Post by ajk on Jul 6, 2012 21:03:56 GMT -5
Looks like Misaeng came through with that gold after all. He brings Mishil a chest full of gold bars to pay for that Chinese almanac. Don't know where he got the stuff, but he got it. Mishil, though, is very distracted by the news about Chilsuk--and by the strange discovery that the lost royal twin was reading a book in Greek script.
Nonetheless, she goes out into the evening air, gets into a small gama and she and Misaeng head off to meet Hasha and seal the deal for the almanac. We see Deokman in nearby brush, watching them leave....
...and she tries to tail after them. Not very skillfully. She's about as stealthy as a brass band. And very quickly she loses them--How can you lose a gama?--and in the next moment, Daenambo's sword is at her throat.
Mishil and Misaeng return; apparently the deal went through. And now Deokman is brought in before Mishil. Calmly, Mishil asks, "Were you after Sadaham's Plum Blossom too?" It's an easy alibi...but Deokman is so stunned by the sight of her book on Mishil's table that she starts shaking and can't utter a word. A long, disconcerting silence, and then Mishil and Misaeng bust out laughing. They misinterpret Deokman staring at the book, thinking she believes it to be Sadaham's Plum Blossom. "Did Princess Cheonmyeong order you to find it?" But now Deokman is putting pieces together in her head, realizing that Mishil was the one who sent Chilsuk after her and Sohwa. Mishil asks Deokman why she serves Cheonmyeong--"Do you truly believe anyone is THAT pure? Oh no, it's the nature of people to do evil." Deokman fires back, "Is water evil?" And what about the sun. Both can do good and do harm. "Like water and the sun," she argues, "people act according to their natures." Then she launches into a lecture about how government shouldn't monopolize water rations because "we have a responsibility to our fellow human beings." And I serve Cheonmyeong "because she is good to others." Mishil smiles, surprisngly patient. "How charmingly naive you are." And then quite the offer: "Serve me." A quick refusal. Fine, Mishil says, then go away. Misaeng is stunned that she simply let Deokman leave. "His ideas amuse me," she explains; "I'll let him live. And make him come to me." Seriously? She even bets Misaeng that she can do it. "You're on," he says, as they smile at each other in anticipation of a fun game.
Unrattled by her close brush with huge trouble, Deokman is sitting alone somewhere (looks like near the Hwarang building). She's looking at a rendering of her mother that she had stored away--can't tell the medium; it looks almost like a glazed drawing on a little tile. Cartan made it for her, as we see in a new flashback sequence. And look what else she has. It's that little dagger. Jinheung's dagger (which I thought Sohwa was holding when she went under the sand--but going back and freeze-framing the beginning of Episode 5, Sowha does appear to quickly toss the dagger away at the last second. Almost too quickly to see). Basically she just sits there confused. That dagger turning up again, that undoubtedly will be very important.
Still evening, but now we're in the countryside. We see two people walking down a road. It's Chilsuk and Sohwa. But she's not walking with him; she's a few paces behind. He goes back to her and reaches to touch her; she flinches. He acts like he's used to this. And then says, "I know you don't love me, but maybe we'll learn to be happy together deep in the mountains." Dude--seriously? Sohwa is still in a state of shock; she can barely even look at him, and seems largely detached from reality.
Morning: The DFers awaken and are surprised to find Deokman back home asleep with them. Yushin was concerned and he had them out looking for her. But now someone else wants to see her. Seokpum, of all people. Why?
Curious to find out, some of the DFers go with Deokman to see Seokpum. He hands her a note. It's a message from Mishil. He adds, "This is her response to last night." THAT raises some eyebrows. "She said she enjoyed the conversation." Now they're really interested. But the note, it's private. "Read it alone," Seokpum orders.
So she goes off inside alone to read it. But she can't. We can see that roughly every other word is blacked out! What the heck?
Now the DFers are speculating what Mishil wants with Deokman. Recruiting over to her side, maybe? The food the merchants ate last night went over well, we learn. Jukbang has another idea: "He's pretty. Mishil likes the pretty boys. She calls them at night and...well..." (You don't think...Do we file that piece of knowledge away for later?) Now Yushin shows up; he goes in to see Deokman and demands "What exactly is going on?" He's still wondering what freaked her out so badly in Jang's quarters yesterday. "I wasn't surprised; it was just a book," Deokman tells him. Not a real clear answer. And why were you with Mishil? "I had a question about the food for Misaeng, and Mishil was there." Another weak answer, but he buys that one too. And that letter, "Will you show it to me?" Since it's unreadable, she readily shows it to him. He spots a pen and ink nearby and jumps to the conclusion that Deokman blacked out key words. And now Yushin has a temper tantrum, screaming about how Deokman is acting like some sort of turncoat. REALLY? This seems absurd. Now it's getting so loud that other people can hear it, and you know word will spread...
