Post by ajk on Dec 1, 2009 14:00:24 GMT -5
Now in the Goryeo royal palace, which the Khitans have captured: Gang Jo and Dae Dosu, their arms bound, are led from their jail cell; they're being taken to see the emperor. Inside, Shengzong asks them, "Is this true? You wish to surrender?" Yes, Jo says (we didn't see it, but obviously his plan is to say he's surrendering). "The imperial palace has fallen. What's the point of resisting?" Shengzong is understandably suspicious. "I didn't expect you to relent so quickly. It's not like you." But Jo says he served Cheonchu, who is now out of power, and has no wish to serve the new emperor. Yi Hyunoon and Ahn Pae are there too, and Shengzong asks Hyunoon about this. Hyunoon replies that it's true, that Jo even pointed his spear at the new emperor to try to get Cheonchu reinstated. Fine, Shengzong says; "Then you shall kneel and bow as my servant." Jo starts to do it, but he can't kneel while he's bound. So Shengzong orders him and Dae untied--against the advice of the generals and guards in the room. Jo goes to one knee and salutes the emperor. Then, suddenly, Dae grabs a sword from one of the guards before the guard can react, and throws it to Jo as Jo makes a break for the emperor's throne. He catches it in midair; pushes away Shengzong's big goon guard; and then, standing there point-blank in front of Shengzong with the sword, lunges and MISSES HIM. (Yes, that's right. Goryeo's greatest warrior is holding a sword and standing unimpeded right in front of an unarmed, SITTING target, and fails to kill him.) He and Dae are quickly subdued. Dae continues to struggle; Yelu Wuji puts a sword into his midsection but even that doesn't stop him; he lunges for Shengzong but a slash by Su No from behind finishes him off. He dies at the emperor's feet. Yelu Dilu wants to execute Jo on the spot but Shengzong says no. (Just an awful, ridiculous scene.)
Later, outside in a courtyard: Jo is kneeling before Shengzong; attendant Yu and captain Noh are behind him. All are bound. Shengzong tells Jo, "You may be an enemy but your courage is truly impressive. That is why I'm giving you a chance to die the death of a glorious warrior. If you can fight one hundred of my men and defeat them, you will be set free." At once or in sequence? We don't know yet, but Jo smiles at being given the opportunity. "We may be foes," he tells the emperor with sincerity, "but I appreciate your generosity. Now if you'll give me my spear, I will die fighting until my heart is content." His spear is tossed to him...
We see Cheonchu and her own 100 men continuing south.
...and here come the 100 Khitans. At once. They charge Jo and surround him, but he starts whirling like a top and keeps them at bay and gets in a few kills. Now he starts jumping all over the place, killing with downward blows as he lands; he's taken out at least a dozen, and soon fifteen more. "Bastards! Is this it? I'll take on all 200,000 of you!" Shengzong is captivated by the spectacle and his generals are furious. Now a second wave comes at Jo, and by sheer numbers manage to get several swords at his midsection. Can't see whether or not they've punctured him, but apparently not because he whirls and knocks them all backwards with his spear. He fights on, killing another ten, a dozen more, going and going, until we finally get a wide view and we see that there can't be more than a dozen Khitans left alive. At that point the generals have seen enough--"We must protect the empire's honor!"--and five of them step forward just as Jo kills the last of the 100 men. So much for Shengzong's offer (or maybe there were only 95 to start with, but I doubt that). The five generals come at him; Jo is wobbly from fatigue but charges fearlessly and manages to hold them off--for a few seconds. They're simply too strong for him; they pin his spear above his head and he can't swing it. Four of them strike him with various blades in quick succession. Jo falls to his knees, fatally wounded, and takes a fifth blow, this one from an axe no less. As a sweet, uplifting tune plays (an absolutely idiotic choice of music; somebody ought to be fired for it), Jo thinks back to a day when he and Cheonchu were on horses, riding together..."I'm sorry that we couldn't achieve our dream...Empress Dowager..." With the help of his spear, he actually manages to stagger to his feet, but then slides back down to his knees. He dies leaning against the spear. Shengzong has sat spellbound through it all. Yelu Dilu stands over Jo and shouts, "I will cut off his head and hang it outside the palace gate!" But Shengzong won't have it. "No! That's no way to honor a true warrior. This is truly a great loss. Allow his subordinate to give him a burial." (A class gesture; maybe this guy isn't so bad.) "And burn down the palace and this entire city! This is their punishment for defiance!" (Never mind.) "I'm going after the Goryean King! Prepare to move out!" He looks again at Jo's lifeless body, clearly moved by Jo's fighting skill and bravery to the end.
We see the Khitans murdering, pillaging, setting fires, destroying the palace and the capital city.
