Post by ajk on Sept 18, 2008 20:25:18 GMT -5
(Forgive the delay on this one; at a couple of points I just couldn't pick everything up the first time. So I had to tape the rebroadcast. Plus, during the Huh Jo scene I had to stop typing and just enjoy it.)
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Hwang sits back down. "This report alleges that Hwang Hee not only abused his authority to kidnap Park Poe's wife but also kept her confined in an underground cave and violated her repeatedly." Around the room, ministers and officials fidget uncomfortably. Jeong asks Hwang, "Are these allegations true?" No answer. "Answer the question, sir, please." Still nothing. Hoping for any little bit of explanation, Jeong counsels, "Your silence could be only be construed as admission." Hwang starts to say something, but then stops himself. Jeong turns away, bitterly discouraged.
Sejong is told. "I knew we had a problem, but I had no idea about the extent of his crime!" If this is true, he tells Ogeun, "I will have to give him up."
Jeong presses further: You covered this up and continued your career, and if it hadn't come out now, you'd have continued right on with no remorse, isn't that right? Hwang, seeming almost bored, casually says, "Yes, I think you're right." Ministers speak out over his lack of remorse: "He is insane!" "Get him out!" Prime minister Yu has heard enough: "I guess it's time to exercise our veto rights," he says, knowing that the ministers won't even want to deliberate. Suddenly, from off to the side: "Not so fast!" Choi Manli enters and faces the ministers. "I can't let you veto Councilor Hwang's appointment. Jo Malseng dismisses him: "A junior official of your position has no say in this." But Choi turns to Hwang and begs him, "Tell them the truth. Facts don't always reflect the truth." Ministers lean forward, not knowing what to make of this strange turn. "I don't think I will," Hwang says. "Defend yourself!", Choi insists; "Reveal the truth." Jeong is befuddled but, hoping for a way out for Hwang, excitedly asks, "The truth? What is the truth?" Jo cautions him to "keep your personal emotions out of this," but Choi wheels around and fires back at him, "I'm not the one who made this personal." He implores Hwang, "Why don't you reveal the truth. You're going to ruin something vastly important over personal feelings." "That's enough," Hwang tells him, but Choi says, "I don't think so. This government, no, this country, needs you too much for me to stop now and give you up." "What have you done?", Hwang asks him, sensing that this is about to get bigger. Choi looks to the door and says, "Send her in." The doors open and a woman is escorted in. It's Park Poe's wife. She bows to the assembled ministers (as a bit of objection is raised over to a female in the conference hall). She acknowledges Hwang and says, "My lord...why are you trying to destroy your life over me? We should have revealed the truth back then immediately after it was over." Now even Byun Gaeryang is asking questions: "Do you care to explain?" "My lord," she answers him, "you are throwing stones at a man for saving a woman's life from the hands of a beast."
Sejong is questioning his two eunuchs: "You got personally involved in locating Park Poe's wife?" They fidget silently....Finally, "it's true." Sejong is angry: "The king has no right to interfere with the review!" Jachi tells him that it was Choi Manli who asked for help, not you. "You're my closest assistant," Sejong says; "You knew what [this] could do to the outcome of the review." "What makes you think I would know such a thing?", Jachi asks. "I only remember what you want me to remember, and I only ponder things that require my opinion." Sejong has to admire Jachi's shrewdness, and he backs off: "I guess we don't get fed for nothing in this palace, both you and I." Calmer, he tells him, "I hope your effort is not in vain."
