Post by ajk on Jan 24, 2014 22:45:14 GMT -5
A sunny winter afternoon. Lee Je Hyeon arrives to see the king...
...but Gongmin and Noguk are still entertaining his two guests (where we left them last week). Gongmin is surprised to hear from Choseon that she isn't married, and with a chuckle tells her that because she did such a good deed (by contributing generously to the government's supply houses), he'll find her a husband! And in the next sentence turns to Pyeonjo and says that since Pyeonjo has renounced the cloth, well..."I shall recommend our friend here!" She blushes. "Seeing your reddened face, you must be liking him already!" Again to Pyeonjo. "Let's strike a deal right here, why don't we?" Gongmin's totally busting their chops; Pyeonjo's laughing along with him but Choseon isn't really sure what to think of it. Then Lee Je Hyeon's arrival is announced. Apparently Lee doesn't see the king very often, because he looks uncomfortable and tells Gongmin he's unworthy of being here. But Gongmin receives the old man warmly and recalls a visit Lee paid to him in Yanjing. "You are like a father and a teacher to me."
The queen dowager is trying to learn from Princess Deoknyeong about Yuan and Han customs regarding empresses and consorts. Of course, this is all about how to get Lee Hyebi into the palace as a consort. Then she tells Lady Kim she should go work in the queen's palace for now, so that she'll know if and when Noguk becomes pregnant.
Their meal over, the queen and her retinue are taking a stroll around the palace. She's brought Choseon with her, to show her around. Nice of her.
Back inside, Gongmin has introduced Lee to Pyeonjo and credits Pyeonjo for the work he's done. But Lee knows about him already, and thanks him for advocating the policies that put enough money into state coffers to fund military operations. Not only the troops they sent to help the Yuan, but also just to pay regular salaries, which was going to be a problem because they had to spend so ridiculously on that lavish feast for the Yuan crown prince.
Pyeonjo leaves the king and Lee to their business and is escorted by Eunuch Choi out of the palace. Surprisingly, Choi leaves Pyeonjo with a warning. "When you see a tree you shouldn't climb, avoiding it would be most judicious." Wow, what's his problem? Strange...but Pyeonjo accepts the advice with a smile and leaves.
Back inside, Gongmin tells Lee that he intends to "lean on Pyeonjo." And he asks for Lee's help, because "The number of people against that man shall increase conspicuously." If Lee is troubled by learning this--and he might be--he doesn't show it; he says he only hopes that a talented individual won't face discrimination. A very diplomatic answer.
As Pyeonjo leaves the palace, Master Bou is entering. Bou doesn't see him.
"There is something I feel saddened about." Gongmin tells Lee that not only the wealthy merchants but even commoners are donating money to strengthen the government's finances..."But, among you court officials I couldn't find even a single man donating a sack of rice to our cause." He says it gently and with a smile, not with anger, but Lee gets the message. What can Lee say, really...so he doesn't say much of anything, just stares at the floor. And with good reason, because that is pretty darned awful.
Pyeonjo finds out from Won Hyeon that Master Wolseon is here in the capital. And Won finds out that Choseon is getting a guided tour of the palace from the queen herself...which lifts his spirits enormously. "Our life is finally going to change now!", he says with excitement. Pyeonjo reminds him that "not too long ago, wrath was foaming from your mouth." Won really is a bit of a head case.
Now it's Master Bou's turn for a gentle scolding from the king. The Buddhist temples, they're all sitting on a lot of money but they haven't pitched in a penny either. Bou says he'll work on that and will "show you Buddhism's unrelenting zeal in defending our fatherland!" But then in the next breath he starts evangelizing, telling Gongmin about how Buddhism can best help the royal family by their strengthening their faith and setting that as an example for the people to follow. Gongmin doesn't want to hear this--at least not now. He leans forward a bit. "If we are invaded by foreign forces, will you run to protect your temples, before you move a finger for your country?" Well of course Bou didn't mean to go that far...did he? He doesn't hesitate to answer. "The rise and fall of a country is nothing more than dust in the air. But there are no boundaries to the teachings of Buddha." The answer shocks Gongmin. "Did you just say Goryeo's downfall or prosperity is just like dust?" "That is correct," Bou says. "With land to thrive in, trees can grow, birds fly around and sing their happiness. With water flowing, you shall find fish. Such is nature's providence. See it through the eyes of Buddha, and Goryeo is nothing but a feeble trice." Wow, talk about wrong time, wrong place--what a thing to say! Gongmin is glaring at him and seething with anger. "Lean on the teachings of Buddha," Bou offers, and with that he stands up and leaves. Gongmin is at a loss for words--wait a minute, here they come--he starts screaming to Bou outside the building. "Like dust in the air?! Do Buddha's teachings consider resurrecting Goryeo to its former splendor and prosperity is as negligible as dust in the air?!" Oh boy is he mad...but Bou just shrugs his shoulders and walks away. Hard to tell if he's being arrogant, or just clueless about the situation. Or maybe both. But whatever, he just dug himself into a big hole.
