Post by ajk on Aug 26, 2008 14:53:46 GMT -5
(Note: Chicago was not shown the first segment of this episode. Big assist to jocal for providing us with the details of the first segment.)
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The eclipse prediction was close--but obviously not close enough, because everyone, everywhere is stunned and disturbed. Yun Hwe mutters that this kind of thing makes Sejong looks like an "inferior" who can't decipher heaven's will. Ministers, in their self-serving glory, see this as an opportunity to "tame" the king. Hwang Hee, in his village, listens as villagers fear another natural disaster if heaven forsakes the king. (So it clearly was important back then for kings to show their people that they could predict these things precisely.)
Jo Malseng and Yu Jeonghyun walk into the Hall of Worthies, rather discourteously so. They don't immediately realize that the king is in the hall as well. Far from being apologetic, Jo says that the country is in such disarray that they've forgotten their manners. He then brazenly tells Sejong that all of this mess happened because he didn't shut down the Hall as his ministers had advised him to. Heaven has turned against you, he continues, and you'd turn the ministers against you as well? We're going to close the Hall down ourselves. Then he proceeds to order the ministers and officials present to go back to their regular jobs. What unbelievable nerve.
At prince Hyoryeong's Buddhist compound: We see the prince attending to a dying man. Suddenly government troops arrive, led by Yi Sunmong and Park Sil. They're under orders to arrest all Buddhists. But they apparently haven't been told that a prince is present, because Byun Gaeryang tells them and they stop in their tracks. They trade tense words with the prince, but then back off the prince and Byun while proceeding to act against the others present.
Sejong is furious at Jo for suppressing the people; Jo argues that it's a simple matter of enforcing state policy established by Taejong. Whose orders would you have us obey?, Jo asks; who's the king here? Sejong walks out without answering.
Taejong is angry at Jo for trying to dominate the king; he orders Noh Huibong to summon Jo at once. But Noh refuses! He begs Taejong to tend to his health and leave state affairs. "You are my shadow," Taejong tells him, "and shadows do not judge." But Noh again refuses, even under the threat of death. Right now your health is more important to me than the country is, Noh tells him.
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Jo Malseng delivers a bit of a threat to Park Eun: "It is your job now to set our childish king straight, Minister Park. Close down the close down the Hall of Worthies yourself. I do not want you getting hurt." Park isn't too thrilled: "I taught you everything I know, and here you are openly threatening me." Jo says he likes Park and doesn't want to see his political career go down the drain.
Taejong is walking down the hall, determined to go to the audience hall to see his son. Noh Huibong is begging him to go back and rest; he even kneels in Taejong's path. Then Taejong staggers and totters against a wall from weakness, before steadying himself. He tells Noh, "Death is certain anyhow. I don't intend to slow down. In fact, the closer I get to death, the less time I have to sit back and be idle. This country is everything to me. I would die a thousand times to protect my cherished country Joseon. I need to see her running smoothly or I will never be able to rest in peace. Do you want my spirit to wander the Hades forever?" He orders Noh to summon Jo Malseng.
At the type foundry: Yi Chun is in charge, and the foundry is trying to come up with an improved printing method. But the product so far is completely unacceptable quality-wise. Sejong comes to visit and asks if progress is being made. Not yet, Yi tells him. "It will take countless trial and error to bring a new technology to life." Their goal is to disseminate Hall of Worthies materials faster. "You have my confidence, vice-minister," Sejong tells him.
Jo is before Taejong. "You must have too many things on your mind," Taejong tells Jo. "I thought you were infallible, but you moved the troops without my go-ahead. (Remember, Jo is military minister now.) What has you so restless?" "Have I made you angry?", Jo asks; "You've always been firm about preserving the anti-Buddhism policy, so I did not feel it was necessary to ask your permission." No, Taejong says, you did the right thing; "so let's hear your assessment of the situation. I'm told Hyoryeong is at the center of these Buddhist activities." But Jo doesn't want any part of this; it's a matter of maintaining order in the royal house, which is the king's job. But he does suggest letting Sejong decide how to handle it. "Prince Hyoryeong is now the king's biggest political enemy," and the king should learn how to deal with his enemies. Especially now that the eclipse miscalculation has him in a tough spot with the public.
