"He told me when he crawled out from under the bodies he was already a dead man." "He also said" ""In these times, dying is easy." "Living is harder."" "All my men are dead." "Only I survived." "You were lucky." "I played dead." "All my men, more than 1600 Ching soldiers." "We fought the Taiping rebels for three days and nights." "Even our own Ho army did not help us." "They stood by and watched as my men were slaughtered one by one." "No survivors, not even one man." "Only me." "He said he met a woman that day" "and spent the night in a deserted house." "He didn't know if it was the warmth of the soup or the woman that brought him back from the dead." "Where can I find food?" "Try the main square." "He said the first time we met the sky was dark, like his mood." "But I remember clearly it was a bright sunny day." "Free food for anyone who wants to join us." "Eat first, then to work." "Free food!" "Come eat!" "Come and get it!" "Hurry!" "Don't just stand there!" "The food is here!" "You fight well my friend." "Come with me." "I will introduce you to my Big Brother!" "They've returned!" "They are back." "Move along." "We've brought food home!" "Er-Hu is back..." "Big Brother is back!" "The day I brought Pang back to our village" "Big Brother Zhao Er-Hu also returned from a raid." "I thought his success would put him in the right mood to receive my new friend." "Unfortunately, I was wrong." "It's good to be home, tonight we feast!" "Yeah!" "Big Brother Er-Hu!" "Who is the boss?" "Him!" "Share this." "You are the Pang that my brother Jiang is speaking of?" "!" "See that old man over there?" "Before I came here he was the head of the village." "Now I'm in charge." "Jiang says... he likes you." "However, I can't let you stay" "I'm a thief, you're a soldier." "Aren't you?" "Feast with us tonight and be gone tomorrow!" "Why are you alone?" "I ran away from home." "Is that a Yangzhou accent?" "You noticed?" "Have you ever heard of Yangzhou Ponies?" "You mean pretty young girls trained as courtesans for rich men?" "Yes." "When I turned 15 and was about to be sold, my childhood friend came to rescue me." "He accidentally killed someone." "We went into hiding and he became a bandit." "He didn't know you had changed." "He thought he was saving you." "He's a good man." "But you still run away." "Big Brother has a rule:" "to save seats and wine for our dead brothers." "Travel in peace!" "Are you a Commander in the Ching army?" "That's something already in the past." "Why?" "Drink up!" "The Ching ordered my troops and the Ho troops to join forces and attack the Taiping rebels." "But the Ho betrayed us." "We were outnumbered." "All my men perished while Ho did nothing." "There's nothing more important than loyalty between brothers." "Don't you agree?" "Unfortunately, we can't be brothers!" "I drink to you!" "Wu-Yang." "Dinner's here." "OK." "Will all the newcomers be staying?" "Who leaves when there is food!" "Except for Pang, the serious looking one!" "I don't know if he's staying or not." "Pretty, isn't it?" "I took it from a dead man." "Do you know what this is?" "No." "It's to keep you safe." "Was that night real?" "I waited and waited for you there." "I wondered if it was all just a dream." "If you run away, why do you come back?" "I've run away many times always hoping to find something better." "But I always come back." "Why do you come back?" "Stay here!" "Ho." "Give me back my food!" "Stop fighting!" "Stop!" "Stand back!" "Make one more move and I'll shoot!" "I'm old enough to be your grandmother!" "I dare you!" "I swear I'll shoot." "Go ahead!" "Kill me!" "You." "Nobody move!" "Why don't you look at me?" "You thought no one knew you stole all these provisions." "Now I'm giving you a chance to serve your country." "Let's go!" " Does it hurt?" " Yes!" "If only we had guns we could fight." "That's suicide!" "I'd rather die than live like this!" "Bandits always live a dog's life." "Why not join the army?" "Once you're in the army, you'll receive wages to feed your families." "You'll get guns so that no one will bully you." "This village will finally have real peace." "We're bandits, will the Ching army take us?" "Of all the Ching, the Ho army is high and mighty." "General Ho and his men will look down on us." "But Lord Chen's Ching army is desperate