Squat down!
Harm me.
Your Highness, come out please.
Go.
Step aside.
Stop pursuing us,
gentlemen.
I don't want to kill anyone.
Thank you, Your Excellency.
If we meet again,
I'll return the horses to you.
Your Majesty.
Get up.
I'm sorry that
I couldn't get Crown Prince Dan back.
Please forgive me, Your Majesty.
Those bandits
were Yan Dan's men.
They have already planned earlier
to leave Qin
using delaying tactics.
I'm afraid
this is true.
They have great martial arts skills,
and are not ordinary bandits.
Yan Dan must have
planned this for a long time.
I didn't perceive it before
because I trusted him.
Moreover,
the Huben guards are strong.
If even Ruan Qing and Li Zhong
can't defeat those assassins,
it seems that Yan Dan was well-prepared.
I should have sent four masters Wind, Forest, Fire and Hill to pursue him.
I underestimated his abilities.
Your Majesty.
Among those who saved him,
there is indeed
an assassin with incredible martial arts skills.
I led a squad of the Huben guards that day,
but he alone killed them all.
If I didn't witness it, I wouldn't believe
there was such a terrifying man in the world.
Terrifying?
Yes.
That day, I thought his strength
was beyond humans.
If there really is such a man
helping Yan Dan,
we must be careful.
Your Majesty,
I originally thought that
however strong that person was,
he along would be outnumbered by the Qin army.
But seeing him today,
I find it must be quite easy for him
to slay the military leaders in battles.
Li Zhong.
Here.
Pass the order to Meng Wu.
Ask them to be more careful.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Han Shen,
it seems that you are injured.
It's nothing.
You are from the martial arts circle.
So are Yan Dan's men this time.
Do you have
any clue about them?
Your Majesty.
Although my senior used to be in the martial arts circle,
our Gongsun family
was not a well-known sect.
My grandpa used his martial arts skills
to serve Puyang.
Besides, he's been in the palace for many years.
There are so many rising stars
in the martial arts circle.
How could he possibly recognize all of them?
Can a rising star
really have such amazing martial arts skills?
Even if he is a new star,
there must be a source for the swordsmanship he uses.
Your Highness, you've witnessed it today.
What do you think?
The martial arts circle is vast.
There will always be some people with advanced martial arts skills.
I'm just an ordinary woman.
How can I tell the martial arts
of each sect?
You're flattering me.
Your Highness, please forgive me for my rudeness.
But I have a question
to ask you.
You went to visit the crown prince.
How come you ended up being abducted by bandits instead?
When the real crown prince left,
were you still in the room?
Were you staying in the crown prince's room all along?
Didn't you see
the whole process at all?
At that time, the crown prince's mansion was in chaos.
I heard some noise outside
and I left the room to inspect it.
They might take actions this time
to exchange the Crown Prince.
So that is
the negligence of the guards Han and Huang.
They failed to protect you
and let you leave the room,
being kidnapped by the bandits.
Indeed, it was my dereliction of duty.
Please forgive me, Your Majesty.
Han Shen, is this really the case?
Your Excellency...
Enough.
Yan Dan has already left Qin.
We will discuss this matter later.
Your Highness, please forgive me
for my offense.
That's your duty.
Never mind.
Your Majesty.
Regarding the follow-up pursuit of the Crown Prince Dan...
I feel a bit tired now.
Let's discuss this matter later.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Your Highness, the journey is still far away.
We may arrive in the state of Wei soon.
Let's take a break here.
Please have some.
Mr. Jing.
Mr. Jing.
Please have some.
No need, sir.
I'd like to take a walk around.
You guys rest here.
The journey from Hangu Pass to Ji City still takes about a month.
I hope senior can escort the Crown Prince Dan
to return safely to the state of Yan.
When did you come?
Why didn't I notice?
I walked in openly.
But you were too focused on things
to notice me.
You have repeatedly become the target of enemies.
Do you know how much I'm worried I'm about you?
If I had known that Yan Dan's illness was a trap,
I would never let you go.
If those bandits
take you away,
even if I exhaust the military power of Qin,
I'll kill them all.
You're thinking too much.
Not everyone loves me.
Do you mean
I have a unique taste
that I like you?
Luckily,
you have returned safely.
I have a gift
for you.
What is it?
Don't...
I know you don't like
those vulgar corals and pearls.
What I want to give you
is unique in this world.
