And so BB narrates the incident that happened three months ago. After overhearing the heated argument between Hau Yee and her husband, BB drawn by the light inside Hau Yee’s office dropped in to see how the latter was. They had a heart to heart talk about that argument. Hau Yee reassured BB that she was not drowning her sorrow in alcohol but that she was just doing some wine tasting to pick out the best one to use in the upcoming Silkworm Goddess Festival. She lamented that smart as she was her whole life she would make the mistake of picking the wrong husband, and that if not fearing her father’s anger she would have already divorced her husband long time ago. In Hau Yee’s presence, BB was soft-spoken and deferential unlike how she is with Ka Yeung.
Miffed that her revelation provokes no reaction from the motionless Ka Yeung, BB turns to leave the room. Ka Yeung finally speaks. He has explored this remote hut’s surrounding, to get inside the hut one must walk past that patch of muddy ground but the floor inside the hut was clean when they found Hau Yee; no footprints or muddy tracks. He takes out a long silver needle from his pocket. He had poked the needle inside Hau Yee’s mouth down her throat but it came up clean with no discoloration, which means the raw opium was stuffed inside her mouth after she died. Her death was set up to look like a suicide. Ka Yeung firmly asserts: “My 2nd sister would not commit suicide.” Hearing his finding, BB immediately wants to report the crime to the police but Ka Yeung stops her. She lambastes Ka Yeung for caring more of his family’s name and reputation than seeking justice for his dead sister. She says impassionately that though lowly born she at least is courageous and righteous, and that she will seek justice for Hau Yee. Ka Yeung’s fury is no less than BB's, He angrily tells her that everybody is a suspect including her, and when accused of being unreasonable, Ka Yeung retorts that as pointed out by her, he is the 3rd young master so whatever he says goes, and what’s more “stop being so nosy else don’t expect to keep your job in Wing Tai Lung.” A dirty threat but it works. Blood boiling, BB storms out. (note: I love to watch this fierce and unyielding Ka Yeung especially when reiterating BB's retort that yes he is indeed the 3rd sam siu.)
In actuality Ka Yeung’s calm facade belies his inner turmoil. His venting at BB unleashes the long suppressed, roiling emotion within him; the next scene had him pedaling his bike vigorously up the familiar mountain trail along the mountain lake. His turmoil encapsulated in this one question: “What happened to 2nd sister?”
He stops his pedaling, a flashback came unbidden - how Hau Yee had chided him for crying when he was hurt in a fight with a boy. As she wrapped his scraped hand with her handkerchief, he remembers clearly her admonishment: “Don’t cry, you’re our Poon family’s tough guy, how can you cry over such a minor injury? You’ve to learn to endure and to be strong, or else how can you uphold that big of a silk factory?” (note: Interesting that since young Hau Yee had already pegged Ka Yeung as their father’s successor despite being the 2nd son?) She later piggyback him home, and to protect him kept his fighting from their father. Ka Yeung smiles at that memory.
Even when all grown up, Hau Yee continued to protect him and stand by him; like the time he told his father of his wish to leave home to study medicine in a faraway city, Hau Yee was right there standing next to him pleading his case to their father. Whereas she appealed calmly to their father, Ka Yeung became increasingly exasperated with his father’s obduracy. Ignoring Hau Yee’s attempts for restraint, Ka Yeung raised his voice in defiance: “If I stay back it’s only you I’ll help, just one person; but if I study medicine I can help hundreds of thousands of people.”
But their argument and entreaty fell on deaf ears. True, the father wasn’t pleased with Ka Yeung’s desire to study medicine as he had wanted his children to carry on the family business; but the crux of his unyieldingness was his fear of the big bad outside world that Ka Yeung would venture into in pursuit of his medicine studies. The father then imperiously concluded their argument with this cruel ultimatum: “If you leave home you will henceforth no longer be Poon Wing Len’s son.”
The flashback segues into another - that of of his stealthy farewell parting with Hau Yee. He can still hear her gentle voice reassuring him that she understood he had to leave home against their father’s wishes to follow his dream. "As siblings, how can I not know your thoughts? But with your leaving today, don't know when you'll be back again." She did not rebuke him for being an unfilial son, for breaking their father’s heart, for risking this father-son relationship, and for being selfish in putting his needs and dreams over his family. She had only concerns for his well-being and safety. He left with her exhortation "take care of yourself” ringing in his ears, warming his heart. He is back home now, but she is gone. Why?
His poignant parting flashback abruptly crashes a dark place in his mind; a place where scenes so violent and nightmarish Ka Yeung screams out in agony to expunge them. (note: Wonder why there is this lone goat and lone buffalo doing by the river bank?)
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