Post by ajk on Dec 21, 2012 23:41:29 GMT -5
Deokman thinks she knows exactly why the nobles bought that grain. "They bought it planning to own all the farmland in Yungji." (Not sure where that is.) Mishil insists that the nobles will work together and stick it out and take the risk of a loss; Deokman is equally certain that they won't. Mishil forces a smile, but looking at Sejong and Hajong sitting there squirming, you have to think she has her doubts....
Meeting over, Deokman leaves the building and finds Bidam waiting for her outside. Waiting to tell her that he's arranged for a little bit of the military grain to be sold. "Just enough to drive the prices down and start the rumors flying." He adds, "The market is a mess; no one knows what to do." Deokman gives him some further instructions about when to start buying grain back.
Mishil's cabal is meeting, but not for long. Hajong is whining and practically jumping up and down about the falling grain prices. Can't take the stress of it any more, so he runs out to go sell. Without a word, Sejong follows him--not to stop him, but rather so he can sell his own grain. Then Misaeng runs out, too. Which leaves Seolwon sitting there alone with Mishil. He stays loyal to her, but she tells him to go sell his grain and cut his losses. She can see the writing on the wall; whether or not she had any role in orchestrating all this (which we don't know), it's all coming apart. From those little quivers we see in her face, we can tell she's steaming mad.
Now the elite Hwarang are finding out about the military grain being sold. Seokpum, he got out right away, we learn, but he was the only one. The rest of them scatter to go tell their own families to sell. They'll take a significant loss, obviously.
We see one of the marketplace streets, and it's gridlocked with carts and people trying to sell their grain. The sellers are turning them all away; they're overloaded already. Yeom Jong is watching all this, and tells a subordinate to start buying when the price reaches ten ounces of iron. Which is what Deokman told Bidam. Right now it's thirteen.
Now we see Sejong, Hajong and Misaeng talking to Seokpum, Bakui and Ho Jae. (What's Ho Jae doing there--is he allied with Mishil's faction? News to us.) Sejong is being urged by the others to take action against Deokman for selling government grains without proper authorization. Sejong listens and decides to convene the council.
"And the next time?" Mishil challenges Deokman about whether or not this was a good idea. No, Deokman admits, it won't work every time. "But with such an 'ill-advised' princess about, the nobles will be more careful in the future." And she's right; she's diagnosed this whole situation very accurately, give her credit for that. But Mishil warns her about the bigger picture. "Like it or not, the nobles run this country. Taxes, defense, everything is run by nobles. How long will you last working against them? I worry for you." With that she gets up to leave, but Deokman has a question for her. "You excel in all you do," she says; "your insights, influence and leadership are all remarkable." Point being? "Tell me, why hasn't Shilla grown since Jinheung's time?" Wow, that sounds like a loaded question..."Great leaders usually have great achievements. But the records don't show a single advancement for Shilla. Not a one since Jinheung's day." She looks up at Mishil. "Why is that, do you think?" Mishil turns and walks away without a word. But as she leaves, we can see that the question has upset her.
Turns out, Yushin was out there in the hallway among the attendants while they were talking; now he goes in and sits down in front of Deokman, and to his credit asks the proper, obvious question: "Why bait her?" She says she doesn't understand: "Did it look that way to you? I asked because I wanted to know." Baloney; she totally baited her. She adds, "If I find out I can avoid the same mistake." Which is true, but it still was a loaded question. Well, what's done is done...Yushin asks her if she's going to restore the military grains.
Evening: a strange scene. Large quantities of grain are being delivered to Yeom Jong--I guess this is what he's buying back as Bidam instructed him too. But the weird part is, Chunchu is there watching this, and Yeom Jong has told him the whole story. Why is he spilling it all to the twerp? Bidam walks by and sees them talking...and hears Chunchu incorrectly conclude that the reason for Deokman's actions is that the royal house must be low on funds. Yeom Jong, sucking up, says he's right and that the royals are weak. Then Chunchu brings up another subject: the Geographical Survey. At that moment they happens to spot Bidam standing there. Boy does that shut them up. They step back, visibly frightened as Bidam walks up to them. "Well? What about the survey? What do YOU care?" Chunchu squirms and skitters away, and Bidam is left to remind Yeom Jong that he owes him his life and that the survey matter is closed, got it? Message received. Then Bidam asks, "You've replaced the military stores?" Which tells us just what's going on here.
The next day: The Council of Nobles has been convened. Deokman is there and tells them all that the military stores have been resupplied and are fully stocked once again. But the councillors are angry about her taking government grains to market at all without getting council approval. Explain yourself, they tell her. She had to know this was coming, so what does she tell them? "The explanation is simple. Some of you are criminals." Doink! Does that ever set them whining and yelling and banging on the table. (Totally hilarious.) But she sits there totally unfazed, and opens a scroll she's brought with her. She starts to read: "Sejong, 1800 sacks. Hajong, 980 sacks. Misaeng, 1280. Seolwon, 320. Sooboom 850. Yongchun, 330." (Yongchun got in on this too? Ohh, that's a surprise--but he looks ashamed of himself so yeah, guilty.) "Indong..." Misaeng tries to cut her off, but she goes right on: "Indong, 180 sacks. These are the amounts purchased by the nobles present to manipulate the market." Now they're all fidgeting, groaning, looking down and away...But wait--we know that this kind of buying isn't illegal; the king himself said so. So what makes them criminals? Deokman has already thought it through, and lays it out: "Your manipulations led to a death in the market. A man resorted to murder because month's work wasn't enough to buy a sack of grain. And you have the gall to say you're not criminals." (I guess she's arguing that they're accessories to murder.) Sure, you can buy what you like, she tells an agitated Hajong, but if I have the means to prevent suffering and chaos, "is that a crime?" It's the duty of the royal house to do so, she says. "And the Council is duty-bound to care for the nation, isn't that right?" Mishil is sitting there quietly, perfectly still...but the slight smile on her face certainly suggests she's actually enjoying watching Deokman make the men squirm, even though most are her men. Seohyeon jumps in to remind them all that something like this could cause an all-out rebellion among the people...But Mishil's allies insist that Deokman must be taught a lesson for breaching protocol. Fair enough, Deokman says: "You have a way to keep me out of it for good." Really? "Pass a law against market speculation. Do that and I'll never interfere again." Well THAT'S never gonna fly, and they immediately start whining about the very idea of it. But an apparently repentant Yongchun jumps in and reminds them, "the issue is the suffering caused by our greed." Hajong, at this point going all-out bonkers, doesn't like that Yongchun bought less grain than the rest of them and accuses him of knowing what was coming. Yongchun actually jumps out of his chair and calls Hajong a moron. Yes, he does. And now Hajong jumps up, and the two of them are reaching across the table and slap-fighting. And in the next moment the whole meeting is a melee--pushing, shoving, yelling, finger-pointing, gavel-pounding...and Deokman just sits there...and then smiles just a little. Utterly priceless. (Best scene of the entire series, hands down.)