for men." "Chen needs to increase his manpower, so the Ho army cannot bully him." "He should welcome us with open arms." "Er-Hu, use this opportunity." "Then today's event will never happen again." "Alright then..." "I'm in." "We're bandits ready to join an army of bandits!" "You deserted the Ching army now you want us to join them?" "Why shall we trust you?" "Take the blood oath!" "To join the brotherhood, we each kill an outsider showing our total loyalty to each other." "Then, only the lives of our brothers are valuable." "The rest are all expendable." "I asked him that day." "There's no turning back." "Are you certain?" "He said nothing." "Why are you killing us?" "!" "Why did we do wrong?" "Why must we die?" "Please let go, please..." "Remember my face." "Take revenge in the next life!" "We, Pang Qing-Yun," "Zhao Er-Hu and Jiang Wu-Yang join the brotherhood today." "We take the blood oath." "We pledge our lives." "Those who bring us harm must die." "A brother who harms another brother must die." "Heaven and earth bear witness and strike dead any man who breaks his oath." "He told me later that he didn't believe in the pledge." "I asked him what he believed in." "He said Er-Hu, and me." "Brother Zhao!" "Shi Jin-Biao... and his men have left." "He said that he would rather die than serve the Ching army." "Where are we going?" "We are going to attack the Taiping Convoy." "He said the fastest way to assure the Ching Minister would accept us was to bring nice gifts." "And the best gift was to attack a Taiping supply convoy." "Ride out!" "Kill them!" "Seize their leader, hurry!" "That day he saved my life and also taught me a lesson:" "sever the head and the body will fall." "Brother Jiang." "Look!" "They are from that man." "They're general's boots!" "Brother Jiang has become a general!" "What are you thinking about?" "Home!" "It was reported that your entire unit died in the battle with the Taiping rebels at Hechuan and you disappeared." "Now you dare return after two months?" "Lord Jiang sent his Ho army to support us in the battle at Hechuan." "But General Ho retreated 30 miles, and they left us to fight by ourselves." "My men were outnumbered and slaughtered on the battlefield." "All your men died and you alone survived?" "I stayed alive just to see you again" "Lord Jiang." "How many men do you have?" "800." "Give me another 800 and I'll capture Shu City within 15 days." "Don't fool with us." "Ten days then!" "I will capture Shu City in ten days!" "Well I can lend you 1,500 of my soldiers but no wages for you or your men." "Hey!" "We don't need wages." "We will keep half the spoils from Shu City." "Commander Pang Qing-Yun, you may name your new army the 'Shan' regiment." "Thank you, my lords." "Under his leadership, we had won our first battle against the Taiping Rebels." "Now we had new Ching Army uniforms." "And we had guns." "We all believed following him was right." "Big brother!" "Old, rusted, they're all useless." "Tomorrow, we'll be facing 200 Taiping rifles." "The odds are against us." "To win, we need a suicide attack." "We must break through their firing line then engage them in hand to hand combat." "Brothers." "Tell him who's the toughest?" "We are!" "The Taipings will be 300 paces in front of us." "Their rifles have a range of 200 paces." "Our arrows can only reach 100 paces." "We'll need 200 brave men to charge straight towards the Taipings." "You will not be able to dodge their rifle fire." "You must use your bodies as shields for our archers running behind you to get within firing range." "We'll lose many brothers." "I'll go!" "Who will go with me?" "Die and your family will receive double your pay" "Live and you will receive triple pay!" "Don't you want to be rich?" "Where are the real men?" "!" "Come on!" "Damn it, count me in!" "Me too, I'm in." "Count me in." "Me too." "Take Shu City!" "Take their money, take their food, take their city!" "Take Shu City!" "Take their money, take their food, take their city!" "You're gambling with 800 lives." "War is always a gamble." "I don't gamble." "My 1500 men are the last of Lord Chen's army." "If I lose them, Lord Chen will be finished at the Imperial Court." "What can I offer you to fight?" "My soldiers are window dressing." "I offer you moral support." "Take this as a