The original book was written in Eighteenth Century in Chinese. The author of original Judge Dee's novel was anonymous but was likely a retired statesman familiar with the system and the legal code.   While a representative of the gong’an, or Chinese crime-case, genre. 

Translator Robert Van Gulik (Dutch Diplomat) had translated the first part of that novel "Dee Goong An", (celebrated cases of Judge Dee) featuring Judge Dee and after that he himself wrote many novels where the fictitious character, Judge Dee solves crimes. 

Long before Western writers had even conceived the idea of writing detective stories, the Chinese had developed a long tradition of literary works that chronicled the cases of important district magistrates. These judges held a unique position. As "fathers to the people" they were at once judge and detective, responsible for all aspects of keeping the peace and for discovering, capturing, and punishing criminalsThroughout imperial Chinese history, the district magistrate was the link between the emperor and his people and was responsible for maintaining harmony among those under his charge. 

Judge Dee (also known as Ti Jen-chieh or Di Renjie), the hero of Robert van Gulik’s 'Judge Dee' mystery series, is purportedly based on the historical Di Renjie (630–700), chancellor of Empress Wu Zetian during the Tang Dynasty, who earlier in his career served as a district magistrate. The Semi- fictitious Judge Dee also assumed the role of a district magistrate in most of these novels. 

Under the imperial system, magistrates were assigned to posts for three-year terms, and they generally assembled teams of assistants who followed them throughout their careersRobert van Gulik, in writing his Judge Dee novels, not only borrowed the main character but all four assistants from Dee Goong An. Robert van Gulik used Judge Dee’s different assigned locations to present China’s vast territorial regions and describe their different cultures, neighboring peoples and challenges


The whodunit element is also less important in the Judge Dee stories than it is in the traditional Western detective story, though still more so than in traditional Chinese detective stories.


However, Judge Dee is not infallible, and sometimes he makes mistakes or faces difficulties in his investigations. These examples show that Judge Dee is a human character who has flaws and limitations, but also learns from his experiences and strives to uphold justice.


Difficulties that a Judge faced in that era. 

1. The judge is allowed to torture suspects to obtain a confession. But this technique is not to be used lightly: If a suspect confesses under torture and is executed but later found to be innocent of the crime, the Judge and his entire staff may be executed in the same manner.

2. Exhuming a dead body without proving the dead person was murdered would be an act of sacrilege which would cost the Judge his job. 

3. Should an innocent person die under torture, both the judge ordering the torture and all members of staff administering the torture would suffer capital punishment. 


Empress Wu Zetian was the first and only female emperor in Chinese history, and de facto ruler of the Tang dynasty from 665 to 705, ruling first through others and then (from 690) in her own right.From 665 to 690, she was first empress consort of the Tang dynasty (as wife of the Emperor Gaozong) and then, after his death, empress dowager (ruling through her sons Emperors Zhongzong and Ruizong). Unprecedented in Chinese history, she subsequently founded and ruled as female emperor of the Wu Zhou dynasty of China from 690 to 705. She was the only female sovereign in the history of China widely regarded as legitimate.  Under her 40-year reign, China grew larger, becoming one of the great powers of the world, its culture and economy were revitalized, and corruption in the court was reduced. Empress Wu is one of the most controversial leaders in Chinese history for her method of rule and the means she likely used to rise to power. She was removed from power in a coup and died a few months later. She was a great ruler and a reformist but also cruel and ruthless, outside and inside her family to maintain her authority.


 

 Youku's series is Adapted from Robert Van Gulik's "Judge Dee's mystery"


There are nine cases in this series as per trailer 2 of youku

1.Phoenix Seal Case
2. Folding Screen Case / Lacquer Screen Mystery
3.Golden Mystery Case
4.Rain Master Legend
5.Red Pavilion
6.Desert Pursuit
7.Hollow Gourd
8. Skylark Chirping
9.Zhao Yun Library


(Scroll down  few posts to read all cases summaries in the same discussion thread. Only the introduction of each cases written, not the resolution) 



Very Well Written :) 

 Cat:

Very Well Written :) 

Glad that you liked it... Most of the information on Judge Dee and Robert Van Gulik has been complied from various websites... I was researching the background of the character when I came across it.. I thought it would be beneficial for viewers like myself who are not that familiar with the mystery books.

Thank you. This appears to be a very interesting series ... saw the trailer earlier today, and that solidified my interest. I appreciate the background information, especially since I was trying to figure out how a Dutch author came to be writing fiction about a traditional Chinese character.

 CdramaMaven4762:

Thank you. This appears to be a very interesting series ... saw the trailer earlier today, and that solidified my interest. I appreciate the background information, especially since I was trying to figure out how a Dutch author came to be writing fiction about a traditional Chinese character. 

It is quite good series. Do give it a try. 



Case 1. The Phoenix Seal Case (episode 1 to 4)


"A Wise man must remember not to join the wrong side"


There was an underlying theme of fate and coincidence. Di Renjie (courtesy name Huaiying)  almost starts to believe that all the decisions that he has taken were coincidence, probably fate dictated his actions. However at the end of the case Di Renjie throws away the dice in the river where his father committed suicide, before Di Renjie leaves Chang'an. That indicates that he now realises nothing is happenstance, everything is planned. This eye opening will serve him well to be a good judge in future where he will use deduction to unravel the mystery without believing in chance or supernatural forces. 

There is unrest in Chang'an because The Emperor has given lots of power to the Empress Wu Zetian. Many courtiers are of the thought that a mere woman should not have so much governing  authority. Empress Wu has introduced many reforms in various fields that Di Renjie agrees and appreciates but there is a large faction of courtiers who oppose them. The first case establishes the characters and gives a glimpse into their background. 

We also have two bandits,  Ma Rong and Qiao Tai whom Di Renjie has brought from western region to Chang'an. They become his well trusted side kicks, both have diverse and fascinating traits. At the beginning Di Renjie is reluctant to appear in the Imperial Examination due to his father's suicide many years ago but later he passes the exam and is appointed and stationed as a judge/magistrate of Penglai county, a remote frontier. Di Renjie: "My fate must be in my own hands. " At the end of the 4th episode Di Renjie appoints Hong Liang as his inspector, Ma Rong and Qiao Tai as his attendants. 

Summary of episode 1 to 4 (excluding too many spoilers)

 
At the beginning Di Renjie is reluctant to appear in the  Imperial Examination for the Classicists. Hong Lian, has obtained an examination ticket for him. Empress Wu had reformed the examination that year. Irrespective of a person's background or place of residence everyone could appear for the exams to get selected on their merit.

During the course of the first case Di Renjie ends up solving a case of a missing pearl as well. This quickly solved case is used to showcase the deduction ability, observational power, lightning reflexes and  compassion of Di Renjie. 


Unbeknownst to the commers the court is in a upheaval, the Phoenix Seal of the Empress has been stolen and has been used on fake decrees. On top of that many Strange unnatural fires are occurring, Empress favorite Wutong Tree outside the palace suddenly caught fire and burnt down. Was it a man-made or a natural disaster?

 
Di Renjie encounters his old friend, He Dajing who is currently working as an assistant for Grand Secretariat Wei. He Dajing is helping write the documents on new policies introduced by Empress Wu especially the Tax policy. After the examination Di Renjie ans He Dajing visit Jushui Entertainment house that catches fire and burns down killing He Dajing and many others, only Di Renjie survives. Another task that He Dajing was entrusted by Grand Secretariat Wei before his death was to compile records of great families based on their merit. People like Old Grand Commandant Zhangsun will lose their position as it was not obtained on merit. Di Renjie demands 10 days from the magistrate to investigate the Jushui Entertainment House fire. General Kang Zhiyi identifies one dead body from Jushui Entertainment house as that of a palace maid,  Yaxin.


The courtiers including Zhangsun are taking this opportunity of Seal loss to demand that Empress Wu should be punished. Loss of imperial Phoenix Seal means the imperial authority is at stake. It was misused by villains. The strange fires are attributed to Heaven's warning and Wrath.


Di Renjie believes the fires are caused by an enemy of the empress. Mr. Wei believes Empress' reforms have offended too many people. Di Renjie is of the opinion that reforms are beneficial, the new policy of the imperial examination that allows commers an opportunity, the agricultural reforms no longer penalizes displaced migrants, allowing them to settle nearby and giving them farmland.  Mr. Wei states that all the people who support and oppose the Empress are fighting


In the meantime there is a third fire in a farmhouse, all four dead bodies are male have calluses on their palm and purlicues . Di Renjie deducts they were burnt after their death.

 
Clues that Di Renjie finds during the course of his investigation were uncovered by him coincidentally or deliberately left by someone? Someone made a perfect plan to frame Empress Wu but Heaven's plan supersede our own, or does it? Di Renjie recites Confucius' belief said "only women and small minded men are hard to deal with", Should women not be given authority? Is his majesty's acceptance of women considered cowardice by many courtiers? What is the grand scheme, who is to be trusted? Who was the mysterious lady singing Bingzhou Ditty in Jushui Entertainment house that attracted Di Renjie's attention?  Should one support lesser evil to achieve greater good? 





Case 2 - The Folding Screen Mystery (episode 5-8)


On the way to the (fictional ) Penglai county, Di Renjie and the party come across a dead body of a male lying on the road, this man had a disfigured pockmark face since he had recovered from leprosy. The yet unidentified male had been stabbed seven times.  Di Renjie posts his portrait on the city board to identify him. Many women in the county are seen applying white face powder, Di Renjie reveals to Ma Rong that they are not beautifying themselves but covering the scars of leprosy on their faces. 

Di Renjie finds that even though the post of magistrate had been vacant for three months there are no pending cases. The county is for the most part peaceful and everyone seems to comply with the rules set by someone. 

Di Renjie is invited to a banquet arranged by Teng Kan to celebrate Yichun Festival (to celebrate the start of the spring) as well as his winning first place in the poetry contest in the capital. Teng Kan is more than 50 years old, still childless but loves his beautiful wife, Yinlian extremely so is not ready to take a concubine and wishes to live happily with her. At this banquet, Di Renjie meets Cao An from Mingyue House, the best singer in Penglai County whom he had heard singing Bingzhou ditty in Chang'an. Di Renjie seems mesmerised by Ms.Cao. 

After the banquet, Teng Kan is feeling unwell and throws up due to excessive drinking but when Di Renjie tries to comfort him during a bout of vomiting, Teng Kan angrily shrugs off Di Renjie's hand startling him with this hostile behaviour. At the same time Teng Man's wife notices a person standing on the opposite side hiding behind a pillar and becomes agitated. 

At her place later that night, Cao An recalls how she had been saved from a vicious assault when she was younger by a masked man, Heiyan. Heiyan cautions Cao An not to use the name 'Heiyan' again. 18 years ago Ms. Cao's father, Cao Hexian was held responsible for minting illegal coins. Di Renjie feels there is a connection between Cao An's father and his because of Bingzhou ditty and other undisclosed reason. Di Renjie  visits her at Mingyue house to uncover her secrets. 

Ma Rong is dragged to a bandit's place for the crime of stealing.  Bazong the bandit 'The king of justice' is taking care of law and order in the county, metting severe physical punishment to any criminal. Bazong has a code of conduct, according to him "Since ancient times the  Government is the Government. The Jianghu is the Jianghu. "  (To read more on Jianghu, go to my comment in general section https://mydramalist.com/78527-judge-dee-s-mystery#comment-16242867

Impressed by Ma Rong's fearless confrontation, Bazong gives her three dice, using them she can get three favours from him. 

The servants of Teng kan's household see their master and mistress struggling from outside the study room door through the translucent glass panels on the doors. Another unkempt person with long finger nails is standing outside the room. Upon entering the study they find their mistress and master severely injured. Teng kan is saved however his wife dies. In blood soaked garments, Teng kan goes to the magistrate office and beats the drum to demand death penalty for himself as according to his memory, he has murdered his wife. 

Di Renjie goes to investigate the scene, he finds that Teng Man's wife Yinlian was also stabbed seven times like the other unidentified male body. He also deduces that the murder weapon has been moved and someone else entered the room later and moved Yinlian's body,  leaving traces of white odourless powder on her body. 

Teng Kan has been taking medicine for madness for the last six months. There used to be a  folding screen in the room where the mistress of the house was murdered but it had been moved since last five days as the fourth panel's drawing had mysteriously changed from lover's uniting to husband killing his wife. The four panel screen depicted four seasons on each panel (spring, summer, autumn and winter) and portrayed a story of a scholar. The willow starts to flower, a spring scene in the first panel. A scholar is taking a nap, at his desk. A woman appears in his dreams. In the second panel, green fields and hills. This portrays the scholar on his way to the examination in the summer.The third panel, the late fall, the scholar passes the exam and returns in glory, seeing four sisters on their balcony one of them the woman in his dreams, marrying one of the sister and living happily. However the last panel where the lovers were sitting at the table embracing lovingly in the winter season, drinking wine had mysteriously changed to the portrait of the husband stabbing his wife. 

Teng kan's madness is hereditary.  Teng Kan also was acquainted with Di Renjie's father 20 years ago.  Previously Teng kan was the secretary general of the right guards. His name was Teng Zhongyuan, a fierce warrior on the battlefield but after meeting his wife, he changed his life and led peaceful life writing poems and romance. Di Renjie informs Teng kan of 'Tang code' according which if a patient of madness injures a person and commits murder the punishment should be lenient. However after Yinlian's death Teng kan has lost the will to stay alive. 

The scenes on the four panels of the screen depicted Teng Kan's own story so he had purchased it. His wife had three other sisters(four sisters as depicted in the painting). Now only the second unmarried sister known as Ms.Lai Er lived in Yinlian's ancestral house 'Lia residence'. 

