These are our account books.
I'll be returning to Yangzhou soon.
What is it?
Master Jo, you must be tired from your journey.
It's been so long. I hope all is well with you.
Well, luck has been escaping me lately.
That's why I brought some gifts for you.
Gifts?
What do you think? Do you like them?
Where did you catch these two?
I didn't catch them. They found me.
They were lost in the desert.
I saw them buried in the sand.
I knew they were runaways the moment I saw them.
Take them and bury them.
This is the money I promised. Give me Ryu-sa.
I can't.
Don't joke with me.
You promised you'd hand him over to me.
And I even brought you gifts.
I can't hand him over even if I wanted to. He's dead.
What? He's dead? Why is he dead?
I'll give you two other men in Ryu-sa's place.
Master Jo, I'll give you two other men.
I didn't make this long journey to pick up useless men.
I need a skilled martial artist like Ryu-sa.
I'll take those two from Shilla.
What?
You can't. They killed my men, and I lost face.
I have to kill them with my own hands.
If it is true that he killed Ryu-sa.
He's an excellent swordsman. It's a shame to kill him.
Give them to me.
I can't.
This should change your mind.
Why... I like that fire in your eyes.
I'm Yum Moon from the Yi Do-hyung Merchant Group.
Have a seat.
What do you want?
We made a mistake and sent two slaves from Shilla here.
I'm here to take them back.
Since it was our mistake, I'll pay you twice what you paid for them.
You're too late.
Too late?
They killed my men and even tried to escape.
So I went after them and killed them.
MUJINJU, PRESENT-DAY GWANGJU
Hello Madam.
Where is Chief Yang?
I wasn't expecting your visit today.
Let's see your account book.
- But today isn't the... - We must pay our taxes soon.
We must assess all trade records.
Search the place.
Start searching!
It's here.
Take a look.
One hundred silver coins are missing.
Summon all shop owners.
What's going on?
Chief Yang embezzled some money.
How much?
He must be out of his mind.
He must be crazy to do something so reckless.
What did you do with the money?
You'd better tell her the truth.
A few traders from China approached me about a month ago.
I trusted them and gave them a payment in advance.
But they disappeared the day of the trade.
Why did you conduct such a big trade without our permission?
I wanted to pull off a big deal for... Please forgive me.
I'll make up for the money somehow.
He'll be banned from the marketplace.
We'll manage his shop as of today.
Yes, ma'am.
Take him away.
Please forgive me. Please!
Please forgive me.
I banned him from the marketplace today,
but you needn't be intimidated.
In conducting business, you'll come across many situations
where you have to make decisions on your own.
But I have complete faith in you. Please do not betray my trust.
What is it? What happened?
How much did you steal from me?
Not much.
Ten silver coins isn't much?
It's not much for all the work I do for you.
We're family, but business is business.
Yes, business is business.
Why do you drink day and night,
since Goong-bok and Yon were taken to China?
And do you know how much I spent every time you got in trouble?
Cough it up!
Chief Yang was banned over a hundred silver coins.
What will you do if we lose our shop?
I'll pay you back, okay?
He's just started to settle down. Don't nag him like that.
Da-bok, you have no idea what he's put me through.
How much tax do we owe?
Three hundred silver coins.
How is the marketplace doing?
Tell me.
We're making big profits with smuggled goods from China.
But if we continue to depend heavily on smuggled goods,
there's a limit to how much we can grow.
If we're to grow bigger,
we have to stop smuggling, and find a way to
bring in goods from China in a more stable manner.
But we can't supply the marketplace from any legal route.
And the law prohibits us from trading privately with China.
We're forced to smuggle.
What brings you here so suddenly?
I'm here to see the governor.
Please come in.
We came to pay our taxes.
Three hundred silver coins.
You should have sent your men to do the job.
I came to pay you a visit.
And I have something important to discuss with you.
You seem worried. Is anything bothering you?
I heard about the situation before I came here,
but I find that the situation is worse.
