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▶ Jinshi : Why did my mother have that look on her face?	(0:01:57.73)
▶ Jinshi : That old man... That old woman... Who were they?	(0:02:13.16)
▶ Jinshi : It's hard to recall...	(0:02:23.95)
▶ Jinshi : What an awful dream.	(0:02:37.07)
▶ Jinshi : Back then, I had no way of knowing who the old man and old woman were.	(0:02:46.84)
▶ Jinshi : They taught me later.	(0:02:52.00)
▶ Jinshi : The old man was my father and the old woman was my grandmother.	(0:02:53.97)
▶ Jinshi : Also...	(0:02:57.47)
▶ Jinshi : They told me that the man I always thought was my father was actually my brother.	(0:02:59.00)
▶ Jinshi : That girl can be very dull in strangely specific instances,	(0:03:07.70)
▶ Jinshi : but she's bound to figure this out soon.	(0:03:10.14)
▶ Jinshi : Or, perhaps she already has...	(0:03:12.71)
▶ Jinshi : That would put me at ease.	(0:03:15.16)
▶ Jinshi : I can't stay quiet about this forever.	(0:03:17.57)
▶ Maomao : The fable of this nation's founding, huh?	(0:03:57.55)
▶ Jinshi : How is it, apothecary?	(0:04:00.51)
▶ Maomao : Careful, Master Jinshi, or they'll see your face.	(0:04:02.08)
▶ Jinshi : Oops.	(0:04:05.02)
▶ Maomao : They're so nicely focused on their studies right now.	(0:04:06.10)
▶ Maomao : The appearance of this creature would steal their attention.	(0:04:08.46)
▶ Maomao : So, there are around twenty students?	(0:04:11.99)
▶ Jinshi : I was hoping we would get more.	(0:04:14.75)
▶ Gaoshun : We started with about ten, so it is increasing.	(0:04:17.37)
▶ Maomao : Well, it sounds about right, I think. That said...	(0:04:20.40)
▶ Maomao : If Master Jinshi's plan works out and more servant girls become literate,	(0:04:24.77)
▶ Maomao : the nature of the rear palace should begin to change.	(0:04:29.50)
▶ Maomao : In fact, Xiaolan is already beginning to read simple stories by herself.	(0:04:32.46)
▶ Gaoshun : Master Jinshi, we must move on.	(0:04:38.56)
▶ Jinshi : Yeah. What about you?	(0:04:40.93)
▶ Maomao : I will stay and observe a bit more.	(0:04:43.85)
▶ Jinshi : I see. If you notice anything, report to me.	(0:04:46.75)
▶ Maomao : Understood.	(0:04:50.29)
▶ Maomao : Xiaolan.	(0:04:52.92)
▶ Xiaolan : Hey! I didn't notice you, Maomao!	(0:04:54.45)
▶ Maomao : How is it? Have you learned a few characters?	(0:04:57.74)
▶ Xiaolan : Oh, only a few! I still have to ask the teacher about some.	(0:05:01.27)
▶ Xiaolan : Come with me, Maomao!	(0:05:05.24)
▶ Maomao : Oh, sure.	(0:05:06.45)
▶ Xiaolan : The teacher is in the building next door. I visit him sometimes to ask questions.	(0:05:07.42)
▶ Maomao : Hmm? Is that an old shrine?	(0:05:12.55)
▶ Xiaolan : Excuse me! Coming in!	(0:05:15.58)
▶ Maomao : It's strangely thin and long, and goes quite deep, it seems.	(0:05:31.14)
▶ Maomao : The distance between the pillars is short. It must be divided up into quite a few rooms.	(0:05:35.54)
▶ Maomao : Yes, it seems like a strangely-shaped building.	(0:05:43.82)
▶ Xiaolan : Is the Mother Royal the first emperor's mother	(0:05:57.70)
▶ Xiaolan : that was in that story from earlier?	(0:05:59.58)
▶ Xiaolan : Wow!	(0:06:25.73)
▶ Maomao : What do you mean?	(0:06:33.46)
▶ Maomao : In other words, there was no need to do the rite of passage to determine the heir.	(0:06:44.21)
▶ Maomao : Did it attract more attention in the past?	(0:06:54.32)
▶ Maomao : Is that Luomen...?	(0:07:08.02)
▶ Maomao : Oops. I didn't mean to...	(0:07:11.32)
