01x18 - Episode 18

[bunniefuu]

[Prince Xin's Manor]

[Memorial Tablet of the Late Lady Gu]

[Memorial Tablet of the Late Lady Gu]

Your Highness, my condolences.

On the anniversary
of my late wife's death,

you accepted my invitation
to pay respects with me.

I am immensely grateful.

When I was far away in northwest,

Qingzhi

was my only dear friend
in the imperial capital.

Of course, I wouldn't refuse.

Now that I've paid my respects
to Qingzhi

and fulfilled my wish,

I should be heading back.

Would you perhaps join me
in the study for some tea?

Even just to keep Qingzhi company,

please stay a little longer.

Won't you?

=Blossoms of Power=

[Adapted from the novel, After My
Bloom, All Flowers Wither by Jin Huang]

=Episode 18=

[Hexiang Grass?]

[Mixing Hexiang Grass with tea leaves]

[can enhance the aroma.]

[But for Xiao Changqing,]

[once he drinks it,]

[he will suffocate and die
within moments.]

Your Highness,

please.

Thank you for the tea, Your Highness.

I just remembered I have urgent matters
to attend to at my residence.

I'll take my leave.

Your Highness,
the road is slippery from the snow.

Let me help you walk slowly.

Your Highness, what happened?

Why are you in such a hurry?

Quickly!

No one

knows about this matter.

Except for Qingzhi.

How did you know

the antidote is here?

Save your life first.

I won't take it.

Not unless you tell me

that you are Qingzhi.

If you save me,

that's an admission.

You're being unreasonable.

Do you still remember this?

This is the jade waist pendant
you used to love.

Before, you were determined
to marry the Crown Prince.

It was because he was
of the legitimate line,

yet frail and sickly.

You believed marrying such a husband

would allow you to use his influence
to pave the way

to protect the Shen family

and to protect yourself

because you had suffered
the excruciating pain

of being powerless
over your own fate.

Now, you've seen
through the Crown Prince's

manipulative nature.

Against him,

no one stands a chance.

That's why you want
to postpone the wedding.

You want to refuse this marriage.

I don't know what you're talking about.

Every single word I say,

you know exactly what it means.

You are Gu Qingzhi.

Aren't you?

When Qingzhi was alive,

you were truly sincere towards her.

But you always imposed
your kindness on her

in ways you thought were best.

You thought
that if you climbed high enough,

you could shelter her under your wing.

That is why you climb up desperately,

and you will clear every single
obstacle you face away one by one.

And that includes the Gu family.

The reason after the Gu family's fall

that I chose to break ties
with them was...

To save Gu Qingzhi's life.

The fall of the Gu family
was not your fault.

But you were supervising
their execution to save Gu Qingzhi.

Was that what she wanted?

What she wanted

was to face any hardship together.

I was wrong.

I've known for a long time
that I was wrong.

Give me one more chance.

This time,

I will fight with my life

to keep you safe.

Qingzhi once said in her letters

that she

never had feelings for you.

Your marriage to her

was just a marriage of convenience.

But she also said

that even so,

you're the kind of person
who would do anything for her.

So no matter what happened,

she wanted you to live a peaceful life.

[Vibrant and Dazzling]

Xihe.

There are some pastries.

Wash your hands.

What is this?

This is a popular hand balm.

It smells so good.

Did you make this?

It's so beautiful.

Xihe, your needlework is incredible.

What kind of fabric is this?

It feels so smooth.

Xihe,

can you give it to me?

No.

If I gave it to you,

you'd definitely be tempted
to wear it in secret.

Any slip-up

would be a fatal crime
of deceiving the emperor.

Do you have plans
for Chinese New Year's Eve?

Do you want to come to
my maternal grandparents' house with me?

Really?

Xihe, you're the best.

[Pleasant Spring, Great Fortune]

Be careful.

[Tao Residence]
Here, this is for you.

Hold it tight.

For you.

Thank you, Grandfather.

Good.

Xihe.

Greetings, Director Tao.

Grandfather.

Uncle, Aunt.

Happy Chinese New Year, everyone.

- We're all well.
- Happy Chinese New Year.

Happy Chinese New Year.

Young Master Bu.

You're celebrating the Chinese New Year
with us too?

I have no family or relatives
in the imperial capital.

The holidays are quite lonely for me.

I hope I'm not imposing
on your household today.

The more, the merrier.

You are more than welcome.

Exactly.

Welcome.