I have governed other provinces,
but Mujinju is the worst of them all.
I couldn't even collect tax grains to be sent to the imperial city.
Yet there are signs of uprising everywhere.
I might lose the trust of the minister who sent me here.
There is a way we can both survive.
What do you mean?
Mujinju is surrounded by fertile ground,
but during a poor harvest season,
you can't even collect enough tax grains.
There must be another way if you wish to govern Mujinju peacefully.
What is that?
Dukjin Harbor is a gateway to China.
You could give me authority to trade with China,
and levy a business tax on me.
I've been paying 300 silver coins in taxes annually up till now,
but I could pay as much as 1000 coins if I trade with China.
I agree with you,
but the law prohibits private trading.
If you're willing,
I'm certain we could persuade those at the imperial court.
I'll put in my request with the minister.
Please do what you can.
It's a letter to the minister.
I want you to deliver this letter personally.
Yes.
Merchant groups in the imperial city and Hwangju must never find out.
Be discreet.
Yes.
Open the door. Master is home.
Take them away.
You must be tired from your long trip.
I'm getting too old for this.
That feels much better.
Has everything been well while I was gone?
Yes, master.
Was your trip fruitful?
It was a wasted trip.
Ryu-sa was dead.
But I brought the man who killed him. Test his skills.
Yes, sir.
Untie them.
Give them swords.
Is it true that you killed Ryu-sa?
I must test your skills.
Fight me.
If you win, you'll have a life of comfort from today on.
Come on!
Take them away.
Are you all right?
How are they? Are they of any use?
We found some real gems.
If we polish them well enough, we can pay Master Jin back.
Do you have any idea what this place is?
Why are they doing this? Why are they so good to us?
What do they plan to do after they feed us?
Let's eat.
Goong-bok.
You and I were as good as dead. The time we have now is a bonus.
What is there to fear?
You're right. Nothing will change by worrying.
But that man must be a real expert if he can beat us with only a stick.
Why aren't you sleeping?
Those pirates who caused Father's death...
Madam Jami who sent us here... And Joong-dal...
If I can ever meet them again...
And if I do... what should I do with them?
I have a fire burning inside my heart.
I want to cough it up, but I can't.
I might burn to ashes before I get my revenge at this rate.
Master Jo, it's me, Du-man.
Come in.
Did you get a good night's rest?
- Sit down. - Sit.
Give them some tea.
Drink it.
How is it?
It's the tea that the emperor drinks.
It's worth more than its weight in gold.
I only share this with the people most important to me.
Do you know what this place is?
I don't.
We train gladiators here.
There are many such places in Yangzhou.
We hold a match in front of Jie Du Shi,
and the winner makes big money.
You'll soon be sent to a fight.
If you win, you will live.
If you lose, you'll die.
- Du-man. - Yes, sir.
He was also a gladiator once.
But he became the best gladiator and lived.
You don't have to die if you can become the best gladiator.
You'll drink the tea of the emperor, eat the best food,
and bed beautiful women while you live as a gladiator.
MUJINJU
We've been risking our lives
to secure goods from China all these years.
But there is a limit to how long we can rely on smuggling.
So I've been looking for ways
to bring in goods from China in a more stable manner.
It's a doctrine authorizing us to trade with China.
We've earned the right to trade with China,
and supply the imperial household.
I plan to expand my business throughout Shilla.
In order to expand our business, and trade with China smoothly,
I must know the state of things in China.
I'll lead our merchant group and go to China.
And I need someone who can take charge
and run this important operation.
I'm giving Jung-hwa full authority to head this operation.
The chiefs won't be happy with your decision.
She'll do fine.
We barely have enough time to organize a group
and secure goods to take to China.
We need a hundreds of rolls of fabric
and a hundred sea lion furs.
Chiefs Kim and Park, you're in charge.
We will not take any prohibited items
such as gold and silver ornaments or any other metal items.