▶ Maomao : He's my adopted father.	(0:07:13.84)
▶ Maomao : After he left the rear palace,	(0:07:15.02)
▶ Maomao : he began working as an apothecary in the pleasure district.	(0:07:16.37)
▶ Maomao : I wonder if he got along with my dad?	(0:07:22.20)
▶ Xiaolan : Maomao!	(0:07:26.01)
▶ Xiaolan : Look! I wrote something!	(0:07:27.32)
▶ Maomao : Wow.	(0:07:29.44)
▶ Maomao : There is no poison.	(0:07:33.15)
▶ Maomao : I will take my leave now.	(0:07:36.59)
▶ Emperor : Wait, apothecary.	(0:07:38.16)
▶ Emperor : I'm going somewhere after this, and I want you to accompany me.	(0:07:39.84)
▶ Maomao : Where to?	(0:07:43.40)
▶ Emperor : To the Shrine of Choosing.	(0:07:44.80)
▶ Jinshi : Why are you doing this all of a sudden?	(0:07:48.74)
▶ Maomao : What is he planning to do?	(0:07:51.07)
▶ Maomao : It's the old shrine that I saw today.	(0:07:54.67)
▶ Maomao : And...	(0:07:57.50)
▶ Maomao : Is that the teacher from the school?	(0:07:58.66)
▶ Emperor : May I attempt this again?	(0:08:02.91)
▶ Maomao : What a way to speak to the emperor.	(0:08:10.80)
▶ Emperor : Hmm. I will take these two.	(0:08:15.86)
▶ Jinshi : Huh?	(0:08:18.80)
▶ Maomao : Um, isn't this place off-limits to women?	(0:08:19.55)
▶ Emperor : Well, let's go.	(0:08:27.97)
▶ Maomao : Three doors...?	(0:08:35.54)
▶ Maomao : Do not pass through the red door?	(0:08:38.11)
▶ Maomao : The colors of the doors are blue, red, and green.	(0:08:41.18)
▶ Maomao : So, we should choose blue or green?	(0:08:45.14)
▶ Emperor : Let's go with the blue this time, since I chose green the last time.	(0:08:50.04)
▶ Emperor : Haha, apologies for the trouble.	(0:09:09.70)
▶ Maomao : Three doors again... Green, brown, light blue.	(0:09:13.65)
▶ Maomao : The next one says, ＂Do not enter the brown door.＂	(0:09:17.97)
▶ Emperor : I'll go with green.	(0:09:21.38)
▶ Maomao : So...	(0:09:23.05)
▶ Maomao : Is this going to go on and on like this?	(0:09:26.03)
▶ Maomao : Up and down, going back and turning,	(0:09:35.03)
▶ Maomao : I've lost my sense of direction.	(0:09:38.41)
▶ Maomao : Feels like we're walking around the same place in circles.	(0:09:40.72)
▶ Maomao : Why did the emperor bring me along?	(0:09:44.38)
▶ Maomao : I hope this is over soon...	(0:09:48.45)
▶ Emperor : This is the final door.	(0:09:55.75)
▶ Maomao : The doors are blue, purple, and yellow.	(0:09:58.45)
▶ Maomao : ＂Do not enter the blue door.＂	(0:10:03.16)
▶ Maomao : Also, there's another door that leads into this place.	(0:10:06.44)
▶ Maomao : I guess a separate path converges here.	(0:10:10.22)
▶ Emperor : I've decided.	(0:10:12.96)
▶ Emperor : I choose the yellow.	(0:10:15.19)
▶ Emperor : Please.	(0:10:20.45)
▶ Maomao : A dead end.	(0:10:24.70)
▶ Maomao : ＂Child of royalty, yet not child of the Mother Royal?＂	(0:10:26.84)
▶ Maomao : I have no idea what that means, but it's definitely a rejection of some sort.	(0:10:30.69)
▶ Emperor : Same result as before.	(0:10:34.06)
▶ Maomao : Why is he so serious?	(0:10:41.26)
▶ Emperor : I guess I am incapable of deciphering the will of the heavens.	(0:10:44.08)
▶ Maomao : This old eunuch must have been managing this old shrine	(0:10:59.66)
▶ Maomao : from way before the rear palace was built.	(0:11:03.93)
▶ Maomao : He even accepted castration to become a eunuch so he could remain here...	(0:11:06.61)
▶ Maomao : The emperor followed every direction. He didn't seem to make any mistakes.	(0:11:20.02)