What?
I have decided to bring Tianming back to the palace.
Really?
He can come back?
I know you have gone through all the tribulations,
and Tianming can comfort you
the most.
That's really great.
Over the past three years,
I have only seen Tianming a few times before.
Every time I saw him,
I felt he has grown a lot.
I'm really worried that
he wouldn't recognize me anymore.
Tianming.
You said you wanted to have meals with me,
but you don't eat now.
What are you thinking about?
Father,
do you know what freedom means?
Freedom
is to do whatever you want
and have whatever you want.
Father, are you free now?
Tianming.
After I unify the world
to cease all the wars,
as the kings,
we will have the greatest freedom.
Really?
Will it be freer
than the birds in the sky?
Of course.
Although birds can fly freely,
they are making a lot of effort
for food.
And they have many natural enemies.
They are not free at all.
What natural enemies?
Big birds are waiting to eat little birds.
And cats also want to eat birds.
They're threatened every day.
So they aren't free.
I don't want to be feared by others.
I want to play with
them happily.
You will have freedom if you scare them.
Don't you want to be free anymore?
It's okay.
You still don't understand my expectations for you.
You really dote on Tianming.
Tianming is a good child,
also a lucky child.
He lives in a beloved environment since childhood,
different from me.
Your Majesty.
Yan Dan and I
were hostages in a foreign state when we were young.
Actually, I understand his thoughts.
I hope to make them fear me.
In this way,
I can protect those I want.
He must be thinking
one day
he gains power,
he would make all those who have belittled him
and shown mercy to him
dare not underestimate him anymore.
So,
so I would rather to scare them
instead of receiving pity from them.
This is the true freedom.
Come over here.
Please forgive us.
After reading for a while,
I ate so many oranges.
You all didn't care about me?
Now I have
tooth pain and abdominal pain.
Why didn't you stop me?
Please forgive us.
Your Highness, I have something to report.
It's a good thing.
You all leave now.
Yes, Your Highness.
Good thing?
I've been plagued by bad luck.
What good things can happen?
The good things of others are my bad things.
Now, although it's someone else's good thing,
it may also become
your happy thing.
Tell me.
The internal agents of the hospital said
a concubine obtained a prescription for keeping fetus.
It has been several months now.
A consort is pregnant?
Who?
Senior Palace Woman Han.
Senior Palace Woman Han?
It's impossible.
His Majesty hasn't gone to her palace lately.
She was sent
to serve Mr. Han Fei before.
She must be pregnant
with Mr. Han Fei's child.
What does it have to do with me?
Your Highness,
let me explain.
Although His Majesty annoys that
Mr. Han Fei died in the prison.
But people outside the palace are not aware of it.
They all think that Mr. Han Fei was a rebellious minister to Qin.
So even if Senior Palace Woman Han understands
His Majesty may not force her to abort the child,
her pregnancy
cannot be made public either.
Since this child can't be made public,
no one will care
if he is dead or not.
Right?
What do you mean?
You can take
this opportunity
to pretend to be pregnant.
By then, take her child
as your own
and send her out of the palace
and marry her into a good family.
Isn't this matter settled?
I'm pregnant?
Senior Palace Woman Han's been pregnant for about four months now.
From now on,
you pretend to have been pregnant for about two months.
It was conceived before being demoted by His Majesty.
Make it like a premature birth by then.
As long as the baby is healthy,
no one will care about his weight.
Moreover,
you may take advantage of this opportunity
to reacquire the favor of His Majesty.
Isn't it a good thing?
Let me think about it.
It's indeed a great idea.
You're smart now.
I try my best
to help you, Your Highness.
Okay.
If this is successful
and I can return to the Zhaode Palace,
I'll definitely reward you heavily.
Thank you, Your Highness.
I heard that you're keeping indoors
for recuperation.
So I came specifically to see you.
I'm sorry for
misunderstanding you last time.
I brought some supplements specifically.
Didn't you think before that
I framed you up?
Why did you suddenly show goodwill today?
You know my temper.
I was frustrated that I was demoted,
so I spoke something harsh to you.
Don't take it to heart.
Later, I calmed down and thought about it.
That's just an agreement I made with Commandant of Justice.
It has nothing to do with you.
In this case,
it's really unfair
to shift the blame to you.
As a matter of fact,
we are both
foreign concubines far away from home.
We may be concerned about our motherlands,
we are concubines of the king.
