Maehwa?
I'm...
Prince Dowon,
the prince of Joseon.
-What? -Do you really think
you can kill me?
My gosh.
Maehwa.
Are you all right?
Maehwa.
Sir.
Sir!
Sir.
EPISODE 5
How is he doing?
Is he very unwell?
He seems to be suffering from a qi deficiency.
He keeps having nightmares.
But he is young, so he'll wake up soon.
By the way,
who is he?
Judging from his hands,
it seems like he's never done any hard work his entire life.
He must be from a prestigious family.
Is he your lover by any chance?
Gosh, no. Not at all.
Of course not. He is just an acquaintance of mine.
An "acquaintance"?
Yes.
I'm telling the truth.
He is very handsome.
I am Prince Dowon,
the prince of Joseon.
Why am I here?
We're at the apothecary.
I couldn't leave you there alone.
Are you feeling all right?
I must go.
Sir, at least have some herbal medicine before you go...
What? Prince Dowon?
Stop spewing utter nonsense!
Lord Min, I am certain that some trickster fooled him.
I mean, Prince Dowon, of all people?
That greenhorn who is stuck in Nokseodang?
Why would he go to the Royal Investigation Bureau?
My goodness.
I suppose the Crown Prince has a new minion now.
A "minion"?
Deliver the message to the Chancellor of Royal College of Literature.
Yes, my lord.
Then,
are you saying that man was murdered?
I cannot tell you for certain.
However, he was found dead as soon as the suspicious-looking man left.
I witnessed it with my own two eyes.
But you said he was seriously injured.
-You might be suspecting an innocent man. -He was a good swordsman.
Besides, no ordinary person would dare
to go to the Royal Investigation Bureau in disguise.
How did you know that he was a swordsman?
Did you come face-to-face with him?
-Rim. -He was the only lead I had.
I didn't want to lose him.
Even so, you should not have done such a reckless thing.
You didn't even take the guards, saying you wanted to go alone.
It was my mistake for dragging you into this.
Take your hands off this at once.
Jin.
But you also know.
From the banned books to this incident,
bizarre things that don't make sense keep on taking place.
For some reason, I have a feeling
that The Story of Ho Dam might be at the center of this.
Hence,
I would like to know
what The Story of Ho Dam is about
and who Ho Dam is.
I must find out.
No, you shouldn't.
Do not dig into what that book is about.
It is an order.
RECORD OF APPEARANCE
PRINCE DOWON YI RIM
Are you lost?
You must come back tomorrow, the day after tomorrow,
and even the next day.
You must keep coming back every single day
until Prince Dowon forgives you.
I'm Prince Dowon,
the prince of Joseon.
Apprentice Goo.
What are you reading? You didn't even hear us.
This is the Record of Appearance.
By the way, why has this page been left blank?
The page for Prince Dowon.
Everyone else has a portrait on their page.
Only this one has been left blank.
Apprentice Goo, have you not heard about Prince Dowon?
There are those rumors about him.
Prince Dowon is the prince who was sent into exile at Nokseodang,
the place hidden deep inside the palace.
Rumor has it that his entire body is covered in boils.
I heard he's like a monster who resembles neither man nor animal.
I heard a different story.
I heard His Majesty had no choice but to lock him up.
Apparently, he was born a complete lunatic.
-Your Highness, please don't kill me. -He used to threaten...
-Please spare my life. -...and hit the court ladies.
I heard he's even killed a few.
-But do you think it's true? -Of course. I mean, if he's a prince,
why is he still living in the palace without even getting married?
He can't attend any birthday celebrations, the neunghaeng, or the joha.
NEUNGHAENG: KING'S VISIT TO ROYAL TOMBS JOHA: GREETING CEREMONY
Clerks, come outside for a second.
Do you think this makes sense?
Don't be ridiculous.
This means that I have to take the fall
if they go there and cause trouble.
I, too, cannot let this happen.
Officer Yang is our leader, you know.
Why does the Chancellor think he can make such a decision?
Officer Yang only has authority over you historians.
Here, after the Chief State Councillor,
the Chancellor of Royal College of Literature has the most power.
Besides, the Crown Prince has already approved it.
Why are you all so dissatisfied?
Just do as you're told!
This concerns us historians.
Mind your own business, and please leave now.
This guy makes me so uncomfortable.
Isn't it a good thing?
-We will send them. -Are you out of your mind?
Have you gone mad? Do you even realize where...
Is there something wrong, sir?
You'll work at the Inner Palace starting today.
-Pardon? -Pardon?
Go and get your books and brushes.
