【ENG SUB】 Beacon-Fire in Troubled Times 亂世烽煙 04丨陳坤、白宇深陷驚心動魄的權謀暗戰 “烽火戲諸侯”丨The Wind Blows From Longxi

Intelligence & Analysis Agency, Gao Tangbing. Here are my respects, Your Excellency. Who are you? That clerk just now... I'm Gao Tangbing, director of the Intelligence & Analysis Agency. Director Gao, please take a seat. You are also a witness for the Jieting intelligence case. Although I acted with the army, I didn't witness it on the spot due to my low official rankings. In your opinion, in the Jieting intelligence case, did Baidi fall into the treachery of Wei, or betray to collude with Wei spy to trap our army? It's hard to judge. The Intelligence & Analysis Agency is mainly responsible for intelligence analysis. And the screening of intelligence sources is done by the Intelligence Agency. Secretary Feng is always taking charge of Baidi. Baidi's lurk has always been the top secret of the Intelligence Bureau. I only heard about it later. Have you heard of the Qingping Plan of Wei? Yes. Wei has implemented it for more than a year to steal our army's repeating crossbow technology. Not exactly. Just now, Director Yin of the Intelligence Agency said the Qingping Plan is huge and contains many sub actions. In addition to trying to steal our military secrets, it also intends to plot against our military and political leaders and invite our state's civil strife and other actions. Is it possible that Baidi's betrayal is part of the Qingping Ping? Wei and Shu are at war. Wei always desires to sneak into our bureau. That's not strange. Write it down. Yes. These years, the Intelligence Bureau is like a broken house, leaking secrets all the time. As a senior in the bureau, do you have any suggestions? It's quite necessary for General Who Assists Han to rectify the bureau. All has been searched carefully. There are no suspicious people in the inn. He must stay in old town still. But we found traces of flying eagle-hook claw on the wall in the backyard. Our men have gone after him. Keep chasing. Yes. It seems that you have good luck today. You won. Thanks to you. Registrar Chen, let's go on. Coming. Place it. Here. You're wrong, put it here. What happened outside, Registrar Chen? Outside, someone is dead. What? Bad luck. Secretary Feng, General Hu Zhong wants to meet you in the conference hall. I've heard a lot about you. It's my honor to have a face-to-face talk with you. Don't be polite. Get down to business. I was ordered by General Li Yan to have a talk with you, mainly to verify the Intelligence Bureau's disposal of the traitor Baidi. The Intelligence Bureau has dispatched two batches of spies to investigate this case. The first spy was killed. Then I dispatched Deputy Director Xun Xu to go to Wei to look into it and kill the trailer when needed. So you decided the spies to look into Baidi in Tianshui? Yeah. What's the matter? Why did you send Xun Xu? The Counterspy Agency is responsible for fighting against species. Xun Xu is the deputy director. He has never been working outside. I admit he has not enough qualifications. But he is the cleanest in the accident of Wei spy. Wei's Counter-intelligence Agency has no chance to get near and plot against him. It's rumored that Xun Xu and Baidi have a relation by marriage. I haven't heard of that. Is it possible for Xun Xu to spare Baidi? We have precautions for such cases. Before leaving, Xun Xu drank the bureau's farewell tea. Only after completing the task can he get the antidote? Right. This is an old rule of the Intelligence Bureau for tough tasks outside. Any questions? Hurry up. Keep up. The killers may want to kill Gu Zheng to cut off clues once noticing that Gu Zheng was exposed. Put them on trial. Yes. Major Mi. We've caught a Shu soldier alive. Where is he? He's in prison for trial. He passed out and said nothing. All the Shu troops in Longshan Mountains were dead, except him. Ask the army doctor to come here. Make him speak by all means. The clue of Gu Zheng is cut off. Next step... Send two capable confidants to watch Chen Gong day and night. Keep a record of his every move. If he notices it, Magistrate will blame us. Chen Gong made a reckless move today. He will show his flaws soon. Keep an eye on him and don't care about anything else. OK, I'll watch him myself. Jili Transportation was searched and confiscated. All the servants and workers were jailed. He was used. What? He told me that except you, he also contacted an