Autistic Goblin

During the years of Emperor Jia Jing, Yan Song framed Grand Secretary Xia Ran. Xia Ran was beheaded under false charges. After that Yan Song removed Qiu Cheng, Shen Liang, Yang Qi Zheng and other political enemies. Since then Yan Song and his son have held enormous power in the court.

In the 37th year of Emperor Jia Jing the sea pirates headed by Wang Zhi attacked the coastal cities of the Ming Dynasty. In the same year, the coastal defence map of the Ministry of Defence was stolen. Lu Yi, son of Commander Lu Ting of the Embroidered Uniform Guards, was decreed by the Emperor to investigate.

In Zhao prison *A prison specifically used by the Embroidered Guards* A man dressed in a red robe with gold dragons on it, walks down a hall while the other guards there bow in respect. The hallway is splashed with blood. Eventually the man walks down some stairs into a room where a prisoner is being whipped. The man demands to know what evidence they have to throw him in prison. The prisoner demands to see the Emperor.

The whipping continues though. Meanwhile the man in red (Lu Yi) tosses his sword on the table while he picks out a tool for torture. The prisoner wants to know why Lu Yi had him arrested. When Liu Yi faces the man that’s when his other guards bow in respect and stop whipping the prisoner. The prisoner says that Lu Yi is from the North Town Protection Department, yet he dares to touch the Ministry of Defence? Not only does Lu Yi dare, he shoves a pointy tool right into the prisoner’s hand.

The prisoner wants to know what Lu Yi wants out of him. Lu Yi says that he will give the prisoner a chance to ask him three questions as to why is here. The man says that he won’t ask him any questions which earns him another pointy object in his other hand.

The prisoner changes his mind and decides that he will ask the questions. His first question is if it’s related to the Office of Miscellaneous Affairs of the Ministry of Defence? Li Yu says yes then prompts the prisoner to ask the next question. The prisoner asks if the Office of Miscellaneous Affairs has lost something again? (Really do they do that a lot?) Again Li Yu agrees, so the prisoner asks what was lost. Li Yu says that he would like to know what is missing as well. The prisoner says that’s really funny because he doesn’t know what was stolen.

That gets him to pointy objects in both ankles. The prisoner swears that he really doesn’t know, but Li Yu says that an innocent person wouldn’t know what questions to ask but the prisoner clearly knew it. The prisoner passes out from the pain so a guard brings some water for Li Yu to throw at him. Eventually the prisoner confesses that it was the Coastal Defence Map that was stolen. The prisoner says that the Ministry of Defence suspects that Cao Kun stole the map.

Elsewhere in the city, a couple are sitting down about to eat when Li Dan asks the Cao Ling’er if she loves fish, then says that she should eat more of it. Outside the restaurant Yuan Jin Xia and Yang Yue are outside it looks like they are investigating something. That’s when Yun Jin Xia slides into the spare chair at the couple’s table and tells Yang Yue that the fish is delicious. Li Dan at the table wants to know where she came from, how dare she eat his food.

Li Dan calls for a waiter to kick them out, but Yang Yue shows the waiter a badge and tells him not to interrupt. Yun Jin Xia then orders another six bowls of rice. She then asks the man why did he run and hide? Jin Xia wonders if the man thought he could get away with it because he’s fat. She says that he had her running all around the outskirts of the city everyday that she couldn’t even have a hot meal. Yang Yue just leans against a pillar enjoying the show.

Jin Xia notices that the woman is Cao’s Ling’er. Jin Xia says that it’s such a shame that such a beauty lost so much weight due to fatigue. Li Dan pounds the table with his hand demanding to know who she is. So Jin Xia introduces herself as Six Doors Department Yuan Jin Xia and puts her badge on the table.

The man demands to know why she is looking for them since they are good people. Jin Xia takes out wanted poster for the man. At first he denies that it’s him, he says that the drawing doesn’t look anything like him. Jin Xia says that she thinks the drawing is pretty accurate which is when the man grabs the paper and shoves it in his mouth in a vain attempt to get rid of it. Jin Xia asks if it’s tasty because she has many more of those posters at home.