"I was forced to live under my husband's violent abuse from the day I wedded." The woman is being questioned by Jeong as the review continues. "The reason was that I had another man in my heart." Jeong asks her who the other man was; was it Hwang? She sidesteps: "It could be, and it could also be every man in the world." She continues her story: "I was beaten for giving donations to monks. If I did as much as set foot outside the front door, I would be accused of making a pass at men and be beaten. Then he ordered one of his servants to break into my room, and..."--Stop, Hwang urges her, to no avail--"then he accused me of infidelity with the servant and beat me until I couldn't breathe. I lived like a dog dominated by a monster. But I didn't want to die. So one day I just ran, with nothing else but survival on my mind. And like a miracle, lord Hwang was there." Jeong asks her, "So did you live in lord Hwang's house thereafter?" "He dug an underground room and let me hide there because my husband had found me and kept harassing me day and night." That's when he filed the incriminating report. But why, Jeong asks her, did Hwang admit to the false allegations? "Lord Hwang is a very sympathetic man," she says. "Are you saying that he did sleep with you?" "I'm the one who wanted him," she protests. "We were once betrothed. 'Do I disgust you now that I am unchaste?' I appealed to his sympathy." "Then why was this covered up?" "I believe lord Hwang asked that it be covered up." Ministers start to speak out and accuse Hwang of covering it up to protect his career. "No, it wasn't like that! His majesty..." Jeong stops her: "Are you referring to the departed king Taejong?" She hesitates. "What did he say to you?" "That no one will know about this, and that I can go on with my life without fear." And that's her story. Jeong turns to the ministers: "If this had gotten out, exaggerated rumors would have ruined this woman's life, forcing her to bear a stigma of adultery because like us in this room, people are more interested in juicy scandals than in the truth. The late king Taejong and lord Hwang were trying to protect this woman's human rights from that stigma and prejudice." Some ministers are seen nodding. "Now I ask the ministers who hold the power to veto lord Hwang's appointment: what would you have done if you were in lord Hwang's shoes?" Silence. Then Meng Sasung suggests a brief adjournment, which is taken.
Outside the hall, Yun Hwe confronts Choi Manli; he's not happy at all. Why couldn't you have discussed this with us first, he asks; "How could you think to pull something this big all by yourselves? (He mistakenly believes that Jeong was in on it too, which is weird because it was obvious from Jeong's reactions that he didn't know about it.) If only those seasoned politicians were as simple-minded as you are." Steaming, he walks away. (What's he so mad about? Even if it doesn't work, it was a great idea.)
Hwang and the woman are alone outside of the hall. "Foolish woman," Hwang mutters. "Why did you come here?" "I had to come," she says. "Like you did for me many years ago." "Did you think I'd appreciate it?", he says gruffly. "You haven't changed a bit," she tells him. Softening, he asks, "How have you been?" "Do you regret it? If you hadn't helped me then..." "You can come to me again. Come to me any time you need help." From the way he says it, he still cares for her on some level. "Take good care." she says. (It feels like a lot was left unsaid here; a poignant scene.) Hwang nods, and walks away...
...and finds Sejong walking towards him. Hwang bows. "How do you think this will end?," Sejong asks. Hwang smiles. "You're asking the man on review, your majesty." "I still think you can predict the outcome better than anyone can." Hwang tells him, "The truth is a bit different from the allegation but that won't stop them from exercising the veto rights. And I did indeed sleep with another man's wife." Sejong asks him, Do you still think I shouldn't exercise my royal prerogative for you? No, don't sacrifice your principles, he says.
In a records room, Yun Hwe is frantically searching through scrolls and books, looking for something....
Yun Hwe is alone in a room with Jo Malseng; he's asked to see Jo. Yun is holding the incriminating scroll. "This scroll doesn't belong in the stock room," he tells Jo. "As you can see, the number is out of sequence." Taejong ordered it destroyed. How did it appear suddenly out of nowhere?" "Cut to the chase," Jo tells him. Yun does. "At the time you were an official in the office of the royal secretariat." You kept this report all these years and used it against lord Hwang. Prove it, Jo answers; prove it was deliberate and wasn't just a simple oversight. To prove it you'll need Taejong's testimony and, of course, "Dead men tell no tales." Yun can't believe that Jo would stoop to something so low. But Jo glares menacingly at him and advises him, "Stay out of my way. You're no match for me no matter how hard you try." And he leaves, patting Yun on the shoulder. (What did Yun think, that Jo was going to fess up right then and there? Geez, this is not Yun's best brain day.)
In a conference room, the ministers sit down to make their decision. "Let us now vote for the motion to veto," Jo says. "Like Jeong Ilji says, moral integrity is not virtue but our duty." (The way he twisted that to his advantage, yecch how weasely.) But Meng Sasung suggests, "Before we decide, I think we should hear what Hwang Hee might have to say." Jo objects, but Meng reminds him that they're here to be fair and impartial, "so I don't think prudence will hurt." The other ministers go along with that.
Yun Hwe and Yi Su are urging Hwang to give testimony to help himself. Hwang has his eyes closed and seemingly ignores them. But then his eyes open.
