Post by ajk on May 24, 2015 21:55:35 GMT -5
"I was so thirsty for such news." Seonjo is almost in tears. He says he always knew Yi Sunsin would succeed--ugh--and orders him promoted immediately.
Ishida arrives in Busan and is briefed. He thinks it all comes down to those 50,000 Joseon soldiers heading north. Deal with them and they can catch the king.
Japanese army camp: Hey, it's Wakizaka! He's in charge of the naval forces but he brags about his competence as a general and volunteers to lead the effort to stop that big Joseon army. Even has a battle plan all thought out. Ukita gives him the job.
Joseon army camp (the big army): We meet Lee Gwang. And Gwon Yul. Lee and Kim Su want to attack the Japanese who are on or near their path. Gwon wants to avoid a fight so they can reach Pyongyang, join with the other forces that are headed there and plan a counterattack. And besides, they may have a large army but it's mostly raw recruits and they'd be fighting at a geographical disadvantage: up a mountain. But Gwon is disregarded and battle preparations are begun.
Well guess what: Gwon was right. Despite vastly superior numbers, the Joseon army was wiped out. The news reaches Seonjo and whatever hope he felt after news from YSS's victories is dashed. And he fears Pyongyang isn't safe any more and another refuge journey may be needed.
Now Yun Dusu is begging Seonjo not to do what he obviously is considering doing: asking Ming for reinforcements. Yun is certain that Ming won't just offer help; they'll add all kinds of demands and conditions in exchange. Lee Hangbok there too, arguing for it and against Yu, and it's getting too be too much for Seonjo, affecting his health again.
Now some of the high officials are discussing it. They all see it as an embarrassment to have to ask for outside help, and they fear what Ming will want in return. But then Ryu walks in and says they have to ask. "We can't do it on our own" and that's the reality. And tells them they can't argue over principles; not while their people are dying.
Seonjo summons Ryu and asks him about requesting reinforcements...an awkward conversation because as Seonjo puts it, "We became distanced."...but since they agree about asking for reinforcements, he gives Ryu a job to do: a Chinese high official named Lin Shilu is here to evaluate the situation. "Convince him to send reinforcements."
Next day: Ryu meets Lin, who is skeptical and repeating that nonsense about Joseon and Japan colluding. So that night, Ryu actually takes him on a journey to where the Japanese army is! The two of them and He and Ryu and Shin Yeongcheol and Cheonri go out into the dark of night and head for a point at the Taedong River that's shallow enough to cross on foot. The enemy doesn't know about this place. They quietly cross and get a first-hand look at a large Japanese army camp.
Next day: "Now do you believe me?" A stunned Lin is told by Ryu that what they saw is only a small part of a 150,000-man force. Lin realizes that this is real and a threat to Ming. He says he'll report back to the emperor and get what help he can.
Out in the countryside in or near Jeolla province (Sorry, the subtitle font was so incredibly small it was impossible to read the location): Japanese soldiers are carefully inspecting a marshland area and putting stakes in the ground to mark firm spots where it's safe for horses and heavy carts to tread. Well, news of this gets back to Gwak Jaeu and he knows what's going to happen: with their sea route cut off, Japan is going to try to get military rations by attacking Jeolla because Jeolla is a major grain-producing area. Gwak realizes the danger here...and of course he's no idiot...
...so in the dark of night he and a small group of his men go to the marshland and carefully move the stakes to mucky spots. And they scout the area for an ambush setup.
Japanese camp: "What? Who is Gwak Jaeu?" Some sort of effort was made to enter Jeolla--we didn't see it--but word arrives that it got squashed. Major confusion because apparently there are Joseon soldiers out there that the Japanese have no knowledge of.
"I want to leave Pyongyang tomorrow." A desperate Seonjo is glad to hear that reinforcements will likely arrive, but fears it won't be soon enough. Yun is horrified, and Ryu urges him to at least wait a few days until they hear back from Ming. But Jeong Cheol is there and says further refuge is a good idea. Yun mutters a veiled threat and now they're shouting at each other until Seonjo shuts them up. Now Lee Deokhyeong arrives with surprising news. "They want to have the talks we didn't have in Chunju."
Not sure where this is, but look at this: Lee Deokhyeong is sitting with Genso. The two of them used to be friendly so they're not strangers. Genso pitches that Let-us-pay-tribute-to-Ming story but Lee has already heard it and scoffs at it. "Tell me the truth." So Genso does: "Japan wants to attack Ming, not Joseon. Open up a path for us to get to Ming." But Lee doesn't believe that either! Says there are other ways to get to Ming; they' don't have to come through here to get there. But that is the truth, of course. This doesn't go well; the tone gets very agitated very quickly. "Joseon will never open up a path," Lee says angrily. "Joseon and Ming are very close. We have no reason to lend a path to their enemy." He suggests this is all a stalling tactic because of recent setbacks. And he walks out.
Lee reports back to Seonjo. "The enemy will attack soon," Seonjo says, so it's time to take refuge yet again.