Your Highness!
We have a big problem!
Your Highness!
Female historians? They will come here?
Yes, that's right.
These people didn't even care
about Nokseodang whatsoever for the past 20 years.
Why send those girls here, of all places?
Prince Eunseong, Prince Eunwi, and Prince Eunhyo.
There are so many other princes, but why here?
This is driving me crazy.
Your Highness, we have no time to waste.
Please get changed.
If that young lady sees your face--
No, it's okay.
I may be able to fool her again, but I shouldn't deceive our historians.
Besides, I no longer wish to deceive her anyway.
Your Highness, then--
Bring my royal robe.
NOKSEODANG
Your Highness, the female historian is here.
Your Highness.
Tell her she may enter.
I'm Apprentice Goo Hae-ryung from the Office of Royal Decrees,
Your Highness.
I am Prince Dowon,
Yi Rim.
I was hoping you weren't.
Eleven o'clock.
Female historian Goo Hae-ryung arrives at Nokseodang.
-Prince Dowon is reading-- -Yesterday,
I had to leave in a hurry due to exceptional circumstances.
Your Highness.
I am here
as a historian.
As per your instructions,
we sent the governor of Jinju, Kim Seung-hak, as a relieving officer
to help those who are suffering
from the aftermath of the flood.
However, if His Majesty finds out...
I will take care of it, so please do not be concerned.
However, the floods and droughts that occur every year
are causing the people a great deal of concern.
I'd like you to try to come up with a solution.
Is there a book that explains the sewage and reservoir systems in detail?
Gosh, why are you being like this?
I told you that I have to go inside!
Let me in!
Okay, fine.
Since you are trying to intimidate me by outnumbering me, I shall fight
with my unbending spirit.
I won't budge an inch
until you let me in.
I feel like more people inside the palace are watching than ever before.
Showing your face is not an issue,
as long as the expressions on it cannot be read.
So? How did it go?
-We were too late. -Then...
did all of them die?
We treated one person who was still alive,
but that person died the next day at the Royal Investigation Bureau.
It must've been the Second State Councillor.
All of this was Min Ik-pyeong's doing.
Books have been banned,
and bookstores have disappeared.
HIS HIGHNESS TURNED ANOTHER PAGE
What are you writing?
All I'm doing is reading this book.
I want to know what you are writing.
I cannot tell you what I am recording, Your Highness.
I'm not asking you to...
Are you writing down what I just said?
Are you really doing it?
Are you... Have you been...
The fake Maehwa.
The impersonator, who scammed
innocent people out of their hard-earned money.
On top of that, she disobeyed a royal command
and even trespassed on Nokseodang.
Goo Hae-ryung is a criminal,
I have something to say to her.
Are you going to write that down too?
Hey.
I will take my leave, Your Highness.
Stop with the act.
I told you that I need to have a word with you.
You had many opportunities.
What do you want to say to me now, after all this time?
Or is there something you'd like to hear from me?
I did not know that you were a prince. "I apologize. Please spare my life."
Something like that?"
Then I will apologize.
What in the world must I do to be forgiven by Prince Dowon this time?
I wanted to thank you.
I do not know
why you were there last night,
but thank you for not walking away.
I appreciated your concern.
That was what I wanted to say.
And since I deceived you first, you do not need to ask for my forgiveness.
I hope that there will be no more ill-fated encounters between us.
You may leave.
I thought...
we could be friends.
We started off on the wrong foot,
and we weren't friendly with each other.
But I thought it'd be nice to have someone
I could be comfortable around
in this huge palace.
Why...
Why didn't you tell me sooner?
NOKSEODANG
I was concerned when I heard that a stranger would be joining us,
but I hear the Second State Councillor is very fond of you.
He's just comfortable with me because he's known me for a long time.
That fussy man, Lord Min, is keeping you by his side.
There must be a reason.
-Did you look into it? -Yes, sir.
There is no court lady who stepped out of the palace today,
but the records show that a eunuch's wife visited earlier.
A "eunuch's wife"?
"Park, the wife of Eunuch Heo Sam-bo."
That's what it said.
Hey!
Is this supposed to be a joke?
This is practically useless!
Even dogs would've done a better job than this.
A much better job!
Sir, we did our best to--
You didn't even do any work.
Rather, it sounds like you've befriended Her Majesty.
Gosh, I'm speechless.
My gosh. The pastries were delicious, "and I was elated
to find out that we are both from the same town.""
Are you girls getting a kick out of this? Are you?
Apprentice Oh, the court lady kicked you out before you could
even enter the Queen Dowager's chamber.