Evening: Cheonchu and her men reach the capital and come upon the devastation. They enter what's left of the palace and look around, crestfallen. Attendant Yu and captain Noh are there...
...and they take the new arrivals to the courtyard where Gang Jo's lifeless body still leans against his spear. Cheonchu approaches his body in disbelief. "What has happened to you?", she asks, crying. "I should be the one who is dead, but instead you're...You can't leave us like this...Don't you want to go back home to Balhae?" She holds his body and breaks down sobbing.
We see Jo's funeral pyre. At least some of his own soldiers are there to pay their respects; that worked out well. Cheonchu instructs attendant Yu to gather his ashes; she's going to leave right away to chase after the Khitan, but she says if she comes back alive she'll scatter Jo's ashes on Balhaean land. Yu surprises her, and us, by asking captain Noh to do it. As Yu stares into the pyre, he tells Cheonchu he's going to Liao to avenge Jo's death. "Yi Hyunoon and Ahn Pae cannot be left to live after what they've done to Emperor Mokjong and General Gang. I will kill those bastards and avenge their deaths, if it's the last thing I do." And the way he says it, nothing is going to stop him from trying. (Also, remember he's a former Balhaean who was brought into the palace by Gang Jo himself, so he has added motivation.)
The next morning: We see the Goryean royal party on their journey south. They've stopped to rest in a lightly wooded area. A messenger arrives with news of the Khitan army's advance; they're gaining rapidly on the royals and at this rate will catch up to them soon. Kim Shimun and Mun Inui immediately step forward and urge surrender. Gamchan rebuffs them: "Do you want His Majesty to kneel to the enemy and become a servant of Liao?" The weasels think it's better than dying, and they demand that Gamchan offer a better idea. "If there is nothing else that can be done," Gamchan says, "perhaps we can send an envoy to the enemy camp and buy some time." Choe Hang likes the idea and says it's the only option left. But who will step forward and be the envoy? The silence is deafening; no one volunteers. Finally Gamchan says he'll do it himself. "We must do whatever it takes to turn the enemy troops around. Send me on the mission." But then Ha Gongjin speaks up, even after being rebuked by Jo Sun, his "superior." He tells Hyeonjong, "Minister Gang is an indispensable man who must not leave your side. And delivering a message to the enemy camp could be a dangerous task. I will go instead; give me your permission." Gamchan reluctantly nods to the emperor.
With the Khitan army: Colonel Ha has arrived and is before Shengzong and seemingly every other important Khitan; it's a large outdoor gathering, like they're expecting to get the formal surrender they want. (Ha has brought an unidentified junior minister with him.) The Khitans are insulted that a measly colonel was sent to them; Ha tells them the emperor would have come personally but is too far to the south at the moment. Ha brings an offer from the emperor: "Turn your troops around, and he will be here soon to seek your forgiveness." It's in written form too; the minister steps forward and presents a letter. Give Ha credit; he's speaking with confidence to the emperor and is handling himself well, not at all intimidated. Shengzong reads the letter and asks where the emperor is now. Very far south, Ha responds nebulously, and it will take him weeks to get here. Shengzong smells a rat: "This is a trick to make me send back my troops. Did you think I'd fall for this?!" He orders Ha locked up and Ha and the minister are taken away, Ha shouting as he's removed that it's not a trick, it's the truth. Shengzong is angry--this isn't what he wanted. He orders Yelu Wuji, Yelu Chu and Su No to head south immediately. "Go now and capture the emperor of Goryeo!"
The royal party continues south, looking wearier and wearier and with fresh news that the Khitans are nearing. Ha Gongjin's mission was a failure, they realize. Now things are getting desperate. Among the party of soldiers accompanying the party are generals Choi and Tak, and Gamchan turns to them and throws down the gauntlet: "General Tak and General Choi, you must go and hold back the enemy." "Us? How can we hold back the enemy when we only have a handful of soldiers?" "You are Goryeo's two highest military leaders. You must buy as much time as you can for His Majesty to find safety." Choi and Tak couldn't look less comfortable, but it makes so much sense that we even see a nod from the sniveling Escort Jo, who's accompanying Lady Yunheung in the royal party. (Too bad Gamchan doesn't challenge Jo Sun to go with them.) He bluntly tells Choi and Tak, "Go now!" (Can we really expect these two to do anything helpful?)
