Written by Funn Lim
What a drama this series is getting on to be, not that I am complaining. But I must say I really admire John Chiang and Moses Chan; no matter what happens, whatever the drama, whatever the sorrow, however momentous the situation, more for John Chiang than Moses anyway, they basically have the same facial expression! It took the deaths of his entire family (well his character's family) to die for Moses to show a real change of facial expression and for John Chiang, a near heart attack or his wife supposedly cheating on him (his character, by the way). Other than that, these two I shall now declare are woods, trees in fact, just different grades. Like an oak tree or a meranti or whatever. Anyway, move on with the summary, exciting stuff...
And so finally Bak Chuen finished that damn wood carving. Mr Kiu complimented him and so Ko Wa had to say she too like it.
Pause here. I forgot to add an important line by Ko Wa in last episode. Remember she scolded him in the garden countless of times? Well one time she said "Fan Chi Chai, do not ever cross a woman, a woman scorned is a woman bent on destroying those who scorned her. I will not make your life easy".
So Ko Wa was still angry but after a while, as she went to the temple to pray, she began to realise she may have acted rashly. She confessed to Buddha "I may have acted rashly. Please show me the way, please enlighten me in this. I know Mr Kiu loves, he treats me well and with respect and I am indebted to him but I feel only gratitude when my heart belongs to another. I married him to get to the man I love and I think I have made a mistake by acting rashly. Please tell me what should I do?" and at the same time Bak Chuen was walking towards another temple when he bumped into the same monk who doesn't seem to have work to do. I mean he is like the only monk and still Bak Chuen seems surprised to see the monk when revealing his face as the monk he knew. Anyway the monk gave Bak Chuen back a letter that was addressed to Ko Wa (in the episode I have missed) and he said "I was away for awhile and when I was back I heard the news. I believe this is no longer relevant?" and Bak Chuen took the letter.
In the temple Bak Chuen confessed to Buddha "I may have made a mistake. I have hurt Mr Kiu and Ko Wa. Please guide me in this. I have pushed Ko Wa into this union but I will not betray Mr Kiu. Please bless Ko Wa and Mr Kiu and may they have a happy union. I am ready to let bygones be bygones, please give me the strength to see things through".
Then he walked towards a high pagoda and he stopped at some furnace or something or whatever. He took out the letter and was about to burn it when Ko Wa was also there and saw him. She angrily said "What are you doing here?" and then she noticed the letter "Why is there a letter addressed to me?" and Bak Chuen tried to burn it but Ko Wa grabbed the letter, tore it open and read it. No music, no sound, no voiceover, she just read the contents, with Bak Chuen looking on woodenly and Ko Wa began to cry. After she finished she looked at him tearfully and said "Why didn't you tell me? Why?" and Bak Chuen said "You wouldn't have read this letter. It was supposed to be delivered to you after my death. I can't involve you in this, I killed a man and he said he will kill all my loved ones. I have seen my family die, I didn't want to involve you in this" and Ko Wa tearfully said "Do you think I am such a coward? I wouldn't care as long as I am with you! If I have to, we can die together! What have I done? What have I done?! I married Mr Kiu because I was spiteful, I wanted to hurt you. But now, I am only hurting myself and Mr Kiu! I have made a terrible terrible mistake!" but Bak Chuen said "What's done been done" but Ko Wa ran after him, held on to him and pleaded "Let us run away! There is still time, we can elope. We can hide, as long as we have one another, it would be all right!" but Bak Chuen refused "No, I will not hurt Mr Kiu. He is my benefactor and if not for him I wouldn't be here today. Ko Wa, what's done been done. It is time to move on. You continue to be your Mrs Kiu, appreciate what you have now and I will go on to be my 3rd taukeh. We have have our roads to travel now and it is best if we let the past go to move forward" and slow mo he walked away and Ko Wa stared at him in tears.
Back at home, Mr Kiu was very attentive when he found out Ko Wa burnt her hand, and her excuse was "It was just an accident" and Ko Wa felt guilty when Mr Kiu treated her well. At the same time Mr Kiu saw Bak Chuen and heard Fu Yi Chek said "Your hand is burnt!" and Bak Chuen said "It was just an accident". But Mr Kiu didn't see the connection between the 2.
Time goes on, and Ko Wa couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, couldn't concentrate and often vomitted. And everytime Bak Chuen was nearby she was even worse and she stopped smiling, except when she had to like entertaining guests. One night Mr Kiu woke up only to see Ko Wa sitting alone and he realised she was crying! It was so bad Mr Kiu confessed to Jun he was worried and Jun paid her a visit but Ko Wa said she was fine.
