01x16 - Episode 16

[bunniefuu]

(This drama is a work of fiction

created based on historical facts.)

(Most of the details and depictions

of the characters are fictional.)

Thank you for releasing Lady Yoo.

(Episode 16)

I said I would let that woman live.

I did not say I would allow you

to keep her by your side.

Now, that girl

must return to Joseon.

I am someone who keeps her promises.

I would never hurt a woman

with my own hands.

However, bad things will happen

to the Joseon captives

living in Simyang.

Even if they were released,

if someone else claims ownership of them,

they will become sl*ves again.

If they lose their release papers,

they will become escapees

and have their ankles slashed.

If they hold on to fake release papers,

their ears will be pierced.

Or worse, beheaded

Back off. We are sparring.

If you lay a finger on her,

I will k*ll you.

I understand

how you feel.

You see, even the thought of you dying

tortures me too.

You want to save her?

In that case,

send her to Joseon.

I am glad you came.

I was writing a letter to send to Joseon.

Have you decided

to return to Joseon?

No.

I must repay the kindness

of the person who saved my life.

I am writing that I will not be able to

go to Joseon for the time being.

I will not leave.

If I am a curse to Interpreter Lee,

I am also the only one

who can break that curse.

If Lord Lee needs me,

I will stay for as long as necessary

and help his recovery.

Your Majesty.

Congratulations on your victory in w*r.

We may have won,

but we have lost so many soldiers.

We have yet to conquer the Shanhai Pass.

(Shanhai Pass: an important region

at the eastern end of the Great Wall)

Your Majesty.

Enjoy the victory.

This moment onwards will be crucial.

We must prove that the Qing have been

given the right to rule from the skies.

To do so,

we must not lose the public's favor.

Gak Hwa.

It has been a long time since I have

put you in charge of the palace women.

I told you not to cause any problems

about abusing a Joseon sl*ve woman.

These days,

how are the women of the royal household?

How could I go against your order?

I have been

managing them well.

I know

I can trust in you.

Then, Your Majesty,

please put me in charge of

the Joseon captives as well.

Gak Hwa.

You are my daughter who has saved my life.

I could

even give you the whole world.

I was aware

that you were

hunting for Joseon captives

while wearing a disguise.

However,

you must not cross the line.

If you treat the sl*ves cruelly,

we will lose the public's support.

So

Your Majesty.

Call the royal physician.

Hurry!

Royal physician!

Where is the royal physician?

The news from Simyang

in recent days is quite unusual.

The Khan's illness must be severe.

He is severely ill?

The Khan would not have changed his mind

due to his illness, would he?

By any chance,

he will not blame me for the Ming ship

that has appeared on Joseon shores,

will he?

Has Choi Myung Gil,

who has been taken to Simyang,

not sent any word?

At first, Choi Myung Gil said he would

take responsibility for everything.

how is it that he is still alive

and only watching me being interrogated?

(Sim Ki Won)

Kim Sang Heon and Choi Myung GIl

were both taken to Qing.

The nobility will say once again

that there are no worthy men

in our royal court.

Ask for Kim Jib and Jang Chul's advice

and fill the royal court

with their pupils.

(Gueon: a king asking

his vassals for advice)

Now that Lord Choi Myung Gil is gone,

Kim Ja Jeom is on his high horse,

counting on his connections in Qing.

(Kim Ryu)

I must say,

His Majesty truly frightens me.

He used to completely rely on Lord Choi

and defend him.

Now, he wants him to take responsibility

for everything and pays with his life.

Who can we count on now?

Before I get roped into this too,

I will leave the royal court.

Master.

His Majesty is seeking your advice.

His Majesty ordered,

"Treasure Kim Jib and Jang Chul's advice,"

"no matter what they may be."

His Majesty said that?

His Majesty

is seeking my advice,

but I am afraid my advice will

not be helpful for I lack in many ways.

However, I would like you

to go to the royal court

and assist His Majesty.

But how could we go there when you decided

to decline His Majesty's request?

I agree.

Choi Myung Gil

and a few other ministers

have been dragged to Qing

due to the secret interactions with Ming.