Sejong, pondering: "Would I be able to protect the Hall of Worthies if I struck my brother down?"
We see Prince Hyoryeong with Byun Gaeryang (identified in Ep49 as a Buddhist). Hyoryeong isn't afraid of punishment; he's not going anywhere, he's staying and taking care of flood and disease refugees. Byun wants to stay with him, but the prince tells him to go back to the city and serve the king. Byun tells him that it's been tough as a Buddhist to study Confucian teachings, but he knows that "Buddha will take care of us."
The queen mother is with Hyobin and prince Kyoungnyeong. She's concerned because the prince has told her that there's pressure on the king to strike down Hyoryeong. She asks him, What does the king want to do? You've worked with him closely lately, and must know what he's thinking. But Hyobin tells her that she should ask Sejong directly, because he just went to see his father.
Taejong tells his son, "Strike Hyoryeong down, my king. If you let this slide, the ministers will have no fear of you. More importantly, it is not advisable to allow Hyoryeong to gain popular favor." "Do you believe he can harbor ambition?", Sejong asks. His father answers, "The world will constantly prod him. And chances are, Buddhist monks will use him to revive their influence in this state." Sejong asks warily, "Does this mean Hyoryeong and I are political enemies?" Apparently so: "A king must learn to be stern with his political enemies even if one is his own brother." Then, from off to the side: "But he would be a beast from that day forward." It's Wongyeong, who's walked right in on the two of them. She challenges her son: "Would you strike your own brother with whom you share your blood?" Silence. "I am asking you if you're going to put blood on your hands." More silence. "Answer my questions." Taejong tells her, "He is being driven into corner. If he does not show decisiveness now..." "ENOUGH!", Wongyeong shouts at her husband. "I know where you stand"; I want to know where my son stands. I haven't made a decision, Sejong tells her, but she doesn't like that answer. "Does this need consideration? 'Should I kill my brother or not?'...I won't be idle. I will protect my son Hyoryeong. Not from my third son Doe, but from the high and mighty king of Joseon." And she turns and leaves, smacking the door open on her way out.
Nighttime, outside at Hyoryeong's refuge: Refugees and victims are being treated. Hyoryeong is kneeling, working among them, when he looks up and sees that his mother has come to see him. He scrambles to his feet, surprised as heck to see her. "Women are better than men at nursing the sick," she tells him. "Here you are giving yourself selflessly without asking for anything in return, but your brother is so cruel." Hyoryeong is calm and not worried: "He'll understand me someday," he tells her. "Let us hope that he does," she tells him. With that, she kneels down and tends to a sick child lying near her. It's a very touching image. (What a fascinating character she is.)
Noh Huibong, dressed incognito, is sneaking through Taejong's quarters, on his way out. He's a pretty lousy sneak, though, because he runs right into Taejong in the hall. Bussss-ted. He's terrified. "Where are you going?", Taejong asks, sizing up the situation; To my wife to tell her to take it easy on me? "Come." They go to his chambers. Taejong puts a small chest in front of him; apparently it's full of money. "Are you...throwing me out?" Noh is dumbfounded. Taejong says, "It's not nearly enough for everything you've done for me." And then, unceremoniously, "Leave the palace." "I refuse, your majesty." "This is not an order. This is my first and last request to you. This will happen again if I keep you near me. You are a kindhearted man, so you will feel sorry for me and make another attempt to do what you tried to do today. Can you guarantee me that you won't? And like it or not, you will end up a villain who clipped my wings, and I will have no choice but to kill you as well." That doesn't bother Noh; "I wish to die by your side protecting you." But Taejong won't have it. "Don't be cruel to me like the others have been. Let me have the pleasure of saying a warm goodbye to at least one man--at least one man out of so many men who served me. You're the only one left whom I can do that with. Dispense with long goodbyes. Just go. You're not leaving for good; I could call you back anytime. So leave as if you're going to see me tomorrow." It's a brutally sad scene; Noh is devastated, and Taejong can barely get the words out.
Outside we see Noh step outside into an evening drizzle and leave Taejong's quarters. He turns around, puts the chest on the ground, kneels and supplicates himself. "Your majesty, please take care of yourself." He cries.
Inside, Taejong is sobbing, hard. (It really is lonely at the top.)
