Original subtitles

I hear the new Home Affairs Minister's quite young.

Choi Minkyu.

The President holds him in very high regard.

Should we arrange a meeting with him?

Minchul will take care of it.

How was it?

- She rides well. I'll take her. - Yes.

Pardon?

In exchange for her, I'll give you my district.

I'm very attached to her.

There aren't many politicians you can trust.

But… I can get you elected.

Thank you.

It is thanks to the Cheongwoo Federation that I am now an assemblyman.

I will do my utmost to serve the Federation.

As soon as the complex is complete,

Cheongwoo will own this country.

What did Choi Minkyu say?

Well, that he'd speak to the President, and report back to me.

Does he want more money?

Yes.

That dirty thug, how much does he want from us?

Go squeeze the members for more.

They can't even afford to invest in the complex.

Asking them for more political funding…

Stop talking nonsense.

Find a way to raise that money. And stop complaining, huh?

Seongmin.

Tell me.

What is your share in Seohae Oil?

Around 30 percent, I'd say.

You should give it to me.

Pardon?

Don't worry, I'll pay you back eventually.

Uh…

- Those Seohae Oil shares are... - You're an assemblyman,

it's time to make sacrifices.

Don't look surprised.

You don't want to make this awkward.

- Did you hear that? - Yeah.

Uncle Samsik.

What's your stake in Seohae Oil?

It's 32 percent.

Have you heard this?

That with 62 percent, you can become a member of the Cheongwoo Federation?

That would be impossible.

I'll give you my shares.

In return…

I need you to get the funding.

If you do that for me,

I'll get you into the Cheongwoo Federation.

Segang Textiles Port Development Launch Ceremony

Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Assemblyman An Minchul.

It is my dream

to increase South Korea's GDP through exportation.

The President shares my commitment

to developing our port facilities.

Once these ports are up and running,

South Korea is set to become a dominant global exporter

within the next 10 to 15 years!

Uncle Samsik

Uncle Samsik

Cold-Blooded

I was curious about Kim San.

Could you be more useful to me than Kang Seongmin?

It would take forever to become an assemblyman,

then a minister and do everything you want.

If Choi Hanrim becomes our next president,

you can do all of it as soon as next week.

But…

That's what you want, isn't it?

You knew about Kang killing my brother, didn't you?

Uncle Samsik.

Uncle Samsik!

Uncle Samsik.

An Kichul knows everything.

What?

That you killed An Minchul.

How?

He knows about that?

Yes, he knows about everything.

I'm sorry, but before I realized it,

I told him about the Sineui Alliance Code of Conduct.

You told him about the Sineui Alliance Code?

Uncle Samsik, you should meet with An Kichul.

March 19, 1960 Seoul, South Korea

Banya Hotel

The exit is to your left, gentlemen. Thank you.

There are all these foreigners just standing around outside.

What are they doing here?

They're UN investigators.

Come in.

Did you bring it?

Yeah.

It's clearly his signature.

Yeah.

Uncle.

When this hotel was first built,

this room was my father's office.

I used to run around in here every single day.

Back then, I thought this place was enormous.

But now,

it feels quite small.

Even so, there's no place like it in all of South Korea.

Exactly my point.

South Korea is beginning to feel too small for me.

Uncle Samsik, are you a descendant of the An or Kang family?

Sir?

Uh…

Well, I'm, uh…

a descendant of the An family.

Good to hear.

You see, the two families

have severed ties.

Ah.

I see.

I'm well aware that Kang Seongmin killed my older brother.

Uncle Samsik, your methods…

they don't work on educated people.

They only work on people like Yoon Palbong.

My father always said that you would be a useful person to have around.

Right.

I will do my best, sir.

Exactly how involved were you in my brother's murder?

All I ever did was take Yoon Palbong to Busan.

I hadn't the slightest idea

that Kang Seongmin was planning to kill Assemblyman An Minchul,

- I swear it! - Once the coup is complete,

Kang Seongmin will be executed…

in a legal manner.

Are you sad to see him go?

Uncle, you seem to have a bad habit.

You underestimate people who are younger than you.

You need to fix that.

Yes.

Thank you, sir, for your wisdom.

I didn't mean me.