Once again, His Majesty handed

his loyal vassals over to the intruders.

Hence, we refuse to go to the royal court.

A wealthy family

that always whipped its servants

was looking for someone

to supervise the servants.

Everyone declined the position,

saying they refused to work

as a supervisor under such an evil master.

But one man volunteered for the job.

He whipped the servants

in his master's stead

but lessened the severity of the whipping.

So, the servants started cursing

the supervisor instead of their master.

Who do you think truly helped the people?

Those who declined the job?

Or the man who whipped the servants,

knowing they would curse him?

What should your choice be

as true scholars?

To a king,

his ministers are like his hands and feet,

and his advisors are like

his eyes and ears.

At the moment, His Majesty's hands

and feet have been cut off,

and he has reached a dead-end.

What shall he do?

Go.

Go to the royal court

and become His Majesty's eyes and ears.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

I guess the rumor is true.

You are here alone with me.

And yet you are

neither flushing nor stammering.

The rumor goes that

you do not believe in marriage

because you are

unable to function as a man.

Is it wrong?

There is no way.

In the past

I was awfully foolish, was I not?

You were very

beautiful.

I suppose

the rumors I heard in Neunggun-ri

back in the day

are true.

You are here alone with me.

And yet you are

neither flushing nor stammering.

They said

you were a white box with 99 tails.

It must be true.

Can we stay together?

If you do not like it here,

I will go

wherever you want.

Your husband abandoned you,

despite knowing you were in Simyang.

Hence,

you no longer need to stay loyal to him.

So please

First,

I must speak with Officer Gu

and hear his reason.

Right.

You have a husband, after all.

You have a husband, a father,

and a sibling too.

Yes.

I have a father, a husband,

and a sibling as well.

But there is someone who saved my life.

For you,

I can gladly sacrifice my life.

- However

- However?

You cannot love me?

I never wished for you to die in my place.

What I want is

My Lord,

I

Hey, Interpreter Lee.

Interpreter Lee!

What is so urgent?

What is the matter?

Khan is dead.

Khan

is dead?

Then

who will succeed to the throne?

(Dorgon: Hong Taiji's half-brother)

Khan's son, who has just turned six,

has acceded to the throne.

And the former king, Dorgon,

has become the king regent.

(Regent: a person who administers

a country in place of the monarch)

Then

are you saying the world is now Dorgon's?

Yes.

The world

is now Dorgon's.

However,

Dorgon did not have the power

to sit on the throne himself,

so he made a young child

accede to the throne

and had to be satisfied

with being the king regent.

Dorgon has not taken complete control

over the Qing yet.

Just as the former emperor

buried Dorgon's mother alive

as soon as he acceded to the throne,

Dorgon will also

do whatever he can

to strengthen his power.

Then

what will happen to Joseon?

Then

what do you think Dorgon will do

with Joseon?

In the Year of Byeongja,

there were people

who wanted to k*ll me and make

one of their people the king of Joseon.

If those people rise to power,

what do I do?

In the Year of Byeongja,

there were people who proposed

dividing up Joseon

amongst the princes of the Qing.

If those people stick to Dorgon

and gain power,

what will happen to Joseon?

We will soon be able to see

who Dorgon will choose

to have by his side.

In the next few months,

whoever Dorgon reaches his hand out to,

are the people

who will work with Dorgon in the future.

That is why

we must start moving too.

I

will meet General Yong Gol Dae

and study what Dorgon has planned.

It is a gift

from the Crown Prince's heart.

It is a statue of Buddha

that the Crown Prince made just for you.

The Crown Prince

made it for me?

In Joseon,

women spend money

to make statues of the Buddha,

wishing for peace

when their husbands go out to work.

You are also

nervous, are you not?

You do not know anything.

I know you are nervous.

Since

the former king

has become the king regent,

(The former king: Dorgon)

you

may be purged.

However,

that must not happen.

The Great Qing acquired Joseon

thanks to whom?

The people who should be thanked

for acquiring Joseon

are you and the king regent.

The person who knows

about this fact the best

is our Crown Prince.

