59.03-Is it me or is that tree floating?

In the first episode of the Smole, the contestants divided themselves into four groups as they explored the classical arts of China. The outcome left more to be desired with only 53/120 points in the pot. As they got to know one another, Peter's search for the Mole was stopped short as he was the first to be executed this season. Without him, will the group do better? Who is the Mole?

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Sienna: "We were awoken in the wee hours of the morning to do a pilgrimage. Three of us would do a pilgrimage to the top, four of us a pilgrimage to the past, and four of us a pilgrimage to the store. We were allowed to choose which journey to pilgrim."

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Adriel: "It was a tiring hike but we got to see the sunrise. It was very worth it."

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Mary, Ramona, Jordana and Ted are going on a pilgrimage to the past. In their backpacks are 12 items from different dynasties. Along the way, they have to place the items in chronological order. They have 2.5 hours and each item in the correct place by the end earns the pot 5 points.

Samantha, Seamus, Sienna and Mary are at the store. They are tasked to help decorate a house according to fengshui principles in 4 hours. They can win 30 points, but every rule violation reduces the amount by 5 points.

Of course, we don't expect these foreigners to know the rules of fengshui, so that's where Adriel, Raymundo and Rudy come in. They will journey to the top to find out the right principles. 

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Raymundo: "Do you always dress like a slut in public?"

Adriel: "It's hot out here and we're carrying 20 pounds of sand. Besides, you're one to talk: you're wearing fishnet."

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Jordana: "Oh I thought I saw a shoebill!"

Ramona: "Keep moving, Jordana."

Mary: "You seem to be in your element."

Ted: "Who me? Umm, I guess I'm used to nature."

Ramona: "Is it me or is that tree floating?"

Mary: "There's the first pedestal."

Mary: "There's something inscribed."

Ramona: "What does it say?"

Jordana: "Wait for me!"

Mary: "The last dynasty, this dynasty built on the Ming dynasty and innovated, creating varied porcelain and bright glaze colours. It might be the most colourful and intricate of them all."

Jordana: "Who has colourful porcelain?"

Mary: "I think we should complete the trail once first before making a decision."

Ramona: "Are you crazy? Who knows how long the trail is!"

Jordana: "I think we can put something down first."

Mary: Ted? You're the tiebreaker."

Ted: "Me? Um..."

Ted: "Let's put something down. We can always come back and change it later."

Ramona: "It's settled. I think this vase labelled Qing is the most colourful."

Mary: "This dynasty introduced polychromatic overglaze enamels."

Ramona: "What does that mean?"

Ted: "Multi-coloured items."

Ramona: "I have a vase labelled Ming. I bet that's it."

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Sheila: "We can't just stand here waiting around. Let's buy some furniture first. Can I get a table and chairs?"

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Sheila: "Because the roads were long and winding we couldn't get a moving van, so we had to transport all the furniture ourselves using the backpacks we were given. It was like I was buying Uzos furniture with all the assembling required."

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Rudy: "How long more is this hike to the top?"

Raymundo: "Keep up."

Rudy: "Yo! There, around the corner!"

Rudy: "I see someone!"

Raymundo: "We're finally at the peak."

Rudy: "This is so cool!"

France: "Keep the sink away from the stove as they are conflicting elements."

Brenda: "To balance the water energy in the bathroom, consider adding wood elements like wood panelling to draw chi upwards away from the drains."

Viktor: "All the women are lying."

Rudy: "What?"

The three men have reached the peak where they will hear a group of Sims practising tai chi impart the ways of the feng shui. Unfortunately, not everyone is speaking the truth. They have to convey the right principles to the rest at the store.

Joy: "Maya, Brenda and I are all liars."

Brenda: "Exactly one of myself, Viktor and Zed is a liar."

Adriel: "We need to figure out who is lying first."

Rudy: "We each take one row. Adriel can take the first, I'll take the second and you take the last. Sounds good?"

Raymundo: "Yes. Let's focus first on the liars."

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Sheila: "I'm here at the house we need to interior redecorate."

There are 3 rooms the four fengshui apprentices need to design: the kitchen,

,the bedroom,

And the bathroom. As fengshui is an art that cannot be mastered in a day, the contestants will only be assessed based on the principles espoused by the tai chi practitioners.

