Original subtitles

This drama's historical events and characters are fictional. \NThe work is the author's imagination.

Episode 1

Subtitles brought to you by The Face Readers @ Viki

Please reconsider!

Your Majesty, please reconsider your order to depose His Highness!

Please, withdraw your command.

King Seonjo

PLEASE RECONSIDER!

-Drag them out!\N-Yes!

Mother! Mother!\N Crown Princess Yoo.

You bastards! How dare you!

Ga Hee, what's your thought?

Kim Ga Hee

I think anyone who covets the king's throne deserves death.

Kim Do Chi \N[The face reader, Bujejo]

Your Highness!

First grandson of the King, Lee Gee.

Where is traitor Gwang Hae?!

King Saejong's facial features consisted of\N a wide forehead and a pronounced nose.

And a prominent chin.

All three facial parts were harmonious, and his eyes resembled that of a dragon.

In fact, that face..

is the face of a peaceful reign.

It is truly the face of a king.

Please reconsider!

King Seonjo's reign of 41 years\N (1608 A.D)

I've already told you that it is an impossible matter. Therefore, why are you still causing this much ruckus?!

Are you all trying to go against me, who am the King?!

I'm prepared to die in order for this request.

How can you depose the Crown Prince without any evidence of treason?

Your Majesty, that must NOT happen!

You have prepared yourself for death?...

Then, I'll grant your wish.

For someone who is willing to die...

Who else?

Sincerely...

I...

Do I possess the face of a king who isn't meant to be?!

Crown Prince Gwang Hae

If a ruler without the ideal facial features succeeds as the king...

people will starve.

The royal servants will only listen to their own voices.

The whole country will fall into chaos.

And it will go through a huge tribulation.

Subtitles brought to you by The Face Readers @ Viki

Surely, the King of Joseon must be...

someone who has the face of a King!

Your Royal Queen,

[Future King Seonjo]\NPrince Ha Seong has a face that shouldn't become a king.

The citizens will suffer greatly if someone of those facial attributes becomes the king.

The current king's illness looks very grim. \NTherefore, what is the course of a plan then?

It's foretold in the book, "The Manual of the King's Face".

I'm risking my own life to report this to you as the Royal Court's face reader.

"The Manual of the King's Face" is written by the Great Master Moo Hak who founded this nation.

This unique guide to face reading was written with the sole purpose of Joseon's peaceful reign.

Please, believe and abide by the ideology.

Your Highness!

Your Royal Highness...

you must not covet the king's throne! \NYou should not become a king!

This country would face great chaos,\N if you were to become the king!

For the sake of this nation's future!

Seonjo 22nd Year of Reign (1589)

Your Majesty, we have arrived at our destination.

Subtitles brought to you by The Face Readers @ Viki

Hurry! Hurry!

How are the patients doing?

There are countless fatalities, because we're having a difficult time containing the disease.

Move! . . .

-Please help me!\N-Your Majesty, please come this way...

-Move aside!\N-Please, save me!

Your Majesty, you should not..

Move aside.

Don't worry. I will surely save you.

I will not leave my people in despair.

Everything is a lie!

Stop with your lies and get out of here!\N I don't care if you're the king!

-Hey, you bastard!\N-The well has dried up long ago.

This place is not even suitable to forage for plants in order to feed my kids.

Truthfully!

First, give us some food! \NIf your intention is to save us.

You're only trying to treat us with cheap ineffective herbs..

Since we're of low status, \Nare you just trying to gather us up to die?!

I'm dying of starvation!

Are they telling the truth?

The lack of food

is not this region's issue, only.

From a plague to starvation?! . . .

Release the food stored in the palace. So the people won't go hungry anymore!

Your Majesty, thank you for your grace.

In hopes of making it rain here, \NI plan on a prayer ceremony to bring rain.

I will not disregard your sufferings. By any means.

Your Majesty, thank you for your grace!

Move aside!

For those who didn't honor the king,

punish them, discreetly.

Yes. Your Majesty.

The king's forehead represents the sky.

And the area under the nose of the king's face represents the people.

The bottom of the king's facial features should contain the virtue,

so the people won't be poor.

Your Majesty's pointy chin,

will stab the people's mind and body, so please do not stop training your mind!

Don't ever forget that! Not even once.

Your Highness! Are you okay?!

Your Highness, are you having fun teasing me?

Yes, it's much more fun than watching a mask dance.

I told you it doesn't hurt at all many times. Why do you have the bedwetter's face every time?

It's because the person who treats you with acupuncture is not a doctor.

My knees are knocking together when I think he is missing the pressure points.

A great face reader is familiar with complexion and the acupuncture points in the face.

How can you compare Scholar Go to a quack?!

I'm sorry to compare you to a quack!

Your Highness should not speak while you're treated.\NGo San, Physiognomist (Face Reader)

The King has returned to the palace.

