Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty Episode 5 Recap
> Strange Tales of Tang Dynasty Recap
Pei Jian, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, told Su Wuming that he had offended most of the court officials, including the Princess and the Emperor, because of the Chang'an black tea. He expressed no regret, however, as his daughter, Pei Xijun, was the "apple of his eyes," and he would die without regret if it meant saving her. He explicitly requested Su Wuming, being Detective Di's disciple, to ensure Pei Xijun's safety during the upcoming nether marriage.
Su Wuming, who had orchestrated this nether marriage as a trap to capture the criminal mastermind, vowed with his life that Miss Xijun would remain unharmed. Pei Xijun, adorned in wedding attire, prepared for her nether marriage to General Xiao on the Hungry-Ghost Festival.
Believing she would finally reunite with her beloved, she declared her fearlessness, stating that even though the ceremony required passing through the Ghost Market, she would face mountains of knives and seas of fire to be with Xiao forever. Unbeknownst to her, Lu Lingfeng, disguised as General Xiao, accompanied the procession as part of Su Wuming's plan to protect her and capture the culprits.
As the palanquin traveled through the Ghost Market, a sudden gust of wind preceded the appearance of a monstrous beast. The crowd panicked, shouting about a "Tiger Subduing Beast," but Lu Lingfeng quickly realized it was an illusion, as no such creature capable of eating tigers could exist. He ordered the guards to protect the palanquin while he confronted the beast alone.
He successfully broke the illusion, revealing Lady Shiyi, who then engaged him in a swift sword fight before escaping. To everyone's astonishment, Pei Xijun vanished from the palanquin. At Chicken Fed's prompting, Lu Lingfeng ordered a check beneath the palanquin, revealing a hidden passage. He deduced she had been taken through an underground tunnel and prepared to follow. Chicken Fed handed Lu Lingfeng golden armor for protection and insisted on accompanying him into the dangerous, trap-filled passage.
Lu Lingfeng then instructed the other guards, though eager to help, to return. Meanwhile, Su Wuming visited Magistrate Yuan's residence, offering wine and food. Magistrate Yuan initially claimed he wasn't in the mood, but Su Wuming, citing his past experience with Detective Di during the Hungry-Ghost Festival, persuaded him to drink. After several cups, Magistrate Yuan pretended to be overcome by the alcohol and feigned sleep, hoping Su Wuming would leave.
Su Wuming, however, insisted on staying by his side, claiming it was his duty as a subordinate, akin to attending his own teacher. Exasperated, Magistrate Yuan abruptly suggested tea, then splashed a cup of blood on Su Wuming's face, causing him to seemingly collapse. Lady Shiyi then took the unconscious Su Wuming and placed him in a dark river to be fed to fish. Su Wuming later revealed that his fainting was a pretense.
He had long overcome his blood phobia while training with Detective Di, and the earlier feint at Pei Jian's house was merely to save face. He had suspected Magistrate Yuan since former Sheriff Wu Daqi's mysterious death and the disappearance of case files. Magistrate Yuan's subsequent attempts to subtly test Su Wuming about the missing brides and Chang'an black tea only strengthened his suspicion.
He had deliberately kept his suspicions hidden, choosing this moment to fully expose Magistrate Yuan after recognizing the "Immortal Venerable's" distinct voice during the Ghost Market incident. Su Wuming, having freed himself from the dark river where Lady Shiyi had intended to dispose of him, arrived at an underground altar where Pei Xijun was bound. He interrupted the "Immortal Venerable," identifying him as Magistrate Yuan (also known as Yin Shilang) and demanding he remove his Fang Xiang mask.
Magistrate Yuan complied, revealing his face and confirming Su Wuming's accusation that he was the mastermind behind the murders and the "evil tea" that plagued Chang'an. Magistrate Yuan confessed to killing former Sheriff Wu Daqi with an overdose of the "immortal tea" after Wu Daqi, despite his rough demeanor, meticulously traced the missing bride cases back to him. Su Wuming further deduced that the tea given to Wu Daqi was specially enhanced with Western Magic Grass.
Magistrate Yuan targeted brides for their "extreme yin" bodies, draining their blood from their heads to produce the tea, and placing Fang Xiang masks on their faces "to open the way for their souls." Magistrate Yuan affirmed his ambition, stating that within a year, all officials and royalty in Chang'an would be dependent on his Chang'an black tea for their lives, making him the undisputed ruler of the city.
Meanwhile, in the tunnels, Lu Lingfeng and his team were ambushed by five skilled archers dispatched by Lady Shiyi. Guided by Chicken Fed, who had extensively scouted the narrow side passages, Lu Lingfeng devised a strategy: one group created a diversion with makeshift cloth shields, another flanked the enemy, and the rest joined him in a direct assault, successfully eliminating all the archers with only one injury.
They then searched for the hidden entrance to the main lair, believing a massive stone wall at the end of the passage held the key. Magistrate Yuan, now revealed, bitterly recounted his grievances. As a descendant of a former Emperor from a noble family, he had diligently studied for ten years to become an official.
Despite his outstanding governance of the area west of Zhuque Street, his disabled leg was used as an excuse to deny him promotion, leaving him a "Capital County Magistrate" in his fifties while others took credit for his achievements. Unwilling to accept this fate, he created the Chang'an black tea using the blood of innocent people, intending to addict, cause hallucinations, and control officials at all levels to achieve his ultimate ambition of ruling Chang'an.
Suddenly, Lady Shiyi blew a whistle, causing two massive stone statues to shatter and reveal two members of "The Four Ghosts of Youli." Su Wuming immediately recognized them as the four assassins from the Youli Tribe who had attempted to assassinate the Empress during the Yonglong era. They had disappeared from the Chang'an County Prison after their capture, only to be secretly imprisoned and exploited by Magistrate Yuan.
Lu Lingfeng, fearless, reminded the constables that he had already killed two of "The Four Ghosts of Youli" and charged into battle against the remaining two. Despite some injuries among their team during the fierce fight, Chicken Fed provided crucial assistance, enabling Lu Lingfeng to defeat the last two "Four Ghosts of Youli" members. Witnessing the collapse of their forces, Lady Shiyi fled.
Enraged by his defeat, Magistrate Yuan lunged at Pei Xijun, intending to kill her as an act of revenge against her father, but Lu Lingfeng swiftly struck him down with an arrow, fatally wounding him and saving Pei Xijun, who was left in shock. Shortly after, Great General Lu Tong of the Imperial Guards arrived with his troops. He ordered his men to count the dead and take everyone alive for questioning.
Despite Su Wuming's explanations that he and Lu Lingfeng were investigating a criminal case, Lu Tong ordered both Su Wuming, the Sheriff of Chang'an, and Lu Lingfeng, the Imperial Guard Middle Commander, to be imprisoned in the Imperial Prison awaiting trial.