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Ted: "This dynasty was ruled by the Mongols. Under its rule it made advancements in astronomy and cartography and exposed China to the scientific Islamic world."

Mary: "I have a globe here."

Jordana: "Could it be this white pot? It looks pretty Islamic too."

Mary: "I think my globe works better with the cartography clue."

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France: "If you ask him, Deng would say I'm telling the truth."

Adriel: "Your name tag says you are Deng. Is she telling the truth?"

Deng: "You should not position the bed to face the door. That is a coffin position."

Maya: "You should place the bed facing the door for the yin energy to quickly dissipate and leave when you rest at night."

Nick: "Zed, Zhang and Diane are either all telling the truth or all lying."

Zhang: "Declutter and organise each room in your house to maximise chi."

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Sheila: "That's all the furniture I bought done. My back feels so much better now."

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Ted: "This dynasty invented many things still used today, including the one to be placed here. Could that be the globe?"

Jordana: "Vases are still used today."

Mary: "It might not be any of the vases."

Jordana: "How about this Sui ceramic pot?"

Ramona: "Let's place that down and move on."

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Gao: "Either all Chinese are liars or all Chinese are liars."

Adriel: "This isn't working out."

Nick: "Zed, Zhang and Diane are either all telling the truth or all lying."

Rudy: "Your name is Maya, yours is...Nick. Where are Zed, Zhang and Diane?"

Selena: "You can get a hidden exemption at a cost if you get someone to place a mirror directly opposite a bed."

Raymundo: "Is that so? I hope you're telling the truth."

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Jordana: "Aah!"

Ted: "Jordana! Oh my gosh! Are you okay?"

Jordana: "I'm fine, but I think something broke."

Ramona: "You broke a bone?"

Jordana: "No, I may have broken something inside."

Mary: "Let's hope that it doesn't disqualify us."

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Jordana: "And Rooney asked why I wear a helmet. Ha! Who's laughing now? Hehe! If not for my helmet I would have needed to be medevaced, hehe."

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Raymundo: "I think Nick and Selena are telling the truth."

Adriel: "All three of mine are probably telling the truth."

Rudy: "I barely remember all their names."

Raymundo: "Are you confident?"

Adriel: "Yes. The rules they said all made sense."

Raymundo: "Okay, what are the rules they said?"

Adriel: "Keep the sink away from the stove, don't put the bed by the door and hang artwork."

Rudy: "We can't divide them up into rows because they keep criss-crossing and it's hard to keep track of who said what."

Rudy: "But I do remember one of mine saying to put the bed facing the door. That contradicts what Adriel said."

Raymundo: "It's possible for a bed to be by a door and facing another door."

Rudy: "Sorry I'm not of help. It's hard to remember who said what."

Raymundo: "I think we can pass everything we remember on to the rest and let them decide which are right. Four heads are better than three. I'll go down first since I have the most rules to pass on."

Rudy: "Hurry Raymundo!"

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Ted: "We can see distinctive pottery with three-colour glazes from this dynasty, namely amber, green, and cream."

Mary: "That might have been one of the last two vases."

Jordana: "We have to go back?"

Mary: "Ted and I will go back."

Ted: "Oh. Okay."

Ramona: "Should we move on?"

Jordana: "Let's wait for them."

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Mary: "None of us had any knowledge of Chinese dynasties. We had to rely on the clues given about the pottery to determine which dynasty came first."

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Mary: "Which of the two is it?"

Ted: "There's green, there's gold...but no amber or cream."

Mary: "Maybe it's not pure."

Ted: "So, this vase?"

Mary: "Let's go with that."

Ted: "But what goes in its place?"

Mary: "We'll figure that out later."

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Seamus: "At long last. What have you got for me?"

Raymundo: "Remember to place a mirror opposite a bed. Use table lamps. Symmetry is important. Also, paint something red...I can't remember. It might be the cabinets or the sink. But place a mirror opposite a bed. That is most important."

Seamus: "Sienna! Sienna!"

Sienna: "What is it?"

