Brought to you by WITH S2 Written In The Heavens Subbing Squad
Please do NOT hardsub and/or stream this episode using our English subtitles.
Our bloody pates will be gibbeted outside the palace walls.
May you make your decision!
He reflected upon his decision, deeply regretting his misjudgment.
Inscribe the vexatious despair of a father who slew his own son.
And that is why he left us that secret will.
Should talebearing about your grieving throes echo outside these walls,
you and I shall never be allowed back to the palace!
Your Highness, may you regain your composure!
Your Highness!
Shut that gob, Sire!
If such is not the truth, confess otherwise, Mother!
I said return to your quarters, Sire!
Mother!
This is the very last chance the heavens will accord us.
While Lord Dong's men use their matchlocks and explosives,
Jang Dongji will infiltrate and apprehend the king.
They will apprehend both the king and all Shipa members.
Should I fail to return...
What?!
Promise you will do so.
You are the only one left who can protect His Majesty.
~ FINAL EPISODE ~
I shall keep an eye on them.
Did we not promise to attack at the fifth gak?!
The moment we ambush the royal carriage,
the rear patrol guard will surround us and slaughter us all.
We will apprehend the king ahead of our announced time,
and escape to our survival through the Ammun Gate.
Waiting for deployment.
Fine, we shall depart in one gak.
Yes.
Detonate.
It's a wick!
What is going on?
What was that sound?
What if anything befell His Majesty?
I do not know, Your Highness.
Is it already the fifth gak of the hour of the monkey?!
Those varmints could not possibly...
- Deploy troops! - Yes!
Move!
Where is His Majesty at the moment?
It is already time for his arrival at the western command post.
We shall move there.
Hasten all the preparations.
We cannot, Your Highness.
We cannot be sure of what has happened yet,
so it would be much too venturesome.
Prepare my carriage at once!
We shall go there whatever it takes!
What on earth has happened?
Was there really an explosion on the pathway His Majesty took?
Meseems something befell the royal retinue.
I shall head there immediately and verify the situation.
Can one of the officials in charge of our combined drill leave his post?!
This... really...
I shall ascertain the situation.
Jeongbok!
Jeongbok.
Are you all right?
You knave!
I fervently awaited this day!
Think you would survive, after poisoning my brother Jeong Hugyeom to death?!
You...
I always had faith in you.
You varmint!
I endured the opprobrious infamy you subjected our clan to,
and became an eunuch only to witness this very day!
Sire!!
May you accept this vengeful blade of mine!
Sire!
Where is the royal guard?!
Protect His Majesty the King!
Your Majesty!
Treasonous specimen must be attempting on your life!
I shall escort you, Sire!
Protect His Majesty!
Your Excellency?!
- Secure our position. - Yes.
What is this all about?
Why did you not move according to plans?
I do not know, either.
I conveyed to them the itinerary as planned.
They either mistook our plans,
or...
Or they only pretended to follow them, to then turn their backs on us.
We underestimated those fellows.
Then, how do you plan to act now?
It is either survival or demise, what else?!
We shall trail them, and slaughter them all!
What if it will be in His Majesty's presence?
All we need to do is blame everything on Moon Inbang's throng.
A most discerning suggestion.
I shall convey it to His Excellency the Minister of War.
Any hesitation will allow the Royal Guard Garrison...
to secure His Majesty first, and hamper our great endeavor.
Immediately alert His Excellency on His Majesty's abduction,
and clamor him to secure control of the military at once.
That is the only way we will be able to seize Hwaseong.
- Trail him. - Yes.
Sire!
- Sire! - Protect the King!
Sire!
Protect the King!
Where are they?
Let us wait.
Until they show up.
Sire!
Sire...
Are you unscathed?
I am fine.
Meseems someone is after their ruler's life.
I often experienced this kind of situation ever since my Royal Successor days.
Never you worry, Sire.
The rear patrol guards shall soon join us.
Who is leading the patrol guards today?
Drill Instructor Gu Myeongnok.
Sire!
Jang Dongji!
Sire.
The western command post is not far from here.
It would be wiser to head there.
Is the Vice Councilor there?
That is correct, Sire.
He entrusted us with protection of the royal retinue,
and moved there ahead of us.
All right.
Let us go there.
Looks like those treacherous varmints attacked the royal retinue!
Then, His Majesty?!
According to my findings, His Majesty...
Are you telling me you've been to the Royal Garden Pavilion and back?!
Did you see His Majesty firsthand?
I... What I meant...
What is all this hesitation?!
I saw the treacherous throng gather in the vicinity of the Pavilion,
and hastened back here.
You saw them approach the Pavilion, and just came back here?!
Ohh Ohh! The humanity!
Summon your battalion and lead them to the Pavilion immediately!
Should anyone hamper the royal carriage's retreat,
behead them for high treason on the spot!