Make sure nobody smuggles them out.
Gold and silver ornaments are what bring in money.
Yet you'd only take fabrics that are worthless?
I hear that Arabian merchants buy fabrics from Shilla at a high price.
- What do you plan to buy from China? - I plan to buy thinly woven silks.
Why won't you buy gold-embroidered silks?
Maybe you don't know,
but you can't have enough gold-embroidered silks in stock.
I have been to the imperial city recently.
The empress had a miscarriage.
It will call for a national mourning period.
Gold embroidered silks won't be in demand for the next 3 years.
This is our opportunity to expand our business throughout Shilla.
But our trade rights will be revoked if we handle prohibited items.
Please be cautious.
Maybe I'll reap some benefits from Lady Jung-hwa.
- What are you talking about? - Nothing.
Where is Soon-jong anyway?
- Father! - Da-bok!
- Where have you been? - Father, I'm going to China.
Have you lost your mind? What are you saying?
Madam Jami is hiring traders to work in China.
I know that. But why would you go there?
I can go to China if I'm hired. I'm going to do business in China.
You should come with me.
I hear we can make a lot of money in China.
Don't you know we could lose our lives?
We might die on our trip to China.
I don't need to make a lot of money.
Don't be silly.
Let's go!
I don't know what they're going to test me on.
I need you there to pass the test.
If you don't go... I'm going to die.
- Die? - Yes.
Fine, then die.
Why do you want to go to China?
So I can find Goong-bok and Yon.
They must be dead by now. Don't even think about them.
They're not dead.
I know they're alive somewhere.
You said it was your dream to open a silk shop here.
You can't do that selling dried seafood.
If we're hired, we can trade with China,
and we can even open up a silk shop.
Is it true you can make a lot of money if you're selected?
Each man can bring in ten rolls of silk.
I want to get in any way I can.
That would make it 20 rolls of silk for us.
Let's go.
Have you ever worked as a navigation officer?
Yes, I have been to China with an envoy.
What would you do if you were lost at sea?
I can map a route using the sun's shadow.
- What about at night? - I can read the stars.
Can you read the stars?
No.
I can chart waterways without reading the stars.
How?
I can do it by the smell of the wind and the texture of the water.
That doesn't make any sense. Don't try to pull any tricks.
Can you really tell direction by the smell of the wind?
Yes.
We'll light a torch.
Give the direction of the torch by smell alone.
Yes, sir.
Hire him.
Line up.
You!
Sort out the sickly and the old.
You.
Go home.
Who? Me?
What do you mean? I'm still strong.
Take him away.
Let go of me!
Tae-bong, you can't do this to me.
You need a seasoned businessman like me in the group.
If I select a man who can't survive a long journey,
it will delay the whole group.
So please go home.
Take him away.
Let go of me!
Come here. Cough up all the food you took from my shop.
My lady.
What's going on?
I'm sorting out the weak and the old.
My lady...
He's been working as a government officer in Chunghae for years.
He's familiar with waterways. Take him.
Yes.
You'd better watch it.
My lady.
- What happened? - Father and I are going to China.
I wouldn't be going if it weren't for Lady Jung-hwa.
Those fiends called me old.
Thank you, my lady.
I wish to take Da-bok to China with me.
What?
I'll serve you.
Fine, let's close shop for a few months.
Serve her well.
Yes.
Buy Uhwa wine and sea lion furs. You'll make lots money in China.
Thank you.
In fencing, you can either slash or stab.
Slashing will only wound your opponent.
If you want to take his life, stab him in the vitals.
If his skills exceed yours, stab him in the paralysis points,
then stab him in the death points.
If you want to kill slowly and painfully, employ this method.
But your opponent will be most violent in the moments before death.
Don't forget you could lose your life first.
The best way to survive is to...
Stab them in the vital points.
If you aim perfectly, you can kill a man with a wooden stick.
- Yon. - Yes, sir!
Strike his vital points as you've learned.