Yep. Imjong is telling Eulje and Kim Yongchun about the letter. They get way too interested in it--"The rumors spread quickly when Lady Mishil has an eye on a trainee"--but then they move on to something else. Yongchun confirms that "there was a merchant named Jangno in Danghang Fortress" and that this might be Deokman's father. And that the guy has a lot of sons, and they travel to China all the time with him...not sure what any of this is about...
...but they go and tell the princess. "No doubt it seems that way," we hear Cheonmyeong tell herself, "since I forged the identification tag myself." The two are concerned that Deokman is secretly working for Mishil. She firmly shoots down any such speculation, pointing out that Deokman was involved in Seohyeon's family being brought into the government. But Eulje wonders what might have happened since then. "You can tell by looking at him," Eulje says, "he serves no one." "He serves me!", the princess fires back. Eulje meant no offense; "I only suggest that he doesn't have the look of one who serves."
Even Deokman's fellow DFers are wondering about her a little, and it's making her angry. But now she has to go attend to the merchants' food.
Yushin has told Cheonmyeong about the letter and the conversation, and Deokman's failure to explain it away (so he didn't buy it after all). Could Eulje be right? Bring Deokman here, she insists, so I can ask for myself.
"Sometimes I surprise myself." Mishil has heard all about the commotion caused by that one little letter, and is laughing about it. "I hate all that posturing about duty, loyalty, sincerity. I wanted to show them how people really are. How treacherous, how shallow...all over one little letter." She cites a plotline from "Romance of The Three Kingdoms" that apparently is what inspired her to send the letter in the first place. But Misaeng has more pressing news: the king is actually going into the merchants' pavillion to talk to them himself, which is uprecedented. Put that together with the temple raid in Episode 13, well, does the king suspect something's going on? She explodes at him--"Do I have to take care of everything?!"--and he runs off to presumably take care of it himself. Now Sejong and Hajong enter, and she tells them the news about Chilsuk. And then Seolwon enters with news that Bojong has found Chilsuk.
Out in a courtyard, the merchants are being treated to a meal with the king and an exhibition of cultural arts and fencing skills. Deokman is watching from a distance, probably as part of her food responsibilities. And Jukbang and Godo are watching her. Yushin has asked them to monitor her closely. Suddenly Alcheon walks by and sees them, and demands to know who they're watching. They deny watching anybody (not very effectively).
By a riverside: Just as Chilsuk and Sohwa are about to board a boat, Bojong and a squad of his Hwarang come running up. Seokpum is in the group, too; he and Bojong recognize Chilsuk from long ago. Chilsuk says he's not Chilsuk. Then Bojong whips out his sword and attacks; Chilsuk is even quicker with his own sword and parries. That proves it, Bojong says; nobody else is that quick with a sword. He again denies it, so Seokpum puts his sword to Sohwa's throat and says, You're coming with us. Game-changer, so yes they are...for a minute, anyway. As they walk, suddenly Chilsuk grabs Sohwa's hand and pulls her forward, and he gets in front of the group with his sword brandished. "Don't make me kill you," he says; "just leave." There are a dozen Hwarang there, and most of them have frightened looks as though they know he can indeed take them all out. Will he actually try?..."Lower your swords!" Who said that? A whole new group has arrived on the scene, including Daenambo and several men carrying a gama, out of which steps Mishil. She steps out and approaches him, filled with amazement at the sight of him after so long. His eyes are blurring for the moment--remember his damaged eyesight from the fire--but he still knows who this is. He greets her with respect, but then calmly says "Forgive me, my lady. But I must leave." He turns to walk away...but now there are even more Hwarang, and Daenambo, Seokpum and Bojong all surround him, and then attack. He knocks them down with little difficulty. But then they start to realize that he's reacting on sound, not sight. He can't see at all now. His sword is knocked from his hand and he ends up groveling in the sand, desperately trying to find it. It's shocking and almost pathetic. Mishil reaches down to him and holds his hand. "Are you blind?" "I am of no use to you any longer," he says, not really answering the question. "Let us go." To our amazement, she actually sheds a tear for his plight. "I can't send you away like this," she tells him, showing compassion and gratitude for all that he obviously has gone through for her.
