''Relic of an Emissary'' (

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

: 洪武三十二; literally "

Hongwu Hongwu () (23 January 1368 – 5 February 1399) was the era name of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dynasty of China. Hongwu was also the Ming dynasty's first era name. Comparison table Other eras contemporaneous with Hongwu * C ...

32") is a 2011 Hong Kong

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

television drama serial produced by

TVB Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) is a television broadcasting company based in Hong Kong SAR. The Company operates five free-to-air terrestrial television channels in Hong Kong, with TVB Jade as its main Cantonese language service, and ...

. The 30-episode drama premiered 4 April 2011 on Hong Kong's

TVB Jade TVB Jade (), or simply Jade, is a Hong Kong Cantonese-language free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) as its flagship service, alongside its sister network, the English-language TVB Pearl. Bro ...

and TVB HD Jade channels, airing five days a week. Wong Wai-sing, who produced TVB's '' The Academy'' trilogy series, serves as the drama's executive producer. The drama is loosely based on the Jingnan campaign of the

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

, a

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

that ended the

Jianwen Emperor The Jianwen Emperor (5 December 1377 – ?), personal name Zhu Yunwen (), was the second Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1398 to 1402. The era name of his reign, Jianwen, means "establishing civility" and represented a sharp chan ...

's brief four-year reign over Ming China. The Chinese title of the drama literally means "Hongwu 32", the 32nd year of the

Hongwu Emperor The Hongwu Emperor (21 October 1328 – 24 June 1398), personal name Zhu Yuanzhang (), courtesy name Guorui (), was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty of China, reigning from 1368 to 1398. As famine, plagues and peasant revolts in ...

's reign.

Background

The story takes place during

Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferred ...

's younger years, several years before his oceanic voyages. When the

ascended to the throne in 1399, he changed the

era name A regnal year is a year of the reign of a sovereign, from the Latin ''regnum'' meaning kingdom, rule. Regnal years considered the date as an ordinal, not a cardinal number. For example, a monarch could have a first year of rule, a second year o ...

to "Jianwen First Year" (). After

Zhu Di The Yongle Emperor (; pronounced ; 2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), personal name Zhu Di (), was the third Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the fourth son of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dyna ...

usurped the throne in 1402, he purged all of Jianwen's supporters and ordered all documents that recorded the era name "Jianwen First Year" to be changed to "Hongwu Year 32" () in order to establish himself as the legitimate successor of the

, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Plot overview

The story begins with the sons of the Hung-mo (Hongwu) Emperor returning to the

capital city A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, Department (country subdivision), department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city ...

as a show of filial piety to their father, who has fallen extremely ill. Secretly, the princes are harboring intentions to succeed the throne. As a result, chaos surrounds the kingdom, and a chain of conspiracies and schemes begin occurring in the city... While pursuing a mission, Brocade Guard captain Ngo Siu-fung loses his memory in an accident. As he begins to slowly piece back memories of his past, he realises that he was once a vicious, unreasonable, and merciless Brocade Guard. He decides to start anew and change his ways of style, but his colleagues are unable to see past Siu-fung's history of cruelty, and they assign him insignificant tasks to complete. Fortunately for Siu-fung, he saves Chu Wan-man, grandson of the emperor, who has dressed himself in plain clothes to observe the commoners of the city. The two become good friends and Wan-man appoints Siu-fung as his personal bodyguard. The emperor dies, his posthumous edict robbed, and the kingdom is left with no heir. The princes all desire the throne, leaving the kingdom unprotected from future attacks. Impatient, Wan-man orders Siu-fung to find the edict as soon as possible to stabilise the chaotic situation. The powerful and intelligent fourth prince Chu Tai (Zhu Di), titled Prince Yin, also sends his most trusted adviser Ma Sam-po to investigate the case. Fighting to retrieve the edict, Siu-fung and Sam-po undergo a battle of wits and skill. They start an ambiguous friendship – though they see each other as equals, they are unable to work together because their loyalties lie elsewhere. The edict is retrieved and Wan-man ascends to the throne, crowned as the Kin-man (Jianwen) Emperor. Soon after his coronation, mysterious cases begin to occur around the kingdom. Someone with an ulterior motive is intentionally framing Prince Yin of starting a coup. Though Prince Yin is later proven to be innocent, Wan-man becomes really cautious of him. Aware that the new emperor has intentions in killing him, Prince Yin raises an army to overthrow him. Under the slogan of "clearing the court and pacifying national disaster" (), Prince Yin starts a coup d'état, that is later known to be called the Jingnan campaign.

