The Story of Ming Lan (知否知否应是绿肥红瘦)

The Story of Ming Lan

Episode 49

I told you not to intervene in this matter.

Either way, I will be lenient with the punishment of those brothers of yours.

How come, you just won't listen to my advice?

Even if you want to beg for leniency, you could have just told it to privately.

Why must you talk in front of everyone in the imperial court?

Tell me, should I be giving this imperial grace or not?

If I give it to you, since you've started the trend, and everybody comes to beg me,

how are we still going to investigate this case?

If I don't give it to you, outsiders will say that we're not united.

All our steps would be difficult from now on!

Indeed. You were usually a very sensible person.

How come you've become muddled now.

Quickly kneel and ask for punishment.

May Your Majesty forgive me.

Just to clean the name of my birth mother, Lady Bai,

that her biography and praises be written in our ancestral book,

and to ask for a posthumous title for her, I have no choice but to save my Gu brothers.

May Your Majesty just keep a blind eye on this matter

just for my sake. Please confer me some graces.

If not, this official position of mine

becomes meaningless.

I know that you had a hard past life.

What graces have I not given you?

What I'm angry at is you acting by yourself without regard for others.

Your Majesty, the reason I begged for leniency

in front of all the other high officials in the imperial court

is because I was afraid that you'll be criticized at by them in the future.

If Your Majesty would be lenient to our Gu Clan in private,

I fear that others will say that you're being biased on me.

This is better. In front of everyone,

they saw me pressuring you.

His Majesty then has no choice to agree so as to not lose face.

You are always on the right.

So letting others see how we lose harmony is a good thing?

Your Majesty, as long as you know

that I'm united with you in heart and morality, that's enough.

The opinions of others are not important.

Fine. Fine. Leave now.

This...

Then...about the Gu Family matters...

I've already agreed in front of everyone.

Can I still take it back?

Just this once. No more next time.

Or else, I'll remove you from your post and let you go farm in Yuzhou!

- Thank you, Your Majesty! - Thank you, Royal Father!

I told you that it will word. You won't believe me.

Let's go.

Your Majesty, please don't be mad.

Your Majesty.

When did you arrive?

I was here since earlier and just waiting outside.

Your Majesty, please taste the dish that I've personally made.

I don't have the appetite. You eat it yourself.

Your Majesty, I've worked to make this the whole day.

Just leave it. I'm unable to eat.

Your Majesty, you just took back the jade seal from Empress Dowager.

General Gu indeed is meritorious for suggesting the plan.

But now, he has become so arrogant and despotic.

What more in the future?

What being united in voice and breath? I think

that he's only united in voice and breath with Prince Huan.

Shut up! Get out!

Your Majesty, don't be mad.

Leave! Leave!

Yes.

Your Majesty, calm down! Calm down!

Third Young Master!

Nanny Xiang.

Quickly, get into the carriage.

- Thank you. - Hope your Young Master Gu won't see us again.

Hope your words will come true.

Tingwei!

Mother!

- My son has suffered. - Mother...

Did you get flogged?

Mother, I heard...that eldest brother has died.

Didn't the doctor say that his health has been getting better?

Was it because we were imprisoned,

eldest brother's health worsened out of anger?

Why do you still have time to care about him?

Did you get torture?

Were you starved?

Thank you to Second Brother, I'm quite well.

Brother Bing got mauled, but they've also been released.

The one from the Fifth House has been released with you.

Tingbing from the Fourth House, on the other hand,, got sentenced to be exiled.

Just let the Fourth House fight it out with Second.

Let's not worry about it.

What's there still to fight about?

Second Brother is currently holding great power.

There were so many people who got implicated in this rebellion case.

For me to come out of prison is good karma accumulated by our ancestors.

You're so useless.

This is clearly that Young Lord Qi

going against that Gu Tingye.

You're just sitting in your house,

- but disaster still fell from the sky. - No...

Didn't they say that it was because I took in

those female attendants that were initially bought for the rebel prince?

For such a trifle matter, at most, you could just be punished immediately.

Must it still reach the Ministry of Justice?

Let's go home.

Slowly.

Take this away.

Let's go.

You've now been pardoned.

And your eldest brother is gone.

I must think of a way to go out, move around,

and find you a job.

At home, just focus on your studies.

At this important time, stop going to those places of pleasure to jeer and cause trouble.

You hear me?

Eldest Brother is gone.

- Second Brother must be— - He still must pretend to be grieving.

We've all pretended,

but Second Brother never did.

- Please contain your grief. - Thank you, Young Lord.

I'll take my leave.

That marquis has such deep thinking.

He was indeed a talent.

Too bad, his life was too short.

If he continued to lead his family, then the Gu Clan...

The weather is really good today.

Stop the carriage!

What's wrong?

I want to get down and walk. Walk all the way back to the manor.

I'll accompany you then.

A few days ago, Gu Tingye made a ruckus

in the court meeting to beg for leniency in behalf of the Gu Clan.

His Majesty didn't want to pardon those Gu criminals because he wanted to scare away those who intend to do the same crime.

But with Gu Tingye doing such a scene,

His Majesty has no choice but to give him this favor,

so that he won't lose the loyalty of a man who served him before he was emperor.

But by doing that,

the emperor lost a key moment.

Empress Dowager has one more weakness

of the emperor in her hand.

But the emperor still approved his request in the end,

and swallowed his anger.

So this consoling decree today was so full of hidden meaning.

It sounded something wasn't right.

No wonder Gu Second and his wife didn't attend the funeral.

They might be in anger and fear inside their house now.

This is an argument inside the court meetings.

It's not a business that women should meddle in.

Although His Majesty is angry,

he's only mad at Gu Tingye.

Yes. For matters of the imperial court,

women shouldn't comment.

The weather is really good today.

Let's drink some tea before going back.

Husband still couldn't forget that Big Madam Sheng.

Tormenting the husband of that Big Madam Sheng

to vent my anger will be good too.

Miss. Miss.

Although you've been raised in a luxurious manner,

you actually had a hard life.

Good thing, you were able to have

a capable and filial son like young master.

He was able to earn you a posthumous title!

No one would dare belittle you now.

Belittle your father.

Belittle our Bai Family.

Miss.

I'm also old.

For a major matter like getting scolded by His Majesty,

you didn't even tell me when you got back.

If not because I noticed that there was something wrong with the consoling decree,

you wouldn't have still told me.

The greatest wish of my mother and grandfather in their life was to be rid of the merchant status.

Now that she has been conferred a title, my wish has been fulfilled.

So what if I have offended the emperor?

What?

I did save him and his son's life after all.

I risked my life to save them.

His Majesty and I have a relationship that transcends life and death.

Isn't that enough to earn my mother a conferred title?

Since time immemorial, subjects who became arrogant from being satisfied with his achievement,

usually didn't end up well.

Just be at ease and follow me.

I guarantee that nothing will happen to you.

You really don't fear anyone, even the emperor.

Say, how come a very cautious person like my Second Brother

would be friends with you?

Even if His Majesty can't control me, you can.

Son!

- Husband... - Once you leave, what about me?

Okay already. It's getting late.

If we still don't leave, we won't be able to reach a lodging inn during the night.

Sir...!

Father! That asshole Gu Tingye!

He did this deliberately!

All the other Gu members got pardoned,

but how come I'm the only one sentenced to be exiled?

Isn't it all because our connections are more inferior?

Isn't it because our relationship with their marquis manor is not as good as the Fifth House?

How come only my younger brother got sentenced?

Their Fifth House also had interactions with the rebel prince.