Lai Er recounts a tale of her sister, Yinlian being frivolous. As per Lai Er, Yinlian deserved to die for her faithless nature and loose moral character. She had multiple affairs according to Lai Er. Yinlian rejected a suitor, Li Han  with whom she had an adulterous relationship before her marriage. One time Li Han broke into their house and Yinlian reported him. Li Han was arrested. On the walls in 'Lia Residence' are multiple paintings of a young lady drawn by one painter called Xu kai. Lai Er claims all the portraits are of herself. There is a break in, in one of the portrait selling shops, on all the portraits painted by Xu kai the unidentified pockmarked dead man's portrait is hung, leading Di Renjie to conclude that the dead man in his morgue was the painter xu kai who had recovered from leprosy. 

The man leaving all these clues must be the past paramour of Yinlian, who had been imprisoned and was working in a quarry to serve his punishment term. The white odourless powder found on the painting of the dead man hung in the portrait shop over ku xai's paintings  and Yinlian's dead body was from the quarry. 

Di Renjie goes to the quarry to question Li Han, he is told that the said person died a few days ago. With the help of the token dice given by Bazong to Ma Rong earlier, Di Renjie enlists the help of a soldier guarding the prisoners working in the quarry to exhume the buried body only to discover the grave is empty. 

Why did the  painting on the four panel screen suddenly change? Who was the person outside the window when Yinlian was murdered? Who moved Yinlian's body? Did Teng Kan really murder his wife? Who is the masked person Heiyan? What is Cao An's connection to Di Renjie's past?



Case 3 - The Golden Mystery case (episodes 8- 12) 


On the deck of a ship carrying bandits/smugglers, a bandit inquires as to why  Wang Lide dropped the anchor in the middle of the ocean during a mild storm. Wang Lide replies that it's too stormy. The bandit retorts that the storm is not that intense, back in the days he had battled in Liaodong,  he had seen waves taller than the mountains. The bandit cautions Wang Lide not to trick him. Wang Lide assures the bandit that he had been on that route a dozen times better to be safe than sorry. The bandit wants to know where rest of the people were, Wang Lide informs him they were all taking rest in the cabin. The bandit goes inside to look for his companions. 

In the kitchen of the ship, the cook has brought an illegal foreign immigrant (from Baekje)as a stowaway and hidden him under the kitchen in the cellar. The stowaway wants to get out as he has an upset stomach, however the cook hands him a slop bucket and shoves the cellar door close, blocking his way. According to the cook, the ship was full of bandits carrying swords if they noticed the stowaway, they would kill him immediately. 

The bandit from the deck passes the kitchen and goes inside the cabin. He is shocked to see all his companions are murdered. Wang Lide  comes in and stabs the bandit.  Wang Lide while stabbing the bandit recites, "Gathered in delight.  A homecoming feast unfolds. The joy is as great as in the song of the Great Wind. "

Wang Lide kills everyone on board except the hidden stowaway.


(10 days later at Penglai Harbour)


Bai kai tries to draw attention of the greedy Director Yi looking at the golden bars hungrily. All the items in the tent were for Commissioner Liu.  Bai Kai's shipmaster Mr.Gu has prepared lots of goodies for Commissioner Liu who has come all the way from the capital to buy for his Majesty Commissioner Liu is also trusted by the Empress.  Bai Kai says they must take good care of him. Director Yi is a little offended because they usually offer him some furs and ginseng only. Bai Kai placates Director Yi and tells him that as he was the director of maritime trade who managed the harbour, he was always offered a gift from all incoming ships of Mr. GuBai Kai had also heard that commissioner Liu's intentions were not good  so only if they please him can they make money later hence all the items are being offered to him. 

 Di Renjie has come to Penglai harbour to question a shipowner Gu Mengbin meets an old friend, Hou You (courtesy name Guanshi) there. It has been one year since Di Renjie left the capital. Hou You tells Di Renjie that with the Empress in power, many officers have been either demoted or deposed, he is no exception hence he has lost weight. Di Renjie has been summoning Mr.Gu for three days but Mr. Gu has been evading Di Renjie.  Deputy Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Hou You  has accompanied Commissioner Liu from the Capital informs that Mr. Gu was going to hold a banquet that night. The Gu family had made  quite a big scene. Mr. Gu is the biggest ship owner in Penglai. The hundreds of ships in and out of harbour are all his. His ships can sail to  Japan and Baekje.(Baekje or Paekche was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BC to 660 AD.)

Mr.Gu warns Director Yi  not to mention Baekje gold in front of Commissioner Liu at the banquet that night. During the banquet, Mr. Gu and Director Yi do their best to flatter and please Commissioner Liu. Commissioner Liu remains unimpressed and comments in an offhand manner that he has little education and loves only two things in life, one listening to songs and second Gold. Upon hearing this, Director Yi tells Commissioner Liu that Penglai doesn't produce gold. Cao An and other performers are booked by Mr. Gu to entertain Commissioner Liu that night. Ms. Cao is called inside to sing for Commissioner Liu. Qiao Tai takes a fancy to one of the female performer, Yusu who happens to be Baekje. 

Di Renjie is allowed to come inside the tent where the banquet is held to greet Commissioner Liu and he uses that opportunity to question Mr. Gu. Di Renjie wants to inquire about a person named Wang Lide who is supposed to be Mr. Gu's agent for transshipment of overseas goods. Wang Lide has rented a shop on which rent is overdue and Di Renjie is unable to find Wang Lide. The fact of concern is that the cargo found by Di Renjie in one of the shipment was Modao. There were a total of  100 Modao( swords) and 80 Fuyuan Crossbows all weapons of Tang. According to Tang code a person cannot  secretly keep the weapons or sell them From the putty store, Di Renjie has found out the number of ships under Mr.Gu ownership that purchase putty to repair leaks. From that information, Di Renjie concludes that Gu family has both legal ships and clandestine ships. Similarly there are also legal and clandestine agents. 

While Di Renjie is presenting his case at the banquet and Director Yi and Mr. Gu are trying to clarify things there is a commotion from outside the  tent. Everyone rushes outside to see another tent's cover has been pulled down, amidst the gifts for Commissioner Liu,  Qiao Tai and Ma Rong were caught snooping. Commissioner Liu is angry when Director Yi clarifies in his  ears that the tent was full of gifts arranged by Mr.Gu for him. 

Commissioner Liu asks the crowd of people surrounding him and Di Renjie to step away from them and then hands over a secret  Imperial Edict from Empress Wu to Di Renjie. As per the Edict, It is heard that gold from Baekje has been flowing into the Capital through Penglai recently. Traitorous officials in the court are using it to buy people's support and disrupt the market with ill intention. Empress Wu orders Di Renjie to solve the case within one month failing to do so he will be as guilty as the gold smugglers. 

Just then an abandoned ship drifts towards the harbour and crashes against the docking board. Upon investigation by Director Yi it was found that there was sign of life but there wasn't anybody on board, there was also no sign of struggle. He jokingly says that perhaps everyone jumped in the sea. The cargo was mostly herbs and furs. It was difficult for Director Yi to determine where the ship was coming from. Mr. Gu denies ownership of that particular ship. 

Di Renjie asks Commissioner Liu's permission to investigate on board the ship if it was suspected that the ship was used for gold smuggling. He goes on board with Hou You and others. They notice that a heavy chest was hanging on the mast pole that has been cut off and the chest was nowhere to be found. In the ship's kitchen based on the size of mushroom growth on food, Di Renjie deducts its 30 days growth. If the ship set sail 20 days ago the country of departure should be Tamna Or  Baekje. In the kitchen, under the barrel of mouldy rice they find a trapdoor to cellar and upon opening a starving, dehydrated unconscious man is found. 

This thin man is saved and taken for questioning at the Magistrate's court in Penglai. Because it is speculated the man is a foreigner, Yusu( Baekje female singer seen previously)  is called for translation. The man acknowledges that he is from Baekje and was a stowaway he wanted to come to Tang for a better life as there were continuous wars in his country. His brother had secretly brought him on the ship but feared the armed men so asked him to stay under kitchen cabin in a cellar. According to him the ship  changed direction a few times during the voyage.Through the crack in the cellar, this man  saw a white island. The ship stopped there for a few days as if waiting for something. On the night of the incident the ship stopped in a vast whirlpool. This man's brother asked him to stay in the cellar and closed the trapdoor with an heavy object. Later this man could not get out and no one answered him. 

Di Renjie shows the man the portrait of Wang Lide and asks the man if he recognised the person. The man is a little confused but he suddenly remembers seeing a strange tattoo pattern on one of the crew member's body and later his brother informed him that all men had the same tattoo. This man is asked to draw the tattoo and everyone is astonished to see the tattoo pattern. 

Later Commissioner Liu recalls the events that happened many years ago associated with the people having such tattoos. He ponders if Heiyan was back. Commissioner Liu tells Di Renjie and Hou You that many years ago, this group of remnants of the former era was arrogant  and all over the state. They were a threat to the late Emperor. In the 14th year of Zhenguan Reign, they were eliminated successfully. The remaining ones went into hiding. The credit for that annihilation was given to Di Zhixun, Di Renjie's father. However there were also allegations at that time that Di Zhixun had colluded with the Heiyan. Later Di Zhixun's case was reversed as there was no direct evidence of his involvement with Heiyan. Di Zhixun was threatened that time so he chose to commit suicide. Heiyan was in hiding for many years and it's making a comeback again. 

Some local people find a man lying unconscious on the beach, it is believed he has drifted to the shore and was originally a crew of that ghost ship. 

In Jail, the Baekje stowaway is given lots of food. He gorges on the food and chokes to death. Later, Hong Liang comments to Di Renjie that a starving person should not be allowed to eat excessively. It was also revealed that he was given the food as per Director Yi's instructions. 

A court trial is held to question the person who had drifted to the shore. Yusu is called again for translation, Magistrate Di, Mr. Gu, Director Yi, commissioner Liu, Deputy Secretary Hou and Mr. Gu's agent Bai kai are also present. This person says he is from Baekje but his ancestors traded in Tang so he doesn't need an interpreter.  His name is Jin Sang. He recognises the Wang Lide from his portrait as the person on the ship responsible for killing all crew members. Jon Sang luckily jumped into the sea when he was being threatened, he took a plank with him and lying on that plank  with the help of his fishing hook, drifted for 10 days before reaching the shore. Earlier inspection by Hou You and Di Renjie of the ship had revealed a water gourd missing. So Hou You inquiries if he jumped overboard with a plank or a gourd? Jin Sang confirms it was a plank that he took. Director Yi asks Jin Sang what could be Wang Lide's motive to kill the sailors. Jin Sang at first refuses to answer that question but after getting assurance of his safety reveals. One day, on the deck Jin Sang overhead Wang Lide plotting with others about a large shipment of gold being smuggled aboard the ship in a big crate. This is related to many big shots in Penglai. Jin Sang names the people whose name he had overhead as Mr. Gu, Director Yi and Magistrate whose last name is Di (Di Renjie). Upon being questioned that one other witness saw strange tattoo marks on all crew members, so did the sailors belong with Heiyan gang. Jin Sang is offended and says they were just poor sailors and volunteers to take off his clothes in the court to check for any tattoos. 

Later Cao An reminisces about another encounter with the masked  caped man  Heiyan when she was younger. Heiyan was wounded and enters Cao An's room. He asks her to play music while he removed the embedded arrow from his chest. Next morning, Heiyan plans to kill her to  keep his presence a secret but doesn't go through with it. Before leaving through her window he asks her to learn Bingzhou ditty and blows a black feather through the window advising her to fly like a lark. Cao An has attached this black feather in her hand fan. 

That night, Di Renjie and Hou You go to check the rumors of the drifted ship being haunted. They find a masked and a cape man on board, they confront him. The man jumps down from the docked ship and runs away leaving behind a bundle. 

Di Renjie finds that inside the cloth bundle was a Map and star- orienting board used to measure stars on long voyages to determine the course, the journey on the map started from Baekje and ended at Penglai. Also on the map was a small island, referred to by both people on that ghost ship. It is speculated that the gold is hidden on that island, Di Renjie asks commissioner Liu to go to that island and verify before someone else hears the rumors of gold and goes there. 

Commissioner Liu decides to set sail for the island. He invites Yusu and Cao An( Di Renjie warns Cao An not to accept but she goes anyway because it was mentioned that Heiyan was involved). Deputy Secretary Hou You, Director Yi, Mr.Gu, Bai kai, Qiao Tai, Ma Rong and Di Renjie are also on that ship along with  the prisoner Jin Sang. Their ship is also accompanied by a fleet of ships provided by the Commissioner of Maritime. 

They are on the same course as Wang Lide when a violent storm separates their ship from the fleet. Someone had also sabotages their rudder and destroyed their mast. They were basically just drifting in the sea. Di Renjie had brought Homing pigeons on the ship as precaution, he writes a letter to Hong Liang telling him of the situation and writing a report to be presented on the court if something happened to them. He hope Hong Liang would be able to send rescue soon. Di Renjie doesn't know who is the person sabotaging them and why he wants to keep them stranded. While Di Renjie is writing a letter to Hong Liang, Hou You plays a new musical piece on the stringed instrument in the same room. Di Renjie that it was a piece he had never heard his friend play. Hou you replies it was was the work of Hu Erniang in the Capital and easy to copy as it has a few notes only. However when Di Renjie goes to look at Hou you'a notation, Hou You hides the hand written notation and distracts Di Renjie with something else. 

Di Renjie also discusses that there was something missing on Wang Lide's chart, the place where all witnesses claim he stopped on the night of the incident as if waiting for someone was not marked on the chart of Wang Lide they had. Meanwhile commissioner Liu also reaches the conclusion that something fishy was going on, the reason they set sail was because they got Wang Lide's chart and map. He interrogates Jin Sang again who reveals that he had overheard Wang Lide boast of having a lover on the shore and she was Baekje. Yusu is tortured as she was Wang Lide's lover, she just confesses of knowing Wang Lide who promised to redeem her and marry her as he was going to be rich when he returned back. However she doesn't know where the gold or Wang Lide were. 

