No Time for F*cking Chemistry

**No Time for F\*cking Chemistry** is the third episode of the third season of Max's original martial arts crime drama *Warrior* and the twenty-third episode overall. It premiered on June 29, 2023.

## Synopsis

While taking menacing steps to secure Nellie's land, Strickland instills confidence in Leary's political abilities.

## Plot

Ah Sahm, Young Jun, Hong, and Chao meet with Happy Jack to purchase opium with their counterfeit money. They cover their previous order, as well as their next, with a little extra for Happy Jack's trouble, though he questions why Chao has accompanied them. Chao explains he's made an investment with the Hop Wei. Happy Jack's second-in-command, Isaac, proceeds to count the bills as Ah Sahm claims to have a handle on their money issues. Isaac is fooled by the bills and helps deliver the Hop Wei their product.

Nellie receives a surprise visit from Douglas at the vineyard. He's hoping she's reconsidered his offer, but Nellie refuses to relent. Douglas takes notice of her girls and claims that some folks nearby might surmise her place is a brothel. However, she has a dozen San Francisco police who will testify on her behalf, as they helped liberate the girls. Still, Douglas questions what people would think when they found out about her relationship with Ah Toy, as he has, which he makes known in an attempt to strong-arm Nellie into accepting his offer, but instead, she orders him off her land.

Abigail learns from Lee that Agent Mosely wants to deputize him in an effort to find the counterfeit money operation, rather than turn him in for his charges. Admittedly, Lee is considering the offer, as it would mean no longer having to look over their shoulders, but Abigail claims they'll always have to look over their shoulders, not to mention that a cop living in her bar is both bad for business and bad for Lee's health. Nevertheless, in hopes of a better future, Lee is willing to at least consider the option.

Mai Ling holds a meeting with the elders to discuss Muchen's plot to kill Li Yong, which was fortunately foiled by Kong Pak. The surviving members of the Three Brothers tong will be sworn into the Long Zii soon, but the elders are skeptical. Kong Pak eases the elders' concerns, explaining that Muchen ruled by fear and that now that he's gone, his hatchets will fall in line.

Whilst gazing at her new evening dress, Mai Ling reveals to Li Yong that Eliza invited her to an art gallery. Li Yong fears that she's spending too much time in the pond and that she's taking too much of a risk, though Mai Ling insists that she has it under control.

Lee and Agent Mosley arrive at the station and ask Chief Atwood to round up the Chinatown Squad, so they can discuss the counterfeit operation that is likely located in Chinatown, which is why Mosely is providing the officers with iodine, which will expose any counterfeit bills. Stone remarks that they're trying to keep the Chinese from killing each other and that they have no time for such frivolous activities, to which Lee replies that Stone's payoffs could be counterfeit too, and thus he'd be doing himself a favor. Upset, he makes his way towards Lee, but Atwood intervenes.

After the meeting, Lee informs Bill of his plan to pay Chao a visit after learning that the original counterfeit crew was buying arms from a Chinese man. Bill offers to join him, but Lee fears it would muddy the waters and prefers to tackle the investigation on his own.

Yan Mi reluctantly prints more money for the Hop Wei, reminding Ah Sahm that she initially agreed to help get them up and running, not join their gang. Ah Sahm assures her that she should not worry, as they protect their own, but as Yan Mi recalls, one of them said the exact same thing to her father. And then they missed one payment, and he was beaten. Ah Sahm regrets that happening and apologizes on Young Jun's behalf.

As planned, Mai Ling takes another trip to the pond to attend the art gallery alongside Eliza and her husband Bernard, who has heard a lot about Mai Ling and her business ventures. Mai Ling does a bit of research of her own, noting that Bernard's firm finances some of the largest projects in the city. He remarks that Mai Ling's English is flawless, to which she snarkily replies that his isn't too bad either.

Just as he notices Mai Ling with Eliza Pendleton at the art gallery, Buckley is approached by Catherine, whose disappointed that Buckley hasn't called on her yet. He admittedly thought she was simply being polite, which she insists she wasn't. She can't wait to watch Buckley knock Thayer off his high horse, claiming that his man of the people routine is growing stale. Before leaving, she recommends Buckley call on her soon, or else she'll become intolerable.