Seohyeon, along with Manmyeong, have gone to the king and queen to report that the Council never reached a decision on Deokman. And adds that there were nobles from the outer regions at the meeting who wanted a decision, but "they left, too." (What those guys must have been thinking on the way home, just the idea of it makes it all even funnier.) "All because Hajong stormed out." The king actually laughs a little--I think the first time we've seen him laugh--and then the queen adds, "Hajong has his uses at times like this." But the king points out that Hajong stormed out as soon as the anti-speculation law was suggested, rather than let it be seriously considered. So as Seohyeon puts it, "His animal instinct for self-preservation did what he's not smart enough to do."
The cabal is together again, licking their wounds. But Mishil doesn't want to hear Hajong's whining. You can't win 'em all, she says. And besides, the harvest will be coming in soon, which means taxes, and as Seolwon says, "And taxes almost always lead to problems. That's when we'll negotiate this new law with the princess." Sejong still doesn't want to just let this all drop. But Mishil has to give Deokman credit--"Her methods aren't exactly complex, but they still caught me unaware"--and her smile shows she doesn't see it as worth grousing over any more. And yes, it does look like she got a kick out of it.
We see Deokman in a government office, studying records. It's late at night. Yushin and Bidam enter and tell her to go home and get some rest. She has to remind Yushin with a smile about her trainee days when he would never let any of them get proper rest, including himself. Whatever...Bidam brings up something more important, and potentially dicey: the profit that she made from the grain market. What's she going to do with it? She's already thought about it--looks like that's why she's in the office now--and shows Yushin some pages she's sketched out. Sounds like she wants to use the money to make farm implements with the stronger iron that the military uses. Good idea...but why not show the pages to Bidam too? He sits there looking miffed, with good reason.
Mishil's studying too, at home. Why? It's Deokman's loaded question about the country not growing at all. She can't get it out of her head; it's visibly disturbing her. Seolwon enters and wants to talk about setting up Chunchu's wedding. But Mishil tell shim she's not feeling well. He gets up to leave her so she can get some rest...but he can tell she's troubled. Gingerly he offers her advice. "Don't envy the princess," he says gingerly. "It's enough that I envy her royal blood." She tells him not to worry, that she's fine...but she doesn't look it.
Morning: Deokman fell asleep in the office and is still there. Mishil comes in, looking for a book, and finds her sleeping amongst many scrolls and volumes. Does she want one of the volumes Deokman is resting her head on? If she does, she thinks the better of pulling it out from under her, and instead sits down at another table with another book. Now Chunchu and Bidam come in, noisily--must be lesson-time and the twerp is resisting--and come upon this very awkward scene. Their commotion wakes up Deokman and makes things even more awkward. Chunchu thanks Mishil for a painting that she gave him. Then Bidam tells Deokman that the twerp's martial arts training is coming along well (I find that hard to believe) "and he was an invaluable help in the market crisis." Which startles him; What did I do?, he asks. "You explained the true nature of the nobles' profits (which he did!) and relived my worries about the Royal Treasury." Deokman is impressed that the twerp had such insight into what was happening, and it surprises Mishil too (which seems to be the point of Bidam bringing it up--to needle her). With that the twerp skitters out of the room. Then Deokman leaves; Sohwa has arrived to tell her the king is looking for her. And now it's just Bidam and Mishil, and again, awkward. "The little princess has you teaching Chunchu, does she?" He replies, "No, it's more like he's teaching me, actually. No one else ever bothered to teach me about the royal house," he says bitterly. "Not when I was born. Or now." With that he bows and leaves. And now Mishil is too distracted by all this to do the work she came to do.
"You think you can do this?" Deokman has brought her father a written plan for making better farm implements using stronger iron. It will help the small farms grow, she says. And he agrees with her, and tells her to go ahead. Just use every penny of those profits for it, he says. And she will.
Deokman goes and visits the royal iron works. And tells the surprised workers that they're to stop work on the weapons they're working on and start making farm implements using their better-quality iron. (Certainly hope she's checked this out and was assured by the military that they can afford the diversion of work.) So they do. Deokman says to herself, "Yushin, I've started something. Something that will help me beat Mishil."
What the heck? All of a sudden we're out in the countryside somewhere, and several dozen shouting, angry citizens are charging up a road, some carrying rakes and pitchforks. They're approaching what a subtitle identifies as Ankang Fortress. Soldiers charge out of the main gate to intercept them. And now there's a standoff. But only for a moment--an old man pushes forward and gets knocked down by a soldier, and now it's a full-scale brawl. The old man had shouted, "You think YOU decide if we live or die!?" What does that mean, we wonder...Whatever it is, the citizens outnumber the soldiers and because the soldiers don't charge and kill, they're getting beaten up and pushed aside! This is really, really ugly. And now the citizens charge into the fort.