I was referring to Kim San.

Do not underestimate that man.

The UN investigators just arrived. What did he say?

I need you to look into An Kichul for me. We need to bring him down.

What happened?

That man must be stopped.

Listen, Doochill.

We'd better not. The world is changing.

Our old ways won't work anymore.

Professor, when did you get so soft, huh?

I'm Samsik, remember?

We have to take down An Kichul.

Huh?

An Kichul, that brat…

I've known him since he was an infant,

but it took me this long to figure him out.

He's even more of a cunning little snake than his father was.

That one…

he's not like his brothers.

He's young.

He has a gentle disposition.

He'll need your guidance.

Not even his own father could tell what he was thinking.

Should we just trust Kang Seongmin and leave it up to him?

No, we can't.

So…

what's the other option?

Well…

I have a great plan for us.

The Cheongwoo Federation will eventually control the entire country.

So how do we do that?

We plan the establishment of a parliament,

and we buy off the entire National Assembly.

The whole time I was going on and on about my plan,

I'm sure he was brutally mocking me in his head.

Would you please excuse us?

Sure.

I was thinking up these grand plans

when I couldn't even let go of Kang Seongmin.

Minchul's dream, I can…

I can make it happen.

I will. Please.

You really…

didn't kill my son?

Me and Kang Seongmin,

he must have written us both off as fools.

Why did they kill my son?

I'll find that out, I will. I promise.

And I'll tell you.

Sir.

If the Federation casts me aside,

I have nowhere to go, sir, nowhere.

He must have been secretly laughing at us

groveling pathetically in front of his father.

You have my unwavering loyalty!

Please, just this once, help me out.

Just this once! Save me, please.

And how will you prove that?

I'll do what's required of me.

What's required?

Yes, whatever it takes!

I should have been able to detect it from the look on his face.

Why didn't I see it at the time?

Why couldn't I see that

An Kichul was a far more terrifying man than Kang Seongmin ever was?

The Development Bank is giving us a loan to invest

in the industrial complex facilities, and 30 percent

will be used to fund the campaign.

What? 30 percent?

- That's out of the question. - That's utterly ridiculous.

We cannot accept that.

Once I've become the chair of the election campaign,

I will make sure

that our Cheongwoo Federation takes control of the Liberal Party.

Then we can push for special laws

and see that the industrial complex is completed.

Lend me your support,

and put your trust in me.

Now applaud!

He stood on the sidelines watching us and mocking us

internally the entire time.

Everyone dreams of having absolute power.

But…

if you have the power to be Prime Minister after reform,

wouldn't you rather become president?

Was Kim San ever a match

for a snake like An Kichul?

If Choi Hanrim becomes our next president,

you can do all of it as soon as next week.

He's so beguiling, you won't even know you've been tricked.

That's what you want, isn't it?

Kim San…

is no match for someone like that.

You're far better than Kang Seongmin is.

But I'm sure Kichul recognized Kim San for what he was.

He saw how useful San could be.

Uncle Samsik wants to make Kang Seongmin the Prime Minister.

Is there even a chance for reform?

I'm not sure to be honest.

Parliamentary reform is unfeasible.

I've told my father as much too.

And that is Kim San's greatest weakness.

Is that what you want?

It's what my father wanted.

I didn't want it.

He has a soft spot for people who recognize his worth.

So why did you want to meet me today?

Well, I was curious about Kim San.

Could you be more useful to me than Kang Seongmin?

Why do you want to go through all this hassle?

If you want to kill me, get it over with.

I'd prefer it that way too.

An Kichul…

Will he keep Kim San alive?

He's asked the Revolutionary Army.

So you've convinced General Choi Hanrim?

Yes.

What made him change his mind?

His mind didn't change.

It was my mind that changed.

The Reconstruction Bureau.

Have you given up on it?

No, we'll establish it.

I'll make the Reconstruction Bureau on my own terms.

Through parliamentary reform or a coup d'état, it doesn't matter.

You see…

I never trusted those politicians anyway.

This man looks familiar.

You see, for Kim San,

it doesn't matter which politician takes power

as long as he gets his National Reconstruction Project.

In our party, there's Yoon Bohyun's old faction

and Jang Min's new faction.