Our Crown Prince

trusts you

and supports you.

In the Year of Byeongja, some princes

wanted to divide Joseon up

amongst themselves.

And some people

wanted to k*ll the king of Joseon

and rule the country themselves.

However,

only the king regent and you,

General Yong Gol Dae,

requested for Joseon to be protected,

is that not right?

- That is

- Do you

remember now?

Therefore, in return,

when the Crown Prince

becomes the king of Joseon,

the rights and interests

of all the products of Joseon

will only be given

to you and the regent king.

Joseon

with you,

you

with the king regent,

The king regent, you,

and Joseon

will move forward together.

What?

Dorgon

allowed the Crown Prince to visit Joseon?

Congratulations.

Then

am I also allowed to go to Joseon?

Can I see

my mother?

It is all thanks to you.

That is not true, Your Highness.

No.

In the past, when my father passed away,

he did not let me go to Joseon

even when I offered all sorts of bribes.

But this time,

you made Dorgon change his mind

and gave me a chance to visit my mother.

It has now been revealed.

Who Dorgon

wants to join forces with.

Greetings, General.

To thank you

for allowing her to visit Joseon,

the Crown Princess

wants to send white paper

You punk.

Why have you gotten

on the bad side of Her Highness?

The king regent wants Her Highness

to be one of his people.

Her Highness has power

over the women in the royal family.

But

when the king regent

reached out his hand to her,

Her Highness demanded two things.

First,

she said she would not get married

to a Mongolian man.

Second,

She asked for the authority

to catch Joseon's runaway captives.

She is aware

of the fact that you have been

selling captives and giving me the money.

If the king regent

complies with her requests,

Her Highness will search you first.

Then I will get caught.

How will you manage to handle this?

Whose orders

are Her Highness working under?

Is she targeting me? Or

does she just want a share of my wealth?

Why are you doing this?

What is it

that you want?

You.

You are what I want.

But if you do not come to me,

I will take you and the captives

you have with you

and bury all of you.

If you want to bury all the captives

just to have that woman,

you can go ahead.

Yong Yi, 30 nyang.

When I return to Joseon

and harvest barley and rice,

I will certainly repay my debt.

Chang Sam, 50 nyang.

I will repay this kindness even in death.

Dool Ne, 50 nyang.

My sons are waiting.

Sam Seok, 70 nyang.

If you only send me back to Joseon,

I will serve you as my master for life.

So,

do as Her Highness says.

General.

Will the king regent sit back

and watch this?

Do you not get it?

Soon, we will conquer the Shanhai Pass.

The Ming Empire is falling.

Soon, the Qing army will arrive in Beijing

and the central region will belong to us.

So,

the king regent does not care

if Her Highness takes the captives.

I do not care

if Her Highness kills the captives or not.

Now, Joseon's captives

will be forgotten.

I heard you asked to see me.

Are you all finished

with your urgent work?

My lord.

About what happened before

So

Dorgon has

allowed the Crown Prince

to make a trip to Joseon.

You should also return

to Joseon with them.

It would be safest to return

while the Crown Prince heads to Joseon.

But you are still not fully recovered

Do not mind my illness any longer.

I do not need you to nurse me.

But

Have you forgotten?

We are

not anything to one another.

So, do not

feel indebted to me in any way.

I have

clung onto you,

and I have

gotten over a near-death experience

thanks to you.

I have done all I have wished for.

So, now,

in my heart,

there is nothing left.

So go back.

My lord.

You have

a lot on your mind

because the Khan is dead, right?

- That is why

- Also,

I have grown tired of you

who always pushes me away.

Yes.

I am sick and tired now.

So,

please go back.

What if I do not want to?

If I

say I do not want to go back

You are a married woman.

Do you not have any shame?

Let us go to Joseon.

Madam.

That is what he wants.

I want to do

as he wants.

So, just tell her

that you wish to stay here.

How could I stay when Lady Yoo

has made up her mind to leave?

Make your choice.

Will you choose me or Lady Yoo?

That is

Lady Yoo, of course.

Jong Jong.

