Episode 1

Candidates for positions at the Central Bank of China

== Summary ==

Wei Ruolai introduces himself in a voice over. Then we meet him doing some accounting work for Mr Qian, a fellow townsman from Jiangxi and leader of an organised crime gang.

Shen Tunan arrives by train to take up his position as senior advisor to the Koumintang controlled Central Bank of China. He immediately suffers an assassination attempt by way of car bomb, which he survives.

Ruolai's landlady Aunt Zhou bullies him into going to the stock exchange with her to buy shares in the Imperial Bank. Although the share price initially rises, Shen Tunan's interference sees the price plummet, and she loses money.

Meanwhile, an exchange of communist prisoners is interrupted by a rooftop sniper. The prisoners die and Shen Jinzhen, the sniper is hurt but escapes, Lin Qiaosong in pursuit.

Wei Ruolai tries to hail a rickshaw to take Aunt Zhou home, but the rickshaw is commandeered by Shen Jinzhen, and they leave together. Picking up that something is amiss, Wei Ruolai manages to talk the two of them through a police checkpoint. Shen Jinzhen thanks him for his help and promises a favour in return.

At the Hong Fang Clothing Shop, Jinzhen is treated for her injuries by Xu Nuo, a Communist Party underground leader. Elsewhere, Lin Qiaosong is gunning down communists, and arrests Li Shengda, a bookshop manager.

Wei Ruolai returns home, and after a warning, sneaks into his room avoiding Aunt Zhou. In the morning he heads off to apply for a job at the Central Bank, having made peace with Aunt Zhuo.

Shen Tunan has decided to change up the application process. Part way through the exam, it becomes apparent the building is on fire.

Timed Run down

1:37 card Shanghai 1930

v/o Wei Ruolai, from Jiangxi,

I came to Shanghai with my brother to make a living.

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1:54 night, Ax Gang (led by Mr Qian Shaoliang) : Hengmei trading firm

2:17 first view of WRL, wearing brown jacket with split tails & patch pocket at left breast (gaping a little so the lining shows), white shirt, grey scarf, cross body bag with flap cover, green woolen vest, brown trousers.

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5:39 day, steam train arrives at Shanghai North Railway Station

5:53 first view of Shen Tunan, new senior advisor of the Central Bank, wearing dark blue shin length overcoat with epaulette shoulder details, crisp white shirt with long lapels, tie with wide diagonal stripe of pinky brown on blue, matching grey waistcoat, and high waisted trousers.

5:59 met by Chief Deng Ze, director of the Central Bank's Department of Government Ethics.

6:13 mention of Kong Yongzhi

6:17 mention of Nanjing convention

6:29 mention of "the four major banks"

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6:48 exterior, Qibao Street

7:06 v/o WRL, seen from behind, same clothes as above

7:25 first view of A-Wen

7:36 interior, boarding house

7:43 first view of old chessmaster, Yi Zhi

7:58 first view of landlady, "Aunt" Zhou

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8:45 interior Shanghai Stock exchange (Imperial Bank stock rising)

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10:05 train station, STN and Chief Deng walking and talking

10:12 mention Deputy Director Gao

10:19 car bomb

11:09 STN: "This is the fourth time someone has tried to kill me."

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11:44 card: Shanghai Garrison Command

11:51 first view Lin Qiaosong, captain of the Military Law Department of the Shanghai Garrison Command, Investigation and Arrest Unit

12:08 first view of Wen Biao, as Cpt Lin and his men arrive to transport prisoners from the concession back to the Garrison Command. Driving through city.

12:39 first view of rooftop sniper wearing wide brimmed black hat with black leather band, black over coat, black gloves, elegant wrist watch, white shirt, over knee black leather boots

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12:52 STN pulls up at the central bank, strides inside (clothes as above).

13:12 first view of Huang Congyuan, STN's secretary, as we enter STN's bank office for the first time.

13:28 STN phones the stock exchange, asks about Imperial Bank share price.