The party is continuing south, but their pace is being slowed by the slower walkers, mainly the women and ministers. As they approach a fork in the road, Kim Shimun suggests, "I think we should split up to disperse the enemy." (A suggestion LONG overdue.) So who goes with whom? Lady Yunheung says she'll head in a different direction and take the women with her. An awkward moment as her daughter the empress bravely says she's going with her husband, even as Escort Jo tells her to be quiet--"Don't you see the Lady's intent?" "My place is with the emperor," she says bravely. (She obviously has some of her mother's sense of principle, or at least what her mother once had.) But Hyeonjong tells her that going with him will endanger her life and she should go with her mother. Now who will escort the women? Kim Shimun steps forward and offers, and the other weasel ministers do too. Gamchan and Choe Hang just shake their heads silently, disgusted at their eagerness to go with the women rather than protect the emperor (very funny moment, actually).
Meanwhile, Choi and Tak have taken roughly half of the troops guarding the royal party and have headed back north. We see them watching from a camouflaged overlook as the Khitan pursuers head south. The two generals don't think they can buy any time for the emperor, with so few troops against the number of Khitans they see. So, true to their nature, they simply leave, abandoning the situation entirely.
The Khitans reach the fork in the road where the royal party separated. Yelu Wuji and Su No take half the troops down the left fork; Yelu Chu takes the other half down the right fork.
Darkness has fallen. We see the slower party. Yunheung and the empress seem to be out in front of it. From behind them, Kim Shimun asks for a rest because he's out of breath. Some tension between the women and the weasel ministers because the ministers are so out of shape they can't keep up with the women. But now it's all moot because Jo Sun comes galloping up to them--he's been scouting--with news that Yelu Chu's troops have caught up to them. He barely finishes telling them when the Khitans show up and close in. As Yunheung, Wonjeong and Escort Jo flee, and the ministers run to hide behind nearby bushes, Jo Sun and the remaining soldiers bravely charge at the Khitans and fight them head-on despite being outnumbered. An intense battle; Jo Sun fights bravely (No kidding!) and kills what must be almost a dozen Khitans (No kidding!). But he gets his arms pinned by two other Khitans and then Yelu Chu rushes at him and strikes him dead. (So at least he dies honorably, his life notwithstanding.) After that the battle is over pretty quickly; the Khitans' superior numbers decide it. The ministers are spotted and dragged out before Yelu Chu. "Where is the emperor?", he demands, swords at their throats. "The emperor is not with us," Mun Inui volunteers, shaking like a leaf. "But the empress fled in that direction." Talk about chivalry. So the Khitans head after the three women...
...and have no trouble catching up to them. Escort Jo panics and runs away, leaving the empress and her mother to be surrounded by Khitan soldiers. One of the officers advances menacingly towards Wonjeong...and in a flash is struck down by a flaming arrow! "Kill them all!" It's Cheonchu and her men; they've caught up to the action just in time. Another battle, but this time the Goryeans have the numbers advantage and quickly wipe out the Khitans. Cheonchu's men charge through the woods, over to where the remaining Khitans are holding the weasel ministers. Yet another battle, and this one turns on a stunner: Yelu Chu gets outdueled and killed by Kim Jonghyun, the former Choongju steward. Turns out this guy is a very capable fighter. Their leader dead, the remaining Khitans flee and the Goryeans pursue them. Cheonchu is left there with Yunheung, who has to swallow her pride and thank Cheonchu for saving her and her daughter's lives. Which she promptly does, to her credit. "I wasn't trying to save your life," Cheonchu says dismissively; "I couldn't let them put shame upon Goryeo by violating the empress." Now she and her soldiers have to go on and find the emperor.
Still that evening: The emperor's group has arrived at a village. One woman stayed with the emperor: Sunjeong. And it's a good thing she did, because when the party comes to a building that looks like a good place to rest for the night, Sunjeong recognizes it as the place where she and her husband and Cheonchu were beaten and disrespected by the building's owner and other local landowners after leaving the palace (in Ep71). She tells the whole story to Hyeonjong; Gamchan hears it and angrily demands that the building's owner be held accountable. A subordinate pounds on the door. "Gatekeeper!"
"Is it true that you mocked the late emperor and the empress dowager and dared to physically assault them?" In front of the emperor, Gamchan is angrily questioning the man we recognize as the arrogant landowner from Ep71. The man steadfastly denies doing what he did. Hyeonjong looks skeptical: "Are you saying that the former empress is lying?" "Yes. I'm being falsely incriminated!" Which only digs him deeper in trouble. But right now they can't really get too caught up in this; they need refuge and assistance and this man can provide it.
Next we see the landowner speaking privately with two of his fellow landowners, who fear they're going to be executed for what they all did. Should they run for their lives? "We own land here," he tells his friends; "we can't give up everything we own and run away." What does he want to do? Capture the emperor and deliver him to the Khitans! He thinks that if the three of them combine their own private guards, they can overpower the modest force guarding the emperor. "Let's roll the dice and see what comes up."