The review has reconvened. Hwang is again seated before the ministers, who request his testimony. Byun reminds him that he can refuse and resign his post of his own accord. Hwang is silent, and looks around as everyone watches him. Then he slowly he rises to his feet and addresses the ministers: "A short while ago, I sent off a woman who came here risking great pain and humiliation to testify for me. She asked me if I have any regrets. I sent her off without answering her question, but I have very deep regrets. If I had been more of a man, if I had been stronger or manlier, I might have been able to save a woman I once loved from treacherous pain a little sooner. Not helping her sooner is my only regret. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't do anything differently. But I am remorseful. Because saving a woman from a violent relationship and sleeping with her are completely separate matters. Perhaps she was an easy mark for me as well. She was already a trampled and abused woman, so perhaps it was easy for me to say it's okay to enjoy her for one night. As a government official, I find myself thinking that I might have held the same notion about the public as well. I preached not to turn a blind eye to public suffering, and I barked that we are here to serve the people. But perhaps I as content with the mere pretence of benevolence...I may have looked down on the people and had my way with them, the same way I had my way with a young woman many years ago." He speaks calmly and deliberately, but with sincerity and honesty. "I don't know what heaven has in store for me in the future, but if I could start over, I would change. "At least I hope to be a true public servant who genuinely serves the people with the right ideas and policies."
The minsters go back to a conference room to make their decision. Huh Jo tells them, "That was a poignant speech, but I must point out that noting has changed." They seem to agree with that assessment, and then Jo Malseng confidently says to them, "I trust that all of you agree with me." They do, right? "I don't." It's Huh Jo! "We can't execute this veto," he says to our total surprise. "Control yourself," Jo warns, but with his typical pomposity he fires back at him, "Just be quiet and listen." He tells the group, "If we send Hwang Hee home for moral depravity, we all have to pack up and go home." There are other kinds of immorality besides adultery, he reminds them: "Exploiting a rival's past mistake to get rid of him isn't exactly model behavior for a politician either. Don't you agree, minister Jo?" (FACIAL!!! Ow, that's gotta hurt!) Jo argues that Hwang is a dangerous man, but Huh is on a roll: "The king and the young officials treat us like old geezers because you're all worked up when we don't even have a problem yet. He might be dangerous and he might have made mistakes, but I still think we need Hwang Hee." Then Huh talks about the personnel reshuffling proposal that Hwang was working on. "It's terrible," he says; "there are holes all over the place" (and by now I'm laughing my butt off because the guy just keeps firing cannonballs). "But that's not Hwang Hee's fault. We just don't have enough talent in the country," even after thirty years under the Joseon regime. "This isn't Hwang Hee's review. It's all of our review. I think all of us are big enough to recognize talented men despite our differences. What do you think?"
In the main hallway, everyone is waiting, waiting...Finally the ministers come out into the hallway and head towards the main conference hall. In the hall, everyone takes their places. Byun rises. "Deciding whether or not to exercise our veto power over the king's appointment of Hwang Hee was a very complicated and difficult process. The review board found that adultery was morally wrong regardless of the circumstances Hwang Hee found himself in. But one past mistake does not define a man in entirety. And it is the board's final conclusion that one mistake should not become a shackle that impedes a man's future if there is remorse. Therefore, I announce that the high ministers will not be exercising their veto right against the appointment of supreme councilor Hwang Hee." The scholars and secretaries are ecstatic and jump up to congratulate Hwang. Many of the ministers smile as well. Not Jo, of course.
Hwang leaves the conference hall, and outside encounters Jo. "Welcome back to the battlefield, councilor," Jo says, seemingly unfazed. "Thank you," Hwang answers; "that was quite a welcoming." Jo can only accept defeat but tells Hwang, "I do want to say this: It is not good policy to publicly support a king who stirs up chaos in the state by taking unnecessary risks, whether it is in domestic or foreign affairs." "I appreciate the advice," Hwang tells him, and Jo starts to leave. "Oh, but Minister Jo..." Jo stops. "What if it's something that will create a little chaos but ultimately aid the country's growth and development? I think some men call this reform instead of unnecessary risks." Jo doesn't try to argue the point. "We've got time, councilor Hwang. Let us put our heads together and work this out one problem at a time." "That's what I was hoping for," Hwang says, and the two go their separate ways.
"This is where he made his last request." Sejong is standing with Hwang on the observatory site suggested by Taejong. "And also where he supported my dream for the first time. The place where my departed father buried his dreams is where this humble son must realize his. Acquiring you was the first step in the journey," he tells Hwang. "Now I'm waiting for another man of talent who will achieve the near-impossible dream along with you and I."
