EPISODE 4

Written by Funn Lim

Aiyah. Missed 1 episode and bloody hell missed so much! This series is like a speeding bullet! Anyway I got some facts wrong whilst others I am really blurry.

Blurry
1. how did the Wong family lost their entire fortune overnight?

2. who the heck is that little boy who has a teenager as a wife, Sin (played by Irene Wong) ?

3. so Yu Chi and Yu Fung were accused of adultery but what happened?

4. how come when they’re dirt poor Yu Fung’s parents didn’t come forward? Are they all dead?

Facts got wrong so a clarification here
1. only old Mr Wong died

2. 1st wife actually became paralysed, poor thing

3. 2nd wife became insane

Facts got right
3rd wife is indeed Yuk Lun’s mom

Facts never considered at all but discovered in here
Read on please!

Urghh! That awful themesong, awful narration by a very nasal like sounding old woman that is who else? Just name one of the actresses in here and you will probably guessed right. Then the episode began with ….. the hated narrator’s voice. But this time she said something that is true about women in the olden days.

Yuk Lun was drinking and basically became even more useless as the family fallen into hard times. The narrator said “My great grandma, a woman of the olden days could withstand marrying the man they never love, they can be patient with an adulterous husband but what they can never stand is a husband who behaves destructively when faced with hardship” and Yu Fung gave one big slap at Yuk Lun and said sternly “You’re only useless as you think of yourself” and Yu Chi agreed and she continued “Nobody said you’re useless, you think of yourself as useless! You must stand back upo again, this is just a small hardship, you’re the man of the family and the Wong family’s ability to rise again depends on you. If you fall how can we stand back up again? Husband, please see the reason, please” and suddenly Yuk Lun kneeled before the 3rd wife whom he now knew was his mom and cried into her belly and said “I am sorry, I am so sorry, I will be good, I promise, I will be good”.

He woke up to see Yu Fung sleeping by the side and a bowl of hot porridge ready for him. He gently touched her head and walked out. Then he saw 3rd wife and very softly he said “Mother” and 3rd wife was so stunned that she began to tear up and he said some more “Mother, I am sorry for my behaviour in the past” and tearfully she said “It’s ok, it’s ok”. Then they sat down and he asked her “I remember when I was little, I used to be so naughty that at one time you got hurt because of me. And you never came to see me, so I thought you blamed me” and she said “I can’t come to see you if not people will be suspiscious. You’re then 1st wife’s son so I can’t see you that often” and he asked “If I am your son, why the cover up? How come nobody, even father never knew?” and she explained “I was your 1st mother’s maid and I followed her into this marriage. She became pregnant but suffered a miscarriage. Then 2nd wife got pregnant and gave birth to a daughter. She was afraid her position may not be guaranteed and so she married me to your father to which I have no regrets. I became pregnant, at that time your father was away on a long business trip and so I hid in a hut and gave birth to you. 1st wife asked for my blessing to adopt you as her son, as if she gave birth to you so as to protect her position and I agreed. Nobody knew you are my son” and Yuk Lun said “I promise, I will work hard, I will make good our family name again” and she said “You know you’re very lucky. Yu Fung is a very good wife and you must appreciate her” and he said “I know, and I know if she wishes to leave I am no longer in the position to stop her, our family isn’t exactly the way we were and I can offer her nothing”. Yu Fung heard all this. Later the place they were staying had this man selling buns but he hurt his hand. So Yu Fung volunteered to help and her buns were very successful and the bun man gave her money and she happily showed Yuk Lun the money and she was employed to make buns for a few days. Yuk Lun was so happy that “I don’t need to eat those hard buns anymore! Wife, you must teach me how to make buns, at least I have a skill” and she happily agreed.

Then Yu Chi came and asked to see her somewhere quiet.