The queen has come to visit Wongyeong. "Why are you here?", Wongyeong asks; "Because you're angry with the king for failing to protect your father and you want to get him back somehow?" She's a smart woman, as the queen's response shows: "Would that be wrong?" "Of course it's wrong," she answers. "You are the mother of this state. The mother of the state is the mother of the people. The only acceptable reason for your presence is compassion and concern for your suffering children." Then she turns introspective: "But the fact is, I...I never had such compassion. All of my attention was always at the audience hall. I may be a woman, but my political ambition was greater than most men. So instead of being a wife, I wanted more to be the king's political partner. But the former king never allowed it." The queen asks her, "Were you angry?" "Yes, I am angry. Not so much at the former king but at myself. I don't think I ever really knew what the queen's role was." She continues, "Perhaps the queen's role isn't keeping her interest in politics, observing the games and manipulating the players. Perhaps her true role is in seeking out and taking care of the people whom the king's hands can't reach...If you are not here to perform the queen's role, go back to the palace now." The queen has listened intently: "Thank you for your teaching. But I too am a human being, and it's hard to let go of the resentment, mother." But she'll try: "I will take care of the sick and try my best to let go of my resentment. Permit me to stay and learn the true role of the queen from you." She smiles and sheds a tear.
Ministers are meeting, discussing the fact that the queen mother has joined the relief efforts. The consensus is that the Hall of Worthies is "done for" because of the need to protect prince Hyoryeong. Choi Yundeok is there and he's annoyed at Huh Jo: "Is it fun for you to put the king atop a tree and shake him as you please?" That's not it, Huh says; we're trying to teach him "how to restore his declining prestige." (He really has turned into a pompous ass.)
"If I told you there was a way to protect the king and protect the Hall of Worthies as well, would you do it?" Park has called the scholars together late in the evening. They go into a records room; it contains shelves full of documents about the ministers' estate holdings. The idea is to investigate Jo Malseng! The scholars immediately walk to the shelves and start to scrutinize the materials.
As the scholars work, Park notices Gim Moon (who was acting as Park's and Jo's plant) pitching in with the investigation. You do know, Park tells him, that you won't be in Jo's favor any more if you participate in this. It's okay, Gim tells him; the last couple of years have changed both of us. "I too, prefer to live as a proud member of the Hall of Worthies rather than as someone's stool pigeon, sir." Park smiles and pats him on the shoulder.
Later, the scholars look whupped. "How could he be so clean?", Yun Hwe wonders. There's no dirt, not on him or on anyone in his clan. Not even a speck. Will this be the end for the Hall of Worthies?
Back at the type foundry: Choi Haesan is there with Jang Youngsil, and he's complaining: "That devil Jo Malseng is suffocating the king!" Yi Chun isn't worried, though; he says the king is just going through trial and error of his own. "Failure leads to success if you endure it, but it's just failure if you give up." That's what he says, but he doesn't seem to have enough endurance himself: seeing another failed attempt at printing, he picks up a chair and heaves it; it breaks into pieces. Then he stares at the pieces and has a Eureka moment: "That's it! I got it! We can make the pieces to fit into the frame like this!" He shows the crossbeam of the chair fitting into the leg like a peg. He runs inside and orders the workers to chuck everything they've done so far.
Jang asks Choi to get him into the bureau of astronomy. So they go there and meet the astronomers/astrologers. He wants to find the mathematical flaw that led to the incorrect eclipse prediction; but they tell him that "it isn't something a lowborn can do." They continue to talk down to him and tell him, "Get out of here," but he insists, "If you show me the calculation method, I will find out why that prediction was wrong." "Give him a chance," Choi says; "What have you got to lose?" And if I can't find it, Yang tells them, "I'll give you my hands." In other words, chop chop. It's a dramatic gamble (although I doubt that the astrologers would actually do it).
Nighttime: The group is poring over star charts; the calculations are being explained to Jang. We even see Sejong take a peek in on the activity, unnoticed.
"The visible enemy was easier," Sejong ponders, referring to the Tsushima conquest. Fighting heaven, that's another thing entirely. He regrets not having performed the prayer ceremony, he says; If I had, maybe I wouldn't be under pressure to shut down the Hall of Worthies or to strike my brother down. "Heaven, what a fierce and merciless enemy it is!"