Seamus: "We need a bed and a bedroom mirror. The mirror should face opposite the bed. We also need red paint for the kitchen and a table and a lamp."

Sienna: "That's it?"

Seamus: "For now."

Sienna: "Hi, I'd like a bed, a table and a lamp."

Clerk: "What kind of bed, what kind of table, what kind of lamp?"

Sienna: "Good point. This should be for the bedroom, so a table lamp and dressing table."

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Jordana: "This dynasty developed white porcelain. Another vase?"

Ramona: "Or it could be this white disc from 'The 6 Dynasties'."

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Nick: "The bathroom should mainly contain bright colours like whites, creams and pastels to tip the balance in favour of yang energy."

Zed: "I agree with Zhang."

Maya: "You should place the bed facing the door for the yin energy to quickly dissipate and leave when you rest at night."

Zhang: "There are an even number of truth-tellers."

Gao: "You should find any animal-related artwork you can and hang it above your bed to chase away the nian while you rest."

Selena: "You don't know if I'm lying or telling the truth without me saying this, but you can get a hidden exemption at a cost if you get someone to place a mirror directly opposite a bed."

Rudy: "What? Hmm. Raymundo must have heard this too. No wonder he wants to go down so eagerly."

Adriel: "We can't wait forever for Raymundo to come back. I'll run down to share what I know."

Rudy: "Cool with me."

Joy: "Maya, Brenda and I are all liars."

Brenda: "Exactly one of myself, Viktor and Zed is a liar."

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Ted: "Careful Jordana. Watch your step."

Jordana: "Why is the path so unsafe?"

Mary: "I think the 6 Dynasties disc belongs here."

Ramona: "Why?"

Mary: "There is a clue in the wording. It says 'amalgamation of periods'. The 6 Dynasties is probably the only one to fit that clue."

Jordana: "You and Ted went back earlier. It's our turn now. Hehe!"

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Rudy: "Welcome back."

Raymundo: "You figured out who are telling the truth yet?"

Rudy: "I just gave up. Adriel went down by the way."

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Ted: "This dynasty is when we might begin to see taller relics. In this period, we might see lead-glazed pottery."

Mary: "Anyone has vases left?"

Jordana: "I have a yellowish old one. Or had. It's quite broken now."

Ramona: "We also have the other vases we placed beforehand."

Mary: "Those should be right. I have a green vase with me. This looks lead-glazed to me."

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Adriel: "Keep the sink from the stove, don't place the bed by the door but it should face opposite a door, add wood panelling in the bathroom and place some animal artwork above the bed. But I should let you know that some of these may be false. We weren't able to figure out which ones."

Seamus: "Sienna, we have a problem. What the others tell me may be a lie."

Sienna: "What?"

Seamus: "They don't have reliable sources. So we need to figure out which are right ourselves."

Sienna: "Let's just buy what we need and bring them all there first. What else do we need?"

Seamus: "A sink, a stove, wood, a bed and a picture of a dragon."

Samantha: "I think we need to all get going and help Sheila."

Sienna: "You can purchase a sink, wood and a dragon picture and head off with Sheila."

Samantha: "A whole sink? In addition to whatever we bought earlier?"

Sienna: "Maybe just the faucet."

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Jordana: "This dynasty might be the most famous one of all. Its ruler unified China and famously had men and horses buried with him in death."

Ted: "This must be the Qin dynasty. But I thought this was the first dynasty of China?"

Ramona: "Maybe we're finally at the start."

Jordana: "I have a mummy teddy bear here, hehe. It's so cute hehe! I bet this is what we need here."

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Joy: "Brenda, Maya and I are all lying."

Raymundo: "That's not possible. You're lying."

Rudy: "So we shouldn't hang an angular mirror opposite the toilet."

Rudy: "You think you can remember all the liars?"

Raymundo: "Joy, Viktor and Gao. You remember all the rules?"

Rudy: "More or less. You also helped remember some too."

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Ramona: "This dynasty introduced low-fire lead glazes, especially in green. That sounds like the green Han vase you put down earlier."

Mary: "That can't be right. It would mean we made even more mistakes downstream."

Mary: "Ted, you haven't placed any of your objects yet. What do you have?"

