The Tiger and the Fox

**The Tiger and the Fox** is the seventh episode of the first season of the Cinemax original martial arts crime drama *Warrior*. It premiered on May 17, 2019. The series has since been acquired by Max.

## Synopsis

Ah Sahm faces a dilemma when Father Jun sends Bolo to hunt down Long Zii and Mai Ling. Ah Toy recruits a special girl from a whore monger, and takes on a business partner for a land deal. Penny is faced with an unsavory choice in order to save her home. Lee's past catches up with him.

## Plot

In fear of retaliation from the Hop Wei, Long Zii and Mai Ling have taken refuge in a safe house. For 30 years he's been one of the most respected men in Chinatown, and now he's hiding out like some low level onion. Mai Ling assures him that he's safe, but he's not convinced.

Ah Toy attends a slave auction in pursuit of a new girl to bring back to her brothel. Disappointed when Zan's selection, she prepares to leave, but hoping to save her as a client, he introduces Ah Toy to a young teenage girl named Lai, who was sold to Zan by her own father to settle a debt. She doesn't talk much and has never been touched. That said, she's double the price. When Zan reveals that she's from Yumingzui in Shandong Province, Ah Toy purchases the girl, seeming almost sympathetic.

Penny has dinner with her father, who is a bit distracted with the cable car commission. Mayor Blake promised Byron the contract, who staked his entire business on the mayor's word. If it doesn't come soon, he'll be forced to declare bankruptcy and lose the house. Penny offers to talk to him, but Byron replies that talking isn't what he's after. Penny is in disbelief that her father is pushing her to have sex with Samuel in order to further the family business.

Ah Toy brings Lai home and runs her a bath, assuring the young girl that she'll be safe with her. After a warm bath and good night's rest, she may even remember how to smile one day.

Bill is struggling to cope with Damon's death, so much so that he even begins seeing his ghost. At the Banshee, Bill meets a bounty hunter named Gresham, who's come searching for Lee, who is on the run after supposedly murdering two men in Georgia. There's a $500 reward for his arrest, and Gresham has come to bring him home, but with Lee's position, he needs Bill's help, and for that, he's willing to split the bounty.

Ah Sahm learns from Young Jun that they're moving on Long Zii after finding out that he's held up at a safe house outside of Chinatown. Bolo is already on the way to kill him and Mai Ling.

Ah Sahm asks Ah Toy if she knows anything of Long Zii's safe house, but she doesn't want to get involved, explaining to Ah Sahm that Mai Ling is no longer his sister and she's already striked against the Hop Wei. Ah Sahm recalls her saying that he would need someone outside of the tong that he can trust. Well, he's looking to her now to be that person. Ah Toy relents and takes Ah Sahm to one of her working girls, who used to work as a maid for Long Zii. From her, they learn the location of Long Zii's safe house.

Bolo kills the guards outside of Long Zii's home before making his way inside. However, when Mai Ling looks outside the windows and can see no guards, she makes her way downstairs to investigate. Armed with a knife, she finds herself face to face with Bolo. She tries to defend herself, but Bolo is far too great a match and nearly strangles the life from Mai Ling until Ah Sahm intervenes and saves her from his grip. Ah Sahm challenges Bolo, refusing to allow him to kill Mai Ling. A fight ensues, and the two seem pretty evenly matched, but Ah Sahm manages to get the upper hand and defeat Bolo, who is then killed by Mai Ling, who tells Ah Sahm that he needs to leave before anyone sees him.

Beaten and battered, Mai Ling returns to Long Zii, who stands near the bed, armed with a sword. She tells him that it's over and takes the sword away. As he gets back in bed and she grabs the blade, he realizes that she intends to kill him. Long Zii says that he's glad it's her killing him, just before closing his eyes. Mai Ling kisses him on the forehead and drives the sword through his abdomen.

Ah Toy notices Gresham and Mr. Holbrook paying a little too much attention to Lai, who, rather than working as a prostitute, Ah Toy has cleaning. Ah Toy welcomes him to enjoy the women, all except Lai, but Holbrook is more interested in her than anyone else, given that she's a virgin. Gresham tells Ah Toy that she should be thanking him, but as far as she's concerned, Lai is not for sale and suggests that Gresham leave while he still can.