At some place, Yu Chi and Yu Fung were alone. Yu Chi said “Teacher has offered me a good job. The city is no longer safe with the foreigners invading us soon. This is a good job, and I figure if I were to work hard I can sustain both our lives and in a year strike out on our own” and Yu Fung said “I am happy to hear you have got a good opportunity. You should take it” and Yu Chi said “What about you? Will you follow me?” and Yu Fung said “I can’t abandon the Wong family right now. They have been good to me and they need me and husband just got his act together again and he needs me too, I can’t just leave so selfishly based on how I feel, I must take into account how they feel too” and so she walked away and said “I wish you all the best in your future endeavours” and she began to leave when Yu Chi angrily said “WHY? WHY MUST YOU STAY? YOU DON’T EVEN LOVE HIM! THEY DON’T EVEN TREAT YOU THAT WELL! WHY CAN’T PEOPLE WHO LOVE EACH OTHER BE TOGETHER? WHYYYYYYY?????” and Yu Fung calmly but tearfully answered with her back facing him “I can’t be so selfish, love isn’t everything. I shall live as a Wong family and I shall die and become Wong family’s ghost” and she walked away and poor Yu Chi was really angry.

Yu Fung came home, went into the kitchen and saw Yuk Lun making buns and she asked him “Husband what are you doing?” and Yuk Lun said “Making buns. Oh I forgot, the laundry!” and he rushed out to hand the laundry to dry when Yu Fung asked him “Why are you doing this?” and Yuk Lun eagerly said “I want to show to you I can do these. I am a man, I am the man of the family, I can take care of the family and wash the laundry so you don’t have to worry; you can leave if you want to. In fact I have packed your clothes, you can leave, I have nothing to offer you, seek your own happiness” and Yu Fung gently said “Husband, do I look like that kind of person who is afraid of hardship? I am your wife and I shall remain as your wife” and he happily said “Really?” and she said “Yes, and look you didn’t really wash the laundry well” and he happily said “Yeah!! I don’t have to do laundry anymore!” and Yu Fung smiled happily.

Meanwhile Ka Cheung bitches and orders everyone around and expected Yu Fung to do everything but Yu Fung didn’t complain one bit. One day don’t know his name but must be the brother of the 1st wife and brother of Hin came to take the young boy and his teenaged wife home. They had no choice but to let them go. Ka Cheung asked “What about 1st mother? Isn’t she your sister? Shouldn’t you take her too?” but of course he said “She was married off, no longer a Lin”. Yu Fung was glad he didn’t taker her because she knew they wouldn’t take good care of her since she became an invalid.

A few days later the young girl, Sin came to Yu Fung crying that she was almost molested by that man and begged Yu Fung to help her. Ka Cheung didn’t want to help and decided to surrender her but Yu Fung was reluctant. Then that man whose name I do not know came and demanded for Sin to follow him home. Sin begged but Ka Cheung pushed her towards that man and she ran back to Yu Fung and begged “Please madam, please don’t let me go with him, I will be destroyed if I did!” and that man threatened “If you don’t release her, I will call the police!!” and Yu Fung thought for awhile and then said “Alright, call the police then” and everyone was shocked and Yu Fung said to Ka Cheung’s husband (whose name I have yet to learn) “Bring me some papers, the ink and brush, I wish to draft a summons against the Lin family” and that guy was shocked and asked “What can you accuse me of?” and she bravely said “3 big charges. One, for manipulating and fraudulently obtaining the entire fortune of the Wong family. Two, a charge against your sister the 1st wife of the family for kidnapping the child of the 3rd wife and claiming as her own thus causing separation between a mother and child and I suspect your and your family knew and refused to set things right. Three, for molesting your own relation’s young wife (frankly I really do not know what’s his connection with that boy so I wrote relation)” and Yuk Lun said “Any of these charges can give a death sentence! True wife true! Write the charges!!” and that man soften and said “We don’t need to make it such a big issue shall we?” and Yu Fung continued to write and she said “If that is the case then you shall sign this agreement; on behalf of your relation (again I didn’t hear the relationship) the young boy, you shall sign this divorce letter granting freedom to Sin and in future shall seek a new wife for that young boy” and this time the man was reluctant and so Yuk Lung and Ka Cheung both said “No? Ok, Yu Fung, write the charges then!” and he quickly signed and angrily left. Sin was so touched she kneel on the floor to thank Yu Fung and said “Whatever you say madam, I shall do” and Yu Fung said “We are a family. From now on, if we shall have porridge we shall eat porridge, if we have rice, we eact rice!” and everybody rejoiced.

But money was an issue of course.