Production

Development

After

Michael Tse Michael Tse Tin-wah (born 15 July 1967) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. Background Michael Tse graduated from TVB's Dance Training Class and worked with TVB as a dancer for five years. He then left TVB and formed a boy band group called 風� ...

's successful and popular portrayal of the undercover cop Laughing Gor in Wong's 2009 crime drama ''The Academy III:

E.U. The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

'', TVB had notions of creating a fourth installment of '' The Academy'' that would potentially continue with the character's story. After several negotiations with the company, Wong decided to drop the idea and instead went to produce a costume drama version of the series. The working title of the drama was changed from "The Turbulence of Jingnan" () to "Hongwu 32". A costume fitting and press conference was held on April 9, 2010 in the TVB studios in

Tseung Kwan O Tseung Kwan O New Town is one of the nine new towns in Hong Kong, built mainly on reclaimed land in the northern half of Junk Bay (known as Tseung Kwan O in Chinese/Cantonese language) in southeastern New Territories, after which it is named. ...

with a total of 48 cast members. Filming began 18 April 2010 and ended on 28 July 2010.

Casting

First intended to be a continuation of ''The Academy'' series, casting for ''Relic of an Emissary'' (then known as "The Academy IV") placed an emphasis on keeping the original ''The Academy'' cast.

Sammul Chan Sammul Chan Kin-fung (born 4 May 1978) is from Hong Kong. He is an actor, singer, and presenter. Career Chan debuted in 1999 as a DJ for Metro Broadcast Corporation Limited under his birth name, although most of the time he was simply referred t ...

was the protagonist Lee Pak-kiu for all three installments;

Kate Tsui use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , nationality = , other_names = , citizenship = , education = , al ...

was introduced in

the second ''The Second'' is the second studio album by Canadian-American rock band Steppenwolf, released in October 1968 on ABC Dunhill Records. The album contains one of Steppenwolf's most famous songs, " Magic Carpet Ride". The background of the orig ...

;

Elanne Kong Elanne Kong (, born 30 September 1987) is a Hong Kong actress and singer. On 15 May 2020, she announced that she was changing her stage name from Elanne Kwong Yeuk-lam () to Elanne Kwong Yee-ching (). On 11 September 2021, she announced that she c ...

, Leung Ka-ki, and Joel Chan were introduced in

the third is a light novel series, that has also been made into manga and anime series by Ryo Hoshino and illustrated by Ariko Ito. The anime series goes under the name . According to the New York Comic Convention, ''The Third'' has been licensed by ...

. After major changes were added to the script, which included story setting and character background, slight casting changes also occurred. Instead of

Michael Miu Michael Miu Kiu-wai ( 苗僑偉) (born 18 June 1958) is a Hong Kong actor and businessman. His career has been met with popular success in his youth, followed by a resurgence in middle age after a period of hiatus. He is considered one of the most ...

leading the serial drama, Joe Ma was chosen instead. His portrayal of

King Fuchai of Wu Fuchai (reigned 495–473BC), sometimes also written Fucha, was the last king of the state of Wu during the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. His armies constructed important canals linking the Yellow, Ji, and Huai River systems of th ...

in '' The Conquest'' sparked interest for Wong to cast him as Chu Tai. Wong further mentioned that he wanted

Ron Ng Ron Ng Cheuk-hei (, born 2 September 1979) is a Hong Kong actor, singer, and former dancer. He first rose to popularity in the 2003 TVB drama ''Triumph in the Skies.'' He has since starred in several successful television series, most notably ''T ...

to be part of the cast as well, who portrayed the other protagonist Chung Lap-man in ''The Academy''. However, the writers could not afford to write in another male lead.

Cast and characters

: ''Note: Character names are in Cantonese romanisation.''