The next day: the type foundry is buzzing with activity. Yi Chun's new method seems to be working; Sejong and the ministers are impressed. Yi explains that they abandoned the use of wax-set type for fitted type, in which the individual type characters are fitted into a frame rather than pressed into wax. It lets them print five times faster, and we can see that the pages look good too. Yi Chun tells Sejong, "Now all that's left is for you to win, your majesty." (P.S. Q: How did the show's producers choose the actors to play the workers in the foundry? A: Typecasting! Ba-dum bum.)
Voiceover narration explains that the new method was named Gyeongja Type after the year of its creation. It replaced and improved upon Gyemi type, which was developed in 1403 under Taejong's orders. Gyeongja type became a model for Gabin Type, the most beautiful of all Joseon-developed types; it also served as an important tool in cultural development by enabling quick production and dissemination of cultural and political literature. It was "A signal flare starting the era of cultural evolution, an era marked by the greatest achievements in Korea's 5000-year history."
Prince Kyoungnyeong asks Sejong, "Are you feeling pressure to strike down Hyoryeong?" Sejong tells him, "Protecting the Hall of Worthies will require a sacrifice. Using my own brother to bargain away...How cruel are the kings?" Then, an extremely meaningful statement: "I think I understand my father to some degree now."
Park goes to see Jo. "I'm impressed," Park says. "I investigated you inside and out." "Did you now," says Jo with almost a hint of amusement. "There's no one I can't get when I set my mind to it. I ended prime minister Ha Ryun's career. A tactician like you knows very well how important money is in politics. You have to be hiding quite a bit of wealth somewhere." Jo smiles and says, "If you say so, perhaps I am." "But you slipped through my fingers effortlessly. That's one thing I want to praise you for." Jo says sardonically, "Somehow I don't think 'thank you' is in order." "Then how about accepting my surrender?", Park says, and he actually kneels before Jo. "Strike me and end this. I'm the director of the Hall of Worthies, so destroy me and leave the Hall alone. Don't take it from the king." Jo is surprised, understandably. "You're my political mentor. I don't want your career ending this way." He turns away uncomfortably as Park remains kneeling before him.
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The eclipse prediction was close--but obviously not close enough, because everyone, everywhere is stunned and disturbed. Yun Hwe mutters that this kind of thing makes Sejong looks like an "inferior" who can't decipher heaven's will. Ministers, in their self-serving glory, see this as an opportunity to "tame" the king. Hwang Hee, in his village, listens as villagers fear another natural disaster if heaven forsakes the king. (So it clearly was important back then for kings to show their people that they could predict these things precisely.)
Jo Malseng and Yu Jeonghyun walk into the Hall of Worthies, rather discourteously so. They don't immediately realize that the king is in the hall as well. Far from being apologetic, Jo says that the country is in such disarray that they've forgotten their manners. He then brazenly tells Sejong that all of this mess happened because he didn't shut down the Hall as his ministers had advised him to. Heaven has turned against you, he continues, and you'd turn the ministers against you as well? We're going to close the Hall down ourselves. Then he proceeds to order the ministers and officials present to go back to their regular jobs. What unbelievable nerve.
At prince Hyoryeong's Buddhist compound: We see the prince attending to a dying man. Suddenly government troops arrive, led by Yi Sunmong and Park Sil. They're under orders to arrest all Buddhists. But they apparently haven't been told that a prince is present, because Byun Gaeryang tells them and they stop in their tracks. They trade tense words with the prince, but then back off the prince and Byun while proceeding to act against the others present.
Sejong is furious at Jo for suppressing the people; Jo argues that it's a simple matter of enforcing state policy established by Taejong. Whose orders would you have us obey?, Jo asks; who's the king here? Sejong walks out without answering.
Taejong is angry at Jo for trying to dominate the king; he orders Noh Huibong to summon Jo at once. But Noh refuses! He begs Taejong to tend to his health and leave state affairs. "You are my shadow," Taejong tells him, "and shadows do not judge." But Noh again refuses, even under the threat of death. Right now your health is more important to me than the country is, Noh tells him.