A fight breaks out between the man and Jin Xia while Yang Yue starts to count to three while tosses something in the air to catch it as he’s bored. He’s keeping an eye out on the action though in case he’s needed. The man manages to knock off Jin Xia’s hat and her hair comes loose, which is when the man realizes that he’s actually fighting a woman. Jin Xia is mad now because she has to re-tie her hair which is something that she actually hates. The man throws a pot at Jin Xia which makes Yang Yue nervous but she manages to dodge it.

Yang Yue decided to throw the chestnut that he had been tossing earlier. The man grabs the woman that he’s with to use her as a human shield because he’s just that scummy. Jin Xia uses a small hand gun to shoot the chestnut so that it breaks apart instead of hitting the woman. Jin Xia then kicks the man which knocks him back a small distance. She then grabs the woman and points out to her that while she had eloped for this guy, just look at how he treats her.

The man takes the opportunity while Jin Xia is talking with the woman to run outside but Yang Yue is hot on his heels. Yang Yue catches up and gives the man a sturdy kick while they are fighting that’s when Jin Xia catches up. She uses Yang Yue as a stepping stool so that she can fly through the air and hit the man hard by landing on top of him.

She then continues to hit him because he ran, she even tugs on the guy’s ears. Yang Yue tells her that next time she shouldn’t just chat with pretty girls but also do her job. Jin Xia says that she’s doing her job quite well.

In Lu Yi’s office, an officer provides him with Cao Kun’s files that he had requested. Lu Yi wonders if Cao Kun’s promotion was mostly because of the recommendation of the Minister of Defence, Xu Lang? That leads the subordinate to ask Lu Yi if suspects that Minister Xu had something to do with the fact at Cao Kun had stolen the coastal defence map.

Li Yu says that Minister Xu just taken over the position so it wouldn’t make sense for him to steal the coastal defence map. Lu Yi says that there is another possibility. He says that Cao Kun could be a spy that’s lurking beside Xu Lang.

We go back to Jin Xia with the scummy man. The man offers her a gold bar that is worth 10 times more than the offered award if she is willing to show him mercy and let them go. Jin Xia just shakes her head, which is when the man offers two more gold bars (total of 3) as a bribe. Jin Xia says that the gold bars could be exchanged for 800 taels of silver. She wonders how the man knew that she was short on money every month. Jin Xia mentions that she could get fired from her job for taking a bribe, it’s not like she could just kill him, could she?

The man then begs for his life. Jin Xia ignores him and goes back to eating the meal that the couple had ordered at the beginning. The man continues to beg for his life at the table. Jin Xia tells the woman that there’s no sense getting mad at herself over a man like that. The man fingers the gold bars but Yang Yue puts them in his pocket out of reach. Jin Xia tells the man that he paid for the meal so he might as well eat, as he won’t get very good food in prison. The man complains because he thought that they had accepted the bribe.

When they are escorting the man out of the restaurant a flare goes up in the sky. This is apparently the signal that there is a new task for them. Jin Xia tells Da Yang (Yang Yue) to take the man back himself, and to take care of Cao Ling’er as well. She then saunters off to get the new task. She yells back at Da Yang to keep the gold bars as well. Poor Da Yang can’t believe that she’s done this to him again.

At the same time, Lu Yi is in his office when he receives a secret report about an incident at the Cao Manor. We then go back to Jin Xia asking her teacher what new case arrived. Her master says that this is the Cao Kun mansion, the director of the Ministry of Defence. He tells her that a fire broke out today in the main room. Unfortunately, Director Cao was in that room and by the time the servants found him, he was already dead.

Jin Xia asks her teacher where the body is now. He says that it’s still in the room. He also that it’s good timing that she arrived since he can now see how much she’s learned so far. With that they both enter the mansion. Jin Xia notes that Cao Kun’s wife is in the room weeping with her servants. Jin Xia pulls back the white sheet that was covering the body. Jin Xia asks the wife if she’s sure that it’s her husband’s body. The wife says that she’s sure, since her husband stayed up late last night for work.

The wife had even sent him some food to keep his strength up before going to her room to rest. The wife says that when she got up, he was already dead. Jin Xia asks for the tools, so that she can begin to examine the body. Jin Xia comes to the conclusion that Cao Kun was murdered. His body is all black (like charcoal) but there’s not black dust in the depths of his nose or mouth. Jin Xia then points out that most humans tend to struggle when being burned however this body was motionless and still despite being charred.

