Post by TheBo on Oct 9, 2011 10:17:47 GMT -5
Ep.39-
San argues against abdication. The king tells him to focus and not be emotional. He will abdicate that same day, and San must uproot all conspirators in Sado’s death. San reads the letter, which confesses Sado was involved with revolutionaries, but only to infiltrate and find out their leaders. He failed because the court officials convinced Yeong-jo he was a traitor and Sado didn’t want to betray those who had already left the uprising. Sado asked that Y-J protect San, and Y-J wants to do that.
The cabinet and Lord Kim prepare to oust San. The Queen, however, is uneasy. Everyone waits for the cabinet meeting in great expectation. When Secretary Jeong notices none of San’s people even bothered to show up to the “suddenly” delayed meeting, he becomes suspicious and pays a visit to Hong in his office. Jeong tells Princess that Hong acted oddly—something is going on.
Sir Choi is rather mysteriously fetched by Insp. Hong and taken to the king’s childhood home, where he is surprised to meet Yeong-jo himself, attended by San. There, Y-J tells him the whole abdication plan and asks which army the Norons control, so he can send it out of the area and protect San and keep the government from collapsing. After extracting a promise that most of the government will be spared by San, Choi reveals the Norons control ALL the armies--except the capital army/police.
San sends all the armies out of the capital, and has Dae-su plus 2 pay special attention to the Yongho army, where the private soldiers are hidden. Hong manages to bully the leaders of the various armies into moving all their men far out of the capital. Y-J tells San to put his best guards in high positions in the Capital Army, since that army can’t be trusted either. Later, Dae-su plus 2 confront Yongho/private army officers who are trying to flee back to the capital, forcing them (with the help of other palace guards) to go where the king ordered.
When Princess hears that Song brought Y-J a painting, she has the girl fetched over and tries to find out what she delivered. She orders her to be beaten, but Sec’y Jeong stops her, saying “it’s not the time—I found out what’s up.”
All day the queen has tried to see Yeong-jo but been turned away. She hears the armies were sent out of town, and becomes suspicious of Yeong-jo’s illness, goes to his quarters, barges in, finds a bed dummy and demands his whereabouts of the clueless eunuch. Her brother then reports that San is gone, too, and as she takes out her frustration on him the head eunuch runs up and calls her to the king’s study, where Yeong-jo reassures her. Still suspicious, she calls an emergency Noron meeting.
San meets with Sado’s men and if they have any concrete evidence against his father’s murderers. They tell him of a mountain where the prince, alone, buried something-- “Mt. Inwang.” San realizes Sado’s painting showed Yeong-jo, Sado and San on Mt. Inwang. They go to Song-yeon at Dowahseo.
In the meanwhile, San’s poor mother, wife and grandfather are complete wrecks trying to figure out what’s going on.
At her special meeting, the queen declares that nothing is changed, the cabinet meeting will go forward and the prince be decrowned. Princess arrives and disputes this interpretation. The two women joust, then Princess demands a private audience. She and Jeong tell Queen and Lord Kim they know the reasons behind the strange occurrences, but they demand to know what is wrong with the King. She reveals his shocking illness, and Jeong tells her the king is “rushing things” in his moment of clarity. That he had San followed and learned the king visited Sado’s grave, then went to his old residence with San and ordered the armies withdrawn in San’s presence. (They don’t seem to know about Sir Choi.) It can only mean abdication. The queen kicks a plan into place and orders Jeong to get the head of the Capital Army there immediately.
At Dowahseo, Song tells San that the King thought Sado painted it to remind Y-J of the last time he laughed in Sado’s presence—their last happy time—when San told them about a turtle-shaped rock on Mt. Inwang. San then remembers the rock and realizes Sado must have hidden the evidence under it.
*****
I think my favorite, favorite thing was the look on Yeong-jo’s face when Sir Choi revealed that the Norons controlled all the armies, not just one. Lee Soonjae is wonderful, and Jo Kyunghwan (Sir Choi) is nothing shabby, either. Lee Seojin is getting a little tiresome with the eternal “WhuuuuuuH?” look on his face.