Wolseon and Deokun are at Choseon's estate, waiting for her to come back from the palace. Wolseon disheartens Won Hyeon by ordering him to come back to Gaetae Temple. But Pyeonjo offers to "take care of him for the time being," and that seems to be okay with the master, especially because Won is looking a lot calmer lately. Recent events are easing his frustration.
"I learned a lot from you today." Noguk has brought Choseon back inside for some tea, and surprises her with the compliment. And she asks about a quote of hers that Pyeonjo had relayed: "Did you say erecting a new house is much better?" Which, yikes, is exactly the subversive mindset we've seen from Choseon and certainly not something she'd want the queen to know she said! But Noguk surprises her. "It's fine," she says. "If this country can't renew itself, how long could it survive?" But not in the sense of an overthrow. "To achieve that, we shall start with finding independence." Choseon smiles at her, relieved and probably impressed by the queen's insight. Noguk takes a sip of tea...and suddenly looks to be in some discomfort, like she's a little nauseous. And this isn't the first time, she tells Choseon. Hmmm...."By any chance...Couldn't this mean you're pregnant?" Logical question, but Noguk says that's not it. The royal physician doesn't think so either...but Choseon thinks they both may be wrong.
Nighttime: Finally Choseon returns from the palace. She was there a long time. Pretty much everybody is asleep. But Pyeonjo is standing there waiting for her in the yard. Was she impressed with Noguk? "Enough to risk my life for her, if I were a man." Then they just sort of stare at each other uncomfortably. Finally Choseon breaks the silence. "Is it her?" As in, is Noguk the unnamed woman Pyeonjo said (in episode 22) he briefly had feelings for. No, he answers...and then awkwardly spills it. "Who I meant...was you, Milady." She deflects it awkwardly--"For someone who used to don the cloth, you're quite a good liar!" But she knows he's not lying. The look she gives him as she heads inside shows us that.
Noguk gets a visit from her friend Deoknyeong. Sitting on the table in front of her is the mourner's white garment we saw her wearing in the previous episode. She's been sitting there in silence, just staring at it. She had made it herself, expecting that the day would come when she'd need it. But she just can't bring herself to put it back on. Her friend gives her some much-needed advice: "Just accept the court's condolences, Your Majesty." Put on the garment and observe the proper grieving; don't get this all entwined with Goryeo's fate. "In no time, His Majesty shall give Goryeo all its splendor back." So put on the garment and receive the condolences, "for the sake of your father." She cries a little, like she knows Deoknyeong is right, but she's just not ready to take the advice.
Next day: More food from Gi Cheol being passed out to the masses out on a main street. More of his bribe-the-public strategy. Big communal cauldrons of stew for everyone to help themselves to. But now what's this...Won Hyeon and Gong Cheol are among the crowd, and as they take bowls for themselves we see them discreetly pouring some sort of powder into the cauldrons. And pretty soon everybody is moaning and sick to their stomachs! It makes them all so angry that they physically overturn the whole setup and start throwing rocks over the street wall and into the Gi estate. Gi Cheol and everyone else out in the inner yard have to flee inside for their safety. We see Won and Gong Cheol having a good laugh over it all. The Gis, they suspect somebody slipped a mickey into the food...but still, they fume over the people's ingratitude. And we learn from Kwon Gyeom that there are rumors that the cloth and supplies and stuff that they've been giving the public are being taken straight to the palace! Well, Gi Cheol has had enough of this. Time to push ahead with their plans. Choi Yu is in Yanjing again and Cheol says he's expecting good news. Whatever that means.
Yanjing: Oh, here's what it means--Choi is pitching the empress on an invasion! There aren't a lot of troops left protecting Gaegyeong, he's telling her, especially not after they sent troops to help the Yuan fight their rebels. And not only that, there have been some bad harvests in recent years so Goryeo's morale is low. He's got a whole spiel worked up, obviously...but she cuts him off and asks him point-blank: "How many men would you need?" He tells her 100,000, which is absurdly unrealistic. So then he says "I shall be content with 50,000." If you count the 30,000 at Ssangseong Commandery, that leaves 20,000 more the Yuan would have to provide. Commissioner Park is there and tells her he thinks they can free up that number. The empress thinks it over, her brow furrowed....
