Episode 36
Did General Lee...
give you permission?
Master Bang Won.
Did General Lee give you the order?
No.
It's my decision.
I, Lee Bang Won, made the decision.
But their escort is...
Does it matter?
You are the top swordsman of the Samhan.
A servant and a small girl...
came with a sword.
No way.
Before Master Jung Mong Joo enters the palace,
(Lee Bang Won)
we have to finish him.
(Jeong Do Jeon)
Sambong,
resent me.
But in order to protect my country,
I have to do this.
By tomorrow,
will the fight end?
Why do you say that?
It's just that...
I want it to be over soon.
I'm sure you do.
We have to finish it soon.
You must want it to...
finish soon, right?
Do you not?
(Jung Mong Joo)
No matter how hard it is, I have to do it.
What can I do?
(Chuk Sa Gwang)
It is hard for me, too,
that I have to fight.
I feel a threat.
What's the matter?
You'd better go back to the palace.
Are we being followed?
I'll be there soon.
Boon Yi.
Is Master Bang Won in there?
I couldn't find him anywhere.
Young Gyoo or Bang Ji, either.
Didn't Master Bang Won tell you?
What do you mean?
Is he away?
Are you after Master Jung Mong Joo?
Chuk Sa Gwang is a girl.
Are you...
(Lee Bang Ji)
By any chance...
You must be the top swordsman of the Samhan, Lee Bang Ji.
Why are you following Master Jung Mong Joo?
Are you...
trying to kill him?
I...
have an old dream...
that hasn't been fulfilled.
A dream?
It's to terminate Goryeo.
By any chance,
is he trying to kill Master Jung Mong Joo?
Be quiet.
Tell me.
Master Bang Won, Young Gyoo and Bang Ji are all gone.
Are they planning to kill Master Jung Mong Joo?
Yes.
Darn it.
Where are they?
What's wrong?
- They'll all be killed. - What?
Master Bang Won,
Bang Ji and Young Gyoo.
They'll all die.
What do you mean?
Chuk Sa Gwang is there.
Tell me where they are.
They must be heading to the palace.
The palace?
But...
you have to kill me first...
if you want to meet Master Jung Mong Joo.
Are you Chuk Sa Gwang?
Yes.
I've always wanted to...
compete with you anyway.
I loathe that.
Recklessness.
(Jang Sam Bong)
Fortunately,
you're destined to live long.
Am I?
You're expected to have a very long life.
As long as you don't run into an angel of death, that is.
An angel of death?
What do you mean?
Every swordsman...
runs into one eventually.
An angel of death...
can be the day's luck,
the weather...
or it can even be...
your sudden urge to go to bathroom.
In some cases,
it can be...
an awe-inspiring master.
What happens when I run into one?
You'd better not.
Master.
I think I ran into my angel of death.
Swordsmen...
often pass away in the middle of a mountain or a field...
without anyone ever finding their body.
Sir.
You're too strong.
I'm afraid...
I can't afford to watch out for your life.
I'm sorry.
I don't care if I die.
But if we fail to kill Jung Mong Joo tonight, it'll be over.
Lee Bang Won.
Are you doing all right?
He missed this.
I should end this quickly.
You seem to be out of breath.
Chuk Sa Gwang.
It seems like Lee Bang Won is planning to kill Jung Mong Joo.
Lee Bang Ji and Gabyeolcho soldiers are gone.
Moo Hyul followed as well.
- Yeon Yang. - Then...
will Jung Mong Joo die?
But...
Mater Jung Mong Joo is with Chuk Sa Gwang.
What will happen...
if Lee Bang Ji and Chuk Sa Gwang compete?
I have competed with both of them.
Speaking from my experiences,
Lee Bang Ji...
will die.
So don't worry.
Goksan Method?
Even though it looks impressive, it's based on simple skills.
His swordsmanship...
feels familiar.
Is he?
In addition,
she has become slower than the beginning.
Sir.
Are you related to Master Jang Sam Bong?
He's my master.
Our ill-fated relationship...
goes back a long way.
I should exhaust him.
I shouldn't give her a break.
It can't be that deep.
What's going on?