Your Highness should remain here for about an hour.

No. I will go greet him and come back.

This is also the king's royal order.

You still didn't find her?

Please forgive me, Your Majesty.

The reason why I brought you in here is because

you said things that other face readers didn't.

You said, "If you find a woman that will help me thrive,

"my fortune and my reign will change."

Was that not true?

How could I lie to you?

I'm trying all possible means...

I will give you one month.

If you can't find her,

you will have to take responsibility for your words.

I will remember, Your Majesty.

How is Prince Gwang Hae?

According to your command, he is receiving acupuncture treatment on his face everyday.

Gwang Hae does not know why he is receiving the treatment, right?

He does not.

There cannot be two dragons under one sky.

Even if you have to use suction cups along with the acupuncture,

change his face.

That's the only way Gwang Hae can live.

Yes, Your Majesty.

[ Ma Yi's Appearances Method ]

Lower jaw area next to the chin,

If that part is round and plump, and well balanced with the cheekbones,

the person will have great leadership and people's trust.

The area above the tails of the eyebrows, if this area is clear, fleshy and smooth,

You are born with great fortune.

Still,

he is changing my good facial features into something bad.

Your Majesty.

Who are you?

This is not a place that anyone can come into easily.

What are you looking for here?

Please save me.

If you just save my life, I will pretend that I didn't see anything.

Please save me.

Who are you rascals?

What were you looking for over here?

Your Majesty, there were thieves in the library.

Just shoot!

I'm okay.

Shoot the arrow and catch him!

Stop right there!

What are you doing?

Why aren't you shooting the arrow and catching him?

Your Majesty, the Prince is in danger.

Don't worry about the Prince.

Your Majesty!

Father...

Did you travel comfortably?

I wasn't able to greet you.

This late at night,

what were you doing at the library?

Oh...

Because I couldn't sleep, I was reading a book.

Are you okay?

Please get up.

Your Highness, are you sure you are okay?

I'm okay.

You really are something great.

You have caught the thief, Your Highness.

Oh, no. There was more than one.

I forgot for a moment.

Your Highness.

What were you trying to steal?

I came to get The Manual of the King's Face.

Did you just say The Manual of the King's Face?

That's right. The book that will prove your face is not that of a king.

The Manual of the King's Face will prove that you don't have a king's face; that's what I came to get.

Who sent you?

The king who will open a new world.

He sent us to save Joseon.

What?

Reigning King! Don't you see the hunger and the suffering of the people?

The reason why the Joseon land is cursed

is because of the one who should not have been the king is sitting on the throne.

For the sake of the country's peaceful reign,

we need a new king.

The Manual of the King's Face will validate that.

From now on, you are the Chief of the Royal Guards.

I thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!

Look at the corpse and find out his identity.

We have to find who is behind him.

Yes, Your Majesty.

And you may not tell anyone what happened just now.

I will remember your words.

Father...

Hon. (Gwang Hae's real name)

Yes, Father...

You have passed the age of boyhood.

If your mother, who died and left you here, saw you,

she would be happy.

Yes.

I really treasured her.

Did you see everything?

What do you mean?

What just happened at the interrogation room.

If a person broke into the palace, he must pay for his sins.

I believe that it is something that I should not interfere with.

So you didn't see or hear anything?

No, Father. I didn't see or hear anything.

There is nothing like being secret that gets people noticed.

If you are trying to hide something,

you have to be extra careful.

How can I hide other intentions from you?

But I will remember your words.

Hon, you have to live as still as a stone.

That is the only way you can live and find your destiny.

Father, don't worry.

I will live only as your liegeman.

He definitely said "The Manual of the King's Face".

"The Manual of the King's Face". Just what is that?

Yeong Sin, as soon as the day comes, I am going to catch the thieves, so be ready.

How are you going to catch the thieves?

I cannot let this go, helping his parents is a duty of the son.

I will catch them with my own hands.

This is it. The method to catching them.

Look at it carefully. Have you never seen this sign in any books?

The owner of a bookstore buys and sells books,

but doesn't read them.

This is like finding a needle in a haystack.

Why are you like that?

Oh, it's nothing.

Yeong Sin, where is a place where people gather the most?

That will be Mapo Ferry.

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Let's see, let's see.

Ha, this is too bad.Your forehead is where the fortune of an official career shows,

but it's just like a flat cutting board rather than having any convexity.

If you are being tested, you will fail many times.

That's right. I failed the civil exam over 10 times.

But seeing that your nose is protuberant...

I can tell you're pretty capable at night.

You will soon have a son!

How can this be? My wife has our fifth child!

You got everything right!

-He is right!\N-Move aside.

Look at my face. When can I marry?

No, my child is sick.

When will my child get better?

Everyone, be quiet!

From now, I will read your face without getting paid.

However...

