Original subtitles

(This program is a work of imagination...)

(based on historical figures.)

(It may include fictitious details and psychological description.)

Leave the palace before the sunrise tomorrow.

Get out of my sight.

Do not appear before me again.

What are you saying?

You are leaving the Palace?

You must leave right now?

I dared to deceive the King.

It is natural for the King to deceive a court lady,

but it is unacceptable for a court lady to do so.

Go and beg.

Beg for forgiveness.

Whatever it is you did,

if you bow deeply and beg...

I do not want to do that.

I still resent the King.

This might be for the better.

I cannot face him now...

as if nothing had happened.

Take this book.

("Moral Education for Women")

I cannot take what belonged...

to Royal Noble Consort Yeong out of the Palace.

Please keep it safe for me.

What about your friends?

Will you not even say goodbye?

I do not wish to cry right now.

It is not like we will never meet again.

(Episode 15)

My lady, have you seen Duk Im?

She left.

- Pardon? - My lady!

My lady!

My lady. I just got back from the King's Palace.

He is on his way here.

What?

Come on down here.

- What is going on? - Why?

Hurry. Gather down here.

Stand in line, quick.

- What is happening? - Why would he come here?

Get in line. Hurry.

Be quick.

Your Majesty, what brings you here so early in the morning?

Is Sung Duk Im here?

Is she here?

Sung Duk Im...

did as you commanded and left the Palace.

Lead me to her room.

I will.

Your Majesty, she left already.

Your Majesty.

I only wanted to confirm for myself.

I must be sure that she is...

no longer anywhere here.

("Moral Education for Women")

That book.

It belonged to Royal Noble Consort Yeong,

and she refused to take it with her out of the Palace.

So she left it behind.

Leave me for a while.

I will.

("Moral Education for Women")

You...

really have gone.

Without begging or clinging to me.

Yes.

That is typically you.

I have never met...

such an insolent one as you.

("Moral Education for Women")

(Filial woman, Wise woman, Ordinary woman)

(Your mother is a servant.)

What is this...

doing here?

(One year later)

- No. - Give me a discount.

Come on.

It is a rare book copied in palace font,

so I want at least three yang.

You charge more each time.

Leave it, then.

No, wait.

You were naive when we first met.

You got much better at haggling.

Here you go.

("Chunhyangjeon")

I will take this.

You cannot...

That is...

My goodness.

What does that say?

- My gosh. - Is that true?

- My gosh. - What a mess.

What is this about?

What is the matter?

Thank you.

It has been a while, my lady.

It has been a year since we met.

Do not give me such a wary look.

I have nothing to my name,

and I have no connections either.

Are we not much alike now?

I heard about you.

You got sent away.

Yes.

You did play a terrible hand.

You got the queen dowager involved.

Are you following me just so you can say that?

I was just pleased to see you.

The two people who served the King with all their hearts...

were abandoned by him on the same day.

Would you not say that means something?

Was involving the queen dowager really the only way?

What do you mean?

At the time, you were Royal Secretary...

with a lot of power.

What could I have done to beat you...

as a lowly maid?

I had to risk my life.

You see,

you did not risk your life.

I suppose you racked your brain a little.

"What will happen if I get Queen Dowager involved?"

"Will His Majesty take my life?"

"No, he will not be able to."

You swiftly finished your calculations...

and stepped in to obtain what you wanted.

What do you say?

Am I wrong?

Do not...

jump to your own conclusions on what others may be thinking.

Do you still think that you are a mighty royal secretary?

You always had a special place in His Majesty's heart.

And you know that...

better than anybody else does.

However,

you no longer have that special place in his heart.

What do you mean?

Do you wish to know what that notice is about?

All noble families must submit information...

on their unmarried daughters.

One of them will be selected as a royal concubine.

A royal concubine?

The King will remarry.

Enough time has passed.

For the King, both my sister...

and you...

are all in the past now.

I am pleased with the results of the archery and spear drills.

The soldier who won may join the cavalry unit.