San argues against abdication. The king tells him to focus and not be emotional. He will abdicate that same day, and San must uproot all conspirators in Sado’s death. San reads the letter, which confesses Sado was involved with revolutionaries, but only to infiltrate and find out their leaders. He failed because the court officials convinced Yeong-jo he was a traitor and Sado didn’t want to betray those who had already left the uprising. Sado asked that Y-J protect San, and Y-J wants to do that.
The cabinet and Lord Kim prepare to oust San. The Queen, however, is uneasy. Everyone waits for the cabinet meeting in great expectation. When Secretary Jeong notices none of San’s people even bothered to show up to the “suddenly” delayed meeting, he becomes suspicious and pays a visit to Hong in his office. Jeong tells Princess that Hong acted oddly—something is going on.
Sir Choi is rather mysteriously fetched by Insp. Hong and taken to the king’s childhood home, where he is surprised to meet Yeong-jo himself, attended by San. There, Y-J tells him the whole abdication plan and asks which army the Norons control, so he can send it out of the area and protect San and keep the government from collapsing. After extracting a promise that most of the government will be spared by San, Choi reveals the Norons control ALL the armies--except the capital army/police.
San sends all the armies out of the capital, and has Dae-su plus 2 pay special attention to the Yongho army, where the private soldiers are hidden. Hong manages to bully the leaders of the various armies into moving all their men far out of the capital. Y-J tells San to put his best guards in high positions in the Capital Army, since that army can’t be trusted either. Later, Dae-su plus 2 confront Yongho/private army officers who are trying to flee back to the capital, forcing them (with the help of other palace guards) to go where the king ordered.
When Princess hears that Song brought Y-J a painting, she has the girl fetched over and tries to find out what she delivered. She orders her to be beaten, but Sec’y Jeong stops her, saying “it’s not the time—I found out what’s up.”
All day the queen has tried to see Yeong-jo but been turned away. She hears the armies were sent out of town, and becomes suspicious of Yeong-jo’s illness, goes to his quarters, barges in, finds a bed dummy and demands his whereabouts of the clueless eunuch. Her brother then reports that San is gone, too, and as she takes out her frustration on him the head eunuch runs up and calls her to the king’s study, where Yeong-jo reassures her. Still suspicious, she calls an emergency Noron meeting.
San meets with Sado’s men and if they have any concrete evidence against his father’s murderers. They tell him of a mountain where the prince, alone, buried something-- “Mt. Inwang.” San realizes Sado’s painting showed Yeong-jo, Sado and San on Mt. Inwang. They go to Song-yeon at Dowahseo.
In the meanwhile, San’s poor mother, wife and grandfather are complete wrecks trying to figure out what’s going on.
At her special meeting, the queen declares that nothing is changed, the cabinet meeting will go forward and the prince be decrowned. Princess arrives and disputes this interpretation. The two women joust, then Princess demands a private audience. She and Jeong tell Queen and Lord Kim they know the reasons behind the strange occurrences, but they demand to know what is wrong with the King. She reveals his shocking illness, and Jeong tells her the king is “rushing things” in his moment of clarity. That he had San followed and learned the king visited Sado’s grave, then went to his old residence with San and ordered the armies withdrawn in San’s presence. (They don’t seem to know about Sir Choi.) It can only mean abdication. The queen kicks a plan into place and orders Jeong to get the head of the Capital Army there immediately.
At Dowahseo, Song tells San that the King thought Sado painted it to remind Y-J of the last time he laughed in Sado’s presence—their last happy time—when San told them about a turtle-shaped rock on Mt. Inwang. San then remembers the rock and realizes Sado must have hidden the evidence under it.
*****
I think my favorite, favorite thing was the look on Yeong-jo’s face when Sir Choi revealed that the Norons controlled all the armies, not just one. Lee Soonjae is wonderful, and Jo Kyunghwan (Sir Choi) is nothing shabby, either. Lee Seojin is getting a little tiresome with the eternal “WhuuuuuuH?” look on his face.