Better Halves

[Em]

In the marketplace, Fei meets with official's daughter Bau Wai Nam who is dressed as a man and mistakes her for a thief, the two become acquainted after a fight. It turns out that Nam and Hei are good friends and when she meets Fei again, she tests his literary skill with a plain scroll, he manages to create a poem from this and she is very impressed and when she tells of her criteria for a husband, Hei offers to act as her matchmaker, at this time Ba suddenly arrives with an offer of engagement.

Nam listens to Ba as he explains the merits of her fiancé to be Chun Long, so she disguises herself as a man again to go out and check him out, but she finds he is of a low character and he tricks her into becoming drugged and jumping from a balcony. Luckily, Fei is passing and he rescues her. Nam says she wants to cancel the engagement and Fei suggests to do this by investigating about the narcotics. Ba sees Fook appearing at Long's wine shop and becomes suspicious. Fei wants to investigate the official stores, but Yan is ready for him, however Fei beats him with his wits and reveals Long and Ba's activities. Long suddenly goes crazy and to rescue Nam, Fei is not able to care for Hei's leg injury. Fei accidentally finds out about Hei's cloth that she uses to wrap up her body and is puzzled, but luckily Wai appears to help her explain.

Yung and Fook act as matchmakers for Hap and Hei and in retaliation, Fook asks for a huge fee. On wants to make Sheung happy and tricks Fook into going to meet her, Sheung weakly looks at him and says she has been bitten by a snake, but Fook accuses her of putting on an act. Just as he wants to make things clear to her, he is bitten himself and Sheung risks her life to help him suck out the poison, she faints and Fook is horrified. After this, Hap feels that Fook cannot let go of Sheung and Hei decides to match up Fei with Nam so the two agree to let the others be happy and get "married". Just as Yat Sin Hin is happily preparing for this wedding, Prime Minister Chun arrives and requests their matchmaker services, to everyone's surprise.

[Em]

Prime Minister Chun offers a huge amount of money to request the services of Yat Sin Hin to arrange the marriage for his adopted son Chun Muk with the daughter of his political rival Ding Yung. He also agrees that if this goes ahead, he will reinstate Hei's official matchmaker position and give a grand title to Yat Sin Hin, everyone is moved by this. Fei decides to investigate the character of Muk and finds him to be skilled in martial and literary arts and a highly regarded person. Fook suspects that Muk is attracted to men and tests him. Then Hap finds out that Muk has a fear of women talking directly to him. Muk tells them of his childhood story and how he has been in love with Ding Sin Yee for a long time and has exchanged messages with her under the pen name of Cowherd.

Fook has a plan on how to help Muk overcome this shadow and asks Nam to help arrange for Yee to meet Muk 'by chance' at the temple. When Yee finally meets her 'Cowherd' she is very excited, but when she finds out it is Muk, she angrily slaps him and leaves, it turns out that what happened in their childhood is her daily nightmare. Fook suggests using a lantern to try and change Yee's mind but this fails. When Yee leaves, her clothes catch light from the lantern and Muk rushes to help her, she is finally moved by him. Fook takes a set of glowing cups with a great meaning to propose the engagement to Yung, but he turns them away when he finds out that she is to marry into Chun's family.

Yee and Muk want to elope, but Yung stops them, Yee threatens him with her life and Yung can only agree to their wedding. Fook and Sheung go to the Chun family to gather information and when Chun hears the bells that Sheung wears, he is somewhat frightened. Nam feels that Fei is treating Hei better than her and feels uncomfortable. Hei sees that everyone is out and she tries on the bridal outfit in the store room. However Fei arrives back early and sensing something not right, he ends up in a fight in the dark with Hei and he takes her fan from her and suspects that the woman is Hei.

[Em]

Fei looks around for Hei and finds Hap wearing the bridal outfit and she is trying to explain the situation to him. Fei finds a bead from the bridal gown falling from Hei's clothes and is sure that she is a woman. He tells Fook about his suspicions and the two hatch a plan on how to find out the truth, but Hap gets in their way. Accompanied by Fei and On, Sheung heads into the countryside to find the lady who sold her to the Yung family to ask for her birthdate details for the wedding, but are unsuccessful. Granny Tam points them towards a gravestone in the wood and there they unearth a package with some broken jade and a dagger in it, suddenly a poisoned dart is shot towards Sheung and Fei is curious about the person buried in the grave.