And the three troops are to receive prizes.

Yes, Your Majesty.

But I must tell you.

I am not so pleased with the results of the ball striking drill.

I will change the training method.

Do that.

Your Majesty, you cannot return to the Palace in this heavy rain.

Princess Cheongyeon's residence is not far from here.

How about...

you spend the night there?

Your Majesty?

I will do so.

Send a messenger and inform Princess Cheongyeon.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Welcome, Your Majesty.

Hello. How have you been?

Very well.

What brings Your Majesty here?

Hello. I went hunting, but it suddenly started pouring.

Have a seat.

Please continue.

People say that he is still seen often at the market...

and acts like he has lost his mind from time to time.

Is this about Hong Duk Ro?

Is he still busy visiting royal relatives?

I heard he visited Prince Euneon three days ago.

Your Majesty will soon welcome a new royal concubine,

so I believe Hong Duk Ro...

will have no choice but to give up his vain ambitions.

I heard you have already selected your new royal concubine.

Who is she?

Her family is in the Soron faction.

She is the Chief State Councilor's niece.

Her surname is Yoon.

Oh, no. Is it all wet, Duk Im?

Your Highness, I found the book that you were looking for.

Is this the right one?

Yes, you managed to find this.

It is similar to the Story of Hong Gae Wol.

A woman's adventures in the world disguised as a man...

I forgot to tell you.

His Majesty is here.

Do you want to go and say hello?

No, Your Highness.

Since I am no longer His Majesty's personal maid,

I am not allowed to see his face unless he asks for me.

Still, it is you.

I was banished from the Palace for I have sinned.

Will my husband like this?

I am sure he will be delighted.

What about you, Cheongsun?

You will give it to Prince Consort Heung Eun, right?

Yes, of course.

What about you, Duk Im?

I have not thought about it.

I could just use it myself.

Give it to His Majesty.

- Pardon me? - His Majesty came all the way here.

You should beg for his forgiveness.

Who knows? You may be able to return to the Palace.

No, I cannot.

I have dared to disappoint His Majesty,

so I cannot be forgiven.

I am surprised that he was disappointed in a mere court lady.

You cannot be disappointed without expectations.

He was gravely disappointed. I am certain he will not forgive me.

Then why did he send you to my house?

She lived as a court lady for many years,

so she does not know how the outside world works.

I do not want her to suffer in any way.

I must ask you to accept her since you know her personally.

He did not arrange this because it was you.

His Majesty always makes sure court ladies would have...

somewhere to stay when they leave the Palace.

You had nowhere to go.

I...

did not know...

that His Majesty was the one who sent me...

to Princess Cheongyeon's residence.

The day I was expelled from the Palace,

I intentionally told His Majesty...

the harshest things I could think of.

I wanted to hurt him.

Even if I was flogged and became a slave,

it would be nothing strange.

Nevertheless...

I was expelled,

but I am doing fine.

And now that I know it was all thanks to His Majesty...

For some reason, it makes me even more miserable.

It is all in the past now.

It is very good to see you. It has been too long.

I got to see you today thanks to this rain,

so these falling raindrops sound like music to my ears.

I apologize, Your Majesty.

I was ordered to light the lanterns for Your Majesty.

I ordered you to never show yourself before me.

I apologize, Your Majesty.

You disobeyed a royal order...

as if it was nothing.

But then again,

I know that you were never afraid of me to begin with.

I wish to ask you something.

You left...

"Moral Education for Women".

I saw something strange in the book.

Why do you have that?

I beg your pardon?

I beg your pardon?

Never mind.

Forget it.

I have nothing to do with you anymore.

You...

or Hong Duk Ro.

You said you never wanted to see me again.

Please forgive me to appear in front of you again.

I am sorry to say this,

but I need to ask you a favor.

A favor?

What is it?

Since Princess Cheongyeon is your sister,

you probably visit here from time to time.

If you ever see me,

could you please pretend you did not see me and pass by?

If you could just pass me by like a stranger...