Director Yi is questioned by Di Renjie, that on the night of the incident, Director Yi had taken a big boat of the maritime commission. Why did he go on the same night? Did he meet with Wang Lide. It was turning foggy. Mr. Gu and his agent Bai kai, Di Renjie and Hou You are on Deck. Everyone else in their cabin, when the fog lifts, Director Yi is discovered hanging on the mast of the sails. It is not determined whether it was suicide or murder. 

Yusu is in one of the jail on the ship, Bai Kai visits her and tries to kill her to silence her. However he is discovered by Qiao Tai and Ma Rong. Bai kai when cornered, reveals that he is from Baekje, he was the captain of Huben Guards of Baekje and  was the person buying arms from Wang Lide to supply to Baekje. However Di Renjie wants to know who was the supplier of the arms because Wang Lide was just a minor agent he would not have access to such huge shipment of arms. Bai kai chooses to jump in the sea, without revealing the identity of the actual seller. 

Di Renjie writes another letter to Hong Liang, informing him of the deaths of Director Yi and Bai kai. 

It is very strange that inspite of their rudder and mast being  damaged they are still on Wang Lide's course as per the star -orienting charts. It probably is due to the fact Wang Lide's course followed the current and the ship is also drifting in the same direction being pushed forward by the current. 

Yusu who has been given temporary relief from the prison after Bai kai's death tells Di Renjie that it was Bai Kai who had introduced her to Wang Lide but she is unaware of their business dealings. Yusu remembers Wang Lide fondly as a person who loved playing musical instruments and was quite gentle with her despite his unattractive looks.

 

what is the real identity of Jin Sang? Is Yusu just an unwitting pawn? Where is Wang Lide? Did they find the gold on the island? Who is the corrupt official involved in selling of  weapons to Baekje in exchange of Gold? Who killed Director Yi? 




Case 4 - Rain Master Legend (Episodes 12-15) 

On a rainy night, a person dressed in a long flowing black feathered costume of a bird (crow) , spreads the hands to which wings are attached and runs freely on the street trying to imitate the flight of the bird. 

(Next day)


A dispute is brought to Penglai Yamen. A person who had pawned a gold bracelet six months ago in the Zhong's Pawn Shop has lodged a complaint that when he went to redeem his bracelet, he was informed that the shop had misplaced the bracelet so he couldn't redeem it even though he had gathered the money. Shopkeeper Lin of Zhong's  Pawn shop informs Di Renjie that the ticket shown by the Complainant was authentic however the owner Mr. Zhong was away for a personal reason so in his absence they couldn't determine if the amount should be reimbursed for the gold bracelet and were unable to locate the original gold bracelet. The Complainant alleges that the owner had absconded taking away their goods and recently there have been many rumors of misplacement of the items pawned in that shop. Judge Di rules that the Complainant should wait for sometime and in that duration if his bracelet is not located and if the owner is still away he will determine the compensation to be paid to the Complainant in Lieu of the bracelet. 

That day Qiao Tai and Ma Rong had been called by a shopkeeper of a tavern in the east of the city.   It was not a big deal some drunk people had torn several tavern signs and smashed some chairs. Ma Rong says the shopkeeper was unreasonable, he expected them to pay for the damages citing they both (Ma Rong, Qiao Tai) were incompetent in their duties. 

Another person has brought a young child to report a homicide case. The young boy had been terrified by what he had seen the day before. The day before he had been playing hide and seek near the Watch Tower swamp in the North of the city with a few of his friends. He noticed the body of a man floating face up in the swamp, the boy assumed it was a zombie. 

Di Renjie takes Ma Rong and Qiao Tai to recover the dead body from the swamp area. They do not find the dead body of a man, but while investigating they find two puddles of blood on the reeds near the swamp, it seemed the injured man had then crawled to the Watch Tower located near the Swamp. The team goes to the Watch tower to check, they split up, Di Renjie enters the Watch Tower and he is shocked to see the interior of the Watch Tower sporting a big skeleton like figure of a masked beaked bird adorned in black feathered costume with spread wings, hung like a pinned butterfly in the main hall. The place seems like a nest decorated with feathered curtains and feathered bedspread. Ying'er, a woman  garbed in unusual clothes tries to slash Di Renjie with her long finger nails in defense at his intrusion. She is shocked to find a 'human' in the Watch Tower. The lady seems to have faint recollection of stabbing a person the previous day. Di Renjie doesn't find the dead body there but notices some blood stains on the floor board. 

While the three of them are leaving the watch tower, a few soldiers run up to them and question them. The soldiers are from the nearby barracks, they have been ordered by Captain Li to patrol the area as many time smugglers from Baekje wander there. Upon being questioned if they had found a body earlier, they reply in affirmative. Di Renjie's team is taken to the reeds near the swamp where they had previously seen blood puddle as the place where the soldiers had found the dead body. 

The dead body had been taken back to the barracks under the order of Captain Li. Di Renjie's team visits the barracks, the rules are very stringent and Captain Li seems to run a tight ship. They are asked to register their names before entering the barracks. Qiao Tai writes their names in the register however he is uneasy and worried about somethingOnly Di Renjie is allowed to meet the Captain. Ma Rong and Qiao Tai explore the nearby soldiers' tents. Four soldiers are being whipped in the ground as a disciplinary punishment. 

Di Renjie and Captain Li get into a pissing contest over the jurisdiction and authority. Captain Li is of the opinion that all areas near the barracks including the wath tower is under his jurisdiction while Di Renjie feels as the magistrate of Penglai he is responsible for solving any crime in Penglai. Captain Li owns up to knowing a lady, Ying'er lives in the Watch Tower. According to the captain she is mad but doesn't create any problems so he allows her to live there. He also admits to finding a dead body that he has ordered to be disposed off by the manner of cremation. Di Renjie demands to be taken to the cremation ground and tries to douse the fire of the funeral pyre. Di Renjie salvages a badly burned dead body and is trying mentally to recreate the murder sequence. 

Qiao Tai and Ma Rong who were snooping in a soldiers' tent find a locked box. Upon opening they discover a few clothes and items including a book of erotic pictures. Those soldiers who were being beaten outside, come in the tent. They are overhead discussing that even though they were punished, the previous night was awesome and worth taking the punishment for. 

Captain Li tells Di Renjie to take the salvaged dead body back to his morgue. As per Captain Li the body had been found that morning. Di Renjie states that a young boy had seen the body the day before in the swamp so it should have been found by the night Patrol. Captain reveals that the four young men around 14 to 15 years old of eight battalion who were being disciplined earlier were supposed to be on night duty but they had deserted their posts and were away the whole night. Captain Li caught them sneaking back in the morning hence the punishment for breaking barracks rules. Captain Li also gives a pawn stub found on the dead body, it was from Zhong's pawn shop. 

On the way back to the Yamen carrying the dead body. The trio discussed that the boys probably would have visited a brothel the previous night. It is also speculated that the dead person was the a shopkeeper at Zhong's Pawn Shop because only they would have pawn ticket stub in their possession. At the  Yamen morgue Di Renjie finds that there have been two stabs on the dead body. One was the fatal strike made on the victim's back and other was a knife strike on the front of the body. However it seemed two different people had stabbed the victim from the shape and depth of the knife wound also  different force and grip was used for both the strikesDi Renjie had also noticed earlier that the barracks was low on food, clothes and arms. He asks Hong Liang to send someone to investigate the matter. 

Cao An and Di Renjie see a shadow puppet show of the 'Rain Master'. Rain Master wore a beaked mask of a bird, he was cursed that if anyone removed the mask and dropped it on the ground, he would become a bird. Rain Master had not disclosed this curse to his lover. One day his lover took off his mask and dropped it to the ground, he became a bird and flew away. Thus parting both the lovers in a tragic end. Di Renjie is affected deeply by this drama, there is something he wants to discuss with Cao An but is reluctant to do so. Cao An is making a straw rain cape for Di Renjie because Penglai was by the sea and was humid where it rained often during the season. It seems like Cao An is becoming  emotionally attached to Di Renjie. 

Shopkeeper Lin from the Zhong's pawn shop identifies the dead body as that of  Zhong Fang. Di Renjie goes with shopkeeper Lin to Zhong's pawn shop to investigate. There he hears some rumours among the gathered crowd. One person had seen Zhong Fang come out of his shop in normal clothes the previous rainy night but after sometime he seemed dresses in a feathered costume and flew away like a bird. Shopkeeper Lin identifies the pawn ticket stub that Di Renjie has of their shop but it was a non-performing pawn,(because a picture of a dagger had drawn on it) indicating the money would not be recovered from that transaction. Di Renjie inquires if the Master made bad business decisions regularly then how would the shop survive on business front. Shopkeeper Lin tells Di Renjie that his Master was shrewd business man and 20 years ago he was ambitious enough to make their pawn the largest in Penglai. However six month ago after watching a shadow puppet show, he had become distracted, often was away at nights. He seemed absent minded and made bad business decision. If anyone told him that they needed money to get married he would also pawn fake items and give them large sum of money. The shopkeeper Zhong was becoming very emotional in business leading to loss. Di Renjie finds some drawing in Zhong's room later when he pieces them together he finds its a drawing of rain master's costume. 

Di Renjie has been given transfer orders, he has received a directive to report to duty immediately to Lan ward, a place in the desert. Hong Liang has started packing items for their transfer. Hong Liang knows Di Renjie's heart that he wants to invite Cao An to accompany them to the new place but Di Renjie fears that Cao An would refuse him. Later, Hong Liang also informs of their transfer to Cao An. Cao An is in a dilemma whether to leave Penglai and follow Di Renjie to a new place. However Di Renjie is very steadfast and honest in his affection. She seems to decide to leave with him. 

Di Renjie pieces together the puzzle of the Rain Master. It seemed that Zong had seen the shadow play with Huang Ying'er from the watch tower. Ying'er was very moved by the story. So Zong made a costume of the rain Master to court her. He used to go to meet her on the roof of the watch tower as The Rain Master. Hypothesis of Di Renjie is that on the night of murder the boys from the barracks may have misbehaved with Ying'er, Zong being present there must have tried to stop them and they must have stabbed him. Hence the knife of the young soldiers was found there. 

Di Renjie goes to the barracks to question the boys but Captain Li has hung them to death citing he wouldn't allow the honour of the camp to be tarnished by their behavior. Di Renjie looks on helplessly at their hanging body. He is angry at Captain Li because things were not clear yet. 

Later Di Renjie thinks of another scenario where, someone stabbed Zhong. Zhong whose mask had fallen went to the watch tower but because Ying'er did not know the person she was dating was Zhong, must have stabbed him in panic. He also sees the missing items from the shop the gold bracelet and a gold ring worn by her. So he deduces that Zhong must be giving all those items from his shop as gifts. 

Di Renjie makes another costume of the Rain Maker and visits Ying'er. Ying'er immediately knows he is not her love. When confronted by Di Renjie as to what happened the previous night, in a muddled state Ying'er jumps from the roof believing her lover, the rain maker will save her and fly away with her. However she falls to her death. 

A Vagabond names Wang whom the magistrate's office catches also confesses to killing Mr. Zhong. He also shows the exact strikes as conjectured  by Di Renjie, grabbing the person in a chokehold and stabbing him in the front and backside. However Di Renjie doesn't accept his confession because while demonstrating how he murdered Zhong, he used same force for both the stabs and as per Di Renjie two stab wounds were different.


Di Renjie finally finds the truth about those four young soldiers who had been executed by Captain Li. It seemed they had deserted their post   to go to a tavern to have fun and drink. There they see two people whom they shouldn't have. 

This case is full of red herrings and Di Renjie makes many wrong conjectures and presumptions. 

Who is the real killer of Mr. Zhong? Why did the Vagabond confess to Zhong's murder? Why were  those four young soldiers executed?  Does Cao An accompany Di Renjie to his new posting? 

In the case of the 'Rain Master Legend' we see a more frail, human side of Di Renjie. He wants to save everyone but he is not always successful and that frustrates and pains him. The story of how he wanted to save crickets when he was young but they always ended up dead shows his vulnerable side. He also made mistakes in his  reasonings in the beginning of this case, making him flawed and imperfect, prone to making mistakes. However he accepts his errors and learns to live with his limitations all the while  striving to serve the law and provide justice to common people.


Case 5 - Red Pavilion (Episodes 15 -18) 


Di Renjie and the team set off from Penglai to Lan Ward, his next posting. Di Renjie finally plucks up courage, he stands outside Cao An's room and invites her to join him, however he doesn't get any response from inside the room. Di Renjie is dejected and is walking in a sullen mood.  Outside the city gates at a small way side shop, Cao An is waiting for them, upon seeing her Di Renjie's mood changes. Hong Liang and Qiao Tai are happy for him. 

They continue onwards, Di Renjie recollects how he had met Qiao Tai and Ma Rong the first time. They were hungry and fought Di Renjie in a desert as soon as they reached the food and water bags of Di Renjie, they abandoned their weapons and started devouring food. Di Renjie asked them to work for him. 

The team while crossing the desert on their journey encounter a sandstorm, they take cover behind a rock. A briefcase containing old solved cases opens and it's contents along with papers are scattered. Disregarding his safety, Di Renjie starts gathering the scattered contents, Ma Rong and Qiao Tai help him. While picking up the documents, he finds an old wooden peach sword from his childhood days. Di Renjie remembers the day his father committed suicide by jumping in the river, he had jumped in as well to save his father and remembers the sword in the water. Later he picked this wooden peach sword from the river bank. Ma Rong hands him a small sealed box (labeled, Sealed by Penglai Magistral office). 

After the sandstorm at night, the team takes shelter in one of the posts outside Lan Ward. Qiao Tai informs Di Renjie that they have received a letter sent by a pigeon from the city defense team. The letter stated that the city defense team for the next shift was also trapped by the sandstorm. It would take them ten days to arrive. Di Renjie sends Ma Rong and Qiao Tai ahead of them to assess the situation in Lan Ward, he warns them to be careful as the city defense team had not arrived yet. 