Stewart pays a reporter to publish an article on Thayer's brother, who was seen in a Chinese opium den as recently as last week.

Leary approaches Douglas on behalf of Leonard Pierce to threaten him into playing fair. However, Douglas travels with guards and informs Leary that he's not the type of man one should threaten, rather the man one should look to in order to make a deal, then inviting Leary into his carriage for a chat.

Yan Mi interrupts Ah Sahm practicing with his nunchucks to inform him that she's done printing and that the bills will be dry in the morning. He offers to walk her home, but she'd rather take her payment and go. However, before she can leave, Ah Sahm first has to pat her down.

Douglas invites Leary back to his home, where they discuss their time in war. Douglas' boy Louis fell at the Battle of Sailor's Creek, after having lost his mother in childbirth. Leary shares how every day of the war, he prayed to make it home to his boys, and he did, only for them to die to the pox. They both know the price the country demands and paid it tenfold for the freedom to build something of their own, but men like Pierce will never understand that, as they were born into wealth, whereas Douglas earned every dime he's ever made. They see Leary as a thug, but Douglas sees him as a political powerhouse and the voice of the Irish. However, Leary is thinking too small. The problem he faces is systemic and if he wants to change that, he needs the type of political capital that comes with real power.

Young Jun gathers the tong at Ah Toy's brothel to announce that they're back in the molasses game. However, Ah Sahm is feeling a lot less celebratory. Printing was supposed to be a solution, not *the* solution. They should be using the chop to buy more soldiers, not booze and whores. Chao encourages Ah Sahm to move fast because Mai Ling just absorbed another tong; she's building an army. Ah Sahm doubts she'll make a move so soon with all the heat on the street, but Chao notes that she doesn't appear too affected by it.

Lee pays Chao a visit to ask him a few questions about a counterfeit operation, as a witness from the original counterfeit crew claims that a Chinese man sold guns to his partners at the dock shortly before they were robbed. Lee explains that he works for the government now and that he can do things differently, but Chao isn't convinced and points Lee towards the exit. Shortly after Lee leaves, Chao takes off as well. However, he's being followed by Agent Mosely, who Chao manages to escape from in a laundromat.

Ah Sahm goes on a stroll through Long Zii territory until being confronted by Mai Ling and Li Yong. He confronts her about trying to set up shop in Hop Wei territory. He questions why the bulls aren't raiding her territory, to which Mai Ling replies that opportunities are everywhere. Ah Sahm warns her that it's only a matter of time before whatever deal she made blows up in her face, and when that happens, the Hop Wei will be the least of her worries. Mai Ling replies that they already are the least of her worries and that ever since Young Jun took over, he's been doing her job for her. Mai Ling once again extends a hand to Ah Sahm and says that he doesn't have to go down with Young Jun, but he's not interested.

Nellie tells Ah Toy about Douglas and how he wants to buy her property to build a railroad. She recalls how they made a fortune together by convincing her late husband Fred to invest in his construction business just as the city was taking off. In addition to her land, Nellie feels Douglas wants her too and never got over the rejection. Ah Toy fears he will take everything from them, but Nellie assures her that her lawyers will handle it and that she won't let anything happen to their girls.

Ah Sahm finds Young Jun and Hong passing out the counterfeit bills to the local shop owners. Ah Sahm fears that flooding the streets with fake chop will backfire on them. Young Jun is beginning to feel like Ah Sahm is calling him out and questioning his every move. He explains that he's washing the money. Businesses buy inventory with the fake chop, customers buy their stuff, and real money flows back into their pockets. Young Jun understands that Ah Sahm is trying to help, but he'd rather handle the big picture problems himself and tells Ah Sahm to ensure that Yan Mi continues printing.

Ah Sahm brings Yan Mi something to eat. However, she is disgusted by his dumplings and proposes they get something to eat elsewhere. In addition to dinner, they catch a show as well, detailing the story of the god of thunder and how lightning began. However, they have different views on the story. Ah Sahm sees it as a love story with a happy ending, but Yan Mi argues otherwise. She recalls seeing Ah Sahm at the riot. He came in like an avenging Angel, there to save them, but then he came to the shop with Young Jun to collect, and she realized that he's no angel, rather a simple hatchet man. But it's not too late for him to choose differently, she says.