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13:42 interior Shanghai Stock exchange (Imperial Bank stock falling)

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14:38 exterior, city streets, sniper pulls the trigger, takes out driver, shootout commences between prisoner transport crew under Cpt Lin and communists.

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14:59 interior Shanghai Stock exchange. WRL urges Aunt Zhou to sell shares

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15:36 shoot out cont. Cpt Lin refers to sniper as "the target".

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16:12 interior Shanghai Stock exchange

Aunt Zhou has lost 159 yuan.

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17:49 shoot out cont

19:00 comrade tells sniper "Go! Gu Lun betrayed us"

19:15 reinforcements for Cpt Lin arrive

19:21 sniper introduced as Shen Jinzhen, Communist party member

19:41 SJZ is shot in the leg and retreats

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19:48 exterior, The Chartered Stock and Produce Exchange, Shanghai. Aunt Zhou is bemoaning to WRL

20:50 WRL runs off to find rickshaw

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21:00 SJZ throwing black clothing away. Is now clad in white shirt, pale cream skirt, pale cream cloak, white hat with a wide cream fabric ribbon, stockings and white t-bar shoes with a small buckle and slight heel.

21:04 Cpt Lin and his men in pursuit, finds discarded black clothes.

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21:31 WRL in front of a church, hails a rickshaw. It stops, and SJZ gets in. They quarrel.

22:00 Cpt Lin appears in background. SJZ hoists WRL into rickshaw with her.

22:19 Rickshaw stopped for inspection

23:02 Mr Qian's business card is found on WRL's person. They are released. (His silver taken.)

23:50 SJZ and WRL talk. SJZ tells WRL she owes him a favour. WRL gets out and runs off.

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24:49 Phone rings. Convo between STN (at bank) and Mr Liu (at Stock exchange) - Mr Liu is wearing a #18 badge. STN in same clothes as above. In these shots it is clear he has on a wedding band on his ring finger left hand, and a large faced wristwatch on his left wrist.

25:09 STN places call to Mr Song (FIRST APPEARANCE! face not shown. Extreme close up on hand, and then back of head. From what is visible he is wearing a dark, western style suit jacket with a white shirt.) "Tunan, I sent you to Shanghai this time for the great cause of financial unification. Shanghai's financial industry is complicated and varied. Some banks take advantage of their foreign investments and act greedily. They only obey the government on the surface. We must give them a head on blow. Don't be soft-hearted. In addition, the Central Bank can coexist and mutually benefit with private banks that are willing to cooperate sincerely"

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25:43 Hong Fang Clothing Shop : first appearance Xu Nuo, person in charge of the Communist Party's Shanghai contact point.

26:09 SJZ and Mr Xu talk while he treats her injury.

SJZ wearing: a white blouse with some sort of jewelled pin at the neck closure. It looks to be gold with pearls inset. There is a wide covered placket down the front, no buttons visible. At her left wrist there is a fairly tight, wide cuff with two buttons across the width, and a somewhat puffy sleeve gathered to the cuff. There is also an elegant ladies watch with a dark band. Her right sleeve is folded back to reveal scrapes. Her hair is loose, and she isn't wearing a hat. She has no visible makeup. Her stockings are rolled down so her leg can be treated, but the way the scene is shot nothing else below the waist is clearly seen.

She lists the comrades who died in the shoot out earlier "xiao Wu, da Tian and Yiling". He asks for confirmation that they were betrayed by Gu Lun. She wants to take revenge. He tells her she needs to recover and orders her to wait for instructions.

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27:46 someone is running while being shot at. Someone else is sending morse code messages when their room is broken into and they are shot. Reverse shot shows the attackers are Wen Biao and others from the Investigation and Arrest Unit.

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28:17 first appearance of Li Shengda, at the bookshop, getting arrested

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29:02 WRL returning home, at night (gosh, his suit is so oversized at this point. He clearly hasn't had enough to eat regularly in A LONG TIME.)

29:22 A-Wen catches him before he goes inside and warns him about Aunt Zhou. ("She said she'd chop you up for the cats!") He climbs up to his window from outside.

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30:23 first view of WRL's room. He drinks some water. His stomache growls.