After they leave for Lan Ward, Di Renjie has a talk with Cao An. Cao An is admiring the beauty of the peaceful night in the desert after the storm. Di Renjie tells her that he had found a small peach wood sword that he had kept for many years. That small peach wood sword meant a lot to him, it was an important part of his childhood.(probably gifted by his father?) Di Renjie doesn't believe that the peach wood can wward off evil spirits but by bringing it along,  he can always turn ill luck into good. That day he had reunited with it, maybe the sword was trying to remind him that the Lan Ward was a very dangerous placeDi Renjie was not scared himself but was worried that Cao An may suffer. 

When Di Renjie along with Cao An and Hong Liang enters the Lan Ward, he is disappointed by the total chaos. Different factions(gangs) are controlling various businesses in Lan Ward. Just then, Di Renjie sees a fight break out over water distribution, people fighting over a small portion of water and then being beaten by the guards of the faction controlling the well(wharf). A  veiled gentleman wearing long flowing coat, Li Tao intervenes and saves the people who were being beaten. Li Tao gives money pouch to the faction leader so that everyone can get some water. He is thanked by the people. Ma Rong and Qiao Tai report to Di Renjie that the magistral office of Lan Ward has been burnt to ashes. Opposite the burnt magistral office is a building, a pleasure house Red Pavilion. Di Renjie notices there are  various flags next to all business establishments but none on Red pavilion. He decides to lodge there. 

Biyu, the manager of Red Pavilion welcomes them. She gives them rooms for their stay and informs them that all of the lodgers at her place are merchants. Biyu tells Di Renjie that Red Pavilion is not under the control of any flag. She further tells them there are three major factions in the Lan Ward - Green Dragon Gang, Lone Wolf Gang and Black Tiger GangApart from these three major factions there are over ten other factions of various sizes. They rise one after the other. There is constant fight among the factions over the territory. She further informs them that five years ago, Lan Ward was not fragmented but controlled by Heiyan. Five years ago Heiyan suffered great losses and they all disappeared. Since then the factions have risen, they control all kinds of businesses in the Lan Ward and even take Anhua (bounty). They have enough funds to hire soldiers and possess weapons to control the place. 

There is a fight over one of the water well(wharf). The leader of Black Tiger gang, Qian Hao ruthlessly kills the leader of the Lone Wolf gang and eliminates it. Di Renjie warns Qiao Tai that because the gangs are heavily armed with a large number of guards at their beck and call, until the city defense team arrives they have to be careful. 

Later Di Renjie has drawn a rough map of Lan Ward. He sits in his study looking at the small peach wood sword, letter YING has been inscribed on it. At that moment, a beautiful young prostitute of the Red Pavilion, Qiu Yue screams. Di Renjie takes Qiao Tai and Ma Rong to the room from which her scream was heard. They see Mr. Li (who gave money to poor people earlier for water)  lying dead on his bed, his wrist has been cut and there is a pool of blood on the floor near the bed. Qiu Yue is quite shaken by the sight, she says she had come to give some food to him when she saw that he was dead. She further reveals that some time ago Mr. Li had proposed to her in public, promised to buy her freedom from Red Pavilion and marry her. He had promised, both of them would leave Lan Ward and settle someplace far away. Qiu Yue had refused his proposal at that time. According to Qiu Yue he committed suicide because of her refusal. Qiu Yue says that she hadn't touched anything in his room when she found the dead body. However Mr. Li had told her sometime back when she had gone to serve him some food that at that time he was writing a will in her favour. Qiu Yue upon being questioned about noticing any strange behavior of Mr. Li states that recently he had always been in a bad mood and often looked at his image in the mirror. 

Biyu arrives in the room and promises to report the murder at the magistrate's office the next day. She couldn't report anything immediately as the office had been burnt down. She promises to lock the room at night so as not to disturb any evidence and ensure the dead body is not moved. She states that she has been the manager of Red Pavilion for over ten years and everything had been peaceful before. At night, Di Renjie asks Ma Rong to break the lock. Qiao Tai, Ma Rong and Di Renjie enter the room to investigate the crime scene. 

Qiao Tai and Ma Rong put on the seluthing hat. From the crime scene inspection they find the ink on the writing table was not dry yet (Qiu Yue said something about Li Tao writing a will in her favour). The lower part of the cut wound on his left wrist was deeper than the upper part. He must have held the knife in his right hand. The blood had congealed  but the ink was not dry. The wound was not above the pool of blood. Ma Rong concludes someone had moved the body. Ma Rong also finds a red mark on his neck, so assumes it's a needle mark, someone must have injected him with a drug to render him immobile then must have slashed his wrist. Then the conclusion was that he didn't commit suicide.  There are lots of IOU notes in his room, on all IOU notes it was mentioned that the money need not be repaid. Qiao Tai says he must have gone broke  so he committed suicide. There was no sign of another person in the room. Di Renjie piecing together the clues concludes that Qiu Yue must have lied to them about not touching anything in the room. Just then Biyu enters the room with Magistrate assistant Li LuoLi Luo informs Di Renjie that the magistral office had been burnt last month. Except the previous magistrate who had abandoned his post and fled, all staff would report to the new magistrate the next morning. 

Biyu had informed the magistrate's office because she wanted Mr. Li to inspect the crime scene so that she could give explanation to Li Tao's family later. Biyu says that she did not know any personal details about Mr. Li. He had been her lodger for 47 days. He was a good man, kind and respectful. He loved Qiu Yue and never got close to any other ladies in her pleasure house. 

Li Lou tells Di Renjie and his team Biyu's background after she leaves the room because Ma Rong was curious about  it. Li Lou tells them that Biyu was a legendary figure in Lan Ward. She has been juggling various forces for years. That's how she was able to keep Red Pavilion intact. There are a lot of stories about her. There was a rich gentleman Mr. Lu. He was deeply in love with Biyu. He wanted to marry her but Biyu refused because she didn't want to part with the ladies of Red Pavilion. Mr. Lu committed suicide because of her rejection. After that her social position was elevated. All the ladies of Red Pavilion tried to imitate Biyu. Ma Rong thinks that Mr. Li must have been killed by Qiu Yue who wanted to imitate Biyu. 

From the emblem on the painting in Mr. Li's room, Di Renjie finds out his identity. He was the son of the former governor Li Wejing of TingzhouAfter retirement Li Wening was residing in his home town. Di Renjie takes Magistrate Assistant Mr. Li to visit former governor's residence. Li Wejing's health is not good. He coughs continuously while talking, he doesn't allow Di Renjie to speak about his runaway son. He shows Di Renjie and Li Luo the flowers that are in abandance in his house. He says that his late wife loved the flowers. Those flowers were Tulips. Li wejing says they were in abandant in Western Regions. He loved these kind of flowers. He had planted them in his house and took care of them for many years, they were finally blossoming. He says "When the tulips withers, the spring is about to end". He confesses he is in bad health. His son was a good human being, kind and benevolent. His son ran away from home due to disagreement with him, he requests Di Renjie to take care of his son if he finds him and to tell his son to return back home as his father didn't have long to live. Di Renjie is unable to tell Li Wejing that his son is dead. 

Boxes full of official documents are brought by Mr. Po - Magistrate assistant and Mr. Bai - Secretary to Red Pavilion.  Li Tao was a benefactor of many people in Lan Ward, they gather on a street outside Red Pavilion, burn paper money to mourn his death. Di Renjie decides to hold court in a makeshift tent. However nobody trusts the legal justice system.  Di Renjie is informed that the magistral office was not burnt down by people, it was burnt due to natural fire and lightning but nobody bothered to put out the fire because what was the use of the office when the actual power was held by different factions in Lan Ward. 

Li Tao's dead body is taken to Bupo medicine shop. Mr. Hu the coroner as well as the physician is performing an autopsy. Mr. Hu doesn't seem reliable, he keeps mumbling and commenting on irrelevant details about the size of the deceased feet and the size proving that the deceased is a male. Mr. Hu immediately determines that the cut on Li Tao's hand was self inflicted. Di Renjie draws his attention to the red mark on Li Tao's neck and inquires if he had been poisoned. Li Luo assures Di Renjie that Mr. Hu was the only physician who did not make a mistake. However looking at Mr. Hu's state and his rumblings, Di Renjie was skeptical about his ability. 

Cao An and Hong Liang are sorting files at Red Pavilion. Cao An inquires of Hong Liang if in the case files of Zhenguan era, the mentioned Shangshu  Zuocheng was Di Renjie's father. Hong Liang replies that his master(Di Renjie's father) was not a traitor. The bandit leader of Heiyan was  master's schoolmate. The bandit leader wanted to use Huaiying (Di Renjie) to compel Mr.Hong's master to cooperate with him and send weapons to chang'an so as to stage an armed rebellion. But Di Renjie's father wouldn't agree. Di Renjie's father feared that Huaiying would face danger so he committed suicide. Cao An says that it was because of Minister Di, Di Renjie's father that the court found out what Heiyan intended to do and finally annihilated them. Hong Lian sighs and says  what good did it do, though the previous Emperor rehabilitated his master, he had already died he could not be restored to life. Hong Liang says the way Di Renjie now buries himself in cases,  he tries to popularize the Tang Code it has something to do with the misfortune that happened that year. Ms Cao says that was the reason Di Renjie was holding court in rubbles, for him serving justice mattered. Cao An finds another detail while going through official case files, since the 20th year of Zhenguan era there were many records depicting the stories  of Heiyan in the local documents of Lan Ward. But these group of Heiyan bandits were totally different from the ones the imperial Court had annihilated. They didn't do anything against the court but they controlled all the businesses of Lan Ward. Sometimes they also committed murders. Although their businesses covered the whole Lan Ward, they were restricted within this place. Hong Liang replies that they were just some survivors of Heiyan. They were reconciled to failure and gathered together to do some disgraceful business. Cao An says the last time the Heiyan showed up in Lan Ward was at the beginning of the fifth year of the Gengshen cycle,  it was the year when the Penglai war occurred. All of the Heiyan from Lan Ward went to Penglai to loot gold and weapons (alluding to the gold case).  Hong Liang acknowledges that the war was lethal to Heiyan. They took risk but their leaders were killed. Heiyan thus suffered a great loss. Hong Liang is glad that Heiyan has disappeared. He feared Di Renjie (Huaiying) would face the same situation as his father. While talking Hong Liang is looking fondly at the small peach wood sword of Di  Renjie, on which the word YING is inscribed. Cao An asks Hong Liang why YING was inscribed on his childhood toy sword because as per her Huaiying should be a literary name of Magistrate Di after his enlightenment. Hong Liang deflects the query by saying he doesn't remember such old things. Hong Liang says he should put aside the sword. 

Di Renjie questions Qiu Yue who tells him her sad story. When she was a child and travelling with her father they were caught in a sandstorm. As a result everyone travelling along died except her. Many caravans passed by her that day but none wanted to spare water to save a dying girl. Only Biyu was the one who stopped to save her. Lan Ward was a place of predators and opportunist so Qiu Yue joined Red Pavilion to survive. Li Tao was very gentle and kind, he fell in love with her but she did not trust his feelings hence she declined his proposal. After her refusal, she noticed a change in Li Tao's behavior towards her. He avoided her and became indifferent to her. When she would take food to his room, he would angrily shove her out. She says the night she found his dead body, she had searched his room to find the will that he told her about. However she did not find it. If she had found the will it would be evidence that she was telling the truth. Di Renjie accuses her of trying to imitate the legendary Biyu. 

Li Tao's father had already known of his son's death when Di Renjie went to visit him. He has arranged for Bounty (Anhua) to be given to the person who catches/kills his son's murderer.  The gang members are killing innocent people on the streets hoping to get the Bounty. Black Tiger Gang leader, Qian Hao is the most ruthless of all. He tells Di Renjie that whomever he questions as a suspect will be killed off by Qian Hao to get the bounty. Someone burns Bupo medicine shop. Mr. Hu is found unconscious outside his burning shop, Di Renjie and his team go inside the shop and see Li Tao's dead body has been completely burned. Di Renjie suspects one of the staff from Mr.Po, Mr. Li and Mr.Bai to be an informant who is leaking information to the gang members. Qiu Yue's life is in danger being the primary murder suspect. Di  Renjie fears Qian Hao who is ruthless and wishes to collect the bounty may harm her. 

Did Qiu Yue really murder Li Tao? Who is the informant from the magistral office? Was Li Tao's death murder or suicide? Was Di Renjie successful in abolishing the gangs from Lan Ward?


Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

 "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

👆my favorite quote from Sherlock Holmes series


Di Renjie (episode 18, Red Pavilion) - 

"when you exclude all the possibilities, the remaining ones, however unbelievable, are the truth"


👆This dialogue is so Sherlock Holmes.


Did the script writer take inspiration from Sherlock Holmes?? 🧐



Case 6  -Desert pursuit (Episode 19-21) 


A masked hooded man carrying bow and arrow  is talking with a man whose neck is in a noose  with hands tied back, standing on a bench as if awaiting execution by the way of hanging, there is  a big bucket under him on the floor, the man's blood is dripping in the bucket that is almost half full. The masked man asks the bleeding man if he recalled the girl whom he had deceived, that girl hung herself, she would have felt the same pain as experienced by this person presently, all the blood flowing down  the body. 