...and meanwhile Choi goes outside, where the ever-nervous Prince Deokheung is waiting for him. Today the prince is nervous over rumors that the Goryeans fighting those rebels for the Yuan are having overwhelming success. Meaning, Choi's big plans for overthrowing Goryeo, well, maybe it won't be so easy. And Deokheung still CLEARLY has no desire whatsoever to be put on the throne, despite Choi's insistence that he'll put him on it. The very idea of it makes him visibly agitated.
Commissioner Park thinks it's a lock. "If Prince Deokheung leads an invading force into Goryeo, because he is a royal, wouldn't that become an internal matter? If we succeed, all the better. If we fail, we just lay all the blame on Prince Deokheung." Well, maybe...but the empress seems to be weighing more than just that. "I can hate the Goryeo king all I want," she says, "but do we need to waste the lives of all those people in a civil war?" And then she starts grumbling about her brother. He really ought to just bring our mother here and come live in Yanjing, she complains (and she's totally right!). "Let's wait and see," she tells Park, putting off an invasion. "It's not such an urgent matter." Which isn't the answer Park wanted to hear; he wants to take advantage of this opportunity right now. She has to remind him that the Red Turban rebels are giving them too much trouble for them to stir up another batch of trouble with Goryeo. "Even if I lose all my brothers, I cannot lose Goryeo." You wonder if there's some attachment to her homeland that's woven into her thinking, despite her animosity over how it treated her as a girl...but either way she's reached the correct conclusion.
So it's left to Park to deliver the bad news to Choi. But he's certain she'll come around eventually.
Gaegyeong: Look at all of the stuff being given to the government! That was no rumor; people really are taking all of those goods they were given and are bringing it to the palace supply houses. Also, some of this stuff were seeing now was given by Choseon; we hear someone say it came from Sohwaldong and that's her neighborhood. Lee Je Hyeon and Lee In Bok are standing there watching it come pouring in. Lee Je Hyeon still has the king's gentle scolding ringing in his head; it's time for the government officials to start doing their share too. But he doubts the officials will ever agree to do it. "Convince the court to discuss it," Lee In Bok advises him. Have to at least try.
The Tea Party is meeting and they're like a different group: a whole bunch of happy campers. "She took you around for a tour of the palace?!" "We have made the right choice this time!" And other such comments.
Wolseon has decided he wants to spend the winter in Gaegyeong at the royal temple. Master Bou is happy to have him. As Wolseon looks out over the city from the temple's high balcony, he spots the palace and then asks Bou, "So... how much will you give him?" As in, that promise to cough up to help the government. Bou won't even acknowledge the question.
Lee In Bok is in Gongmin's office. He's just sitting there, obviously with something on his mind but unwilling to tell the king what it is. Does Pyeonjo being there off to the side have anything to do with it? Doesn't appear so, because he finally opens up and asks Gongmin, "How do you plan to deal with Lord Deokseong?" This time Gongmin is ready to act. As soon as those troops come back from helping the Yuan, he answers, "we shall deal with Lord Deokseong and all the collaborators." Not soon enough, Lee counters; we have to assume that they're assembling their private guards and already preparing for a confrontation. Kill him now, Lee urges. "Find any excuse to gather them inside the palace, and finish them off at once, if you want to avoid future trouble." Gongmin seems open to the idea...but it was hard enough to get Gi Cheol to go into the palace the last time; how on earth can they get him in there again? And now Pyeonjo pipes up with his own concern: that those troops helping the Yuan will never make it back home alive if Gi Cheol is killed now. Which is probably true...So the problem is, how to buy some time and keep the collaborators from acting until the troops return. And Pyeonjo has already thought that through; he's even written up a proposal, which he hands to the king to read. Gongmin looks it over; must be a good idea because he loves it. With that, Lee leaves the room, and sighs. He didn't get what he wanted.
"Your Excellency! People from the palace are here!" An agitated Gi Cheol has been pacing around in his yard, and gets this unexpected piece of news. Not just "people," but Eunuch Choi. Which sends Gi running outside in a fury; "You stuffed yourself with my money," he shouts, grabbing Choi by the collar, "and still make a fool out of me in front of His Majesty?!" Easy, dude, better calm down because now look who comes striding in on a horse. The king himself. Doink! What's he doing here? "I missed you, what else?", he says with a smile. What can Gi do but invite his guest inside. Okay, he can also let loose a disgusted grunt or two, which he discreetly does.
