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Tell me who the real culprit is. If you guys don't and still try to deny it, both of you will end up on the dog guillotine!
-Guards! -Here! -Bring out the dog guillotine!
We'll tell the truth!
Tell me!
We were greedy for money and did what someone else told us to do.
We were told to kill those 2 people.
Who asked you to do that?
Someone with the last name "Wu".
What's his full name? Where is he from? Where does he live?
-I don't know -Nonsense!
I honestly don't know.
We met him at a tea house. He simply said "Kill the disabled guy and I will give you 100 coins"
Is that all?
Yes. He paid us 50 as deposit and said he will pay us the other 50 once the job is done.
You guys didn't know him and were willing to kill 2 people for him just for those 100 coins?
We deserve to die. We admit our crime. Please Mr. Bao, go easy on us!
How are you guys going to search for this "Mr. Wu"?
We don't know. He said he'll come look for us once the job is done.
-Guards -Here!
Put those 2 in jail. I'll continue the trial tomorrow.
Dad I have something to tell you.
Wow look at the way you just talked to me.
What's the matter?
Zhou Qing passed the imperial examination. You considered him to be an intelligent gentleman.That's why you let him marry me.
Correct. The Emperor agreed with me too.
How much do you know about his past?
You know just as much as I do. He said he grew in a temple as an orphan.
He struggled through many hardships to get to where he is now. Why?
Is something wrong with Zhou Qing?
Are you pretending to not know or do you really don't know?
I really don't know. Tell me!
Recently, he has been having trouble eating and sleeping. He seems to be full of worries and lost in thought.
Random strangers would come to see him in the middle of the night
He would speak to them quietly with a worried look on his face. That really makes me concerned.
What are you concerned about?
I'm worried that he has done something. That's why he's sent people off to investigate.
I never thought about it but there really is a problem.
You've heard that he has taken the place of someone else with the same exact name and now that person has filed a case against him in Kaifeng Court?
You already know about this?
Yes
Dad, why didn't you tell me about it? Why were you acting as if nothing is wrong? You didn't look concerned at all.
There is no need to worry about something that sounds like nonsense.
Why not?
Think about it. Is taking the place of someone else with the same exact name an easy thing to do? Even if he wanted to it would be tough.
Based on Zhou Qing's character, I really don't believe he is a fake.
I've discussed this with Mr. Bao already. He told me very privately about this.
I thought about it for a while afterwards. There is no solid proof. Only words out of someone's mouth. Why should I believe it? Why should I be worried?
You've already thought about this deeply.
Yes. This is a strange case but as soon as you investigate, you'll quickly find out that there is no truth to it.
Did you tell that to Mr. Bao?
No need. That would be insulting him. No need to worry about the way Mr. Bao works.
When the time is right, the plaintiff will just get punished. And justice will be done for Zhou Qing.
After hearing what you said, a big lump in my chest just went away.
Don't think about it. I'm here for you. Don't worry.
We're *** Chao and Ma Han from Kaifeng Court. We've come to see you Mr. Zhou.
Did Mr. Bao send you guys?
Yes. Mr. Bao said he wants to talk to you and has invited you to come over.
I have to go to court? What's the purpose?
We didn't dare ask.
What if I said I'm too busy to come?
That's fine. Mr. Bao told us to wait for you until you can come over. He told us to invite you over one way or another.
You would wait for me? So that means I really must come with you guys?
Yes. That's what Mr. Bao wants.
The madam is back.
-You came back from visiting dad? -Yes
Who are you guys?
We're from Kaifeng Court. Mr. Bao asked us to invite Mr. Zhou over.
He probably wants to talk about some kind of court matters.
I have something to say to Mr. Zhou. You 2 can go wait outside. He will come out.
Yes
You all leave too.
What do you want to say to me?
We're husband and wife. We've loved each other ever since we got married. That's something you should know.
Why are you talking about this right now?
I just want you to know.
If you're feeling worried about something you should let me know about it.
-I... -No need to explain.
I already know everything.
That's why I went to see dad.
What do you guys know about?
A disabled person with the same name as you has filed a case against you in Kaifeng Court. He is pretending to be you.
He said you took what was rightfully his. Right?
He's saying nonsense.
What did dad say?
Yes. Dad also knows that that guy is saying nonsense. Dad thinks you're getting wrongfully accused.
Really?
Would I lie to you?
I just want you to know about it that's all.
My dad supports you.
Mr. Bao of Kaifeng Court is fair, strict, and famous.
You just need to keep a cool head and he will eventually give you the justice you deserve
They used to say if the wife is a good person, then the husband is also a good person. I really believe that now.
You should have believed that a long time ago.
I'll go to Kaifeng Court now. You just wait here.
Now this is the kind of place to live. Look, there is a desk, a chair
How clean. How comfortable!
Really, I'm not a greedy person though.