Main cast

as Ngo Siu-fung () — the drama's main protagonist, a cold-blooded and ruthless commander of the Brocade Guards. While on a mission to escort Prince Chun to

Jiangnan Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...

, Siu-fung loses his memory after an accident, but slowly regains it as the story progresses. * Joe Ma as Chu Tai, Prince Yin () — the powerful and intelligent fourth son of Hung-mo. Though Prince Yin helps his nephew succeed the throne, his extreme governing methods tend to clash with the Kin-man Emperor's more sympathetic approach to rule. Upset with the young emperor's reign — and believing himself to be the true heir to the throne — Prince Yin begins to secretly plot a coup. *

as Ma Sam-po () — Prince Yin's personal bodyguard and most trusted adviser. The son of a

Hui The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the n ...

family from

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

, Sam-po is a

Semu Semu () is the name of a caste established by the Yuan dynasty. The 31 Semu categories referred to people who came from Central and West Asia. They had come to serve the Yuan dynasty by enfranchising under the dominant Mongol caste. The Semu were ...

and the descendant of a

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

n official who served as Yunnan's governor during the early years of the

Yuan Dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fifth ...

. When Sam-po was eleven, he was captured by Ming troops and made a

eunuch A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millennium ...

. After Prince Yin overthrows the Kin-man Emperor, he gives Sam-po the name Cheng Wo () and fulfills Sam-po's wish by granting him permission to explore the West. *

as Shum Chin-sam () / Wong Chor-chor () — a pair of twin female spies working for the Brocade Guards. The elder twin, Chin-sam, goes undercover as a

madam Madam (), or madame ( or ), is a polite and formal form of address for Woman, women in the English language, often contracted to ma'am (pronounced in American English and this way but also in British English). The term derives from the French ...

and becomes the owner of the Willow Court, an established

brothel A brothel, bordello, ranch, or whorehouse is a place where people engage in sexual activity with prostitutes. However, for legal or cultural reasons, establishments often describe themselves as massage parlors, bars, strip clubs, body rub par ...

in the capital. The younger twin, Chor-chor, eventually becomes Prince Yin's concubine, in an attempt to obtain information regarding Prince Yin's plan of rebellion. *

as Chu Ying, Princess Wing-yeung () — Prince Yin's younger sister and Sam-po's best friend. * Joel Chan as Chu Wan-man, the Kin-man Emperor () — the Hung-mo Emperor's eldest and favourite grandson. Wan-man is described as a caring and gentle emperor, who places the well-being of his country and people first. Prince Yin sees Wan-man's compassion as a weakness, unfit for a ruler.

Recurring cast

Ruco Chan Ruco Chan Chin-pang (; born 14 January 1977) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. Chan is the first TVB actor to win My Favourite TVB Actor at the StarHub TVB Awards for three consecutive years (2014, 2015, 2016), and is also the first actor to make ...

as Chu Kuen, Prince Ning () — the cunning and manipulative seventeenth son of Hung-mo. To maintain his superiority and power in court affairs, he purposely creates havoc between Prince Yin and the Kin-man Emperor to worsen their relationship. *

Lau Kong Lau Kong () is a Hong Kong actor who worked on the network TVB. Biography Little is known of Lau's private life, but he has been acting since 1976, when he first joined the now defunct network Commercial Television, he later joined RTV (now AT ...

as Dou Hin () — a Buddhist monk. He later becomes Prince Yin's strategist, and receives the name Yiu Kwong-hau (). *

Gordon Liu Gordon Liu (Lau Kar-fai ); born Sin Kam-hei () August 22, 1951) is a Chinese martial arts film actor and martial artist. He played the lead role of San Te in ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin'' (1978) and its sequels, and later played two roles in Qu ...

as Yim Chun () — the Brocade Guard head and Siu-fung's superordinate. *

Skye Chan Skye Chan (; Pinyin: Chén Qiànyáng; Yale: Chan4 Sin6 Yeung4) (born October 13, 1983) is a Hong Kong actress and Miss Hong Kong 2008 first runner-up. She represented Hong Kong in Miss World 2008 where she did not place, and in Miss Chinese I ...

as Tsui Yee-wah, Princess Yin () — Prince Yin's wife. *Leung Ka-ki as Ma Yan-wai () — Wan-man's wife and later Empress. Her marriage to Wan-man is arranged by the Hung-mo Emperor, who believes that Yan-wai possesses the wisdom of a future Empress. *