Nighttime, in an unfamiliar courtyard: "I'm using you right now, but I feel no remorse." It's Jang Youngsil, but he's dressed fancier than usual. A woman comes walking towards him. "Then death is the only thing waiting for you," she says. We don't see her face at first, but when we do...it's DAION! (The last time we saw her was Ep22 when she one of a bunch of young women being carried off to be presented to the Ming emperor.) "If one of my servants uttered such contemptuous words, I would have killed him before he finished his sentence." "You've become cold," he tells her, to which she replies, "And you've become even cockier."
Huang Yan intercepts Haishou and several soldiers at a palace door. "What is it?", he demands. "I'm investigating a report that a Joseonese slave entered the imperial palace in disguise." Hwang allows them to proceed; they begin to search the premises.
"It's the access pass to the Astronomy Bureau you asked for." Daion holds a metal object out to Jang, but pulls it back as he reaches for it. "If they find out you're Joseonese, you will be killed on the spot." "I won't be killed," he tells her. "Even the angel of death won't be interested in the man who uses the woman he once loved for his own purposes." Just then Haishou comes upon the two of them. He bows to Daion (!) and tells her, "I know you are not accustomed to our laws, being from Joseon, but how could you bring a man into the palace at this time of night?" Then Huang Yan shows up. "Is this the Joseonese slave you're looking for? He is here at the emperor's order," he tells Haishou. But the clothes? Daion says, "Do you expect him to enter the sacred palace in slave's clothing?" Then she tells Haishou, "I am sending back the family servant I've ordered to attend to my father's grave. I will overlook your contemptuous behavior just this once. But overstep you boundaries again and death will be your prize." With that, she goes inside.
"Wow, you know the emperor's concubine?" Choi Haesan is amazed. He and Youngsil are in their quarters. Jang tells him that he'll be going to the observatory the day after tomorrow. I'll cover you, Choi says, so just worry about getting the job done. But Jang goes outside; he seems distracted.
As she prepares for bed, Daion says that she might give the Joseonese a dinner party at their inn (remember, Jang is part of a full Joseon diplomatic mission that's come to Ming), as a sort of tribute to her father's memory. But who's she talking to? "You shall have what your heart desires," says a man behind a thin curtain. A hand reaches out around the curtain. We realize that this is the emperor's bedroom and the hand is the emperor's; a curtain surrounds his bed. Daion takes his hand, reluctantly.
The day after tomorrow. at the Astronomy Bureau. Jang shows his pass and is admitted in. Inside, Haishou is near the front entrance and stops him: "Today the Astronomy Bureau. For a slave you really get around. What's your business here?" "I'm here to see the board of registry president," he says. "I'm on to you," Haishou warns; "be careful."
"Haishou is a perceptive man." Yehjin is speaking to Jang; he's the board president. "There's got to be a reason why he's suspicious of you." How can I prove my innocence, Jang wants to know. Yehjin tells him, "I know you are a good person, but I don't know how much I should trust your greed for knowledge...The stars are for the emperor to rule alone. If you are caught trying to steal our technology, I won't be able to help you."
Daion's dinner party is underway. Daion is seated at a table; the Joseon delegation lines up and introduces themselves to her one at a time. Choi Haesan is at the end of the line; he introduces himself, bows and starts to turn away, but Daion recognizes him and subtlely motions him closer. He steps a bit closer to her. "You must listen carefully," she tells him very quietly; "Do not show tension or surprise." She's smiling as though making small talk, but wants to deliver a serious message. "Jang Youngsil will go to the observatory tonight." Choi is startled; that wasn't part of the plan. "I said not to act surprised," Daion cautions. "He could lose his life if the mission fails, so you must take the collected data and get out of Peking tonight." "I can't do that," Choi tells her; "I can't just leave him here." Daion is prepared for that: "He said you would refuse. Because you're a good man. A very good man." "Cocky bastard," Choi mutters. "And he said to tell you this: that he wants you now to be good man to all of Joseon, not just to him. And that you are wise enough to know what you have to do." Choi is trying to stay cool but is visibly struggling.
We see Choi packing up documents into two small chests.
Evening: "Slipped away? What were you doing? Did you leave the place unguarded?" No, Haishou's soldiers tell him, we didn't. "How could he just vanish? The Astronomy Bureau doesn't have a back entrance. Wait...could it be the at he didn't leave at all. Yes, it's possible...No, that's it! Jang Youngsil is still inside!" He and the soldiers rush over to the Astronomy Bureau as Choi watches surreptitiously.