And Apprentice Goo, you filled 30 pages
with this one sentence, "His Highness turned another page."
Do you really all find this situation amusing?
You too. You're a tiny bit better than these girls here,
but you still have a long way to go if you want to become a true historian.
You have been here for just over a month now.
What exactly have you learned here?
Have you been busy chatting and admiring the palace?
When I was a rookie, by the end of my first month...
I can't stand the sight of you, so get out.
I said, get out!
Train them properly, will you?
This is a lonely fight.
A lonely one.
Am I the only true historian in the entire land of Joseon?
How could he be so harsh on us?
He said dogs would outdo us.
We were sent to the chambers without any preparation.
He should be grateful that we didn't faint.
Come on. It sounds like you had a great time.
You had tea with the Queen and even got to chat with her.
Do you know how worried I was though?
I was so worried that something bad might happen to Apprentice Goo,
who volunteered to go to Nokseodang instead of me.
So? Did you check?
-Sorry? -You volunteered to go to Nokseodang,
saying that you had to check something.
I bet you wanted to find out if the Prince really is a monster or a lunatic,
as the rumors say.
-Oh, that was-- -Seeing how Apprentice Goo
managed to return unscathed, he probably isn't a lunatic.
I knew it. He has boils all over his body!
How bad is it?
Does Prince Dowon look absolutely horrific?
No.
He doesn't look horrific at all.
I'm being serious. He is very tall,
and his skin is as white as snow.
He has nice eyes too.
He's very handsome.
So they were all groundless rumors?
Yes. If you ever hear anyone speaking ill of Prince Dowon,
tell them that they're wrong.
He does not look horrific,
nor is he a murderous lunatic.
Just tell them that he is mildly ill-tempered.
I am here as a historian.
Yes, you are a historian.
I know that, obviously.
Your Highness!
Why are you picking that precious flower?
I've never even seen you picking grass. What's gotten into you?
Are you angry about something?
No, I'm not. I wish to be alone, so do not come in.
I'm getting this strange feeling that he may be going through
something that is beyond my grasp.
What could it be?
Are you doing your job properly?
You said you located the bookstore but have found out nothing.
Only strange rumors about unknown medical practices are spreading.
I suppose you are getting old too.
You have lost your sharp shrewdness.
All you are doing is causing unnecessary trouble.
Do you remember, Your Majesty?
Two decades ago,
there was a girl who studied foreign medicine at Seoraewon.
She was a slave named Mo-hwa. The deposed king took care of her.
-So? -I am sure you've heard rumors
about that girl, Your Majesty.
She was known as an incredibly skilled physician.
She even revived people from the brink of death using strange methods.
Are you saying that girl...
Are you saying she's alive?
How dare a traitor live in the country that I rule?
Send out the Ministry of Military Affairs' soldiers.
Find that witch and bring her to me even if you have to
search every mountain and river!
Your Majesty, please calm down.
She has shown herself after a long time.
We may never be able to catch her if we act recklessly and scare her.
Are you saying I should just sit back and do nothing?
A crane will stand out in a brood of hens,
and an awl inside a pocket is bound to show.
She may have managed to go into hiding, but she cannot hide her skills.
-Bring the Chief Royal Secretary. -Yes, sir.
Your Highness, the female historian is here.
Tell her she may enter.
I am Apprentice Oh Eun-im from
the Office of Royal Decrees, Your Highness.
You are...
Your uniform suits you well.
-I am flattered, Your Royal Highness. -I need to read a book today,
so you may rest comfortably.
Thank you, Your Royal Highness.
Right, I heard you went to Nokseodang yesterday.
I beg your pardon?
Yes, I did.
How did Prince Dowon react? He must have been surprised and flustered.
His Highness
read books all day long.
He is not used to interacting with people.
Please be a little understanding, even if he offends any of you.
Yes, Your Royal Highness.
I've got an idea.
Follow me.
Bull's-eye!
It's been a while since I last shot arrows. It feels good.
It's quite stress-relieving.
I'm happy to hear that you're enjoying yourself.
Your Highness, the female historians are watching.
I hope you hit the bull's-eye.
What on earth is wrong with this bow today?
You see, archery is an extremely challenging sport.
Your arms. You must have strong arms, and you need to keep your balance.
Anyway, the fact that the arrow went that far is still pretty good...
If you think my skills are that funny,
come and try it for yourself.
They say you see the bull but not the ram.
You need to try it yourself to see how hard it really is.
If you manage to hit the bull's-eye even just once,
I shall grant you the right
to laugh at me as much as you like.
