Secret Service of the Imperial Court

Wang Zhen rises to power in the Ming court by currying favor with the feeble-minded emperor. He quietly expands his influence over the empire's security apparatus. The Brocade Guards become his instrument of fear as dissent is crushed before it can grow.

Wang openly murders those who oppose him and fabricates imperial decrees to justify his orders. The Brocade Guards pledge loyalty to him alone, becoming his personal enforcers. His grip on the court tightens as rivals fall in line or are quietly removed.

Bu Fa, captain Zhao Wu Yi's eldest son and a sergeant of the Brocade Guards, follows orders to assassinate one general. After learning the truth about the decrees, he spares the other generals and lies to his father about killing them. The seeds of betrayal begin to sprout as loyalty cracks.

The surviving generals attempt to ambush Wang during a leisure outing, hoping to blunt his power. In a brutal counterattack, Wang murders them, exposing Bu Fa's deceit to Zhao. The eunuch's ruthlessness shows the depth of corruption at court.

Bu Fa, his wife Xue Liang, and their son become hunted by the Brocade Guards. Zhao Wu Yi orders the family’s death to satisfy Wang’s regime, severing any protective ties. The family flees across the empire, always one step ahead of pursuers.

Ousted from protection, Bu Fa is forced to kill his former brothers in arms and sinks into alcoholism to numb the guilt of his betrayal. He wanders as a hunted man, torn between family loyalty and loyalty to the emperor’s regime. The once-proud sergeant drifts into despair.

Wang threatens to execute Bu Fa's entire family unless he delivers Bu Fa's head within a week. Zhao orders his brother Wu Ji to kill Bu Fa or face clan punishment. Tension mounts as the clock ticks toward a deadly confrontation.

During martial arts training, Bu Fa is attacked by his uncle Wu Ji. He discovers a letter from his father ordering his death, realizing the manipulation behind the orders. He refuses to betray his relatives, but in the heat of combat he accidentally kills Wu Ji.

Xiao Nan, Wu Ji’s daughter, is tasked with finishing Bu Fa. She tries to poison him with tea, but he kills her in self-defense and collapses from his injuries. An unknown rescuer arrives, revealed later to be Bu Qun, Bu Fa’s younger brother whom he believed executed.

Bu Qun secretly dons Wu Ji's clothes and launches a suicide mission to draw out pursuers, dying in Bu Fa's place. His sacrifice buys time for Bu Fa's family to live in peace. Xue Liang witnesses the act and, wracked with guilt, commits suicide.

Bu Qun’s severed head is brought back to Zhao, who recognizes his younger son and is overwhelmed with guilt. Zhao’s loyalty to Wang falters as he questions the eunuch’s orders. The personal cost of obedience becomes painfully clear.

Knowing Wang does not recognize Bu Fa’s face well, Zhao fabricates a scene in which Bu Qun’s head is shown during an audience with the emperor, convincing Wang that Bu Fa’s elder son has died. The ruse undermines Wang’s leverage over Zhao. The eunuch’s grip on power begins to slip.

Bu Fa kidnaps the emperor during a hunting trip and confronts Wang in the mountains. The two engage in a climactic duel, and Bu Fa cleaves Wang in two, ending the eunuch’s tyranny. The tyrant’s grasp on the throne is finally broken.

Bu Fa announces Wang’s death to Zhao and departs to live in peace with his son. The emperor is freed from Wang’s manipulation, and Zhao is released from servitude to the eunuch. A hard-won peace settles over the realm as father and son seek a quiet life.