The scene opens in the courtyard of the manor where Lin's father is dying. Lin thanks the officers for saving his life, but he tells them that he has also made arrangements to escape from prison. The officers have ambushed him on his way back to the capital, using his father's death as an excuse to make him return. Lin asks if the family is supposed to accept these condemnations, and the officer replies that he knows they are innocent, otherwise he would not have helped him. He tells the family that the doctor's exemption plate saved Lin, and he asks if they are safe now. Lin tells the officers that he will beat the drums outside the court, to ask for his daughter's innocence. He asks the crowd to try their best to save his daughter. The crowd hears the announcement that the quack, Su Yang, has caused the empress' death and has been sentenced to be executed. Everyone is shocked.