Now the two of them are in a simple room talking, with Sohwa sitting nearby. Chilsuk affirms that he completed his mission (partially a lie), explaining that the child was lost in a sandstorm. Fine, she answers; "A child isn't capable of surviving a sandstorm." Oops. Then, gesturing to Sohwa (and obviously not recognizing her): "Who's the woman?" "Someone I met," he says. "She lost her daughter and her mind. She doesn't speak." "So you're protecting her?" "It seemed the only thing to do." Then he explains about a fire damaging his eyes, and that he refuses to return to Seorabeol "because I can't bear to have my colleagues see me this way." She understands, but wants to at least have a doctor examine his eyes to see if he can be helped. Certainly a proper and good gesture from her.
Now back home, Mishil tells Seori that she wants to send Chilsuk to a secluded place for treatment, and that the best place is where they're hiding Wolchun. The monk "is a great healer," Mishil says, but Seori reminds her that he's still busy with the almanac conversions. Mishil says she'll ask him as a favor.
All of the royals and dignitaries have left the event. Jang now tells Hasha and the other Indian merchant what he's learned. He speaks in Latin, so none of the remaining staff knows what he says, but Deokman is there and can understand. The king knows about Sadaham's Plum Blossom, he tells them. "Let's play both sides against each other," Hasha suggests. We won't get away with that, Jang answers, because "Mishil is the real power in Shilla. Try anything and we'll pay for it." Then noticing Deokman standing nearby, he asks for some magnolia tea. Deokman acknowledges and goes off to get it...but without realizing it, he asked for it in Latin. The other Indian points this out, and as they wonder how much of it Deokman understood, there she is, back quick as a wink with the magnolia tea. Uh-oh. Before Jang can say anything, Godo summons Deokman back to the kitchen.
Deokman, Jukbang, Godo and all of the serving-women are gathered. Misaeng gives something wrapped in a cloth to Deokman. "Take it," he says; it's "payment for services rendered. You saved us from the curry debacle," he says with a smile. Wow, tha's a nice gesture. And then, "A word in your ear for a moment." What? "Just something between us." So he leads her out of the kitchen, across the yard and into a nearby building. He sees Jukbang and Godo clumsily attempting to tail them (obviously Yushin never covered surveilance in the DFers' training!) and laughs to himself, like he's expecting it. They go into a room and sit down, as Jukbang and Godo perch by the door to listen. Even their silhouettes are visible from inside--sheesh. As Misaeng and Deokman just sit there in odd silence, Godo leaves to report back to Yushin.
Godo tell Yushin what's happening, and Yushin runs off....
Deokman has finished a cup of tea. But still not a word. Misaeng just sits there, staring at her sort of sideways. Won't let her talk, either. She tries, but "Sssh!" Time passes...and then more time...and then some more, and then suddenly, "Off with you." Huh? "Leave, I said." Slightly weirded out, Deokman bows and leaves. Mishil flashes a devilish smile.
Leaving the building, Deokman is cornered by Jukbang, who wants to know what Misaeng said. Nothing, Deokman tells him, but he doesn't believe it. She walks away from him, but then she comes face-to-face with Yushin. And off to the side, we see one of Bojong's Green Dragon Hwarang tailing Deokman. Yushin sees the reward in Deokman's hand and demands to know what he said to her. He doesn't believe "Not a word" either and quickly starts yelling at her, doubting her intentions. Deokman's getting angry too: "I've always served you. I'm the same as I've always been. With all we've been through, I've never let you down. And now you can't trust me on this one little thing?" She starts to cry and runs away. That other Hwarang was listening to all of this, and now we see that from around a corner, so was Misaeng. The Hwarang thinks that if this keeps up, the DFers will kick Deokman out. Misaeng smiles again, and tells him to keep watching Deokman. He laughs: "Mishil knows strategy, I'll give her that."
Nighttime: A small gama arrives at a fancy building somewhere. Out step Chilsuk and Sohwa. They go inside. This must be the temple where the monk Wolchun is working on the almanac project. Bojong and Seori are there too, and also Seokpum. The two Hwarang apparently were in charge of getting the pair to the temple safely. Mishil thanks them and dismisses them. For a moment we see Seori staring at Sohwa and show an odd look of uncertain familiarity. Chilsuk doesn't want to be at a shrine, but Mishil tells him that there's an "inner shrine" where no one will see him. And there is one--some sort of chamber behind a secret panel in the wall. It opens up; it's dark in there and Chilsuk is having trouble seeing inside, but he and Sohwa follow Mishil in. It looks like a nicely furnished group of rooms, albeit dark and not exactly uplifting. And we see Wolchun's in there already. He takes a look at Chilsuk's eyes, and hey the guy must know a few things because he correctly diagnoses that the eyes were probably damaged from using them too quickly after an injury. Treatable? "Let's see what we can do," he says with a hopeful tone. Mishil also asks Wolchun about Sohwa; knows it's a further imposition on him but asks him if he can help her gwt past the trauma that's keeping her from speaking. Another generous gesture on her part.