Word reaches the king and queen that the citizens have rioted in Ankang Province, and taken the local viceroy hostage. "Hajong owns most of Ankang," the queen says; "how did he let this happen?" Seohyeon tells her that there was an insect infestation that cut the local harvest in half, from 1000 sacks to 500. Which isn't the real problem...the real problem is that Hajong is demanding tax payments that equal all of the remaining grain! The entire harvest. No wonder they're pissed off. "Hajong WANTS to make things worse," the king realizes.
So he summons Hajong, who appears with his father. They defend it all as "standard business practices" and remind the king that the royal house got half of the remaining harvest, as is the law. Deokman is there too, and it becomes clear what's going on when Hajong snarkily comments to her that "You made yourself some cash at our expense, after all." What Sejong and Hajong want is for the royal house to reduce its own tax rates. They're just angry about what happened and are looking for revenge. Hajong says that if the royal house suspends the 250-sack tax, he'll agree to give the 250 sacks back to the people (apparently the local nobles are responsible for the actual collections of the taxes). But he adds that "I won't pay a penny of what's MINE." A real humanitarian.
Yushin and Bidam are puzzling over this problem, and apparently this isn't the first time something like this has happened. Yushin points out that waiving the royal house's assessment, it's just like opening the storehouses and giving grains away. (But if there's a famine, isn't that what they're supposed to do?) And Hajong can get away with it scot-free. "It's time we stopped coddling the nobles," Bidam says...but easier said than done.
Sejong and Hajong have gone back to Mishil and are practically giggling about the victory they're sure they've won. After all, if the royal house doesn't yield, the only alternative is for the entire community to go bankrupt and become slaves. "Nothing will ever change," Mishil says with a smile; "the little princess just doesn't know it yet."
Hey, look, it's the casino. Chunchu is deep into a game of juryeonggu (the numbers version); Misaeng comes in and joins him. Tells him about what happened in Ankang and the tax situation.
Jukbang, with Godo, is telling Sohwa about it, and explaining it clearly enough that it makes sense to her and she's impressed by that. But she's troubled by the fact that nothing seems to have changed; the nobles still hold all the cards.
Alcheon brings Yushin and Bidam news: Deokman has decided to go to Ankang herself. And is sending Yushin ahead of her, to get the village's head man out of the fort.
Deokman going to Ankang herself? The king and queen and Manmyeong are discussing it. A risky thing to do, no question...but Jinpyeong acknowledges that Deokman has been able to rattle Mishil and the nobles, which he's never done. "I believe in Deokman," he says.
"What? Deokman went to Ankang?" Mishil gets the news and doesn't like it at all. The rest of her cabal, they all snicker and make fun of Deokman--What's she going to do, beg?--but she doesn't find it funny and is visibly concerned.
We see a royal procession headed out into the country.
Outside of Ankang Fortress, the procession arrives. Yushin meets Deokman and tells her that the village's head man is waiting for her. As for the local viceroy, not so good--he's being held hostage by the farmers.
So Deokman goes into a tent and meets the guy. He and his three associates are bound and kneeling, obviously captives. Did he agree to this? Either way, he's in no mood for submission. "Free us in four hours or the viceroy and the soldiers are dead." But in the same breath, he complains about being exploited, and obviously the men are more desperate for relief than they are intent on causing mayhem. Well, Deokman wisely shows no mercy, at least not at first; she berates the head man for inciting a riot and reminds him that it's a treasonous act that could get him and his entire village executed. But he has the obvious reply: "Steal a whole year's harvest and we're as good as dead anyway." That visibly deflates her. And he adds that when they initially complained about all this, there was some sort of situation that caused a soldier to kill a teenage girl. And when the villagers complained about that to the viceroy, his response was to have someone else killed. "What other choice did we have?", he says, looking straight at her. And adds that "we risked our lives to come here" because they were told she would be able to resolve the situation. The head man even says that he'll give his own life if the rest of the villagers are spared. This is tough stuff...But no matter, Deokman has heard enough, and obviously had already decided what to do anyway. To their stunned surprise, she tells them that she'll give them back the royal house's share of the taxes, the 250 sacks. And not only that, each farmer is going to get three acres of government land "and farm utensils made from the finest iron." Okay, so she's making them guinea pigs. Why not. "Think of it as a low-interest loan," she tells them. The 250 sacks is not a gift--they're to pay it back next year from the additional farmland, with interest of an additional 50 sacks. (A 20 percent interest rate!) And she tells them, anything over 300 sacks that comes from that land is theirs to keep. And offers, "If you can make the fallow land produce, you can keep it." And they get her to confirm that they won't have to pay the nobles any taxes at all on the new land. It's quite an offer. Certainly not without risk; in fact, it's full of wild uncertainties. But it's the only deal they can get, isn't it...and especially if they're going to get the food they need to survive until the next harvest, and it gets them all off the hook for the trouble they caused, they should take it without a second thought. And they do. Gratefully.
So Deokman leaves the tent, and outside, Yushin and Alcheon confront her. They were inside, too, and they're not happy that the men who committed treason apparently aren't going to be disciplined for it. Whatever good reason they might have had, they still led a riot, didn't they. Uh-oh, Deokman hasn't thought about this.
So she goes back into the tent. They have to be punished--"By rights I should take your head," she tells the head man (Then you couldn't call him the head man anymore, could you). But he doesn't need her to tell him; he knows it well and once again offers his own life if everyone else is spared. "What if you are spared?", she asks him. "Will you lead the village in obeying my commands and till the fallow land?" Well of course he will; he enthusiastically says he'll dedicate his life to it. So she grants him a royal pardon. Yushin and Alcheon don't like it AT ALL and object repeatedly, to the point where Deokman snaps at them for interrupting her. She warns all four of the men to keep their word or she'll revoke the pardon and carry out the sentence. The others are very loyal to the head man, we can see that, and all four assure her that she can count on them.
Evening: The procession is headed back home. Yushin and Alcheon are riding alongside one another, and don't look too happy. Alcheon brings word that Deokman has ordered the procession to detour to Gahye Fortress, near the Baekje frontier. Not sure why.