I hear you wish to join us

on our upcoming visit to Joseon

and return home.

Yes, Your Highness.

My family is waiting for me in Joseon.

Yes, you should return home.

I am still deeply indebted to you

for saving my son.

Once

His Highness the Crown Prince

ascends the throne,

I will be sure to repay you.

You have already done so much for me.

The days I spent here

helping out at the farm

will be remembered

as the happiest time of my life.

My lord.

Are you inside?

I have let the Crown Princess know.

I will be joining the Crown Princess

on her upcoming trip

to return to Joseon.

That is good news.

However, I have a lot to do,

so I do not think I can see you off.

You must truly be

sick and tired of me.

All I do is inconvenience you.

I am ashamed,

and I feel pathetic.

Such a thought

has never once occurred to me.

So

once you are back in Joseon,

forget all your sufferings in Simyang

and live a good life.

A flashy

and glamorous one.

Be you, Gil Chae.

Yes.

I promise you

that I will live such a life.

Now, I have a goal.

I never wish

to cause you harm again.

Yes.

I will return to Joseon

and stay brave

to show the world

that I can live a good life.

Thank you.

And I am truly

sorry.

Goodbye.

Return home

and live like a flower.

That is

all I want.

I bet you want to k*ll me.

Yes.

If you would let me.

You must resent me,

but the people in Joseon

have forgotten all about the captives.

No one is even coming to us

to ask to have them released.

So, even if something were

to happen to them, no one would care.

No one cares.

They are like

orphans without parents.

What I am curious about

is why you gave up

on the woman you love

just because

of those insignificant captives.

Why did you do that?

Because Lee Jang Hyun

cannot ignore those

who are insignificant and pitiful.

How foolish.

I am certain

that your ridiculous sympathy

will one day hold you back.

Is that what you think?

I do not care about others.

Is that so?

What are you doing?

Why

Why did you save me?

It would have been better

for you if I died.

Yes,

you are a man

who saves people who are falling.

Then, Lee Jang Hyun,

will you save me as well?

I am scared.

I have never

lived in a world without my father.

You must hate me,

but for a short while,

allow me to stay next to you.

Please.

Gosh.

Khan

did not allow the Crown Prince

to return to Joseon for several years

after dragging him away.

How is it that Dorgon

allowed the Crown Prince

to return to Joseon

as soon as he became the king regent?

The Crown Princess' father

had passed away,

so they pleaded

that they could pay their last respects

So what I am asking is

did Dorgon comply

with the Crown Prince's request?

Goodness.

Your Majesty,

the Crown Prince has entered the capital.

Your Highness.

His Majesty cannot see you today

for he is ill.

If you go and wait

Your Majesty,

I am here.

I am here to pay my respects.

All right.

His Majesty did not allow

the Crown Princess

to visit her mother who is alone

nor to cry in front

of her father's ancestral tablet.

On top of that,

the eunuchs are torturing

the court ladies every day

as they investigate

the curse of the palace.

"The curse of the palace?"

Are you talking about the rumor?

The rumor has been going around

for a while.

Did you trace the root of the rumor?

Censors

need to inform His Majesty

of any rumors that have spread.

But if you relay groundless rumors

without even checking the facts,

how would you expect your words

to carry any weight?

Yes, Master.

I will make sure to check and see

if the rumor is true or not.

I am the Senior Sixth Rank officer

of the Office of Royal Decrees.

According to the rumors, court ladies

are being tortured in prison

I am the Senior Sixth Rank officer

of the Office of Royal Decrees.

I am investigating the rumor

that has been going around.

Is it

Father, stay still.

Your arm. Yes.

Can you move your hand this way?

There we go.

Am I going to meet Gil Chae?

Yes.

We need to meet Gil Chae soon.

Eun Ae,

do not say stuff like that anymore.

Lord Yoo!

Madam is here.

"Madam?"

Father.

Eun Ae.

Young Chae.

Gil Chae.

Gil Chae.

You are here.

What took you so long?

Goodness.

Madam Bang Doo.

Eun Ae.

It is actually you,

Gil Chae.

You are Gil Chae.