Later, Mishil tells Chilsuk how much it means to her that he sacrificed so much for so long to fulfill his mission, and "I don't want to lose a man like you again." I'll do everything I can for you, she says. Next she asks him about the royal twin. He says he only saw her briefly, but, thinking back to his brief time with her, says "She was wise and generous." She asks him about the book; he doens't know what she was doing with it, but he offers a key insight: "at a trading post, she was bound to learn things from all over." And what about the maid? Chilsuk hesitates and then says, "She died in the fire that did this to my eyes." He's just a little shifty now; not sure if Mishil can perceive he's being evasive. Anyway, with that, she leaves him.
Chilsuk goes back to Sohwa, who's sitting in a room alone. "I don't think they recognized you," he tells her. Then he confesses that after all this time, "I'm not sure why I keep you with me." If they can cure you, he tells her, I'm not sure if that will be good or bad for me. And at that, to our surprise, she answers him: "Go." He's stunned to her her speak and encourages her to keep going, but that's all he gets.
Back home, Mishil is again poring over that Plutarch book. Misaeng walks in with a bag of money and gives it to her. It's for their bet. "You win," he tells her. How does he know she wins? Because here's Deokman, insisting to see her. (You wonder why he was helping her win! Doesn't make sense.) Deokman skips the small talk. "Everything you said was right." I was searching for Sadaham's Plum Blossom because the princess ordered it. How did she know about it? Deokman, incredibly, starts spilling the whole story about Munno's journal and what they learned from it, and how they've picked up bits and pieces about a merchant bringing Sadaham's Plum Blossom. "And now, thanks to your letter, the princess is suspicious of me and they've all turned on me." And then: "Please let me serve you." And drops to one knee. Really? This just doesn't seem sincere; will Mishil possibly buy it? "Get out," Mishil says softly. You came to me so quickly, and you lost their trust so quickly, well, "It's obvious the princess didn't trust you much to start with. So why would I want you? Get out." So Deokman starts to leave...but not before hearing Misaeng comment about "the kid's treachery" and that Deokman knew how to speak Latin but never let on about it. Jang told him after the incident with the tea. Mishil looks at Deokman with mild interest. "You know Latin?"
As Deokman walks out into the night, she reflects on what Mishil told her after we left them: "Come to me every night at 9 o'clock. I want you to read this book." (The book is in Greek! Not Latin. UGH.) And then suddenly two hooded figures grab her, blindfold her and haul her away!
She's brought into a dark building where Cheonmyeong and Yushin are waiting. They stare at her sternly; she stares back. And then smiles. "We did it." And now everyone's smiling. In in a flashback, we learn that Yushin's yelling episode from earlier that day, well, Deokman was prompting him to yell, because she knew she was being monitored. And how did Deokman know that this whole episode was Mishil trying to manipulate her? Because it's a story that was in the book Mishil was reading. Cheonmyeong asks, "How did you know that?" Not wanting to fess up that the book is hers, she simply says she recognized the book from seeing it in Jang's quarters. "Now that you're in her confidence," the princess says, "you must learn the nature of Sadaham's Plum Blossom." For the time being this will be difficult for Deokman; she has to keep everything secret and be careful of everything she says and does. She's not worried. Yushin does have one question, though--What about those tears? It was all an act; the tears weren't necessary. "I thought about you doubting me," Deokman answers, and the tears came naturally. He ought to be flattered, but Yushin dismisses it as foolishness.
Later, as Deokman walks alone, we hear her thoughts and aren't surprised to learn that she has her own reasons for wanting to get on the inside with Mishil...Her big questions about why Mishil wanted her and her mom dead; why she has her old book; is Chilsuk really alive. When she has answers, she decides, she'll tell Yushin the whole story.
Back at the shrine: Sohwa is gone! Snuck out during the night. Chilsuk gets right up to try to go after her, but his eyes aren't working at the moment. Seori assures him that she'll send people to look for her. Left alone now, he stumbles around in the dimly lit room and manages to find his sword, and then heads for the door.