Next day: Sejong and Hajong are grumbling to Mishil about Deokman and her side trip. And her lack of punishment of the troublemakers. And the deal she cut. "It's been ten days," she says (so my mistake, this isn't the next day). "Does the law mean nothing to her?", Sejong grumbles. Uh-oh, now Mishil has that look in her eye. Is she up to something?
Deokman returns, a smile on her face. It vanishes instantly; Sohwa is waiting with news...
...that sends Deokman scurrying right to her father, who's meeting with Sejong, Hajong, Seolwon, Seohyeon and Yongchun. None of them looks happy--what's going on? Good grief, they're all looking like somebody died....
Not died, ran away. We hear Yushin getting the news from Bojong and Seokpum. The Ankang villagers, they took their grain and the new tools, and they ran away! "She had such high hopes, too," Seokpum adds smugly; "how disappointing." Yushin angrily orders the Hwarang assembled to go and find the runaways.
Deokman leaves the meeting. Snippets of it are flying through her head. Sejong telling her, "Your mistake was trusting the people." Hajong saying, "They can't see beyond the food in front of their faces." Seolwon adding, "Your high-handed leniency led to this." She's not happy. Alcheon finds her and tells her about Yushin's order. She tells him she's going back to Ankang too. Oh, and what timing, here comes Mishil walking up the sidewalk.
She and Deokman go inside and talk. Sort of. "What was it you said again? You will role with truth, hope and trust?" Oh, it's not a talk, Mishil wants to lecture. "To common people trust is unnerving; hope is a burden. They don't know what to do with freedom. People are fickle and stupid like unruly children. That's what makes them hard to govern." And then she laughs in Deokman's face. "On top of which you didn't punish the renegades. Discipline must be swift and cruel; rewards must be slow and sparing. That's how to rule the people. Or do you WANT to ruin our country?" And that last part, she says it in that shrill, scary voice. (Before, you wondered if maybe she incited the runaways, but no, she's just too flat-out mad about it to have done it herself.) Deokman isn't fazed, though. "Fighting for food to eat isn't treason. It's survival." Then why did they run away? "Based on their experience with you, they probably didn't believe me. After all, you've always ruled by terror. Now I finally understand why Shilla hasn't grown since Jinheung's time." Uh-oh, that question again...Mishil's jaw actually clenches shut for a moment (Yikes!) before she unclenches it and asks, "And why...is that?" "Because you aren't the true ruler of this land. If you were truly a ruler, you would have nurtured the people. Talked with them, nurtured their hopes for a better future. But you're no ruler. So you scold them, control them, put them to bed. How can someone who's not their true ruler dream for their future? Without a dream, you'll never be a hero to those people." We've watched these conversations before between them; is it really getting them anywhere? Deokman gets up to leave, but has to add, "I took what you said to heart." The part about tough discipline and meager reward, and no leniency..."I'm determined to set no more precedents." Hmmm, that got through, did it? So did she learn something here? (You have to think this will resurface before too long.)
Mishil retires to her chambers. She's looking tired, and shows some discouragement. Probably not just from that exchange; it must be Deokman's larger accusation about Shilla having accomplished nothing. Seems like it's really eating at her.
The royal procession heads to Ankang again. Not sure where we are, but look at this--some of the runaways have been caught! Looks like around 25 of them. Including the head man and at least one of his subordinates. They're bound and kneeling in a courtyard; Deokman arrives and sits down in front of them. They beg for another chance; they tell her they were scared that the fallow land wouldn't deliver and they'd be in even deeper, owing you even more interest. "Just like the nobles." Ouch, that one stings Deokman, we can see. We don't believe that this supposedly better iron will do any good, they tell her. Well this a turning point. Are they telling the truth? It does seem like it, but still, she didn't discipline them before--and now she really is backed into a corner, isn't she. We're only momentarily distracted from all this by the sight of Chunchu arriving-- What's he doing here? And Bidam has come with him. Deokman steadies herself, trying to control some serious frustration. "I'm trying to help you get out from under the nobles," she tells them. "To help you stop scratching out a living and help you till your own land. I'm trying to help you NOT be slaves!" They all look ashamed of themselves. "Do you WANT to be slaves and serve the nobility like beasts? Your children and their children enslaved forever?" Now she sounds more sad and concerned than angry. "Don't you understand? I'm trying to give you land. Land of your own to so and reap, and leave to your children." She looks like an exasperated mom, as some of Mishil's unkind words about common people reverberate in her head. Now the villagers are begging for their lives--"Never mind the land," they say. More of Mishil's words ringing in Deokman's head, and she wonders to herself, "Was Mishil right?"
Ah, but Deokman has returned the favor. Mishil is still sitting in her chambers, and she can't shake Deokman's demeaning assessment about her failure as a ruler. She wonders, "Was Deokman right?" WOW.
Deokman stands up. It's a tough spot and there's no clear solution...She swallows hard. "Whatever it takes," she says, "I WILL give you land. Not just to grow crops. But to find joy in life. To find hope." She still wants to do good by them...but she's so angry and frustrated...to the point where she walks up to the head man, turns and grabs Yushin's sword out of its scabbard, and holds it to his throat! Gasps and wide eyes all around. "You broke your promise. You broke faith with me. You risked the future of this village." The villagers all care about the guy, clearly, and are all terrified. Deokman stands there, hearing Mishil's voice from before: "Discipline must be swift and cruel"...she's visibly rattled, almost crying--but is she nodding just a little? Like she's accepting Mishil's words? Maybe not. "I'll help you find that hope for the future," she says, starting to cry and her voice breaking. "I'll never give up on you." Overwhelmed by her compassion, the head man begs her, "Spare me...Spare me and we won't run away again, I swear. Spare me, princess!" And now all the villagers are begging for mercy. "Please spare us. Spare us, please, princess!" Tears streaming down her face, Deokman steadies herself...and backswings, and slashes! The head man drops dead. And then another swing, killing his associate! For a moment everyone just stands there in stunned disbelief. Deokman is gasping, quivering, blood-spattered. But utterly resolute. To no one in particular she mutters, "I WILL make this work."