How dare you order me around?

You should be reflecting on yourself,

but you have only become...

more arrogant and rude.

Then punish me...

for being arrogant and rude.

Punish me properly...

without any toleration.

Then...

I shall untie the string on your clothes.

Once you spend the night with me,

you cannot be an ordinary court maid anymore.

If you do not become a concubine...

even after we spend the night together,

you will get stuck in the backroom and waste your time.

You will rot as a worthless worm...

despised by other court maids.

That scares you more than death, does it not?

Are you finally getting afraid?

Ma'am. Why is he returning to the palace already?

I do not know.

Your Majesty.

Your Majesty. It is late.

Rain has stopped. I shall go back.

Your Majesty.

Look.

How dare you look at the King's face without his permission?

Please forgive me, Your Majesty.

I have disrespected you...

for not knowing the royal customs.

Who are you?

I am Yeon Joo of the Yoon's family.

I know who you are.

I have always imagined what you would be like.

You are more...

Royal Guard.

Yes, Your Majesty.

It is too late for a woman to walk around.

Walk her home.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Well...

What should I do?

If you do not become a concubine...

even after we spend the night together,

you will get stuck in the backroom...

and waste your time.

You will rot as a worthless worm...

despised by other court maids.

That scares you more than death, does it not?

That will be the real punishment.

Duk Im.

Duk Im.

My lady.

Are you heading back to the palace?

That is not it.

I have a message from the palace.

You can go back to the palace.

What do you mean?

Anyways, let us go back to the palace.

What brings you to my house?

Have you decided to forgive this poor man?

I am here to say goodbye.

I am going back to the palace.

So that is what happens.

You are going back to His Majesty,

and I am abandoned.

Why the long face?

Do you not want to go back to the palace?

No.

My.

I want to go back...

even if I have to cut my stomach...

and remove my liver.

I have something I want to say.

I once told you...

Queen Wonbin would have been alive...

if she had not become the concubine.

I have always regretted saying that.

She could have had a son...

and lived a happy life.

She just...

happened to be very unfortunate.

Our lives are determined by the deity,

and we cannot do anything about that.

So,

her death is never your fault.

I cannot forgive you...

for what you have done to my friend,

but I have always wanted to say this to you.

Did you mean it...

when you said you do not wish to go back to the palace?

I can make that happen.

You should come with me.

We should leave.

I will take you wherever you wish to go.

Shall we tour Mount Geumgang?

Or we can sail to Tamra Island.

We can freely go anywhere we want.

What do you say?

Are you not interested?

That is something not even the King can do for you.

You still have the bad habit of teasing court ladies.

I will pretend I did not hear that.

I always felt angry whenever I saw you.

Part of me knew exactly why,

and that made me angrier.

When we met again outside the Palace,

for the first time, I did not feel angry.

What are you saying?

If I were to go with you, you can forget the pain of your dismissal...

and be happy?

Is that it?

Could that be it?

You overestimate yourself.

I lost everything.

I must suffer in pain for the rest of my life.

What you offer me...

is enough to barely keep me alive.

Enough to barely let me breathe.

Just that much consolation.

Perhaps I can take comfort...

in the fact that I have what the King could not.

If you hear the news that I have died,

remember this.

That the one to kill me...

was you.

Why would you tell such a joke?

If you hear the news that I have died,

remember this.

That the one to kill me...

was you.

He spoke as if he really were going to die.

Your Majesty, if I may say,

the Royal Secretary position has been vacant for too long.

You must select someone soon to fill the vacancy.

Minister of Personnel is right.

The Royal Secretary has an important duty.

You cannot put off the selection any longer.

Please select someone from the Royal Secretariat...

and appoint him Royal Secretary.

I will think about it.

If I may say so,

you should not make the mistake of appointing...

someone disloyal like Hong Duk Ro again.

Because he was your friend since childhood,

you favored him over others,

and that is what caused a problem.

Second Drafter.

You are out of line.

- His Majesty... - The Second Drafter is correct.