This of course means that the person was dead before the fire started. Jin Xia confirms that the wife sent him food that night, that’s when the wife asks Jin Xia if she suspects her of murdering her husband. Jin Xia says that she hasn’t said anything yet, so why is the wife so nervous? The wife says that she owes her husband a debt of gratitude and that they had deep feelings for each other so she had no reason to kill him. Jin Xia tells her to calm down since they can test for poison with one try. When an officer brings the food over, Jin Xia dips a silver needle in but it comes back clean. (Silver needles will be discoloured if poison is involved.)

Jin Xia continues to examine the body, then uses a tool to dig something out. She asks the wife if Cao Kun had been injured previously. His wife says that Cao Kun had been wounded in the chest by an arrow on the battlefield 10 years ago. Fortunately the arrow had deviated from the heart which is how Cao Kun had survived. The wife says that the doctor tried to take it with too much force, and broke a piece of iron in his body.

The wife says that her husband was lucky because even with a foreign metal in his body, it never seemed to bother him, the story itself became legendary. Jin Xia examines the bit of iron that she had extracted from the body and confirms that it appears to be a piece of the broken arrow. She says that based on the statements of his wife, this body is indeed that of Cao Kun. Jin Xia and her teacher leave the room. Outside her teacher gathers the officials and tells them that the Three Judicial Offices have sent a directive, that whoever takes up the case and catches the murderer will be awarded 15 Taels of silver.

The teacher also says that all expenses will be reimbursed. This leads to some verbal fighting over the case, there’s even some begging for it. The teacher holds the directive in his hands and says that whoever can take it, will have the case. Jin Xia beats up the other officials and has it in her hands when Li Yu shows up and grabs it from her. It happens very quickly so that Jin Xia ends up pointing her gun at him, only to have him kick it out of her hands and point it at her instead. That’s when she notices that it’s the Embroidered Guards.

The Embroidered Guards announce that they are taking over the case and request for everyone else to leave. (Similar to the Federal Government taking over from local police). The teacher quickly introduces himself as Head Constable of the Six Doors Department, Yang Chengwan. He then apologizes for Jin Xia’s behaviour saying that he didn’t teach her well, and asks that she’s not blamed for it.

Lu Yi decides to lower the gun which is when Yang Chengwan tells Jin Xia to hurry up and apologize to Sir Lu. When Jin Xia seems confused her teacher tells her that Lu Yi is the son of the Commander of the Embroidered Guards, he’s also field commander Lu Yi. Jin Xia quickly apologizes and says that she didn’t know it was him. She then says that she’s just a young girl so he won’t blame her right? She then tries to get her small handgun back from him. Lu Yi wonders how a little constable from the Six Doors Department could have a handgun that only those with the rank above, a provincial military governor of the Divine Weapon Division can have?

Yang Chengwan says that it’s a privileged reward for Jin Xia from handling a previous case. Yang Chengwan also says that the weapon has been reported to the Divine Weapon Division. Lu Yi says that he still has a question then he raises the gun. It’s pointing at Jin Xia but at the last second he aims and shoots at a nearby rock. Lu Yi tells head constable Yang that he was just testing the gun and that he shouldn’t be so nervous.

Lu Yi says that his question is, that normally a handgun made by the Divine Weapons Division is usually made according to Yong Le’s 12th year measurement. The shortest would be 12 inches but her handgun is 7 inches and he wants to know why. Yang Chengwan has to prompt Jin Xia to answer as she still had her hands covering her ears from when he fired the shot. Jin Xia tells Lu Yi that she had the gun designed herself and then got someone to make it for her. Lu Yi says that since she designed it herself, it’s no wonder that the handgun’s power is just average. He then asks where Cao Kun’s body is.

Yang Chengwan says that the body is inside, so Lu Yi heads into the room, taking the handgun with him. Jin Xia takes a look at the rock he shot at then calls him a freak before following him and his officers inside. Lu Yi takes a look at the body and then asks if they are sure that the body is Cao Kun. Jin Xia says that she examined the body herself and found his special feature on the body. She says that Madam Cao also confirmed that it was the body. Lu Yi tells his subordinate Cen Fu to take the body back to the North Town Protection Department.