Meeting over, Deokman leaves the building and finds Bidam waiting for her outside. Waiting to tell her that he's arranged for a little bit of the military grain to be sold. "Just enough to drive the prices down and start the rumors flying." He adds, "The market is a mess; no one knows what to do." Deokman gives him some further instructions about when to start buying grain back.
Mishil's cabal is meeting, but not for long. Hajong is whining and practically jumping up and down about the falling grain prices. Can't take the stress of it any more, so he runs out to go sell. Without a word, Sejong follows him--not to stop him, but rather so he can sell his own grain. Then Misaeng runs out, too. Which leaves Seolwon sitting there alone with Mishil. He stays loyal to her, but she tells him to go sell his grain and cut his losses. She can see the writing on the wall; whether or not she had any role in orchestrating all this (which we don't know), it's all coming apart. From those little quivers we see in her face, we can tell she's steaming mad.
Now the elite Hwarang are finding out about the military grain being sold. Seokpum, he got out right away, we learn, but he was the only one. The rest of them scatter to go tell their own families to sell. They'll take a significant loss, obviously.
We see one of the marketplace streets, and it's gridlocked with carts and people trying to sell their grain. The sellers are turning them all away; they're overloaded already. Yeom Jong is watching all this, and tells a subordinate to start buying when the price reaches ten ounces of iron. Which is what Deokman told Bidam. Right now it's thirteen.
Now we see Sejong, Hajong and Misaeng talking to Seokpum, Bakui and Ho Jae. (What's Ho Jae doing there--is he allied with Mishil's faction? News to us.) Sejong is being urged by the others to take action against Deokman for selling government grains without proper authorization. Sejong listens and decides to convene the council.
"And the next time?" Mishil challenges Deokman about whether or not this was a good idea. No, Deokman admits, it won't work every time. "But with such an 'ill-advised' princess about, the nobles will be more careful in the future." And she's right; she's diagnosed this whole situation very accurately, give her credit for that. But Mishil warns her about the bigger picture. "Like it or not, the nobles run this country. Taxes, defense, everything is run by nobles. How long will you last working against them? I worry for you." With that she gets up to leave, but Deokman has a question for her. "You excel in all you do," she says; "your insights, influence and leadership are all remarkable." Point being? "Tell me, why hasn't Shilla grown since Jinheung's time?" Wow, that sounds like a loaded question..."Great leaders usually have great achievements. But the records don't show a single advancement for Shilla. Not a one since Jinheung's day." She looks up at Mishil. "Why is that, do you think?" Mishil turns and walks away without a word. But as she leaves, we can see that the question has upset her.
Turns out, Yushin was out there in the hallway among the attendants while they were talking; now he goes in and sits down in front of Deokman, and to his credit asks the proper, obvious question: "Why bait her?" She says she doesn't understand: "Did it look that way to you? I asked because I wanted to know." Baloney; she totally baited her. She adds, "If I find out I can avoid the same mistake." Which is true, but it still was a loaded question. Well, what's done is done...Yushin asks her if she's going to restore the military grains.
Evening: a strange scene. Large quantities of grain are being delivered to Yeom Jong--I guess this is what he's buying back as Bidam instructed him too. But the weird part is, Chunchu is there watching this, and Yeom Jong has told him the whole story. Why is he spilling it all to the twerp? Bidam walks by and sees them talking...and hears Chunchu incorrectly conclude that the reason for Deokman's actions is that the royal house must be low on funds. Yeom Jong, sucking up, says he's right and that the royals are weak. Then Chunchu brings up another subject: the Geographical Survey. At that moment they happens to spot Bidam standing there. Boy does that shut them up. They step back, visibly frightened as Bidam walks up to them. "Well? What about the survey? What do YOU care?" Chunchu squirms and skitters away, and Bidam is left to remind Yeom Jong that he owes him his life and that the survey matter is closed, got it? Message received. Then Bidam asks, "You've replaced the military stores?" Which tells us just what's going on here.
The next day: The Council of Nobles has been convened. Deokman is there and tells them all that the military stores have been resupplied and are fully stocked once again. But the councillors are angry about her taking government grains to market at all without getting council approval. Explain yourself, they tell her. She had to know this was coming, so what does she tell them? "The explanation is simple. Some of you are criminals." Doink! Does that ever set them whining and yelling and banging on the table. (Totally hilarious.) But she sits there totally unfazed, and opens a scroll she's brought with her. She starts to read: "Sejong, 1800 sacks. Hajong, 980 sacks. Misaeng, 1280. Seolwon, 320. Sooboom 850. Yongchun, 330." (Yongchun got in on this too? Ohh, that's a surprise--but he looks ashamed of himself so yeah, guilty.) "Indong..." Misaeng tries to cut her off, but she goes right on: "Indong, 180 sacks. These are the amounts purchased by the nobles present to manipulate the market." Now they're all fidgeting, groaning, looking down and away...But wait--we know that this kind of buying isn't illegal; the king himself said so. So what makes them criminals? Deokman has already thought it through, and lays it out: "Your manipulations led to a death in the market. A man resorted to murder because month's work wasn't enough to buy a sack of grain. And you have the gall to say you're not criminals." (I guess she's arguing that they're accessories to murder.) Sure, you can buy what you like, she tells an agitated Hajong, but if I have the means to prevent suffering and chaos, "is that a crime?" It's the duty of the royal house to do so, she says. "And the Council is duty-bound to care for the nation, isn't that right?" Mishil is sitting there quietly, perfectly still...but the slight smile on her face certainly suggests she's actually enjoying watching Deokman make the men squirm, even though most are her men. Seohyeon jumps in to remind them all that something like this could cause an all-out rebellion among the people...But Mishil's allies insist that Deokman must be taught a lesson for breaching protocol. Fair enough, Deokman says: "You have a way to keep me out of it for good." Really? "Pass a law against market speculation. Do that and I'll never interfere again." Well THAT'S never gonna fly, and they immediately start whining about the very idea of it. But an apparently repentant Yongchun jumps in and reminds them, "the issue is the suffering caused by our greed." Hajong, at this point going all-out bonkers, doesn't like that Yongchun bought less grain than the rest of them and accuses him of knowing what was coming. Yongchun actually jumps out of his chair and calls Hajong a moron. Yes, he does. And now Hajong jumps up, and the two of them are reaching across the table and slap-fighting. And in the next moment the whole meeting is a melee--pushing, shoving, yelling, finger-pointing, gavel-pounding...and Deokman just sits there...and then smiles just a little. Utterly priceless. (Best scene of the entire series, hands down.)