Nam tells Hei that the person who she likes the most is her and Hei doesn't know what to do, at this point, Hap appears accusing her of seducing Hei and they break into a fight. Hap is no match for her and runs away to hide, Fook sees this and tries to stop it before he finds out that they are just testing Hei. Fei suddenly bursts out that the woman he saw in the store room was Hei and he apologises to Nam. Hap finds out Fook's real wishes and is touched, but she sighs that fate is against them. Fei returns to look for Hei and says he is prepared to help her bear the weight of the Linghu family, but Hei still refuses his love.

Hap urges Hei to run away with Fei and pulls her to see Wai, but just at this time, Hei hears fromWai that they must pay their respects to her father and decides that the family is more important. A fire suddenly breaks out at Yat Sin Hin and Sheung is attacked by a mystery person, Fei is very suspicious. Fei works out from the broken jade that Sheung is the descendant of a former war hero whose family was sentenced to death. Hap finds out that someone is selling meteor stones and rushes out to buy them, but she is too late and decides that she and Fook were never meant to be.

[Em]

The emperor wishes to conduct the wedding ceremony between Muk and Yee and announces that cakes will be given to the people of Chang An to share the occasion with them. Fei works out that the mystery attacker is from the Tong clan and evidence points to Chun's right hand man Tong Lung, they decide to use Sheung as bait to lure him into a trap. Just as they ask Yung to help Sheung regain justice for her family, Chun sends out his men to reveal Hei's identity as a woman and her crime in misleading the emperor. Fook and Hap find that Sheung is late and can only drag out the time. Yung arranges for a Kunlun dancer to perform for the emperor but the performer throws the spear straight towards the emperor, luckily Sheung who is disguised as a eunuch appears and rescues the emperor just in time and Fei steps in to stop Lung.

Chun and Lung are captured and the emperor rewards everyone, but they would all rather go without the rewards in exchange for Hei's freedom, the emperor agrees. Fook says to Hap that he only wants to marry her, and will not let her go, Hap is sweetened. Yung sighs that he has lost a good son-in-law in Hei and Fook takes the chance to propose marriage, Yung can only agree, but at this time, a royal edict arrives saying that Fook must marry Sheung who has been made an honorary princess, Fook and Hap are devastated.

[Em]

Fook wants to indicate to Sheung that he has someone else in his heard but she doesn't understand, so Fei can only tell her directly that the only person that Fook loves is Hap, she is very upset. The emperor calls Hei into the palace to ask for her expertise in Tang laws to resolve a dispute between the empress and a concubine, Hei says that as the emperor is the most superior family member, then the decision should rest with him, glad to see this dispute resolved, the emperor is pleased, but the concubine is not happy. Sheung feels better after eating a big meal and she hears the sound of fireworks being set off outside. She goes out to take a look and finds that On is making 'joined hearts' fireworks for her as a wedding gift. On sees that Sheung is too near and stops her and in the process, he is burnt by the fireworks. Sheung weeps with emotion as she is touched and makes a decision in her heart.

Fei displays his skills to the emperor who decides to award him the rank of General and guard the frontiers and also reinstate Hei's title as long as she agrees never to marry, but they both refuse. At this point Sheung also asks the emperor to take back the marriage order, but they are met with the comments from the concubine and the emperor is angered with their impudence. Fook argues that there is a problem with his divorce papers and that the emperor's orders are illegal, but the emperor says that there is not a problem and refuses the appeal. Fei points out that Fook only divorced Hap because of jealousy and this is not allowed, the emperor tests their compatibility and they succeed, but he still refuses to take back the order and Fook and Hap would rather be put to death. Later in the prison, they take their marriage vows.

Everyone from Yat Sin Hin start a petition to try and save Fook and Hap and all the couples that they have helped in the past come back to offer their support, finally they make a "Petition of Ten Thousand Names" and pass this to the Empress. She helps them to persuade the emperor to change his mind by threatening him with her life, he finally realises the power of true love. He offers them death by drinking poisoned wine and the two decide that dying together is the greatest thing.

In actual fact, the emperor lets them go free and the three couples return to Yat Sin Hin to continue their business. A year later, Hap, Hei and Sheung are all pregnant and they all give birth to their sons and daughters on the same day. Seven years later, all the little kids show qualities of their parents and are quickly learning the skills of the matchmaking trade - just in time to bring together the marriage of their grandfather Yung and grandmother Wan.


************THE END*************

Yes, they all live happily ever after............