chance for real victory." "Otherwise, you'll be forever at the mercy of the Ho army." "You're vastly outnumbered, victory is already ours." "Surrender and your life will be spared." "Kill them!" "Fire!" "Kill!" "Fire!" "Kill!" "Let's go!" "They're dying out there." "Shut up!" "Remember, there can only be one commander on the battlefield!" "Release the arrows!" "Ready." "Blinders on!" "Go!" "He's risking his life to draw me into combat." "Smart man." "He's staying out of this battle." "Go!" "Help Big brother!" "Brother." "Don't pull it out!" "Hold him steady!" "We're really going to die this time!" "We're sworn blood brothers!" "We will die as blood brothers!" "That's right!" "Let's take a few more with us!" "Let's go." "Kill!" "This is madness!" "Eight hundred bandits stopped an army of 5,000." "We will win!" "It's been a long time since our last victory!" "Follow me!" "Attack!" "Wu-Yang!" "Cut them off!" "That day, he said to us," ""You are no longer bandits;" "you have become real soldiers."" "I didn't understand the significance until we entered Shu City." "Move!" "Why am I being arrested?" "What is it?" "!" "Gather the people for a public execution!" "Brother Zhao!" "Brother, what's this about?" "They raped two girls." "They were given three days leave, this kind of thing happens!" "I will not tolerate such conduct under my command!" "It's what all armies do after taking a city!" "We take their food, money and women!" "If we allow this to happen, we're no better than those Ho bastards!" "We're professional soldiers now, not bandits." "We've just killed these girls' families, destroyed their homes." "Now you want to protect them?" "By killing our own?" "Who will risk their lives for you after this!" "They've learned their lesson." "There's no reason for them to lose their heads over this, right?" "Don't just kneel there!" "Say you're sorry!" "Big brother, we were wrong, we'll never dare..." "Big brother, they know they're wrong." "Have mercy." "When I was still a civil servant," "I once watched a soldier beating a poor man on the street until he was covered in blood." "There was no reason for it except the man was poor." "I swore to myself that day when I have power, this would never happen again!" "You became a soldier to be free from oppression." "I'm telling you now:" "not only you but the whole world should be free!" "That's what we're fighting for!" "That day, he finally revealed his vision for the future." "He said he waited all that time because we wouldn't understand." "But I did." "Closes your eyes." "I'll be quick." "Brother Jiang" "What will you tell my mother?" "How I wish I could sacrifice my life for this future of his." "I used to think we have to kill to survive." "Now I see that we also have to kill in order to do good." "I swear to you, the lives of these two boys today will have far greater value tomorrow." "Lord Di." "Pang Qing-Yun must be blessed." "Pang." "Fate has brought us together again." "How fortunate of you to capture Shu City;" "you have made a bright name for yourself." "Pang Qing-Yun." "We'll give you five more units." "How's that?" "In addition," "Lu Da-Shan will be under your command." "Thank you, sir." "Pang Qing-Yun." "An old friend from the Ho army is waiting for you." "General Ho." "Sir." "Greetings, my lords." "General Pang, it's been a long time." "It will be a reunion of old allies, with you leading the attack and him liberating the rear." "Wait." "How do we divide the spoils?" "Lord Di, and Lord Chen, no objections I trust?" "I'm afraid he won't be able keep up." "First, we'll take Suzhou, and then on to Nanking." "What are they laughing at?" "Nanking is the Taiping's stronghold." "If we want Nanking, we must first take Suzhou." "When the war ends, how will they profit?" "They have no intention of attacking Suzhou." "If we attack, they can't stop us." "The Ho army will prevent us from attacking Suzhou and Nanking too soon." "Come on out!" "They've returned!" "You've lost weight." "Brother Pang says, this time we'll only be away for 3 years." "When the war is over, I'll find us a better place to settle down." "Where's Brother Pang?" "He's staying outside the village tonight." "We're heading out first thing in the morning." "Was that night real?" "I waited and waited for you there." "I wondered