I will only read the face of the person who knows what this means.

It seems like the footprint of a bear.

Is there no one who knows what this is?

5 dots.

Smallpox marks.

I know what that mark means.

Really?

Tell me. What is the meaning of this mark?

Read my face first.

I'll tell you after you read my face.

What is the matter?

It's nothing.

Let's take a look. Let's take a look.

Seeing your long and neat eyebrows, this is the typical sign of a man of letters.

Looking at the bony feature around your eyebrows, \Nyou have a good fortune with an official career.

Are you a Confucian student at Sungkyunkwan?

I've never stepped foot through the door of Sungkyungkwan.

Here. One of your eyebrow hairs is missing. I missed that.

How is my nose?

How are my lips?

Well...

If I were to talk about the lips...

It's that bastard. He is the one who is doing business without permission.

Give him a good beating quickly.

Catch that man! Stop there!

Get him. Get him.

Oh, crap.

Stop there!

Hey, you!

Oh, I thought I was going to die.

They are a well known gang at Mapo Ferry.

How could you so fearlessly set up business without paying for the space?

Since I didn't get paid to read faces, I thought it would be okay.

So, you pretended to be a face reader, using the constellation as bait?

You knew I was fake face reader and that's why you were fooling with me?

This guy, really.

Wait.

Did you just say, "the constellation"?

You really know what this mark means?

Then, did you think I was lying?

It's the King's Constellation: East, West, South and North.

The four stars rotating and protecting the center star: That constellation.

The four stars are vassal stars, and the one in the middle is the King's Star.

Thank you!

What are you doing?

Where can I see that? Do you happen to have it?

Can you show it to me?

I don't have it!

Look here. Look here!

Your Highness!

Your Highness, are you alright?

Yeong Sin.

I found out what the symbols mean.

Really?

Okay, pour some. Pour me a drink.

I paid a private merchant group silver bullion, and they found her.

She is a pure child who hasn't touched a man with even her fingertips.

Only if her eyes drooped slightly, she could have a fortune to become a wife of a high ranked officer.

She will end up being a Gisaeng.

Just who are you are looking for that you are this picky?

Somebody like a shiny moon whose light pierces the dark night clouds.

Location provided by Korean Folk Village

How am I supposed to find in a month someone I searched the whole nation for during the past year?

If I don't find her, His Majesty will not let me live.

It's the image of the shining sun and the moon in a clear sky.

The image of the divine purity and clean spirit!

Stop!

Oh, no. I've been looking for that face for so long.

However,

how could it be a boy, and not a girl?

Your Majesty, you must thoroughly reveal the truth about the trouble during the night.

We heard Gwang Hae could have been seriously harmed.

Perhaps they were aiming to harm Gwang Hae.

We should reveal why they broke into the palace and who's behind it.

Their goal was to harm Gwang Hae?

All of you are talking as if a minor is the country's foundation.

Your Majesty!

Although...

it's true that I, who let his people starve, am not considered suitable to keep the throne.

I know of my shortcomings well.

You accelerate the installation of the Crown Prince.

I am prepared to pass on everything I have to the Crown Prince.

My sadness is immeasurable, Your majesty!

My saddness is immeasurable, Your Majesty!

That doesn't even make any sense.

No one else has such a compassionate heart like Your Majesty.

Please reconsider this matter, Your Majesty!

Please reconsider this matter!

If that is what you all think...

then I have no other choice.

We are thankful for your grace.

I will, for the benefit of my people who are suffering from a long drought,

hold a shamanist service to pray for rain.

Your grace is immeasurable, Your Majesty!

For this ritual for rain, I order you to bring

all of your sons who didn't celebrate the coming-of-age. So we can gather our best wishes together.

This time, I will make the rain fall no matter what.

Make sure the ceremony is completely prepared.

Your grace is immeasurable, Your Majesty!

Your grace is immeasurable, Your Majesty!

Subtitles brought to you by The Face Readers @ Viki

His Majesty has the will to step down and elevate the Crown Prince?

Is that what he said?

Yes, I wonder why His Majesty is suddenly doing this.

I just can't understand.

Isn't it to...

test your loyalty?

His Majesty was probably trying to get rid of the disloyal royal servants.

Your Highness, as the oldest son, I have waited a very long time for this opportunity.

So that I may be elevated to Crown Prince as soon as possible, please help me.

Prince Im Hae...

when His Majesty is acting that way, you must be especially patient.

Do you think those ministers are the only ones being tested by His Majesty?

In Joseon, all of the Royal eldest descendants who did not become King, \Neither died or have been exiled.

But you are saying I should be patient and just wait?

The hot tempered Im Hae will consider this moment as his opportunity,

not knowing that the moment is a passing wind.

The slow elevation of the Crown Prince is not a good sign.

But it's a strange thing.