Look.
You've never been cut before, have you?
I didn't think it'd take this long.
What if someone else is chasing Master Jung Mong Joo?
I need to finish this as soon as possible.
You're still alive.
Bang Ji.
Chuk Sa Gwang.
This warrior...
is confident with his defence techniques.
He won't avoid my attack. He'll try to block my swords.
I'll end this match here.
Maincham.
No.
Don't try to block it! Avoid her swords!
I can't just watch and do nothing.
A weakness doesn't exist...
only in swordsmanship.
It also exists in the human.
In the human?
Actually,
I don't have much experience.
No matter how superb the swordsmanship is,
if the warrior lacks experience,
it will be difficult for him to handle unexpected situations.
Unexpected situations.
He dropped...
his sword.
At unexpected moments,
he would hesitate.
I loathe taking people's lives.
I want you to hesitate.
Chuk Sa Gwang.
Moo Hyul!
What are you doing here?
Upon the sunrise,
will you proceed to execute Master Sambong...
and his people?
They tried to cause a turmoil in this kingdom.
Taking their lives...
is not too harsh of a punishment for their sins.
This ridiculous kingdom.
You really cannot give it up?
I was born and raised in this kingdom.
I,
My family...
and my fellows were born and raised in this land of Goryeo.
I cannot turn my back against this kingdom...
and betray the country as a Confucian scholar.
The country.
This country...
Are you...
going to use the people as your excuse again?
In the past,
you advised me not to use the people.
Hence,
I carefully observed the people of this kingdom again.
And let me tell you what I learned.
They are not attached to...
the current regime or this country.
So?
Are you trying to tell me that the poor people...
are longing for a new regime?
For the people,
it won't matter...
whatever happens.
Whether you, Master Jung, protect this country,
or Master Sambong establishes a new regime,
it does not matter to them.
What is important to the people is...
having food to eat as well as being happy.
That is all they need.
Look at you. You're using the people again as your excuse.
Even if kudzu roots are interlaced in the Mount Mansu,
nobody would blame that.
You, Master Jung, and Master Sambong.
If the two of you mingle...
and hold your hands like the kudzu roots...
to make the people feel the joy of life,
who in the world would dare...
to criticise you and dishonour you when discussing...
the history of this country, which you treasure dearly?
The people.
Feeling the joy of life.
Listen to me carefully now.
Confucian scholars...
should not follow the people.
Instead, we should embrace the people...
and lead them.
To lead them, we need a country and a regime.
A Confucian scholar's compassionate heart with this purpose...
is described as faithfulness.
When faithfulness is abandoned,
there will be no place for the people...
in your heart.
Tonight.
No matter what happens tonight,
are you confident that...
you won't change your mind?
Nothing we do...
will help us earn your heart?
What a foolish threat.
Look.
General Lee Seong Gye and Sambong.
You all can try whatever you want.
The only things you can get...
are Goryeo and...
this body of mine,
which weighs a little over 60kg.
Kill me and kill me again.
Kill me a hundred times.
Even if my skeletons will get rotten,
and my body will become soil...
and dust,
my burning love for loyalty...
which existed in my body...
will never...
be killed.
That love of yours.
It truly impresses me.
Sure.
That is...
your decision.
Master.
Right.
There is one thing you can have.
A thousand years of notoriety.
Starting tomorrow morning,
you will get entangled with me...
for the next one thousand years...
and be recorded and remembered by people.
Try to bear it well.
Yes, I will do that.
If I can't be entwined with you in this life,
I will die and get entwined with you...
for tens of thousands of years.
Young Gyoo.
Sambong,
it happened as you wished.
I wanted to die for...
the one-thousand-year plan for Goryeo.
But this country will die,
and I will be the one living for one thousand years.
How ridiculous is that?
Chuk Sa Gwang.
Did she lose?
Fate is indeed very fickle.
What happened?
He looks like someone of high position.
Is he...
Isn't he Master Jung Mong Joo? Look.
It's him!
How can this happen?
Master Jung Mong Joo! How can this happen?
- Oh gosh... - How can this happen?
Come out.
Why?
The execution is at dawn, isn't it?