undercover codenamed Chidi in Tianshui. Impossible. Impossible. Feng Ying told me clearly that, to make all things right, Gu Zheng was my exclusive transportation line. He would never participate in any other activities. Impossible. Yes. I've never heard of the code name Chidi in the Intelligence Bureau. How did they contact each other? They shot arrows to exchange notes. Never face to face. Maybe our previous speculation is right. Zhulong has a high-ranking identity in the Intelligence Bureau. He fabricated a code name of Chidi. Gu Zheng was unaware of it and became his channel. Now Gu Zheng is dead. We can't explain this. It seems I have to bear the blame for the Jieting intelligence case. Yeah. Jieting fell and the Northern Expedition failed. You need to pay your life for such a big loss. It's a dead end. Your Excellency, here is the name list of senior and middle-level staff of the Intelligence Bureau. They are all cunning. A nest of crafty men. You've talked with them all? Yes. Feng Ying is a bit interesting. He has always been on Yang Yi's side, but he is not completely loyal to Yang Yi. For Baidi's mutiny, Yang Yi asked him to close the case and clean it up as soon as possible to avoid leaving us any gap. But he kept something in reserve. Feng Ying... Don't move him first. Let him stay in the Intelligence Bureau. But we need to get him a deputy. We must place our men in it. You are not the right choice. You have to stay with me. Your Excellency, I'd like to recommend a man. Who? Li Miao, courtesy name as Hannan. He is not on the list. He used to be an advisor in Chancellor's Mansion and was demoted to a commoner. He hates Yang Yi. Previously, he deliberately leaked the information about Wei's undercover in the Intelligence Bureau to me. Is he reliable? I think so. Where is he now? After being deposed by Zhuge Liang, he had nowhere to go. He went to me for shelter and he is in Nanzheng. I'd like to meet him first. We have another way. Enough. Don't comfort me. No. There's a man who knows the existence of Zhulong. As long as he speaks. Guo Gang? Yeah. How could he tell you? Get him to Nanzheng. Are you crazy? Only he can prove the existence of Zhulong and free us from the blame. This is ridiculous. How can we avoid so many Wei soldiers from Tianshui to Nanzheng? As long as we have a careful plan, there is a possibility of success. Even if I can't survive, I have to prove my loyalty with death. Do you have a plan? We need to take Guo Gang away in secret, while preventing the Wei army catching up with us in a day. That's impossible. Guo Gang is very fond of diabolic tricks and wicked craft. He once gave me a task to restore ancient bamboo magpie invented by Master Gongshu. Bamboo magpie? Historical records say that, Master Gongshu made a bamboo magpie. It flew up and stayed in the sky for three days without falling down. It's merely a legend. In the 13th year of Jian'an period, the Wei army arrived in Xinye. Liu Cong sent envoys to welcome Cao Cao into Jingzhou. Along the way, the Wei army excavated ancient tombs everywhere. They found Master Gongshu's tomb in Yingdi. Inside there was the prototype of bamboo magpie. But only old debris of it was left as time passed. Last year, Guo Gang happened to give me all material of bamboo magpie he had collected, asking me to recover it as soon as possible. You mean you've made it? The bamboo magpie is supported by bamboo strips as a whole and covered with sheepskin on wings. It can fly with the wind and carry man across a thousand-odd feet. Guo Gang craves greatness and success and is adventurous. If we ask him to test flight atop the Longshan Mountains, he must agree happily. How is it? This bamboo joint slips can withdraw like an umbrella. Open them when you use them. It's so delicate. Shu has Zhuge Liang's walking wooden ox chariot and Wei now has Chen Gong's bamboo magpie matching it. I'm flattered. Master Gongshu, Lu Ban was really a super craftsman. Can I control the direction? Of course. Hold this in your hand, and you can control freely the falling point and direction. Sizhi, does it hurt if I fall down from the high sky? No. I've fallen down many times. Rest assured. Let's go. After you. Xigou Gorge in the Longshan Mountains is a cut road. Even if the Wei army wants to chase us, it will take them at least two days to get here. Have you tried that bamboo magpie? I've just finished. I don't have time to try. No. It's too