WRITTEN BY HYUGA NATSU
THIS STORY IS A FICTION AND ALL NAMES OF FIGURES AND ORGANIZATIONS ARE FICTITIOUS.
I never intended to let you meet Mother.
I had to pretend you were "a new apothecary."
Father says she was not like this in the past, but,
who knows.
To me, she has always been that kind of woman, ever since I was born.
She bullied my sister, mistreated young maids,
corrupted our female relatives.
Father never says a word.
No, he cannot. He cannot go against her.
He just keeps waiting for her forgiveness.
Once she has a child, she devours the husband.
Like an insect.
No, insects are better,
they do it to ensure their offspring survive.
I do not want to become like her.
Shisui had even taken abortifacients herself.
She refused to become a mother.
To her, there is only one "mother."
But she never wanted to become like Shenmei.
That must be the real reason.
I looked into you a little, Maomao.
Your father is a senior official, and you were raised by a former court physician.
You remind me of Sister.
I do not have a father or a mother.
Only an old man.
Sister used to say something like that too.
Yes. I suppose so.
She probably was never my sister at all.
Father is a tanuki.
Maybe he was plotting something by keeping Sister, who carries imperial blood,
close to him.
So,
Sister has nothing to do with the Shi clan.
Liar.
The way she looked just now, they really are alike.
Shisui adores her sister Suirei.
That's why, even in this situation, she's defending her as irrelevant.
But that logic will not hold.
Suirei has been far too involved in all these incidents.
Hey, Maomao.
If these children were insects,
they might have survived the winter.
If they were insects?
Insects cannot survive winter.
They just leave behind their young.
So that is it.
That is why she brought me here.
Shisui.
Shisui is
not coming back.
Shisui.
She should have run.
Thrown it all away
and escaped with Suirei.
Throw away politics, parents, the clan,
everything.
Even I do not care about other people
I only care about myself.
Do you have any idea what I have been through since being brought here?
And yet.
Why?
Why can I never stop myself from reaching out?
Do not stop me.
I have
a duty of my own.
Does it even mean anything?
It is pride. My pride.
Then throw it away.
Hey, Maomao.
If you had a chance to drink an unknown poison,
just once, what would you do?
I would drink it.
Thought so.
She is leaving.
But I do not know what to say
to stop her!
Shisui!
At least let me make a wish.
A wish?
That is not like you.
Just this once, okay? Just once.
I want it back someday. It's a gift.
Do not ask the impossible. I might just sell it off.
That is fine by me.
The collar, not the hair?
If you put anything more in your hair, it will be too flashy.
Your face and hair are already covered in soot.
You are right, I look like a tanuki.
Thank you, Maomao.
I leave the rest to you.
"I leave the rest to you," huh.
Let us go back a little in time.
Time is of the essence!
Had our departure been delayed any longer,
I might have dragged you here by force!
Father, if one were to raise a hand
against royalty,
would only that person be held accountable?
-Lahan. -Yes?
Did you realize it? That Jinshi and I are the same person.
Yes. Height, weight, chest, waist.
It is rare for all those numbers to match exactly.
Such beauty. It is a pity you are not a woman.
Now then, let us go over the strategy for taking the fortress.
This region is rich in forest resources
and has long been protected by the Shi clan.
Our investigation shows iron goods are being routed to Shishou.
On top of that, there are hot springs in the area,
so sulfur is easy to obtain.
There also appear to be caves from which saltpetre can be extracted.
Sulfur and saltpetre… Combine those and you have gunpowder.
Shishou is likely stockpiling firearms
in preparation for battle.
-Feifa? -Those are ill-suited to siege warfare.
If you want to wipe out enemies from atop the walls.
Cannons, then.
We will likely suffer major losses just approaching the fortress.
How troublesome.
However, it is theoretically possible to suppress them without allowing cannon use.
Even this walking abacus agrees.
So what is the plan?
We strike the gunpowder store first,
before they can use the cannons.
It is a bit of an unorthodox tactic.
I see.
It would be highly cost-effective.
However,
there is an issue.
What issue?
A surprise attack… by the Forbidden Army?
The Forbidden Army,
the army directly under the Emperor.
That means we must carry out this operation with dignity.
I agree with the Grand Commandant,
we must minimize casualties.
Understood.
-Then, Lahan. -Yes.
From now on, you will need to change how you deal with that girl.
I am aware.
Lord Lakan. A report from the scouting unit.
The snow is expected to stop by nightfall.
The operation can proceed.
Have the Fire Squad move out immediately.
Yes, sir!
Wait for me, Maomao.
Papa's coming to save you.
I cannot sleep.
There is still time before the Forbidden Army arrives.
They are deliberately indulging in pleasure in a place where I can hear you.
She has gathered only those women from the clan
who bore children and were seen as virtuous wives and mothers,
just to watch them degrade themselves with male courtesans.
She was not that kind of woman.
Oh, the Forbidden army has not moved yet.
That shock just now.
Oh!
The underground gunpowder workshop?
I must act fast.
Even though I know that, I cannot move.
How pathetic.
I have not had a proper night's sleep in 20 years.
That was when my suffering began.
I have a favor to ask of you.
I want you to take my daughter as your wife.
She was cast out of the Imperial Court as the daughter of a court physician
who had an illicit affair with Taihou,
and she has suffered greatly since.
She should have lived in the Imperial Court
as a proper Imperial princess, lacking for nothing.
