*A few spoilers.*
Big things happening today. I’ll avoid major reveals, but there are a few points I need to spoil in order to talk about the episode.
After baiting the Prince of Western Pacification, the princess claims she had to attack him in “self-defense,” doing the prince a serious injury and throwing the wedding plans into disarray. Wai Siu-bo does his best to smooth things over, but the whole affair makes Ng Sam-kwai suspicious. When the reverend and Or show up to try and assassinate the wicked lord, he’s more convinced than ever that Siu-bo is plotting against him.
I mean, he’s not wrong, but obviously Wai Siu-bo doesn’t want him to know that. In this episode, Ng Sam-kwai gets put on the wrong foot several times, but he also shows how he’s made it this far as a traitor. He’s cunning and ruthless, and on the occasions when he gets deceived, it’s rarely for long. He pulls some tricks of his own here, determined to root out what Siu-bo really knows about his plans.
Meanwhile, the princess is out here causing trouble. Given that she’s not cool with her brother just gifting her to some dude to marry (the son of a traitor, no less!), she’s been looking for a way out of her position for a while, and she thinks she’s found it. However, her actions draw scrutiny on the entire imperial party, which threatens their mission. But even though this screws things up for Wai Siu-bo and the choice she makes is pretty damn twisted, I can’t hate her for it. Again, her brother is trying to marry her off to the son of a traitor, and it’s purely as a decoy! I’d be pissed all the time too.
It's good to see the reverend and Or again. In addition to seeing them in action, which is always fun, we learn a little more about their connection in this episode, as well as a lot of important stuff about Or. There’s an interrogation scene that’s both suspenseful and emotional.
Wai Siu-bo starts out with a decent handle on things, even if he’s exasperated and a little horrified about what the princess has done. But as the episode goes on, he loses his grip on the situation as Ng Sam-kwai takes back the upper hand. We know Siu-bo has a powerful self-preservation streak, but he sometimes overrides that when people he cares about are in trouble, putting himself in danger to try and ensure their safety.
That happens here. When the reverend shows up post-assassination attempt, wounded and tight-lipped, Wai Siu-bo is worried about her and frantic about Or, who’s nowhere to be seen. He’s absolutely steely as he prepares to face Ng Sam-kwai in the hopes of helping her out, but his concern preoccupies him to the point where he falls into a bind. Tony Leung Chiu-wai does a nice job moving between that mix of resolution and panic.
Amid a pretty serious episode, Wai Siu-bo also offers up a bit of levity. In his worries for Or, he insists, “I need my wife to be alive.” When another character offers him a reassurance involving Fong Yee, he exclaims, “Not that one!” Oh, Siu-bo, you’ve come a long way from posing as a palace eunuch!
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