We see Jang climbing stairs outside the bureau building until he reaches the roof. Scholars are there, manipulating large mechanical objects. This is the high-tech astronomical equipment, which Jang is finally seeing for the first time.
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Hwang sits back down. "This report alleges that Hwang Hee not only abused his authority to kidnap Park Poe's wife but also kept her confined in an underground cave and violated her repeatedly." Around the room, ministers and officials fidget uncomfortably. Jeong asks Hwang, "Are these allegations true?" No answer. "Answer the question, sir, please." Still nothing. Hoping for any little bit of explanation, Jeong counsels, "Your silence could be only be construed as admission." Hwang starts to say something, but then stops himself. Jeong turns away, bitterly discouraged.
Sejong is told. "I knew we had a problem, but I had no idea about the extent of his crime!" If this is true, he tells Ogeun, "I will have to give him up."
Jeong presses further: You covered this up and continued your career, and if it hadn't come out now, you'd have continued right on with no remorse, isn't that right? Hwang, seeming almost bored, casually says, "Yes, I think you're right." Ministers speak out over his lack of remorse: "He is insane!" "Get him out!" Prime minister Yu has heard enough: "I guess it's time to exercise our veto rights," he says, knowing that the ministers won't even want to deliberate. Suddenly, from off to the side: "Not so fast!" Choi Manli enters and faces the ministers. "I can't let you veto Councilor Hwang's appointment. Jo Malseng dismisses him: "A junior official of your position has no say in this." But Choi turns to Hwang and begs him, "Tell them the truth. Facts don't always reflect the truth." Ministers lean forward, not knowing what to make of this strange turn. "I don't think I will," Hwang says. "Defend yourself!", Choi insists; "Reveal the truth." Jeong is befuddled but, hoping for a way out for Hwang, excitedly asks, "The truth? What is the truth?" Jo cautions him to "keep your personal emotions out of this," but Choi wheels around and fires back at him, "I'm not the one who made this personal." He implores Hwang, "Why don't you reveal the truth. You're going to ruin something vastly important over personal feelings." "That's enough," Hwang tells him, but Choi says, "I don't think so. This government, no, this country, needs you too much for me to stop now and give you up." "What have you done?", Hwang asks him, sensing that this is about to get bigger. Choi looks to the door and says, "Send her in." The doors open and a woman is escorted in. It's Park Poe's wife. She bows to the assembled ministers (as a bit of objection is raised over to a female in the conference hall). She acknowledges Hwang and says, "My lord...why are you trying to destroy your life over me? We should have revealed the truth back then immediately after it was over." Now even Byun Gaeryang is asking questions: "Do you care to explain?" "My lord," she answers him, "you are throwing stones at a man for saving a woman's life from the hands of a beast."
Sejong is questioning his two eunuchs: "You got personally involved in locating Park Poe's wife?" They fidget silently....Finally, "it's true." Sejong is angry: "The king has no right to interfere with the review!" Jachi tells him that it was Choi Manli who asked for help, not you. "You're my closest assistant," Sejong says; "You knew what [this] could do to the outcome of the review." "What makes you think I would know such a thing?", Jachi asks. "I only remember what you want me to remember, and I only ponder things that require my opinion." Sejong has to admire Jachi's shrewdness, and he backs off: "I guess we don't get fed for nothing in this palace, both you and I." Calmer, he tells him, "I hope your effort is not in vain."
"I was forced to live under my husband's violent abuse from the day I wedded." The woman is being questioned by Jeong as the review continues. "The reason was that I had another man in my heart." Jeong asks her who the other man was; was it Hwang? She sidesteps: "It could be, and it could also be every man in the world." She continues her story: "I was beaten for giving donations to monks. If I did as much as set foot outside the front door, I would be accused of making a pass at men and be beaten. Then he ordered one of his servants to break into my room, and..."--Stop, Hwang urges her, to no avail--"then he accused me of infidelity with the servant and beat me until I couldn't breathe. I lived like a dog dominated by a monster. But I didn't want to die. So one day I just ran, with nothing else but survival on my mind. And like a miracle, lord Hwang was there." Jeong asks her, "So did you live in lord Hwang's house thereafter?" "He dug an underground room and let me hide there because my husband had found me and kept harassing me day and night." That's when he filed the incriminating report. But why, Jeong asks her, did Hwang admit to the false allegations? "Lord Hwang is a very sympathetic man," she says. "Are you saying that he did sleep with you?" "I'm the one who wanted him," she protests. "We were once betrothed. 'Do I disgust you now that I am unchaste?' I appealed to his sympathy." "Then why was this covered up?" "I believe lord Hwang asked that it be covered up." Ministers start to speak out and accuse Hwang of covering it up to protect his career. "No, it wasn't like that! His majesty..." Jeong stops her: "Are you referring to the departed king Taejong?" She hesitates. "What did he say to you?" "That no one will know about this, and that I can go on with my life without fear." And that's her story. Jeong turns to the ministers: "If this had gotten out, exaggerated rumors would have ruined this woman's life, forcing her to bear a stigma of adultery because like us in this room, people are more interested in juicy scandals than in the truth. The late king Taejong and lord Hwang were trying to protect this woman's human rights from that stigma and prejudice." Some ministers are seen nodding. "Now I ask the ministers who hold the power to veto lord Hwang's appointment: what would you have done if you were in lord Hwang's shoes?" Silence. Then Meng Sasung suggests a brief adjournment, which is taken.