Next day: The royals prepare to leave Pyongyang on a refuge journey. But they're not going anywhere just yet, because an angry mob armed with clubs and mallets confronts them and drives them back inside. Then the mob heads over to the ancestral tablets, which were dropped and left there in the street in all the confusion, intending to destroy them. But they find a lone figure carefully attending to the tablets. It's Ryu. "This country will rise again," he tells them calmly; you're citizens and shouldn't be acting like this. He's not the least bit intimidated by them and his strong presence causes the people to back off some. Ryu promises them that "Even if the king leaves this place, I will not leave." A woman recognizes him and says he's staying with them at the refugee camp. Amazingly, the mob calms down and disburses. Wow. Then the king shows up again and sees Ryu taking care of the still-intact tablets. "The people seem to follow you more than they follow me. "You'd think he'd be grateful, but noooo....
A few days pass so that public sentiment can calm down before the royals leave. We see them leaving now. Before Seonjo leaves he appoints Lee Deokhyeong to be a special envoy to go to Ming and press further for speedy reinforcements.
True to his word, Ryu stays behind. So does Yun Dusu; they're going to defend Pyongyang. Now all they can do is wait and see what happens, and hope that the reinforcements get here in time. Ryu gets Yun to accept the idea of Ming reinforcements, even though Yun doesn't like it, and says he's going to head north temporarily to meet them on their way here.
Left Jeolla naval headquarters: The officers are dispirited over Joseon's latest setbacks and are frustrated that they can't do more YSS proposes sending some of the men out as scouts to gather information. And when an old man shows up, looking to help however he can, Yi makes him a scout too. Then as Yi writes a letter to Ryu, in flashback we see him send off the first group of scouts to disperse throughout the country.
Konishi's camp: The army is still just sitting there just south of the Taedong River. We learn that they tried to get some soldiers across the river on rafts a couple of days ago and 200 died. So now what? Konishi is ordered (by an older, slimy-looking Japanese man who we haven't seen before; have no idea who he is) to stop stalling and attack now or he'll send "a negative report" back home. It infuriates Konishi...and on top of that, news arrives news that their camp is being raided! No one saw any boats crossing; what the heck is going on?
We see the raid; it's going really well. But when Konishi and troop support arrive to drive off the invaders, well, the enemy retreats...and crosses the Taedong River on foot back to safety. But the Japanese watch them cross! "This wasn't a raid," a suddenly-much-happier Konishi says. "The enemy helped us."
Reinforcements! Ryu was headed north and meets Liu, who's accompanied by 50 elite Ming soldiers and brings news that an army is headed here from the north. Great news...but then a messenger headed north from Pyongyang brings the worst possible news: Pyongyang has fallen.
Ishida arrives in Busan and is briefed. He thinks it all comes down to those 50,000 Joseon soldiers heading north. Deal with them and they can catch the king.
Japanese army camp: Hey, it's Wakizaka! He's in charge of the naval forces but he brags about his competence as a general and volunteers to lead the effort to stop that big Joseon army. Even has a battle plan all thought out. Ukita gives him the job.
Joseon army camp (the big army): We meet Lee Gwang. And Gwon Yul. Lee and Kim Su want to attack the Japanese who are on or near their path. Gwon wants to avoid a fight so they can reach Pyongyang, join with the other forces that are headed there and plan a counterattack. And besides, they may have a large army but it's mostly raw recruits and they'd be fighting at a geographical disadvantage: up a mountain. But Gwon is disregarded and battle preparations are begun.
Well guess what: Gwon was right. Despite vastly superior numbers, the Joseon army was wiped out. The news reaches Seonjo and whatever hope he felt after news from YSS's victories is dashed. And he fears Pyongyang isn't safe any more and another refuge journey may be needed.
Now Yun Dusu is begging Seonjo not to do what he obviously is considering doing: asking Ming for reinforcements. Yun is certain that Ming won't just offer help; they'll add all kinds of demands and conditions in exchange. Lee Hangbok there too, arguing for it and against Yu, and it's getting too be too much for Seonjo, affecting his health again.
Now some of the high officials are discussing it. They all see it as an embarrassment to have to ask for outside help, and they fear what Ming will want in return. But then Ryu walks in and says they have to ask. "We can't do it on our own" and that's the reality. And tells them they can't argue over principles; not while their people are dying.
Seonjo summons Ryu and asks him about requesting reinforcements...an awkward conversation because as Seonjo puts it, "We became distanced."...but since they agree about asking for reinforcements, he gives Ryu a job to do: a Chinese high official named Lin Shilu is here to evaluate the situation. "Convince him to send reinforcements."
Next day: Ryu meets Lin, who is skeptical and repeating that nonsense about Joseon and Japan colluding. So that night, Ryu actually takes him on a journey to where the Japanese army is! The two of them and He and Ryu and Shin Yeongcheol and Cheonri go out into the dark of night and head for a point at the Taedong River that's shallow enough to cross on foot. The enemy doesn't know about this place. They quietly cross and get a first-hand look at a large Japanese army camp.