Next, outside the landowner's villa: The three men did combine their guards, and they all sweep into the main yard and demand that Hyeonjong present himself. Ji Chaemun and Yu Jong run out, swords drawn, and challenge the landowners, and then Gamchan emerges from inside and orders them to disperse. There aren't many soldiers guarding the emperor any more, so with superior numbers behind them, the landowners laugh at Gamchan. At that a battle breaks out. Fortunately, superior numbers mean nothing here because the emperor's protectors are trained soldiers and so they quickly kill most of their opponents and subdue the rest. The landowners see this and try to flee, but arrows from Ji Chaemun strike them down. Gamchan tells the surviving guards: "Put down your weapons and kneel before the emperor." Which they do. Hyeonjong finally emerges and surveys the scene, horrified that his own people tried to attack him rather than uniting against the invading enemy. Tears of frustration fall from his eyes.
Cheonchu's forces have camped for the night. Cheonchu is staring into a campfire, unable to sleep. "I can't stop thinking about General Gang," she tells a concerned Kim Jonghyun. "I've done so many things I regret...."
Nighttime, Jurchen territory: We see a torchlight procession. Mobula is in it, and Dokyun and the boy Prince Hwangju are in it too. Very odd; what's this all about? They reach the mouth of a cave. The boy is seized from Dokyun and given a lantern. "You must go in," Mobula's subordinate tells the boy, "or the woman will get hurt." The boy looks over at her and without hesitating, turns and heads into the cave by himself. Dokyun is shrieking and panicked. The kid is remarkably unfazed, at least not yet. As he ventures deeper into the cave, he stays calm even as some bats suddenly fly through. But then there's a growl, and he drops the lantern. Back at the cave mouth, Mobula explains: "There is an old legend in our tribe. This legend foretells the coming of a foreign child who unites the Jurchen tribes and builds a great empire. The legend says that the child will spend five days with the bears and reemerge. If your boy survives five days in that cave, we will know that he is the one." "I don't care about your legend!", screams Dokyun; "Give me back my child!" But the Jurchens won't do it; the boy is on his own now, come what may. And now the growling is audible at the cave mouth...."I will not subject my child to this absurdity to be a hero in your legend!", she screams to no avail. Now deep inside the cave, we see the boy standing perfectly still as the silhouette of a bear approaches through the darkness. (Actually it's so obviously a guy in a bear suit, it isn't even funny. Even in the darkness we can see it moving like a wind-up toy. Ugh.)
Morning: Ji Chaemun informs Hyeonjong that the royal undersecretary (unidentified but likely Hwangbo Yui) and the minister of finance (Chae Choongsun), who were in their group, have disappeared, and so have captain Yu and his men. They've taken all of their horses and saddles, too. The implication here is that it's dangerous to be around the emperor right now--too dangerous for some of them to cope with. (One apparent mistake is that I could see no horses when the group arrived the previous night. What horses were there to take?) The timing couldn't be worse, because they need to get on the road immediately and keep moving; who knows when the Khitans might show up.
Later that day: Cheonchu and her men arrive at the same village. She goes to the landowner's villa, surveys the many dead bodies and recognizes the dead landowner. Did the Khitans do all this? "It's most likely," Cheonchu says incorrectly; "Goryean soldiers are among them. We must find the emperor quickly and get him out of danger."
The emperor's party arrives at Choongju Palace. Sunjeong absolutely does not want them to go in there, not after what she and Cheonchu went through. She urges Hyeonjong to find another place to go. "Lady Choongju is not to be trusted." But Choe and Gamchan tell her that this is the best option for them now, and there will at least be some armed guards to protect the emperor (wrong).
Inside: "So are you going to punish me for my actions toward Dowager Cheonchu?" Lady Choongju is before the emperor as Gamchan questions her. She doesn't seem the least bit concerned or apologetic. "I was not too harsh. She is a whore who almost ruined the country. I was doing my duty as an elder of the imperial house." Choe Hang encourages her to let the past go for now and focus on helping the emperor. But she has no guards to offer them; Cheonchu took them all. "So I'm afraid I must ask you to leave." Can't you even spare a few horses? "As the elder of the imperial house," Gamchan reminds her, "it is your duty" to protect the emperor. But she says she has nothing to offer. Which she probably doesn't, but her smugness and lack of concern or respect are repulsive. "Please leave before you put me and my family in danger as well." Gamchan is about to explode at her but Hyeonjong raises his hand at him. "I understand," he tells the lady; "We shall leave right away." He looks disgusted with her himself, but what more can they do.