"Find her!" Deokman, still alone, sees several soldiers and women frantically searching for someone. They run off. Deokman turns and walks the other way...turns the corner and runs right into someone, knocking her down. Chilsuk! He stares down, and Deokman trembles with fear, too scared to even move.
Nonetheless, she goes out into the evening air, gets into a small gama and she and Misaeng head off to meet Hasha and seal the deal for the almanac. We see Deokman in nearby brush, watching them leave....
...and she tries to tail after them. Not very skillfully. She's about as stealthy as a brass band. And very quickly she loses them--How can you lose a gama?--and in the next moment, Daenambo's sword is at her throat.
Mishil and Misaeng return; apparently the deal went through. And now Deokman is brought in before Mishil. Calmly, Mishil asks, "Were you after Sadaham's Plum Blossom too?" It's an easy alibi...but Deokman is so stunned by the sight of her book on Mishil's table that she starts shaking and can't utter a word. A long, disconcerting silence, and then Mishil and Misaeng bust out laughing. They misinterpret Deokman staring at the book, thinking she believes it to be Sadaham's Plum Blossom. "Did Princess Cheonmyeong order you to find it?" But now Deokman is putting pieces together in her head, realizing that Mishil was the one who sent Chilsuk after her and Sohwa. Mishil asks Deokman why she serves Cheonmyeong--"Do you truly believe anyone is THAT pure? Oh no, it's the nature of people to do evil." Deokman fires back, "Is water evil?" And what about the sun. Both can do good and do harm. "Like water and the sun," she argues, "people act according to their natures." Then she launches into a lecture about how government shouldn't monopolize water rations because "we have a responsibility to our fellow human beings." And I serve Cheonmyeong "because she is good to others." Mishil smiles, surprisngly patient. "How charmingly naive you are." And then quite the offer: "Serve me." A quick refusal. Fine, Mishil says, then go away. Misaeng is stunned that she simply let Deokman leave. "His ideas amuse me," she explains; "I'll let him live. And make him come to me." Seriously? She even bets Misaeng that she can do it. "You're on," he says, as they smile at each other in anticipation of a fun game.
Unrattled by her close brush with huge trouble, Deokman is sitting alone somewhere (looks like near the Hwarang building). She's looking at a rendering of her mother that she had stored away--can't tell the medium; it looks almost like a glazed drawing on a little tile. Cartan made it for her, as we see in a new flashback sequence. And look what else she has. It's that little dagger. Jinheung's dagger (which I thought Sohwa was holding when she went under the sand--but going back and freeze-framing the beginning of Episode 5, Sowha does appear to quickly toss the dagger away at the last second. Almost too quickly to see). Basically she just sits there confused. That dagger turning up again, that undoubtedly will be very important.
Still evening, but now we're in the countryside. We see two people walking down a road. It's Chilsuk and Sohwa. But she's not walking with him; she's a few paces behind. He goes back to her and reaches to touch her; she flinches. He acts like he's used to this. And then says, "I know you don't love me, but maybe we'll learn to be happy together deep in the mountains." Dude--seriously? Sohwa is still in a state of shock; she can barely even look at him, and seems largely detached from reality.
Morning: The DFers awaken and are surprised to find Deokman back home asleep with them. Yushin was concerned and he had them out looking for her. But now someone else wants to see her. Seokpum, of all people. Why?
Curious to find out, some of the DFers go with Deokman to see Seokpum. He hands her a note. It's a message from Mishil. He adds, "This is her response to last night." THAT raises some eyebrows. "She said she enjoyed the conversation." Now they're really interested. But the note, it's private. "Read it alone," Seokpum orders.
So she goes off inside alone to read it. But she can't. We can see that roughly every other word is blacked out! What the heck?
Now the DFers are speculating what Mishil wants with Deokman. Recruiting over to her side, maybe? The food the merchants ate last night went over well, we learn. Jukbang has another idea: "He's pretty. Mishil likes the pretty boys. She calls them at night and...well..." (You don't think...Do we file that piece of knowledge away for later?) Now Yushin shows up; he goes in to see Deokman and demands "What exactly is going on?" He's still wondering what freaked her out so badly in Jang's quarters yesterday. "I wasn't surprised; it was just a book," Deokman tells him. Not a real clear answer. And why were you with Mishil? "I had a question about the food for Misaeng, and Mishil was there." Another weak answer, but he buys that one too. And that letter, "Will you show it to me?" Since it's unreadable, she readily shows it to him. He spots a pen and ink nearby and jumps to the conclusion that Deokman blacked out key words. And now Yushin has a temper tantrum, screaming about how Deokman is acting like some sort of turncoat. REALLY? This seems absurd. Now it's getting so loud that other people can hear it, and you know word will spread...