Royal Secretary Hong's mishap...

was my fault.

I will soon select...

a new Royal Secretary.

Thank you, Your Majesty.

No.

I will not make the same mistake again.

I will forget about you...

and find another woman to keep close.

I will do my best to her.

Though no one...

can replace you.

His Majesty the King is entering.

Welcome, Your Majesty.

I wish to say something to everyone.

This is for everyone to hear.

Some of you already worked in the Palace,

and some of you followed your lady here.

Now Royal Noble Consort Hwa is a member of the royal family.

You must serve her with utmost care.

- Yes, Your Majesty. - Yes, Your Majesty.

To see you care so much about me,

I am so touched and grateful.

You may call yourself my wife now.

Yes, Your Majesty.

I hope that...

you settle in to live here well.

I will cherish you with all my heart.

Thank you.

You may all look up.

The personal maids...

are to be in close touch with the Royal Infirmary.

If your mistress requires medicine, you will report to me.

And...

Your Majesty. Do you remember that court maid?

I heard she used to be your personal maid.

You are back.

Yes, Your Majesty.

I am not well-versed in the ways of the Palace,

so she was assigned to me by one of my elders.

I will rely a lot on you. I hope you will assist me.

I will do my best, Your Highness.

Can you go inside and lay out my bedding?

I will.

Because she served you for many years,

she is very thorough.

You can leave.

Yes, Your Highness.

Lady Sung.

It is good to see you.

Your Majesty, I am sorry to inform you that...

the queen dowager just got up from...

I do not mind.

The King may enter.

Welcome, Your Majesty.

What brings you to my chamber at this early hour?

Why did you bring Sung Duk Im back to the Palace?

She was expelled as per my royal order.

Why did you bring her back?

You are taking your anger out on the wrong person.

I did not order her return to the Palace.

Then who was it?

Not I...

or you.

Then who could it be?

Lady Sung, I have a favor to ask of you.

Would you submit this to the King's Palace for me?

May I ask what it is?

The ideal date for the first night together...

selected by the Royal Observatory.

I was told that I should receive the date...

and submit it to His Majesty.

Yes, Your Highness. I will submit it in your stead.

Do it now.

Pardon me?

Why? Is there a reason you cannot?

His Majesty has to visit the Jongmyo Shrine tomorrow,

so His Majesty must be taking a bath at the moment.

That is all the more reason why you should go.

You were His Majesty's personal maid,

so I am certain that you are used to it,

whereas my maids are not.

I knew you would do it for me. You are the only one I can trust.

Even so, you should have come a little later.

Gosh, why did you have to come now?

I will just wait here until His Majesty is finished.

His Majesty will leave for the Jongmyo Shrine right away.

You know, we should just do it now.

If we fail to find the right time,

you will have an even bigger problem.

Okay.

It is odd that the Royal Observatory would do this.

They never release these dates at such a late hour.

Was there a delay because Royal Noble Consort Hwa did not know?

You need not do everything by yourself in such a hurry.

If you need help,

I give you permission to let others in today.

No. It is okay, Your Majesty.

Lady Seo will be here soon.

Do as you wish.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Your Majesty.

Royal Noble Consort Hwa's maid...

is here with the date for your first night together.

If Your Majesty would allow it,

she will submit it right away.

Royal Noble Consort Hwa's maid?

Who?

Sung Duk Im, Your Majesty.

Sung Duk Im may enter.

Pardon me?

Yes, Your Majesty.

Do not worry. I will enter with you.

My lady, why did you come out?

I am following His Majesty's order.

You are to wait outside with me.

You may enter.

Wait, but...

So you have returned.

Yes, Your Majesty.

To show me that?

Is that why you returned?

You seemed completely unbothered.

Are you happy to be back?

Or...

were you forced to return against your will?

I must confess that the latter is true.

Being expelled was not a punishment to you.

Then you shall stay here for the rest of your life.

As a court lady who must devote herself to the King.

Only look at me, whom you do not even love,

and rot here in the Palace for the rest of your life.