risky. I don't care about Guo Gang. But that cliff is deep and high. You'll die in case of any careless act. Do we have another way? Born in troubled times, great heroes travelling all over the world can die for righteousness. A good man should be like this all his life. Enough, enough. You told me this. Remember it? Where should I stay by then? Look. This place is where Guo Gang and I are expected to land. Why do you believe Chen Gong so much? I believe in my own heart. Here, we are expected to land here. You bring two strong horses to pick us up at the bottom of the valley. How is it? OK. I'd better bring some more knock-out drops to knock Guo Gang out. I wish I could knock you out too. How is my plan? Very good. I think we're crazy. I just hope we can get through this test. We'll be fine. We'll be fine. General Who Assists Han wants to meet me? For what? Hannan, take it easy. General Li is courteous and open-minded to talents. Just truly answer what he asks. OK. Thank you for your recommendation. This way. Please. Li Miao offers respect to General Who Assists Han. Han...Hannan? Hannan. Hannan, please get up. Thank you, Your Excellency. Please have a seat. Thank you. You have been working in Chancellor's Mansion. How can you have time to come to Nanzheng? I have been dismissed by Chancellor and deposed into a commoner. Now I'm just a common person, an idle man. You, you were dismissed? Why? Our army lost Jieting and Chancellor wanted to kill Ma Su. I was just giving advice. Your Excellency, pardon Ma Su. The world is still in flux. It would be a loss to Shu if an advisor was killed. Meng Ming was pardoned by the State of Qin, so he assisted in the conquest of 20-odd states in Xirong for Qin. No more empty talk. The State of Chu declined in less than two generations after killing Ziyu. Your words were offensive. Chancellor must be unhappy. Exactly. Chief Clerk Yang Yi took the opportunity to slander me for having a rebellious heart. Now we are incompatible as fire and water. Then, you can help me since you came here? I've heard that you are rectifying the Intelligence Bureau. So I came to offer advice. Oh? Your Excellency, this article is great. It has clearly explained the Northern Expedition's base and necessity. Han is in a narrow and small area. If we want long-term stability, we must go deep into the Central Plains to fight for hegemony with other states. Unfortunately, some people want to settle down as a small state. Restoring the Han Dynasty is like sailing against the current. If you don't advance, you will retreat. Shu can't merely be a small state. Your Excellency, this article is supposed to present to His Majesty. It's not the right time now. How's Nanzheng? Your Excellency, Li Yan launches a great purge with excuse of Wei spy's infiltration. It's estimated that Yao You will be deposed and Feng Ying will be punished. Actually, he wants to insert his men in the bureau. It is necessary to clean up Wei spy. We should support whoever does it. Your Excellency, I'm afraid it's not that simple. It's too early to say this now. Aren't these just your guesses? This is urgent. Yes. Just leave the Intelligence Bureau's case to Li Yan. Stop caring about it. Yes. Feng Ying, Secretary of the Intelligence Bureau retains the original post with salary reduction of ten dan of grain. Gao Tangbing, director of the Intelligence & Analysis Agency retains the original post with salary reduction of three dan of grain. Yin Ji, director of the Intelligence Agency, is demoted to the deputy director of the same agency. Sun Ling, clerk of the Division of General Affairs and Logistics, works hard and carefully all day, so he is promoted to Deputy Director of the same division. Secretary of the West, Yao You, as the chief officer of the Intelligence Bureau, is deceive and irresponsible, narrow-minded and defiant, discussing the court wrongly, resulting in unsettling and loose atmosphere in the bureau. General of Agile Cavalry, Marquis of Du, and Protector of Central Capital, Li Yan, investigates, dismisses and demotes Yao You to a commoner as ordered. Congratulations on your promotion. Thank you. After all, it's on my own. We have to rely on you in the future. My pleasure. Please. What the hell... Enough. Enough. Ace spy's mutiny is a big event in the Intelligence Agency. You're just demoted. But Secretary took charge of Baidi alone. It has nothing to do with our Intelligence Agency. Secretary