This is Chinese New Year's money
from your elders.

May you have another year
of life and increased fortune.

May you all be well.

Thank you, Grandfather.

Minister Tao,

I won't take your money
for nothing.

In a few days, I'll find a chance

to give the Wang Residence a hard time.

Why give the Wang Residence a hard time?

Wang Zheng is unhappy about your
promotion to Director of Secretariat.

He's been secretly causing trouble
for you.

I'm well aware of that.

I'll just annoy him a bit

to vent your anger for you.

Oh, you.

Every month, you're accused
of dozens of offenses.

You're at the top
of the Censorate's list.

And you still dare to cause trouble?

You are another year older now.

It's time to act more appropriately.

I have learned my lesson.

Alright, let's go inside.

- Let's go in.
- The Crown Prince has arrived!

- Why is Crown Prince here?
- Why is Crown Prince here?

Greetings, Your Highness.

Minister Tao, please,
dispense with the formalities.

Your Highness,

you should be in the palace today.

Why have you come to my residence?

Chinese New Year's Eve
and Chinese New Year's Day

should be spent with family.

The palace has too many rules.

Everything is rigid and formal.

I find it cold and impersonal.

Besides, I couldn't stop thinking
about the Commandery Princess.

I came uninvited.

I hope you don't mind.

We are deeply honored by your presence

in our humble home. It is a great honor.

Then please, come inside.

Happy Chinese New Year, Cousin-in-law.

Uh...

A child's words mean no harm.

- A child's words mean no harm.
- Forgive him, Your Highness.

Out of the mouths of babes.

Say it again.

Happy Chinese New Year, Cousin-in-law.

Take them all.

No, this is...
This is too much, Your Highness.

Well...

Please, come inside.

- Come inside.
- Please, come in.

- Let's take our seats.
- Come inside.

Quick.

Come on.

Please come in.

- Time for Chinese New Year's dinner!
- That's right!

In another hour,

it will be the first day
of the Chinese New Year.

I want to bid farewell to the old year
and welcome the new one with you.

And if I say I don't want to?

Will you back down?

When it comes to you,

I only know how to press forward
against the odds,

not how to back down.

I want to set off firecrackers!

Firecrackers!

Set off firecrackers!

Come here, quick.

Firecrackers!

Chinese New Year is the best.

- It is.
- It is.

Be careful.

Go on, set off more.

This decorative knot is quite unique.

I happen to be in need of one.

I wonder if you would gift it to me.

I made this knot for my father.

Then, could you

make another one for me?

I'm sorry.

I don't have the free time.

Xihe,

the Crown Prince likes it.

Just give it to him.

Seeing your family reunited

makes me quite envious.

Although I have many siblings,

on Chinese New Year's Eve
and Chinese New Year's Day,

there's no one to keep me company.

And not a single person

gave me a Chinese New Year's gift.

So just give it to me.

I'm going to hang the spring paintings.

I'll go with you.

It's beautiful.

[Noble Sentiment and Lofty Disposition]

♪A wall that collapses at a single push♪

♪Frost that melts at a single smile♪

[Tao Residence]

♪I've hidden so many words♪

♪Too reluctant to tell you♪

♪So never uncover♪

♪The sand that slips away
with one grasp♪

Mother, look! It's so pretty!

So pretty.

It's beautiful.

The more

I look at your knot,
the more exquisite it seems.

♪Was both bittersweet and absurd♪

I don't know when the day will come

that someone will think of me,

and during the holidays,

prepare a handmade gift for me.

And that someone

will wish me blessings and a long life.

♪So brave as if not afraid
of disappointment♪

♪You understand my pride♪

♪It is actually just like yours♪

Are you satisfied now?

♪I've crossed the wasteland of memories♪

An inch of concentric thread,

a flower for a hundred years of life.

There's a saying
in the imperial capital.

If, at the turn of the new year,

one can stay up with their beloved
to see the new year in,

they will live in harmony
for a hundred years,

and be forever united in heart.

♪The flustered mortal world♪

♪Your eyes remain clear and bright♪

Just see me out from here,
Your Highness.

Let me escort you back to your manor.

That's not necessary.

Today is a day for family reunions.

You should also return
to the palace early

to celebrate the festival with
His Majesty and the Empress Dowager.

Your Highness,

Prince Xin is waiting for you up ahead.

Forgive my impertinence, Your Highness.

Where are you going?

Come back here!

Stop shouting.

