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[Karen]
We are currently at the Emperor’s study where everyone who is anyone is in attendance to see Censor Lai essentially bring people to trial for corruption.
But before Censor Lai can kick things off, Fan Xian opts to start with a loud proclamation that he is reporting Chen Ping Ping for corruption. This comes as a surprise to folks in attendance but if you recall, this was actually suggested by Chen Ping Ping in order for Fan Xian to gain more credibility in his quest to root out corruption. If Fan Xian didn’t report Chen Ping Ping for the lavish gifts he gave to Wan’Er, then court would just assume that Fan Xian’s corruption report which implicates the 2nd prince is just one of factions fighting each other, not actually about corruption.
Interestingly, this little side report is basically glossed over. The lavish gifts that Chen Ping Ping gave to Wan’er? Gifts from the Emperor that he then gave as gifts himself. His giant manor that is way above his means? Gifted to him to live in temporarily by the Emperor. This means that Chen Ping Ping has done nothing wrong and everything he’s ever done is known by the Emperor. However, it does its job of establishing Fan Xian as someone willing to report his superior for “justice”.
Censor Lai now takes the stage. He wants to attack Fan Xian and Fan Jian for Fan Si Zhe’s involvement in Bao Yue Lou but then the Chancellor diverts the conversation to the murders at Bao Yue Lou which then points arrows at the 2nd prince since Fan Wu Jiu was captured at the scene. In front of the entire court, the 2nd prince kneels and quickly places all the blame on Fan Wu Jiu. Censor Lai isn’t willing to give up this easily and quickly exposes the fact that the 2nd prince and the Princess Royal embezzled significant funds in their business dealings with the Qi kingdom which is likely used for bribing members at court. This creates a murmur in the audience. But interestingly, when Censor Lai requests a new investigation on the 2nd prince and his embezzling with the Princess Royal, the Emperor actually denies the request. He says there’s not enough evidence of this to open a case. When the Emperor says this, you can see that Fan Xian is seething and the Crown Prince as well as Chen Ping Ping are a little disappointed. Unfortunately, Fan Wu Jiu has taken poison in prison and is now dead so there are no additional leads anyways to investigate against the 2nd prince. The Emperor sentences the 2nd prince to 6 months under house arrest and Fan Xian and Fan Jian lose their salary for half a year.
[Cathy]
Honestly, these are rather light punishments for opening up a brothel and having several people die. It seems like the Emperor isn’t willing to kick the hornets nest and wants to just resolve this little showdown quickly. However, Lai Ming Cheng isn’t willing to finish his attacks just yet. He next turns his ire on Chen Ping Ping and the entire Overwatch Council. Lai Ming Cheng wants Chen Ping Ping to retire and many of the duties of the Overwatch Council to be syphoned over to the various ministries. He thinks the Overwatch Council and Chen Ping Ping have too much power.
At this point, Fan Xian’s mouth is agape at the audacity, or rather, bravery of Lai Ming Cheng, to be so blatantly against such a powerful person like Chen Ping Ping. No one really says anything but are looking down, as if almost embarrassed. The Emperor is once again not entertaining the idea of putting Chen Ping Ping on trial and tries to dismiss the audience but Lai Ming Cheng stops him for a 3rd time. The last person Lai Ming Cheng wants to bring to trial is none other than the Emperor himself for creating an environment where there is unchecked power and corruption.
Chaos erupts in the audience as other court ministers all yell at Lai Ming Cheng for his insubordination. I mean, yea, it takes guts to stand up and call out the EMPEROR for his poor actions. People are now all screaming at each other as people place themselves into 2 camps – those who support Lai Ming Cheng and those who do not.