Don't say no to this.
Being a woman, when else will you get to hold a bow if not now?
Plus, he is offering to grant you the right to laugh at a prince
as much as you want.
How many arrows will you need?
A hundred? A thousand?
You told me to hit the bull's-eye just once.
I only need one.
-Bull's-eye! -My gosh!
You are quite the archer. Who taught you how to shoot arrows?
I spent my childhood days in Yanjing.
And it was
a hobby of mine.
I see. Prince Dowon had no clue and handed you an arrow.
But I guess he was just trying to teach a fish how to swim.
Aren't you here as a historian?
It seems like you've forgotten what your duty is.
I apologize, Your Highness.
I will make sure I don't leave out a single word you just said.
That wasn't for the records.
Don't write...
Apprentice Goo.
Don't be so harsh on her.
You picked her.
You should be proud that she's working hard.
That was so embarrassing.
You had 20 arrows, and none of them hit the target.
I thought you'd hit the target at least once.
You were neither good nor lucky.
I'm only saying this because I'm worried.
That disastrous incident would've gotten recorded.
You'll be humiliated for thousands of years
as the prince who lost to a female historian.
What do you want me to do? They already recorded everything.
We shouldn't have hired female historians in the first place.
Darn it.
Your Highness, Apprentice Goo Hae-ryung is here to see you.
Do you still have more left to write?
I'm here to ask you something.
Earlier, I heard His Royal Highness say
that you picked me.
What did that mean?
I don't know.
Because if I had the power to choose female historians,
you wouldn't be here right now.
Right. Okay.
I'm sorry to have bothered you with an unnecessary question.
I'll be off, then.
Right.
I do remember saying this to His Royal Highness.
I told him that if he sees a strange woman who is as stubborn as an ox
and is as courageous as a general,
then he should hire her as a historian.
Then
are you saying I was picked as a female historian because I'm as stubborn as an ox
and as courageous as a general?
There's no need to thank me.
He's just as strange.
He can't even shoot arrows properly.
Do you want to die?
Is your job a joke to you?
My ears are ringing.
We'll still understand him even if he speaks quietly.
Does he really have to yell at us like that?
Just leave him be.
If he ends up losing his voice,
that'll be his loss, not mine.
My gosh, why are you so happy today?
It's only natural that I'm happy. Today's the big day.
What day?
Today's our first payday.
-Is it our payday already? -Yes.
To be honest, I was this close to quitting this job
even just three days ago.
But as our payday approached, I couldn't care less
even if Officer Yang yelled at us.
And I felt the same way
whenever Officer An kept teasing us.
I guess this is why they say that empathy and generosity--
Come from their pockets.
My mother says that every day.
You know what?
Let's all go to my house after we collect our stipend.
Let's have some cold noodles in radish water kimchi broth.
And how about a drink?
GWANGHEUNGCHANG
Lee Il-seong from the Medical Office.
-Over here. -Hold it properly.
Jeong Hong-geun from the Medical Office.
Over here!
Kwon In-son from the Medical Office.
Doesn't something seem to be a little strange?
Those clerks.
He's calling out names of government officials,
but the clerks are collecting the stipend.
That's because they were told to do so
by the government officials.
-I feel so bad for the clerks. -Kim Chan from the Medical Office.
Hey, Officer Park!
It's me!
Jeong Man-sik from the Office of Interpreters.
Please get out of the way. Come on, hurry.
Have you been well?
-I'm always grateful. -Goodness, don't mention it.
Let's have a drink together soon.
Take it safely.
Goodbye.
What was that all about?
That's it for this month.
Come back next month.
-Are you kidding me? -What?
-This is so tiring. Let's go. -Unbelievable.
I knew this would happen.
-I don't know how many months it's been. -Tell me about it.
My lord, what do you mean?
What do you mean, this is it?
You didn't even call our names.
Female historians?
I didn't know you got paid too.
We're not crazy. Why would we work for free?
Could you please take a look?
-We're supposed to-- -There's no need.
The warehouse is empty. We have no more rice.
What can I do?
If you're that upset, come here early next month.
You're so lazy.
Am I the only one who doesn't get this?
How... How can the warehouse be empty?
My stipend...
My precious stipend...
Let's have a drink.
-Ma'am. -Ma'am.
I heard it's a lean year.
I guess the government office isn't doing well either.
Still, they promised to give us everything next month.
So cheer up.
She's right. We don't even get paid much anyway.
So it won't matter even if we get it a month later.
It does matter to me.
I'm pretty sure the loan sharks
are waiting in front of my house
to get their hands on my stipend.
