Original subtitles

[English subtitles are available.]

Chef Fang

Episode 18

Honey. Sit.

Take a seat, Zhang.

Have you heard that

a scholar tried to buy back freedom

for a prostitute at Blue Mist House

and infuriated his mother to death?

Is there anyone who is worse than me?

Yes, and not just him.

Many scholars tried to

buy back freedom for prostitutes there

and infuriated their elders to death.

That scholar’s mother

was about 50 years old

and used to be healthy.

The autopsy yesterday

showed that

she was poisoned.

Poisoned?

So we want to...

Master Liang’s Grave

Honey. Give me your handkerchief.

Wait, honey.

Hold on.

Master.

They dug your grave to bring justice to you.

Please don't blame them.

When we solve the case,

we’ll bring wine to pay tribute to you.

Go eat something first.

Come. Eat something.

Drink some wine. Be careful not to choke yourself.

It’s weird.

No smell from the corpse?

Zhang.

Give me a hand.

Lord.

He died from poisoning too.

I see. Go back now.

Yes.

Shen Jie, these are...

The corpses of the elders who died from rage.

All of them?

They all died of poisoning.

Hey, you’ve improved a lot.

My Lord. Did my master really die from poisoning?

But he did hang himself.

That was a distraction.

Someone meant to make you think your master

killed himself rather than being poisoned.

He was already dead.

Why bother hanging him up?

These corpses, some died from running into wall,

some drown in river, but the real cause is poison.

Someone tried to cover it up.

No wonder.

If they all died from rage,

then someone would doubt it.

Father, could it be the scholar's mother

poisoned herself

and the poison took effect

when she ran out to the street?

I agree.

Wenhai. Come to my study.

I have something to ask you.

Yes.

Yong. Take Yishao home.

No. I’ll go with you.

What did you say?

Yishao just recovered.

Go back and let her rest.

Don’t goof around here.

Father, I’m fine.

Yishao. You just recovered and needs to rest.

Or your mother will be worried.

How can he change looks so fast? He practiced?

My father changes looks...

Change looks...

Honey.

What are these?

Sesame buns and sweet pancakes.

Aren’t they all pastries? Any difference?

Of course.

Look. The one with sesame was backed.

The other one was fried.

Why bother?

Aren’t they all food to eat?

It’s good.

Honey.

Look. Who is this?

It can change looks.

Alright. Father will punish you if he sees this.

-Let's go. -Where?

Changle Nunnery.

Mrs. Shen!

Put it away.

Mrs. Shen. You asked for me?

Shitou. We’ll take you to Changle Nunnery.

I know you don’t want to stay at home.

Let’s go to Changle Nunnery

to see Ms. Luan. Alright?

Yes! Honey, you know me best.

You have no shame!

Hurry.

Hurry.

Stop.

Shitou. Did you live in the nunnery before?

Yes. Abbess Jingyi brought me up.

What's the matter?

Nothing.

So, are you a nun?

That’s bad.

What’s wrong with a nun? Why is it bad?

It’s bad. Do you know what kind of girls

are hard to get married?

Nuns and prostitutes.

What nonsense are you talking about?

It’s true.

Besides, you aren’t a nun.

Why are you angry?

Annoying. I won’t talk to you.

Shitou! Wait!

Shitou, be careful!

What’s wrong, honey?

What he said is interesting.

Is it? That’s just his prejudice.

He knows nothing about Buddhism.

He looks down on prostitutes and nuns.

Yes, that’s why it's interesting.

People look down on prostitutes,

and hail to the virtuous and chaste woman.

Those who are dissolute are not accepted.

But most nuns are chaste women.

Why do people look down on them?

Honey. Your words are groundless.

Not all prostitutes are dissolute.

Of course, when I was at the Fragrance...

Fragrance...

Fragrance what?

It’s so fragrant...

Honey, keep talking.

I mean

nuns could have been prostitutes before.

Prostitutes could also become nuns.

The character is not determined by social status.

It depends on who it is.

You are right.

A man may wear luxury clothes.

The next day, they may beg in rags.

In fact, it’s the same person

who wears different clothes.

Yes. That’s what I mean.

Honey. Between the past me and the present me,

which one do you think is better?

Honey, you are kidding.

You have never changed. You are always good.

But they say I turned from a stinky rock to gold.

Who said you are a stinky rock?

In my eyes, you are always gold.

Their comments don’t count.

You are right.

Abbess. Sorry to bother you.

Never mind.

You brought Shitou here.

I’m very happy.

We are here

to ask your for a favor.

Please say it.

I heard a girl named Luan

came here.

Yes, she is here indeed.

I knew you came for her.

Abbess. Is Luan in the nunnery now?

Yes.

She was anxious when she came,

and wanted to be a nun. But It’s a big matter.

There is no way back once being a nun.

So I accepted her as a laity.

She lives in the backyard

and makes candles and paper flowers every day.

Have you heard of

the cases happened in Dongxiang?

I’m a nun

and was punished to reflect in this hall.

I don’t ask about secular matters.

However, many people come and go here.

I did hear of some.

So, the girl is...

Exactly.

No wonder she refused to tell me anything.

She just told me her sins are grave.

It is the fault of the mastermind behind it.

Ms. Luan and Zhang Wenhai

could have been together.

But now, they are like strangers.

It’s pitiful, isn’t it?

We should have taken Zhang Wenhai along.

But he seemed to be afraid and told us to wait.

Why?

We’ve found out that Master Liang was murdered.

Luan and Zhang Wenhai

are innocent and free.

Why is he unwilling to come?

That scholar is down and out.

Maybe he’s trying to get back on his feet

before picking up Luan.

What is he thinking? Ridiculous.

Is it?

No man wants to lose face

in front of their loved ones.

All men want to be successful

and then marry their love.

It's the same as

girls dress up

to see their boyfriends.

Who said that?

That’s only your thought.

No girls like that.

No?

Of course not.

It only takes one or two hours

to dress up.

But to be successful,

it takes a long time,

one year, or even several years.

A girl may have been others’ wife by then.

If it takes dozes of days to solve the case

and then Wenhai comes to pick Luan up,

Luan may have talked Jingyi

into shaving her.

That would be bad.

Her thoughts would be completely changed

if she shaves her head and be a nun.

It will be too late by then.

Right.

Man are afraid to lose face

in front of

their loved ones.

They do not have to be like that.

A man picks up his love in a storm

and suffers,

or he waits until it gets sunny

and then wears luxury clothes to pick her up,

which is more touching?

That does make sense.

Mrs. Shen is so insightful.

Not me, but my mother.

My father said

my mother had great insight.

Your parents must be extraordinary people.

If I have chance to meet them, it would be great.

They have both passed away.

Merciful Buddha.

I’m sorry

to make you upset.

Abbess.

May we meet Ms. Luan?

Of course.

Feel free to go.

You two stay in the yard.

Don’t bother abbess.

Honey, look. Is that Luan?

Perhaps.

Her back alone

is charming enough.

People would believe even if we say she is

a princess from the palace.

Whether a woman is chaste or not

really depends on who it is .

I agree.

Miss, are you Luan?

This is my husband.

I don’t know you.

What brings you here?

About Master Liang.

I didn’t kill them,

but they died because of me.

I know my sins are grave.

I wish I could redeem myself

by guarding the light of Buddha.

If you come to humiliate me,

you don’t have to travel this far.

You mistook us. He works for the local authority.

The victims’ deaths

in the cases are suspicious.

So we want to ask you for some information.

We are not here to humiliate you.

You really misunderstand us.

If so, please forgive my bluntness.

Never mind.

But now I have nothing to do

with secular matters anymore,

nor am I willing to get involved.

Please leave.

Miss. What are you doing?

Life here is penurious. It’s for livelihood.

Indeed. Life here is penurious.

Even if many visitors come,

nuns must work to scrape by.

You have to make candles and paper flowers

to make a living.

You may also go down the mountain to beg alms.

Though you are a disciple of Buddha,

you still live in the secular world.

Am I right?

What do you want to know?

Meditation Hall

Someone poisoned them?

How is it possible?

The culprit may still be at Blue Mist House.

That's why we come to you.

Think carefully.

Was there anything suspicious?

At Blue Mist House?

How come?

Or who do you think might poison them?

It’s impossible.

Why?

You don’t know.

The girls

at Blue Mist House

are like prisoners.

No way can they go out

and get poison.

If they could get poison easily,

some prostitutes

would commit suicide.

So,

the culprit wasn’t the girls at Blue Mist House.

Is there anyone who can freely

come and go at Blue Mist House?

Only the customers can come and go freely.

Even the guards remain in the House.

The attendants and the brothel owner

may go out freely.

Think about it.

Is there anyone suspicious?

Something is bothering me.

When a girl gains her freedom fortunately,

all their sisters,

even the brothel owner will bless her.

Why would they set her up?

Could it be a narrow-minded girl

and couldn’t bear those who are

luckier than her?

Actually, once a girl gets in a brothel,

she will carry the mark her whole life.

So what if she regains her freedom?

She will still return there sooner or later.

Why?

If she is free,

gets married and has babies,

she will be a normal woman, won’t she?

Only a man can turn over a new leaf,

not a prostitute.

Sorry, I forgot to serve you tea.

I’ll get you some.

Meditation Hall

Please try this Post-spring Tea.

Please.

Post-spring Tea?

The name is good.

I don’t think so.

Flowers are fated to fall after spring.

Women are just like flowers.

Some are carefully nurtured before blooming,

while some flowers, withering and falling,

back to the soil, nobody cares about them.

Miss, why do you speak with such despair?

Zhang Wenhai loves you and misses you.

He helped you regain freedom. Right?

Since Master Liang died,

he hasn’t seen me once.

He doesn’t want me anymore.

He just blames himself. He wishes to see you.

I don’t think so. Love

is like this porcelain cup. Once broken,

it can’t be restored.

Yah. Yah.

Yah.

Honey.

What are you thinking?

I’m thinking

Luan may be resentful to Zhang Wenhai.

Perhaps.

She must feel resentful more or less.

The scholar who sold the title deed,

and those who lost their family

also feel resentful more or less.

However, they don’t know whom they should resent.

Themselves?

Or those they loved before?

Luan is right.

Love is more fragile than porcelain.

Honey.

Does the one who hurt others by this way

also think so?

What do you mean?

Could it be that they were also hurt by love

so they wanted revenge?

You think the culprit is still

at the Blue Mist House?

Maybe.

Or maybe not.

Yah!

Yah!

Yah!

Shen Mansion

Honey. Eat.

There was duck and rice in the kitchen.

I made duck and fried rice.

Try it.

Honey.

Honey.

May I discuss something with you?

But don’t get angry.

Do you want to go to the Blue Mist House?

How smart are you!

I’m not to have fun, but to investigate the case.

If you have concerns,

I’ll ask Shen Jie to go with me.

It makes no difference. You are both men.

But Shen Jie is more reliable,

isn’t he?

So what?

Anyway, all men will be attracted

by beautiful ladies.

They may only have one in the heart,

but many in their eyes. My mother said that.

How about

I don’t look at the women but man?

You only look at men at a brothel?

Aren’t you afraid others think you are...

What?

Anyway, you can’t go.

I won’t go if you don’t allow me.

Really?

Honey.

Honey.

What are we eating tomorrow?

What would you like to eat?

Perhaps because of the Post-spring Tea,

I feel it’s bland in my mouth.

I want to eat something flavorful.

Flavorful?

Then I’ll make some braised dishes, alright?

Alright.

How are the preparation going?

Meat is ready. 5 portions of pork and one fish.

And 10 fish bladders.

I asked the butcher to chop it carefully.

It’s even.

The garlic, ginger and onions are ready.

Mushrooms, water chestnuts,

salty eggs and fish fins are prepared.

The broth has been simmering for hours.

It’s almost ready.

Alright. Let’s get started.

Miss! Miss! What are we eating today?

Braised meatballs.

Bravo! For you!

Young master.

Father. Mother.

Sir. Madam.

Sit.

Lian.

No hurry. Everyone has a share.

-Bravo! -Bravo!

Shitou, see if the fire is on.

Yes.

Mrs. Shen. It’s sill raw, but it smells so good.

I added Shaoxing rice wine.

There is fish.

The rice wine can get rid of the fishy smell.

We are cooking

the braised meatballs.

Why did you add fish and fish bladders?

Of course. The fish

is the key to the taste.

I wonder

if the culprit isn’t from the Blue Mist House,

it must be a regular visitor.

Indeed.

Jie and I both think we should start investigating

from the Blue Mist House.

But,

Jie and I have to investigate other victims.

If you have time,

go and investigate the Blue Mist House.

Me?

I won’t. Go yourself.

So, then I...

Jie...

I can’t.

I have to visit a victim’s family this afternoon.

I’ll be late. I’m leaving.

Jie!

It can’t be delayed.

Jie and I are both occupied.

You may go.

Shen is busy. You are not.

You may go yourself.

You must go!

Mother! You heard that?

Father is forcing me to visit a brothel.

Besides, I don’t work for the government.

It’s not appropriate for me to go there.

I guess you and I...

Shen Yibo.

Enough!

You take your son to visit a brothel?

I’m discussing it with you.

Honey.

Honey.

Honey. Chill out.

Mrs. Shen, why did you add fish to it?

Fish and pork have different tastes.

The lean pork

is too chewy and will be stuck between your teeth.

Fat pork is too oily.

The flavor of meatballs are already strong.

It will taste bad if it’s too fat.

By using fish, it won’t be too oily.

Put pork and fish together,

and add fish bladder to improve the flavor.

The meatballs will be tender

and chewy.

Miss. Please stop.

When can we have a taste?

Good food is worth the wait. Be patient.

You only know food.

This is mine.

Wait! Give me some!

Lian. Take it to my mother.

OK.

The rest is yours.

Honey. Time to eat.

Wow!

Have some soup first.

Wow. It's good!

Try this.

It’s good!

Honey. It’s really good.

Can we still eat this tomorrow?

You will be tired of it if you eat it every day.

Besides, I can cook various dishes.

Don’t you want to try others?

All the food you cook is good. I like all of them.

Honey.

Let’s go to Blue Mist House to investigate.

Really? Do you trust me?

No.

Honey. If you don’t want me go,

I won't go. It doesn’t matter.

If I don’t allow you to go,

you will always think about it.

Besides, it’s a murder case.

It really matters.

But I don’t feel at ease if you go alone.

So

I’ll visit the brothel with you.

Honey. Are you alright?