now.

Do you know more about war than I do?

Shang.

I heard

Grand Princess Danyang

went to Lanyang for disaster relief.

You must have seen her already.

Yes.

You returned together, didn't you?

Why are you here alone?

Where is the Grand Princess?

When she left the capital,

she was the Guardian of the Realm.

But now,

with a new emperor on the throne,

she's neither regent nor acting ruler.

Her status is unclear.

If she returns,

what title should she bear?

And how

should she be received?

So she's afraid to return.

Then tell me

where she is.

Shang,

I can keep you safe.

And before the Emperor,

I can protect the Princess's rank.

I'm afraid

I can't tell you.

Shang,

with things so dangerous,

why come back and risk your lives?

When the nest falls, no egg survives.

Facing a national crisis together

isn't taking a foolish risk.

Shang,

you really can't adapt, can you?

As for me,

I had no choice.

If I were you,

I'd go into seclusion with my beloved,

far away from danger.

Couldn't you be happy

to live together in peace?

She would never choose that.

As it happens,

neither would I.

Then you're both too greedy.

Wenji,

I once believed

you would always be yourself.

And I still am.

Yes.

You're still Liu Wenji.

But

you're no longer the dear friend

I knew in Lingnan.

Shang,

it's too late to regret it.

You were wrong all along.

From the day you saved my life,

you've been terribly wrong!

That year,

I lost Chunhua forever.

And I lost my own manhood forever.

Who rescued me?

Who avenged me,

gave me hope,

and left me to live in this broken body?

How could I

ever accept

being a lowly eunuch slave forever?

After you saved me,

this is my only way forward!

Do you want to be the next Yu Cheng'an?

Don't you know how he ended up?

You're cursing me?

Yan Shang,

I never thought the day would come

when I'd hear you curse me!

In the end,

you've always looked down on me.

Tell me

where Mu Wanyao is.

Our friendship as classmates

might still be saved.

If our positions were reversed,

I'm sure you

would never surrender Chunhua either.

You...

And neither will I.

Urgent report!

Urgent report from the army!

Yan Shang,

stay right here!

The rebels moved west along the Su River

and raided Pujinguan overnight.

They've passed Tongzhou

and are heading for northern Sheng'an!

How could this happen?

What's going on?

What are we going to do?

How did they get here so fast?

Exactly!

Can we even stop them?

Attendant Liu,

this isn't what you predicted!

How far away are they?

Attendant Liu,

they're less than 100 li from the gates!

What?

Seriously?

They're less than 100 li away!

This... This...

Chancellor Liu. It's been a while.

The deposed Crown Prince's troops have crossed Tongguan, right?

Your foresight is remarkable.

Not enough to foresee a petty plot.

Giving the throne to the deposed Crown Prince

would have been a poor choice,

let alone Prince of Jin.

The Retired Emperor is barely lucid.

Could he really have decided this?

Liu Wenji,

you forged a decree and seized power.

You put that fool on the throne.

Without the deposed Crown Prince's revolt,

you'd be cut in half in the marketplace.

Then Heaven must want me alive.

Yes.

You're right.

We put down the Rebellion of the Seven Military Governors,

but that wasn't the end of our troubles.

It began the eunuchs' ruinous rule!

Eunuchs and military governors

have left the whole realm in ruins.

Only these last three years

have the people

had a little peace,

and Huai has begun to recover.

What a pity.

It lasted just three short years.

Speak your mind, Chancellor Liu.

Tell the court in the hall.

The rebels are nearing Sheng'an.

I came today

to ask you to save Huai.

Liu Wenji.

History will judge you harshly, and the people will curse you.

Don't forget

what happened to Yu Cheng'an!

The rebels really are coming!

So quickly?

Everyone, you serve in high office!

Why are you panicking like this?

Runner-up in the first year of Yingxiang.

A Presented Scholar in the fourth year of Chunhe.

A Presented Scholar in the 12th year of Yingxiang.

Top scholar in the 11th year of Chunhe.

Everyone, back then,

when you took the imperial exams,

you all swore loyalty to the realm.

Throughout Sheng'an,

the noble families

live off the people's hard labor.

If we are all at a loss

and fall into chaos,

we'll destroy the troops' morale.

How can we expect the army

to fight to the death for the city?

Who would stay behind to die?

Well?

I've always said

Chancellor Liu holds us together.