Young Gyoo.
It's okay.
I have... I've done worse things.
But...
why am I shaking?
You did something great.
Really...
great.
Now,
what will happen?
Many things will change.
Starting tomorrow,
many things will change.
What?
(King Gongyang)
Say it again.
What do you mean?
Master Jung Mong Joo...
was assassinated...
on Seonji Bridge.
It was schemed by...
Lee Bang Won, the fifth son of Lee Seong Gye.
Jung Mong Joo...
How...
did this...
How...
However, Your Majesty,
you must stay strong.
Mong Joo...
What happened...
to Jung Mong Joo?
Really?
Was he really assassinated?
Yes.
Yes, Master.
That can't be.
(Lee Saek)
How can Jung Mong Joo...
How can Jung Mong Joo be assassinated?
Master...
It must be Lee Seong Gye's men who did this.
What will we do...
with these rebellious thieves?
General,
don't be too surprised.
(Lee Ji Ran)
Listen carefully.
Master Jung Mong Joo,
on the way back to the palace last night,
became assassinated.
Assassinated?
Who would do that?
It seems like Bang Won did it.
Let's go.
Gosh, you surprised me.
What are you all doing here?
What happened to my brother?
What about my Moo Hyul?
- What happened to Moo Hyul? - What?
Ddang Sae and Moo Hyul...
never came back.
They are not back?
No.
You were with them, weren't you?
What happened?
We were divided into two groups.
Then...
was Bang Ji supposed to deal with Chuk Sa Gwang?
Who's Chuk Sa Gwang?
Oh, the swordsman.
It can't be. Darn it.
- Ddang Sae. - Ddang Sae.
Ddang Sae.
Where's Moo Hyul?
Where is he?
Is he not back yet?
What are you talking about?
Weren't you with him?
Last night,
Moo Hyul fell off a cliff with Chuk Sa Gwang.
I haven't found him yet.
Moo Hyul, what happened?
- Grandma. - What should I do?
Poor Moo Hyul.
Did she use the landing technique with me in her arms?
She's alive.
Poor Moo Hyul.
What happened to him?
I don't know what to do.
They're looking for him now.
Don't worry.
(Gab Boon)
Boon Yi...
ordered the members to look for him.
I told him not to go.
I doubt...
Moo Hyul died so easily.
- Let's just wait for good news. - Poor Moo Hyul.
Moo Hyul!
Where are you?
- Moo Hyul! - Moo Hyul!
Did you find anything?
- Where are you? - Go right and search for him!
- Moo Hyul! - Moo Hyul!
- Where are you? - What should we do?
(Daeseongjeon, Confucian shrine)
Was it something so unacceptable?
Was it something so unforgivable?
As a Confucian scholar,
I just followed your teaching.
You taught me that people mean more than the country.
And that teaching led me here. What did I do wrong?
Why did this happen to me and Mong Joo?
Why?
If we try,
can we really make the world...
as great as written in this book?
Yes, we can.
Let's do that.
We are going to do that.
What did you mean we can?
This piece of junk.
This couldn't even persuade Mong Joo.
This useless junk.
What's going on, Sambong?
What?
Our plan has already failed.
Don't you see?
Sambong.
Bang Won.
Your father wants to see you.
He might...
kill me today.
He won't.
So don't avoid him.
Just face him.
Okay.
I will.
Bang Won.
I'm sure...
nobody has told you this yet.
You did a good job.
(Lee Seong Gye)
Father.
It's me, Bang Won.
Father.
I'm sorry.
Pay with your life.
Kill yourself.
Bang Won.
I told you...
to let Mong Joo be.
You didn't listen to me then.
Why are you listening to me now?
I guess...
you want to prove you were right.
"You are wrong."
"I was right."
"That's why I decided everything for myself."
You don't care what your father tells you.
You stamped my seal on An-byeon-chaek without my consent.
You killed Jung Mong Joo in the end.
You always have to have it your way.
That's how you are.
I don't like how you are, either.
Even though it's obvious which way you should go,
you keep looking around.
Why are you so complicated?
Then how can you...
so easily turn your back on...
all the noblemen that follow Jung Mong Joo?