[Karen]
In an effort to quell the chaos, the Crown Prince actually steps forward. Well, he pinches himself in order to cause himself to tear up and he starts scream crying in the midst of the chaos which immediately shuts everyone else up as they watch what he’s up to. Whatever he says, the point is to put on a show to calm everyone down and to diffuse the situation. He does indeed do that and there is order back in the study. Fan Xian and Fan Jian step forth to ask for forgiveness on behalf of Lai Ming Cheng. The Emperor asks for thoughts from other key members of court like the Chancellor who all say that though Lai Ming Cheng is confused and showing insubordination, but by grace of the Emperor, he should not take what Lai Ming Cheng says to heart.
The Emperor gives his verdict. At first, he is rather complimentary of Lai Ming Cheng, saying that Lai Ming Cheng is doing the work required of a censor. He will actually reward Lai Ming Cheng. But what kind of reward should he give? I think Chen Ping Ping actually knew this was not going to go well for Lai Ming Cheng because he offers the expensive jewels that Fan Xian used to report him earlier. The point there is that if the Emperor accepts to give Lai Ming Cheng those expensive jewels, then Lai Ming Cheng will be safe. It’s just money after all. But the Emperor wasn’t taking the bait. He has another punishment in mind. He asks the audience what do censors really want. They want to leave their name in history. So how will Lai Ming Cheng be remembered in history?
Caning.
The Prime Minister tries to step in to say that this would not be a good look in the history books but the Emperor does not care. He’s fine with the negative portrayal in the history books since he is giving what Lai Ming Cheng truly wants.
With that, Lai Ming Cheng is dragged off. Fan Xian and everyone else is stunned. Flogging, at Lai Ming Cheng’s age, is equivalent to a death sentence. Fan Xian runs forward and requests leniency for Lai Ming Cheng but that only made matters worse. The Emperor was not pleased with Fan Xian’s request and orders Fan Xian to oversee Lai Ming Cheng’s beating instead. Sadly, soon after Fan XIan arrives at where Lai MIng Cheng is being beaten, the old man dies.
[Cathy]
Fan Xian is utterly traumatized from this swift turn of events. He did not want Lai Ming Cheng to lose his life and underestimated the cruelty of the Emperor. On his way home, in a daze, he is stopped by Chen Ping Ping, who takes him into the Overwatch Council. Inside, Chen Ping Ping explains why Lai Ming Cheng was killed. Many censors had yelled at or impeached the Emperor to no issue. That was not the problem here. This time, Lai Ming Cheng went to find Fan Xian which crossed the Emperor’s boundary. The Overwatch Council is structured to be independent. But Lai Ming Cheng went to find Fan Xian for help on reviewing files from the Overwatch Council. Because of this interaction, it means that members of court are potentially mixing powers. This threatened the independence of the Overwatch Council, which then threatened the foundation of the Qing kingdom.That is why, in the Emperor’s mind, why Lai Ming Cheng needed to die. This was a warning to the rest of court to stay far away from the Overwatch Council. Because Fan Xian was ordered to oversee the punishment, everyone in the Censorate also now hates his guts. As someone who will likely be taking over the Overwatch Council, the Emperor is ensuring that Fan Xian stays independent by removing all chances of him building relationships with the rest of court.
[Karen]
From Chen Ping Ping, Fan Xian learns that the only thing that the Emperor cares about, is his almighty power. When asked point blank whether or not the Emperor cares more about the people or his power, Chen Ping Ping orders Fan Xian to never ask those questions again, which already is an answer. Fan Xian cries his despair of inadvertently causing the death of a loyal man who fought for justice and now is more resolved to walk a different path from the Emperor. The 8 words Chen Ping Ping gifts Fan Xian is 天威难测 圣心如渊. I’ll translate that to The Imperial Wrath is hard to predict, the Imperial Heart is like an abyss.
The episode ends with Fan Xian returning home. Ruo Ruo is now resolved to study medicine so that she can also help her family in time of need. Fan Xian and Ruo Ruo are off creating 哥罗芳 – chloroform. I’m not a chemist and a quick search says Chlorform was originally used during surgeries but had severe health side effects. Outside of that, the saga at Bao Yue Lou ends with Deng Zi Yue offering the women in this brothel their freedom. They can leave the brothel if they wish, or they can stay at work, but just not selling their bodies. Sang Wen opts to stay and this is the last we see of her this season.