Yu Chi was about to leave with his teacher when Yu Chi suddenly kneel and said “Teacher I am sorry, I can’t leave” and the teacher said “I already suspected as much” and Yu Chi asked Eunuch Cho to go somewhere with him that was the forest so that he can cook that bamboo shoot for Eunuch Cho and Eunuch Cho said sadly “This is the freshest dish I have ever eaten. With your talent and my tutelage, I have no doubt within one year you will be famous” and Yu Chi said “I am sorry to disappoint you” and Eunuch Cho said “Yu Chi, sometimes you have think about yourself too and make plans for yourself. Why stay in the present when the situation is not within your control? Why not seek your own destiny? Is love the only thing that drives you?” and Yu Chi sadly said “I know I am merely a fern in the forest but I wish to be the fern to shield her from the rain, however little my contribution may be I wish to make it. I have loved her too long to leave, I can’t leave” and eunuch Cho said “Of all the people I have met, you’re the first that I’ve met who places so much emphasis on love. Here, this jade chopsticks was present by my teacher, I give it to you now” and he said “Oh no, they’re too precious” and eunuch Cho said “I suspect this shall be the last time we meet and our teacher-student relationship may end here. Take it, it may be of some use to you in future” and so he took it.

At home, Yu Fung and gang found out from the landlord he is selling the shop and thus they all have to move. Yu Fung said “Where shall we go? Why not I buy the shop from you? I can cook, this can be a small eatery” and the landlord said “If you have $30 I will sell it to you” and Yu Fung said “But you know our situation, what if I repay you slowly with interest?” and the landlord said “No. Why then should I sell? I want to see the fruits of the sale immediately” and then Yu Chi appeared and said “I believe this jade chopstick will make a good security for the repayment” and so the landlord agreed and took it as security. Yu Fung said “I thought you left?” and he explained he didn’t leave and then Yu Fung said “What then will you do here?” and he said “Well I suppose you can hire me as the chef of your new eatery” but Yuk Lun disagreed but everyone agreed and Yuk Lun said “Fine! But we shall take that chopsticks as loan and we shall repay you as soon as we can” and Yu Chi said “Fine. By the way since Miss hired me I shall only listen to her instructions” and Yuk Lun wasn’t pleased but Yu Fung was.

So eagerly they opened the restaurant and named it Fung Wong Lau as in The Pheonix Restaurant, in part because Phoenix is a symbol of rising from the ashes, in part also becaus eit incorporated FYu Fung’s name. But no one came to eat even with heavy promotion. They realised there was another restaurant that had full business each day and so they investigated. Yu Chi said “The food is only so-so. I believe I can do much better” and Yuk Lun said “Look at the decor, it is so bad, the plates and cups are dented” and Yu Fung said “and the waiters weren’t very friendly either. So why is it so popular?” and opposite the table sat a bunch of old patrons talking about the restaurant.

Pause here. Even before she answered her own question I already knew the answer.

Anyway, the old patrons spoke of hosting some dinner parties at the restaurant, then some birthday parties etc and then they complained about the state of the buns and the pork legs cooked in vinegar.

Pause here.

Oh my god, how to translate the name of the foods?

Anyway Yu Fung went EUREKA! She said she knew why business was so good and she said “It is because of the resturant’s reputation. People are comfortable with places they know, they’re reluctant to change”.

Yeah I knew that too!

So she and Yu Chi cooked buns and pork leg cooked in vinegar as free food for that 2 patrons to be sent to their homes. Yuk Lun questioned why they are doing so since they hardly had business, had enough cash for 2 more days and now they’re paying to feed people? What about all the wasted prepared food no one is eating?

And so superwoman multi tasking Yu Fung took the food and donated them to the homeless. Some beggar said “Who is that beautiful lady? She has the heart of Kuan Yin” and Yu Chi proudly said “She is our missus, she owns the restaurant and indeed, she is kind”.

Business was still not good and Yuk Lun was complaining when suddenly that two old men and their family arrived and expressed their thanks for the free food, loved them and would like to try more. Then the beggars came to give a big welcome to them and Yu Fung invited them in to whick Yuk Lun stopped her since they’re beggars and even the beggars were reluctant to walk in when Yu Fung said “We serve all customers,whatever their status. As long as you’re our customer, you shall expect a warm service. Please come in” and she even gave then free buns. And so she founded the system of something like buy a meal free 10 buns or something like that.