Uh-oh, here come the Khitans, galloping on horseback into Choongju Palace. They quickly subdue the few guards the palace has left. Lady Choongju is almost immediately found and shoved down to her knees before Yelu Wuji. "Where is the emperor?", she's asked, a sword to her throat. Shaking and barely able to talk, she points: "In... that... wing..." To our momentary surprise, just as Wuji turns and looks, the emperor walks out and announces himself. But it's not Hyeonjong, it's his attendant Bakdol wearing the emperor's robe. A good trick and Wuji doesn't know any better so he eats it right up...but just as he's to be taken away..."No, that man is not the emperor!" Lady Choongju gets to her feet and goes right up to Wuji. "That's the emperor's attendant. If you let me live, I will help you find the emperor." Wuji turns to Bakdol: "Is this true?" "That's absurd! I am the Emperor of Great Goryeo!" Choongju shouts at him, "Your liar! How dare you?!" And those are her last words, because in one jarring instant an arrow flies out of nowhere and thwacks right into her chest! She staggers and falls dead. What in the world? On the other side of the courtyard, we see Cheonchu. She and her men have shown up. She glares at Wuji. "It's been a while."
Later, outside in a courtyard: Jo is kneeling before Shengzong; attendant Yu and captain Noh are behind him. All are bound. Shengzong tells Jo, "You may be an enemy but your courage is truly impressive. That is why I'm giving you a chance to die the death of a glorious warrior. If you can fight one hundred of my men and defeat them, you will be set free." At once or in sequence? We don't know yet, but Jo smiles at being given the opportunity. "We may be foes," he tells the emperor with sincerity, "but I appreciate your generosity. Now if you'll give me my spear, I will die fighting until my heart is content." His spear is tossed to him...
We see Cheonchu and her own 100 men continuing south.
...and here come the 100 Khitans. At once. They charge Jo and surround him, but he starts whirling like a top and keeps them at bay and gets in a few kills. Now he starts jumping all over the place, killing with downward blows as he lands; he's taken out at least a dozen, and soon fifteen more. "Bastards! Is this it? I'll take on all 200,000 of you!" Shengzong is captivated by the spectacle and his generals are furious. Now a second wave comes at Jo, and by sheer numbers manage to get several swords at his midsection. Can't see whether or not they've punctured him, but apparently not because he whirls and knocks them all backwards with his spear. He fights on, killing another ten, a dozen more, going and going, until we finally get a wide view and we see that there can't be more than a dozen Khitans left alive. At that point the generals have seen enough--"We must protect the empire's honor!"--and five of them step forward just as Jo kills the last of the 100 men. So much for Shengzong's offer (or maybe there were only 95 to start with, but I doubt that). The five generals come at him; Jo is wobbly from fatigue but charges fearlessly and manages to hold them off--for a few seconds. They're simply too strong for him; they pin his spear above his head and he can't swing it. Four of them strike him with various blades in quick succession. Jo falls to his knees, fatally wounded, and takes a fifth blow, this one from an axe no less. As a sweet, uplifting tune plays (an absolutely idiotic choice of music; somebody ought to be fired for it), Jo thinks back to a day when he and Cheonchu were on horses, riding together..."I'm sorry that we couldn't achieve our dream...Empress Dowager..." With the help of his spear, he actually manages to stagger to his feet, but then slides back down to his knees. He dies leaning against the spear. Shengzong has sat spellbound through it all. Yelu Dilu stands over Jo and shouts, "I will cut off his head and hang it outside the palace gate!" But Shengzong won't have it. "No! That's no way to honor a true warrior. This is truly a great loss. Allow his subordinate to give him a burial." (A class gesture; maybe this guy isn't so bad.) "And burn down the palace and this entire city! This is their punishment for defiance!" (Never mind.) "I'm going after the Goryean King! Prepare to move out!" He looks again at Jo's lifeless body, clearly moved by Jo's fighting skill and bravery to the end.
We see the Khitans murdering, pillaging, setting fires, destroying the palace and the capital city.
Evening: Cheonchu and her men reach the capital and come upon the devastation. They enter what's left of the palace and look around, crestfallen. Attendant Yu and captain Noh are there...
...and they take the new arrivals to the courtyard where Gang Jo's lifeless body still leans against his spear. Cheonchu approaches his body in disbelief. "What has happened to you?", she asks, crying. "I should be the one who is dead, but instead you're...You can't leave us like this...Don't you want to go back home to Balhae?" She holds his body and breaks down sobbing.
We see Jo's funeral pyre. At least some of his own soldiers are there to pay their respects; that worked out well. Cheonchu instructs attendant Yu to gather his ashes; she's going to leave right away to chase after the Khitan, but she says if she comes back alive she'll scatter Jo's ashes on Balhaean land. Yu surprises her, and us, by asking captain Noh to do it. As Yu stares into the pyre, he tells Cheonchu he's going to Liao to avenge Jo's death. "Yi Hyunoon and Ahn Pae cannot be left to live after what they've done to Emperor Mokjong and General Gang. I will kill those bastards and avenge their deaths, if it's the last thing I do." And the way he says it, nothing is going to stop him from trying. (Also, remember he's a former Balhaean who was brought into the palace by Gang Jo himself, so he has added motivation.)