He says that they will do the autopsy again there. Jin Xia is offended and comes up to him to ask if he doubts her assessment. Lu Yi then tells her to show him the special feature that she found. Jin Xia tells him about the story about the arrow then produces the fragment for him. Lu Yi tells her that the fragment’s colour and material belong to a new iron that came out in the past two years. Therefore the man is not Cao Kun.

Lu Yi then tosses the fragment at her, saying that superficial truth doesn’t necessarily mean the true results (burn!) and he leaves the room. Lu Yi then orders Cen Fu to check the Cao Mansion to see if any servants are missing. Jin Xia catches up to him outside and demands to know if that dead body isn’t Cao Kun then where is the real one? Lu Yi tells her that Cao Kun was involved in a case of betrayal and collusion with the enemy.

Lu Yi then tells them all that the North Protection Tower Department is taking over the case. Yang Chengwan says that the Three Judicial Offices have already sent them a directive so it seems inappropriate for Lu Yi to take over the case. Cen Fu reminds the Head Constable Yang that the Six Doors Department has a tight budget and that their manpower is limited. Cen Fu says that they are so poor that they let a weak woman work for them. Cen Fu tells them what’s inappropriate is for them to insist on dealing with such a major case.

Jin Xia doesn’t like Cen Fu and calls him stinky. She wonders why such a handsome guy like him would speak in such a stinky way. Cen Fu is now offended too but before a fight can break out, Li Yu says that he will take the directive from them for now and then report it to His Majesty. Yang Chengwan agrees with that plan then wishes Lu Yi well. Jin Xia however isn’t willing to let him go as he still has her handgun and bullets, she demands that he return both.

Lu Yi says that she had wanted to shoot him and that he hasn’t forgotten that. Jin Xia counters by saying that he scared her too, so they’re even now. Lu Yi says that he doesn’t have to forgive her for it though. So Jin Xia tires a different tactic saying that the Embroidered Guards are His Majesty’s most trusted officers. Jin Xia says that His Majesty loves his subjects as if they were his own children but Lu Yi is so arrogant.

Jin Xia says that Lu Yi is already taking away Cao Kun’s body as well as the directive that she had first. She says that’s fine since she’ll just assume that it means he wants credit for both matters however he can’t take her personal belongings as well. Lu Yi says that if she has the ability to solve the case, then he will give the handgun back to her. That’s when she realizes that he’s looking down on her.

As Li Yu and his guards leave, Jin Xia yells that she will solve the case before he does and make the Embroidered Guards feel ashamed. Once the Embroidered Guards have left, Yang Chengwan tells her that she’s crossed the line this time. Jin Xia says that it was Li Yu that crossed the line by bullying their department.

Later Jin Xia goes to see her mother. Her mother sells bean curd from her cart. When Jin Xia shows up the kids are quick to call her a bastard while throwing cabbages at her and one kid goes so far as to say she was an illegitimate child that was picked up from the streets. That’s when Jin Xia comes over to grab the kid by his ear, making him call out for his mother. Jin Xia dares him to say it again and says that his mother won’t help him. The mother does show up though and the kid is quick to lie saying that she was bullying him.

Jin Xia quickly sets the record straight with what actually happened. However the mom sides with her kid saying that he’s young and doesn’t know any better (how about teaching your kid to be a good human?) and that Jin Xia is an adult that shouldn’t be fighting with children. The mother says that it’s true that Jin Xia is just an orphan that Mrs. Yuan brought back, so no one knows who her parents are, so it’s not wrong to call her a bastard.

Jin Xia’s mother comes over to tell the other mother that children may not know any better an adult should. She says that they see each other in the street all the time. She wonders how the other mother will buy her bean curd from them in the future. Jin Xia’s mother tells the others to go home. The mother and her brat leave quickly. Jin Xia is impressed that her mom can scare them off with only a few words. After that Jin Xia and her mother go home.

Jin Xia and her Mom are eating food when her Mom tells her to wash her clothes as she can smell the sweat from where she’s sitting. Her Mom says that she’s told her daughter before that a constable’s job isn’t for a woman. Her Mom scolds her for not marrying the Baker in East end of the city. Jin Xia tells her Mom that she’s not going to marry that skinny monkey as he’s weaker than her. Her Mom says that Sun family makes peach blossom cakes and their business is booming. She says that they are also expanding, having bought a shop on Xinfeng Bridge street.