- What's keeping you? - But I can't kill my colleague.
Do as you are told!
What's keeping you?
You'd have been dead if you were at a match.
You will be shown no mercy at a match.
If you want to live, you must win no matter who you fight.
We have acquired cinnabar and silk,
but at this late we'll be beaten by Chief Ko's group.
We'll cross Mount Chunma to Yangzhou. Hurry.
Who are you?
I'll spare your lives if you give up the goods.
Get out of the way.
Attack!
What happened to Chae-ryung and Chief Ko?
They have not yet returned.
It is Lady Chae-ryung.
- What happened? - We were attacked by bandits.
- Any damage? - No.
What happened to your security officers?
We couldn't all board a ship.
I left them behind to make it back to Yangzhou on time.
Chief Ko's group has arrived.
I'm sorry we were delayed.
- Your men are safe? - Yes.
Sit down.
Chief Ko will take a merchant group to He'dong this time.
You promised to send the chief who returned first with cinnabar and silk.
A chief is responsible for his group of merchants.
You returned without your security officers.
Your men almost lost their lives because of your decision.
Who'd be responsible for their families if they had died?
You're not qualified to be a chief.
Chief Ko will go to He'dong.
- Chae-ryung. - Yes, Father.
Do you know what accomplishment I'm most proud of?
It is that I taught you business.
I am so proud to see you doing so well
in a fierce world of trading dominated by men.
Do you know what I regret the most?
It is also that I taught you business.
When I see you suffer in harsh environments,
it breaks my heart.
I wanted to take this path.
I don't know how to face your late mother,
when I'm sending you out into such dangerous territory.
Why don't you give up now?
No other women could have seen what I've seen.
I prefer this life to staying cooped up in the inner chambers.
I've caused you worry this time, but it won't happen again.
How did it go?
Sul Pyong sent a group of merchants to He'dong.
Is Master Sul Pyong leading the group?
No, they're led by a chief by the name of Ko.
Get ready.
- Master. - What is it?
- Tell him. - We have a message from Chuzhou.
- Chief Ko has arrived? - His group was attacked by bandits.
We lost all our merchandise.
Are the men safe?
Is Chief Ko safe?
They were all killed.
- Not a single survivor? - No.
But our security officers are the best in Yangzhou.
How could there be no survivors?
How many days do we have?
I'll lead the group myself.
You won't get there in time even if you leave now.
Still I must go.
It's no use.
You must give up this trade.
What brings you here?
Sul Pyong won't be able to send a merchant group to He'dong.
I'll take a group to He'dong.
All right.
Stop!
You're the most gifted warrior slave I have ever seen.
But you're most likely to lose your life in a match.
The skills you have now will only harm you.
Flashy movements are not necessary.
Only learn the skills you need to kill a man.
Yes.
Master.
What is it?
Master Sul Pyong from Yan
What brings you here? Have a seat.
- How is your business? - I need your help.
What is it?
My merchant group was attacked by bandits.
All my security officers were killed and my goods stolen.
I need more security officers for my next trip.
I need a few men from your warrior slaves.
Well... if the price is right... you can take any man you want.
How about him? He's extraordinary with spears.
And he's strong as a bull.
Not bad, is he?
I have trained many warriors, but none better.
He's from Shilla.
I'll take him.
- You can't. - Why not?
I'll give you all the money you want.
I couldn't give him to you even if I wanted to.
- What do you mean? - His match is already set.
He'll fight in front of the Jie Du Shi next month.
But he might be killed.
It would be a shame to let him die that way.
Don't jinx him.
If gladiators fight for their lives,
we who train them have a fight of pride by producing the best gladiator.
But recently, all my gladiators have been lost.
My reputation has sunk to the ground.
He could allow me to save face once again.
Will you hand him over to me once he's done that?
I'll give you 200 silver coins as a pre-payment.
You can keep the money even if he dies in a match.
But if he survives, I'll give you another 200 coins.
Will you hand him over?