Business grew and Phoenix Restaurant became very very famous to the point that the other ladies were very free and Yuk Lun began to go back to his old ways of idleness and gambling, but not quite. Yu Fung didn’t bother him since she spent her days in the kitchen with Yu Chi and happily so to the point that Yuk Lun wasn’t very pleased. So one day he dragged Sin who likes Yu Chi very much into the kitchen and said “Yu Fung, you’re the owner of this restaurant, you belong to the front desk. These kitchen stuff, let Master Yu train Sin and let Sin assist him from now on” and Yu Chi was reluctant but Sin was pushed to Yu Chi and Yu Fung had no choice but to agree.

At night whilst discussing on the supplies, Yuk Lun came again and asked Yu Fung to go to bed. Reluctantly Yu Fung went to the bedroom and Yu Chi saw their sillhouette, where Yuk Lun was massaging Yu Fung’s shoulder and then he turned her around, he began to unbutton her dress and then he blew out the candles. Yu Chi saw it all and ha a pained look on his face, knowing the woman he loves was having sex with another man when he should be that man.

Next episode, foreigners invade and Yu Chi sacrificed himself for Yu Fung.

To tell you the truth I am beginning to be quite bored with all this Yu Chi following Yu Fung around. Come on, that woman is married. And Yu Fung may say go away I am married but she happily spent time with him in the kitchen, ignoring her husband was going back to his old ways. So at first she seems noble but after a while, I am sure you and I wonder why don’t she just leave. But then there would be no story!!

I asked a friend of mine whether this series was any good and she said “I kept seeing the same people, it is boring” and I am beginning to see why. The story goes by like a bullet train and yet hoping that we would emphatise with Yu Fung and Yu Chi for not being able to be together. But she had the opportunity to leave, she didn’t and so she must forget her past with him and tell that man to stop following her. But she happily accepted his help, get very distressed with things about him, spent hours and hours with him… I don’t know, this woman knew what she want but made it like so self sacrificial by just staying back. In those days it was noble, in today’s world, it will mean sooner or later these two will have an affair so why not do everybody a favour and just bloody hell elope?

But if you’re those who are curious if she ended up with him whether in this era or the next, just look at the cast list. The next Charmaine Sheh plays is surnamed Wong. Which meant she and Yuk Lun will have a daughter. I doubt she had an affair with Yu Chi. Then the next generation gave birth to a daughter surnamed Bak and Joe’s character is Lee which meant again no happy ending so to speak. I suppose she marries Sammul again because I didn’t see Sammul’s name in the next story. Then Bak gives birth to Dai. Now Dai is the surname of Joe’s character in the 3rd story, so it means at least that’s one happy ending if you feel Charmaine and Joe ending up together is a happy ending.

But I am beginning to feel restless. I can’t connect with the story, I don’t feel for the characters and when that narration came on I was very very irritated. Moreover the acting is so-so for the young ones.

Sammul Chan seems too eager, hardly any substance. I just find his performance a bit underdeveloped.

Joe Ma is too old to play that young man who so desperately wants his love to leave with him. He’s ok actually but a miscast in this story.

Charmaine Sheh is also too old to play a young girl but as the series progresses I suppose she ages so that’s ok eventually. But I find her performance again scene per scene. It is irritating that when she threatened the guy in front of her family with the 3 big charges, she had her back facing him. Shouldn’t she look at him in the eye? To show she isn’t afraid of her? The way she talk also is a bit like monogamy, like one tone and reading from her script. Even when she was threatening people, I wrote more emotion into her performance than she actually performed. She was actually quite bland. Her eyes has feelings true, her emotions is seen through her eyes but her face seems blank and her voice seems flat.

And I am surprised at her character’s ability to adapt to the poor life since she was so rich once, surely a few scenes of her making a mess when washing clothes or cleaning the house would make her more endearing? But no, she seems more like a multitasking super intelligent superwoman that is almost annoying because everyone else seems so useless, stupid and unable to do 2 things at once.

But the worst, the narration. I so hate the narration. Oh shut up! SHUT UP!!! Just let the story speak for itself, I know cantonese, I have eyes, I can see and I can hear so please don’t speak the obvious and give me your modern day opinion of the olden day women. So shut up! Please!! But she won’t and I am losing the battle here. But are they winning the war as well? Do I like this series?

Frankly after 3 episodes (I missed 1 remember?) from quite liking it to right now no feeling. I am just waiting to see who dies or who ends up with who or how varied our Charmaine Sheh’s various characters’ love life would be. Yes, I am not feeling the love and one more voiceover I am definitely hating it!

Urghhh…

 

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