Inside, Gongmin is served a nice meal as Gi sits there brooding angrily. Gongmin tastes a piece of unleavened bread. "What kind of meat is this? Is it dog, or horse?" Ha! Pretty good! He's jabbing the guy about how he behaved at that feast. Gi doesn't laugh; go figure. Let's have a drink together, Gongmin offers...but you have to pour first. Which Gi reluctantly does, but as he did at the feast, carelessly spills on the king's sleeve. Very disrespectful if it's deliberate, and of course you know it is. Before returning the favor, Gongmin asks--but with a friendly chuckle--"Will you stake your life against me?" Gi is taken aback, but Gongmin wants to clear the air. "Let's get to the heart of things and confide in each other." Fine, Gi says. "Every word you utter involves slaying me. How could I set foot in that palace again?" "An eye for an eye," Gongmin fires back; you're always trying to get me kicked off the throne. Then he tells Gi with (at least apparent) sincerity, "Lord Deokseong. I know very well you were the one who put me on that throne." That's why I'm here. "I wanted to apologize." And I sent 2,000 troops to help the Yuan. Now how about helping out your country? "We need you and your relatives to open your coffers a little if we want to resurrect this country's finances." Gi is caught totally off guard by all this. "Well, the country needs our help...." What else can he say, at least at the moment. "I am grateful," Gongmin answers, reaching for the wine bottle. He pours Gi a drink, telling him as he pours, "If I had come to you and confessed my problems a little earlier, we would have avoided all this trouble. My apologies." And he's pouring all the while, overflowing the cup and spilling like crazy all over the place as Gi fidgets uncomfortably. Very disrespectful if it's deliberate, and of course you know it is. (What a great scene! Absolutely hilarious.)
Gongmin mounts his horse and leaves. He's been cheerful and smiling the whole time. Gi Cheol's associates gather around him. "Seal the warehouse and increase security," he orders. So he's not going to help the country after all? "Think I would let you fool me twice?!", he mutters in the departed king’s direction. Which, now that you think about it, is probably exactly what Gongmin was trying to get him to do.
"Wasn't Pyeonjo's plan brilliant?" So apparently the idea is that Gi won't want to be seen opening up his resources for any other reason after being asked to do so by the king for the good of the country. Hmmm....Gongmin loves it; he's with Noguk and she tells him "it was a wise decision" (which you know he loves hearing from her). He asks her again to wait just a little longer before "avenging your father's death." Which she's only too happy to do.
"How can this be possible?!" Uh-oh, Gi Cheol just got a letter from his sister and he doesn't like it. At all. "Is she telling me to bow down to the king and live quietly?" Yeah, that probably is exactly that she's telling him. Well he's certainly not about to do that, as wise as it would be. In fact, the very idea of it makes him so mad, it looks like this is the last straw. He tells his brother Ryun to go to Ssangseong Commandery and speak with Jo So Saeng. "Tell him to be prepared. If they deploy troops on our arranged date, I shall prepare for everything. So let's turn the tide once and for all!"
"What are you saying? Hold the Goryeo troops in Yanjing?" Look at this--Commissioner Park has figured out the whole situation. And he's trying to get the empress to act in their favor. They've fought so well for us, he tries to tell her, that we should give them a reward...but she sees right through him and cuts him off. "Think I wouldn't know the reason why you want to trap those Goryeo troops in Yanjing?" Yeah, he may be shrewd but she's no dummy either. He protests--"Do you truly plan to abandon your flesh and blood living in Goryeo? If that happens, you shall one day deeply regret all this." She just sits there, looking annoyed.
Ssangseong Commandery: Evening, and Gi Ryun has arrived. He's given a very friendly reception by Jo So Saeng, who's eager to go back to Goryeo. "Every single Goryeo man and woman living in Ssangseong must be thinking that," he tells Ryun. And of course if they prevail in an overthrow, big rewards await them. Jo's second-in-command Lee Ja Chun is there with them, not saying much (as usual) but smiling and nodding along.
"Things are progressing rapidly." Now Lee is talking; he's gone outside and finds his son. "It's time to make our move."
A bright winter day. Lee In Bok takes a few soldiers with him and they head out on horseback. Where are they going?
They're going out in the countryside somewhere to meet secretly with Lee Ja Chun and Lee Seong Gye. Lee In Bok hasn't met them before; why now? "You said you wish to defect?" Wow! Lee Ja Chun explains that he and his son know that Gi Cheol and Jo So Saeng have an invasion plan cooking, and "how could Goryeo people fight their own brethren?" They want no part of it. Can Lee In Bok trust them? "It's all for my son," Lee Ja Chun explains. I can't force my son to live carrying a treacherous dagger in his hands for the rest of his days." Their sincerity is enough to convince Lee In Bok. He accepts their offer, and he and his escort depart; for now Lee Ja Chun and Lee Seong Gye will return to their posts. Lee Seong Gye thanks his father for putting himself on the line. The father answers, "Big fish need a big pond to flourish." He sees great things in store for his son and thinks this is what will get them the big pond.
Lee In Bok brings all of this news back home to his king. Gongmin listens, his eyes wide with excitement. Here's his opportunity. "I shall finally be able to expunge the Queen's grief!"