The next morning: We see the Goryean royal party on their journey south. They've stopped to rest in a lightly wooded area. A messenger arrives with news of the Khitan army's advance; they're gaining rapidly on the royals and at this rate will catch up to them soon. Kim Shimun and Mun Inui immediately step forward and urge surrender. Gamchan rebuffs them: "Do you want His Majesty to kneel to the enemy and become a servant of Liao?" The weasels think it's better than dying, and they demand that Gamchan offer a better idea. "If there is nothing else that can be done," Gamchan says, "perhaps we can send an envoy to the enemy camp and buy some time." Choe Hang likes the idea and says it's the only option left. But who will step forward and be the envoy? The silence is deafening; no one volunteers. Finally Gamchan says he'll do it himself. "We must do whatever it takes to turn the enemy troops around. Send me on the mission." But then Ha Gongjin speaks up, even after being rebuked by Jo Sun, his "superior." He tells Hyeonjong, "Minister Gang is an indispensable man who must not leave your side. And delivering a message to the enemy camp could be a dangerous task. I will go instead; give me your permission." Gamchan reluctantly nods to the emperor.
With the Khitan army: Colonel Ha has arrived and is before Shengzong and seemingly every other important Khitan; it's a large outdoor gathering, like they're expecting to get the formal surrender they want. (Ha has brought an unidentified junior minister with him.) The Khitans are insulted that a measly colonel was sent to them; Ha tells them the emperor would have come personally but is too far to the south at the moment. Ha brings an offer from the emperor: "Turn your troops around, and he will be here soon to seek your forgiveness." It's in written form too; the minister steps forward and presents a letter. Give Ha credit; he's speaking with confidence to the emperor and is handling himself well, not at all intimidated. Shengzong reads the letter and asks where the emperor is now. Very far south, Ha responds nebulously, and it will take him weeks to get here. Shengzong smells a rat: "This is a trick to make me send back my troops. Did you think I'd fall for this?!" He orders Ha locked up and Ha and the minister are taken away, Ha shouting as he's removed that it's not a trick, it's the truth. Shengzong is angry--this isn't what he wanted. He orders Yelu Wuji, Yelu Chu and Su No to head south immediately. "Go now and capture the emperor of Goryeo!"
The royal party continues south, looking wearier and wearier and with fresh news that the Khitans are nearing. Ha Gongjin's mission was a failure, they realize. Now things are getting desperate. Among the party of soldiers accompanying the party are generals Choi and Tak, and Gamchan turns to them and throws down the gauntlet: "General Tak and General Choi, you must go and hold back the enemy." "Us? How can we hold back the enemy when we only have a handful of soldiers?" "You are Goryeo's two highest military leaders. You must buy as much time as you can for His Majesty to find safety." Choi and Tak couldn't look less comfortable, but it makes so much sense that we even see a nod from the sniveling Escort Jo, who's accompanying Lady Yunheung in the royal party. (Too bad Gamchan doesn't challenge Jo Sun to go with them.) He bluntly tells Choi and Tak, "Go now!" (Can we really expect these two to do anything helpful?)
The party is continuing south, but their pace is being slowed by the slower walkers, mainly the women and ministers. As they approach a fork in the road, Kim Shimun suggests, "I think we should split up to disperse the enemy." (A suggestion LONG overdue.) So who goes with whom? Lady Yunheung says she'll head in a different direction and take the women with her. An awkward moment as her daughter the empress bravely says she's going with her husband, even as Escort Jo tells her to be quiet--"Don't you see the Lady's intent?" "My place is with the emperor," she says bravely. (She obviously has some of her mother's sense of principle, or at least what her mother once had.) But Hyeonjong tells her that going with him will endanger her life and she should go with her mother. Now who will escort the women? Kim Shimun steps forward and offers, and the other weasel ministers do too. Gamchan and Choe Hang just shake their heads silently, disgusted at their eagerness to go with the women rather than protect the emperor (very funny moment, actually).
Meanwhile, Choi and Tak have taken roughly half of the troops guarding the royal party and have headed back north. We see them watching from a camouflaged overlook as the Khitan pursuers head south. The two generals don't think they can buy any time for the emperor, with so few troops against the number of Khitans they see. So, true to their nature, they simply leave, abandoning the situation entirely.
The Khitans reach the fork in the road where the royal party separated. Yelu Wuji and Su No take half the troops down the left fork; Yelu Chu takes the other half down the right fork.