I'm aware of that.

We need to make sure that these policies are initiated by the new faction.

That way, those of us in the new faction will support you.

Let's head in to vote on the amendment

to the Local Government Act!

Well, there's that whole thing about defending democracy and whatnot.

Let us proceed.

Kim San was never actually interested in any of that.

What do you think you're doing?

How dare you try to steal the vote?

Just push through them.

Link arms, now! Link arms!

- Hey, hey, block them! Block them! - This vote is invalid!

What are you doing? Let go of me.

I'm rejecting this fraudulent vote, Kang Seongmin.

How dare you touch an assemblyman?

Well, you're no assemblyman.

You're just Choi Minkyu's lackey.

Bastard!

Oh, Mr. Kang!

We strongly condemn

the rushed passing of the bill.

You'll issue an apology to our

Chairman Kim San.

And that is what differentiates Kim San from Kang Seongmin.

That's not necessary.

Everything you just said, that will suffice.

What?

- You're going to let it slide? - Yes, and from time to time, we should.

It'll be fine.

April 3, 1960 Seoul, South Korea

The UN is ready to investigate the election results.

I think they'll recommend a new election.

Do you think their recommendation will make a difference?

It'll put the pressure on.

General, please.

I think we should wait a little longer.

You can achieve what you want without going through with the coup.

If you continue to stall, you'll lose your chance.

The political landscape needs to change.

Will brute force alone accomplish anything?

Do you think…

revolution happens by force of will?

Welcome.

Thank you, sir.

55th Howitzer Regiment, Captain Lee Sooil.

55th Howitzer Regiment, Captain Lee Sooil.

Okay, come in.

You're Colonel Baek Hyunseok

of Army HQ Intelligence, right?

I'm Lieutenant Colonel Jeong Hanmin of Capital Defense.

Thank you for coming, Colonel.

Where is General Choi Hanrim right now?

General Choi Hanrim is in a safe location.

Are these really the General's orders?

Yes, I'm simply following the General's directives.

Please, go ahead.

April 11, 1960 Masan, South Korea

Coast of Masan

Student protests in Daegu have become more violent.

- Any news from Masan? - No, nothing yet.

My name's Cha Taemin.

Ballot boxes were stolen from opposition-led areas,

but we have recovered them all.

I wanted to meet you and apologize in pers...

- That's not… - Let's go, let's go.

Come on, hurry.

Yoon Palbong, Kim Kwangmin, Kim San.

Someone is behind them all.

The person who made my father a monster

is the one who got me out of there just now.

The same person who got my father killed accused him of being a spy,

and now they've begun turning San into a monster.

Father.

Did you invite Assemblyman Pak Jiwook?

Yes.

He called me this afternoon.

Father, he tortured you

back during the Japanese occupation.

I know.

But this is what it means

to be in politics.

I'm not quite sure where to start.

Pak Jiwook manipulated evidence during the Japanese occupation.

He framed a lot of people.

Who arranged all this?

I'm sorry, but I'm not able to help you there.

You know who it was though?

The police report stated that

Yoon Palbong was shot first that day.

The following shot that was fired was aimed at him as well.

What do you think that means?

The whole thing feels off,

and no one's covering it.

That was Uncle Samsik, wasn't it?

Did you steal the ballot boxes?

Still nothing from Masan?

What about Mr. Kim?

- My baby! - Stand back!

- Stand back, please! - Please, that's my son!

Let me see him!

Oh, no! My baby.

Who did this to you?

Please, no!

Did you see the body?

Yeah, he was dumped in the ocean

with a tear gas canister lodged in his face.

Wait, what?

Hello, Aemin Daily Politics Bureau.

Sorry, where are you calling from?

Yeojin, it's for you.

- Who is it? - I'm not sure.

Hello, this is Choo Yeojin.

It's Cha Taemin.

- Hey, come here. - Yes?

I think I see some of Pak Jiwook's gang back there.

- Hold them back. - Okay, yes, sir.

Wait, just a moment.

- Hello there. Huh? - Where are you going? Stop!

Where do you think you're going, huh?

- Hold on. - Just a moment!

I think I've seen you before.

Do not leave a single shred. No evidence relating to the election.