Yep. Imjong is telling Eulje and Kim Yongchun about the letter. They get way too interested in it--"The rumors spread quickly when Lady Mishil has an eye on a trainee"--but then they move on to something else. Yongchun confirms that "there was a merchant named Jangno in Danghang Fortress" and that this might be Deokman's father. And that the guy has a lot of sons, and they travel to China all the time with him...not sure what any of this is about...
...but they go and tell the princess. "No doubt it seems that way," we hear Cheonmyeong tell herself, "since I forged the identification tag myself." The two are concerned that Deokman is secretly working for Mishil. She firmly shoots down any such speculation, pointing out that Deokman was involved in Seohyeon's family being brought into the government. But Eulje wonders what might have happened since then. "You can tell by looking at him," Eulje says, "he serves no one." "He serves me!", the princess fires back. Eulje meant no offense; "I only suggest that he doesn't have the look of one who serves."
Even Deokman's fellow DFers are wondering about her a little, and it's making her angry. But now she has to go attend to the merchants' food.
Yushin has told Cheonmyeong about the letter and the conversation, and Deokman's failure to explain it away (so he didn't buy it after all). Could Eulje be right? Bring Deokman here, she insists, so I can ask for myself.
"Sometimes I surprise myself." Mishil has heard all about the commotion caused by that one little letter, and is laughing about it. "I hate all that posturing about duty, loyalty, sincerity. I wanted to show them how people really are. How treacherous, how shallow...all over one little letter." She cites a plotline from "Romance of The Three Kingdoms" that apparently is what inspired her to send the letter in the first place. But Misaeng has more pressing news: the king is actually going into the merchants' pavillion to talk to them himself, which is uprecedented. Put that together with the temple raid in Episode 13, well, does the king suspect something's going on? She explodes at him--"Do I have to take care of everything?!"--and he runs off to presumably take care of it himself. Now Sejong and Hajong enter, and she tells them the news about Chilsuk. And then Seolwon enters with news that Bojong has found Chilsuk.
Out in a courtyard, the merchants are being treated to a meal with the king and an exhibition of cultural arts and fencing skills. Deokman is watching from a distance, probably as part of her food responsibilities. And Jukbang and Godo are watching her. Yushin has asked them to monitor her closely. Suddenly Alcheon walks by and sees them, and demands to know who they're watching. They deny watching anybody (not very effectively).
By a riverside: Just as Chilsuk and Sohwa are about to board a boat, Bojong and a squad of his Hwarang come running up. Seokpum is in the group, too; he and Bojong recognize Chilsuk from long ago. Chilsuk says he's not Chilsuk. Then Bojong whips out his sword and attacks; Chilsuk is even quicker with his own sword and parries. That proves it, Bojong says; nobody else is that quick with a sword. He again denies it, so Seokpum puts his sword to Sohwa's throat and says, You're coming with us. Game-changer, so yes they are...for a minute, anyway. As they walk, suddenly Chilsuk grabs Sohwa's hand and pulls her forward, and he gets in front of the group with his sword brandished. "Don't make me kill you," he says; "just leave." There are a dozen Hwarang there, and most of them have frightened looks as though they know he can indeed take them all out. Will he actually try?..."Lower your swords!" Who said that? A whole new group has arrived on the scene, including Daenambo and several men carrying a gama, out of which steps Mishil. She steps out and approaches him, filled with amazement at the sight of him after so long. His eyes are blurring for the moment--remember his damaged eyesight from the fire--but he still knows who this is. He greets her with respect, but then calmly says "Forgive me, my lady. But I must leave." He turns to walk away...but now there are even more Hwarang, and Daenambo, Seokpum and Bojong all surround him, and then attack. He knocks them down with little difficulty. But then they start to realize that he's reacting on sound, not sight. He can't see at all now. His sword is knocked from his hand and he ends up groveling in the sand, desperately trying to find it. It's shocking and almost pathetic. Mishil reaches down to him and holds his hand. "Are you blind?" "I am of no use to you any longer," he says, not really answering the question. "Let us go." To our amazement, she actually sheds a tear for his plight. "I can't send you away like this," she tells him, showing compassion and gratitude for all that he obviously has gone through for her.