A new case has been brought in Lan Ward (Lanfang?) By Miss.Jin a maid working in Han Yongnan's mansion in the eastern suburbs of the county. Han Yongnan owns a silver mine. On the 27th day of the tenth month of the first year of the Linde, two days before the court proceeding Han Yongnan was having a party with his friends. According to Han Yongnan, they paid some money to dally with prostitutes to heighten the fun. However Miss.Jin the mother of an underage girl, Zhao Wang Rui has accused Mr. Han of raping her daughter. As per Miss.Jin's statement the day of feast the house was short of helping hands hence her daughter had gone there. Magistrate Di  states that being intimate without the consent of the woman was considered Rape as per Tang Code.  The sneaky Han Yongnan produces a document on which Miss. Jin had put her fingerprint in agreement and Han Yongnan had paid the appropriate price.Han Yongnan says that in Lan ward  many young girls were abandoned by their families at a young age, so it was an opportunity for them if they could find a lover. Miss.Jin pleads with the magistrate that she had not taken any money and was illiterate so didn't know what was written on the paper. 

When  Di Renjie had sent Qiao Tai to Miss.Jin's house to investigate, he had found 3,000 qian the supposed price of the contract agreement between Miss.Jin and Mr.Han.  Rui's(underage rape victim) mother kept insisting that she hadn't taken any money

Hence all the evidence proved Han Yongnan followed Tang Code, legally he was in the clear. The lecherous Han Yongnan in an offhanded manner talked about a  drug from the capital, five stone powder after it was taken the fun would double and a person would feel as if he is in heaven. Han Yongnan invites Magistrate Di to partake it, this statement infuriates Ma Rong who storms out of the magistral court room where the proceeding is underway. Being knowledge in Tang Code, Han Yongnan demands to be released as it had been 12 hours since his detention but he wasn't convicted yet. Han Yongnan states that Di Renjie strictly follows the Tang code so he had to be released as per the law. Reluctantly Magistrate Di rules that Han Yongnan should be released on bail, the case would be rescheduled due to lack of evidence, in the meantime Han Yongnan should not leave the county. 

 Smugly Han Yongnan walks out of the court room. A large crowd has gathered outside the court room, demanding Han Yongnan should be punished. The crowd jeers and calls Magistrate Di  a corrupt official because he didn't punish the guilty  Han Yongnan. From the crowd a young boy, Wangdong (underage rape victim's brother) rushes towards Han Yongnan and tries to stab him with a knife, Ma Rong restrains the boy to prevent him from resorting to physical violence. Han Yongnan demands the young boy be punished for physically assaulting him in public. Once again as per the law, Magistrate Di asks Ma Rong to detain the boy. Ma Rong fumes at Di Renjie as he is punishing the innocent and allowing the guilty party to go free. Di Renjie says that they have to follow the rules  otherwise they would be like gangs and not government officials.

Hong Liang and Qiao Tai examine a dead body. The body was of a man Yun Gang from chongshan ward. He was a famous lecher of Lanfang County. He was responsible for ruining many young girls. A few days ago a woman hung herself because she was pregnant with his baby. His body was found outside the city. Qiao Tai speculates that it must be another murderer for hire crime.  Such murder was the third one that month. However all the people killed were not innocent. Probably the girl's family or her husband hired the killerThe killer was ruthless in his manner of killing (the corpse is of the man in the beginning of th case who was being tortured by a masked caped man). However without witness or evidence, nobody could be convicted. Law is made by ordinary people. Nothing is omnipotentQian Hao from the black tiger gang might have been a former member of Heiyan, when the Heiyan disbanded he must have found his own gang. Di Renjie has been in Lan Ward (Lanfang) for more than six months now. 

Di Renjie is frustrated as he wasn't able to get sufficient evidence to convict Han Yongnan, instead he had to detain a young man. Cao An makes tea for him and helps talk things through. She shows a missing report of  some people, as per the report many people have been missing, of different ages and background only thing common is all of their household registration are from Liushui village near the silver mines in the suburbs.  Jin family also lived there, they have lost their crops and aren able to grow new crops in that place. 

Ma Rong visits the detained Wangdong, she sympathise with him gives him some food. She also gives him back his knife, in case he wants to take revenge. However he scoffs at the idea because Han Yongnan's silver mine is heavily surrounded by guards and fierce dogs. She tries to explain to him that without evidence they cannot punish Han Yongnan. Wangdong says that Heiyan was better than the officials because when they were prevalent in Lan Ward (Lanfang) nobody dared to commit a crime. As long as a person joined Heiyan they would help them take revenge and punish the guilty. 

 In Han Yongnan's mansion at night he is partying and invites two prostitutes. The Next morning a maid of the mansion finds two dead bodies of those girls, they are horribly hurt and mutilatedThe magistrate's office is informed of the murder, Di Renjie is of the opinion that Han Yongnan under the influence of the drug ' five stone powder' lost control and killed the prostitutes. An arrest warrant has been issued to apprehend Han Yongnan but he has absconded. Di Renjie tries to find his trail. The clues point that he has left the city in a mining carriage. The city defense guard informs Di Renjie that a person dressed as a stableman  on the silver mining carriage had left the city gate and headed towards Liuli post in the West of the city


Di Renjie takes Qiao Tai and Ma Rong along with him, they head towards Liuli post. A little distance away from the post they see the broken down silver mining carriage. Upon reaching the post they find nobody in the main building, a hooded masked archer confronts them, they get into a minor physical altercation with the person. Later, after a tie and a truce, Di Renjie wants to know from where the man got the horse that was tied in the Liuli post's stable, the man says he had exchanged his horse with a person some time back, that person was heading towards Yiwu county. If he had known the person was a dishonest person he wouldn't have given him his horse or charged more money. He wants to follow Di Renjie's team to get back his horse. The man introduces himself as Diao Xiaoguan. 

Diao Xiaoguan comments that there is something weird about the posthouse. Just then a person comes out from the back room of the Posthouse, sees the strangers and runs back to his superior who is locking the back room. The superior introduces himself as Mr. Pang the posthouse official. Di Renjie asks the room to be opened and Qioa Tai finds few minor girls tied in the room. Mr. Pang shows indenture papers proving he had legally purchased those girls from their parents. He later sold them to the merchants who passed by his posthouse. He never inquired how those girls were treated. Legally Mr.Pang was entitled to such transactions so Di Renjie couldn't punish him. However Di Renjie purchases those girls and warns Mr. Pang not to continue with human trafficking. Di Renjie sends those girls to the city with Qiao Tai and asks Qiao Tai to return back to where Di Renjie was heading with city defense guards. 

After Qiao Tai leaves with the girls, the trio on their way out of the posthouse encounter a group of Bandits, they hastily return back to the posthouse and fight the bandits together till help arrives. After the bandits are overpowered, Di Renjie takes Ma Rong to follow Han Yongnan's trial, Diao Xiaoguan continues to follows them through the desert. 

The trio reach a village fair. Diao Xiaoguan purchases wolf-drug from a vendor. The drug if dropped on the ground will attract wolf-dogs from five li radius. Di Renjie shows astonishment at the existence of such a drug. Diao Xiaoguan says that it's such a big world, there are a lot of things that they haven't seen, languages that couldn't be comprehended by Di Renjie,  rules that are different. There is an elderly man mumbling the word Tali, the language couldn't be understood by Di Renjie so Diao Xiaoguan was asked to interpret. The man was talking about his eagle dying, however Diao Xiaoguan deliberately misinterprets and informs Di Renjie that the man had seen Han Yongnan going in that direction. Hain Yongnan had killed his daughter, Tali when they wanted to report Han Yongnan, a wanted man. 

Ma Rong, Di Renjie and Diao Xiaoguan move onwards to search for Han Yongnan. They are surrounded by soldiers guarding the Zhenxi  fortress,  the west most place. One of them introduces himself as a soldier, Huo Huaili. When Di Renjie shows Huo Huaili the wanted poster of Han Yongnan, Hou Huaili takes them back to the barracks and shows then a dead body of a hung man whose face is mutilated and informs them it was the dead body of Han Yongnan. According to Huo Huaili, the dead person was caught stealing a horse and killed a man named zhou changyi. Hou Huaili tells Di Renjie to inform the governor not to send a visiting envoy as everything was under control in his barracks. Di Renjie finds something wrong with the whole scenario, he investigates in the archives and  finds record of two brothers Zhou Changyi and Zhou changyong. Ma Rong and Di Renjie go snooping in the camp and find the dead body of Zhou changyong. Hou Huaili who was actually Zhou Changyi had murdered his commanding officer, Hou Huaili because he was cruel and ruthless, responsible for the death of his brother Zhou Changyong.  Hou Huaili could beat, tortures and kill the soldiers as accidental homicide because he would state that he was training them. Tang code would not consider it a crime. But the soldiers who day and night defended the city against dangers would be punished for insubordination and inciting ba riot against their cruel superior. Zhou Changyi is considered to be guilty for killing his superior whose dead body he had previously claimed to be of Han Yongnan. 

Di Renjie and Ma Rong are tied by Zhou Changyi. Diao Xiaoguan has a talk with Di Renjie through a window asking him the moral correctness of punishing Zhou Changyi. Di Renjie is convinced that Zhou Changyi and Han Yongnan both should have a trial and punished as per the law because nobody should be allowed to break the law. Diao Xiaoguan has a different opinion about how things should be handled. He disagrees with Di Renjie's convictions. Diao Xiaoguan asks Di Renjie  that he would take the criminals to his court and sentence them to death, then why killing the criminals for revenge would be considered wrong. Di Renjie tells Diao Xiaoguan that his judgment would be in accordance to the law and never for personal revenge. 

While Diao Xiaoguan and Di Renjie are conversing, some bandits storm the fortress. Diao Xiaoguan shoots an arrow inside the room so that Ma Rong and Di Renjie could cut off the ties binding them and free themselves. 

Zhou Changyi and the soldiers who were guilty of inciting the riots and killing their superior officer, show loyalty towards the Emperor and most of them die trying to perform their duty, fighting the bandits. Di Renjie acknowledges the bravery of these men even though they are criminals per the law. 

Where is Han Yongnan? Who is Diao Xiaoguan? Is  
Diao Xiaoguan's philosophy correct? What is the meaning of Justice? Will Di Renjie continue to believe and uphold the Tang code? What is the difference between serving justice and taking revenge?



Since the beginning of the series, Di Renjie has shown absolute belief in the Tang Code to deliver justice and punish the guilty. But what if offenders find a loophole in the legal system? Is vigilante justice the right way to penalize  the  violators? Laws are made by the people for the people, they are imperfect. However by and large they protect the rights of individuals. Without law and order the society would be in chaos. The only solution is to keep amending the laws. 




Case 7 - Hollow Gourd ( Episodes  22- 25) 

Di Renjie wants to propose to Cao An so he is trying to hunt a wild goose which would be used in the ceremonial proposal. However it is much easier to find deer than geese in the desert area. Qiao Tai and Di Renjie scout the area but weren't able to find the geese then they came across a dead goose as if it was a gift for Di Renjie. Di Renjie finds the emblem of the Heiyan beneath the dead goose. Not to look at the gift goose in the mouth, he takes it home. Cao An is shopping in the market accompanied by Ma Rong who doesn't seem too pleased to be on the escort duty. Ma Rong is dissatisfied that everyone has become very mellow and domesticated. She wants some action in her life. Qiao Tai is plucking the feathers from the goose, Ma Rong obliquely warns him of the possibility of the goose being poisoned as it seemed a gift from an unknown source, possibly Heiyan. In the Desert an unknown person receives notes carried by an egale about Di Renjie. 

Ma Rong learns that a member of the Green Dragon gang, Chen Xiaoyun who was currently in their custody mentioned about the leader of Heiyan meeting the gang leaders of Lanfang at a particular place during the new moon in the woods. Ma Rong takes Chen Xiaoyun to verify the information, in spite of being warned by Qiao Tai and Di Renjie that it was not advisable to follow the clue. Qiao Tai intercepts Ma Rong and joins her on the night expedition. Upon reaching the said place they see many dead bodies hanging from the branches of trees in that area. Suddenly they are ambushed and shot at by some men. Chen Xiaoyun runs in the chaos, Ma Rong follows him. Qiao Tai gets hit by an arrow when he too follows Ma Rong. Ma Rong finds someone has pierced through Chen Xiaoyun's upper body with a sword and pinned him to the trunk of a tree. Even though Qiao Tai is not vitally hurt, it seems he is in a drugged poisoned state. Coroner Hu while examining the dead body of Chen Xiaoyun out of the blue tells Di Renjie that Qiao Tai is not in any danger, he will sleep for some days and wake up on his own. Coroner Hu believes Qiao Tai is having dreams of the fairy of ninth heaven and kylin. He is having good dreams that can make people forget their worries. Qiao Tai will be alright. 

Some guard shouts outside, Di Renjie goes to see what the commotion was about and finds another dead goose on the ground, an arrow with a note is pierced on the ground next to the goose. The note reads, "Nightmare for a day, wake up in three days. Boqi devours dreams. Read the dream in Qing Chuan." Di Renjie is discussing the note with Cao An and concludes the person who wrote the note (leader of Heiyan?) must be in Qing Chuan. Qing Chuan's location is special. It is at the junction of Shannan Circuit, Jiannan circuit and Longyou Circuit. The folk customs are mixed there. The environment is even more complicated. Cao An thinks Di Renjie may face danger if he goes there.  Di Renjie assures everyone in Lanfang that Qiao Tai was not in danger but the person deliberately poisoned Qiao Tai and if Di Renjie wants to read the dream, he must go to Qing Chuan. 

Di Renjie decides to go alone, he promises Mr.Hong that he will return back within 30 days. Cao An wishes him farewell and gives him gloves(that she had purchased earlier for Di Renjie)and his baggage. Di Renjie says that he had prepared all the betrothal gifts except the goose(which he was unable to catch till date) . Cao An replies that such formalities doesn't matter to her, she hopes he will return back safely. 