of the West has been dismissed. This position won't be empty all the time. Do you want to take it? Me? Stop dreaming. Someone must have been transferred in from outside. And this man has to be general's confidant. Over. We senior officials will be deprived of power sooner or later. Secretary Feng. The punishment is temporary. As long you explain it to General Li face to face, the misunderstanding will be solved. I've been occupied in the agency recently. When the situation is calmed, I must visit him. Magistrate. Sizhi, come and see. My uncle knows I like it, so he specially had it sent here from Chang'an. It was made by a craftsman during the reign of Emperor Yuan. Armillary sphere. Come and see. Equatorial ring. Right ascension ring. It seems to lack something. Did they drop anything when digging it out? I don't know. Magistrate, it's amazing. Magistrate, I've copied the bamboo magpie made by Master Gongshu. What? Master Gongshu. Bamboo magpie. You've copied it? Where is it? It's in my warehouse. Let's go and see. It can be folded like an umbrella for transport and be opened for use. Man can hang himself here. It's a treasure, Sizhi. This rope can fix the bamboo magpie to your waist to make you fly with the wind. Can we control its direction? Yes. After attaching the two hide ropes to the two auxiliary wings, we can control its direction at will. It's completed, but it's not as good as the ancient one which could fly for three days without falling down. Most of the things recorded in ancient books are just legends. Sizhi, how far can it fly? Aided by the wind, it can fly about 1,000 feet. 1,000 feet? It's enough. Magistrate, you want to use it for any other purpose? Do you think I'm just crazy about novelties? I dare not. It's related to our state's future. Well, I'm going to execute a plan, and you'll be involved in it. Let's go back to my mansion. Yes. I learnt from intelligence that the latest repeating crossbow of the Armament Agency of the Shu army can shoot 20 arrows in a row. It's destructive and can be used by both cavalries and infantries. The previous crossbow can only shoot five arrows in a row. It seems that the Shu army has greatly improved their craftsmanship. The latest crossbows are named Shudu and Yuanrong. They will be used by the Shu army soon, which will put great pressure on our army. This intelligence is different from what we learnt before. To protect the secret, the Shu army set up many false manufacturing sites. Thanks to Zhulong, we can locate its Assembly Department. It's located in the col of western Mount Dingjun. There is a canyon between the cliffs. Only one way leads to the Assembly Department. It's surrounded by three lines of defense. It's impregnable. How to sneak into it? We couldn't sneak into it before, but now we can. Sizhi, tell Xingyuan how to sneak in. Major, Major Mi. The Assembly Department and the mountain wall. The mountain wall. The Assembly Department. Cliffs. Cross. Fly over? Unless you're a bird. He's really a bird. Really? I also think so. With it, we can sneak into the Assembly Department of Shu's Armament Agency by surprise to cooperate with Zhulong to steal the design drawing of the latest crossbows of Shu. Magistrate, we haven't tested whether it can fly yet. Magistrate, I'm going to test it these days. At ordinary times, I would test it with you together. But this time we can't. It's a matter of great importance, so neither of us can take the risk. I'll ask others to test this bamboo magpie. You're... Magistrate, who are you going to entrust this mission to? Your Counter-intelligence Agency needs to dispatch a member. Just, just Liang Jian. Liang Jian and Registrar Chen will go together. What's wrong? Magistrate, I'm not good at outwork and intelligence gathering. I know, so Liang Jian will go with you. Sizhi, I want to promote you. If you want to go further, you must make some real achievements. Thank you for your promotion. I'll do my best. You just need to ensure that this bamboo magpie can fly over the canyon smoothly, and Liang Jian will be in charge of others. If you have no objection, go to prepare for it. Three days later... Magistrate, I have a small question. Let's talk elsewhere. OK. Do you still suspect Sizhi? Yesterday we tracked the intelligence line of Shu spies, but he was also present, which was very strange. I know you suspect him, but only he can assemble and operate this bamboo magpie. What do you say? I have a suggestion. Go ahead. Liang Jian stays, and I'll go with him. It's feasible. But if the major of the Counter-intelligence Agency and the registrar of Tianshui disappear at the same time, the secret agents of the State of Shu will notice this. They're not good-for-nothings. It's easy. How about arranging a startled horse accident to falsely claim the death of Registrar Chen and me? I agree. You can go. Thank you, Magistrate. But you must know two things. Chief Controller personally presides over the Qingping Plan, and the priority is to know the secret about Shu's repeating crossbow, so you can't have a bias against Chen Gong, and must ensure the complete success. Second, Sizhi is a talent. You must keep him safe. I see. I'll protect him. I'll really protect him. Guo Gang dispatched you to Shu? What a good chance. We planned to kidnap him before. That's really risky. And he may not listen to us. So you will see Zhulong during this action? Probably. Great! Guo Gang worries that the Intelligence Bureau may notice the absence of Mi Chong and me, so Mi Chong proposes a startled horse accident. We will both die from this accident. If I die, you can also fulfill your task. I finally can go back to report on my task. Yes. But if our bureau believes your betrayal, the identity of Baidi will be exposed at any time. If Zhulong knows you're Baidi... I'll kill Mi Chong halfway and then replace him. From then on, Chen Gong will never appear. But you also need to deceive the Counter-intelligence Agency. It's difficult. You must consider everything. Well, don't you believe me? We finally can turn the table. Leave the poisonous dagger Feng Ying gave you to me. You must be careful. I know. This time, Huang Yu, the grand libationer of Wuxian Sect will coordinate with us. Wuxian Sect? You can see Di Yue? That's great. You can succeed if you couple work together. Tomorrow morning, you also need to leave Tianshui. It's risky to stay here for long. Have a safe journey. You too. What a pity. He was almost driven desperate. But we can do nothing. Magistrate has decided and won't change his mind. He must do something in the State of Shu. It's not totally terrible. Let him out and give him some space for action. Once we enter the State of Shu, things will be hard to control. Then, act according to the situation. If he has any abnormal behavior, I'll kill him in Shu. It's too dangerous. He can't see Zhulong. Stop chattering. How is the Shu soldier you caught in the Longshan Mountains? I asked the doctor to use desperate medicine to keep him alive, but he's still in a coma. Those Shu soldiers saw Baidi. You must awake him and force him to confess. I see. I entrust you with the affairs of Wei. OK. Be serious. Eat the same livestock. Come on. Drink wine. Eat the same livestock again. Once more. Be serious. Drink wine again. Eat the same livestock again. Be serious. Drink the nuptial cup. Completed. From now on, you are a couple. Ying, see? What did I say? After taking over the Intelligence Bureau, General Li Yan would definitely deal with the matter about Baidi and then take the opportunity to promote his subordinates. Even Hu Zhong is on equal terms with us. All of them had their tongue in their cheek and harbored evil designs. How unlucky. Wei planned to dispatch Chen Gong and Mi Chong for outwork. Guo Gang is going to arrange a startled horse accident to enable them to play dead and change their identities to lurk in Wuxian Sect for stealing the design drawing of Shu's crossbow. By the way, Guo Gang is the magistrate of Tianshui Prefecture of Wei and also the nephew of Guo Huai who founded the Counter-intelligence Agency of Wei. The Counter-intelligence Agency and the Intelligence Bureau are similar in attribute. They're both intelligence agencies but respectively controlled by the State of Wei and the State of Shu. The Counter-intelligence Agency is equivalent to the competitive agency of our Intelligence Bureau. So Guo Gang's trust in Chen Gong plays a crucial role in learning the internal intelligence of Wei for the Intelligence Bureau. Mi Chong is the director of the Counter-intelligence Agency. As a leader of the Counter-intelligence Agency, he is deeply trusted by his boss and only wants to catch the Shu spies lurking in Wei, but he always keeps an eye on Chen Gong. Therefore, how will he get along with Chen Gong when performing their task outside? Please stay tuned