The once a year event was here again and Mr Kiu asked Yun Tin who should play the title character that Mr Cho always wanted to play and Yun Tin smartly said "Why not father?" but Mr Kiu said "I am old. It is time to give the young ones a chance" and Yun Tin said "I would recommend 3rd taukeh. He had a meteoric rise and his good fortune is good for the company" but Bak Chuen immediately said "Oh no, no I musn't. I am new here and if I am chosen there will only be gossips. I am not of that standing yet" and so Mr Kiu chose Yun Tin who smiled satisfyingly.
Come the New Year, Ko Wa wasn't feeling well so she missed the celebration. Ching wasn't happy but Jun said she was sick so she must be excused. But when prayers Ko Wa had to be there and when she walked past Bak Chuen she was afraid to look at him whilst Bak Chuen looked at the floor. When Bak Chuen walked past her, she stared at him like desperately but couldn't say anything.
Anyway rumours began to circulate that Ko Wa was showing signs of pregnancy.
Not much later, Fu Yi Chek invited his family, that is Mr Kiu and Ko Wa for lunch to celebrate his promotion. Ko Wa was pleasant until Bak Chuen showed up and suddenly she was silent. As they were toasting one another, Ko Wa suddenly felt an urge to vomit. Fu Yi Chek teased her and said "So sister, it must be true then?" and Ko Wa was like what? and Fu Yi Chek said "The rumours. I mean you're not sleeping well, not eating well, always vomitting... the signs of pregnancy!" and Ko Wa was like "Where on earth did you hear that?!" and Bak Chuen was stunned and Mr Kiu was very happy "Now I know why! I didn't even notice the symptoms! You must rest well if you're indeed pregnant. I will call a doctor, let him verify this!" and Ko Wa was like uh-huh and Bak Chuen was like d-uh. Don't know lar, Moses you know can be frustratingly blank in his expression except for the diference of big eyes, small eyes, nostril flaring or no nostril flaring, if not I wouldn't have guessed he was alive.
Jun was excited at the prospect and she happily said "So mother may have been right; that father will have a son like what the fortune teller once told her!". Apparently there was this scene but again yours truly missed it. I would guess Bak Chuen will be that son. Anyway guess who wasn't happy? Not just Bak Chuen remember...
Ching was worried. When Jun wanted to see her and was by the door, she overheard Ching talking to Yun Tin "That witch may be pregnant. If that is the case her son will definitely inherit the business" and Yun Tin said "The all that I have contributed to this business will be for this bastard" but Ching said "It will be many years before father can give him the business. We still have time to change the situation" and Jun could only sigh that her sister and brother in law was so vindictive.
A doctor came, Mr Kiu was very eager as Ko Wa sat on the bed worried she may be pregnant and then the doctor got up and as they walked a bit farther away the doctor said "Mr Kiu, you wife is just tired hence the loss of sleep and loss of appetite. A good rest will be just fine". Mr Kiu was disappointed she wasn't pregnant and looked at Ko Wa but right at that moment when the doctor said what he said and Mr Kiu looked at Ko Wa instead of sadness Ko Wa actually sighed a sigh of relief and in fact smiled a little. Mr Kiu suspected something was wrong.
Then he began to think back at the past events, and somehow he made the connection with Bak Chuen. At night he spoke with Ko Wa and asking her why she was so sad and Ko Wa lied "I missed Madam. I wished I could have given you a son to fulfil her dying wish" but Mr Kiu knew she was lying! By his widening eyes you know he is screaming inside him "YOU LIAR!!! YOU ADULTERESS LIAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" but in John Chiang's case it was more like "youliaryouadulterusliar". Urghhh, what must be done to have him have more than one look???
At the same time Sung Man was having a terrible time. His brother told Sung Man the Emperor was imprisoned by Cixi and she was turning her back in the radical reforms. His brother urged him to return home. Sung Man was reluctant. At the same time Cixi was hunting down rebels actively.
One day Jun and Mr Kiu was walking at the backyard with Master Kwan when someone was by the door and the man was very injured. When he woke up, Mr Kiu asked who he was and he said he was robbed. Mr Kiu immediately exposed him and said said "You're one of the rebels. Don't worry, I am not an official, you can stay whilst you recuperate". Master Kwan and Jun was worried, both for themselves and for that man but Mr Kiu gave instructions to hide that man in the back compound and no servants could enter. Master Kwan nodded but worried of course.