Di Renjie has to cross the woods to go to Qing Chuan. He hears a phrase echoed in the woods "Life is all empty. Dreams must eventually wake up".On the way he encounters a group of armed men. At first there seems to be a possibility of a fierce fight between the group and Di Renjie but a strange elderly bearded man on a donkey intervenes. He tells the armed group of men that Di Renjie was healer Lin,  the elderly man tells the armed group of men that Healer Lin must go to Qing Chuan to treat some prostitutes who have encountered a strange disease, it would not be good for them to kill the healer. The group leaves after hearing this. The man riding a donkey has a gourd with him. Di Renjie wants to know his name. The man refuses to tell his name because the name was not important, he further tells Di Renjie that he was a travelling alchemist. Di Renjie inquires if there was some elixir in the gourd that the man carried. The man turns the gourd upside down to show it was empty. The man says the gourd was empty because if it was not empty he couldn't put anything in it when needed. 

The man tells Di Renjie that he would accompany him to Qing Chuan. Upon reaching the outskirts, the man tells Di Renjie to address him as Mr.Hulu. When they enter the city gate, they see that people are unsettled, they have crowded the streets. There are dead bodies of two men( two men out of the gang of people Di Renjie met in the woods) that the officer has come to pick in a cart. Onlookers are commenting that in such a world nobody knows how many days they have left. The officials are useless. One man comments the way the dead person is dressed doesn't look right, it must be ill gotten gains. The officer riding a horse asks the guards to pick up the dead bodies and draw them away in a cart. A little girl is observing this and seems to be in the way of the officer, the officer doesn't slow his horse's stride, Di Renjie picks up the girl out of the harms way. A man standing in the crows shouts at the girl to go back to the inn. 

Mr.Hulu comments  "A moment ago run amuck, The next die violently in the streets"Di Renjie parts way with Mr.Hulu and goes to meet the officer in charge of the area. Officer Xiao is a drunkard who drinks during day time duty, he is not concerned much about the welfare of people.  Di Renjie informs Officer Xiao that the leader of Heiyan has infiltrated Qing Chuan. Officer Xiao asks if those two people were killed by Heiyan. Di Renjie says that he couldn't answer that without an autopsy. Officer Xiao says that he has already buried the bodies without the autopsy, according to him much fuss should not be made, it was a case of two bandits being killed. Officer Xiao has heard rumours that something big is about to happen in the city. Di Renjie hopes that officer Xiao would provide troops if required, officer Xiao says that he doesn't have sufficient men, they can only maintain civilian security. Di Renjie suggests that Officer Xiao should report to the military office immediately and ask for reinforcement. Officer Xiao doesn't take Di Renjie's suggestion seriously. 

Di Renjie asks Officer Xiao to prepare a new identification certificate for him in the name of Lin Muzhi a healer from Ganzhou.  After getting the identification certificate, Di Renjie decides to stay at the green bird inn. Officer Xiao tells Di Renjie that the owner of the inn, Wei Sheng was a miser whose wife ran away with a guest of the inn. The owner curses his wife everyday. The owner has a young daughter, Xiao Wei   (the girl whom Di Renjie had saved earlier and the man who ordered her to go back to the inn). 

Di Renjie registers as a guest of the inn with Wei Sheng. Xiao Wei takes him to his room, she tells Di Renjie that she was Wei Sheng's foster daughter (stepdaughter?)and did all the work of a handyman. Di Renjie wanted to take a bath, the girl told him to go downstairs but cautions him not to let others know he is a rich man. Di Renjie goes to the bathhouse that is already occupied. Two armed guards bar his entry, someone from inside asks the guards to allow Di Renjie to enter the bath. Miss shiyi(a trained martial artist) opens the curtain to allow Di Renjie inside, a man is sitting in the wooden bath tub taking his bath. He says he is a merchant who is passing through on business, his name is Lang Liu. Di Renjie tells Lang Liu that he is a healer. Di Renjie wants to know from where Lang Liu has come, where he is going, what he is selling. Lang Liu deflects the questions and answers that just as a doctor cannot have a cure for all diseases similarly a merchant may not sell everything. He refuses to answer Di Renjie's questions but invites him to use another bath tub in the bathhouse for his bath. Mr. Wei the innkeeper eavesdrop on their conversation from outside the bathhouse's door for a moment. Di Renjie expresses his wish to cure all incurable diseases.

After bath Di Renjie is having supper, Xiao Wei is serving food. Mr. Lang's bodyguard complain the food is too bland so Xiao Wei offers to give them some slat but keeps mumbling while serving Di Renjie that more like she would give them ants. Mr. Lang comes down dressed for an outing in the night, Miss Shiyi accompanies him. Di Renjie inquired where he was going, he answered for a moonlight stroll. After they leave, Di Renjie asks Xiao Wei if she knew what Mr. Lang sold, she said he sold silk and satin, he has booked the best rooms in the inn. The warehouse around the corner also belonged to him. Di Renjie tells her that he thinks her stepfather doesn't like Xiao Wei too much, Xiao cuts him off, replies that nobody likes her and leaves Di Renjie. While eating Di Renjie speculates everything and suspects Mr. Lang, possibly he may have something to do with the rumors of unrest. 

Di Renjie goes outside after eating, he sees Mr. Wei driving a cart with something hidden under the covers. Mr. Wei speeds up when Di Renjie tries to get his attention. Mr. Hulu sees Di Renjie on the streets at the same time and comments that Di Renjie must really like the night. Di Renjie is astonished that Mr. Hulu knew his real identity. He wants to know why Mr. Hulu invited Di Renjie to Qing Chuan. Mr. Hulu replied that Di Renjie was the famous magistrate of Lanfang county, what was so surprising if he  knew Di Renjie's real identity. Di Renjie wants to know if Mr. Hulu was staying in the inn. Mr. Hulu says he spends the time wherever his donkey stops and that night it had stopped at that place. Mr. Hulu says that it was getting late, if Di Renjie continued to follow people, he may get  into some accident. Di Renjie is quite suspicious of Mr. Hulu. Di Renjie asks if Mr. Hulu was Heiyan. (Mr.Hulu doesn't answer any of his questions directly). Mr. Hulu states that Di Renjie was too curious and sometimes it's good not to know some answers. 

Di Renjie recalls Xiao Wei telling him that Mr. Lang had a warehouse around the corner, he goes there to investigate. Di Renjie finds lots of blood stains in there. Just as he is trying to determine what had happened, he is trapped in a net thrown from above. Three masked men want to know who he is and are about to kill him. Mr. Hulu comes in and with his big staff that he uses as a crutch, he beats all three goons and leaves after pushing a sword in Di Renjie's direction to  free himself from the net. Di Renjie frees himself from the net and goes back to the inn. He notices Mr. Wei the inn keeper outside with his carriage. Di Renjie also sees bloodstains on the carriage boards. Mr. Wei explains it was the sheep that had died the meat had become bad, he couldn't serve them so had gone to sell them to earn a few coins. Xiao Wei comes outside at that moment, Mr. Wei asks her to wash the carriage. Di Renjie inspects the blood on the carriage and finds a  broken piece of a hair clip. Xiao Wei comes with a bucket of water and throws it on the blood. Di Renjie goes to the inn counter and asks Mr. Wei again about what he was transporting. Mr. Wei indicates at Di Renjie's soiled clothes and takes him to a back room where he kept all forgotten items of previous guests. He opens a case full of clothes hoping to sell one of the cloth to Di Renjie. Di Renjie notices a red wedding dress of a woman, The innkeeper tells Di Renjie that it belonged to his wife and was not for sale. Mr.wei said his wife always flirted with rich customers. Di Renjie asks the innkeeper about his wife and if he knew with which customer she had ran away. Mr. Wei is more interested in selling second hand clothes to Di Renjie. After Di Renjie purchases a coat and comes out of the room in the main hall of the inn. Mr. Wei sees Xiao Wei sitting morosely at a table looking at a wooden pin. Mr. Wei reprimands her but Di Renjie sympathetically converses with her. He asks her if the wooden pin was special. Xiao Wei replies that it had been made by her mother. Her mother was of the opinion that no matter how poor a person was they could look pretty. Xiao Wei looks at the clothing purchased by Di Renjie and says it belonged to that man. Xiao Wei wants to know if Di Renjie thinks that her mother would come to pick her up from the inn to take her daughter away. 

Mr. Lang and Miss. Shiyi stand on the upper floor and look at both of them conversing. Miss. Shiyi says the second hand coat that Di Renjie had purchased belonged to the messenger. Miss. Shiyi says that she hadn't expected Di Renjie to find it so quickly. 

Back in Lanfang county, Hong Liang is worried about Qiao Tai. Ma Rong was so worried that she wouldn't eat anything. Cao An says she will try to talk with Ma Rong, she goes in the room where Qiao Tai is lying, Ma Rong is kneeling by his side and crying. Cao An has a heart to heart talk with Ma Rong and tells her that she was strong and had her own experiences. Cao An says that she admires Ma Rong for being independent, able to support herself. Cao An had also purchased Enlightenment book for Ma Rong. Cao An reveals that when she purchases any item from the market it is with her own salary of the accountant and does not spend Di Renjie's money. Ma Rong is impressed and decides to eat the food. 

Di Renjie in Qing Chuan's inn is trying to piece together the puzzle. Mr. Lang, Miss Shiyi, officer Xiao, Mr. Wei, Mr. Hulu, two dead people... He is trying to figure a connection between them. 

In Lanfang, Cao An shows Hong Liang a medicine book as per which an Indian herb named Upas would have similar effect as that of Qiao Tai. Hong Liang reminisces an earlier incident when Di Renjie had brought cypress leaves for his father back in his childhood days when his father showed the same symptoms as Qiao Tai. Hong Liang says that if Qiao Tai was really unconscious due to Upas then as Di Renjie had told them, Qiao Tai will wake up in three to four days. SOMEONE, many years ago had told Hong Liang the same thing. 

When Di Renjie wakes up in his room, he hears Xiao Wei singing in the main hall of the inn where everyone is eating food. He sees even officer Xiao is present there. Officer Xiao approaches Di Renjie and requests to be treated for his neck and shoulder pain. Di Renjie takes him in the back room. Officer Xiao's attitude towards Di Renjie has changed. He apologies to Di Renjie for his earlier behavior and wants to help Di Renjie if something big is going to happen in Qing Chuan.
Officer Xiao tells Di Renjie that his ancestor was Xiao Yiran who was the subordinate of Mr. Cheng Yaojin, who was also named Mr. Zhijie. They helped emperor Taizong to conquer the whole country. He says that his ancestors would be ashamed of his behavior. Officer Xiao also reveals that the earlier he was on a very high post in the army but due to his straight forward nature, he has been banished to this place and hence he had become indolent. Di Renjie warms up to him after knowing his background. He tells Officer Xiao that in case he needed his help he wouldn't hesitate to ask for it. 

Miss Shiyi tells Mr Lang that she has searched everyplace but she wasn't able to find what they were searching. 

What was the item that the merchant was searching for? Did Heiyan really make an appearance in Qing Chuan? Who had lured Di Renjie there? Why was there blood on Mr. Wei's cart? Who was Mr. Hulu? 


A major revelation is made in episode 25 about Di Renjie's family, in spoiler below.

 
* Di Renjie has an elder brother named Di Ying who had been estranged from their father due to difference in their philosophies.

 
* viewers were not able to get the direct reference till episode 25, when Di Renjie recalls his past after solving the Hollow Gourd case on his was back to Lanfang county.

 
Flash back scenes previous episodes:
1.Di Renjie's father is angry at an adolescent young boy and asks him to kneel down. Di Renjie's father is unhappy that his elder son, Di Ying has been referring to the manual published by the Heiyan. However Di Ying doesn't feel it was wrong to read the book because from the book he had learned to counteract things where one thing can suppress another. Though it was not medicine it has remarkable effects against poisons. For eg Cypress against Upas,  it has remarkable effects against poisons.(earlier Hong Liang referred to someone telling him the way to supress Upas, viewers presumed from the flashback that it was Di Renjie but it turned out it was Di Renjie's elder brother Di Ying who had found the cure for his father back then from Heiyan's manual).  Di Renjie's father is angry at his elder son because according to him the book is filled with strange tricks and heterodox methods which can harm a person. Di Ying declares that he has learnt a lot from that book. Di Renjie's father is of the opinion that if a person with ulterior motives gets theri hands on such books they can misuse it and cause harm to people. Later the conflict between Di Renjie's father and his elder son escalates to such an extent that his father asks his elder son to leave his house and disowns his elder son.

 
2. Another oblique reference of Di Ying  was during the case of Red Pavilion, when Di Renjie reunites with the small wood peach sword. The viewers were led to believe that the sword belonged to Di Renjie. Cao 
An while having a conversation with Hong Liang also asks him why the word "Ying" Had been carved on the sword because as per her Di Renjie would have got his courtesy name   'Huaiying' after enlightenment not when he was a child. It turned out YING on the sword was the name of his elder brother Di Ying. 

* All this indicates that probably the leader of Heiyan is Di Renjie's elder brother Di Ying. Di Ying was also the person who had saved Cao An earlier.






 




Case 8 - Skylark Chirping (Episodes 25- 29) 

Di Renjie is standing on his doorstep in Lanfang county at night overlooking the bustling city. Hong Liang comes to call Di Renjie as it is almost mealtime and Cao An was looking for him. Di Renjie says that he was watching people coming and going. In the corner of the city yet unknown to him,  was a place where 'He' was hiding. Hong Liang inquired as to who was the 'He'. Di Renjie replies in one word 'Heiyan'. Hong Liang tells Di Renjie that Heiyan was eradicated by him a long time ago, even if there were some survivors they couldn't be a huge problem.  Di Renjie wants to know how Mr. Hong viewed Heiyan. As per Mr.Hong they were just a couple of gangsters violating the laws. Di Renjie sighs at this answer and shares with Hong Liang that he too believed the same in the beginning,  it wasn't till he eradicated the gangs in Lanfang that he discovered that among those people the ones really close to Heiyan were very few. Hong Liang wants to know if Di Renjie thought that the real members of Heiyan were still hidden. Di Renjie is of the opinion that behind the scenes they are manipulating everything, he thinks that the Heiyan is actually just one person. Hong Liang reminds Di Renjie of the fight they had with the Heiyan group in Penglai, they were definitely a group and not just one person. Di Renjie says that he hadn't figured out the details yet. But if Heiyan is not eradicated, endless troubles lay ahead. Hong Liang reminds Di Reny that they had already received transfer orders and would be leaving Lanfang county soon. Let the next magistrate deal with the area problems. 