I'm just going to lie down and get comfortable for a while. I can get used to living like this.
Hapless man, how long do you think Mr. Bao will let us stay here?
Is he going to kick us out as soon as the case gets solved?
I've been thinking that for you. I'm actually hoping that this case never gets solved.
No. I can't stay in here forever. They won't let us wander around before the case gets solved. I'll suffocate in here.
Hapless man, you agree with me right?
Right?
I, Zhou Qing, am here to see you Mr. Bao.
Great. Please sit.
Please sit Mr. Bao.
You invited me over. Is there something you want to teach me?
No, it's not for that. Mr. Zhou, do you know someone with the same exact name as you?
No I don't.
But recently, I've heard of someone like that. Someone here has filed a case against me.
Is that who you're talking about Mr. Bao?
Correct.
What did he sue me for?
He claims that you killed someone and tried to kill him too in order to get to where you are now. You are a fake official.
Do you believe him Mr. Bao?
I've thought deeply about what he said in all sorts of ways. After careful consideration, his story can turn out to be true.
It can be true?
Out of all the crazy things happening in the world, there are no rules that limit what is possible and what is impossible.
Something you think is impossible can turn out to be true.
But I haven't investigated thoroughly yet.
Nothing I can say for sure yet.
I don't understand what you're saying Mr. Bao.
Do you have the desire to answer my questions truthfully?
Ask away, Mr. Bao. If I really know, I'll answer honestly.
Very good.
Where did you stay when you came to take the exam?
I was poor at that time. I didn't have enough money. I met a woodcutter and stayed at the mountainside.
Family name of the woodcutter?
Family name "Lee". First name "Fu"
Do you know where he is now?
No I don't.
I went to visit him after I placed first in the exam but he moved away. Wasn't there anymore.
Really?
If you don't believe me, you can go investigate yourself.
Was there a 3rd person at the time?
It was an isolated place in the woods. There was no 3rd person.
There was no 3rd person when the crime took place? The plaintiff described a similar situation. He knew you were there and studying hard for the exam.
He knew the very name of the woodcutter that you just mentioned.
I didn't know about that.
Did you become severely ill 2 days before the exam?
Severely ill?
If I were severely ill, how could I have made it to the exam? How could I have made it to where I am now?
The plaintiff disagreed with you on that point. He said you were being treated for your illness at that time.
That really did not happen. Why should I admit that?
How sad. How sad indeed.
What's sad? What are you sad about?
You know why I didn't question you directly in court. I'm questioning you here out of respect.
I know what you're thinking and that's ok.
No!
I've been going easy on you because you're Mr. ***'s son-in-law and I didn't want his daughter to find out about just how complex this situation really is.
Tell the truth! If I can forgive you....
Mr. Bao, I'm not happy with what you just said.
Why not?
According to your tone, you really believe that I killed someone and took the rightful place of another person? You're accusing me of adopting a false identity.
What? It's not true?
Not true!
Looks like I'll have to take this to court!
I'm going to have the 2 of you meet.
There's someone making false accusations about me. Of course I should meet him face to face!
Good!
But I'm going to warn you, once this goes to court and the truth comes out, it will be tough to be lenient!
Mr. Bao, I really hope that you can dig up the truth! Give me the justice that I deserve!
-Guards! -Here! -Let's bring court into session!
Go summon Su Chi Er and the other Zhou Qing. Let's bring them face to face!
Yes!
Mr. Bao's orders: The 2 of you need to come with me to the court room. There is someone that you guys need to meet.
Who?
Official Zhou Qing
That's good hapless man! The day you've been waiting for is here!
Let's go!
I need to come too?
Yes.
For what? I don't even know that person.
If Mr. Bao says come, then you need to come!
Yes, yes, yes! I'll come. Let's go see how the fake one looks like!
What real? What fake? The case is not over yet! Don't say those things.
If you don't want me to blab things out, then why are you even summoning me?
Bring in the defendant Zhou Qing!
Who's standing in the court room right now?
I'm Zhou Qing.
Someone filed a case against you. Did you kill someone in order to take his place? He accused you of adopting a false identity. What's your defense?
There is no proof of this. Therefore, I don't need to defend myself.
Fine
Bring in the other Zhou Qing and Su Chi Er!
I, Su Chi Er, show my respects to you Mr. Bao.
You and official Zhou Qing have the same exact name.
To easily distinguish between the 2 of you for now, I'll just call you "hapless man". Do you understand?
According to what you've told me before, you and the other Zhou Qing lived together for some time.
And you 2 became sworn brothers. You probably remember what he said.
Bring Zhou Qing in here!
I, Zhou Qing, have come to see you Mr. Bao.
Why are you shaking your head?
This is not the Zhou Qing you sued?
Fine.
Bring in the real Zhou Qing!