He must not be killed recklessly.

Attendant Liu had great foresight.

The military situation is dire.

Chancellor Liu, do you have a plan

to save the realm?

Sheng'an now

hangs by a thread.

During the Rebellion of the Seven Military Governors,

the Retired Emperor

withdrew to the Shu region.

The danger is greater now.

I urge Your Majesty

and the Retired Emperor to go south at once

with the assembled ministers

and take refuge temporarily

in Jinzhou.

Abandon Sheng'an?

Then what happens to Sheng'an?

Defend it to the death!

To the death?

Who can hold it?

How can we defend it as things stand?

Exactly!

What can we defend it with?

I,

Yan Shang, Magistrate of Lanyang,

volunteer to defend Sheng'an.

(Temporary Imperial Palace; Huai) The army is outside Sheng'an.

We mustn't rush in.

Let's first camp at the temporary imperial palace.

Grand Princess,

it's been a long time.

(Huai)

(Huai) Mu Xun!

What are you doing?

I'll be taking over

this place for a few days.

Taking over?

What for?

To attack Sheng'an?

Within an hour,

my men will clear this place.

Stay or leave.

The choice is yours.

Open your eyes and take a good look!

I am staying here!

You insolent traitor!

How dare you bark at my door!

So,

you won't give it up?

When our founding emperors

made Sheng'an their capital,

they surely never imagined

that their own descendants

would march an army on Sheng'an,

(Huai) plunge the realm into war,

and endanger our ancestral temples.

You disgrace your ancestors!

You're unworthy of the Mu bloodline!

You dare speak of our ancestors?

(Huai) Prepare to fight!

Kill!

Kill!

What about now?

Will you give it up?

(Huai)

No!

(Huai)

Yan Shang,

you're losing ground.

Your moves today, Master,

are as fierce as thunder,

unlike your usual playing style.

How does it feel to be cornered?

Black still

has a chance to survive.

I may not lose, Master.

Master...

That's enough.

Let's end today's game

right here.

You're teaching me to defend a city?

We haven't even reached the middle game.

Why won't you finish it with me?

There's still much I don't understand.

I need your guidance.

There's no time.

His Majesty leaves the capital today.

I'll personally escort them out.

An isolated group

isn't necessarily doomed.

There's still room on the board.

Find another way to survive,

wait for an opening,

and strike back.

I understand, Master.

The ladder has already formed.

It presses closer with every move.

Without supporting stones,

I'm afraid the whole group

will be captured.

I believe

help will come.

(Next Episode Preview)

They're killing innocent civilians

just to force us to open the gates!

If we open them,

they'll storm the city.

If we don't,

we'll lose the people's trust.

Anyone who lays down their arms and surrenders now

will be pardoned

(Guanghua Gate) and may return home!

♪Be the ferry where you wait for the sun♪

♪Be the blue silk that catches your tears♪

♪Be the sleeve we held, worn by dust and years♪

♪Let's conspire to grow old together♪

♪Let me be a captive beast bound by the same lock as you♪

♪- Through trails of mud and blood; - let grief drown in your eyes♪

♪Soar with the wind; plunge into hellfire as one♪

♪Burning bright as a song♪

♪See how roses and green bamboo enchant♪

♪Be the vow I make with all my heart♪

♪If we say forever, then forever it shall be♪

♪Not a single hour less♪

♪However deep the snow, I'll wait if you're there♪

♪We'll be gods above, or wandering souls♪

♪In heaven or the underworld, you're all I need♪

♪If we can stay, let's return to the village of our first meeting♪

♪- May time be free of fear; - boats rock♪

♪- May time be free of pain; - lights fade, seasons turn♪

♪You're the only one I need♪

♪Sharp winds or fierce rain, nothing can break us♪

♪Be mine in this world; be mine in this life♪

♪My last untouched innocence♪

♪If only we could return to the village where we first met♪

♪Stay by me; help me forget the frozen dream of last night♪

♪Fireflies glow, flowers kiss our lips; just us, through dawn and dusk♪

♪- May time be free of fear; - boats rock♪

♪- May time be free of pain; - lights fade, seasons turn♪

♪You're the only one I need♪

♪By your side, through joy and pain, is that eternity?♪

♪Till fireworks flood the town♪

♪Till the lake is still and clear♪

♪You're the only one I need♪

(No animals were harmed or mistreated in production.)