Our characters have spent a lot of time being captivated — by their assumptions, by each other, by their own schemes — but now it’s time to face both fears and foes and make their final moves. They’ll have to take some big risks in the process, but where’s the joy in winning if there’s nothing at stake?
EPISODES 15-16
I don’t quite understand the particulars of the poison makeup Lord Park gave Court Lady Dong, but as it happens, it doesn’t matter that Lee In stops her before she kisses him — because she ATE the makeup instead of wearing it. She knew he’d refuse her (and loved him the more for it), and that he’d have to choose between having her killed for poisoning his brother or assuming the blame himself. And so, she says her poignant farewell and dies in his arms, leaving him devastated and without a witness against Lord Park.
Nothing, not even a temper tantrum from the queen dowager, can deter him from proceeding with Lord Park’s interrogation now. Lord Park has the audacity to show up in his court robes, insisting he’s only here to clear his name. But he’s made the same fatal mistake Minister Kim did three years ago: planning to make Hyun-bo the fall guy and tipping Hyun-bo off about it ahead of time. Under pressure from Sang-hwa and Myung-ha (who, apparently, only pretended to join Lord Park’s side), Hyun-bo testifies as both a witness and an accomplice to Lord Park’s crimes. Lord Park is promptly stripped of his robes, and Lee In has him tortured well into the night.
Lord Park still refuses to confess, so Lee In has everyone else leave. He reminds Lord Park of their conversation on the night his brother died, when Lord Park had urged him to step into his destiny now that the former king was out of the way. That was the moment Lee In decided he had to become king — so that this moment, when he gets to exact justice on Lord Park for his brother’s murder, could someday be possible.
Lee In takes his time deciding just the right punishment. In the meantime, he orders reduced sentences for Dal-ha and Hyun-bo (flogging and three years of labor for the former; exile for the latter) since they helped bring Lord Park down. When Myung-ha confesses that he was temporarily swayed by Lord Park and Hyun-bo, Lee In tasks him with delivering the executionary poison to Lord Park and standing witness to his demise. It’s meant to be an unforgettable warning of what awaits Myung-ha if he’s ever swayed again, and I’d say it’s a powerful one. Lord Park maintains his claim of innocence to the bitter end and laughs maniacally as he downs the poison and dies.
Lee In is prepared to face Qing’s disapproval over Lord Park’s execution. He’s even prepared to grant a position in the royal court to the former envoy interpreter, the very man who once gloated over Lee In and the other Joseon hostages while leading them into captivity. But Lee In is not prepared for the emperor to demand he send his gidaeryeong to Beijing. Determined to find a way around it, Lee In doesn’t tell Mong-woo, though she finds out through the grapevine anyway.
By then, she has more immediate problems to deal with, because the queen dowager discovers that Mong-woo is a woman. Having failed to get Lee In’s attention via hunger strike, the queen dowager lures him to her quarters by summoning Mong-woo and presenting her with women’s clothing. She proposes appointing Mong-woo as a concubine — after all, that will prevent Qing from taking her away. Lee In is tempted, but knows that would be a selfish decision (Mong-woo later confirms she’d have resented him if he’d done it) and refuses.
He’s still against sending her to Beijing, but she gently prods him to reconsider. She’ll be able to spy on Qing affairs, and she’ll get to see her father again. Despite feeling as though he’s failed yet again to protect her, Lee In relents. But he can’t let her go alone, so he pardons Dal-ha and orders him to accompany her. Dal-ha asks for a few days to prepare, and Sang-hwa allows it, knowing full well Dal-ha intends to take revenge on Hyun-bo. Murdering an exiled prisoner would make Dal-ha a criminal all over again, so instead he spooks Hyun-bo into fleeing and waylays him, making it look like an attack from a random bandit. At last, Hong-jang is avenged, and Dal-ha can live in peace.
The day before Mong-woo is set to depart, Sang-hwa comes to fetch her, bringing a gift from Lee In: a woman’s hanbok. Once she’s dressed, Sang-hwa takes her to meet Lee In by a river. Today, Lee In explains, they’re just an ordinary man and woman. They spend that blissful, simple day exploring the fields, skipping rocks, and relaxing at a secret house. That night, they prepare to say goodbye. They urge each other to stay strong and safe, and when she tries to tell him to hurry up and choose a new queen, he interrupts with a kiss. Since he has yet to beat her in baduk and earn the revelation of her real name, they promise to play again someday.
After Mong-woo leaves, Lee In shuts up his private baduk rooms and spends the next nine months making reforms to eliminate corruption among royals and public officials. During that time, Prince Rui dies unexpectedly, and the undiscovered false princess returns to Joseon. But though Mong-woo accompanies her, she doesn’t tell Lee In she’s returning, as she plans on a quick turnaround to do some traveling with just her maid. Perhaps she fears Lee In will have moved on and found someone else, but all she tells Myung-ha is that nothing good will come of Lee In knowing she’s returned. As she leaves, she notes wistfully that there’s not a cloud in the sky — no chance of a mongwoo today.
But Myung-ha alerts Lee In anyway, and Lee In goes to intercept her. Their reunion mirrors their first meeting: she hears the sound of a baduk game and finds him playing by himself under a tree. When she admits she was half-hoping it might rain so they could meet, he says there’s no need to wait for permission from the weather. Or, in his far more poetic words: “I’ll no longer wait for you while staring at the sky.” They kiss, and then sit down for that rematch. But even before Lee In wins the game, Mong-woo gives him her real name: Hee-soo. Lee In promises to spend the rest of his life with her.
I have a few complaints (like much of Myung-ha’s development happening offscreen) and some lingering questions (will she live as Hee-soo or Mong-woo now?), but on the whole these final episodes gave me the same feeling of enchantment that the first ones did. Lord Park’s execution and the role Lee In ordered Myung-ha to play in it gave me chills, and I liked that Dal-ha was given the chance to settle things properly with Hyun-bo. And while I didn’t necessarily see a need for the separation and reunion, I didn’t hate it either.
I was also expecting a sudden mongwoo to bring them back together, but I liked this alternative, coupled with Mong-woo’s decision to reveal her name even without being defeated. Their relationship isn’t a strategy game anymore; they’re not opponents, and they don’t need to hide behind false identities, mask their intentions, or wait for favorable conditions to make their moves.