Father.

Madam is here, Lord.

Father.

It is warm, right?

Let us sleep here tonight.

The sheets are freshly laundered.

Gosh, where should I sleep tonight?

Jong Jong.

You worked hard.

It must have been tough.

So

Soo Ji

I said I would sleep

with Jong Jong tonight.

I came to get a pillow.

Well, then

Jong Jong, sleep well.

I will.

Seriously.

Go away.

You must still be so lovey-dovey

every night these days.

That fool will not even get tired

in his old age.

Come on. I know you like it.

Who, me?

Me?

If not, then forget it.

It is nice.

Officer Gu

stays at his family home these days?

Yes.

He went all the way to Simyang

to find you,

but he ran into a thief

and had all his money stolen.

He was just getting ready to head back.

I see.

By the way, Gil Chae

Yes?

While you were in Qing,

a foreign intruder did not

take advantage of you, did he?

Young Chae.

What are you saying on such a happy day?

Who do you take Gil Chae for?

It is like a dream.

Right.

My sister is no ordinary woman.

Thank you

for coming back.

Thank you so much.

Let us go.

I will be late tonight. Do not wait up.

Okay.

Gil Chae.

Is it really you?

Who is

that woman?

Do not worry.

I will take care of everything.

Before that,

while you were there,

nothing happened to you, right?

What will you do now?

She was taken c*ptive

- and came back after being roughed up.

- Roughed up how?

Are you asking that

because you do not know?

You made it back alive.

You brought shame on all Joseon women.

I know, right?

How shameless.

You must have such thick skin.

What did you just say?

Jong Jong.

What did you say?

How dare you talk with that dirty mouth?

What? You dirty wench

who has been with foreign intruders.

How dare you?

I told you not to respond to barking dogs.

Let us go.

Gil Chae.

I spoke with your husband.

He has no intention of divorcing you.

But before that,

he wants to hear your answer.

If nothing happened,

you just have to say so.

Gil Chae.

Did a foreign intruder

really take advantage of you or something?

Young Chae.

That man's daughter came back

from being taken c*ptive in Qing,

and when asked what happened

between her and foreign intruders,

she would not answer.

And yet she wants to take back her spot

in the bedroom?

Seeing how she could not prove

her chastity, she must have

If she was that afraid to die,

she should have just stayed hidden.

How shameless.

Father.

What is "chastity?"

That hurts, Father.

Gil Chae.

When you were born,

I felt like I had

the whole world in my hands.

I enjoyed all the joys in the world

while raising you.

My precious daughter.

My darling girl.

However,

you will have to live

in a nightmare for the rest of your life.

What should we do?

There is nothing I can do for you.

What should I do?

No.

I will help you.

So that you will not live

in a nightmare for the rest of your life,

your father will help you.

Gil Chae.

Hang on

Hang on for just a little while.

I will prove your innocence

with my own two hands.

So that you will never again

be criticized by others.

Father.

Father.

A foreign intruder.

A foreign intruder is here.

An intruder!

- Master.

- A foreign intruder!

An intruder is here.

A foreign intruder

Gil Chae.

Gil Chae.

My dear.

May I take a few of these daggers,

just in case?

What

do you mean by that?

Yes.

When I was in Simyang,

I was sold to a foreign intruder

and had to suffer utter humiliation.

I also met Lord Lee Jang Hyun there.

I was released, thanks to his help.

What the intruders did to me

That was not my fault.

Had you wanted to divorce me

because of that,

I would not have backed down,

no matter what.

However

In Simyang, I gave my heart to Lord Lee.

For that, I am sorry.

That is why I am divorcing you.

Oh, boy.

(My Dearest)

Will His Highness the Crown Prince

return to Joseon?

Then Interpreter Lee

and Gu Jam will also

Gu Jam.

My lord, you are here.

But I, too, had a place

I missed and wanted to return to.

Now that Lady Yoo is divorced,

will she come running to you?

I shall return.

I wish to live for her from now on.

I had a bad craving

for those rice cakes with beans.

What? Rice cakes with beans?

Let us live like this

for a thousand years to come.