So, whatever happened,
we need to help each other and live in harmony, right?
Yes.
These supplements
are for nourishing Qi and blood,
especially helpful for preventing miscarriage.
To be honest,
in the years since entering the palace,
I also want to give birth to children for His Majesty as soon as possible.
So I often take this decoction.
Just treat it as a supplement.
It won't do any harm to your health.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Okay. Then take a rest.
I have to go.
Enough. Just stay here.
Remember to take them.
What does she want to do?
She hated you before.
Why did she bring tonic again today?
She must have known about my pregnancy
and came to demonstrate her authority.
But she should also know that
you're not pregnant with the heir of His Majesty.
What exactly is she up to?
I don't understand either.
Maybe it's because
she can't conceive for years,
and she has changed her personality?
She can't bear other concubines' pregnancy.
Have you forgotten what she did to Gracious Lady Jiang?
She won't
change easily.
She must have some evil purposes
so she shows kindness to me.
What should we do with this tonic?
Who knows if it's poisonous or not?
Throw it away.
Do it secretly.
Yes.
Baby, your dad died before you were born.
I just hope your life
won't be as hard as your dad's.
Your Highness,
you have good pulse and you're healthy.
Please don't worry.
But I've been feeling
dizzy, nauseous, and drowsy recently.
Didn't you find anything?
I did carefully examine it.
No abnormalities found.
If you do have these symptoms,
I'll prescribe some Qingxin Pills for you.
You can have a try.
Dr. Lu,
you still haven't understood what I mean.
I have been feeling
dizzy, nauseous, and drowsy recently.
Did you really not
find anything from my pulse?
Please forgive me for my dullness.
I don't understand what you mean.
This was specially prepared for you.
Please accept it.
If you accept it,
it means that you have discovered
Her Highness is pregnant.
Your Highness,
false reporting of pregnancy is a great crime of deceiving the king.
I dare not do it at all.
Just do as I say.
Come to check my pulse once per month later
and prescribe medication me.
I'll naturally have a child by then.
Dr. Lu, don't forget what you did before.
Don't forget
how much gold I gave you
for that tea to make Gracious Lady Jing have a miscarriage.
Also, your families in your hometown
now are
taken care of
by the guides of Chu.
I,
I understand.
I'll do as you order.
Very good.
Greetings, Your Highness.
Stand up.
Thanks for making time to meet me.
I made them ask you to come, because it's inconvenient for me to go out.
You're pregnant?
It's Mr. Han Fei's child.
Your Highness, I dare not beg for much,
but I still want to try.
Can you plead with His Majesty on my behalf
to let me give birth to this child?
Now only you can help me.
Please help me.
Mind your body.
Your Majesty, I have something to tell you.
What's it?
Senior Palace Woman Han
is pregnant
with Mr. Han Fei's child.
What?
How long has it been?
I went to see her today.
It is around four or five months old.
It was conceived before Mr. Han Fei was imprisoned.
This child's fate is really bumpy.
His father died before he was born.
Senior Palace Woman Han originally
planned to hide it from everyone.
But a while ago, she didn't feel well
and asked the doctors to regulate and stabilize the pregnancy.
Seeing that she couldn't hide it anymore,
she specifically asked me to plead with you for mercy.
Mercy?
Although you vent your anger on
Gracious Lady Chu and Commandant of Justice due to Mr. Han Fei's death.
But people outside the palace
hold that Mr. Han Fei was a traitor to Qin
and was killed in prison.
In name, Senior Palace Woman Han is still your consort,
but she is pregnant with a child of a rebellious minister.
In no means
can this be made public.
She is afraid that I'll order
to abort her child, right?
Forgive me for my offense.
If we think alike,
I think
we owe Mr. Han Fei
a lot.
Yeah.
We owe him
a lot.
I'll leave
this matter to you.
Tell her not to worry.
Thanks for your mercy.
But the relationship between Qin and Han
becomes subtle somewhat because of Mr. Han Fei's death.
You need to handle her pregnancy carefully.
Don't let others find fault with you because of it.
I know.
Your Majesty.
Gracious Lady Chu entrusted someone to deliver a message here,
hoping you can visit her.
What's wrong with her again?
She even dares to ask me to visit her?
It's said that
she's already pregnant.
She's also pregnant?
Is there another pregnant concubine?
Go ahead.
It's said that she has been pregnant for nearly three months.