That will be an adequate punishment for you.

Please allow me to leave, Your Majesty.

I am no longer one of your court maids.

I now serve Royal Noble Consort Hwa.

You are no longer mine?

Were you ever mine?

Leave at once.

Bring her to her knees.

- Yes, Your Highness. - Yes, Your Highness.

Your Highness!

Why are you doing this?

You must think I am a complete fool.

You went to see His Majesty and tried to seduce him.

His Majesty ordered the other court ladies to leave...

to spend time with you alone.

How do you know...

what happened in the King's Palace?

Bring the switch.

I thought it was odd from the very beginning.

The way His Majesty was looking at you...

told me there was something.

Thank goodness I checked.

Now, you must have learned to fear your master.

Your Majesty, the Chief Commander of the Royal Guard...

would like an urgent audience with you.

He may enter.

What is the matter?

Your Majesty, I regret to be the bearer of this news.

The former Royal Secretary,

Hong Duk Ro,

passed away.

Your Majesty.

Hong Duk Ro left this letter for you.

(Your Majesty.)

Your Majesty.

This will be the last earnest letter from me.

I thought over and over...

about where it went wrong,

and I finally realized it.

That everything was wrong from the beginning.

Do you remember the time when you were a young Crown Prince,

and I was a young friend of the Crown Prince?

The book was ripped.

It is the part my grandfather told me not to read.

Did you rip it?

I deceived you from the beginning.

Yes, it was me.

I was afraid His Majesty would be mad at you.

The person who ripped the forbidden book...

and saved you from the crisis...

was not me.

(The person who saved you...)

The person who saved you...

was a small...

and young maid...

("Records of the Grand Historian")

who never pays attention to.

For a very long time, I had forgotten about the young maid.

I told myself...

I am the one who saved you,

so I deserve your trust.

("Moral Education for Women")

However, the deity watches all the lies.

The young maid probably...

still has the pages ripped from the forbidden book.

(Your mother is a servant.)

Perhaps...

I think I know who that young maid is.

I am now leaving to protect my sister.

Your disloyal subject is informing you for the last time.

Your Majesty, please...

do not lie to your heart.

(Please do not lie to your heart.)

His last name was Hong.

His first name was Guk Young.

And his courtesy name was Duk Ro.

He was my subject,

family,

and my only friend.

In East Palace that was lonely,

he always stayed by my side.

What you did yesterday is too dangerous.

You should refrain from it.

If you knew how to use the sword, I would have taken you with me.

Did I...

do my best for him?

In the end,

it is me who killed him.

I am glad you are here, Your Majesty.

I am sorry, Royal Noble Consort Hwa.

I am leaving after seeing your face.

I hope that does not hurt your feelings.

Your Highness. His Majesty...

heard about the former First Royal Secretary...

Hong Duk Ro's death.

(A message about someone's death)

He was kicked out after committing a crime.

I had forgotten.

He was Queen Wonbin's brother.

It is understandable for you to care about it.

I have heard a lot about him.

I have always wondered what kind of person he was.

Do you think you can tell me about him?

I will, later.

Where is Duk Im?

I have a question for her.

I sent her on an errand...

to my parents' house.

She will be back in the morning.

Never mind then. I will ask her later.

Your Majesty.

You should come in even for a short moment.

That is nothing serious.

I ordered a court maid to do some laundry.

Why did you make her work in the middle of the night?

The rule says doing the laundry is permitted only in the daytime.

- Court Lady Seo. - Yes, Your Majesty.

Tell her the custom of the palace.

After Thanksgiving and near winter,

court maids do not do the laundry at night.

Because court maids might become ill...

if they put their hands in cold water.

Why is Duk Im...

doing such petty work?

Queen Hong has sent her especially for you.

Why on earth is she doing such low work?

How dare you treat the court maid Queen Hong has sent you?

Royal Noble Consort Hwa!

Are you looking down on Queen Hong and me?

Please forgive me, Your Majesty.