Meanwhile Master Kwan was transporting the rebel when get this!!! The wooden cart got flat tyre!!! Actually the wooden wheel split or something but you know, funny to say tyre puncture. Anyway guess who saw the injured man? Mr Cho and King Yin. Mr Cho suspected it was the rebel! Oohhhhhhhh drama...
Anyway Mr Cho was on his way to talk business with Sung Lai. He did not mention to Sung Lai about what he saw.
One day Sung Man and Jun was walking, their relationship uncertain and Jun was quiet as she usually was when she was worried or unhappy. Then they noticed a stuck kite on the roof and Sung Man volunteered to get it. Up the ladder with Jun rather worried he might fall, Sung Man saw in the backyard Master Kwan with an injured man. Curious he asked Jun who he was and Jun told him everything. "Please do not reveal to others or our family may be arrested" and Sung Man said "I won't. I know when some things are not to be revealed". Jun was reassured.
Back to Mr Kiu and his suspiscions. He indicated to Bak Chuen "Chi Chai, I think Ko Wa is not feeling well these days" and Bak Chuen immediately asked "Is she alright sir?" and Mr Kiu, now more suspiscious said "Maybe you should pay her a visit". But then Bak Chuen told Mr Kiu he wished to be transferred to some branch office for no good reason and Mr Kiu said he would think about it,
And he did visit her, in hiding in some woods and Mr Kiu was standing behind some very tall grass and thin tree (like how can no one not seen him?) and Bak Chuen enquired after Ko Wa and Ko Wa asked "Why must you ask for a transfer? Mr Kiu told me everything. There is no need to run away from me. If anyone should go it should be me" and Bak Chuen was like "You must not think like that. You have a future with Mr Kiu. He treats you well and with respect" but Ko Wa signed heavily "How can I be fine? I am only lying to myself and to Mr Kiu. How can I be happy with a man that I don't love when I know I made a terrible mistake?" and Bak Chuen said "Our past is the past" and right now Mr Kiu was like WHAT? and Ko Wa said "But I can't forget our past! Every night I sleep beside him but my heart is not with him. I can't breath, I can't think, I thought only of you and our past. I can't stand this anymore" and Bak Chuen said "Which is why it is better that I leave. You will have no future with me, after all I am a fugitive" and Mr Kiu now was like WHAT?! and Ko Wa said "How can I ask that of you? You work hard to be where you are, you deserve this, you can't start again at the branch or another bank. I can't let you do that. I will tell Mr Kiu the truth, I will tell him I made a mistake" and Mr Kiu now was like WHAT!!!!! but Bak Chuen said "Don't do that! Please don't. I do not wish to hurt Mr Kiu. I owe him that much. Let us move on with our lives. Let the past be the past" and Ko Wa was like "How can I?" and Bak Chuen just looked like "You just have to".
Pause here. Ko Waaaaa.......oh Ko Waaaaa.... I don't know ... I pity her, I pity Bak Chuen, I pity Mr Kiu. I mean it's her fault also, it's his fault and yet.... don't know how to put in words .. it's messy that's true. But I still pity them all. I am not taking sides.
At home Mr Kiu was alone in his study room and he relived Ko Wa's words and he was getting so angry he spent the entire night writing something. I thought divorce papers but no! He write the heart sutra again and again and again until the morning when he calmed down a little.
He invited Ko Wa for a drink in a restaurant and then Bak Chuen arrived. Both were feeling awkward . Mr Kiu gently asked Bak Chuen "How do I treat you Chi Chai? Have I treated you well, with respect?" and Bak Chuen said "Sir you have treated me very well. I am indebted to you for your kindness" and then he asked Ko Wa "Ko Wa how did I treat you? Have I treated you well?" and Ko Wa answered "Husband, you have treated me and my brother very well" and then he dropped the bomb, "and then why do you feel it is appropriate to lie to me and meet each other secretly?" and both were shocked and Bak Chuen immediatly stood up and confessed "We met only to discuss. Yes Ko Wa and I had a past together but that was in the past" and Ko Wa chimed in "It is not Chi Chai's fault. We met only to talk. Chi Chai and I have separated before we married, it was just a past relationship" and Mr Kiu was raising his voice "So you feel the need to meet behind my back at some forest? I was there! I heard what you said Ko Wa! I heard everything. And you Fan Chi Chai, I have treated you well, I have given you opportunities, not only did you seduce my wife, you were also a fugitive! You could have caused my family much trouble!" and immediately Bak Chuen got down on his knees and said "I know I am wrong sir. I couldn't reveal my past, I meant you or your family no harm. Mrs Kiu and I are only friends, the past is the past" and Ko Wa was terrified more for Chi Chai than herself and Mr Kiu stared at him hard.