I had no desire to marry,
but I couldn't refuse the former emperor's plea as he grew weaker daily.
Shishou, you are my loyal retainer.
If you accept, I will grant you anything you desire.
I had a fiancée, who had entered the rear palace.
If you truly will grant me anything.
I took the former emperor's daughter as my wife, and Suirei was born.
Then my fiancée, Shenmei, came back from the rear palace,
and this is the result.
What was that noise just now?
I am just about to find out.
What are you wearing, Loulan? Such indecency.
I would rather not hear that from you.
You abandon your children and indulge in pleasure.
You have no right to speak.
Loulan?
Is this, really my daughter?
I always thought she was obedient to Shenmei, like a doll,
dressing up however she was told.
Sister, I am sorry I am late.
She is far too practiced for this to be her first time.
I knew Shenmei resented Suirei,
but to think she was beaten like this regularly
while I was away at Imperial Court.
What a failure of a father I am.
Father.
Take responsibility, at least at the end.
Loulan.
You are the old tanuki of Fox Village.
Let us keep up the illusion to the very end.
What! What is this?
An avalanche?
The armory! If that gets buried, we cannot fight!
There is no gunpowder either. I burned it.
Loulan, you!
You knew we could not win this fight.
Father, I will stay with Mother.
Take responsibility, huh?
Yes.
This is my responsibility.
The armory's been buried in snow!
Get more men!
There's no time before the Forbidden Army attacks.
Whoa! Enemy assault!
Forbidden Army? When did they get here?
Fight back!
The enemy is in chaos! Strike all at once!
Do not kill those who have no will to fight. Capture them!
Fewer soldiers than I expected.
It seems many of the frontline troops
moved toward the buildings to deal with the fire.
-We move forward. -Yes, sir!
I can't believe such a reckless plan actually worked.
But even more surprising is that the old man Shishou,
who they used to call a wily old tanuki in court,
is holed up in a place like this.
But more than that,
the real shock was the so-called heavenly maiden of a eunuch,
who turned out to be the commander
of the Forbidden Army.
Some might say this plan does not suit
a royal commanding the Forbidden Army.
But if we want to minimize our casualties,
it was the best course of action.
I made that judgment myself.
I will take the blame for the false strategy!
Seriously, what kind of head comes up with a plan like this,
and what kind of person
actually follows through with it?
Hey, you! What is the situation inside?
We need to put out the fire quickly, or Madame will.
Wait!
-Any advice? -Yes.
Go ahead.
Well, I'll take your word for it.
With all this smoke, we should not stay long.
Let those who are inside also go outside immediately.
I am aware.
But there may be people who cannot escape on their own.
Then we will search for them.
It is not that simple.
I really wish the noble one would stay somewhere safer.
The daughter of Grand Commandant is being held here.
-Here? -Yes.
If we abandon her, a new political enemy will be born, right?
Indeed.
Then I will simply do my duty.
Is that…
No way. It couldn't be.
The Forbidden Army will be here soon.
If I stay, they might think I am one of the Shi Clan.
But still.
I leave the rest to you.
She should have run.
What a fool. But I'm just as bad as Shisui.
At least let it be someone who will listen to me!
Excuse me. Can you grant me protection, Lord Jinshi?
Are you injured? You are bleeding.
No worries, it's not my blood.
That still counts as a problem!
-It is snake blood. -Snake?
I kind of missed this feeling.
-Hey, that-- -Huh?
Crown Prince!
I am not Crown Prince anymore.
Consort Gyokuyou has given birth to the royal heir.
Crown Prince.
So that is Lord Jinshi's true identity.
Things did seem off because he did not match the supposed age
of the Emperor's younger brother, 19, while he himself is 25.
Lord Jinshi, you look older than your age.
-Is Lihaku here? -Yes!
I'll leave the rest to you.
Forgive the question,
but you resemble a Imperial Court girl named Maomao.
It's me.
What are you doing here?
I was kidnapped.
Your father.
Please do not say his name.
Just say "that old man" or something.
Got it.
My bad.
If you say so, I believe it.
Still, what a mess you are. Covered in blood.
It is snake blood.
Please, don't tell me you have any injuries.
That old man pulled his back trying to do something reckless.
Now he can't move.
Was the avalanche and the surprise attack
part of that old man's plan?
Yeah.
Who's sleeping?
Children. But they're not breathing.
Seems like they took poison.
I see.
Even if they survived, the entire clan would be executed.
Women and children alike.
It is unbearable.
Will the executed
be thrown away?
No, they will be cremated and buried.
Then, may I at least have them buried together with their mother?
That's not my job.
Looks like they are just sleeping.
-Hey! Give me a hand here! -Yes.
Sir Lihaku?
We cannot just leave them lying here.
I cannot grant a proper joint burial,
but I can quietly bury him near the cemetery, is what I can do.
Will you not get in trouble?
Who knows? If it comes to that, you figure something out.
I don't know if I can do something about it.
Oh! Got a great idea.
How about you call that old man "Papa"?
Then I might do anything.
Wait, forget I said that!
That flute?
A signal. To mark mission complete.
Now let us go. Getting you out safely
is my job.
I will carry out what Shisui entrusted to me.
That is all.
PREVIEW OF THE NEXT EPISODE
The next episode is "The Shi Clan."
Subtitle translation by: Abhishek Chand Ramola thing out.