Seohyeon, along with Manmyeong, have gone to the king and queen to report that the Council never reached a decision on Deokman. And adds that there were nobles from the outer regions at the meeting who wanted a decision, but "they left, too." (What those guys must have been thinking on the way home, just the idea of it makes it all even funnier.) "All because Hajong stormed out." The king actually laughs a little--I think the first time we've seen him laugh--and then the queen adds, "Hajong has his uses at times like this." But the king points out that Hajong stormed out as soon as the anti-speculation law was suggested, rather than let it be seriously considered. So as Seohyeon puts it, "His animal instinct for self-preservation did what he's not smart enough to do."
The cabal is together again, licking their wounds. But Mishil doesn't want to hear Hajong's whining. You can't win 'em all, she says. And besides, the harvest will be coming in soon, which means taxes, and as Seolwon says, "And taxes almost always lead to problems. That's when we'll negotiate this new law with the princess." Sejong still doesn't want to just let this all drop. But Mishil has to give Deokman credit--"Her methods aren't exactly complex, but they still caught me unaware"--and her smile shows she doesn't see it as worth grousing over any more. And yes, it does look like she got a kick out of it.
We see Deokman in a government office, studying records. It's late at night. Yushin and Bidam enter and tell her to go home and get some rest. She has to remind Yushin with a smile about her trainee days when he would never let any of them get proper rest, including himself. Whatever...Bidam brings up something more important, and potentially dicey: the profit that she made from the grain market. What's she going to do with it? She's already thought about it--looks like that's why she's in the office now--and shows Yushin some pages she's sketched out. Sounds like she wants to use the money to make farm implements with the stronger iron that the military uses. Good idea...but why not show the pages to Bidam too? He sits there looking miffed, with good reason.
Mishil's studying too, at home. Why? It's Deokman's loaded question about the country not growing at all. She can't get it out of her head; it's visibly disturbing her. Seolwon enters and wants to talk about setting up Chunchu's wedding. But Mishil tell shim she's not feeling well. He gets up to leave her so she can get some rest...but he can tell she's troubled. Gingerly he offers her advice. "Don't envy the princess," he says gingerly. "It's enough that I envy her royal blood." She tells him not to worry, that she's fine...but she doesn't look it.
Morning: Deokman fell asleep in the office and is still there. Mishil comes in, looking for a book, and finds her sleeping amongst many scrolls and volumes. Does she want one of the volumes Deokman is resting her head on? If she does, she thinks the better of pulling it out from under her, and instead sits down at another table with another book. Now Chunchu and Bidam come in, noisily--must be lesson-time and the twerp is resisting--and come upon this very awkward scene. Their commotion wakes up Deokman and makes things even more awkward. Chunchu thanks Mishil for a painting that she gave him. Then Bidam tells Deokman that the twerp's martial arts training is coming along well (I find that hard to believe) "and he was an invaluable help in the market crisis." Which startles him; What did I do?, he asks. "You explained the true nature of the nobles' profits (which he did!) and relived my worries about the Royal Treasury." Deokman is impressed that the twerp had such insight into what was happening, and it surprises Mishil too (which seems to be the point of Bidam bringing it up--to needle her). With that the twerp skitters out of the room. Then Deokman leaves; Sohwa has arrived to tell her the king is looking for her. And now it's just Bidam and Mishil, and again, awkward. "The little princess has you teaching Chunchu, does she?" He replies, "No, it's more like he's teaching me, actually. No one else ever bothered to teach me about the royal house," he says bitterly. "Not when I was born. Or now." With that he bows and leaves. And now Mishil is too distracted by all this to do the work she came to do.
"You think you can do this?" Deokman has brought her father a written plan for making better farm implements using stronger iron. It will help the small farms grow, she says. And he agrees with her, and tells her to go ahead. Just use every penny of those profits for it, he says. And she will.
Deokman goes and visits the royal iron works. And tells the surprised workers that they're to stop work on the weapons they're working on and start making farm implements using their better-quality iron. (Certainly hope she's checked this out and was assured by the military that they can afford the diversion of work.) So they do. Deokman says to herself, "Yushin, I've started something. Something that will help me beat Mishil."
What the heck? All of a sudden we're out in the countryside somewhere, and several dozen shouting, angry citizens are charging up a road, some carrying rakes and pitchforks. They're approaching what a subtitle identifies as Ankang Fortress. Soldiers charge out of the main gate to intercept them. And now there's a standoff. But only for a moment--an old man pushes forward and gets knocked down by a soldier, and now it's a full-scale brawl. The old man had shouted, "You think YOU decide if we live or die!?" What does that mean, we wonder...Whatever it is, the citizens outnumber the soldiers and because the soldiers don't charge and kill, they're getting beaten up and pushed aside! This is really, really ugly. And now the citizens charge into the fort.
Word reaches the king and queen that the citizens have rioted in Ankang Province, and taken the local viceroy hostage. "Hajong owns most of Ankang," the queen says; "how did he let this happen?" Seohyeon tells her that there was an insect infestation that cut the local harvest in half, from 1000 sacks to 500. Which isn't the real problem...the real problem is that Hajong is demanding tax payments that equal all of the remaining grain! The entire harvest. No wonder they're pissed off. "Hajong WANTS to make things worse," the king realizes.