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Jo Malseng delivers a bit of a threat to Park Eun: "It is your job now to set our childish king straight, Minister Park. Close down the close down the Hall of Worthies yourself. I do not want you getting hurt." Park isn't too thrilled: "I taught you everything I know, and here you are openly threatening me." Jo says he likes Park and doesn't want to see his political career go down the drain.
Taejong is walking down the hall, determined to go to the audience hall to see his son. Noh Huibong is begging him to go back and rest; he even kneels in Taejong's path. Then Taejong staggers and totters against a wall from weakness, before steadying himself. He tells Noh, "Death is certain anyhow. I don't intend to slow down. In fact, the closer I get to death, the less time I have to sit back and be idle. This country is everything to me. I would die a thousand times to protect my cherished country Joseon. I need to see her running smoothly or I will never be able to rest in peace. Do you want my spirit to wander the Hades forever?" He orders Noh to summon Jo Malseng.
At the type foundry: Yi Chun is in charge, and the foundry is trying to come up with an improved printing method. But the product so far is completely unacceptable quality-wise. Sejong comes to visit and asks if progress is being made. Not yet, Yi tells him. "It will take countless trial and error to bring a new technology to life." Their goal is to disseminate Hall of Worthies materials faster. "You have my confidence, vice-minister," Sejong tells him.
Jo is before Taejong. "You must have too many things on your mind," Taejong tells Jo. "I thought you were infallible, but you moved the troops without my go-ahead. (Remember, Jo is military minister now.) What has you so restless?" "Have I made you angry?", Jo asks; "You've always been firm about preserving the anti-Buddhism policy, so I did not feel it was necessary to ask your permission." No, Taejong says, you did the right thing; "so let's hear your assessment of the situation. I'm told Hyoryeong is at the center of these Buddhist activities." But Jo doesn't want any part of this; it's a matter of maintaining order in the royal house, which is the king's job. But he does suggest letting Sejong decide how to handle it. "Prince Hyoryeong is now the king's biggest political enemy," and the king should learn how to deal with his enemies. Especially now that the eclipse miscalculation has him in a tough spot with the public.
Sejong, pondering: "Would I be able to protect the Hall of Worthies if I struck my brother down?"
We see Prince Hyoryeong with Byun Gaeryang (identified in Ep49 as a Buddhist). Hyoryeong isn't afraid of punishment; he's not going anywhere, he's staying and taking care of flood and disease refugees. Byun wants to stay with him, but the prince tells him to go back to the city and serve the king. Byun tells him that it's been tough as a Buddhist to study Confucian teachings, but he knows that "Buddha will take care of us."
The queen mother is with Hyobin and prince Kyoungnyeong. She's concerned because the prince has told her that there's pressure on the king to strike down Hyoryeong. She asks him, What does the king want to do? You've worked with him closely lately, and must know what he's thinking. But Hyobin tells her that she should ask Sejong directly, because he just went to see his father.
Taejong tells his son, "Strike Hyoryeong down, my king. If you let this slide, the ministers will have no fear of you. More importantly, it is not advisable to allow Hyoryeong to gain popular favor." "Do you believe he can harbor ambition?", Sejong asks. His father answers, "The world will constantly prod him. And chances are, Buddhist monks will use him to revive their influence in this state." Sejong asks warily, "Does this mean Hyoryeong and I are political enemies?" Apparently so: "A king must learn to be stern with his political enemies even if one is his own brother." Then, from off to the side: "But he would be a beast from that day forward." It's Wongyeong, who's walked right in on the two of them. She challenges her son: "Would you strike your own brother with whom you share your blood?" Silence. "I am asking you if you're going to put blood on your hands." More silence. "Answer my questions." Taejong tells her, "He is being driven into corner. If he does not show decisiveness now..." "ENOUGH!", Wongyeong shouts at her husband. "I know where you stand"; I want to know where my son stands. I haven't made a decision, Sejong tells her, but she doesn't like that answer. "Does this need consideration? 'Should I kill my brother or not?'...I won't be idle. I will protect my son Hyoryeong. Not from my third son Doe, but from the high and mighty king of Joseon." And she turns and leaves, smacking the door open on her way out.