If they were hungry thieves, they should have gone to the pantry.

I don't know why they were at the library.

If His Majesty has something he wants to hide, then hide it for him.

However...

I heard Gwang Hae was also there.

Yes.

It's interesting to see that as a coincidence.

Whenever important things happen around the Palace,

he is always there.

Eat a lot.

Eat a lot and eat well.

What are you doing here?

I was hungry so I was going to get some porridge.

This porridge is not for the likes of you who wears silk clothing.

Isn't this to help the hungry?

Right now, I am really hungry.

Please give us some porridge.

Please, give it to us.

Oh, really.

I'll eat it well.

Just why are you doing this?

I was wondering if I could see that constellation book.

Didn't I tell you I don't have it.

It's the plague!

Run! It's the plague.

Look here. Come to your senses.

Move away! The plague is contagious.

All of the people with the plague have already has been quarantined\Nat the Hwalinseo (medical facility) out of Seoul.

The plague sign shows in the vomitting of blood.

Wake up!

What are you doing? Get a physician quickly.

Look here.

The physician said he had a bad reaction because he didn't have anything to eat for a very long time.

I knew it.

Acting as a quack face reader and now, as a quack physician...

Anyway, thanks to you, we saved a person.

Then, shouldn't you be giving me a reward?

Show me the astronomical chart.

Why are you fixated on the constellation?

A while ago, there was a thief in my house and he had that mark on his arm.

So, by finding out what that mark is, I am trying to catch the thief.

All I have to do is to confirm it with my own eyes.

This is the constellation that I saw.

Oh, it's true. It's exactly the same.

I have never seen a constellation book like this one. Who drew these?

I don't know.

Can I borrow it for a moment?

You were so pitiful, I just let you look at it, that's all.

-Look here. I'll take a quick look and return...\N-Master.

The Elder is coming.

What?

Stop it already and go.

Why are you doing this?

Wait. Wait.

I'll look at it quickly and return it. I'm pleading.

Oh, really.

Prince Gwang Hae?

Isn't he the Vice Minister of Literature?

Get out!

Did you forget? Your destiny of never living as a woman?

I did not forget.

Then, why are you spending indiscreet time with a guy?

What I did was wrong. I will be more careful next time.

Do not blame your destiny.

Father, my living as a man

has nothing to do with my fear of the destiny.

The one who died because of me...

It's because of my guilt toward the deceased brother.

So, don't worry.

At some point, I will completely forget that I am a woman.

The day that I'll live as a man to the bone will come.

I think you are going to have to attend the ritual for rain.

Excuse me? Does that mean I will be going into the Palace?

It's a royal command so there's nothing we can do.

That person you met earlier is Prince Gwang Hae.

When you go into the Palace, make sure you are not noticed again by him

and be careful that you are not exposed as a woman.

Yes.

It's a relief that the Prince

has forgotten about me.

However, I...

cannot forget him...

even though I'm living as a man.

Subtitles brought to you by The Face Readers @ Viki

Buddha, my brother has died,

while he was nursing me when I had the plague.

He died in my place.

I am not thankful at all.

I understand that you fulfill the wish of reincarnation.

Please let me meet my brother.

It'll be just for a moment; I have something to tell my brother.

Please, let me meet my brother. Please.

Your brother says for you to not cry.

Since he can hear all the things you say,

now, tell your brother, what you want to say.

Are you really the Buddha?

Are you the real Buddha?

I am a talking Buddha.

Buddha.

Please tell my brother

that I am sorry.

Tell him that I won't forget him.

That I am truly thankful.

Please relay that to him.

Your brother says that he is thankful that you are alive.

He wants me to tell you that.

While I am not beside you,

this star will protect you.

I will surely come back to meet you again.

So, make sure you wait for me.

Then and now, the same lies.

From now on, you have to live as a man.

Since you have the face to embrace two dragons,

you can never live as a woman.

That is your fate.

No, I don't want to.

I don't want to live as a man.

Lizard, lizard, bring cloud and fog.

If you let the rain pour, I will let you go and let you go...

His Majesty is coming!

The God of the Big Dipper!

Please give us rain!

Please give us rain.

Please give us rain.

Please give us rain!

Please give us rain!

Her enriched, curved forehead feature

will cover His Majesty's angled, lacking forehead.

And the soft line coming down the bridge of the nose

will embrace the sharp tip of the King's nose.

That face will change the King's face so his benevolence will be grand but not scary.

His Majesty will have the face of a good and wise king

that all the people of this country can rely on and rest comfortably.

So you are saying that the heaven wouldn't pour the rain for my effort?

Is that what you mean?!

He's been claming that the world doesn't belong to one person,

but everyone. If this is not treason, what could it be?

If you don't want everybody to know that you are a woman,

please follow me.

What will happen to Ga Hee?

Please give me wisdom.

Ga Hee.