So he summons Hajong, who appears with his father. They defend it all as "standard business practices" and remind the king that the royal house got half of the remaining harvest, as is the law. Deokman is there too, and it becomes clear what's going on when Hajong snarkily comments to her that "You made yourself some cash at our expense, after all." What Sejong and Hajong want is for the royal house to reduce its own tax rates. They're just angry about what happened and are looking for revenge. Hajong says that if the royal house suspends the 250-sack tax, he'll agree to give the 250 sacks back to the people (apparently the local nobles are responsible for the actual collections of the taxes). But he adds that "I won't pay a penny of what's MINE." A real humanitarian.
Yushin and Bidam are puzzling over this problem, and apparently this isn't the first time something like this has happened. Yushin points out that waiving the royal house's assessment, it's just like opening the storehouses and giving grains away. (But if there's a famine, isn't that what they're supposed to do?) And Hajong can get away with it scot-free. "It's time we stopped coddling the nobles," Bidam says...but easier said than done.
Sejong and Hajong have gone back to Mishil and are practically giggling about the victory they're sure they've won. After all, if the royal house doesn't yield, the only alternative is for the entire community to go bankrupt and become slaves. "Nothing will ever change," Mishil says with a smile; "the little princess just doesn't know it yet."
Hey, look, it's the casino. Chunchu is deep into a game of juryeonggu (the numbers version); Misaeng comes in and joins him. Tells him about what happened in Ankang and the tax situation.
Jukbang, with Godo, is telling Sohwa about it, and explaining it clearly enough that it makes sense to her and she's impressed by that. But she's troubled by the fact that nothing seems to have changed; the nobles still hold all the cards.
Alcheon brings Yushin and Bidam news: Deokman has decided to go to Ankang herself. And is sending Yushin ahead of her, to get the village's head man out of the fort.
Deokman going to Ankang herself? The king and queen and Manmyeong are discussing it. A risky thing to do, no question...but Jinpyeong acknowledges that Deokman has been able to rattle Mishil and the nobles, which he's never done. "I believe in Deokman," he says.
"What? Deokman went to Ankang?" Mishil gets the news and doesn't like it at all. The rest of her cabal, they all snicker and make fun of Deokman--What's she going to do, beg?--but she doesn't find it funny and is visibly concerned.
We see a royal procession headed out into the country.
Outside of Ankang Fortress, the procession arrives. Yushin meets Deokman and tells her that the village's head man is waiting for her. As for the local viceroy, not so good--he's being held hostage by the farmers.
So Deokman goes into a tent and meets the guy. He and his three associates are bound and kneeling, obviously captives. Did he agree to this? Either way, he's in no mood for submission. "Free us in four hours or the viceroy and the soldiers are dead." But in the same breath, he complains about being exploited, and obviously the men are more desperate for relief than they are intent on causing mayhem. Well, Deokman wisely shows no mercy, at least not at first; she berates the head man for inciting a riot and reminds him that it's a treasonous act that could get him and his entire village executed. But he has the obvious reply: "Steal a whole year's harvest and we're as good as dead anyway." That visibly deflates her. And he adds that when they initially complained about all this, there was some sort of situation that caused a soldier to kill a teenage girl. And when the villagers complained about that to the viceroy, his response was to have someone else killed. "What other choice did we have?", he says, looking straight at her. And adds that "we risked our lives to come here" because they were told she would be able to resolve the situation. The head man even says that he'll give his own life if the rest of the villagers are spared. This is tough stuff...But no matter, Deokman has heard enough, and obviously had already decided what to do anyway. To their stunned surprise, she tells them that she'll give them back the royal house's share of the taxes, the 250 sacks. And not only that, each farmer is going to get three acres of government land "and farm utensils made from the finest iron." Okay, so she's making them guinea pigs. Why not. "Think of it as a low-interest loan," she tells them. The 250 sacks is not a gift--they're to pay it back next year from the additional farmland, with interest of an additional 50 sacks. (A 20 percent interest rate!) And she tells them, anything over 300 sacks that comes from that land is theirs to keep. And offers, "If you can make the fallow land produce, you can keep it." And they get her to confirm that they won't have to pay the nobles any taxes at all on the new land. It's quite an offer. Certainly not without risk; in fact, it's full of wild uncertainties. But it's the only deal they can get, isn't it...and especially if they're going to get the food they need to survive until the next harvest, and it gets them all off the hook for the trouble they caused, they should take it without a second thought. And they do. Gratefully.
So Deokman leaves the tent, and outside, Yushin and Alcheon confront her. They were inside, too, and they're not happy that the men who committed treason apparently aren't going to be disciplined for it. Whatever good reason they might have had, they still led a riot, didn't they. Uh-oh, Deokman hasn't thought about this.
So she goes back into the tent. They have to be punished--"By rights I should take your head," she tells the head man (Then you couldn't call him the head man anymore, could you). But he doesn't need her to tell him; he knows it well and once again offers his own life if everyone else is spared. "What if you are spared?", she asks him. "Will you lead the village in obeying my commands and till the fallow land?" Well of course he will; he enthusiastically says he'll dedicate his life to it. So she grants him a royal pardon. Yushin and Alcheon don't like it AT ALL and object repeatedly, to the point where Deokman snaps at them for interrupting her. She warns all four of the men to keep their word or she'll revoke the pardon and carry out the sentence. The others are very loyal to the head man, we can see that, and all four assure her that she can count on them.
Evening: The procession is headed back home. Yushin and Alcheon are riding alongside one another, and don't look too happy. Alcheon brings word that Deokman has ordered the procession to detour to Gahye Fortress, near the Baekje frontier. Not sure why.