The doctors diagnosed it recently.
They used to think it was due to physical discomfort.
Three months?
Before I convicted her.
Your Majesty,
she is still your concubine
and the princess from the state of Chu.
She is noble.
She would give birth to
a prince for the Qin and Chu royal families.
But
the matter of Crown Prince Dan of Yan
is really bothering me.
I don't want to see her.
Zhao Gao.
Present what should be prepared to her.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Ruo is also pregnant?
Your Highness, upon hearing that you are pregnant,
His Majesty specially ordered me to bring precious medicinal herbs
to you.
Thank you.
Shangyi, take them.
Where is His Majesty?
Why doesn't he come?
He has been busy with state affairs recently.
I'm afraid he can't make time.
But hearing that you're pregnant,
he immediately ordered me to visit you.
He still cares about you.
But how come
you get pregnant suddenly?
I can't even
tell anything different from your appearance.
I've been healthy
since childhood.
So naturally, you can't see anything.
But now, I just feel...
Your Highness.
Your Highness.
Your Highness.
Your Highness.
Are you feeling better now?
Still a bit nauseous.
Your Highness, take care.
I'll report to His Majesty.
Thank you.
I'm leaving now.
Farewell, Your Excellency.
Your Highness,
he might believe us now.
Who knows?
He's cunning.
But I'm not like
being pregnant.
Make a fake belly for me.
I have to be more professional.
Okay.
Did I act well just now?
Harder.
Is it like that?
Your Majesty.
Recently, generals Wang Jian and Yang Duanhe
launched an attack on Zhao again.
Unexpectedly, they were defeated by Li Mu again.
I think
we must defeat Li Mu first to conquer Zhao.
I hope all the officials can brainstorm
and recommend strategists from various states.
To defeat Li Mu is the primary priority of Qin.
Even Wang Jian
and Yang Duanhe cannot defeat Li Mu.
What kind of genius is he?
Will my great cause of reunification
be frustrated by he?
Your Majesty.
The cavalry led by Li Mu is agile in action.
Qin's war carriages are ineffective in front of them.
Before finding a way out to eliminate Li Mu,
should we
temporarily refrain from confronting Zhao
to accumulate the strength?
That's actually what I think.
Meng Wu.
I'm here.
Order Wang Jian
to retreat troops from Zhao's territory
to keep our strength.
Wait until
the time is right.
Yes, Your Majesty.
You are wise, Your Majesty.
Actually, I heard before
today's king of Zhao and his mother
are always at odds with Li Mu
because Li Mu opposed
the former king to make her the queen and depose the former crown prince Jia.
I think the current situation
may be due to that our army is pushing them too hard.
So Zhao had to transfer Li Mu from its northern border.
If our offensive slows down slightly,
the king of Zhao will relax.
Then it may be the best time to separate them.
I have indeed
considered it recently.
If you have any suitable candidates,
recommend them.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Anything else?
Your Majesty, I have something to report.
Go ahead.
Crown Prince Dan of Yan betrayed Qin and fled away,
which is a major crime of treason.
I wonder
if Qin should
send troops to pursue him
to pacify the public opinion.
Your Majesty,
I think this is up to you.
There's no need for others to raise their voices.
Commander of Justice, Yan Dan has been a hostage in Qin for many years.
He used to be close to His Majesty.
Although he escaped from Qin and betrayed His Majesty,
if Qin sends troops to pursue a hostage,
I'm afraid
it can't pacify
the public opinion by then.
I'll order the Central Regular Attendant to buy the guards.
Someone will pick you up outside the palace
and help you leave Qin.
Thank you
for your great kindness.
Given your condition,
you're not suitable for a long journey.
But seeing you so concerned about your family,
I can't force you to stay.
You have to be careful along the way.
I heard from other palace maids that
Senior Palace Woman Han is dead.
What? She's dead?
She was killed.
Her death was terrifying.
Both of them were killed.
Who on earth killed her?
You killed Gracious Lady Jing
and Senior Palace Woman Han.
You don't even cast a glance at
those who are useless to you.
Why do you care about
the matter of Senior Palace Woman Han so much?
Did she tell His Majesty
that you poisoned
Mr. Han Fei?
Actually, after entering the palace, I also saw it through.
I won't harm others unless they harm me.
I just want to
raise Tianming up safely.
I don't need anything else.
Do you need me then?
That's obvious.