▶ Maomao : Yet he wasn't able to reach the correct answer.	(0:11:25.48)
▶ Maomao : Was there some other intent behind this?	(0:11:28.94)
▶ Maomao : The number of rooms? The color of the doors chosen?	(0:11:31.62)
▶ Maomao : Dad would have...?	(0:11:38.70)
▶ Maomao : Are you saying my adopted father would understand?	(0:11:40.70)
▶ Maomao : It's true that Dad has an astonishing amount of knowledge.	(0:11:46.12)
▶ Maomao : That said, being told that I can't do it is a bit annoying.	(0:11:49.31)
▶ Maomao : Dad's knowledge is exceptionally advanced in the field of medicine.	(0:11:53.41)
▶ Maomao : Is that somehow related to this?	(0:11:57.71)
▶ Maomao : Three doors, three colors.	(0:12:09.04)
▶ Maomao : ＂Child of royalty, yet not child of the Mother Royal.＂	(0:12:12.15)
▶ Maomao : What does that phrase mean?	(0:12:15.71)
▶ Emperor : Do you have any idea what ＂not child of the Mother Royal＂ could mean?	(0:12:23.66)
▶ Maomao : Now that I think about it,	(0:12:28.45)
▶ Maomao : in the foundation story, only the Mother Royal appears, not the father.	(0:12:29.96)
▶ Maomao : One might think, then, that we would	(0:12:37.27)
▶ Maomao : adopt a system that values the maternal bloodline,	(0:12:38.73)
▶ Maomao : yet our nation is based on a paternal hereditary succession system.	(0:12:40.78)
▶ Maomao : Given that, if one were to devise a way to carry on the Mother Royal's bloodline...	(0:12:44.68)
▶ Maomao : Master Jinshi.	(0:12:53.46)
▶ Jinshi : Did you notice something?	(0:12:55.02)
▶ Maomao : Were all the previous emperor's siblings born to the same mother?	(0:12:57.13)
▶ Emperor : Not everyone, but I heard the mothers who gave birth to the princes were sisters.	(0:13:01.02)
▶ Maomao : In other words, they were of close bloodlines.	(0:13:06.65)
▶ Maomao : This may sound rude, but might I speak freely?	(0:13:10.92)
▶ Emperor : I will allow it. Go on.	(0:13:15.37)
▶ Maomao : Did several of the previous emperors have poor eyesight?	(0:13:18.03)
▶ Emperor : I have heard once that many did not possess the best eyesight.	(0:13:26.11)
▶ Emperor : The previous emperor could see perfectly well, though.	(0:13:29.69)
▶ Maomao : I knew it.	(0:13:32.33)
▶ Maomao : Could we go through the shrine again?	(0:13:34.17)
▶ Maomao : Nope, just a servant girl.	(0:13:54.67)
▶ Emperor : Hmm. Well, I could accept her as a concubine.	(0:13:56.56)
▶ Emperor : I'd have trouble convincing Lakan, though.	(0:14:00.38)
▶ Maomao : Surely you jest...	(0:14:03.07)
▶ Jinshi : Surely you jest! There's no telling what the other concubines would think!	(0:14:04.97)
▶ Emperor : That's a good point, as well.	(0:14:09.72)
▶ Emperor : Then maybe you should take her.	(0:14:11.64)
▶ Emperor : Would that be acceptable?	(0:14:15.91)
▶ Emperor : Well, let's go.	(0:14:20.99)
▶ Maomao : He's more playful than usual.	(0:14:23.88)
▶ Maomao : First, the blue, red, and green doors.	(0:14:27.98)
▶ Maomao : ＂Do not pass through the red door.＂	(0:14:32.09)
▶ Jinshi : Which would you choose?	(0:14:34.74)
▶ Maomao : The blue one.	(0:14:36.13)
▶ Maomao : The same one as the emperor, at least for now.	(0:14:37.47)
▶ Jinshi : Next is the green, brown, and light blue.	(0:14:42.27)
▶ Jinshi : ＂Do not pass through the brown door.＂	(0:14:45.81)
▶ Maomao : The light blue door.	(0:14:48.35)
▶ Emperor : Hmm. That's not the one I chose.	(0:14:51.63)
▶ Maomao : I couldn't tell the last time I went through.	(0:14:56.42)
▶ Maomao : If there is a door that only the Mother Royal's children can choose...	(0:14:59.23)