So...
what was the right thing to do, then?
Master Sambong,
Jo Joon...
and Master Nam Eun.
Should I have let them be executed?
You...
turned our plan into usurpation.
We've lost...
all the respect...
from the people.
Do we really need it in this path...
towards actualising our great plan?
- Becoming a king would be... - I won't do it!
I refuse...
to become the King.
Fine! Forget about it if you don't want to do it.
If you are afraid of taking responsibility...
and being criticised by others...
If you despise dirtying your hands...
that much,
you should just forget about it.
Bang Won, you jerk!
Bang Woo! Don't do this.
You jerk.
How dare you kill Master Jung!
You must know...
that you could be killed for what you've done!
Bang Woo!
Bang Gwa. You must...
arrest this sinner immediately.
Bang Woo! Please calm down.
If you can't do it,
I will do it myself.
Bang Woo!
Bang Won, run away.
Run now!
Let go of me!
Let me go!
Even little kids know that...
Master Jung was the greatest loyal subject.
If the King doesn't punish the sinner who took his life,
who would want to be loyal to this kingdom?
I agree.
Lee Bang Won, who killed Master Jung,
must be executed.
I agree as well. We must come together...
to put up this poster all over Gaegyeong...
and submit an appeal to the King.
- Yes, we must! - He should pay for what he's done.
- What he's done is unacceptable! - He needs to be punished!
- Let's go! - Let's go now.
- Yes. - Let's go.
Are you all resigning from your positions?
What are you doing now?
The murderer must receive punishment...
he deserves for killing Master Jung Mong Joo.
We will not return until that happens.
This is absolutely insane!
I, of course,
(Lee Saek)
understand the depth of your grief and anger.
However,
you should not act hastily.
I'm afraid that making a hasty decision might hurt you.
We are ready to risk our lives!
(Ha Ryun)
Goodness. Bang Won, this jerk. Seriously.
All teachers and mentors...
should help us.
- We can risk our lives for this! - We can risk our lives for this!
They want Bang Won to be executed.
What should we do about this?
What are you talking about?
Moo Hyul.
What happened?
Goodness, my grandson. What happened to your face?
Gosh, you can't get a scar on your handsome face.
You didn't disappoint me though. I knew that...
you'd return in one piece.
Grandma, you told me that I'm the luckiest man in Goryeo.
Yes. You're the luckiest man, indeed.
That's why I wasn't worried about you at all yesterday.
I slept like a baby.
What are you talking about? You were up all night...
scratching the walls out of your concern for him.
When did I do such a thing? Stop it.
Right. By the way,
is it true that Master Jung Mong Joo passed away?
While we were preoccupied, Young Gyoo...
I see.
What happened to you though?
Right. When I woke up,
Chuk Sa Gwang had already disappeared.
I'm relieved.
Bang Ji.
Were you worried about me?
You jumped off on purpose, right?
You could've died.
You fool. Smarten up now.
You shouldn't fight when you meet a warrior who's stronger than you.
Were you trying to kill yourself?
I'm not exactly sure why...
Chuk Sa Gwang was trying to protect Master Jung.
But if she is alive,
she might try to take revenge against us.
By the way, who put up the poster in the market?
There are many Confucian scholars who...
deeply respect Master Jung Mong Joo.
Everything will be fine.
And let's be honest here.
Master Jung Mong Joo is the one who initiated the battle.
No one will think like that though.
Everyone will take the side of the one who got killed.
Scholars at Sungkyunkwan...
are doing their best...
to get Bang Won executed.
Master Sambong, in any situation...
I'm the one who killed Master Jung.
He died because of me.
Are you still lamenting over how your great plan has been ruined?
I wanted to be remembered as a Confucian scholar,
so I acted like a child and tried to coax Mong Joo.
I shouldn't have acted that way,
especially to Mong Joo.
And?
What should you have done instead then?
No, let me rephrase it. What are you going to do now?
Now, I have two options.
I can either choose to live cruelly...
or die cruelly.
Master.
The legitimacy we've lost at the beginning of our plan...
can only be gained again through establishing the regime...
we've been longing to create.