Her Mom says that if Jin Xia had followed her advice then she would be a young mistress now. However that man did get married and his young wife is already pregnant so it’s useless to talk about it now. Jin Xia says that she’s not that bad, she’s just not in a hurry to get married yet. Her mom then demands her salary for the month as she wants to keep it for a dowry. Jin Xia says that she doesn’t have any money for her. Her mother thinks that she’s secretly trying to save money.

Her Mom says that Jin Xia is trying to save up money to find her birth parents. Her Mom says that it’s been so many years, hasn’t Jin Xia given up on this dream yet. Her mother says that she’s the one that raised her all these years yet all she can think of is the people that had abandoned her. Her mother scolds her for being heartless. Jin Xia feels bad after making her Mom miserable so she offers some more food and tries to be extra nice.

Lu Yi is checking out the handgun he acquired. Cen Fu comes to report to him that they have looked over the body and confirmed that the person was dead before the body was burned. Also Cao Kun’s only daughter Cao Ling’er left the house with a house guest named Li Dan.

Madam Cao has reported it to the Six Doors Department and Li Dan has now been arrested. Meanwhile Li Yu is still admiring the handgun, he can’t believe that Jin Xia would have the kind of knowledge. He says that the gun barrel is short and it has a short range. Lu Yi tells Cen Fu that this Li Dan is a key figure, they both then leave the room.

Jin Xia was put to working the bean curd cart after dinner. She watches a street performance in between customers. That’s where Yang Yue finds her. She wonders how he knew that she was there, so Yang Yue tells her that her mother told him when he went over there to give her some fish. Jin Xia says that she has watched the “stone smashing on the chest” performance as the person has done it eight times while she has only sold a few bowls of bean curd. She says the man only has to smash it for tonight and he will make more then they do as constables. She wonders why they are working as constables then.

Yang Yue says that it looks like it might hurt though. Jin Xia asks him if he thinks money hurts. Yang Yue says that he seriously came there to tell her that Li Dan has run away. Jin Xia demands to know how Li Dan got away. Yang Yue says that he broke the lock and ran. Jin Xia asks about the guards but Yang Yue says that there weren’t enough people to cover the shift. The guards all went for dinner, in just 10 minutes Li Dan was gone.

That’s when we see Li Dan running for his life only be kicked by Lu Yi which lands him in Jin Xia’s cart. She recognizes him from having to chase him all around the city earlier. Lu Yi asks Li Dan where that person is but Li Dan claims not to know. He’s much more scared of Lu Yi then he was of Jin Xia. Lu Yi orders Li Dan taken back to the prison. Lu Yi goes to leave when Jin Xia stops him saying that he can’t just destroy her cart and leave. Cen Fu gets so offended that he wants to start a fight and Yang Yue is willing to oblige him.

Jin Xia quickly says that a bean curd stand doesn’t cost much, just two taels of silver. If he pays her that then she will get out of his way, otherwise how will she explain it to her mother? Lu Yi tells Cen Fu to pay her and then walks away. Cen Fu is still so mad that he just tosses the money on the ground before following after Lu Yi. Jin Xia calls after them to not forget about their bet. After they left Jin Xia complains about how they finally caught Li Dan just for the Embroidered Guards to take credit.

Jin Xia says that the Embroidered Guards look good but are worthless. (She’s just jealous because they ARE better). Yang Yue says that they have no witnesses now, which puts her at a disadvantage with the bet. He tells Jin Xia that she may have to prepare to admit defeat. Jin Xia says that it’s not her style to admit defeat before she’s even started. She tells Yang Yue not to worry as she definitely won’t admit defeat.

The next day the Emperor and Lu Yi are playing Chuiwan (similar to modern golf) together. Lu Yi got his ball to go in the hole and His Majesty says that in his prime he could get 9/10 holes but now that he plays with Field Commander Lu, he makes a fool out of himself. Lu Yi points out that according to the book on Chuiwan the point of the game is to not be disappointed if you lose, nor to boast when you win which is something His Majesty knows best.