Nighttime, outside at Hyoryeong's refuge: Refugees and victims are being treated. Hyoryeong is kneeling, working among them, when he looks up and sees that his mother has come to see him. He scrambles to his feet, surprised as heck to see her. "Women are better than men at nursing the sick," she tells him. "Here you are giving yourself selflessly without asking for anything in return, but your brother is so cruel." Hyoryeong is calm and not worried: "He'll understand me someday," he tells her. "Let us hope that he does," she tells him. With that, she kneels down and tends to a sick child lying near her. It's a very touching image. (What a fascinating character she is.)
Noh Huibong, dressed incognito, is sneaking through Taejong's quarters, on his way out. He's a pretty lousy sneak, though, because he runs right into Taejong in the hall. Bussss-ted. He's terrified. "Where are you going?", Taejong asks, sizing up the situation; To my wife to tell her to take it easy on me? "Come." They go to his chambers. Taejong puts a small chest in front of him; apparently it's full of money. "Are you...throwing me out?" Noh is dumbfounded. Taejong says, "It's not nearly enough for everything you've done for me." And then, unceremoniously, "Leave the palace." "I refuse, your majesty." "This is not an order. This is my first and last request to you. This will happen again if I keep you near me. You are a kindhearted man, so you will feel sorry for me and make another attempt to do what you tried to do today. Can you guarantee me that you won't? And like it or not, you will end up a villain who clipped my wings, and I will have no choice but to kill you as well." That doesn't bother Noh; "I wish to die by your side protecting you." But Taejong won't have it. "Don't be cruel to me like the others have been. Let me have the pleasure of saying a warm goodbye to at least one man--at least one man out of so many men who served me. You're the only one left whom I can do that with. Dispense with long goodbyes. Just go. You're not leaving for good; I could call you back anytime. So leave as if you're going to see me tomorrow." It's a brutally sad scene; Noh is devastated, and Taejong can barely get the words out.
Outside we see Noh step outside into an evening drizzle and leave Taejong's quarters. He turns around, puts the chest on the ground, kneels and supplicates himself. "Your majesty, please take care of yourself." He cries.
Inside, Taejong is sobbing, hard. (It really is lonely at the top.)
The queen has come to visit Wongyeong. "Why are you here?", Wongyeong asks; "Because you're angry with the king for failing to protect your father and you want to get him back somehow?" She's a smart woman, as the queen's response shows: "Would that be wrong?" "Of course it's wrong," she answers. "You are the mother of this state. The mother of the state is the mother of the people. The only acceptable reason for your presence is compassion and concern for your suffering children." Then she turns introspective: "But the fact is, I...I never had such compassion. All of my attention was always at the audience hall. I may be a woman, but my political ambition was greater than most men. So instead of being a wife, I wanted more to be the king's political partner. But the former king never allowed it." The queen asks her, "Were you angry?" "Yes, I am angry. Not so much at the former king but at myself. I don't think I ever really knew what the queen's role was." She continues, "Perhaps the queen's role isn't keeping her interest in politics, observing the games and manipulating the players. Perhaps her true role is in seeking out and taking care of the people whom the king's hands can't reach...If you are not here to perform the queen's role, go back to the palace now." The queen has listened intently: "Thank you for your teaching. But I too am a human being, and it's hard to let go of the resentment, mother." But she'll try: "I will take care of the sick and try my best to let go of my resentment. Permit me to stay and learn the true role of the queen from you." She smiles and sheds a tear.
Ministers are meeting, discussing the fact that the queen mother has joined the relief efforts. The consensus is that the Hall of Worthies is "done for" because of the need to protect prince Hyoryeong. Choi Yundeok is there and he's annoyed at Huh Jo: "Is it fun for you to put the king atop a tree and shake him as you please?" That's not it, Huh says; we're trying to teach him "how to restore his declining prestige." (He really has turned into a pompous ass.)
"If I told you there was a way to protect the king and protect the Hall of Worthies as well, would you do it?" Park has called the scholars together late in the evening. They go into a records room; it contains shelves full of documents about the ministers' estate holdings. The idea is to investigate Jo Malseng! The scholars immediately walk to the shelves and start to scrutinize the materials.