Go, go, go, don't overthink it!

Destroy anything that even mentions the election!

No, you're thinking too hard,

don't do that!

Don't think about it! Don't ask questions! Just burn all of it!

- You're doing great! Speed it up! - Okay, who's taking this

to the incinerator?

Right this way.

I appreciate your waiting.

UN investigators are coming to Home Affairs tomorrow.

Put together a list of potential responses.

Whatever they ask, just tell them you don't know.

It's not as simple as that.

If word gets out about us stealing the ballot boxes,

it's over for us.

Get rid of Samsik too.

What did you say?

Was I the one who suggested stealing the boxes?

You made me do something crazy that you couldn't pull off alone,

and now you want me to clean up the mess?

What did you just say?

You piece of shit!

I'm warning you. I'll...

That… That little shit!

I'm Cha Taemin.

Do you see that truck behind me?

The ballot boxes are in there.

What happened to your father that day…

…was a complete accident.

I know.

I'm very sorry.

Who's Uncle Samsik?

Can you tell me anything?

He's been exploiting you your whole life.

For my service to the Alliance,

I'll turn myself in.

Sail Bakery

Presidential election ballot box Cheonjun Polling Station

Yes, it's me.

The Aemin Daily reporters are heading in now.

What should I do? Should I go in?

No, no, no. Just wait, just wait.

Just stay there.

Huh.

He was here for a while and then left.

And it was Jeong Hanmin, you're sure?

Of course I'm sure, he comes here often.

Oh, yeah, look here.

Here it is. The reservation's for Capital Defense.

How many people were here?

Around 10 or so.

Can you recall what they were talking about?

I think… they were talking about some general or something.

- General Choi Hanrim? - Uh-huh. Yes, Choi Hanrim.

Do you remember anyone else who was here?

Uh, Captain Lee Sooil of the 55th Howitzers.

There was another one who said he was a colonel at Army Headquarters.

Look into Lee Sooil of the 55th Howitzers.

I'm on it, sir.

General.

What's the matter?

Your location's been compromised.

You're in danger here.

I'll escort you to the bunker.

Who's figured out where I'm located?

This needs to be the front page of every paper.

Gather all the reporters. Have them guard the boxes in shifts.

Can you type this up as quickly as possible?

There's evidence to suggest

that government workers rigged the election.

We've been getting so many tips about this.

Want me to compile them?

Write up a detailed report on how the Liberal Party

orchestrated this election fraud.

Listen, the 55th Howitzers,

Army Headquarters, as well as the 3rd Marines.

I think they're the generals who were involved in planning the coup.

What did Choi Hanrim say?

He said to wait on the UN investigators' findings.

It's one or the other.

Either Choi Hanrim has changed his mind...

Or Hanmin's exploiting General Choi.

Yes, that's right.

I'll meet you at the bakery later.

General Choi's at the bunker. I just took him over there.

- Has he made a decision? - Yes.

Is he in here?

Minister…

Hey!

Are you insane?

Are you here to apologize?

Apologize? Why would I?

Minister, I think we should try to stay calm.

What do you mean "stay calm"? We might be facing a reelection.

It's all right. Excuse us.

Have you checked the ballot boxes?

If you're so concerned, maybe you should've done it yourself.

Go and talk to Samsik right now.

Okay.

We have to get rid of Samsik once it's done.

Hopefully, you can handle that.

Uncle Samsik is someone that we can depend on.

But he knows about everything!

God, your fucking whining is giving me a headache.

I will be the only one dealing with Samsik, all right?

You don't get to tell me what to do with my guys.

This mess is all because of you, after all.

Now quit your goddamn whining.

See you at Home Affairs tomorrow.

Where's General Choi?

The General's inside. Please follow me.

The 55th Howitzers, Captain Lee Sooil.

His father is the CEO of Samjin Textiles.

Samjin Textiles

is a subsidiary of Mr. An Yosub's company.

Eighth graduating class of the Military Academy.

It's likely that An Kichul met with him when he began planning the coup.

What about General Choi? Do they know his location?

Manager Pak should be back soon.

He's not there?

What do you mean they took him?

He's saying soldiers came for him.

All right.

It had to be Hanmin.