if it was all just a dream." "If you run away, why do you come back?" "I've run away many times always hoping to find something better." "But I always come back." "We marched hundreds of miles, fought countless battles for 3 long hard years." "It was harsh, but we were happy." "I asked him when the war would finish." "He said, Suzhou was the gateway to the Taiping capital Nanking." "Without taking Suzhou and Nanking, the Taipings will never surrender, and the war will never end." "But we all know the ministers will never let us close to Suzhou." "We're here to relieve you." "Give my men three days of rest and relaxation!" "Let them have a little fun, take their money, take their food, take their women!" "We need to end this war." "Let's take Suzhou!" "Look!" "A lone piece." "You're acting like General Pang and his Shan army." "Too selfish, and arrogant." "He thinks he can take Suzhou with a few thousand men?" "I'm worried for you, Lord Chen." "Without supplies and reinforcements, he's finished!" "There's always a fine line between winning and losing." "If I add the right piece here," "General Pang might be victorious and climb to the top, and then..." "Do you think I would let Pang succeed?" "Leaving him stranded benefits all of us." "Help me." "Suzhou is not winnable." "Both sides will die." "For nothing!" "General Ho and his army are waiting in the wings like vultures!" "How much longer do you want to gamble?" "Are you running away?" "So should you." "When we take Nanking you will regret this!" "I'll sneak into the city and kill Huang!" "All those who tried before, never came back!" "I won't put your life at risk." "Lord Di must give us food and munitions." "But we've defied their orders by attacking Suzhou." "I'm still of some use to them." "Get out of here, quick!" "Quick, quick!" "Quick!" "Here, bring him in!" "They all want to get into the city." "They all believe there's food inside." "The Minister said, please don't return again." "Give me supplies!" "I'll deliver Suzhou to you!" "My men should die from fighting, not from starvation!" "I beg of you!" "Please, go back." "The Minister said, he hadn't heard of a battle in Suzhou." "You better hope I fail to capture Suzhou!" "Doesn't matter how you die, or when you die." "Once this war is over, both the Shan and the Ho armies will be of no value." "The government will disband all of you." "You'd better go back to your men." "At least it's heroic to die on the battlefield." "To the Ho army camp!" "Brother, we shouldn't go to them begging!" "If you don't agree, then go back." "Go!" "This fish was the biggest bully in the pond." "He ate too much, leaving nothing for the others." "I tried to catch him many times but I always failed." "Today, I got lucky." "It wasn't your luck." "It's because today he finally decided to share." "Give me provisions, weapons and ammunition." "I'll make you a very good deal." "I don't need your deal, Suzhou is already mine." "I am talking about Nanking." "My men will do all the fighting and the dying!" "All you have to do is stand behind us." "We will divide Nanking, half for each of us when we enter the city together." "I don't think you want to be controlled by those three old men forever." "The heavens are good to me, sending you to me tonight." "This will keep you safe." "If you don't see a red flare by dawn from inside the city my men will take you to safety." "Tell brother Pang and Wu-Yang that" "Er-Hu wanted to die a hero." "We must capture Nanking first, before Ho and his men arrive to take the credit." "But we only have food for ten days." "So, we must act quickly, capture Suzhou within two days and march on to Nanking." "Brother, have you brought the goods?" "They say we have food in the city, but it looks like we'll start eating each other soon." "So, did you bring it?" "General Pang is back!" "General Pang, the supplies have arrived!" "General Zhao has entered Suzhou city." "He said if we see a red flare by dawn, it means he has succeeded." "I promised my men they would be clothed and fed and could go home within three years." "It's been five years already." "We attack at dawn." "Lian." "I like to study different faces." "But I haven't seen a new one since Suzhou came under siege a year ago." "I hear that the opium courier is a new face," "but I