I, Zhou Qing, have come to see you Mr. Bao.
Not him either?
Take them away.
Fine. I will have you listen to yet another voice.
Go ahead. Talk.
I, Zhou Qing, have come to see you Mr. Bao.
Don't get too excited. I'm going to ask you slowly.
The person who just spoke is the one you sued?
According to your lawsuit, he tricked you into drinking poisoned wine to make you lose your voice. Then he made you blind by splashing poison all over your face.
He cut off your nerves with a sword. Is that right?
Mr. Bao, it's so obvious that this is a lie!
No way. You saw him yourself earlier. I summoned 2 fake people and he was able to tell them apart from you.
As soon as you opened your mouth to speak, he recognized your voice.
He got very excited and angry.
Mr. Bao, aren't you going too far by using voices to investigate during a trial?
You said you don't know him. But then, why did he recognize your voice?
I can detect the lie in what you're saying.
He probably has an accomplice.
What do you mean?
This beggar could see me standing here the whole time. He probably has heard and seen me before because of my rank.
And?
This beggar probably communicated secretly to him about me while no one in here was looking.
I didn't do it.
You don't need to explain. I will judge things fairly in court.
You keep telling lies. You are being full of deceit in here. That beggar neither moved his hands nor opened his mouth. How could he have communicated secretly?
These are just your words. I don't care. What I didn't think was that you would be so unfair and favor someone in court.
I have never favored anyone in my life.
If that's the case, then why are you only listening to his side of the story?
If you have never met him before, then why did he recognize your voice?
I already told you. He has an accomplice.
You are 1 deceitful person!
Mr. Bao, I'm an official with a rank and a mansion. Don't insult me in court without any evidence.
Fine. Then I will provide you with a piece of evidence.
Take off his hat and roll up his pants.
Wait!
Mr. Bao, what's the meaning of this?
When you were in the woods, you got bitten by a snake and lost consciousness.
The hapless man healed your wound by sucking the infected blood out so you got to live
Did such a thing happen?
No!
How can we know about a wound on your leg? Why can't you reveal your leg right now?
Of course I can. Yes there is a wound on my leg. But that's just a coincidence.
Coincidence?
When I went into the backyard with my father-in-law, I accidentally got stabbed in the leg by a broken piece of metal and bled.
My father-in-law summoned a physician to heal my wound.
If you don't believe me, you can summon Mr. *** and ask him yourself right here.
Sir, even if he really were a fake he would have done what he could to get hide the scar on his leg anyway as a way of concealing evidence.
You are a very conniving person.
I don't dare do such a thing. I may not be an expert in law but I still know the basics.
You listened to just 1 side of the story and used voices to judge this case without any form of evidence
You treated me as if I am an impostor. You didn't punish the plaintiff who told you false stories.
How can I be satisfied? How can the people in the world be satisfied?
Aren't you afraid of tarnishing your good and clean name Mr. Bao?
Shut up!
It's easy for me to shut my mouth. But it won't be easy to shut the mouths of the people. Think carefully, Mr. Bao.
We'll rest this case right here and continue tomorrow.
Court adjourned!
Oh you came back! Why were you gone for so long?
Bao Zheng without reason is a bully.
You're so angry. Did he question you by beating you?
He wouldn't dare.
-Bring some tea. -Yes
What did Mr. Bao say?
He asked me questions in court. Face to face with that disabled man! He accused me of making that guy disabled!
Mr. Bao is famous. Why was he like that with you? Does he have a grudge against you?
How should I know? I don't have any grudges with him.
I think he is being famous for no reason.
Is the case over?
No.
There will be more trials?
That's what he said in court.
The words of a disabled man and he really believed them.
I don't want the case to continue like this.
You're right. The more I thought about it on my way home, the angrier I got! I live in a mansion and I am Minister ***'s son-in-law!
I was bullied in Kaifeng Court!
What I'm worried about is that if he continues investigating and false rumors start spreading that it might tarnish your name.
I think we should go to dad.
And then what?
I will ask dad to request to Mr. Bao not to hold any more court sessions without any solid proof. Otherwise, your name will be tarnished.
Tarnished name?
What do you mean?
Dad, a scholar's name is very important. He got summoned to court because of the words of a disabled man that can't possibly be true. That will tarnish his name.
I think this is a good thing.
The rumors that are spreading right now aren't good for you. If he doesn't question you in court, people will have doubts about your innocence.
He was already pure in the first place. He is the victim of a false accusation. Mr. Bao is not punishing the plaintiff and thinking that he's real. That's not fair!
If the plaintiff is fake the truth will come out eventually and Mr. Bao will punish him heavily.
No eye witnesses and no material evidence. It's so obvious that these are lies!
Even a 3-year-old can understand that! What else do we need?
So how are you thinking about this Qing Er?
I've been wrongfully accused. Dad, please help me!