His Majesty says that Lu Yi always knows what to say to leave him speechless. Lu Yi quickly tells him that he’s not that talented and doesn’t deserve the compliment. The Emperor then asks him if he has any clue about the missing file from the Ministry of Defence? Lu Yi apologizes for making The Emperor worry, reporting that he’s investigating it throughly and he should have answers soon. That’s when another older person shows up on the field. It’s clear that Lu Yi hates him as he when he goes to hit the ball, he aims at him, hitting it pretty hard. The ball hits the old guy in the shoulder.

When the old guy gets closer Lu Yi apologizes to Sir Yan for being reckless. Sir Yan notes that Lu Yi is Lu Ting’s son. Sir Yan says that Field Commander Lu isn’t just good at martial arts and literature, he’s also excellent at playing Chuiwan game as well. Sir Yan says that Lu Yi deserves his reputation after all a tiger would not have a dog for a son. Lu Yi says that Sir Yan flatters him as he’s not that talented, His Majesty did his father a favour by letting his son become Field Commander in his place. Lu Yi says that some people are spreading rumours and he asks that Sir Yan not listen to them.

Lu Yi goes on to say that even during a simple game of Chuiwan he showed weakness and can’t compare to His Majesty. Sir Yan says that he’s sure that if it were not for Lu Yi’s exquisite skill then the ball just now wouldn’t have just brushed past him. The Emperor has had enough of this and tells Yan Song, that Field Commander Lu is just a junior and not to bother him. The Emperor says that after all they are all his favourite officials, so don’t let this get in the way of the harmony.

Yan Song tells the Emperor that the Yan and Lu families both work for the court so how could he be mad at Young Master Lu? Lu Yi gets down on one knee and thanks Yan Song for being so generous, he also tells Yan Song that he admires him.

Meanwhile Jin Xia and Yang Yue are trying to sneak into the prison. Jin Xia wonders since when has Yang Yue had an uncle that cooks for the prison. Yang Yue says it’s not that strange as she hasn’t seen his family tree. Jin Xia tells him that it’s no wonder that he likes cooking so much, it’s hereditary. Yang Yue asks her if she’s sure that Li Dan know where Cao Kun is. Jin Xia tells him that he must otherwise the Embroidered Guards wouldn’t bother with him. Once inside the prison though the guards make them split up down separate hallways to distribute the food.

Jin Xia is the one that finds Li Dan, he recognizes her right away. She tells him to be quiet then asks if he knows the location of Cao Kun. Li Dan says that she’s just like Lu Yi asking him strange questions. He admits that he seduced and lured away Cao Kun’s daughter but other than that, he knows nothing. He then asks Jin Xia to let him go. She says she won’t help him unless he tells her about Cao Kun. Finally he decides to tell her.

Li Dan is whispering in her ear when Lu Yi and Cen Fu walk up behind her. That’s when Li Dan backs away from the bars. Lu Yi orders that the prisoner stops receiving food starting tomorrow, then walks down the hall. After they leave, Jin Xia tells Li Dan that she will talk to him again once she’s found Cao Kun then she quickly leaves. Once outside she meets up with Yang Yue, he wonders if she made any progress in the investigation.

Jin Xia tells him that she found out the gold bars that Li Dan tried to bribe them with when they first found him were what Cao Kun had given him. Cao Kun had been withdrawing all his money recently before the fire. Jin Xia says that she took a stroll around his house and found where Li Dan kept his treasure. Yang Yue realizes that means that the elopement of Cao Ling’er and Li Dan was prearranged. Jin Xia praises him for figuring that out as she thought he was only good at cooking.

Apparently Cao Kun meant for Li Dan to take away Cao Ling’er but not the money. He also didn’t expect Li Dan to seduce his daughter either. Yang Yue says that doesn’t make sense because if Cao Kun arranged that then why did he report Li Dan and get him arrested? Jin Xia reminds Yang Yue that he didn’t report it, the woman he married later did. Cao Kun calculated a lot of steps but he missed this one. Li Dan told Jin Xia two places where Cao Kun could be hiding, one inside the city and one on the outside. Jin Xia says that given how much Cao Kun loves his daughter she doubts that he would leave the Capital. So she suggests that they split up to investigate and catch Cao Kun before the Embroidered Guards do. Little does she know that Lu Yi is watching them.

That’s the end of Episode 1! So roll those end credits!