Next day: "Now do you believe me?" A stunned Lin is told by Ryu that what they saw is only a small part of a 150,000-man force. Lin realizes that this is real and a threat to Ming. He says he'll report back to the emperor and get what help he can.
Out in the countryside in or near Jeolla province (Sorry, the subtitle font was so incredibly small it was impossible to read the location): Japanese soldiers are carefully inspecting a marshland area and putting stakes in the ground to mark firm spots where it's safe for horses and heavy carts to tread. Well, news of this gets back to Gwak Jaeu and he knows what's going to happen: with their sea route cut off, Japan is going to try to get military rations by attacking Jeolla because Jeolla is a major grain-producing area. Gwak realizes the danger here...and of course he's no idiot...
...so in the dark of night he and a small group of his men go to the marshland and carefully move the stakes to mucky spots. And they scout the area for an ambush setup.
Japanese camp: "What? Who is Gwak Jaeu?" Some sort of effort was made to enter Jeolla--we didn't see it--but word arrives that it got squashed. Major confusion because apparently there are Joseon soldiers out there that the Japanese have no knowledge of.
"I want to leave Pyongyang tomorrow." A desperate Seonjo is glad to hear that reinforcements will likely arrive, but fears it won't be soon enough. Yun is horrified, and Ryu urges him to at least wait a few days until they hear back from Ming. But Jeong Cheol is there and says further refuge is a good idea. Yun mutters a veiled threat and now they're shouting at each other until Seonjo shuts them up. Now Lee Deokhyeong arrives with surprising news. "They want to have the talks we didn't have in Chunju."
Not sure where this is, but look at this: Lee Deokhyeong is sitting with Genso. The two of them used to be friendly so they're not strangers. Genso pitches that Let-us-pay-tribute-to-Ming story but Lee has already heard it and scoffs at it. "Tell me the truth." So Genso does: "Japan wants to attack Ming, not Joseon. Open up a path for us to get to Ming." But Lee doesn't believe that either! Says there are other ways to get to Ming; they' don't have to come through here to get there. But that is the truth, of course. This doesn't go well; the tone gets very agitated very quickly. "Joseon will never open up a path," Lee says angrily. "Joseon and Ming are very close. We have no reason to lend a path to their enemy." He suggests this is all a stalling tactic because of recent setbacks. And he walks out.
Lee reports back to Seonjo. "The enemy will attack soon," Seonjo says, so it's time to take refuge yet again.
Next day: The royals prepare to leave Pyongyang on a refuge journey. But they're not going anywhere just yet, because an angry mob armed with clubs and mallets confronts them and drives them back inside. Then the mob heads over to the ancestral tablets, which were dropped and left there in the street in all the confusion, intending to destroy them. But they find a lone figure carefully attending to the tablets. It's Ryu. "This country will rise again," he tells them calmly; you're citizens and shouldn't be acting like this. He's not the least bit intimidated by them and his strong presence causes the people to back off some. Ryu promises them that "Even if the king leaves this place, I will not leave." A woman recognizes him and says he's staying with them at the refugee camp. Amazingly, the mob calms down and disburses. Wow. Then the king shows up again and sees Ryu taking care of the still-intact tablets. "The people seem to follow you more than they follow me. "You'd think he'd be grateful, but noooo....
A few days pass so that public sentiment can calm down before the royals leave. We see them leaving now. Before Seonjo leaves he appoints Lee Deokhyeong to be a special envoy to go to Ming and press further for speedy reinforcements.
True to his word, Ryu stays behind. So does Yun Dusu; they're going to defend Pyongyang. Now all they can do is wait and see what happens, and hope that the reinforcements get here in time. Ryu gets Yun to accept the idea of Ming reinforcements, even though Yun doesn't like it, and says he's going to head north temporarily to meet them on their way here.
Left Jeolla naval headquarters: The officers are dispirited over Joseon's latest setbacks and are frustrated that they can't do more YSS proposes sending some of the men out as scouts to gather information. And when an old man shows up, looking to help however he can, Yi makes him a scout too. Then as Yi writes a letter to Ryu, in flashback we see him send off the first group of scouts to disperse throughout the country.
Konishi's camp: The army is still just sitting there just south of the Taedong River. We learn that they tried to get some soldiers across the river on rafts a couple of days ago and 200 died. So now what? Konishi is ordered (by an older, slimy-looking Japanese man who we haven't seen before; have no idea who he is) to stop stalling and attack now or he'll send "a negative report" back home. It infuriates Konishi...and on top of that, news arrives news that their camp is being raided! No one saw any boats crossing; what the heck is going on?
We see the raid; it's going really well. But when Konishi and troop support arrive to drive off the invaders, well, the enemy retreats...and crosses the Taedong River on foot back to safety. But the Japanese watch them cross! "This wasn't a raid," a suddenly-much-happier Konishi says. "The enemy helped us."
Reinforcements! Ryu was headed north and meets Liu, who's accompanied by 50 elite Ming soldiers and brings news that an army is headed here from the north. Great news...but then a messenger headed north from Pyongyang brings the worst possible news: Pyongyang has fallen.