All those troops Jeong Hanmin is assembling

only amount to about 2,000 or 3,000 men.

What will you do if the US troops make a move?

There won't be enough to take on the US forces.

Yes. Thank you.

General Choi Hanrim has just arrived.

What if Choi Hanrim changes his mind?

- What do we do if that happens, sir? - Just move forward as planned.

I'll do what I can to stop the US troops.

Victory.

- Good luck. - Sir.

But Hanmin couldn't have done this all on his own.

Do you think Kichul might've put him up to it then?

What did he say to you?

That he wanted to execute Seongmin.

That he'd kill him in a lawful manner.

- Following the Sineui Code? - Yeah.

This means that General Choi is also in danger.

Why would he be?

General Choi said he'd wait for the UN investigators' report.

An Kichul's not the type to wait around.

If we're unable to stop An Kichul now…

…he'll probably have me killed.

Do you think he'd stop at killing you?

He'll try to kill you, me, and Kang Seongmin.

When the coup d'état is over…

he'll kill everybody.

Assemblyman.

You didn't call.

Did I hear that someone wants me dead?

What's this about a coup?

An Kichul knows everything.

- About what? - That you killed his older brother.

He knows what happened.

Mr. An Yosub too?

Yeah.

He knew about all of it.

And what was all that about killing me lawfully?

- With the Sineui Alliance Code of... - That's… That's not what I…

The Code of Conduct?

We burned that.

Pak Jiwook held on to the original.

Pak Jiwook?

The original?

Yeah, that's right.

I've told you this time and time again.

That bastard Pak Jiwook. That ex-Japanese cop.

- I told you to watch out for him. - What about the ballot boxes?

Did you at least take care of them like I told you?

The ballot boxes…

About the ballot boxes…

Cha Taemin took the boxes.

Why would Cha Taemin take them?

So he could tip off Aemin Daily, which he's already done.

You didn't keep an eye on Pak Jiwook, the ballot boxes were stolen,

and now you're just standing around uselessly

after An Kichul said he'd kill me?

I'm sorry.

What do you think will become of me if this gets printed?

I don't know what to say.

You said you'd keep tabs on An Yosub.

What the hell have you been doing?

Why's all of this Uncle Samsik's fault?

- What? - Whoever gave the order is to blame.

I don't get why you're putting this all on him.

Uh, he has a tendency to be a little too direct, sir.

- Please excuse... - No, I'm not trying to be direct.

Albright.

Valedictorian.

The fuck do you know?

What's that?

Don't act like you're innocent.

You're planning to push me aside and take all the credit.

What? Thought I didn't know?

You always knew the ballot boxes would be stolen.

Why didn't you do anything about it?

Don't be such a hypocrite.

- You and I are the same. - I am nothing like you.

I poured my blood and sweat into that scholarship.

I wasn't raised lavishly by parents who sold out their country!

- Like yours. - Raised lavishly?

What's gotten into you two? You know better than this.

You think I was raised lavishly? Uncle, you know very well that I wasn't.

I know. Of course I do, I know.

Assemblyman Kang Seongmin has been through real hardship.

How much longer are you going to clean up after him?

Clean up after me?

Hey.

Who do you think Uncle Samsik has to thank for making it this far?

It's all thanks to the Kang family, of course.

God, he treats you like a slave!

No, he's not a slave.

A slave is what we call people like you.

You're a slave the way you cling to Uncle

- and can't ever break free. - Calm down. Now is not the time for this.

We need to stop An Kichul!

There must be something we can do.

Yeah, there is.

What is it?

Martial law.

Martial law?

Declaring martial law would make it harder to mobilize the troops.

It was the only way we could stop the coup.

Democracy was stolen along with ballot boxes

It was simple.

I let The Aemin Daily run the article about the ballot boxes.

What is this?

What do you think happened then?

It was pure chaos.

President…

you must declare martial law right away.

They just declared martial law.

General Choi.

Here's our chance. We can't back down now.

This would be the largest operation since the war.

This isn't a drill.

Our country is an absolute mess, huh?

As soldiers, we can't stand by.

Let's show them.

As long as we all stick to the plan,

no one will get hurt.

Martial law.

Who was it?

It was my idea.