▶ Maomao : The key would be the colors of the doors.	(0:15:03.69)
▶ Maomao : That's the tenth one. White, purple, and green doors...	(0:15:09.87)
▶ Maomao : ＂Choose the red door.＂	(0:15:15.24)
▶ Emperor : Hmm.	(0:15:17.93)
▶ Jinshi : There's no red door. What is this?	(0:15:19.15)
▶ Maomao : The green door.	(0:15:22.83)
▶ Jinshi : Green?	(0:15:25.25)
▶ Maomao : You'll see when we get through.	(0:15:27.54)
▶ Jinshi : This is...	(0:15:32.32)
▶ Maomao : Hey, you provoked me. What's up with this old man?	(0:16:14.89)
▶ Emperor : More importantly, could you explain to me so that I can understand?	(0:16:18.74)
▶ Maomao : And now this old guy's making me do the hard part?!	(0:16:28.91)
▶ Emperor : You heard him.	(0:16:32.72)
▶ Maomao : In the foundation tale,	(0:16:37.52)
▶ Maomao : the Mother Royal is said to have eyes that can see in the darkest of nights.	(0:16:39.28)
▶ Maomao : This means that those who are chosen by this shrine,	(0:16:44.46)
▶ Maomao : who carry the Mother Royal's bloodline,	(0:16:47.07)
▶ Maomao : have eyes that cannot tell colors apart.	(0:16:49.07)
▶ Jinshi : Tell colors apart?	(0:16:52.86)
▶ Emperor : What do you mean?	(0:16:54.91)
▶ Maomao : Let me explain how I chose the doors earlier.	(0:16:56.66)
▶ Maomao : First, there were three doors: blue, red, and green,	(0:17:01.68)
▶ Maomao : with the message, ＂Don't pick the red door.＂	(0:17:05.31)
▶ Maomao : Blue and green should both be correct,	(0:17:08.19)
▶ Maomao : but a child of the Mother Royal would choose the blue one.	(0:17:11.48)
▶ Maomao : This is because they would not be able to differentiate between red and green.	(0:17:14.83)
▶ Maomao : So, they would choose the door that they know for sure is not red.	(0:17:18.38)
▶ Emperor : Cannot differentiate between red and green...	(0:17:21.48)
▶ Maomao : It's rare in our nation, but in the western region,	(0:17:24.66)
▶ Maomao : they say one in ten males are unable to differentiate between red and green.	(0:17:27.71)
▶ Maomao : Since my dad studied abroad in the west, he would have known about this trait.	(0:17:35.90)
▶ Maomao : So, that's what he meant.	(0:17:40.76)
▶ Maomao : The same is true for the next door.	(0:17:43.49)
▶ Maomao : The instruction was to avoid the brown.	(0:17:45.48)
▶ Maomao : If brown and green looked the same to a person,	(0:17:47.87)
▶ Maomao : they'd choose light blue through process of elimination.	(0:17:50.38)
▶ Maomao : For the last door, it said ＂choose red,＂ yet there was no red door.	(0:17:53.24)
▶ Maomao : However, if they could see the white and purple doors,	(0:17:59.43)
▶ Maomao : the person would assume the final door would have to be the red one.	(0:18:04.74)
▶ Maomao : In other words, even though there seemed to be two correct choices,	(0:18:07.87)
▶ Maomao : there was only one truly correct answer.	(0:18:11.61)
▶ Emperor : But if every emperor had such a trait, we would have noticed, wouldn't we?	(0:18:15.36)
▶ Maomao : I heard from my adopted father that even if they can't tell the colors apart,	(0:18:21.60)
▶ Maomao : once they got used to it, they could live mostly normally.	(0:18:25.93)
▶ Maomao : So, it's actually quite hard for others to notice.	(0:18:28.64)
▶ Maomao : Also, they say in exchange for color identification,	(0:18:31.74)
▶ Maomao : these people could see well in the dark.	(0:18:34.59)
▶ Maomao : That could be what later became the legend of the Mother Royal's eyesight.	(0:18:36.84)