Sire Ma Sire Ma (; born 31 July 1987), or Ma Choi, is a Chinese actress based in Hong Kong. Her birth name is Sima Saier (). She was the 2nd runner up at the Miss Hong Kong Pageant 2008, simultaneously winning the Miss Photogenic Award. She later went ...

as Fu Siu-kiu () — a maid who serves in the Brocade Guard dormitory. She was once the daughter of a noble, but due to certain legal matters, her family was arrested. She was almost sold to a

, but was saved by Princess Wing-yeung. *

Benjamin Yuen Benjamin Yuen Wai-ho (Simplified Chinese: 袁伟豪; Traditional Chinese: 袁偉豪, born May 11, 1981) is a Hong Kong actor and singer contracted to TVB and Shaw Brothers Pictures. Yuen’s career started when he became the winner of Hong ...

as Lee King-lung () — a youthful and loyal general who serves for Kin-man Emperor. He falls in love with Princess Wing-yeung.

Historical Inaccuarcies

is depicted in the series as a eunuch with the original name Ma Sampo and is eventually granted the name Zheng He (Cheng Wo in Cantonese) after winning the Jingnan Campaign. The Historical Zheng He's name was originally Ma He (SOURCE: Dreyer 2007, pp. 11, 148; Mills 1970, p. 5; Ray 1987, p. 66; Levathes 1996, p. 61.), with the nickname Sanpao (Sampo in Cantonese) being given to him as a reference to the Buddhist Three Jewels during his service under the Prince of Yan (SOURCE: Levathes 1996, p. 63.). When the Prince of Yan eventually became

Emperor Yongle The Yongle Emperor (; pronounced ; 2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), personal name Zhu Di (), was the third Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the fourth son of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dyna ...

, Zheng was merely granted a change in surname from Ma to Zheng (SOURCE: Levathes 1996, pp. 72–73.). * Yongle and his wife, the eventually

Empress Renxiaowen Empress Renxiaowen (仁孝文皇后; 5 March 1362 – 6 August 1407), of the Xu clan, was the List of Chinese consorts, empress consort to the Yongle Emperor and the third empress of China, China's Ming dynasty. She was well educated, compiling ...

, are depicted to be childless through the series with the future empress miscarrying and eventually adopting a son by the series' conclusion. The historical Empress Renxiaowen had already given birth to seven children by the start of the Jingnan Campaign with three of which being sons, all of whom played some part in their father's rebellion (SOURCE: Ellen Soullière, "Palace Women in the Ming dynasty: 1368-1644" (Doctoral dissertation, Princeton University, 1987) 19, 22-24.). The eldest son and eventual

Hongxi Emperor The Hongxi Emperor (16 August 1378 – 29 May 1425), personal name Zhu Gaochi (朱高熾), was the fourth Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1424 to 1425. He succeeded his father, the Yongle Emperor, in 1424. His era name "Hongxi" means ...

, Zhu Gaochi was 20 by the start of his fathers rebellion (SOURCE: Frederick W. Mote; Denis Twitchett (26 February 1988). The Cambridge History of China: Volume 7, The Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644. Cambridge University Press. pp. 277–. ISBN 978-0-521-24332-2.), while the second son

Zhu Gaoxu Zhu Gaoxu (; 30 December 1380 – 6 October 1426), the Prince of Gaoyang (高陽王, created 1395), later the Prince of Han (漢王, created 1404), was the second son of the Yongle Emperor and Empress Renxiaowen. Zhu Gaoxu fought with his elder b ...

the Prince of Han was 18 and would not only go on to participate in fighting against his

cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, " ...

's forces but go on to follow in his father's footsteps by rebelling against his own

nephew In the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a niece or nephew is a child of the subject's sibling or sibling-in-law. The converse relationship, the relationship from the niece or nephew's perspective, is that of an ...