And now look at this: Noguk is sitting in silent prayer, wearing her white mourning garment. Did she decide to take her friend's advice...or does she know something big is about to happen?
...but Gongmin and Noguk are still entertaining his two guests (where we left them last week). Gongmin is surprised to hear from Choseon that she isn't married, and with a chuckle tells her that because she did such a good deed (by contributing generously to the government's supply houses), he'll find her a husband! And in the next sentence turns to Pyeonjo and says that since Pyeonjo has renounced the cloth, well..."I shall recommend our friend here!" She blushes. "Seeing your reddened face, you must be liking him already!" Again to Pyeonjo. "Let's strike a deal right here, why don't we?" Gongmin's totally busting their chops; Pyeonjo's laughing along with him but Choseon isn't really sure what to think of it. Then Lee Je Hyeon's arrival is announced. Apparently Lee doesn't see the king very often, because he looks uncomfortable and tells Gongmin he's unworthy of being here. But Gongmin receives the old man warmly and recalls a visit Lee paid to him in Yanjing. "You are like a father and a teacher to me."
The queen dowager is trying to learn from Princess Deoknyeong about Yuan and Han customs regarding empresses and consorts. Of course, this is all about how to get Lee Hyebi into the palace as a consort. Then she tells Lady Kim she should go work in the queen's palace for now, so that she'll know if and when Noguk becomes pregnant.
Their meal over, the queen and her retinue are taking a stroll around the palace. She's brought Choseon with her, to show her around. Nice of her.
Back inside, Gongmin has introduced Lee to Pyeonjo and credits Pyeonjo for the work he's done. But Lee knows about him already, and thanks him for advocating the policies that put enough money into state coffers to fund military operations. Not only the troops they sent to help the Yuan, but also just to pay regular salaries, which was going to be a problem because they had to spend so ridiculously on that lavish feast for the Yuan crown prince.
Pyeonjo leaves the king and Lee to their business and is escorted by Eunuch Choi out of the palace. Surprisingly, Choi leaves Pyeonjo with a warning. "When you see a tree you shouldn't climb, avoiding it would be most judicious." Wow, what's his problem? Strange...but Pyeonjo accepts the advice with a smile and leaves.
Back inside, Gongmin tells Lee that he intends to "lean on Pyeonjo." And he asks for Lee's help, because "The number of people against that man shall increase conspicuously." If Lee is troubled by learning this--and he might be--he doesn't show it; he says he only hopes that a talented individual won't face discrimination. A very diplomatic answer.
As Pyeonjo leaves the palace, Master Bou is entering. Bou doesn't see him.
"There is something I feel saddened about." Gongmin tells Lee that not only the wealthy merchants but even commoners are donating money to strengthen the government's finances..."But, among you court officials I couldn't find even a single man donating a sack of rice to our cause." He says it gently and with a smile, not with anger, but Lee gets the message. What can Lee say, really...so he doesn't say much of anything, just stares at the floor. And with good reason, because that is pretty darned awful.
Pyeonjo finds out from Won Hyeon that Master Wolseon is here in the capital. And Won finds out that Choseon is getting a guided tour of the palace from the queen herself...which lifts his spirits enormously. "Our life is finally going to change now!", he says with excitement. Pyeonjo reminds him that "not too long ago, wrath was foaming from your mouth." Won really is a bit of a head case.
Now it's Master Bou's turn for a gentle scolding from the king. The Buddhist temples, they're all sitting on a lot of money but they haven't pitched in a penny either. Bou says he'll work on that and will "show you Buddhism's unrelenting zeal in defending our fatherland!" But then in the next breath he starts evangelizing, telling Gongmin about how Buddhism can best help the royal family by their strengthening their faith and setting that as an example for the people to follow. Gongmin doesn't want to hear this--at least not now. He leans forward a bit. "If we are invaded by foreign forces, will you run to protect your temples, before you move a finger for your country?" Well of course Bou didn't mean to go that far...did he? He doesn't hesitate to answer. "The rise and fall of a country is nothing more than dust in the air. But there are no boundaries to the teachings of Buddha." The answer shocks Gongmin. "Did you just say Goryeo's downfall or prosperity is just like dust?" "That is correct," Bou says. "With land to thrive in, trees can grow, birds fly around and sing their happiness. With water flowing, you shall find fish. Such is nature's providence. See it through the eyes of Buddha, and Goryeo is nothing but a feeble trice." Wow, talk about wrong time, wrong place--what a thing to say! Gongmin is glaring at him and seething with anger. "Lean on the teachings of Buddha," Bou offers, and with that he stands up and leaves. Gongmin is at a loss for words--wait a minute, here they come--he starts screaming to Bou outside the building. "Like dust in the air?! Do Buddha's teachings consider resurrecting Goryeo to its former splendor and prosperity is as negligible as dust in the air?!" Oh boy is he mad...but Bou just shrugs his shoulders and walks away. Hard to tell if he's being arrogant, or just clueless about the situation. Or maybe both. But whatever, he just dug himself into a big hole.