Outside the hall, Yun Hwe confronts Choi Manli; he's not happy at all. Why couldn't you have discussed this with us first, he asks; "How could you think to pull something this big all by yourselves? (He mistakenly believes that Jeong was in on it too, which is weird because it was obvious from Jeong's reactions that he didn't know about it.) If only those seasoned politicians were as simple-minded as you are." Steaming, he walks away. (What's he so mad about? Even if it doesn't work, it was a great idea.)
Hwang and the woman are alone outside of the hall. "Foolish woman," Hwang mutters. "Why did you come here?" "I had to come," she says. "Like you did for me many years ago." "Did you think I'd appreciate it?", he says gruffly. "You haven't changed a bit," she tells him. Softening, he asks, "How have you been?" "Do you regret it? If you hadn't helped me then..." "You can come to me again. Come to me any time you need help." From the way he says it, he still cares for her on some level. "Take good care." she says. (It feels like a lot was left unsaid here; a poignant scene.) Hwang nods, and walks away...
...and finds Sejong walking towards him. Hwang bows. "How do you think this will end?," Sejong asks. Hwang smiles. "You're asking the man on review, your majesty." "I still think you can predict the outcome better than anyone can." Hwang tells him, "The truth is a bit different from the allegation but that won't stop them from exercising the veto rights. And I did indeed sleep with another man's wife." Sejong asks him, Do you still think I shouldn't exercise my royal prerogative for you? No, don't sacrifice your principles, he says.
In a records room, Yun Hwe is frantically searching through scrolls and books, looking for something....
Yun Hwe is alone in a room with Jo Malseng; he's asked to see Jo. Yun is holding the incriminating scroll. "This scroll doesn't belong in the stock room," he tells Jo. "As you can see, the number is out of sequence." Taejong ordered it destroyed. How did it appear suddenly out of nowhere?" "Cut to the chase," Jo tells him. Yun does. "At the time you were an official in the office of the royal secretariat." You kept this report all these years and used it against lord Hwang. Prove it, Jo answers; prove it was deliberate and wasn't just a simple oversight. To prove it you'll need Taejong's testimony and, of course, "Dead men tell no tales." Yun can't believe that Jo would stoop to something so low. But Jo glares menacingly at him and advises him, "Stay out of my way. You're no match for me no matter how hard you try." And he leaves, patting Yun on the shoulder. (What did Yun think, that Jo was going to fess up right then and there? Geez, this is not Yun's best brain day.)
In a conference room, the ministers sit down to make their decision. "Let us now vote for the motion to veto," Jo says. "Like Jeong Ilji says, moral integrity is not virtue but our duty." (The way he twisted that to his advantage, yecch how weasely.) But Meng Sasung suggests, "Before we decide, I think we should hear what Hwang Hee might have to say." Jo objects, but Meng reminds him that they're here to be fair and impartial, "so I don't think prudence will hurt." The other ministers go along with that.
Yun Hwe and Yi Su are urging Hwang to give testimony to help himself. Hwang has his eyes closed and seemingly ignores them. But then his eyes open.