▶ Jinshi : So only those who had the same traits as the Mother Royal could pass through here.	(0:18:41.07)
▶ Maomao : I'm sure some have made it through by coincidence.	(0:18:46.57)
▶ Maomao : But the probability of making it through to the last room is very low.	(0:18:50.76)
▶ Maomao : In the story, they say the Mother Royal came from a distant land.	(0:18:55.71)
▶ Maomao : She had a trait where she couldn't differentiate certain colors.	(0:19:01.59)
▶ Maomao : She arrived here from the west with many servants.	(0:19:05.71)
▶ Maomao : Settling into a new land is never easy.	(0:19:10.18)
▶ Maomao : Therefore, she married into the leadership of this land.	(0:19:14.16)
▶ Jinshi : Wait, apothecary. The legend says the Mother Royal never had a husband.	(0:19:18.37)
▶ Maomao : That was the clever decision by the Mother Royal and her family.	(0:19:22.93)
▶ Maomao : It's not rare to accept a wife from a distant land,	(0:19:26.77)
▶ Maomao : to prevent the bloodline from getting too thick.	(0:19:28.64)
▶ Maomao : Even if the Mother Royal is the origin,	(0:19:32.67)
▶ Maomao : the imperial throne is held by paternal succession.	(0:19:34.30)
▶ Maomao : That was probably decided to honor the original leader of this land.	(0:19:37.09)
▶ Maomao : However, the Mother Royal's family didn't want their bloodline to thin out and vanish.	(0:19:41.35)
▶ Maomao : How can one make sure that the Mother Royal's bloodline is maintained?	(0:19:48.91)
▶ Maomao : That's where this Shrine of Choosing comes in.	(0:19:52.46)
▶ Maomao : If no potential heir carries the trait,	(0:19:56.19)
▶ Maomao : a concubine from a related lineage is brought in to accompany them into the shrine.	(0:19:59.02)
▶ Maomao : That's why they added the rule about allowing concubines to enter with the emperor.	(0:20:04.61)
▶ Maomao : That's how they gradually infiltrated the center of the nation.	(0:20:08.41)
▶ Maomao : Deep enough to chase the original leader out of the story	(0:20:13.16)
▶ Maomao : and make the Mother Royal the origin.	(0:20:16.48)
▶ Maomao : When nobody with first-hand knowledge remains, the story becomes the truth.	(0:20:18.96)
▶ Maomao : It was a very peaceful, very deliberate takeover.	(0:20:24.35)
▶ Maomao : Of course, I can't say that out loud.	(0:20:28.74)
▶ Emperor : So, are you saying that I don't carry the blood of the Mother Royal in me?	(0:20:31.86)
▶ Maomao : This shrine is just the most accurate method to find out.	(0:20:36.41)
▶ Maomao : Sometimes, the trait is not passed on from parent to child.	(0:20:40.80)
▶ Maomao : Also, bloodlines that become too thick can cause problems, too.	(0:20:45.17)
▶ Maomao : That could be why the previous emperor's siblings all fell ill in the epidemic.	(0:20:49.08)
▶ Maomao : Little girl?	(0:21:00.83)
▶ Maomao : Huh?	(0:21:14.77)
▶ Maomao : What is this bag of bones talking about?	(0:21:16.61)
▶ Emperor : That would be interesting, but I don't want to anger Lakan.	(0:21:19.20)
▶ Emperor : More importantly, she needs at least 15 centimeters more in the chest.	(0:21:23.40)
▶ Maomao : Whatever.	(0:21:27.42)
▶ Emperor : Yes, I'm aware.	(0:21:35.95)
▶ Jinshi : I know.	(0:21:46.14)
▶ Maomao : Who really is he?	(0:21:57.87)
▶ Maomao : Just ＂the emperor's favorite eunuch?＂ That doesn't seem to add up...	(0:22:00.81)
▶ Maomao : Well, who cares?	(0:22:08.89)
▶ Maomao : Some things are best left unknown. That's how things go.	(0:22:10.91)