don't use opium anymore." "It only eases the physical pain." "Do you know what it is like to be a prisoner?" "Suzhou has become one big prison." "I can't get out." "You can't get in either." "Unless I let you in." "Do you remember Shi Jin-Biao?" "You joined the Ching army, he joined me." "There are 4,000 starved and crazed soldiers outside these walls." "If you kill me..." "Suzhou will be a city of ghosts." "You'll all die in a blood bath." "I also have 4,000 soldiers." "They'll defend every inch of this city to their last drop of blood." "Stand down." "Please put down your weapons." "Please surrender." "Eleven years ago I sold everything and closed my business" "to join the Taiping rebellion." "From that day on the word #699#699surrender#700#700 no longer existed for me!" "As long as I live the people of Suzhou City" "will never be free." "Spare my soldiers." "Let them go home." "Don't make the civilians suffer." "Travel in peace!" "General, it's past dawn." "Prepare the horses." "Escort Lady Zhao away." "Hurry!" "Er-hu said remember him as a hero." "Get ready!" "Look!" "It's Er-Hu!" "Er-Hu." "Brother Zhao." "Er-Hu..." "Er-Hu!" "Zhao Er-Hu!" "I want to see Zhao Er-Hu!" "We want more bread!" "Are we going to conscript them?" "They will never agree." "There are 4,000 captives." "How much of our food will you give them?" "Brother, let them live." "It was a condition of their surrender!" "The city's granaries are empty, and we only have a 10-day-supply of food." "We must save it for the march to Nanking." "To Nanking?" "Are we attacking Nanking?" "The Ho army decamped yesterday, they will attack Nanking soon." "I can't read!" "Just tell me." "Where did our supplies come from?" "!" " Where?" "!" " The Ho army." "How could you make a deal with General Ho?" "!" "These 4,000 rebels will never join our Ching army." "When we attack Nanking, this place will be left unguarded." "Can you leave the city in their hands?" " Listen to me..." " No, you listen!" "These 4,000 men are enemy soldiers!" "We want more bread!" "More bread!" "Open the stores!" "Give them what they need!" "No!" "Pang Qing-Yun, I was right about you!" "We want bread!" "More bread!" "This bread was meant for our men." "Now you want to give half to these prisoners and then another half to the civilians." "Our men have fought for nine months and starved for nine months." "You tell me." "Who should have this bread, them or us?" "I don't care!" "Give them food now!" "Let them eat." "It's their last meal." "I promised to spare their lives!" "Winning is all that matters in war!" "I will not break my promise!" "Brother." "He's right." "Move!" "He's right." "Get out of the way!" "He's right." "What are you all doing?" "!" "Let me go!" "I will not break my promise!" "Archers!" "Quiet!" "Archers!" "Shoot them!" "Again!" "You can't kill them!" "Again!" "Stop it!" "You can't kill them!" "From that day on Er-Hu never spoke another word to me." "It hurts." "But brother Pang was right." "Let's go home!" "Who's coming with me?" "Er-Hu." "You can't leave!" "We still have to take Nanking." "What for?" "To kill more unarmed people?" "They were Taiping soldiers!" "They had surrendered!" "They were still soldiers!" "Do you remember what you told us?" "You said everyone deserves to be treated fairly." "Even the poor!" "What were you thinking?" "You ordered the massacre of 4,000 poor unarmed men?" "!" "Only the poor have to go to war!" "Which one of us didn't start out poor!" "Those men were soldiers." "Soldiers must be prepared to die." "But the millions in Nanking are just civilians." "If the Ho army reaches them first, they will wish they were dead!" "I need your help to take Nanking." "Please don't leave." "If you go now, it will be mutiny." "Our Shan brothers will turn on each other!" "Think about the consequences!" "Don't force my hand!" "If anyone dares to touch Er-Hu, I will kill him!" "Brother, you must not leave." "If you leave now, our brotherhood is finished." "Forever!" "Er-Hu!" "The Ho army has already left." "We must leave now or we'll be too late." "I promise you, after we take Nanking," "there will be lasting peace." "One day you'll see my decisions here today were correct." "Fine." "I'll be watching you in Nanking." "If you're right, I'll kneel before you." "But if you're wrong, I'll