Lee receives an unexpected visit from Bill, who confronts him for being an outlaw. Lee reveals that after the war, a family of freed slaves came to live with his family. They helped managed the farm, and Lee practically grew to with them. From a young age, Lee and their daughter Nora, were close friends, until they developed a romantic relationship, which they kept quiet, often hooking up in secret in the barn. They knew they would have to get out of the south if they ever wanted a shot at something real. Nora would always leave the barn first, and he would follow a little while later, but the last time she left, he heard Nora cry out. Lee exited the barn to find two of his cousins holding on to her. They were drunk and had been on to Lee and Nora for a while. One of his cousins had a sickle and killed Nora right in front of Lee. So in turn, Lee killed them, shooting one cousin and killing the other with the sickle. Lee buried Nora and left town that night. Gresham then enters after hearing Lee's story, accompanied by Stone, Harrison, and McLeod. Lee grabs a knife to defend himself, as he's clearly been set up, but in reality, Bill and the squad have come to help Lee. They disarm Gresham and beat him before warning him to never return. Bill wanted to hear the story from Lee's mouth before deciding if he was going to turn him over or not. Lee then thanks Bill for having his back.

Ah Toy meets with her business partner, Leonard Patterson, who tells her about some land that used to be called Spring Valley, but the locals refer to the area as "Cow Hollow" now. The owner leases to about half a dozen dairy farmers. It practically pays for itself and offers will come in low, but if they offer slightly over asking price, they can snatch the land and it would be a nice addition to their assets.

When Ah Toy returns, she discovers that Lai is missing and finds Gresham standing outside a door. She stabs his hand and pins him to the wall before entering the room to find Holbrook on top of Lai. Ah Toy pulls out a knife, cuts his face, sending him running. After she sends Lai to her room, Ah Toy viciously removes her knife from Gresham's palm, taking off two fingers in the process.

Penny returns home, slips into bed, and reluctantly has sex with Blake for the first time since their marriage.

Bolo is strung up in the middle of Chinatown for all to see. The Hop Wei cut him down and bring him to Father Jun, reporting that his mission was not without success, as he did at least manage to kill Long Zii. With Bolo's death, Father Jun is prepared for war.

Li Yong blames himself for Long Zii's death and for not being there to protect him, but Mai Ling reveals that she killed him, as it was finally their time to take control of the tong. Mai Ling and Li Yong share a kiss before heading downstairs for the funeral. She recalls the story of the *Tiger and the Fox* that her dad used to tell her about, relating it to Long Zii and their enemies.

The Hop Wei and Long Zii are both preparing for war and meet dead center of Chinatown, standing on opposite ends, with Ah Sahm and Young Jun leading the Hop Wei and Li Yong leading the Long Zii.

## 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 (credit only)
* Joanna Vanderham as Penelope Blake
* Tom Weston-Jones as Richard Lee
* Hoon Lee as Wang Chao (credit only)
* Langley Kirkwood as Walter Buckley (credit only)
* Christian McKay as Samuel Blake
* Perry Yung as Father Jun
* Joe Taslim as Li Yong
* Henry Yuk as Long Zii
* Steve Wall as Gresham
* Yu Beng Lim as Zan
* Jenny Umbhau as Lai
* Brendan Sean Murray as Jack Damon
* Graham Hopkins as Byron Mercer
* Frank Rautenbach as Patterson
* Robert Hobbs as Stone
* Jacques Bessenger as McLeod
* Nicholas Pauling as Harrison
* Russel Savadier as Holbrook
* Steve Park as Tu
* Gaosi Raditholo as Nora
* Lance Elliot as Lee's Cousin
* Jason O'Neill as Lee's Cousin
* Ryan Kruger as Gareth
* Xiaoyu Peng as Zhang Yan
* Grant Kin as Hop Wei Hatchet Man
* Hani Choi as Wei Hanni Choi
* Ronnie Victor as Brothel Client

## Trivia

* The Tiger and the Fox is a Chinese folktale.