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[Cathy]
This was an extremely heavy episode with a smattering of history and pop culture featured in the drama.
The first topic that I want to discuss is 沆瀣一气. Censor Lai uses this idiom at the beginning of the episode when Fan Jian declares that he admits his son should not have opened a brothel but because Fan Si Zhe does not have an official role at court, there shouldn’t be further punishment. Censor Lai responds that everyone at court has relations. If everyone including the relations are allowed to do whatever and abuse their positions at court, they will 沆瀣一气 and destory the reputation of the Qing Kingdom.
沆瀣一气 translated literally means “night vapors and mist merging into one,”. That seems pretty neutral but over the years, the meaning of the idiom has turned extremely negative. Now it essentially means people of similar bad character banding together or “villains colluding with one another.”
The idiom first appeared in Southern Records, Volume wù (《南部新书·戊集》) by Song Dynasty poet Qián Yì 钱易 written in the late 10th early 11th century CE. The Southern Records actually recorded the history and events of the Tang Dynasty. So the original story is that during the Tang Dynasty, around 875 CE, an imperial examination was held in Chang An.
The chief examiner was Cui Hang 沆, a high-ranking official who served as Vice Minister of Rites. Among the candidates was Cui Xie, a talented scholar.The two did not know of each other but coincidentally the phrase 沆瀣 refers to night vapors or mist.
While grading papers, Cui Hang came across Cui Xie’s exam and was so impressed that he praised it repeatedly. During that era, the names weren’t hidden to the examiners. When the results were posted, Cui Xie’s name appeared on the list of those who had passed. According to tradition, successful candidates were considered “disciples” of the examiner and would pay a formal visit to express their gratitude.
Cui Xie did just that and observers made the playful connection with the name 沆瀣 as it’s rare that there’s two individuals with the same last name AND a name that coincides with a phrase. So people made the remark “The master and the disciple 沆瀣一气!”. There’s two layers to this. Han Xie Yi Qi then refers to – Han and Xie the people together in one breath to reflect how close they are. Then there’s the reference to what 沆瀣 means normally “night vapors and mist merging into one”
In the beginning, neither man was accused of corruption or favoritism. However, rumors began swirling when Cui Xie was soon promoted to an influential post, that his success was due to his connection with the examiner Cui Hang. There are no records of favoritism or corruption but the damage was done with these rumors. Over time, the phrase “沆瀣一气” evolved from a harmless joke into a derogatory phrase referring to people who conspire or collude for personal gain. I personally didn’t know the phrase itself was originally neutral. I’ve only ever seen it used as a derogatory phrase.
[Karen]
The next phrase that I want to discuss is 杀疯了. This translates directly to “gone mad with killing”. Fan Xian states this as he is in awe with Censor Lai literally reprimanding everyone at court from himself Fan Xian, to the Second Prince, to Chen Ping Ping, and finally the Emperor himself.
杀疯了 is now a popular online term to mean – “slay” or “dominate”. This originated from esports where the audience misheard the commentator from “打疯了” or playing crazily to “杀疯了” Since then, 杀疯了 has developed to mean many things but in terms of fandom, is when somebody “slays” or “dominates”. An example is if someone dominates the red carpet with a stunning look, then fans will say this celebrity “sha feng le”. In the context of this drama, Fan Xian uses “sha feng le” to state how stunned he is with Censor Lai’s reprimands. He’s literally “slaying” everyone including the Emperor.
[Cathy]
Well, Censor Lai reprimanding the Emperor severely angers him. The Emperor ominously stands up and applauds Censor Lai and asks the Chancellor what is the life goal or ambition for every Censor. The Chancellor responds with 青史留名. To which, the Emperor agrees.