He's been bribed.

How could he possibly come back?

Your Highness,
let me drive the carriage.

Wait.

If I don't see him,

he probably won't let this go.

Who knows how many more
drivers he'll send?

I have been waiting for you
for a long time.

You've gone to so much trouble.

What is this all for?

Tonight is Chinese New Year's Eve.

There's something

I'd like to watch with you.

Your fireworks

are certainly creative.

On Chinese New Year's Eve,

a husband and wife stay up
to welcome the new year.

It symbolizes

growing old together

year after year.

But in the five years
we had been married,

Qingzhi had never stayed up
with me for the new year.

Every year, I was in the palace with
my father and the Empress Dowager.

After the family banquet,

when I returned to my manor,

she went straight to her room to rest.

She's always so

cold and distant.

♪Time is like a river flowing backward♪

♪The story is sketched anew♪

Qingzhi.

Happy Chinese New Year.

♪Pushing me to converge with you♪

♪Sifting for joy in a sea of sorrow♪

♪I step onto this winding path♪

♪What was swept away?♪

♪Joy and sorrow show no emotion♪

♪The clouds twist into a vortex♪

♪Reaching out to touch you♪

♪Only to find it's just a bubble♪

♪Scene after scene of yesterday♪

♪Lies between the sky and the water♪

♪The stars are sinking♪

♪Like a sunken vow♪

♪You drifted away alone♪

Back then,

I still had the ambition
to rule the world.

I wanted to make my wife

the most honored woman in the world.

I even

deluded myself into thinking

that once I ascended the throne,

I would do everything in my power

to make it up to Qingzhi.

After you appeared,

I sometimes find myself lost.

Was my past with Qingzhi

a dream,

or is all of this before me

a dream?

Perhaps

this is fate's way

of showing us favor.

It has let us

return to the path where we began.

♪A hand I cannot touch♪

♪I hold it for a moment
in the reflection♪

The fireworks are over.

A dream

is fleeting, after all.

The night is late and the wind is cold.

I must take my leave.

I will have the fireworks

light up the sky all night.

Qingqing.

Happy Chinese New Year.

[Favorable Weather
and Abundant Harvests]

Faced with a Crown Prince like him,

what are your chances of winning?

[Favorable Weather
and Abundant Harvests]

Your Highness,

Commandery Princess watched
the fireworks with the Fifth Prince.

Aren't you jealous?

Why would I be jealous?

I should thank Changqing.

Thank him?

When a person's good qualities

contrast with others,

it would seem even better.

Green leaves
make a red flower stand out.

The red flower
looks even more beautiful.

Your Highness,

when it comes to being cunning,

you don't need anyone as a foil.

You've already mastered the art.

[Residence of the Heir
of the Marquis of Shunan]

- Young Master.
- Young Master.

Be careful with those!

All are famous works
of calligraphy and painting.

Cui Jinbai.

Weren't you supposed
to be on official business in Bianzhou?

Why are you moving into my residence?
Are you insane?

I have no other choice.

I must stay here for a while.

What is it?

What is it? Tell me.

I lost my mother when I was young.

My stepmother
was originally quite good to me.

But ever since my younger brother
was born,

everything changed.

I get it.

All that scheming and backstabbing
in the household.

I wouldn't have minded
putting up with it.

But recently, my younger brother
has been crying constantly.

My stepmother invited a master
to our home for guidance.

He said that my fate clashes
with my younger brother's this year.

And that I needed to move out.

But you're the Deputy Chief of Justice.

You have countless ways to solve this.

That's right.

So I reported it to His Majesty

and requested to stay
at the Bu Residence.

If I didn't come,

wouldn't that be deceiving the emperor?

I'm going to go check on my luggage.

Wait. Is that really
how "deceiving the emperor" works?

By the way,

I've instructed the kitchen
to prepare dinner.

We'll dine together later

to celebrate Chinese New Year's Eve.

Your Highness.

At the very beginning of the new year,

Prince Munuha of the Le clan

came to the capital to present tribute.

And he formally proposed
a marriage alliance to His Majesty.

A marriage alliance?

All the princesses are afraid
of being chosen.

What noble lady would want
to marry so far away?

The living conditions are inconvenient,

there's no one to support you,

and you might not even
understand the Le language.

It's terrifying just thinking about it.

Is this information reliable?

I'm doomed.

I'm doomed.

What am I going to do?