The review has reconvened. Hwang is again seated before the ministers, who request his testimony. Byun reminds him that he can refuse and resign his post of his own accord. Hwang is silent, and looks around as everyone watches him. Then he slowly he rises to his feet and addresses the ministers: "A short while ago, I sent off a woman who came here risking great pain and humiliation to testify for me. She asked me if I have any regrets. I sent her off without answering her question, but I have very deep regrets. If I had been more of a man, if I had been stronger or manlier, I might have been able to save a woman I once loved from treacherous pain a little sooner. Not helping her sooner is my only regret. If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't do anything differently. But I am remorseful. Because saving a woman from a violent relationship and sleeping with her are completely separate matters. Perhaps she was an easy mark for me as well. She was already a trampled and abused woman, so perhaps it was easy for me to say it's okay to enjoy her for one night. As a government official, I find myself thinking that I might have held the same notion about the public as well. I preached not to turn a blind eye to public suffering, and I barked that we are here to serve the people. But perhaps I as content with the mere pretence of benevolence...I may have looked down on the people and had my way with them, the same way I had my way with a young woman many years ago." He speaks calmly and deliberately, but with sincerity and honesty. "I don't know what heaven has in store for me in the future, but if I could start over, I would change. "At least I hope to be a true public servant who genuinely serves the people with the right ideas and policies."
The minsters go back to a conference room to make their decision. Huh Jo tells them, "That was a poignant speech, but I must point out that noting has changed." They seem to agree with that assessment, and then Jo Malseng confidently says to them, "I trust that all of you agree with me." They do, right? "I don't." It's Huh Jo! "We can't execute this veto," he says to our total surprise. "Control yourself," Jo warns, but with his typical pomposity he fires back at him, "Just be quiet and listen." He tells the group, "If we send Hwang Hee home for moral depravity, we all have to pack up and go home." There are other kinds of immorality besides adultery, he reminds them: "Exploiting a rival's past mistake to get rid of him isn't exactly model behavior for a politician either. Don't you agree, minister Jo?" (FACIAL!!! Ow, that's gotta hurt!) Jo argues that Hwang is a dangerous man, but Huh is on a roll: "The king and the young officials treat us like old geezers because you're all worked up when we don't even have a problem yet. He might be dangerous and he might have made mistakes, but I still think we need Hwang Hee." Then Huh talks about the personnel reshuffling proposal that Hwang was working on. "It's terrible," he says; "there are holes all over the place" (and by now I'm laughing my butt off because the guy just keeps firing cannonballs). "But that's not Hwang Hee's fault. We just don't have enough talent in the country," even after thirty years under the Joseon regime. "This isn't Hwang Hee's review. It's all of our review. I think all of us are big enough to recognize talented men despite our differences. What do you think?"
In the main hallway, everyone is waiting, waiting...Finally the ministers come out into the hallway and head towards the main conference hall. In the hall, everyone takes their places. Byun rises. "Deciding whether or not to exercise our veto power over the king's appointment of Hwang Hee was a very complicated and difficult process. The review board found that adultery was morally wrong regardless of the circumstances Hwang Hee found himself in. But one past mistake does not define a man in entirety. And it is the board's final conclusion that one mistake should not become a shackle that impedes a man's future if there is remorse. Therefore, I announce that the high ministers will not be exercising their veto right against the appointment of supreme councilor Hwang Hee." The scholars and secretaries are ecstatic and jump up to congratulate Hwang. Many of the ministers smile as well. Not Jo, of course.
Hwang leaves the conference hall, and outside encounters Jo. "Welcome back to the battlefield, councilor," Jo says, seemingly unfazed. "Thank you," Hwang answers; "that was quite a welcoming." Jo can only accept defeat but tells Hwang, "I do want to say this: It is not good policy to publicly support a king who stirs up chaos in the state by taking unnecessary risks, whether it is in domestic or foreign affairs." "I appreciate the advice," Hwang tells him, and Jo starts to leave. "Oh, but Minister Jo..." Jo stops. "What if it's something that will create a little chaos but ultimately aid the country's growth and development? I think some men call this reform instead of unnecessary risks." Jo doesn't try to argue the point. "We've got time, councilor Hwang. Let us put our heads together and work this out one problem at a time." "That's what I was hoping for," Hwang says, and the two go their separate ways.
"This is where he made his last request." Sejong is standing with Hwang on the observatory site suggested by Taejong. "And also where he supported my dream for the first time. The place where my departed father buried his dreams is where this humble son must realize his. Acquiring you was the first step in the journey," he tells Hwang. "Now I'm waiting for another man of talent who will achieve the near-impossible dream along with you and I."