Wolseon and Deokun are at Choseon's estate, waiting for her to come back from the palace. Wolseon disheartens Won Hyeon by ordering him to come back to Gaetae Temple. But Pyeonjo offers to "take care of him for the time being," and that seems to be okay with the master, especially because Won is looking a lot calmer lately. Recent events are easing his frustration.
"I learned a lot from you today." Noguk has brought Choseon back inside for some tea, and surprises her with the compliment. And she asks about a quote of hers that Pyeonjo had relayed: "Did you say erecting a new house is much better?" Which, yikes, is exactly the subversive mindset we've seen from Choseon and certainly not something she'd want the queen to know she said! But Noguk surprises her. "It's fine," she says. "If this country can't renew itself, how long could it survive?" But not in the sense of an overthrow. "To achieve that, we shall start with finding independence." Choseon smiles at her, relieved and probably impressed by the queen's insight. Noguk takes a sip of tea...and suddenly looks to be in some discomfort, like she's a little nauseous. And this isn't the first time, she tells Choseon. Hmmm...."By any chance...Couldn't this mean you're pregnant?" Logical question, but Noguk says that's not it. The royal physician doesn't think so either...but Choseon thinks they both may be wrong.
Nighttime: Finally Choseon returns from the palace. She was there a long time. Pretty much everybody is asleep. But Pyeonjo is standing there waiting for her in the yard. Was she impressed with Noguk? "Enough to risk my life for her, if I were a man." Then they just sort of stare at each other uncomfortably. Finally Choseon breaks the silence. "Is it her?" As in, is Noguk the unnamed woman Pyeonjo said (in episode 22) he briefly had feelings for. No, he answers...and then awkwardly spills it. "Who I meant...was you, Milady." She deflects it awkwardly--"For someone who used to don the cloth, you're quite a good liar!" But she knows he's not lying. The look she gives him as she heads inside shows us that.
Noguk gets a visit from her friend Deoknyeong. Sitting on the table in front of her is the mourner's white garment we saw her wearing in the previous episode. She's been sitting there in silence, just staring at it. She had made it herself, expecting that the day would come when she'd need it. But she just can't bring herself to put it back on. Her friend gives her some much-needed advice: "Just accept the court's condolences, Your Majesty." Put on the garment and observe the proper grieving; don't get this all entwined with Goryeo's fate. "In no time, His Majesty shall give Goryeo all its splendor back." So put on the garment and receive the condolences, "for the sake of your father." She cries a little, like she knows Deoknyeong is right, but she's just not ready to take the advice.
Next day: More food from Gi Cheol being passed out to the masses out on a main street. More of his bribe-the-public strategy. Big communal cauldrons of stew for everyone to help themselves to. But now what's this...Won Hyeon and Gong Cheol are among the crowd, and as they take bowls for themselves we see them discreetly pouring some sort of powder into the cauldrons. And pretty soon everybody is moaning and sick to their stomachs! It makes them all so angry that they physically overturn the whole setup and start throwing rocks over the street wall and into the Gi estate. Gi Cheol and everyone else out in the inner yard have to flee inside for their safety. We see Won and Gong Cheol having a good laugh over it all. The Gis, they suspect somebody slipped a mickey into the food...but still, they fume over the people's ingratitude. And we learn from Kwon Gyeom that there are rumors that the cloth and supplies and stuff that they've been giving the public are being taken straight to the palace! Well, Gi Cheol has had enough of this. Time to push ahead with their plans. Choi Yu is in Yanjing again and Cheol says he's expecting good news. Whatever that means.
Yanjing: Oh, here's what it means--Choi is pitching the empress on an invasion! There aren't a lot of troops left protecting Gaegyeong, he's telling her, especially not after they sent troops to help the Yuan fight their rebels. And not only that, there have been some bad harvests in recent years so Goryeo's morale is low. He's got a whole spiel worked up, obviously...but she cuts him off and asks him point-blank: "How many men would you need?" He tells her 100,000, which is absurdly unrealistic. So then he says "I shall be content with 50,000." If you count the 30,000 at Ssangseong Commandery, that leaves 20,000 more the Yuan would have to provide. Commissioner Park is there and tells her he thinks they can free up that number. The empress thinks it over, her brow furrowed....
...and meanwhile Choi goes outside, where the ever-nervous Prince Deokheung is waiting for him. Today the prince is nervous over rumors that the Goryeans fighting those rebels for the Yuan are having overwhelming success. Meaning, Choi's big plans for overthrowing Goryeo, well, maybe it won't be so easy. And Deokheung still CLEARLY has no desire whatsoever to be put on the throne, despite Choi's insistence that he'll put him on it. The very idea of it makes him visibly agitated.