Next episode.. what happened?!?!??!! Oh so excited! Anyway Mr Kiu got arrested and Jun confronts Sung Man "Did you tell your brother about the rebel?" and Sung Man silentyly nodded his eyes brimming with tears and he refused to look at Jun and Jun angrily walked away! DRAMA!
So how did Bak Chuen married Jun if Mr Kiu hated him? Bak Chuen must have saved him or maybe Mr Kiu was testing them? He doesn't strike me as someone so unreasonable, so angry.
Anyway tonight's episode is great to watch. I can't decide who to hate because I feel Ko Wa is pitiful although she brought herself into this situation. Bak Chuen is pitiful but he should have had more faith in Ko Wa and in her love for him. Mr Kiu is pitiful but then what would one expect when an old man marries a young wife? For no good reason the girl one day wants to marry you, it must be
1. she needs money
2. she just got dumped and Mr Kiu was the float.
Whilst many had complained the love story as draggy, I don't think so. I think it was nice to show Ko Wa regretting her actions even before she read the letter and Bak Chuen seemingly moving on but then feels shocked and hurt when he thought she was pregnant. If that was stretched any further, yes it could be draggy but not in this situation that Bak Chuen was in the moment his entire family died.
But did he know Mr Lam died because someone else killed him? I wonder...
Anyway the story with Ko Wa and Bak Chuen is interesting but Sung Man and Jun seems to be not moving on. Maybe that is the feeling the writer wants to convey; they seem stuck. So to unstuck something huge, a betrayal must happen. I just don't think Sung Man betrayed Mr Kiu. He is idealistic but he is not stupid.
As more and more is on Bak Chuen and Ko Wa, the less and less on Jun and Sung Man. Not that I am complaining. I can't stand two lovelorn lovers broken apart by circumstances. One at a time would be just nice.
Mr Cho made a comeback tonight but same look, same expression.
Give this series the award "Same Look Throughout" please! Even the weather is the same. ONE YEAR HAS PASSED, no FOUR YEARS HAVE PASSED and it is still bloody winter!! What is this? Alaska? No summer? No autumn? No spring? Is this the winter of our discontent type of situation? Oh please move on from the winter.
And then the acting with the guys is almost the same as the non-moving winter.
John Chiang... wood. One time I saw he had some expression was the Mongolian branch incident, here towards the end with the accusations at Bak Chuen and Ko Wa. The rest of the time? Same. Smile, no smile, angry or sad, same. The only difference to indicate he amy be experiencing some sensation of an emotion is his eyes as in widen, smaller, eyebrow arched a little bit. That is all. Which was why I was so confused when he began writing. I thought it was a divorce letter. Then I was more confused when he began scolding Bak Chuen. I didn't expect that because scold or no scold, same look.
Then there's Moses Chan, perpetually same wooden expression. Better than John Chiang in a sense because his eyes bigger when surprised, angry, and a small slit when sad and happy and in normal times, he is simply unreadable. He looks mournful, somehow I thought Ding Fung Sing was a funeral parlour! He needs huge mega super duper drama to get him go arghhhhhhhh and even then a bit overact sometimes. I feel that even if I were to slap him hard on the face, he would have the same expression (eyes widened a bit) as he would have if I grabbed his buttocks (maybe gaping mouth, a little).
Steven Ma, same cycle story so not much change. Tavia same also because her story is the same. Next episode we shall see more of her. Everybody else same, in facy I am just not used to a happy chirpy Fu Yi Chek.
Now Sonija Kwok did very well in here except for a few inconsistencies which I will not even point out because it is the same as I have mentioned in my previous thoughts. In here I like the scene where she sighed a sigh of relief when she was not pregnant, her reaction when she read the letter, her mournful look. I think this is by far her best performance since she was always bad before. She should win The Most Improved Artiste because this is her breakthrough series that proves yes she can act, yes she can manage 2 emotions at once and yes she has potential. I know kinda too experienced to say she has potential but frankly she is not great but she is getting better. I find her more expressive than John Chiang and Moses Chan and that is not saying much but the fact that I enjoyed this series largely because of her, that is saying a lot.
*whispers* But ermmm come closer... let just make this between you and I ok? I got a reputation to preserve so ermm
*SHOUTS* Sonija Kwok improved of course
*whispers* a lot.
There I said it.