Nighttime, in an unfamiliar courtyard: "I'm using you right now, but I feel no remorse." It's Jang Youngsil, but he's dressed fancier than usual. A woman comes walking towards him. "Then death is the only thing waiting for you," she says. We don't see her face at first, but when we do...it's DAION! (The last time we saw her was Ep22 when she one of a bunch of young women being carried off to be presented to the Ming emperor.) "If one of my servants uttered such contemptuous words, I would have killed him before he finished his sentence." "You've become cold," he tells her, to which she replies, "And you've become even cockier."
Huang Yan intercepts Haishou and several soldiers at a palace door. "What is it?", he demands. "I'm investigating a report that a Joseonese slave entered the imperial palace in disguise." Hwang allows them to proceed; they begin to search the premises.
"It's the access pass to the Astronomy Bureau you asked for." Daion holds a metal object out to Jang, but pulls it back as he reaches for it. "If they find out you're Joseonese, you will be killed on the spot." "I won't be killed," he tells her. "Even the angel of death won't be interested in the man who uses the woman he once loved for his own purposes." Just then Haishou comes upon the two of them. He bows to Daion (!) and tells her, "I know you are not accustomed to our laws, being from Joseon, but how could you bring a man into the palace at this time of night?" Then Huang Yan shows up. "Is this the Joseonese slave you're looking for? He is here at the emperor's order," he tells Haishou. But the clothes? Daion says, "Do you expect him to enter the sacred palace in slave's clothing?" Then she tells Haishou, "I am sending back the family servant I've ordered to attend to my father's grave. I will overlook your contemptuous behavior just this once. But overstep you boundaries again and death will be your prize." With that, she goes inside.
"Wow, you know the emperor's concubine?" Choi Haesan is amazed. He and Youngsil are in their quarters. Jang tells him that he'll be going to the observatory the day after tomorrow. I'll cover you, Choi says, so just worry about getting the job done. But Jang goes outside; he seems distracted.
As she prepares for bed, Daion says that she might give the Joseonese a dinner party at their inn (remember, Jang is part of a full Joseon diplomatic mission that's come to Ming), as a sort of tribute to her father's memory. But who's she talking to? "You shall have what your heart desires," says a man behind a thin curtain. A hand reaches out around the curtain. We realize that this is the emperor's bedroom and the hand is the emperor's; a curtain surrounds his bed. Daion takes his hand, reluctantly.
The day after tomorrow. at the Astronomy Bureau. Jang shows his pass and is admitted in. Inside, Haishou is near the front entrance and stops him: "Today the Astronomy Bureau. For a slave you really get around. What's your business here?" "I'm here to see the board of registry president," he says. "I'm on to you," Haishou warns; "be careful."
"Haishou is a perceptive man." Yehjin is speaking to Jang; he's the board president. "There's got to be a reason why he's suspicious of you." How can I prove my innocence, Jang wants to know. Yehjin tells him, "I know you are a good person, but I don't know how much I should trust your greed for knowledge...The stars are for the emperor to rule alone. If you are caught trying to steal our technology, I won't be able to help you."
Daion's dinner party is underway. Daion is seated at a table; the Joseon delegation lines up and introduces themselves to her one at a time. Choi Haesan is at the end of the line; he introduces himself, bows and starts to turn away, but Daion recognizes him and subtlely motions him closer. He steps a bit closer to her. "You must listen carefully," she tells him very quietly; "Do not show tension or surprise." She's smiling as though making small talk, but wants to deliver a serious message. "Jang Youngsil will go to the observatory tonight." Choi is startled; that wasn't part of the plan. "I said not to act surprised," Daion cautions. "He could lose his life if the mission fails, so you must take the collected data and get out of Peking tonight." "I can't do that," Choi tells her; "I can't just leave him here." Daion is prepared for that: "He said you would refuse. Because you're a good man. A very good man." "Cocky bastard," Choi mutters. "And he said to tell you this: that he wants you now to be good man to all of Joseon, not just to him. And that you are wise enough to know what you have to do." Choi is trying to stay cool but is visibly struggling.
We see Choi packing up documents into two small chests.
Evening: "Slipped away? What were you doing? Did you leave the place unguarded?" No, Haishou's soldiers tell him, we didn't. "How could he just vanish? The Astronomy Bureau doesn't have a back entrance. Wait...could it be the at he didn't leave at all. Yes, it's possible...No, that's it! Jang Youngsil is still inside!" He and the soldiers rush over to the Astronomy Bureau as Choi watches surreptitiously.
We see Jang climbing stairs outside the bureau building until he reaches the roof. Scholars are there, manipulating large mechanical objects. This is the high-tech astronomical equipment, which Jang is finally seeing for the first time.