Now the two of them are in a simple room talking, with Sohwa sitting nearby. Chilsuk affirms that he completed his mission (partially a lie), explaining that the child was lost in a sandstorm. Fine, she answers; "A child isn't capable of surviving a sandstorm." Oops. Then, gesturing to Sohwa (and obviously not recognizing her): "Who's the woman?" "Someone I met," he says. "She lost her daughter and her mind. She doesn't speak." "So you're protecting her?" "It seemed the only thing to do." Then he explains about a fire damaging his eyes, and that he refuses to return to Seorabeol "because I can't bear to have my colleagues see me this way." She understands, but wants to at least have a doctor examine his eyes to see if he can be helped. Certainly a proper and good gesture from her.
Now back home, Mishil tells Seori that she wants to send Chilsuk to a secluded place for treatment, and that the best place is where they're hiding Wolchun. The monk "is a great healer," Mishil says, but Seori reminds her that he's still busy with the almanac conversions. Mishil says she'll ask him as a favor.
All of the royals and dignitaries have left the event. Jang now tells Hasha and the other Indian merchant what he's learned. He speaks in Latin, so none of the remaining staff knows what he says, but Deokman is there and can understand. The king knows about Sadaham's Plum Blossom, he tells them. "Let's play both sides against each other," Hasha suggests. We won't get away with that, Jang answers, because "Mishil is the real power in Shilla. Try anything and we'll pay for it." Then noticing Deokman standing nearby, he asks for some magnolia tea. Deokman acknowledges and goes off to get it...but without realizing it, he asked for it in Latin. The other Indian points this out, and as they wonder how much of it Deokman understood, there she is, back quick as a wink with the magnolia tea. Uh-oh. Before Jang can say anything, Godo summons Deokman back to the kitchen.
Deokman, Jukbang, Godo and all of the serving-women are gathered. Misaeng gives something wrapped in a cloth to Deokman. "Take it," he says; it's "payment for services rendered. You saved us from the curry debacle," he says with a smile. Wow, tha's a nice gesture. And then, "A word in your ear for a moment." What? "Just something between us." So he leads her out of the kitchen, across the yard and into a nearby building. He sees Jukbang and Godo clumsily attempting to tail them (obviously Yushin never covered surveilance in the DFers' training!) and laughs to himself, like he's expecting it. They go into a room and sit down, as Jukbang and Godo perch by the door to listen. Even their silhouettes are visible from inside--sheesh. As Misaeng and Deokman just sit there in odd silence, Godo leaves to report back to Yushin.
Godo tell Yushin what's happening, and Yushin runs off....
Deokman has finished a cup of tea. But still not a word. Misaeng just sits there, staring at her sort of sideways. Won't let her talk, either. She tries, but "Sssh!" Time passes...and then more time...and then some more, and then suddenly, "Off with you." Huh? "Leave, I said." Slightly weirded out, Deokman bows and leaves. Mishil flashes a devilish smile.
Leaving the building, Deokman is cornered by Jukbang, who wants to know what Misaeng said. Nothing, Deokman tells him, but he doesn't believe it. She walks away from him, but then she comes face-to-face with Yushin. And off to the side, we see one of Bojong's Green Dragon Hwarang tailing Deokman. Yushin sees the reward in Deokman's hand and demands to know what he said to her. He doesn't believe "Not a word" either and quickly starts yelling at her, doubting her intentions. Deokman's getting angry too: "I've always served you. I'm the same as I've always been. With all we've been through, I've never let you down. And now you can't trust me on this one little thing?" She starts to cry and runs away. That other Hwarang was listening to all of this, and now we see that from around a corner, so was Misaeng. The Hwarang thinks that if this keeps up, the DFers will kick Deokman out. Misaeng smiles again, and tells him to keep watching Deokman. He laughs: "Mishil knows strategy, I'll give her that."
Nighttime: A small gama arrives at a fancy building somewhere. Out step Chilsuk and Sohwa. They go inside. This must be the temple where the monk Wolchun is working on the almanac project. Bojong and Seori are there too, and also Seokpum. The two Hwarang apparently were in charge of getting the pair to the temple safely. Mishil thanks them and dismisses them. For a moment we see Seori staring at Sohwa and show an odd look of uncertain familiarity. Chilsuk doesn't want to be at a shrine, but Mishil tells him that there's an "inner shrine" where no one will see him. And there is one--some sort of chamber behind a secret panel in the wall. It opens up; it's dark in there and Chilsuk is having trouble seeing inside, but he and Sohwa follow Mishil in. It looks like a nicely furnished group of rooms, albeit dark and not exactly uplifting. And we see Wolchun's in there already. He takes a look at Chilsuk's eyes, and hey the guy must know a few things because he correctly diagnoses that the eyes were probably damaged from using them too quickly after an injury. Treatable? "Let's see what we can do," he says with a hopeful tone. Mishil also asks Wolchun about Sohwa; knows it's a further imposition on him but asks him if he can help her gwt past the trauma that's keeping her from speaking. Another generous gesture on her part.