Darkness has fallen. We see the slower party. Yunheung and the empress seem to be out in front of it. From behind them, Kim Shimun asks for a rest because he's out of breath. Some tension between the women and the weasel ministers because the ministers are so out of shape they can't keep up with the women. But now it's all moot because Jo Sun comes galloping up to them--he's been scouting--with news that Yelu Chu's troops have caught up to them. He barely finishes telling them when the Khitans show up and close in. As Yunheung, Wonjeong and Escort Jo flee, and the ministers run to hide behind nearby bushes, Jo Sun and the remaining soldiers bravely charge at the Khitans and fight them head-on despite being outnumbered. An intense battle; Jo Sun fights bravely (No kidding!) and kills what must be almost a dozen Khitans (No kidding!). But he gets his arms pinned by two other Khitans and then Yelu Chu rushes at him and strikes him dead. (So at least he dies honorably, his life notwithstanding.) After that the battle is over pretty quickly; the Khitans' superior numbers decide it. The ministers are spotted and dragged out before Yelu Chu. "Where is the emperor?", he demands, swords at their throats. "The emperor is not with us," Mun Inui volunteers, shaking like a leaf. "But the empress fled in that direction." Talk about chivalry. So the Khitans head after the three women...
...and have no trouble catching up to them. Escort Jo panics and runs away, leaving the empress and her mother to be surrounded by Khitan soldiers. One of the officers advances menacingly towards Wonjeong...and in a flash is struck down by a flaming arrow! "Kill them all!" It's Cheonchu and her men; they've caught up to the action just in time. Another battle, but this time the Goryeans have the numbers advantage and quickly wipe out the Khitans. Cheonchu's men charge through the woods, over to where the remaining Khitans are holding the weasel ministers. Yet another battle, and this one turns on a stunner: Yelu Chu gets outdueled and killed by Kim Jonghyun, the former Choongju steward. Turns out this guy is a very capable fighter. Their leader dead, the remaining Khitans flee and the Goryeans pursue them. Cheonchu is left there with Yunheung, who has to swallow her pride and thank Cheonchu for saving her and her daughter's lives. Which she promptly does, to her credit. "I wasn't trying to save your life," Cheonchu says dismissively; "I couldn't let them put shame upon Goryeo by violating the empress." Now she and her soldiers have to go on and find the emperor.
Still that evening: The emperor's group has arrived at a village. One woman stayed with the emperor: Sunjeong. And it's a good thing she did, because when the party comes to a building that looks like a good place to rest for the night, Sunjeong recognizes it as the place where she and her husband and Cheonchu were beaten and disrespected by the building's owner and other local landowners after leaving the palace (in Ep71). She tells the whole story to Hyeonjong; Gamchan hears it and angrily demands that the building's owner be held accountable. A subordinate pounds on the door. "Gatekeeper!"
"Is it true that you mocked the late emperor and the empress dowager and dared to physically assault them?" In front of the emperor, Gamchan is angrily questioning the man we recognize as the arrogant landowner from Ep71. The man steadfastly denies doing what he did. Hyeonjong looks skeptical: "Are you saying that the former empress is lying?" "Yes. I'm being falsely incriminated!" Which only digs him deeper in trouble. But right now they can't really get too caught up in this; they need refuge and assistance and this man can provide it.
Next we see the landowner speaking privately with two of his fellow landowners, who fear they're going to be executed for what they all did. Should they run for their lives? "We own land here," he tells his friends; "we can't give up everything we own and run away." What does he want to do? Capture the emperor and deliver him to the Khitans! He thinks that if the three of them combine their own private guards, they can overpower the modest force guarding the emperor. "Let's roll the dice and see what comes up."
Next, outside the landowner's villa: The three men did combine their guards, and they all sweep into the main yard and demand that Hyeonjong present himself. Ji Chaemun and Yu Jong run out, swords drawn, and challenge the landowners, and then Gamchan emerges from inside and orders them to disperse. There aren't many soldiers guarding the emperor any more, so with superior numbers behind them, the landowners laugh at Gamchan. At that a battle breaks out. Fortunately, superior numbers mean nothing here because the emperor's protectors are trained soldiers and so they quickly kill most of their opponents and subdue the rest. The landowners see this and try to flee, but arrows from Ji Chaemun strike them down. Gamchan tells the surviving guards: "Put down your weapons and kneel before the emperor." Which they do. Hyeonjong finally emerges and surveys the scene, horrified that his own people tried to attack him rather than uniting against the invading enemy. Tears of frustration fall from his eyes.
Cheonchu's forces have camped for the night. Cheonchu is staring into a campfire, unable to sleep. "I can't stop thinking about General Gang," she tells a concerned Kim Jonghyun. "I've done so many things I regret...."