kill you... myself." "Let's go!" "Victory is ours, Nanking is ours!" "Long live the Empress Dowager!" "To our dead brothers!" "Travel in peace!" "Travel in peace!" "We swore an oath of loyalty to our Shan regiment." "As long as there is hunger, oppression and injustice" "our Shan regiment will fight!" "Give out the wages!" "Wang Xiao-Shou, three silvers." "Zhang Wen-Fang, five silvers." "Wang Xiao-San." "Er-Hu, what are you doing?" "!" "The money belongs to the Imperial Ching Treasury!" "We agreed to take Nanking and give half the spoils to our men." "If you won't do it, I will help you!" "You must remember!" "The Shan regiment has only one leader!" "And that's General Pang." "Show him your gratitude!" "Thank you General Pang!" "Thank you General Pang!" "Distribute the wages." "Wang Xiao-San, three silvers four coppers." "Wang Long, four silvers." "Wang Jiao-Shou, three silvers five coppers" "General Ho!" "You helped General Pang to capture Nanking." "Now you're at his mercy." "Sooner or later, I will have to kill him." "You're always a step behind." "The Empress is making him Governor of Nanking and Jiangsu Province." "So what?" "General Ho, even I can't help you this time." "We just need to get Zhao Er-Hu on our side and Pang's downfall is guaranteed!" "Zhao Er-Hu..." "Pang Qing-Yun Jiang Wu-Yang we three brothers are one." "Drink up!" "Heaven and earth be our witnesses" "We take a blood oath, pledge our lives though we were born apart, we will die as one" "Loyalty through good times... and bad times..." "General Zhao." "You did the fighting but another stole the credit." "Aren't you angry?" "About what?" "This opera is about brotherhood." "He's your brother yet he put you in chains forced you to break your promise and made a fool out of you." "We can make him pay." "If we join forces, Nanking can be ours." "Give it some thought, General Zhao." "General Ho is only thinking of your future." "Revenge is sweet!" "Shallow wounds heal quickly but deep wounds fester." "General Zhao, take your time to think it over." "General Ho." "You must be wondering how long it takes to get from the outer gate to here?" "I had the same thought the first time I stood outside the palace gates." "By the time I had come this far my hair had already turned grey." "It took me 30 years." "Now I'm too old to walk." "Li Lianying." "The Empress said your youth is an asset." "You will serve us for a long time." "The Empress also said" "Pang Qing-Yun should be commended for the capture of Nanking." "He will receive the Golden Robes and is appointed Governor of Nanking and Jiangsu Province." "Show your gratitude!" "Your servant Pang Qing-Yun requests that the people of Nanking and Jiangsu be exempt from 3 years of taxes to recover from the war." "Request granted!" "Thank you, Your Highness." "You were responsible for the Suzhou massacre and yet you saved the people of Nanking." "General Pang, you're a very flexible man." "The Empress favours General Pang because he does not belong to any political factions." "Nanking may be yours but you've greatly offended Lord Jiang and General Ho." "Now, without powerful allies how long do you think you'll last?" "General Pang, I checked the lunar calendar." "Noon on the 8th day of the 4th month will be the most auspicious time for your inauguration." "Remember, before you can do good, General Pang, you must look after yourself." "I must leave now." "My Lords." "The unrest has passed, but the local militias have too much power now." "General Pang, the Empress is concerned." "My Shan army will disband." "Good!" "Once you sever your old ties you can devote yourself fully to your duties as Governor." "Your brother Zhao Er-Hu threatened to desert you in Suzhou." "He almost created a mutiny there." "In Nanking, he gave away funds meant for the Royal Treasury." "Does Zhao command your army?" "!" "General, Be careful!" "I have walked on thin ice my whole life." "Do you think I will cross over safely?" "You're awake." "Yes, I am." "Perhaps they're right." "Nanking doesn't need someone like me." "I want to go home." "Will you come with me?" "I don't need this anymore." "What is it?" "Bad news, General!" "General Ho plans to assassinate General Pang!" "It's nothing." "General Zhao." "Big brother!" "General Zhao." "Big brother!" "General