Later, Mishil tells Chilsuk how much it means to her that he sacrificed so much for so long to fulfill his mission, and "I don't want to lose a man like you again." I'll do everything I can for you, she says. Next she asks him about the royal twin. He says he only saw her briefly, but, thinking back to his brief time with her, says "She was wise and generous." She asks him about the book; he doens't know what she was doing with it, but he offers a key insight: "at a trading post, she was bound to learn things from all over." And what about the maid? Chilsuk hesitates and then says, "She died in the fire that did this to my eyes." He's just a little shifty now; not sure if Mishil can perceive he's being evasive. Anyway, with that, she leaves him.
Chilsuk goes back to Sohwa, who's sitting in a room alone. "I don't think they recognized you," he tells her. Then he confesses that after all this time, "I'm not sure why I keep you with me." If they can cure you, he tells her, I'm not sure if that will be good or bad for me. And at that, to our surprise, she answers him: "Go." He's stunned to her her speak and encourages her to keep going, but that's all he gets.
Back home, Mishil is again poring over that Plutarch book. Misaeng walks in with a bag of money and gives it to her. It's for their bet. "You win," he tells her. How does he know she wins? Because here's Deokman, insisting to see her. (You wonder why he was helping her win! Doesn't make sense.) Deokman skips the small talk. "Everything you said was right." I was searching for Sadaham's Plum Blossom because the princess ordered it. How did she know about it? Deokman, incredibly, starts spilling the whole story about Munno's journal and what they learned from it, and how they've picked up bits and pieces about a merchant bringing Sadaham's Plum Blossom. "And now, thanks to your letter, the princess is suspicious of me and they've all turned on me." And then: "Please let me serve you." And drops to one knee. Really? This just doesn't seem sincere; will Mishil possibly buy it? "Get out," Mishil says softly. You came to me so quickly, and you lost their trust so quickly, well, "It's obvious the princess didn't trust you much to start with. So why would I want you? Get out." So Deokman starts to leave...but not before hearing Misaeng comment about "the kid's treachery" and that Deokman knew how to speak Latin but never let on about it. Jang told him after the incident with the tea. Mishil looks at Deokman with mild interest. "You know Latin?"
As Deokman walks out into the night, she reflects on what Mishil told her after we left them: "Come to me every night at 9 o'clock. I want you to read this book." (The book is in Greek! Not Latin. UGH.) And then suddenly two hooded figures grab her, blindfold her and haul her away!
She's brought into a dark building where Cheonmyeong and Yushin are waiting. They stare at her sternly; she stares back. And then smiles. "We did it." And now everyone's smiling. In in a flashback, we learn that Yushin's yelling episode from earlier that day, well, Deokman was prompting him to yell, because she knew she was being monitored. And how did Deokman know that this whole episode was Mishil trying to manipulate her? Because it's a story that was in the book Mishil was reading. Cheonmyeong asks, "How did you know that?" Not wanting to fess up that the book is hers, she simply says she recognized the book from seeing it in Jang's quarters. "Now that you're in her confidence," the princess says, "you must learn the nature of Sadaham's Plum Blossom." For the time being this will be difficult for Deokman; she has to keep everything secret and be careful of everything she says and does. She's not worried. Yushin does have one question, though--What about those tears? It was all an act; the tears weren't necessary. "I thought about you doubting me," Deokman answers, and the tears came naturally. He ought to be flattered, but Yushin dismisses it as foolishness.
Later, as Deokman walks alone, we hear her thoughts and aren't surprised to learn that she has her own reasons for wanting to get on the inside with Mishil...Her big questions about why Mishil wanted her and her mom dead; why she has her old book; is Chilsuk really alive. When she has answers, she decides, she'll tell Yushin the whole story.
Back at the shrine: Sohwa is gone! Snuck out during the night. Chilsuk gets right up to try to go after her, but his eyes aren't working at the moment. Seori assures him that she'll send people to look for her. Left alone now, he stumbles around in the dimly lit room and manages to find his sword, and then heads for the door.
"Find her!" Deokman, still alone, sees several soldiers and women frantically searching for someone. They run off. Deokman turns and walks the other way...turns the corner and runs right into someone, knocking her down. Chilsuk! He stares down, and Deokman trembles with fear, too scared to even move.