Ted: "Umm, a red bowl and a green bowl."

Jordana: "Just two items?"

Ramona: "Each of us should have three. Where's your last item Ted?"

Ted: "I don't know!"

Mary: "Empty out your bag."

Jordana: "You do have a red bowl and a green bowl, hehe. But you also have fireworks!"

Ted: "Umm, I didn't realise it was in there."

Ramona: "Seriously Ted? We caught you red-handed."

Ted: "I swear, I didn't know!"

Mary: "We now know we have fireworks to be placed somewhere. If I'm not mistaken, fireworks are a relatively modern invention."

Ramona: "It means we have to go back again?"

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Ted: "I swear I didn't realise I had fireworks! It must have been buried deep inside my rucksack! Please believe me...oh what's the use, I'm talking to a camera. Nobody can hear me. It's like I never made a sound."

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Samantha: "Let's start painting the kitchen red."

Sienna: "I'll start decorating the bedroom."

Samantha: "Hey, I think we're missing a fridge."

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Mary: "Some say this is the first dynasty while others say it's the second. You can ask General Li. Regardless, it's well-known for using the copper-tin alloy bronze."

Jordana: "Hehe who is General Li?"

Mary: "I don't know. What I do know is that I have a copper bowl. Does anyone else have anything to contribute?"

Jordana: "I have this broken vase."

Ted: "Umm, vases didn't appear until somewhere in the middle."

Mary: "He's right. So this must be my Shang bowl."

Ramona: "Oh, General Li Shang! From Mulan!"

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Seamus: "They're all back down."

Rudy: "For the bathroom, do not hang an angular mirror in the toilet opposite the toilet. Go with mainly whites or pastels."

Raymundo: "Joy and Gao are lying. Joy talked about the bathroom mirrors while Gao talked about decluttering. Also I made a mistake earlier. We should not paint the kitchen cabinets red."

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Jordana: "This Chinese dynasty is as mythical as the Chinese dragon. There is debate over its existence and legitimacy."

Ramona: "That's it? No clue about pottery or anything like that?"

Jordana: "No hehe."

Mary: "Let's look over our objects."

Jordana: "I have a broken vase from Tang."

Ramona: "And Ted has a red bowl labelled Xia and fireworks labelled Song. You said fireworks were relatively modern so it can't be the first."

Mary: "That leaves the Xia and Tang relics. What do the rest of you think it is?"

Jordana: "I've never heard of Xia."

Ramona: "I've never heard of any of these 12 names."

Mary: "Ted?"

Ted: "Umm, no clue."

Ramona: "Why are you asking him? He has been no help to us the whole time."

Mary: "I have heard of the Tang dynasty before. That can't be mythical. So I'm inclined to think it's the bowl that goes first."

Jordana: "Hehe! It looks like that's the end - or the start - of our hiking trail."

Ted: "What a beautiful view..."

Mary: "Focus. We still have two objects in our possession and not a lot of time left. We need to hurry back."

Jordana: "I don't think we have time to retrace every single step."

Mary: "We don't. So we have to focus on those that we are not certain of."

Ramona: "I think we can keep going until we find an empty slot."

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Seamus: "We need to paint everything in the kitchen red so we should buy more red paint."

Sheila: "Raymundo said not to paint the cabinets red."

Seamus: "Then everything but the cabinets. Also we are going to need to buy a mirror."

Sheila: "Rooney said..."

Seamus: "Rooney said not to hang the angular mirror opposite the toilet so we should hang a round mirror."

Sheila: "I don't think that's right."

Seamus: "Have you seen a bathroom without a mirror?"

Seamus: "Trust me on this."

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Ted: "Over there!"

Ted: "This dynasty developed white porcelain."

Ted: "I don't think we have any white porcelain."

Mary: "We must have made another mistake somewhere."

Ted: "Umm, what do we do now?"

Mary: "We have to cut our losses. The last one can't be your fireworks. Let's just place your fireworks here."

Jordana: "Are you sure?"

Mary: "We won't have time left to find out where we went wrong exactly."

Ramona: "If the last one is the last empty slot, then we have to make a run for it."

Jordana: "Run? On this terrain? I don't want to fall again and injure myself!"