Zhao" "Where is he?" "General Pang has not returned from the Imperial Court." "So you've decided?" "Well then." "I will execute your orders." "General Jiang." "General Jiang" "Who are they?" "Guards sent by the Imperial Court." "Cover that table with the red cloth!" "Move these vases to the study." "Hurry then!" " General Jiang." " Do you have guests coming to dinner?" "General Pang has invited General Zhao to dine." "They've reconciled!" "Is Big brother back?" "He should return by the afternoon." "General Zhao, wait a minute!" "Sir." "We received news that" "General Ho has plans to kill General Pang." "He must not return to the city now." "He asked you to meet him in Jiangpu village." "Tell Wu-Yang to bring the others and meet us there." "Wu-Yang?" "Where's Er-Hu?" "He went to see Brother Pang." "You're up to something." "Who are all these new guards?" "You're going to kill Er-Hu." "All because of Lian?" "!" "Have you forgotten our blood oath?" "!" "When will Er-Hu arrive?" "Tell me when!" "Nightfall." "He'll be here by nightfall." "You wait for me!" "You scared me." "Lian, I'm here to say goodbye." "Are you leaving?" "I'm sending you off." "But to where?" "I'm waiting for Er-Hu to come home." "I've just prepared his meal." "Big brother is going to kill Er-Hu over you." "No." "It can't be..." "Come down here!" "I can't." "I have to finish hanging these curtains." "Have you ever seen such beautiful curtains?" "I haven't seen such pretty fabric in years." "I saw the red ones in a shop yesterday, but I also wanted the green ones." "Come down!" "I'll be 29 next year." "I lived through 14 years of war." "I didn't starve to death or get killed." "I've been lucky." "Come down!" "You wouldn't kill me, I won't let you." "It wasn't easy for me to survive." "Why must you kill me?" "If I don't kill you how will I save Er-Hu?" "Can you really save him by killing me?" "I don't know." "But it's all I can do." "No, you won't do it." "Wu-Yang, I know you don't have the heart to kill me." "Anyone who harms our brothers..." "You can't." "You won't kill me." "...must be killed!" "Five years ago 108 men left their village to join the army," "risking their lives for a little food." "They were the first to join our Shan army." "The three of us were their leaders." "Today, I have chosen a good place to free you." "I told you there would come a day when you would see that I was right." "Each year at this time" "I'll drink with you." "I'll tell you what I've done in the past year." "I just returned from the imperial court." "The people of Jiangsu have been spared from taxes for 3 years." "Next year" "I promise no one will go hungry." "Eventually, you'll understand that the 4,000 soldiers in Suzhou didn't die in vain." "And neither did you." "You defied my orders in Suzhou." "I should have killed you then, but I couldn't do it." "But now it's the imperial court that wants you dead." "Ho, you coward!" "What choice do I have?" "My brother Er-Hu." "Travel in peace." "Big Brother, you don't need to kill Er-Hu!" "Brother!" "Lian is dead!" "There's no reason to kill Er-Hu now!" "Brother!" "Lian is already dead." "You don't have to kill Er-Hu!" "The Gods bless this day, joining the ranks of those that went before, a great servant to the Empire, to lead by example and serve his people." "The inauguration of Pang Qing-Yun as Governor of Jiang-Su and Nanking will take place at noon on this day, the 8th day of the 4th month of the year 1870." "A fence needs three pillars." "It just wasn't the same without you here, Lord Jiang!" "It's almost time." "Stop!" "A brother who harms another brother must die!" "A brother who harms another brother must die!" "Your time has come." "Get out of my way!" "A brother who harms another brother must die!" "Wu-Yang." "I beg you, don't fight anymore!" "A brother who harms another brother must die." "Pang Qing-Yun!" "General Pang has real talent but doesn't know how things really work." "Nanking is of vital importance to the peace of the country." "The Empress would never entrust it to an outsider." "Pity." "Such is life." "Noon is here!" "Fire the 21 gun salute!" "Honour our blood oath." "Quick!" "I, Jiang Wu-Yang, confess the killing of Governor Pang Qing-Yun!" "At that moment" "I remembered something he said." ""In these times dying is easy..."