31:27 FLASHBACK to getting fired from typesetter job for being late.

31:50 gets his box out from under the bed, counts his money. Looks at his certificates [written examination notice]

32:42 V/O :Communists have run rampant in your hometown. The supervisor required us to investigate your family background strictly. Before the investigation is clear, we can't give you your diploma. By the way, the Central Bank is recruiting people in Shanghai. You can try it out.

33:04 FLASHBACK to WRL speaking to lecturer, who tells him about STN "He was a top finance student from Germany's Humboldt University of Berlin."

33:37 V/O :Don't forget, it's December 18. Go try it.

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33:55 Next day, WRL wakes and rushes to get ready avoiding Aunt Zhou.

In bed he has his worn, padded blue robe laid over the covers (for warmth?). He is wearing a night shirt, what looks like unbleached fabric. There is a line of brown buttons at the neck opening which runs down to mid chest and no collar. He is also wearing baggy shorts in a slightly darker fabric. He rushes to put on his blue padded jacket and slippers. The jacket has four or possibly five frog closures at front and fairly roomy sleeves (he pushes them up to his elbows without trouble.) There are slits at the sides up to his waist. It has a stand up collar, not a fold over one. There are patch pockets low down on the front panels.

After washing up he changes into his outfit from the day before: white shirt, green woollen vest, brown suit, beaten up leather shoes and (holey) socks.

meanwhile a song plays :

朝阳 -untranslated- (title of song?) it means: have a sunny, usually southern, exposure. pinyin: Chaoyang.

初透碧纱窗 Passing through the window screen

不堪回首 走洋场 Can't bear to look back through the foreign lands

翻身起 整衣装 Flip around and get dressed

心急急 步匆忙 Walking in a hurry

为生计奔波 也无妨 Husltling for a living is no big deal

魏若来 Wei Ruolai

一梦成黄梁 Life is but a dream

我 魏若来 I, Wei Ruolai

一梦成黄梁 Life is but a dream.

36:22 opening his door he finds Aunt Zhou right outside. They talk. She gives him a grey/blue woolen overcoat. It is well made and in relatively good condition, but too big for him. The shoulder seam hangs somewhat past his shoulder line, and the sleeves hang down over his knuckles. It has large notched lapels and large same colour decorative buttons, as if the coat is double breasted. It has a seam down the midline of the back, and a line of three buttons at the cuffs. He wears it over his brown suit, with the crossbody bag on top.

37:39 WRL rushes downstairs, A-Wen makes him get in the rickshaw to take him to Central Bank

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38:58 Outside Central Bank. Secretary Huang meets WRL's car.

STN wearing taupe overcoat with no shoulder details. A dark blue suit with a very subtle blue on blue stripe, white shirt, bronze/silver tie with a subtle scale like pattern. Wristwatch. Carrying an oxblood red leather brief case

A-Wen and WRL arrive. A-Wen gives WRL peace token he got for him at Jing'an Temple for luck.

39:29 shot of entranceway which reads (in English) THE CENTRAL BANK OF CHINA

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39:33 inside bank, WRL finds a crowd of other applicants including (name? later co-worker) he gets applicant badge #47.

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41:16 STN (he has now taken off the overcoat and you can see he is also wearing a white pocket handkerchief folded neatly into a triangle and protruding from the left breast pocket) and Chief Deng talking about new applicants exam: "What kind of qualities do you think a competent banker should have?" "Rationality" "Rationality is hard to quantify. I think certain qualities can be quantifies in action."

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42:07 Exam room. Smoke starts to infiltrate.

42:55 someone runs in shouting "Fire! Run ! Fire!"

Dramatis Personae

Wei Ruolai

Qian Shaoliang

Shen Tunan

Deng Ze

Wen Youtian

Yi Zhi [minor]

Aunt Zhou

Lin Qiaosong

Wen Biao [minor]

Shen Jinzhen

Huang Congyun [minor]

Agent Liu [minor]

Mr Song

Xu Nuo

Li Shengda

WRL's bank co-worker (name?) [minor]