As the scholars work, Park notices Gim Moon (who was acting as Park's and Jo's plant) pitching in with the investigation. You do know, Park tells him, that you won't be in Jo's favor any more if you participate in this. It's okay, Gim tells him; the last couple of years have changed both of us. "I too, prefer to live as a proud member of the Hall of Worthies rather than as someone's stool pigeon, sir." Park smiles and pats him on the shoulder.
Later, the scholars look whupped. "How could he be so clean?", Yun Hwe wonders. There's no dirt, not on him or on anyone in his clan. Not even a speck. Will this be the end for the Hall of Worthies?
Back at the type foundry: Choi Haesan is there with Jang Youngsil, and he's complaining: "That devil Jo Malseng is suffocating the king!" Yi Chun isn't worried, though; he says the king is just going through trial and error of his own. "Failure leads to success if you endure it, but it's just failure if you give up." That's what he says, but he doesn't seem to have enough endurance himself: seeing another failed attempt at printing, he picks up a chair and heaves it; it breaks into pieces. Then he stares at the pieces and has a Eureka moment: "That's it! I got it! We can make the pieces to fit into the frame like this!" He shows the crossbeam of the chair fitting into the leg like a peg. He runs inside and orders the workers to chuck everything they've done so far.
Jang asks Choi to get him into the bureau of astronomy. So they go there and meet the astronomers/astrologers. He wants to find the mathematical flaw that led to the incorrect eclipse prediction; but they tell him that "it isn't something a lowborn can do." They continue to talk down to him and tell him, "Get out of here," but he insists, "If you show me the calculation method, I will find out why that prediction was wrong." "Give him a chance," Choi says; "What have you got to lose?" And if I can't find it, Yang tells them, "I'll give you my hands." In other words, chop chop. It's a dramatic gamble (although I doubt that the astrologers would actually do it).
Nighttime: The group is poring over star charts; the calculations are being explained to Jang. We even see Sejong take a peek in on the activity, unnoticed.
"The visible enemy was easier," Sejong ponders, referring to the Tsushima conquest. Fighting heaven, that's another thing entirely. He regrets not having performed the prayer ceremony, he says; If I had, maybe I wouldn't be under pressure to shut down the Hall of Worthies or to strike my brother down. "Heaven, what a fierce and merciless enemy it is!"
The next day: the type foundry is buzzing with activity. Yi Chun's new method seems to be working; Sejong and the ministers are impressed. Yi explains that they abandoned the use of wax-set type for fitted type, in which the individual type characters are fitted into a frame rather than pressed into wax. It lets them print five times faster, and we can see that the pages look good too. Yi Chun tells Sejong, "Now all that's left is for you to win, your majesty." (P.S. Q: How did the show's producers choose the actors to play the workers in the foundry? A: Typecasting! Ba-dum bum.)
Voiceover narration explains that the new method was named Gyeongja Type after the year of its creation. It replaced and improved upon Gyemi type, which was developed in 1403 under Taejong's orders. Gyeongja type became a model for Gabin Type, the most beautiful of all Joseon-developed types; it also served as an important tool in cultural development by enabling quick production and dissemination of cultural and political literature. It was "A signal flare starting the era of cultural evolution, an era marked by the greatest achievements in Korea's 5000-year history."
Prince Kyoungnyeong asks Sejong, "Are you feeling pressure to strike down Hyoryeong?" Sejong tells him, "Protecting the Hall of Worthies will require a sacrifice. Using my own brother to bargain away...How cruel are the kings?" Then, an extremely meaningful statement: "I think I understand my father to some degree now."
Park goes to see Jo. "I'm impressed," Park says. "I investigated you inside and out." "Did you now," says Jo with almost a hint of amusement. "There's no one I can't get when I set my mind to it. I ended prime minister Ha Ryun's career. A tactician like you knows very well how important money is in politics. You have to be hiding quite a bit of wealth somewhere." Jo smiles and says, "If you say so, perhaps I am." "But you slipped through my fingers effortlessly. That's one thing I want to praise you for." Jo says sardonically, "Somehow I don't think 'thank you' is in order." "Then how about accepting my surrender?", Park says, and he actually kneels before Jo. "Strike me and end this. I'm the director of the Hall of Worthies, so destroy me and leave the Hall alone. Don't take it from the king." Jo is surprised, understandably. "You're my political mentor. I don't want your career ending this way." He turns away uncomfortably as Park remains kneeling before him.