The Prince's Shadow - Season 1 (2005)

Well-versed in both literature and martial arts, KO SING has been a retinue of Emperor KIN LUNG for many years. He helps LUNG to solve all kinds of problems, such as providing effective solution for the over-budget issue in cannon production. Since SING is such a genius, LUNG is jealous of him and never grants him an official title in the palace. Eunuch ON GOONG GOONG has selected some new maidservants for the palace and YUE YEE was chosen to work in the laundry. With the help of SING, LUNG is able to gain full control over the state and its policies. However, he is not able to choose the woman he truly want in the seraglio since the empress manipulates all the results of their “Turn the Tag” activities. LUNG is very upset about it and SING helps him to alter the Tags secretly. In this way, LADY SHUI, a blanked concubine at the seraglio, is able to serve the emperor eventually.

SHUI never gets the chance to serve the emperor again. Out of loneliness, she commits adultery with the chief guard SOK LOK TO. The empress tries to prevent SHUI from serving the emperor in every means and claims that SHUI is sick. LUNG is angry inside and knows that it’s the empress’ trick. In order find out the trick behind, SING sneaks into the seraglio. YEE passes by and misconceives him as a peeper. SING explains his mission to her and she helps him to escape. YEE and SING have a lot of misunderstandings in the beginning but develop good rapport with each other after a period of time. The empress learns that somebody has sneaked into the seraglio and orders TO to catch this person. LUNG meets YEE and falls in love with her at first sight. SHUI is pregnant and asks TO to leave the palace with her. LUNG is angry at the empress’s tricks and claims that he will not practice “Turn the Tag” anymore……

LUNG has a crush on YEE but afraid that the empress will know it. On one occasion, LUNG finds that YEE is SING’s maid and asks SING to arrange a secret date for him. SING passes the message to YEE but she refuses to go. SING doesn’t know how to tell this to LUNG. YEE once discover the secret affairs between SHUI and TO. TO decides to take revenge. He dresses in black and attacks YEE. Luckily, the palace guard CHAU YAT CHING rescues her. TO leaves behind a sachet given by SHUI. CHING picks up the sachet and decides to use it as an evidence for arresting TO. In order to save himself, TO shifts the blame onto CHING by tricks and defames him for committing adultery with YEE. The empress steps in to judge the adultery case between CHING and YEE. In order to be fair, she invites several concubines from the seraglio to be the jury. LUNG wants to save YEE but he couldn’t find a way to do so. He therefore asks SING to sit in during the trial……

In order to enhance the good reputation of the seraglio, the empress asks SING to keep SHUI’s adultery case a secret in front of LUNG. SING has no choice but to do as requested. TO is afraid of being caught and tries to snatch the identical sachet from SHUI. SHUI falls into the well accidentally while fighting with TO and she dies. SING is suspicious about SHUI’s death. He speculates that the man in black attacked YEE because YEE knows his secret. CHING agrees. SHUI dies mysteriously and YEE asks SING to investigate. SING uses tricks to elicit the man in black and finally discovers that this man is TO. SING and CHING try to arrest TO together. TO falls into the well accidentally while fighting back and he dies. SHUI’s case is over and the empress reminds SING to keep this a secret. The empress finds YEE’s portrait at LUNG’s place and realizes that he loves YEE.

The empress is jealous of YEE and plans to send her away from the palace. YEE comes to tidy up SING’s room on schedule and LUNG seizes the chance to approach her. YEE misconceives that SING has arranged this for LUNG and feels like being betrayed. ON sells YEE to some human traffickers. LUNG is enraged after knowing it and beats him cruelly. LUNG cannot forget YEE and uses an excuse to send SING away in order to look for YEE. He also appoints CHING to help SING on the way. SING finds that YEE has been sold to Yangzhou and they are amazed to find plenty of brothels in this small city. SING arrives at Man Fa House. The four famous prostitutes – MAVIS, WARBLER, MAGPIE and CUCKOO – are all very talented and give all customers a test on their knowledge of wine. SING accepts the challenge and achieves a complete triumph. Everybody admires him……