Commissioner Park thinks it's a lock. "If Prince Deokheung leads an invading force into Goryeo, because he is a royal, wouldn't that become an internal matter? If we succeed, all the better. If we fail, we just lay all the blame on Prince Deokheung." Well, maybe...but the empress seems to be weighing more than just that. "I can hate the Goryeo king all I want," she says, "but do we need to waste the lives of all those people in a civil war?" And then she starts grumbling about her brother. He really ought to just bring our mother here and come live in Yanjing, she complains (and she's totally right!). "Let's wait and see," she tells Park, putting off an invasion. "It's not such an urgent matter." Which isn't the answer Park wanted to hear; he wants to take advantage of this opportunity right now. She has to remind him that the Red Turban rebels are giving them too much trouble for them to stir up another batch of trouble with Goryeo. "Even if I lose all my brothers, I cannot lose Goryeo." You wonder if there's some attachment to her homeland that's woven into her thinking, despite her animosity over how it treated her as a girl...but either way she's reached the correct conclusion.
So it's left to Park to deliver the bad news to Choi. But he's certain she'll come around eventually.
Gaegyeong: Look at all of the stuff being given to the government! That was no rumor; people really are taking all of those goods they were given and are bringing it to the palace supply houses. Also, some of this stuff were seeing now was given by Choseon; we hear someone say it came from Sohwaldong and that's her neighborhood. Lee Je Hyeon and Lee In Bok are standing there watching it come pouring in. Lee Je Hyeon still has the king's gentle scolding ringing in his head; it's time for the government officials to start doing their share too. But he doubts the officials will ever agree to do it. "Convince the court to discuss it," Lee In Bok advises him. Have to at least try.
The Tea Party is meeting and they're like a different group: a whole bunch of happy campers. "She took you around for a tour of the palace?!" "We have made the right choice this time!" And other such comments.
Wolseon has decided he wants to spend the winter in Gaegyeong at the royal temple. Master Bou is happy to have him. As Wolseon looks out over the city from the temple's high balcony, he spots the palace and then asks Bou, "So... how much will you give him?" As in, that promise to cough up to help the government. Bou won't even acknowledge the question.
Lee In Bok is in Gongmin's office. He's just sitting there, obviously with something on his mind but unwilling to tell the king what it is. Does Pyeonjo being there off to the side have anything to do with it? Doesn't appear so, because he finally opens up and asks Gongmin, "How do you plan to deal with Lord Deokseong?" This time Gongmin is ready to act. As soon as those troops come back from helping the Yuan, he answers, "we shall deal with Lord Deokseong and all the collaborators." Not soon enough, Lee counters; we have to assume that they're assembling their private guards and already preparing for a confrontation. Kill him now, Lee urges. "Find any excuse to gather them inside the palace, and finish them off at once, if you want to avoid future trouble." Gongmin seems open to the idea...but it was hard enough to get Gi Cheol to go into the palace the last time; how on earth can they get him in there again? And now Pyeonjo pipes up with his own concern: that those troops helping the Yuan will never make it back home alive if Gi Cheol is killed now. Which is probably true...So the problem is, how to buy some time and keep the collaborators from acting until the troops return. And Pyeonjo has already thought that through; he's even written up a proposal, which he hands to the king to read. Gongmin looks it over; must be a good idea because he loves it. With that, Lee leaves the room, and sighs. He didn't get what he wanted.
"Your Excellency! People from the palace are here!" An agitated Gi Cheol has been pacing around in his yard, and gets this unexpected piece of news. Not just "people," but Eunuch Choi. Which sends Gi running outside in a fury; "You stuffed yourself with my money," he shouts, grabbing Choi by the collar, "and still make a fool out of me in front of His Majesty?!" Easy, dude, better calm down because now look who comes striding in on a horse. The king himself. Doink! What's he doing here? "I missed you, what else?", he says with a smile. What can Gi do but invite his guest inside. Okay, he can also let loose a disgusted grunt or two, which he discreetly does.