Your Highness,

no decision has yet been reached
as to which princess

should be sent to form
this marriage alliance.

Among the unmarried princesses,

I am the eldest.

According to royal custom,

the eldest is married off
before the younger ones.

Besides me, the first choice,

who else could it be?

What if

we go and beg the Empress Dowager?

Out of respect for the Empress Dowager,

perhaps His Majesty will...

Last time, when we
were discussing the Spring Banquet,

I just said a few things
about that Shen Xihe,

and the Empress Dowager

hasn't been as close to me
as she used to be.

Besides, the three princesses

are all her granddaughters.

I'm afraid the Empress Dowager

won't stand up for me.

Well...

Your Highness,

then what should we do?

I won't marry him!

I refuse to be part
of a marriage alliance!

I must find a way out

for myself.

Your Highness, you climbed the mountain
to offer the first incense.

With such piety,

the Buddha will surely bless you

and keep that Munuha far away.

I hope so.

[Munuha, Prince of the Le Tribe]

Your Highness, wait a moment.

Prince Munuha,

although you are an honored guest,

do you know the consequences

for blocking my path?

Your Highness, please forgive me.

I mean no offense.

I came looking for you so abruptly,

only because we share a common goal.

What nonsense are you talking about?

Between you and me,

what common goal
could there possibly be?

Don't be so quick to refuse.

The wish you prayed to the gods for...

How about I make it come true for you?

What do you mean?

I want the beloved daughter
of the Duke of Wei

to become my woman.

Are you insane?

She is the future Crown Princess.

Are you trying

to start a w*r between our two nations?

There are rumors in the palace.

The marriage between Commandery
Princess Zhaoning and the Crown Prince

is on the verge of collapse.

And I

am sincerely asking
for her hand in marriage.

Sincerely?

If you marry her,

you'll have a chance to transfer
the Duke of Wei from the northwest.

As long as the Shen father
and son are gone,

the northwest

will no longer be impregnable.

Since you're concerned
about the country and its people,

why not marry me soon
for the sake of Daxing?

Don't be delusional!

If you want to remain
in the imperial capital

as the most distinguished noble lady,

you must join forces with me.

This is your only chance
to escape the marriage alliance.

Your true aim is the northwest.

Even I can see that.

How could His Majesty not see it?

This is a secret medicine
from my royal court,

Enchanting Essence.

Just one pill

is enough to arouse even an immortal.

After a man and woman
have been intimate,

even the most skilled physician
won't find any

trace of the drug.

Despicable!

In a few days,

the palace will hold a banquet for me.

Ladies from the imperial clan
and noble families will be there.

Commandery Princess Zhaoning
will attend as well.

Whether or not I can happily
marry the Commandery Princess

all depends on you, Princess Pingling.

If you are truly infatuated with me,

and are willing to marry far from home,

that's also an option.

Will your plan work?

Would she really dare to make a move
on Commandery Princess Zhaoning?

You just wait

for your rendezvous with the beauty.

[Taiji Hall]

I deserve to be punished.

It's all right. Get up.

Let me show you the way

to the side hall to change your clothes.

Let's go.

Strange.

Why does the route to the side hall

have to be such a long detour?

The person leading the way

suddenly vanished.

Your Highness, be careful!

Mo Yu!

Your Highness!

After all these years,

I finally have the chance

to spar with you, Huayong.

I cut his left shoulder.

If you are willing
to remove your clothes to prove it,

all suspicion against you
will vanish completely.

Are you willing

to leave with me?

♪How can you be this wonderful♪

♪I've hidden so many words♪

♪Too reluctant to tell you♪

♪So never uncover♪

♪The sand that slips away
with one grasp♪

♪The flower that withers
after one bloom♪

♪Silently buried deep inside my heart♪

♪Every answer I gave♪

♪Was both bittersweet and absurd♪

♪Hiding my tear-filled eyes
when I hurt you♪

♪How hard it truly was?♪

♪The wounds that healed
with just a little comfort♪

♪The lies made whole
with a single embrace♪

♪Pretending to be brave
as if I'd never been hurt♪

♪It's a shame I never could♪

♪Give you a moon in return♪

♪With the same open heart you loved me♪

♪I've crossed the wasteland of memories♪

♪Never knowing I was lost♪

♪Why don't you take me away?♪

♪Lead me out of this endless game
of hide-and-seek♪

♪You'll never♪

♪Know how much I long to, long to♪

[No animals were harmed
in the making of this film]