Dad you remember the conversation we had?
What did I say?
How you think it's practically impossible to steal someone's identity like that?
With his academic skills, how can he be a fake?
You're right. I did say that.
Why are you being 2 different people right now dad? Why don't you want to go to Mr. Bao?
My daughter, I am Minister ***. There are some things that I shouldn't get too involved in.
What's more, Mr. Bao is fair when he judge cases. QIng Er, will eventually get the justice he deserves!
The pure person will be pure. The dirty person will be dirty. Why are you rushing this all the time?
Dad, if this case doesn't get solved, the rumors will get worse.
Yes he will turn out to be innocent but his name will be tarnished. You will be embarrassed too and lose trust in Mr. Bao.
This can also affect his Majesty.
You can't think. You only know how to pressure someone.
He is my husband. If I won't defend him, then who would?
All right then. You win. What do you want me to do?
Go to Kaifeng Court and tell Mr. Bao that since there is no proof and only the words out of someone's mouth that he should just put the case to rest.
Punish the plaintiff heavily.
That official is one conniving person.
He relies on his fame and rank and is Mr. ***'s son-in-law. This is a complex case.
Based on my experience as a judge, there are many keys to this case but I don't think the disabled Zhou Qing is telling nonsense.
What's sad is that, we don't have any eye witnesses or material evidence
We want to see the sun but we can't remove the clouds.
I have an idea. Sir, I've thought of something.
Do tell.
If the disabled Zhou Qing really is the true scholar, then he would remember the way he answered some questions on the exam.
That's right! If he really took the exam, then he would remember some of the questions! And some of his answers!
Yes. Out of these 2, one of them is a fake. The fake one won't know about how the real one answered the questions on the exam.
Good! That's a great plan! As soon as we put that to test, we'll know for sure who is fake and who is real.
Minister *** is here.
Minister ***. Summon him.
No need. I'm here right now.
Greetings Minister ***.
I'm sure you can guess why I have come here Mr. Bao.
Regarding your son-in-law Zhou Qing?
-Yes. -Please sit Mr. ***.
This is to be a laid back discussion. Just relax.
Mr. Bao, you are very wise when it comes to judging cases. Everyone knows that.
Someone filed a case against him for pretending to be a scholar.
He said these are false accusations. My daughter also says the same thing.
I can't stay relaxed there which is why I have come to you about this.
Your words are too deep. I don't dare boss you around. But who's real and who's fake will slowly come out.
I've heard that there are no eye witnesses or material evidence. Do you have another way?
I have to ask for your guidance.
Mr. Bao, don't hesitate. Just tell me.
The exam records are available. It hasn't been too long yet. Whoever really took the exam will know the way he answered some of the questions.
If that's the case, then that's good. Then we will be able to tell the 2 Zhou Qings apart.
Correct!
2 people with the same exact name. 2 Zhou Qings. Only the real scholar out of these 2 can pass this test. Very good!
It's convenient that you've come to Kaifeng Court Mr. ***. You can be the eye witness.
Will the plaintiff Zhou Qing be able to answer the questions?
I agree. But, how do you want me to be a witness?
The plaintiff Zhou Qing shall write down his answers again. This time in front of you.
Good.
Zhou Qing, there is a special guest in the room. He is Minister ***. He is the father-in-law of the person you sued.
Are you the plaintiff Zhou Qing?
No need. Please stand.
Get him up.
Mr. ***, his throat has been badly damaged by poison. That's why he can't talk.
His face has been burned by poison so he is blind.
The nerves on his hands have also been destroyed. That's why he looks like this.
Poor guy.
Such a hapless person wouldn't do nonsense. It's obvious that someone did this to him.
Whoever did this to him is a very heartless person. A very ruthless person.
Right. But we can't just take his side of the story. What's your plan?
You're right Mr. ***. That's why I've been asking very carefully. I won't give up until the truth comes out.
Did you really take the imperial exam?
Do you remember the content of some of the questions you answered?
Good. I wrote those questions myself. With permission from His Majesty, can you tell me?
How will he write?
He will hold a brush in his mouth and write. He's had quite a bit of practice with that over the past few days so he's used to it by now.
Prepare the brush and ink.
Correct. That really was a question on the exam.
(There are no more subtitles for the rest of the episode because he is mostly reciting exam answers and passages which are too poetic and awkward to translate)
(I will explain what happened though. Essentially, Mr. *** was impressed because Zhou Qing answered the exam topic very well.)
(It was the same answer as the one on the real Zhou Qing's original exam record)
(The episode ends with Bao saying that it is time to perform the same test on the other Zhou Qing. If he can't do it, then he is fake)
(The disabled Zhou Qing is very grateful for this and starts banging his head in appreciation).
(Stay tuned for episode 4 to find out what happens next. If you already know, please don't spoil it for people who haven't seen it yet).