- I should have known better... - How dare you...

Please calm down, Your Majesty.

Duk Im is Royal Noble Consort Hwa's maid.

So?

Are you saying it is up to her owner to treat her any way she likes?

That is not what I meant. I only...

- Royal Noble Consort Hwa. - Yes, Your Majesty.

Queen Hong has assigned her to you.

Do not treat her carelessly.

I will bear that in mind.

Your Majesty. Are you going to the King's Palace?

How dare you...

I kicked her out of the palace myself.

You have ignored my command.

If it was someone else,

I would never tolerate it.

Sung Duk Im.

Do you know...

what she has shown me after coming back to the palace?

That is not why I sent her away.

Do you know...

why you are mad at her?

Because you could not control her.

That is why you are mad.

That is why you kicked her out of the palace...

and keep her out of your sight.

Just because you are mad now,

are you going to give up on her?

She is the only way for you to be happy.

Love someone...

from the bottom of your heart...

and make a family.

The only path to live like a human.

Mother.

No one in the world...

tells you to live like a human and be happy.

As long as you're the King,

everyone will be satisfied.

However, I want to tell you as your mother.

Your Majesty.

Please be happy.

San.

I hope you become happy.

I want to be alone.

So what do you expect me to do?

She does not want me.

I have never loved you.

You were never a man to me.

And you...

never will be.

I have always fought...

fiercely in my whole life.

I overcame any obstacles.

However,

you are too hard.

Bok Yeon.

Duk Im.

Why are you crying?

What happened?

Master Hong Duk Ro...

passed away.

What?

But...

I cannot cry...

in front of Kyung Hee.

I will just cry here in secret.

Pretend you did not see me.

Why are you crying?

Why are you crying here...

alone?

What are your great friends doing?

Your Majesty.

What brings you here alone?

Are your hands okay?

I am okay.

Did Royal Noble Consort Hwa harass you again?

Is that why you cried?

That is not it.

You should rather cry because of me.

You should cry only in front of me.

When I cannot see you,

when I do not know you are crying,

do not cry alone.

This is an order.

Your Majesty. It is not because of Royal Noble Consort Hwa.

I heard Hong Duk Ro died.

While I was thinking about him,

I just started crying.

Everything is changing rapidly.

Once changed cannot be undone.

I am not sure why.

But I just became tearful.

Is it really impossible to undo?

I beg your pardon?

The dead does not come back.

However, as long as he is alive,

there will be a chance.

As long as...

he is alive in front of me.

I have a question for you.

Please go ahead, Your Majesty.

When I was young,

I read the forbidden book...

the Late King forbid.

Someone ripped the pages in the book...

and saved my life.

Were you...

the young maid?

- Duk Im. - What difference does it make...

whether it was me or not?

Time has passed and everything has changed.

I am no longer the Crown Prince's maid.

And you are no longer the Crown Prince...

whose life is at stake.

What is the point...

of talking about the past now?

It was you.

It was always you.

Duk Im.

I cannot feel bad for you.

I beg your pardon?

I did what I had to do as a king.

So I do not regret it.

Even if I have to deceive you again,

even if it hurts you,

I will do it if I have to.

I know you will.

But that does not mean...

it did not affect me at all.

Do not take it that way.

It breaks my heart...

to see you cry.

It is unbearable.

I cannot say...

I am sorry,

but I can say something else.

Thank you.

For saving my life repeatedly.

Even when I did not know you,

you protected me.

Thank you,

Duk Im.

Is it...

too late?

Once changed...

can never be undone?

I missed you,

Duk Im.

(Episode 16 and 17 will air next Saturday at 9:50pm.)

(The Red Sleeves)

I will not lose you ever again.

I love you.

Duk Im spent the night with His Majesty.

Why are you smiling?

We have become family.

"Cold North wind is blowing..."

"and the snow falls heavily."

Precious people keep leaving us.

When spring comes, flowers will bloom again.

I went against the deity...

to love you.

Why me of all people?

No one else...

can replace you.