You took out a loan?
My father is a senior eighth-rank civil officer.
How would he have been able to afford all the food and drinks
for the hazing ritual we had?
There was no choice but to borrow money.
Come on!
Ma'am, please give us the most expensive alcohol you have
along with an endless amount of food.
-Yes! -That's right!
Officer Hwang.
Hey.
-Cheers! -Cheers!
I don't know if it's because Chi-guk's buying today,
but the alcohol tastes great and I feel so happy.
But why is Officer Kim suddenly buying everyone drinks?
Did you get in trouble for something?
What are you saying on a good day like this?
Today is a historic day. Chi-guk finally received
his full stipend for the first time ever.
Then are you saying that he was never paid properly until now?
That's right.
The first couple of months, they only gave me a portion
because I was apparently late.
The next couple of months, it was because of the lean year.
And after that, it was because there was a cold wave.
That's why I told you to hire an assistant clerk
and become close to the officials at Gwangheungchang.
I told you that so many times.
Assistant clerks?
Are you talking about the clerks who were at Gwangheungchang?
Yes, they're actually clerks from the Ministry of Personnel.
But it's so hard for everyone to get paid, so the officials ask them for help.
Help, my foot.
You have no idea how much money they get
in return for helping them collect their stipend.
The same goes for the officials at Gwangheungchang.
You need to bribe them in order to get your pay
before the warehouse gets empty.
They're a bunch of thieves.
That's so absurd.
You need to bribe them to get paid?
Then the ones who are too poor to bribe them
will continue to be poor,
and the ones who are wealthy enough will continue to be wealthy.
That's the custom around here, and customs are
much scarier than the law.
You ladies should also look for assistant clerks
instead of wasting your time.
That's enough. Let's not get depressed by talking about money.
Let's just get drunk and forget about it all.
Here. Cheers!
I wrote down everything I saw and heard in the Inner Palace.
There's not much that will be of help,
but it won't hurt to know.
I'll be the one to judge whether something will be of help or not.
You just need to continue to be a loyal historian.
What brings you here?
You know that my father
is good friends with the Second State Councillor.
I'm here to relay an urgent message from my father.
Your family has dozens of servants.
But he decided to send you instead
at this late hour?
It's sometimes hard to trust servants
when it comes to discussing political affairs.
As you said, it's late.
I should go now.
Be careful.
A historian should not build personal relationships with others.
It could end up backfiring on you in the future.
I'll keep that in mind.
My gosh, look who's here again.
-Does he have nothing better to do? -Who is Goo Hae-ryung?
Who is Apprentice Goo Hae-ryung?
Is it you?
Are you the lunatic who wrote this petition?
Sir, wait.
I don't know what this is about, but please calm down.
Read that petition, and you'll find out why I'm so angry.
"Please ban the recruitment of assistant clerks
to prevent stipend corruption.
And make the officials come to Gwangheungchang themselves..."
Do you think you're the only smart one around here?
Do you think we're staying quiet about this
because we're idiots?
Even the Three Offices can't do anything about this issue
because it involves thousands of people. So who are you to cause a fuss?
Who do you think you are to raise this issue?
If His Majesty had found out about this,
everyone here, including you, would've gotten fired.
Do you know that?
You already crossed the line by entering the palace
when you're nothing but a woman.
So the least you can do is try your best not to cause trouble.
Sir!
Be careful with your words.
I'm already trying my best
not to curse at her right now.
Do you have a problem with that?
You guys are just a bunch of weak-hearted fools.
No wonder she was able to do something like this.
The Office of Royal Decrees is a complete mess.
Clerk Goo.
-What is your-- -I don't mind getting scolded.
But I'd at least like to know what I did wrong.
What?
I can't believe you have the guts to say that right now.
I noticed an irregularity, so I only asked that things be set right.
I only did what I should have done,
so why...
Why do I need to be reprimanded for that?
I cannot understand it.
-Hae-ryung... -Sir, it's time to enter a meeting.
-You can deal with her later. -Do you only care about yourself?
Sir, come on.
-Who do you think you are? -Sir.
You should be trying to learn! But all you think about is yourself!
Why isn't she coming?
-Sam-bo. -Yes?
Isn't it way past noon?
Yes, I think it's a little over 1 p.m.
Your Highness, the female historian is here.
Tell her she may enter.
Something fun must've happened
seeing that you came late.
Did something happen?
No.
You can cry.
No one comes here.
So no one will hear you.
So...
you can cry out loud.
You can cry all you want.
It's okay.
Subtitle translation by Ja-won Lee