, albeit unsuccessfully. (Source: Ming Shilu, Part Taizong, Volume 186) * The series depicts Yongle and the other princes being present during the passing of their

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...

and staying in the capital to aid in the administration of their

before the

turns on them and requires then stay at the capital under the guise of aiding his court in order to prevent them from accessing their principalities' armies to rebel. In history, Yongle and the other princes where not present in the capital during the death of Emperor Hongwu and would be prevented from arrive to mourn by the succeeding Jianwen whom immediately ordered his uncles stay in their principalities (source: ''

History of Ming The ''History of Ming'' or the ''Ming History'' (''Míng Shǐ'') is one of the official Chinese historical works known as the ''Twenty-Four Histories''. It consists of 332 volumes and covers the history of the Ming dynasty from 1368 to 1644. It ...

'', Volume 3: 遺詔曰：「朕膺天命三十有一年，憂危積心，日勤不怠，務有益於民。奈起自寒微，無古人之博知，好善惡惡，不及遠矣。今得萬物自然之理，其奚哀念之有。皇太孫允炆仁明孝友，天下歸心，宜登大位。內外文武臣僚同心輔政，以安吾民。喪祭儀物，毋用金玉。孝陵山川因其故，毋改作。天下臣民，哭臨三日，皆釋服，毋妨嫁娶。諸王臨國中，毋至京師。諸不在令中者，推此令從事。」)with Yongle in particular being intercepted at

Huai'an Huai'an (), formerly called Huaiyin () until 2001, is a prefecture-level city in the central part of Jiangsu province in Eastern China. Huai'an is situated almost directly south of Lianyungang, southeast of Suqian, northwest of Yancheng, almos ...

when he headed for the capital with his army to mourn.(source: Chan Hok-lam. "Legitimating Usurpation: Historical Revisions under the Ming Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424)". The Legitimation of New Orders: Case Studies in World History. Chinese University Press, 2007. ISBN 9789629962395. Accessed 12 Oct 2012.) * In the series Yongle is depicted having fiend his insanity to convince Jianwen to permit his return to the Yan principality to recover. In reality, it was Yongle's three sons that were being held hostage at the Ming capital and Yongle fiend his insanity to convince the court to permit his sons' be allowed to go visit him at Beiping. (source: Chan Hok-lam. "Legitimating Usurpation: Historical Revisions under the Ming Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424)". The Legitimation of New Orders: Case Studies in World History. Chinese University Press, 2007. ISBN 9789629962395. Accessed 12 Oct 2012.) * The series depicts a plot point about Emperor Hongwu's will being stolen and the heir left unclear. In reality Hongwu left not will and Jianwen succeeded his grandfather without the instruction of a will albeit in violation of the

Huang-Ming Zuxun The ''Huang-Ming Zuxun'' (''Instructions of the Ancestor of the August Ming'') were admonitions left by the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Chinese Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an im ...

. (source: Chan Hok-lam. "Legitimating Usurpation: Historical Revisions under the Ming Yongle Emperor (r. 1402–1424)". The Legitimation of New Orders: Case Studies in World History. Chinese University Press, 2007. ISBN 9789629962395. Accessed 12 Oct 2012.)

Reception

''Relic of an Emissary'' received mixed reviews. On

Douban Douban.com (), launched on 6 March 2005, is a Chinese online database and social networking service that allows registered users to record information and create content related to film, books, music, recent events, and activities in Chinese c ...

, the drama earned a rating of 6.8 out of 10 based on over 2700 votes. During broadcast period, the drama received several complaints concerning blatant scenes of violence and sexuality, protesting that such aggressive and intimate content were unsuitable for broadcast during family viewing time.

Viewership ratings

The following is a table that includes a list of the total ratings points based on television viewership. "Viewers in millions" refers to the number of people, derived from

ratings (not including TVB HD Jade), in Hong Kong who watched the episode live. The peak number of viewers are in brackets.

Awards and nominations

45th TVB Anniversary Awards 2011

* Nominated: Best Drama

References

External links

TVB.com
''Relic of an Emissary'' - Official Website
K for TVB
English Synopsis {{DEFAULTSORT:Relic Of An Emissary TVB dramas Hong Kong wuxia television series Martial arts television series Hong Kong action television series Television series set in the Ming dynasty Historical television series Mystery television series 2011 Hong Kong television series debuts 2011 Hong Kong television series endings 2010s Hong Kong television series Television series set in the 14th century