Nighttime, Jurchen territory: We see a torchlight procession. Mobula is in it, and Dokyun and the boy Prince Hwangju are in it too. Very odd; what's this all about? They reach the mouth of a cave. The boy is seized from Dokyun and given a lantern. "You must go in," Mobula's subordinate tells the boy, "or the woman will get hurt." The boy looks over at her and without hesitating, turns and heads into the cave by himself. Dokyun is shrieking and panicked. The kid is remarkably unfazed, at least not yet. As he ventures deeper into the cave, he stays calm even as some bats suddenly fly through. But then there's a growl, and he drops the lantern. Back at the cave mouth, Mobula explains: "There is an old legend in our tribe. This legend foretells the coming of a foreign child who unites the Jurchen tribes and builds a great empire. The legend says that the child will spend five days with the bears and reemerge. If your boy survives five days in that cave, we will know that he is the one." "I don't care about your legend!", screams Dokyun; "Give me back my child!" But the Jurchens won't do it; the boy is on his own now, come what may. And now the growling is audible at the cave mouth...."I will not subject my child to this absurdity to be a hero in your legend!", she screams to no avail. Now deep inside the cave, we see the boy standing perfectly still as the silhouette of a bear approaches through the darkness. (Actually it's so obviously a guy in a bear suit, it isn't even funny. Even in the darkness we can see it moving like a wind-up toy. Ugh.)
Morning: Ji Chaemun informs Hyeonjong that the royal undersecretary (unidentified but likely Hwangbo Yui) and the minister of finance (Chae Choongsun), who were in their group, have disappeared, and so have captain Yu and his men. They've taken all of their horses and saddles, too. The implication here is that it's dangerous to be around the emperor right now--too dangerous for some of them to cope with. (One apparent mistake is that I could see no horses when the group arrived the previous night. What horses were there to take?) The timing couldn't be worse, because they need to get on the road immediately and keep moving; who knows when the Khitans might show up.
Later that day: Cheonchu and her men arrive at the same village. She goes to the landowner's villa, surveys the many dead bodies and recognizes the dead landowner. Did the Khitans do all this? "It's most likely," Cheonchu says incorrectly; "Goryean soldiers are among them. We must find the emperor quickly and get him out of danger."
The emperor's party arrives at Choongju Palace. Sunjeong absolutely does not want them to go in there, not after what she and Cheonchu went through. She urges Hyeonjong to find another place to go. "Lady Choongju is not to be trusted." But Choe and Gamchan tell her that this is the best option for them now, and there will at least be some armed guards to protect the emperor (wrong).
Inside: "So are you going to punish me for my actions toward Dowager Cheonchu?" Lady Choongju is before the emperor as Gamchan questions her. She doesn't seem the least bit concerned or apologetic. "I was not too harsh. She is a whore who almost ruined the country. I was doing my duty as an elder of the imperial house." Choe Hang encourages her to let the past go for now and focus on helping the emperor. But she has no guards to offer them; Cheonchu took them all. "So I'm afraid I must ask you to leave." Can't you even spare a few horses? "As the elder of the imperial house," Gamchan reminds her, "it is your duty" to protect the emperor. But she says she has nothing to offer. Which she probably doesn't, but her smugness and lack of concern or respect are repulsive. "Please leave before you put me and my family in danger as well." Gamchan is about to explode at her but Hyeonjong raises his hand at him. "I understand," he tells the lady; "We shall leave right away." He looks disgusted with her himself, but what more can they do.
Uh-oh, here come the Khitans, galloping on horseback into Choongju Palace. They quickly subdue the few guards the palace has left. Lady Choongju is almost immediately found and shoved down to her knees before Yelu Wuji. "Where is the emperor?", she's asked, a sword to her throat. Shaking and barely able to talk, she points: "In... that... wing..." To our momentary surprise, just as Wuji turns and looks, the emperor walks out and announces himself. But it's not Hyeonjong, it's his attendant Bakdol wearing the emperor's robe. A good trick and Wuji doesn't know any better so he eats it right up...but just as he's to be taken away..."No, that man is not the emperor!" Lady Choongju gets to her feet and goes right up to Wuji. "That's the emperor's attendant. If you let me live, I will help you find the emperor." Wuji turns to Bakdol: "Is this true?" "That's absurd! I am the Emperor of Great Goryeo!" Choongju shouts at him, "Your liar! How dare you?!" And those are her last words, because in one jarring instant an arrow flies out of nowhere and thwacks right into her chest! She staggers and falls dead. What in the world? On the other side of the courtyard, we see Cheonchu. She and her men have shown up. She glares at Wuji. "It's been a while."