Inside, Gongmin is served a nice meal as Gi sits there brooding angrily. Gongmin tastes a piece of unleavened bread. "What kind of meat is this? Is it dog, or horse?" Ha! Pretty good! He's jabbing the guy about how he behaved at that feast. Gi doesn't laugh; go figure. Let's have a drink together, Gongmin offers...but you have to pour first. Which Gi reluctantly does, but as he did at the feast, carelessly spills on the king's sleeve. Very disrespectful if it's deliberate, and of course you know it is. Before returning the favor, Gongmin asks--but with a friendly chuckle--"Will you stake your life against me?" Gi is taken aback, but Gongmin wants to clear the air. "Let's get to the heart of things and confide in each other." Fine, Gi says. "Every word you utter involves slaying me. How could I set foot in that palace again?" "An eye for an eye," Gongmin fires back; you're always trying to get me kicked off the throne. Then he tells Gi with (at least apparent) sincerity, "Lord Deokseong. I know very well you were the one who put me on that throne." That's why I'm here. "I wanted to apologize." And I sent 2,000 troops to help the Yuan. Now how about helping out your country? "We need you and your relatives to open your coffers a little if we want to resurrect this country's finances." Gi is caught totally off guard by all this. "Well, the country needs our help...." What else can he say, at least at the moment. "I am grateful," Gongmin answers, reaching for the wine bottle. He pours Gi a drink, telling him as he pours, "If I had come to you and confessed my problems a little earlier, we would have avoided all this trouble. My apologies." And he's pouring all the while, overflowing the cup and spilling like crazy all over the place as Gi fidgets uncomfortably. Very disrespectful if it's deliberate, and of course you know it is. (What a great scene! Absolutely hilarious.)
Gongmin mounts his horse and leaves. He's been cheerful and smiling the whole time. Gi Cheol's associates gather around him. "Seal the warehouse and increase security," he orders. So he's not going to help the country after all? "Think I would let you fool me twice?!", he mutters in the departed king’s direction. Which, now that you think about it, is probably exactly what Gongmin was trying to get him to do.
"Wasn't Pyeonjo's plan brilliant?" So apparently the idea is that Gi won't want to be seen opening up his resources for any other reason after being asked to do so by the king for the good of the country. Hmmm....Gongmin loves it; he's with Noguk and she tells him "it was a wise decision" (which you know he loves hearing from her). He asks her again to wait just a little longer before "avenging your father's death." Which she's only too happy to do.
"How can this be possible?!" Uh-oh, Gi Cheol just got a letter from his sister and he doesn't like it. At all. "Is she telling me to bow down to the king and live quietly?" Yeah, that probably is exactly that she's telling him. Well he's certainly not about to do that, as wise as it would be. In fact, the very idea of it makes him so mad, it looks like this is the last straw. He tells his brother Ryun to go to Ssangseong Commandery and speak with Jo So Saeng. "Tell him to be prepared. If they deploy troops on our arranged date, I shall prepare for everything. So let's turn the tide once and for all!"
"What are you saying? Hold the Goryeo troops in Yanjing?" Look at this--Commissioner Park has figured out the whole situation. And he's trying to get the empress to act in their favor. They've fought so well for us, he tries to tell her, that we should give them a reward...but she sees right through him and cuts him off. "Think I wouldn't know the reason why you want to trap those Goryeo troops in Yanjing?" Yeah, he may be shrewd but she's no dummy either. He protests--"Do you truly plan to abandon your flesh and blood living in Goryeo? If that happens, you shall one day deeply regret all this." She just sits there, looking annoyed.
Ssangseong Commandery: Evening, and Gi Ryun has arrived. He's given a very friendly reception by Jo So Saeng, who's eager to go back to Goryeo. "Every single Goryeo man and woman living in Ssangseong must be thinking that," he tells Ryun. And of course if they prevail in an overthrow, big rewards await them. Jo's second-in-command Lee Ja Chun is there with them, not saying much (as usual) but smiling and nodding along.
"Things are progressing rapidly." Now Lee is talking; he's gone outside and finds his son. "It's time to make our move."
A bright winter day. Lee In Bok takes a few soldiers with him and they head out on horseback. Where are they going?
They're going out in the countryside somewhere to meet secretly with Lee Ja Chun and Lee Seong Gye. Lee In Bok hasn't met them before; why now? "You said you wish to defect?" Wow! Lee Ja Chun explains that he and his son know that Gi Cheol and Jo So Saeng have an invasion plan cooking, and "how could Goryeo people fight their own brethren?" They want no part of it. Can Lee In Bok trust them? "It's all for my son," Lee Ja Chun explains. I can't force my son to live carrying a treacherous dagger in his hands for the rest of his days." Their sincerity is enough to convince Lee In Bok. He accepts their offer, and he and his escort depart; for now Lee Ja Chun and Lee Seong Gye will return to their posts. Lee Seong Gye thanks his father for putting himself on the line. The father answers, "Big fish need a big pond to flourish." He sees great things in store for his son and thinks this is what will get them the big pond.
Lee In Bok brings all of this news back home to his king. Gongmin listens, his eyes wide with excitement. Here's his opportunity. "I shall finally be able to expunge the Queen's grief!"
And now look at this: Noguk is sitting in silent prayer, wearing her white mourning garment. Did she decide to take her friend's advice...or does she know something big is about to happen?