Hong Liang is looking in the calendar for an auspicious date for Di Renjie's wedding. Lots of gifts have been received and prepared. Everyone in the magistrate's office is excited to have some days off and enjoy drinking during the celebration. Hong Liang assures the guard delivering the gifts that the wedding day of Di Renjie would be full of excitement. Lanfang county has changed since Magistrate Di took charge, the market is a happy place. Cao An and Ma Rong decide to fly lanterns at night, Di Renjie and Qiao Tai look at the girls indulgently. While they are in the market, they see a happy bride on a horse passing through the market along with the bridegroom in her wedding procession. At night the whole city is flying lanterns,  Cao An and Di Renjie make their wishes, Di Renjie wishes for a peaceful and prosperous nation. 

While everyone is in a festive mood in the market square, from outside a lone horse without a rider, pulling a carriage was seen. Di Renjie, Ma Rong and Qiao Tai go to investigate. Ma Rong stops the crowd from advancing towards the carriage, one person from the crowd says "wasn't it?"... but he doesn't finish the sentence. Di Renjie finds in the carriage, an paper effigy of a woman dressed in fine clothes, with painted mask. In the morgue, Di Renjie takes off the painted mask from the body and beneath the mask there was a human skull. Di Renjie could only determine from the skull that the head was cut off by the axe or a sword,  beyond that Di Renjie couldn't determine anything. However the paper effigy was well made. Di Renjie had sent Qiao Tai to investigate the effigy's orgin in the city. Di Renjie is of the opinion that they should go through last ten year's records of missing persons in Lanfang county. Hong Liang is advised to look for a beautiful missing girl in her twenties because the paper mask over the skull was  of a young beautiful girl. Di Renjie wonders why the murderer would put the skull underneath the paper effigy. 

Qiao Tai has gone investigating, he visits a funeral shop where such paper effigies are made for regular usage. Qiao Tai sees none of the effigies that are similar to the one they had found. The shopkeeper says that Lanfang was a small place and there would be no other place funeral place besides his shop. Qiao Tai overhears some knocking noise coming from the back side of the shop, the shop keeper says it would be Mason Lin carving tombstones. 

Di Renjie wants to know from the guard on duty if anyone has come to inquire about the horse and the carriage. The guard replies in negative, Ma Rong comments that the person must be very rich to send a horse and carriage with the dead body. Di Renjie finds a red thread on the horse's head. He recalls the scene earlier that day when the bride had passed through the market on the horse. He gets an idea and let's the horse walk alone, if the old horse was not stolen, it would inadvertently go back to his home. Ma Rong thinks it was a brilliant idea. Di Renjie and Ma Rong follow the horse. As speculated by Di Renjie  it stops in front of the house where the wedding celebration had taken place. Di Renjie asks Ma Rong to knock on the door. Ma Rong finds the door is unlocked and pushes it to open. Di Renjie and Ma Rong are shocked to find bloodied corpses of the bride and the groom in the house. In front of the dead bodies on a table there is a board game of Chinese chess, each pieces on the game is splashed with blood. Di Renjie tries to reconstruct mentally what could have happened, his hypothesis is that while playing the game, with each move of the game the bride and groom slashed one another. Hence their bodies are slashed like ribbons and all pieces on the game board have blood splatters on them. 

Back at the magistral office, Di Renjie makes Ma Rong and Qiao Tai enact the part of the bride and the groom playing chess. As per Di Renjie there must be a third person present, the third person may have physically coerced the couple to slash each other in the beginning. They would have reluctantly slashed each other as they would have been in love. However the third person may have revealed some secret of both to the other, that may have incited anger in the couple due to their faithlesness before marriage. After hearing the secrets, the couple would have slashed each other seriously in anger resulting in the death of both. After their death the third person, the instigator dug out both their hearts from their bodies and took it with him. The instigator converted the love in both's heart to hatred. 

Hong Liang asks Di Renjie to come to the morgue. Hong Liang shows the earrings in the deceased bride's ears. The earrings are made of good material and had exquisite craftsmanship. As per Ma Rong the couple was just married they would not have had extramarital affairs in that duration. Di Renjie observes that the ear lobes of the bride weren't pierced, the earrings were shoved forcefully in her ear lobes. Di Renjie gives the earring to Ma Rong to investigate. 

Ma Rong visits the gambling house and other places, she shows the earrings to the patrons but nobody recognizes them. There is a sudden scream from a pleasure house in the city. Ma Rong rushes there to find Qiao Tai and Di Renjie have already arrived. Qiao Tai declares that the person died due to excessive blood loss after self castration.  Qiuyue recognizes the dead body of the local butcher, Loong who used to be a regular customer at the place. But sometime ago Qiuyue had instructed the girls not to receive him as a guest. As per Qiuyue, Loong had odd hobbies. He liked to pierce people with needles and whipped them also he paid less. Many shops(pleasure houses?)in the city had turned him away. Qiuyue asks one of the girls from the pleasure house, Yao to tell Di Renjie what she had witnessed. Yao tells Di Renjie that when she came out in the yard with one of her customers, she saw Loong arrive there with a knife. He shouted that he was an animal, not a human. He was searching for someone as he shouted, that the person had promised to spare his mother if did as he was instructed. Then Loong self castrated himself. Yao saw a masked man wearing a cloak on the second floor of the building. The masked man disappeared after Loong was dead. 

Di Renjie and Ma Rong visit Long's shop to find more clues. There in the shop on the chopping board they find knives and two hearts of the couple who were previously murdered. Di Renjie says that the evidence is more likely planted by the real murderer. Looking at the handwriting of the butcher on the meat tags, it was evident that the man was not highly literate. The person responsible for the couples' murder knew how to play Xiangqi (Chinese chess) the butcher didn't seem that intelligent. 

Back at the morgue, Di Renjie instructs Hong Liang to stop investigating the butcher in connection with the effigy case. The butcher would have grease on him due to his work and there was no trace of grease found on the effigy. Di Renjie says that the three cases seem unconnected, but one person may be behind all three cases and that person wishes to draw Di Renjie's attention. Hong Liang asks Di Renjie if he thought that Heiyan was responsible for the cases. Di Renjie was not certain at that point. 

Di Renjie is more disappointed with himself because he felt that in spite of the time spent in Lanfang county, they were not able to bring people to trust law. Most people did not come forward with information on these murders. He felt that was not so different from the authoritarian rule prevalent in Lanfang county previously. Di Renjie declares reward for information to get the people to open up. 

Some artisans visit the morgue to see if they could get reward from the information they provided. One of the artisan seems to recognize the paper effigy of a person who was reported missing some years ago. The missing person was the daughter of the shopkeeper of Xiao Dyeing Shop, Chunyu. Cao An and Hong Liang find some information linking butcher Loong to Chunyu. In one of the  filed report it was registered that Chu Lei raided Xiao dyeing shop and abducted the shopkeeper's daughter Xiao Chunyu. The witness of this was Loong. 

Ma Rong chances upon a shop having similar effigy as the one the had on the dead body, she goes in the shop, it is Xiao dyeing shop. She shows the pair of earrings, the owner recognizes them as his daughter's. Di Renjie and Qiao Tai also arrive at the shop, following the clue from their end. Shopkeeper Xiao takes them to Chunyu's room which has been kept pristine and clean. He tells them that the pair of earrings were very expensive, he had bought it for his only daughter. She was seen wearing it the last time she visited him (from in law's house) before her supposed  abduction (murder).  Shopkeeper Xiao says his daughter was very talented, he wanted to open another shop of garments. His skilled daughter had made those effigies in the size of real people to display their clothes on them.


On the day of the crime, Loong saw Chu lei climbing down the window with his daughter's body. The shopkeeper was asleep next room he didn't hear anything. But before Chu Lei was enlisted in the military, he was a poor scholar and used to harrass Xiao chunyu. Shopkeeper Xiao knows that the night of the crime, Chu lei may have tried to force himself on his daughter and while hitting his daughter to subdue her, may have killed her, this scenario was inferred by the previous magistrate based on Chunyu's room being in disarray later. Loong's shop was just across their, so Loong would have been clearly able to recognize Chu lei  who was a frequent visitor before his enlistment. The shopkeeper Xiao told them that although Chu Lei was  scholar he joined the army because shopkeeper wanted him to make something of himself before shopkeeper Xiao agreed to his marriage with his daughter. The shopkeeper married off his daughter to someone else as soon as Chu Lei left to join military.  Di Renjie informs the shopkeeper that Chu lei died in prison after being arrested for Chunyu's abduction but he kept declaring his innocence till he died. Shopkeeper Xiao thinks his death was well deserved and he considers his life for Xiao chunyu's life a fair trade. 

Di Renjie wants to know if shopkeeper Xiao knew Mr. Chen the farmer who had recently died with his newly wed wife. The shopkeeper Xiao denies knowing any farmers. Di Renjie thinks there was a connection between all three cases. If they solved chunyu's case they would know the connection. Di Renjie goes to the mass grave in the West of the county where Chu Lei was burried after his death. In the mass grave, there are bodies everywhete difficult to find where Chu lei's body was buried almost 10 years ago. Qiao Tai remembers that a person named Lin fan had buried Chu Lei. 

Cao An goes to a repair shop, her string musical instrument has a broken string. On the way she hears idle gossips of people in the town who are afraid and stressed after the series of murder. There is some noise coming from back side of the music shop, the owner of the shop tells Cao An that he had hired a Mason to make a tombstone for his deceased father. Just then the shopkeeper's wife comes in the shop with a person. The person has a favor to ask Cao An but is hesitating. The owner's wife tells Cao An that the person had purchased some Sausages from Loong before he died but it was not delivered, he wanted to take them from the shop as it was his hard earned money with which he had paid for them. Cao An wants to know his name because all the meat in the butcher's shop had been tagged with the name of the buyer. The man says his name was Lin Fan. Later Di Renjie discovers the reason Lin Fan buried Chu Lei's body was because they were comrades in the army. 

Di Renjie dreams something from his past while he was sleeping. He dreams of a time when he was young, he had saved an injured bird but wanted his father's help. He ran to his father. His father was angrily talking with a masked caped man. The man asked if Di Renjie's father had read the letter. Di Renjie's father asks the man to leave his house. Di Renjie asks Hong Liang who was standing by the door the identity of the masked man. Hong Liang replies the man was someone his father disliked ( it was Di Renjie's elder brother Di Ying who had come to visit his father, this scene was also shown in one of the earlier episode). Di Renjie's father takes the bird in his own hands. He sends Hong Liang to bring some medicinal wine. Di Renjie's father tells him that the bird he had saved was a Skylark. Skylark missed their home the most. No matter they were, skylark tried their best to fly back to their home. 

What is the connection between Lin Fan and Chu Lei? Who was the murderer? What was the connection between all three cases? Who is the mastermind of Heiyan? What is Heiyan's connection to Di Renjie? 


Spoiler about the leader of Heiyan's identity fom episode 29.


Lin Fan was the leader of Heiyan. He was also Di Renjie's elder brother Di Ying whom their father, Di Zhixun had disowned. Di Ying's ideology and beliefs clashed with his father's and then with his younger brother's. Di Ying believed in the rule of the jungle, the strongest people survived and the fact human nature couldn't be changed. Di Renjie believed in the Tang code as taught by his father Di Zhixun. 

Di Renjie  initially intented to arrest Di Ying and hold a trial. Ironically the Heiyan leader hadn't commited any crime as per the laws of Tang(what about smuggling, presiding over gangs? ), however he was killed by his own younger brother, Di Renjie who was the staunch believer of Tang Code and dedicated to upholding the law. In the end Di Renjie's human nature, his rage, his jealous, his worries made him kill his own brother. Also in case 6,  Diao Xiao Guan had taunted Di Renjie by asking him what if someone killed his sweetheart, would he still punish the person as per the law or kill the murderer himself. At that time Di Renjie had replied that he would still follow the legal procedure. 

So who was ultimately proved correct?

In my opinion that is where the morally grey area comes. 

1.Di Renjie was very sure that unlike people in case 6, he would choose to deal with any injustice rationally and not emotionally. 

2. Di Renjie wanted to arrest his brother and let him stand trial in the court for his crimes. 

3.The fight started with the intention of apprehending his brother, but Di Ying kept taunting Di Renjie that made him lose his cool.  Di Ying used Cao An to drive his point home. First he threatened her safety, then he let it slip that maybe Cao An  had a secret relationship with him... All this talks aroused the emotions of worry, anger and jealousy in Di Renjie... His fight changed from restraining a criminal to hurting the person who hurt his lover.  There was change in the purpose of fight from restraining and self-defense to retaliation and revenge.

4.In the end, Di Renjie operated merely on instinct and stabbed his brother without noticing that Di Ying held a harmless wooden sword in his hand. 

5.So legally even though it would be termed as self defense, Di Ying proved his point by giving his life that human beings aren't always rational when it is personal injustice... During case 6 when Diao Xiao Guan asked him the question how Di Renjie would deal with anyone who harmed his lover, Di Rent said  he would arrest the person never thinking of taking revenge unlike the brother who killed his superior. 

6. Humans are slaves to their base nature...Human beings are inherently corrupted by their emotions, it is a constant struggle to stay on the righteous path and one small slip in their control will lead the humans down the slippery slope of crime. 


This was an interesting part of the series, the conflicting viewpoints. 