Next day: Sejong and Hajong are grumbling to Mishil about Deokman and her side trip. And her lack of punishment of the troublemakers. And the deal she cut. "It's been ten days," she says (so my mistake, this isn't the next day). "Does the law mean nothing to her?", Sejong grumbles. Uh-oh, now Mishil has that look in her eye. Is she up to something?
Deokman returns, a smile on her face. It vanishes instantly; Sohwa is waiting with news...
...that sends Deokman scurrying right to her father, who's meeting with Sejong, Hajong, Seolwon, Seohyeon and Yongchun. None of them looks happy--what's going on? Good grief, they're all looking like somebody died....
Not died, ran away. We hear Yushin getting the news from Bojong and Seokpum. The Ankang villagers, they took their grain and the new tools, and they ran away! "She had such high hopes, too," Seokpum adds smugly; "how disappointing." Yushin angrily orders the Hwarang assembled to go and find the runaways.
Deokman leaves the meeting. Snippets of it are flying through her head. Sejong telling her, "Your mistake was trusting the people." Hajong saying, "They can't see beyond the food in front of their faces." Seolwon adding, "Your high-handed leniency led to this." She's not happy. Alcheon finds her and tells her about Yushin's order. She tells him she's going back to Ankang too. Oh, and what timing, here comes Mishil walking up the sidewalk.
She and Deokman go inside and talk. Sort of. "What was it you said again? You will role with truth, hope and trust?" Oh, it's not a talk, Mishil wants to lecture. "To common people trust is unnerving; hope is a burden. They don't know what to do with freedom. People are fickle and stupid like unruly children. That's what makes them hard to govern." And then she laughs in Deokman's face. "On top of which you didn't punish the renegades. Discipline must be swift and cruel; rewards must be slow and sparing. That's how to rule the people. Or do you WANT to ruin our country?" And that last part, she says it in that shrill, scary voice. (Before, you wondered if maybe she incited the runaways, but no, she's just too flat-out mad about it to have done it herself.) Deokman isn't fazed, though. "Fighting for food to eat isn't treason. It's survival." Then why did they run away? "Based on their experience with you, they probably didn't believe me. After all, you've always ruled by terror. Now I finally understand why Shilla hasn't grown since Jinheung's time." Uh-oh, that question again...Mishil's jaw actually clenches shut for a moment (Yikes!) before she unclenches it and asks, "And why...is that?" "Because you aren't the true ruler of this land. If you were truly a ruler, you would have nurtured the people. Talked with them, nurtured their hopes for a better future. But you're no ruler. So you scold them, control them, put them to bed. How can someone who's not their true ruler dream for their future? Without a dream, you'll never be a hero to those people." We've watched these conversations before between them; is it really getting them anywhere? Deokman gets up to leave, but has to add, "I took what you said to heart." The part about tough discipline and meager reward, and no leniency..."I'm determined to set no more precedents." Hmmm, that got through, did it? So did she learn something here? (You have to think this will resurface before too long.)
Mishil retires to her chambers. She's looking tired, and shows some discouragement. Probably not just from that exchange; it must be Deokman's larger accusation about Shilla having accomplished nothing. Seems like it's really eating at her.
The royal procession heads to Ankang again. Not sure where we are, but look at this--some of the runaways have been caught! Looks like around 25 of them. Including the head man and at least one of his subordinates. They're bound and kneeling in a courtyard; Deokman arrives and sits down in front of them. They beg for another chance; they tell her they were scared that the fallow land wouldn't deliver and they'd be in even deeper, owing you even more interest. "Just like the nobles." Ouch, that one stings Deokman, we can see. We don't believe that this supposedly better iron will do any good, they tell her. Well this a turning point. Are they telling the truth? It does seem like it, but still, she didn't discipline them before--and now she really is backed into a corner, isn't she. We're only momentarily distracted from all this by the sight of Chunchu arriving-- What's he doing here? And Bidam has come with him. Deokman steadies herself, trying to control some serious frustration. "I'm trying to help you get out from under the nobles," she tells them. "To help you stop scratching out a living and help you till your own land. I'm trying to help you NOT be slaves!" They all look ashamed of themselves. "Do you WANT to be slaves and serve the nobility like beasts? Your children and their children enslaved forever?" Now she sounds more sad and concerned than angry. "Don't you understand? I'm trying to give you land. Land of your own to so and reap, and leave to your children." She looks like an exasperated mom, as some of Mishil's unkind words about common people reverberate in her head. Now the villagers are begging for their lives--"Never mind the land," they say. More of Mishil's words ringing in Deokman's head, and she wonders to herself, "Was Mishil right?"
Ah, but Deokman has returned the favor. Mishil is still sitting in her chambers, and she can't shake Deokman's demeaning assessment about her failure as a ruler. She wonders, "Was Deokman right?" WOW.
Deokman stands up. It's a tough spot and there's no clear solution...She swallows hard. "Whatever it takes," she says, "I WILL give you land. Not just to grow crops. But to find joy in life. To find hope." She still wants to do good by them...but she's so angry and frustrated...to the point where she walks up to the head man, turns and grabs Yushin's sword out of its scabbard, and holds it to his throat! Gasps and wide eyes all around. "You broke your promise. You broke faith with me. You risked the future of this village." The villagers all care about the guy, clearly, and are all terrified. Deokman stands there, hearing Mishil's voice from before: "Discipline must be swift and cruel"...she's visibly rattled, almost crying--but is she nodding just a little? Like she's accepting Mishil's words? Maybe not. "I'll help you find that hope for the future," she says, starting to cry and her voice breaking. "I'll never give up on you." Overwhelmed by her compassion, the head man begs her, "Spare me...Spare me and we won't run away again, I swear. Spare me, princess!" And now all the villagers are begging for mercy. "Please spare us. Spare us, please, princess!" Tears streaming down her face, Deokman steadies herself...and backswings, and slashes! The head man drops dead. And then another swing, killing his associate! For a moment everyone just stands there in stunned disbelief. Deokman is gasping, quivering, blood-spattered. But utterly resolute. To no one in particular she mutters, "I WILL make this work."