Mary: "You're wearing a helmet. You'll be fine."

Jordana: "Easy for you to say. You're not the one who's prone to injury."

Ramona: "Will you help us or not?"

Jordana: "It's not that I don't want this to succeed, but my safety comes first."

Ted: "Umm, may I say something?"

Mary: "Shh, guys. Go ahead, Ted."

Ted: "We can swap bags. I'll run to the start of the trail."

Jordana: "Really? Thanks Ted! Hehe!"

Mary: "That sounds like our best shot."

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Samantha: "We're going to need more lights."

Seamus: "We still have a bed frame to set up."

Sheila: "I can handle it."

Seamus: "Are you sure? You never built a bed by yourself."

Sheila: "I have Samantha. You think women can't get handy?"

Seamus: "Hey, that's not what I meant. I'll go back to the store then."

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Ted: "Huff...huff..."

Ted: "Almost there..."

Ted: "Phew."

Ted: "Ouch!"

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Seamus: "I'm back ladies!"

Seamus: "I see the bed is still not framed."

Sheila: "We can handle it."

Seamus: "It's ok to ask for help if you need it."

Sienna: "The mirror should face the toilet bowl. Sounds weird but ok."

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Seamus: "The wood panelling is done."

Sienna: "I inserted the last light bulb in."

Samantha: "Oh my, I nearly forgot to clean this up!"

Sheila: "And time is up."

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The mission has ended for all the contestants. We have invited a fengshui expert to evaluate the interior design skills of the contestants. Each violation takes 5 points off the maximum 30 points they can earn.

We start with the bedroom.

The bedroom lacks symmetry and balance overall. That's one violation.

There is an overhead lamp above the bed. This puts energy pressure on the sleeping Sim, not to mention having a bright light source directly above the bed affects sleep quality. Another violation. 

The expert noted the good choice of a lamp with low lighting, but feels it should have been by the bed instead, replacing the overhead light.

The bed is fortunately not facing the door, but it is facing a mirror. That's the third violation.

Moving on to the bathroom. 

The mirror is facing the toilet bowl, which is a big no-no in fengshui. Another violation.

However, it is good that the bathroom is overall bright and clean, helped by the choice of colour. The wood panelling also adds a balancing touch to this water-energy room.

Finally, the kitchen. If there are no further violations, 10 points can still be won.

The choice of red all over is poor as the kitchen is viewed as a source of fire. That is another violation. Furthermore, there is asymmetry with only three chairs.

It is good that the stove and sink are not directly next nor opposite each other. Overall, there have been 5 violations so 5/30 points are won here. What about the other side?

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The first dynasty is indeed the Xia dynasty as represented by the red clay bowl. It is said to have lasted between 2205 and 1766 BCE.

The second dynasty the contestants claimed was the Shang dynasty. That is correct: it lasted between 1600 and 1050 BCE.

The Zhou dynasty is the third dynasty, between 1046 and 256 BCE. Correct once again.

The Qin dynasty existed from 221 to 206 BCE as represented by the mummified teddy bear. This is indeed the fourth dynasty in this list.

Is the next dynasty the Han dynasty? It is: from 206 BCE to 220 CE.

The contestants thought the 6 Dynasties came next. That is true. It lasted from 222 - 589 CE.

The contestants thought the Song dynasty is next. Unfortunately, that is incorrect. The next dynasty in line is the Sui dynasty, which was from 581 to 618 CE.

The next dynasty is the Tang dynasty, from 618 to 907 BCE. Unfortunately the contestants placed the Qing vase in its place.

The contestants thought the Sui dynasty was next which is wrong. It's actually the Song dynasty which was from 960-1279 BCE.

The next dynasty is the Yuan dynasty, from 1271 - 1368. This is correct.

The next dynasty placed is Ming. That's correct; it was from 1368 - 1644.

The last dynasty is not the Tang dynasty, but the Qing dynasty which lasted from 1644 to 1911. 4 errors were made, so 40/60 points were earned here. Altogether 45/90 points have been earned in this mission. The group seems to be on a decline; can they recoup their losses before it's too late?

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Solutions to the tai chi liars riddle below: