Original subtitles

(Joy of Life Season 2)

(Episode 32)

I heard that Ku He never imparted that technique to any outsiders.

I have to give it a try somehow.

Don't hide your knife up your sleeve.

You might cut yourself.

In fact,

you don't have to tell me you are writing

to Miss Duo Duo.

But you asked,

so I had to tell you.

Really?

I promised you

that I'd never lie to you.

Wan Er,

is something bothering you?

Before my brother was killed,

did you already know

he was behind the assassination in Niulan Street?

Who was the man with Si Li Li that day at Zuixian Tavern?

It was the second son of the Lin family,

Lin Gong.

Yes.

Was it you

who killed him?

It wasn't me.

Do you know who the killer is?

- I killed Lin Gong. - Who gave you the right to kill him?

Young Lady Qing Mei.

I do.

Is it someone close to you?

Yes.

It's understandable that you had to defend yourself

because my brother was trying to kill you.

By right,

you didn't do anything wrong.

But living in this world

isn't just about what's right.

He was my brother.

I've been sick since I was a child

and couldn't go out.

He would come to the palace time and again to keep me company,

trying every way to lift my spirits.

Do you understand?

By right, I shouldn't hate you,

but I can't help it.

I understand.

People have feelings.

Why didn't you lie to me?

Why didn't you lie to me for the rest of my life?

If you had said it, if you had lied to me, I would've believed you.

I only believe what you say.

No matter how much evidence was presented to me,

I wouldn't have believed it,

I would've pretended I didn't see it.

Why didn't you lie to me for the rest of my life?

I'm sorry.

Your Majesty,

please slow down.

This isn't in accordance with the rules.

If you would allow me to... I mean...

Your Majesty, may I announce your arrival first before you go in?

Please listen to me.

I must report

to His Majesty before you go in, don't I?

Your Majesty...

I've come to see you, Your Majesty.

It's rare to see you.

We haven't seen each other

since the massacre years ago.

I seem to remember that you're afraid of the dark, right?

Your Majesty,

I fear the dark

because the cries of my family

echo in my ears.

I couldn't let go.

But now, I feel

it's time to move on.

Your Majesty,

I have come to confess my sins.

What sins?

Rebellion and disobedience.

Even though Your Majesty

slaughtered my entire family back then,

you still kept me

in the position of Empress all these years

for old times' sake.

Instead of being grateful,

I harbored resentment for years

and even avoided seeing Your Majesty.

Such heartlessness

is a sin that cannot be forgiven.

Are you here to seek death?

My sins are unforgivable.

Then why not hang yourself?

Your Majesty,

that cannot be.

I am still the empress.

If I were to hang myself,

future historians would inevitably

add idle gossip.

Anything that tarnishes Your Majesty's reputation,

I would be guilty

even in death.

I implore Your Majesty to first strip me of my title as Empress,

then decree my punishment.

I can't let this go.

I know.

Whatever decision you make,

I understand.

But I can't hurt you.

I owe it to you.

Who killed him?

Give me a name.

Was it Mr. Wu Zhu?

You said

you grew up with him.

Yes.

So was my brother.

If Mr. Wu Zhu was killed,

what would you do?

I would go mad.

- I would seek revenge. - I would do the same.

One last question,

when he killed him,

was it on your orders?

- More or less. - More of less?

Mr. Wu Zhu wasn't by my side at the time,

and I intended to kill him myself.

I had already left the capital,

I was just a step behind.

If he wasn't by your side,

then he acted on his own.

It wasn't him, it was me. I wanted to kill him.

It's different.

I want to kill him.

I'm going to kill Wu Zhu.

Mr. Wu Zhu has fought with Ku He before.

He is as strong as a grandmaster.

- I know. - I'm afraid you can't injure him.

I know that too,

but whether I can or cannot

doesn't mean I shouldn't try.

Wan Er, I won't let Mr. Wu Zhu harm you.

Likewise,

I don't want you to hurt him either.

I'm deeply disappointed.

I understand.

In myself.

I can't believe it,

but when you said

you didn't order him to kill him,

I actually felt relieved,

because then I could direct

all my hatred toward Wu Zhu alone.

I couldn't bring myself to hate you,

so I'm disappointed in myself.

At that moment,

I chose you

and betrayed my brother.

Wan Er...

My goal to kill Wu Zhu

is between me and him,

it has nothing to do with you.

Say no more.

The one who told me this

was Cheng Ze.

He wanted to use me to kill you.

Since he's made his move, he must have a follow-up plan.

I'm going back now.

If he comes looking for me again,

I'll pry for information for you.

Carry on.

As for the crime,

Fan Xian was assassinated in Guangxin Palace.

As the head of the harem,

I failed in my duty to oversee the palace.

It is only right

that I be held accountable for negligence.

You have thought this through quite thoroughly.

I owe Your Majesty a debt

that I should have repaid long ago.

Is there anything else?

Before I die,

I want to see Fan Xian.

Although the grievances of the past

are bygones,

this boy

was born without a mother.

So...

So,

I should apologize to him.

You want to apologize to him?

When a person is about to die,

they should settle their grievances

so they can depart peacefully.

Is there anything else you want to say?

Regarding the assassination in Guangxin Palace,

Li Yun Rui cannot escape blame.

Since my title as Empress is to be removed,

she should also be punished for her involvement.

I dare not deceive Your Majesty,

this request is partly for justice,

partly for personal reasons.

I relinquish my position

to dissolve Fan Xian's resentment,

so it won't put Your Majesty in a difficult position.

As for Li Yun Rui,

it will cut off the support for Li Cheng Ze.

This is also

for the sake of the crown prince.

The crown prince is gentle and kind,

and values filial piety above all.

Besides respect for Your Majesty,

he has no other intentions.

And of course,

the crown prince knows nothing

of my request today.

It is my own decision.

Xian,

I heard everything.

Wan Er won't be able to harm Mr. Wu Zhu.

I know,

and she knows it too.

So she's doing this

more to punish herself

than to seek revenge.

- What is that for? - Someone tried to assassinate you today,

I have to protect you.

When Wan Er was peeling the fruit, I was more nervous than her.

She's your sister-in-law.

This knife is just for precaution

Actually, I wanted to use this.

What good would that do?

I asked Senior Leng for some chloroform during your last treatment.

And you applied it on the needle?

I tried it. It knocks someone out with just a prick. It works.

- Who did you try it on? - Physician Li.

That's ridiculous. How could you try it on Physician Li?

- He volunteered. - Why would he volunteer to let you prick him?

He wanted to learn your surgery skills.

He said chloroform would be useful in the future,

and he wanted to experiment with the dosage himself.

Ruo Ruo, you should learn from Physician Li.

He studies medicine to save lives.

I'm also trying to save lives, Xian.

I'm trying to save you.

I have guards protecting me.

But the guards didn't come in when Wan Er was with you just now.

The guards are meant to protect me against assassins!

The one who will hurt you may not be an assassin.

Don't be like this, you two.

One wants to kill Mr. Wu Zhu,

the other is standing by with a knife.

Xian...

- What are you doing? - You're too agitated.

Your wound might reopen.

I'm fine.

You say you're fine,

but you're more anxious than I am.

Here, drink it.

I've only added a small dose.

It will just make you sleep soundly.

Xian, you need to rest at ease now.

Stop worrying about protecting me.

I got it.

If you see Mr. Wu Zhu...

I know. I'll tell him not to hurt Wan Er.

Ruo Ruo,

this matter

isn't over yet.

It's all right, Xian.

Stop thinking about it.

Go to sleep.

With Mr. Wu Zhu's skills,

he won't put you in a difficult spot.

I hope so.

As long as Mr. Wu Zhu is around...

When Mr. Wu Zhu isn't around,

I am your last line of defense.

Don't worry,

no matter what happens,

I'll be by your side protecting you,

never absent.

I will not remove you from your position as Empress.

As for Fan Xian, there's no need for you to see him.

I just want to atone for my sins.

You should live well.

What about the assassination in Guangxin Palace?

Li Yun Rui has nothing to do with the assassination.

Who else in this palace but Li Yun Rui could have set it up?

You

have exhausted the bond between us.

We shall not

see each other again!

Your Majesty,

I've heard

that those who possess everything

ultimately end up with nothing.

Leave the capital?

It's His Majesty's order.

There must be a destination, then.

His Majesty said you didn't get

to admire the flowers due to the assassin attempt last time.

His Majesty has ordered you to go again and admire them alone.

Am I allowed to turn this down?

He's always so spontaneous.

Please lift me onto the carriage then. Thank you.

Lord Fan is getting on the carriage!

Yes, My Lord!

Coming right up.

Who's coming right up?

Lord Fan is coming right up.

Who am I then?

Easy there.

Put him down gently.

Gently.

Gently.

Lift Lord Fan onto the carriage.

My Lord, please come with me.

Where am I going?

What's going on?

From now on, he's Fan Xian, and I'm the fake one?

This combined with this

is gentle,

this and this

are strong.

Combining these three together,

it's incurable.

Make way, please.

Leave them the room.

- Do you need something? - I'm hiding.

Hang on, who has the ability

to drive you here?

Fan Jian.

He's getting older and more irritable.

It's better to avoid him.

What does he want from you?

Nothing serious.

Fan Xian left the city.

Fan Xian left...

Didn't you say Fan Xian was injured?

When Fan Xian was recuperating

a eunuch attempted assassination, but he's safe.

How did news of the assassination attempt leak out of the palace?

That's why Fan Jian is very worried now.

If His Majesty wanted to keep such news hidden,

it wouldn't have leaked out.

So, this is a setup, huh?

Fan Xian is the bait.

And who will this bait lure out?

Fan Xian is injured.

And Lord Wu

never showed up?

Everyone says all Fei Jie knows is using poison.

They're wrong.

When Fan Xian was recuperating in the palace,

he was under layers of protection,

it couldn't be safer.

That's why Lord Wu didn't show up.

But after the assassination attempt, and he's now leaving the city alone,

Lord Wu would surely protect him covertly.

So, this setup

is to lure out Lord Wu.

But there is one problem.

Only a grandmaster

is strong enough

to fight Lord Wu.

Ye Liu Yun is in Jiangnan,

Ku He hasn't headed south,

- and Si Gu Jian... - Si Gu Jian is still in Dongyi City.

Could it be the one in the palace...

Wait, that's not right.

If the one inside the palace really wants to fight him himself,

no one knows who will win or lose.

If he were severely injured, the balance would be disrupted.

His Majesty wouldn't take that risk.

You kept me here

because I was getting too close

to the truth.

The murderer in Jiangnan

isn't Lord Wu.

When he ambushed me,

his weapon and techniques were similar

to Lord Wu's.

He targeted the men from the Overwatch Council

to draw out Lord Wu.

His Majesty is willing to cooperate with you

in hunting down the betrayer of the Divine Temple.

The envoy sent by the Divine Temple

committed all those murders in Jiangnan just to hunt down Lord Wu.

No wonder I lost track of him

once he reached the capital.

His Majesty must have erased his tracks.

This matter has settled.

Does His Majesty really want to kill Lord Wu that badly?

If he does, why hasn't Hong Si Yang made a move?

Hang on,

His Majesty and you wouldn't make such a mistake.

In this setup,

what His Majesty truly wants to see is mutual destruction.

That's why I say nothing escapes you.

President, I'm surprised you went along with this scheme.

Can you really bear to watch Lord Wu meet his demise?

Over these years,

the Divine Temple has been searching for Wu Zhu,

not just today.

Are you saying it's not just this time?

Mutual destruction is impossible.

It will only end with...

You have to have faith in him.

President,

there's something I don't understand.

Whose side are you really on?

I went to the south looking for you,

but you did not show up.

You are the one killing people in Jiangnan.

I thought you would show up.

Why are you looking for me?

Come back with me.

You are from

the Divine Temple?

You are redundant.

You should not exist in this world.

Come back with me.

Fine.

I have forgotten too much.

Maybe I can recover

my lost memories at the Divine Temple.

Ye Qing Mei must also return.

She is dead.

She has a son.

This is a residual trace,

an error that should not exist.

Find him and bring him back to the Divine Temple.

So, you do not actually know who he is.

The conclusion is abrupt and the pre-conditions are vague.

Judging from the conversation,

I should have already met Ye Qing Mei's son.

The negotiation

is over.

You have chosen to return to the Divine Temple.

This conflict is unnecessary.

Protecting him is my mission.

Your Majesty?

What is this place?

This is a place you should have come to a long time ago.

There's someone here

you need to see.

Who?

Come with me.

You still look so young,

while I have aged.

Take a good look.

This is the only portrait your mother left behind when she was alive.

At that time,

she was like a dazzling meteor,

and also like a blazing flame,

showing the people of Qing Kingdom a different light.

(Good Governance and Harmonious People)

Your Majesty,

Wu Zhu's skill far surpasses that of the Divine Temple Envoy.

Even though we've used armor-piercing arrows and new bows,

he still managed to escape.

Wu Zhu is severely wounded and his whereabouts are unknown.

From what I've observed,

only a grandmaster can defeat him.

The Divine Temple Envoy

is no ordinary mortal in flesh.

So what?

He could still die.

Burn him.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Come.

Look at those chrysanthemums. Your mother planted them herself.

The flowers at the Xuankong Temple were moved from here?

You brought her along every flower-viewing activity?

She liked them.

She liked flowers?

She liked every living thing.

Why does my mother in the portrait look so young?

That portrait was from when I first met her.

That was how she looked like.

Do you miss her a lot?

That's why...

That's why I entrusted the Imperial Treasury to you

because you are her flesh and blood.

In this world,

only you can take over it.

Do I

look like her?

You're not as beautiful as she was,

but your inner qualities are very similar.

I'm not as brave as she was.

I remember she once told me,

being an emperor is not an easy job.

It requires a strong heart and unwavering will.

Therefore,

some things must be abandoned,

including

the most precious things.