青史留名 – this phrase means “to have one’s name recorded in history with honor.” I did not not know this but 青史 translated literally is “Green History”and refers to the fact that in ancient times, history was written on bamboo slips or 竹简. In order to use the bamboo, the green skins need to be treated, hence why it is referred to 青史. I’d like to think that if someone’s actions or deeds are SO important, he (mainly he) survived the green bamboos of history.
This idiom first appeared in Yuan Dynasty plays such as Hàotiān Tǎ 《昊天塔》so think 13th century CE. During the Ming Dynasty, the phrase appears in the famous classic Water Margin or 水浒传. The phrase “同心报国，青史留名，有何不美” or “United hearts in the service of country, to have one’s name recorded in history with honor, what could be more glorious” appears in Chapter 71. Since then, the phrase was repeatedly used in Ming and Qing novels up until today. There are different variations of the phrase like 名留青史 or 青史流芳 which essentially ean the same thing. It’s a big trope in dramas and Chinese books and history but Emperors and officials all wanted to be recorded in history in a positive light by the Imperial Censors so the goal is to be an upstanding and benevolent ruler or official. Of course, history and life doesn’t happen this way.
[Karen]
The Emperor, in response to the Chancellor’s suggestion that Censors only want to be recorded in history, immediately responds with 廷杖. He even acknowledges that his reputation will be marred by using this form of punishment but he doesn’t care and poor Censor Lai immediately gets dragged out.
廷杖 Ting Zhang refers to an punishment in imperial China which is the caning of officials in the royal court. The term first appeared in Records of the Later Han (《后汉纪》) and originated during the reign of Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty so 1st Century CE. The practice continued throughout the millenia. It was formalized under the Jin and Yuan dynasties and institutionalized during the Ming. Canings and public canings were common forms of punishment throughout Chinese history. We’ve seen the Emperor in Empresses in the Palace rather dismissively order deaths by caning of servants. We also saw the death of a servant by caning in The Story of Ming Lan. The big difference between normal canings is that this punishment 廷杖 is specifically referred to the punishment for officials.
The canes were basically made from long and thick strips of wood. I mean, we see it in the drama so it’s not a cane like a walking cane. The beatings could be deadly, especially anything over 30 canings.
In the Ming Dynasty, the punishment was carried out by the Jinyiwei (Embroidered-Uniform Guard). Initially, offenders were allowed to keep their clothes on for modesty. However, later in the dynasty, the powerful eunuch Liu Jin 刘瑾 ordered that victims be stripped before punishment, greatly increasing the mortality rate. These beatings were typically carried out at the Meridian Gate (午门) after they imperial decree came down. There were quite a few that were recorded during the Ming Dynasty.
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[Cathy]
Lastly, let’s conclude with book differences. The drama here veers significantly from the book with Fan Xian and Censor Lai barely having any interactions in the book. Censor Lai is not nearly as noble in the book and is easily defeated by Fan Xian in a verbal spat. Fan Xian makes a good point during the initial reprimand asking why is the Censorate focusing on his corruption when the corruption had been there previously. This puts the Censorate on the back foot because it’s true. The Censorate as an institution was prodded by the 2nd Prince to target Fan Xian. Fan Xian retaliates by accepting the bribe and bringing forth the fact that the Censors are now targeting him. The Emperor gets annoyed with Censor Lai for bringing forward such a small case. Afterwards, the Censors then all reprimand the Emperor in which the Emperor then orders all the censors to be caned, not just Censor Lai. They are caned 30 times but no one dies. Fan Xian successfully pleads for their survival and gains some loyalty. Unlike in the drama, at this point in the book, the Emperor does not push Fan Xian to become isolated by everyone at court. Book Fan Xian is not nearly as noble but he rescues the ladies of Bao Yue Lou and the Censors because he wants more allies than enemies. In the drama, Fan Xian tries his best to fight imperial authority.