Hong returns to the nightclub to sit in on Marcel's performance. Afterward, the two of them hook up in Marcel's room. Marcel questions how long ago did Hong cross the salt, to which he replies a few months ago. He's been in the tong ever since his father kicked him out at 14. As for Marcel, his mom was indentured to a commodore in the Royal Navy. He traveled a lot, so they did too, but after she died, he didn't have any use for Marcel, who's been on his own ever since. Hong surmises it must be lonely, but Marcel says it's different for artists, as they're more accepting than most.

Pierce confronts Leary at the Banshee after being blown off, only to learn that he's partnered with Douglas. When he raises his voice, Leary stabs him in the hand with a fork and demands respect. Pierce threatens to have Leary arrested, but when Leary calls over an Irish cop, no one in the bar backs his claims to have been assaulted, forcing Pierce to retreat.

Ah Sahm walks Yan Mi home and frisk her before allowing her to go inside. However, in doing so, the two of them find themselves staring in each other's eyes. Yan Mi then heads inside, where she removes her hair clip, revealing the stolen counterfeit bill hidden in her hair.

Nellie joins Ah Toy on the porch after a long night. Just as she prepares to draw a bath, the vineyard goes up in flames. As it turns out, Douglas' men are setting fire to Nellie's land. As she goes to retrieve her gun, Ah Toy and Lai chop down the intruders. Nellie eventually returns with her gun, but she is too late, as the sleeping quarters have been set ablaze and the girls come running out, some consumed by flames. After shooting and killing one of Douglas' men, she tends to the girls. Meanwhile, Ah Toy takes out the intruders one by one, as does Lai, who attempts to defend the field. Nellie manages to kill several attackers before being tackled to the ground and strangled. Fortunately, her girls come to her rescue. Unfortunately, Ah Toy is left to face those that remain alone. She is outnumbered and quickly becomes overwhelmed by the odds, as they stomp her on the ground. Fortunately, Lai comes to her aid, killing several more of the men. Ah Toy attempts to get to her blade, but she is being strangled by a whip, which Lai manages to cut, though not without consequence, as one of Douglas' men punches her in the face multiple times until Ah Toy intervenes and sends the man running.

## Cast

* Olivia Cheng as Ah Toy
* Jason Tobin as Young Jun
* Dianne Doan as Mai Ling
* Kieran Bew as Bill O'Hara
* Dean Jagger as Dylan Leary
* Tom Weston-Jones as Richard Lee
* Hoon Lee as Wang Chao
* Langley Kirkwood as Walter Buckley
* Miranda Raison as Nellie Davenport
* Chen Tang as Hong
* Chelsea Muirhead as Yan Mi
* Adam Rayner as Douglas Strickland III
* Mark Dacascos as Kong Pak
* Joe Taslim as Li Yong
* Nat Ramabulana as Happy Jack
* Neels Clasen as Chief Atwood
* Telly Leung as Marcel
* Robert Hobbs as Stone
* Nicholas Pauling as Harrison
* Sean-Marco Vorster as Stewart Gumm
* Colin Moss as Thayer
* Gaosi Raditholo as Abigail
* Dominique Maher as Catherine Archer
* Jenny Umbhau as Lai
* Milton Schorr as Officer Graham
* Jazzara Jaslyn as Eliza Pendleton
* Armand Aucamp as Bernard Pendleton
* Sizo Mahlangu as Isaac
* Steven Stead as Leonard Pierce
* Jandre le Roux as Shaw
* Trevor Ou Tim as Wu Jin
* Xin Sarith Wuku as Xin
* Claire Glover as Frannie
* Jemma Kahn as Society Matron
* Martin Munro as Leonard Raice
* Alan Foulis as Owen

## Trivia

* The episode title was spoken by Officer Stone to Lee and Agent Mosely in reference to their investigation.

## Gallery

### Videos

The Official Warrior Podcast Ep. 3 - Max-2