A saying that was going around in episode 29 ( belief of Heiyan)
"Men are gradually enlightened. Greed, anger, ignorance, dislike, love, desire, hatred. Will kill you. "
Di Renjie mockingly says, if  above are the reasons for killing a person then only accomplished monks would be alive, rest all deserve to be killed. 

Foundation of the Tang Code and Di Zhixun's teachings episode 29 (belief of Di Renjie) 
"The Strong abide by the law, and the weak live and work happily."  
Human nature can't be changed but it's the hope itself. There is good and evil in the human heart. Evil, makes people kill each other. It is goodness that allows people to coexist. The code guards the goodness in people's hearts. 

Bingzhou ditty: (mood of the music)episode 29
Young Cao An: Is Bingzhou your hometown? 
Heiyan: There is a special custom in Bingzhou. The corpses are left in the suburbs for birds and beasts to eat. No need to worry in this world. Make light of life and deathdeath as well as the corporeal body. This is the mood of the music." (My hometown is just a place in my memory) 








 


Case 9 - Zhao Yun Library (Episodes 30 -32) 


Some unknown place, A young man in white clothes is running for his life some people are following him. The man runs through a tunnel in which a memorial tablet of Pei Shinian, a loving father is placed. 

In Lanfang county, noticing how preoccupied Di Renjie is after the events of the previous case, Cao An suggests that they should take an outing more as a distraction. Cao An says she has read in the "Records of the Supernatural" there is a rare spring South of Lanfang county that looks like the Cresent moon "The Cresent Spring" and is never dry. It is believed that drinking from that spring will relieve a person from their worries, the heart will be reborn. One can realise one's wish. Cao An says if they hurry they will reach there in five days. Di Renjie agrees to her request of an outing. 

Di Renjie and Cao An are getting ready to leave towards Anxi Protectorate. Hong Liang advises Cao An that the North of the mountains and South of the water are Yin. They should be careful on the roads. They shouldn't offend Buddhist or Taoist temples or tombs. After they leave Hong Liang sees that Di Renjie has forgotten his sword at home. On the way to the Cresent Spring, Cao An and Di Renjie stop at Tongfu inn. They are warmly ushered by the waiter who offers them tea. Di Renjie asks for two best rooms in the inn. While they are having tea, awaiting goat soup, an elderly lady rushes in, She inquires whether anyone had seen her grandson. His name was Wei Xiaobao,  he was as tall as her upper waist, had a mole on the right side of his face. He was wearing white clothes and white shoes when she had last seen him. She is frantically asking all the guests of the innif they had seen her grandson. The server/innkeeper says that she was a mad woman she often asks about her grandson, he doesn't know if what she was saying was correct. The next morning Cao An points out to Di Renjie, the direction of the Cresent Spring. The weather seems to take a turn for the worse, if is quite foggy. Di Renjie decides to continue their journey. 

On the way, it starts snowing. Di Renjie sees many refugees coming from their opposite direction. They are hurrying along carrying luggage. Di Renjie spots a family who is trying to dislodge their carriage wheel from a ditch. Di Renjie stops his carriage and goes to help the family. While jostling the wheel free from the ditch, Di Renjie scratches his hands on some poisonous thorns. His thorn pierces through his gloves. The family is thankful for his help, they say they were coming from the direction of Anxi Protectorate. Di Renjie advises them to go North to Lanfang county and take shelter and help from the magistrate's office. 

Cao An dresses Di Renjie's wound on his hand. They decide to return back to  Lanfang county due to bad weather. While driving back Di Renjie becomes feverish due to poisonous infection. He falls off the carriage. Cao An sucks the poison out from his wound, puts him inside the carriage and herself drives the carriage homewards. Di Renjie is delirious due to his fever. It is snowing heavily and getting dark. Cao An spots Zhao Yun Library on the way and decidese to take shelter there for the night. Cao An knocks on the building door.

 A student,  Zhou Li opens the door. Cao An wants to meet Mr.Cui the person in charge and their teacher. Zhou Li refuses her entry citing that his teacher has ordered not to let anyone inside. Cao An informs Zhou Li that she had accompanied Di Renjie the magistrate of Lanfang county and they needed help. Zhou Li closes the door and informs Li Miao. Li Miao also tells Cao An that he will help dress Di Renjie's wound but they should leave after the medical aid, they are instructed by Mr. Cui not to allow any outsiders while he was in seclusion. Mr. Cui was assigned by the Minsiter of Rites to compile the local history of the place. Mr. Cui has been writing in retreat. Before his retreat Mr. Cui had repeatedly warned everyone there not to allow any outsiders.  Li Miao tells Cao An that he can't allow them to stay the night. Cao An threatens him that if anything happened to Do Renjie they will be held responsible. In desperation Cao An takes Li Miao to see the feverish Di Renjie, looking at his bad health Li Miao has no choice but to allow them to spend the night in the library. 

Li Miao says that they did not have any spare room so the guests will have to stay in the room where old papers and books are kept. He instructs two students supporting Di Renjie to take him inside the inner room. 

Hong Liang gets information from the refugees who have reached Lanfang county from the South about the bad weather condition. He sends Ma Rong and Qiao Tai to go South in case Di Renjie and Cao An require their help. Ma Rong and Qiao set off on horseback, Hong Liang gives Qiao Tai, Di Renjie's forgotten sword. Inspite of  Qiao Tai's assurance of knowing the way. Ma Rong and Qiao Tai get lost. 

After settling them in the old books room, Li Miao  applies medicine on Di Renjie's wounds. He says Di Renjie's pulse was disordered. He was just not poisoned but he may have been suffering from excessive internal heat due to overwork. He promises to send some herbs. Just then Di Renjie  wakes up, upon knowing they are at Zhao Yun Library where  Cui Haoran was present, Di Renjie insist on meeting Mr. Cui to pay his respect as he admired his work and considered Mr. Cui to be a great scholar. Li Miao takes them to meet Mr. Cui, Cao Am supports Di Renjie who is very weak due to his condition. Li Miao warns them not to wander around by themselves, the roads in the library were intricate, especially due to snow it would be easy to lose one's way. 

Li Miao takes them to the room where Mr. Cui is meditating. Di Renjie and Cao An look through the  window screen standing outside the room at a white haired man sitting in deep thoughts at a desk. Di Renjie smells strong aroma of sandalwood. Li Miao says after reading the historical  materials  in order to write the facts smoothly, his master would meditate tocalm his mind and burning sandalwood helped in his concentration. Di Renjie offers Eaglewood from Yunshui village, burning that would help Mr. Cui. Li Miao invites them inside the room to present it to Mr. Cui themselves but Di Renjie declines as he didn't want to disturb Mr. Cui. Li Miao goes in the room places the Eaglewood stick on the desk. 

Li Miao takes Di Renjie and Cao An back to their rooms, on the way back they meet a harried Zhou Li. He says he had lost his way, he wanted to get some firewood for Mr. Cui's room. Li Miao shows the correct direction to the woodshed and reprimands him for always losing his way. Di Renjie lies down in the room, Cao An accompanies Li Miao who goes to prepare medicine for Di Renjie. While Di Renjie is alone a breeze of cold snowy wind opnes the door to his room, Di Renjie gets up to close the door when he sees a young child in white clothes running across the yard. Di Renjie tries to follow the child but in his weakened state stumbles and falls on the ground. Cao An upon her return, finds him unconscious lying on the snowy ground in the yard. Taking him inside, Li Miao asks him what he had seen. Di Renjie says he saw a child in the yard, at first Li Miao chalks it up as Di Renjie's hallucination because they don't have any student  who is a child. All close student of Mr. Cui are adult males. However when Di Renjie  insists that the boy was real and not a figment of his imagination, Li Miao agrees to send students to search for a tresspasser boy around the yard. 

There is a black cat roaming in the yard. Cao An heards some noise at the door of their room. When she opens the door she sees one heavy set of foot prints going from their room to the yard, she follows the footprints. Meanwhile some people with chasing Zhou Li. Zhou Li climbs the roof top and starts running wildly on it, calling fir the evil spirits to catch him. Suddenly he stops at the edge of the roof, a crowd of students has gathered in the yard, Cao An is also watches helplessly from below. Cao An sees that Zhou Li is looking at something  with horrified expression as if he has seen a ghost. Then he bites his thumb to draw out blood, writes something on his palm with his blood, waves the palm in Cao An's direction and jumps to his death from the roof. Cao An and others rush to his fallen body, the word written on his palm was "ghost".

Inside the room, Di Renjie feels cold wind blowing, he lifts his head and sees a child running between the rack of old books. The word 'Huaiying' echoes in his ears. 

Cao An goes to the  hall where Zhou Li's dead body is kept. She shows the word on Zhou Li's palm to Li Miao. Cao An wants to see Zhou Li's living quarter. The male dormitory is  plain and utilitarian. Cao An finds weird pictures painted by Zhou Li at his desk. His fellow student says Zhou Li had been acting weird lately. Zhou li had joined the school 10 months ago, he came from a nearby village. 

Di Renjie dreams of his childhood and Di Ying calling out his name. The door to the room blows open by the wind, Cao An finds an old pictorial ritualistic book on the floor, pages scattered on the floor due the wind. She looks through the weird pictures, she feels as if someone is watching her in the room. She gets up to walk around the room, finds a door ajar, outside the door on the threshold, she finds the stick of eaglewood wrapped in green cloth that Di Renjie had gifted to Mr. Cui earlier, curious as to how it ended on their doorstep, Cao takes a lantern and goes towards Mr. Cui's rooms. She remembers the way from earlier. It seems students are searching for someone, they have lit their torch and running around the yard. Just as Cao An reaches the staircase to Mr. Cui's rooms, she overhears two student at the top of the stairs discussing. She doesn't want to be seen outside her room, so she panics and blindly ducks inside a nearby open room, she walks to the end of the room and manages to open a door. The door leads her to lit underground tunnels. Walking along the tunnels she comes across an altar room. While she is trying to figure out the use of the room, Li Miao comes and stands behind her. 

Li Miao admonishes her and asks her not to walk around casually. The place was an altar, Li Miao was carrying a memorial tablet of Zhou Li and je said he had come to the altar to redeem Zhou Li's soul. Li Miao says that the people in the library don't worship gods or Buddha,  they pay homage to the dead. The dead of Zhao Yun Temple. Li Miao divulges the history of the place, around 200 years ago that place was a Taoist temple it's name was also Zhao Yun. It was a tumultuous period at that time. Besides the Taoist, lots of commoners, scholars residing there. One night, a group of roving bandits attacked the temple in order to get the possibily non-existant treasure. The bandits killed all the Taoist, commoners and scholars there. It was a massacre. Later on, the place because and isolated haunted abode. It had been deserted for 100 years. Later about 40 years ago, the world became peaceful again. Their teacher Mr. Cui came at the place by chance, he renovated the place and kept the bones of the dead in that altar that had already existed. Li Miao puts the memorial tablet of Zhou Li on the altar with the other tablets. Their teacher asked them to bring some offering there whenever there was a climate change or when there was a festival. Altho they don't perform a religious rite, they believe these offerings can sooth the souls of the dead. Li Miao inquires as to why Cao An was there. she said that she had been lost  as nobody was around to show her the direction and had wandered into the altar room. Li Miao informs her that the srudents had been searching for the child wearing white clothes who had been seen by Di Ranjie, however they were not able to find such a child on the premises. Cao An thinks that may be Di Renjie was hallucinating due to hight fever and there was no such child on the premises. Li Miao wonders if Di Renjie was hallucinating due to his obsessions. In future there maybe some explanation for the unknown things like gods, ghosts,spirits, buddha etc. For now all the unkown things may be understood as magnetic field. Also the change in weather causing Yin Qi heavier, may be responsible for Di Renjie's hallucinations. The old wishes in his heart were projected into air. The obsession may be with the recently deceased. 

Cao An looks troubled upon hearing this, she confesses that she would like to take Di Renjie away from that place as soon as possible. Di Renjie wakes up some time later feeling partially better, he walks out of the room as he is all alone. He see some people gathered around a dead body(Zhou Li's) and inquires the details. Li Miao informs him that they have given all details to Cao An. Cao An is relieved to see  Di Renjie feeling better. Cao An takes Di Renjie back to their room, she relates everything that had happened since the last time Di Renjie was awake. The suicidal jump, letters on the palm, one heavy set of footprints leading from their room to the yard, her finding the altar and Li Miao's explanation. 

Cao An wants to leave the place as soon as possible however Di Renjie feels there are too many unanswered questions, so he couldn't leave yet. Cao An is uneasy, she says ever since she came there she feels as if a pair of eyes are watching her, moreover a solar eclipse was coming soon, they shouldn't offend the dead. This statement of Cao An offends Di Renjie and he says the dead won't bother the living. Di Renjie is sure what he saw was real and not some hallucination due to his obsession or weakness. Di Renjie says that maybe Cao An hasn't forgotten Heiyan but Di Renjie will not let Heiyan(Di Ying) bother him. After Heiyan's death, Cao An's relationship with Di Renjie is a little strained and there is a strange barrier between them. Li Miao brings freshly made medicine for Di Renjie that he drinks. Cao An takes some rest, Di Renjie goes outside the room to explore the clues. He takes the same path as Cao An took earlier. He goes to the tunnels. Suddenly he sees a boy there, however he realises his mind is playing tricks with him, he becomes agitated feels as if he is losing his mind and faints. 

After Di Renjie is carried back to his room. Cao An decides to immediately leave the library even though Di Renjie is unconscious and it's night time. She asks Li Miao to prepare her carriage and assign some students that will help carry Di Renjie's body to the carriage from their room.

 

Why did Zhou Li jump from the roof? Has Di Renjie really lost his faculties? Was the boy Di Renjie saw real or just a hallucination? What will be the fate of Cao An and Di Renjie's estranged relationship?



thanks for this extensive summaries ! i will be reading them, should there be cases, which i dont understand the solution! for now, i am watching along, coz i like to keep the mystery open!