Let's go. I should meet General Lee.
- He's the murderer. - He looks so cruel.
I told you...
to let Mong Joo be.
Bang Gwa. You must...
arrest this sinner immediately.
I see a murderous look in his eyes.
Gosh, he's Lee Bang Won.
- Let's go. - Goodness, that murderer...
It's him. He's the evil killer.
You repaid your teacher with death.
- That's Lee Bang Won. - How can he be so shameless?
He's the one who killed Master Jung Mong Joo.
- What a cruel man. - I loathe him. Goodness.
On top of that,
isn't the thought of becoming...
isolated and lonely making you afraid?
- How dare he! - Isn't he Sambong's follower?
- I can't believe what he's done. - Goodness.
Look.
I told you to be patient and behave yourself until I come to you.
Why did you do such a thing?
You wouldn't have been able to come up with a different solution.
That's not true.
Assassination.
You should've assassinated him in secret.
People will be suspicious of you, of course.
But you can just deny it. What can they do?
All the power now lies...
in the hands of your Lee family.
People would gossip, but it'd be forgotten soon.
What I've done is only fair.
Why do I have to assassinate him in secret?
I...
stopped him from hurting my father.
He was trying to stop us from taking a step forward in the history.
That is why I, Lee Bang Won, had to eliminate him.
Goodness. You are so impatient.
You're not even aware of the consequences this could bring.
You are okay, right?
I have to be all right.
General Lee will forgive you someday.
I can't help it even if he doesn't.
I need to meet Master Sambong.
He went to Mokcheongjeon.
- Is that right? Let's go. - Yes, Master.
Are you feeling better?
Sambong.
How did...
things get to this point?
I don't have to go out...
to realise what people are thinking.
I know how the world...
thinks of me.
I know how they think of us.
I think I know it all.
Now,
what should I do?
General Lee.
Say it.
You should...
You should hang Jung Mong Joo's head...
in the market.
What?
You should hang Jung Mong Joo's head in the market and...
proclaim that he was a traitor.
Sambong.
Are you hearing yourself?
Is this...
Is this the great work...
you wanted to do?
You killed General Choi Young,
kicked out Master Lee Saek,
and now,
you beat the man who came to visit me to death...
with an iron ball.
And you want to hang his head and call him the traitor!
I killed a countless number of enemies in the battlefield.
But I didn't kill them this way.
I cut the head of enemy leaders who left his soldiers and...
ran away for his life.
But for the leaders who stood by their men...
Yes.
You had a grand funeral for them.
So...
So how can I...
call Jung Mong Joo a traitor?
Then...
should we consider him the most loyal man,
put up a monument to praise his loyalty,
and place his remains in the shrine?
General Lee,
we must take the responsibility.
In any situation, we must take the responsibility.
That's politics,
and that's the minimum duty for the politicians.
In the history, the essence of politics has never changed.
Politics is about taking responsibility.
My fellow Jung Mong Joo was against our idea,
and by death he's fulfilled his responsibility.
Now it's our turn.
We even killed a fellow to enter this path.
We are responsible to complete our great work.
Or...
we all...
have to die.
Is Sambong the only person...
who will move Father forward?
If Mong Joo didn't die,
I would've died.
Jo Joon,
Nam Eun and Lee Sin Jeok also would've died.
Perhaps the men we educated...
and who could become important asset to us...
would've all died too.
It's my responsibility.
I thought Mong Joo would...
agree with my plan since it was the right plan.
That was my first mistake.
Even though I knew it was...
much harder to get rid of the person you're close to...
than to get rid of enemies. I knew it.
But I wanted to ignore it. That was my second mistake.
I wanted to...
I wanted to get acknowledged...
by Mong Joo.
That was my third mistake.
I realised that I am responsible for it.
However,
as long as we're alive,
and if we won't choose to die,
we...
We must take the responsibility.
Oh?
What happened?
Master Sambong.
There was...
no other way.
I am not blaming you.
I did it with a resolution.
What resolution did you make?
In our work,
there is no place for you.
You must have prepared for that.
From the start...
From the start, in this great work,
there was no place for me.