Yes, it shall be done!
Await a moment.
Meseems a grave predicament is on hand.
Our canons suggest that, should voidance befall the throne...
because of sudden quandaries afflicting the King,
military authority should immediately be transferred to the Minister of War.
Hence,
from here on in, every order regarding our troops shall come directly from him.
What ludicrous drivel!
We must first ascertain His Majesty's conditions!
Did we not just hear that the royal carriage was attacked by treacherous misfits?!
Are you going to take responsibility for your hesitation,
should a direful welter afflict us?!
It is exactly in these situations that all orders must come from the same source!
Do not dare utter voidance of the throne in vain!
Any upheaval happening in Hwaseong shall be handled by the Suwon Chief Marshal,
so it is only natural the Chief Marshal shall lead our troops!
I saw the rear patrol guards being mobilized.
Once the Drill Instructor arrives, he shall report in detail.
Shut that gob!
As His Excellency suggested, we must first ascertain His Majesty's conditions.
Since the rear patrol guard has been mobilized to the scene,
let us await any further development.
Who are you?
This is His Majesty the King!
Kneel before your ruler at once!
Slay him!
I can now fathom whom you could be.
How could you aid the harrowing schemes of treasonous varmints?
I shall still give you a chance to change your mind.
His Majesty's safety and that of our people all depend on your decision!
Look...
Jang Gichong!
Jang Dongji.
What are you waiting for?
The royal guard is trailing us.
Is this not our mighty ruler?!
It is me, Okpo!
And what on earth could that moniker entail to,
moving you to harm your one and only ruler?!
I suggest you worry about your own fettle, mighty ruler.
We must immediately move to the western Ammun Gate.
If we hesitate any longer, the rear patrol guard will be after us!
Now!
- Here... let us hasten! - Yes.
Move!
Here...
Jang Chain!
Jang Chain!!
Is this the quickest pathway to the western Ammun Gate?
I have grown accustomed to this pathway while acting as emissary in Hwaseong.
Aim!
His Majesty might have been abducted!
If we just shoot, His Majesty...
His Majesty will be hiding in the forest.
We shall first apprehend those traitors, and later rescue him.
But it is way too far for sniping effectively.
Let us advance farther.
All right.
Approach the traitors until point-blank range!
Yes, we will.
Move!
We cannot idle here forever.
Your Excellency!
The Military Training Command troops waiting outside the palace...
request the gates to be opened, so that they can apprehend the culprits.
We cannot ascertain His Majesty's conditions,
so they say they will enter with or without our consent!
May you issue the order!
What perfidy!
Idling here with nary a reaction, as we still do not know what...
direful quandary might have befallen His Majesty, is nothing but perfidy!
We must immediately suspend the drill, and inspect the royal carriage!
A most discerning observation!
Seeing as there was no report from the rear patrol guard,
it seems certain that they still have not secured His Majesty.
Hence, we must deploy our troops, and rummage the entire Hwaseong!
Your Excellency.
It is a matter of utmost urgency. May you issue the order.
It... It seems like the rear patrol guard is here!
They finally reveal their true colors.
So you shall mercilessly slaughter us all?!
Proceed!
Quick... We must escape to the Ammun Gate!
Proceed!
Should you meet Kim Hanju,
admonish him that he must make up for this affront at all cost!
All right!
I will caution him that we will cede His Majesty to the Shipa otherwise!
Seonsaengnim, can we really trust him?
If Master Hong can only grant us enough time to escape,
he will have fulfilled his call.
Is not the king in our hands, after all?!
Sun!
Jang Dongji!
I must rescue Sun!
Leave him to Jang Dongji.
Jang Dongji!
Sun.
- Let us move. - Yes.
One of their men is lying here.
Should we keep trailing them? Or fall back?
Pull back.
We shall head to the western command post.
Yes.
Move!
If attacking the royal retinue is your call,
would that not prove to be treason?!
Who is there?
It is the Assistant Minister of War!
What are you doing here, Your Excellency?
I was curious.
We heard the matchlocks' blazing shots.
Did you eliminate the traitors?
We lost them.
They must have devised a secret escape route.
Then, His Majesty?!
He was abducted by them.
Why did you not trail them all the way, and halted here?
The crown is still firmly on his pate.
His Excellency the Minister of War must seize control of the military.
That is the most pressing issue.
I shall head to the western command post,
and alert everyone present that His Majesty was abducted.
But... where are you headed?
I must meet with Hong Jaecheon.
If such is the case,
how about we deal with him once and for all?
That is a most enticing subterfuge!
Then, I will head back to the post in your stead and report on His Majesty,
while you shall go ahead and meet Hong Jaecheon.
All right. Where were you to meet?
There is a big box tree under the western watchtower.
If you hasten there now, you will still be on time.
Should we find his retinue, we shall slaughter them all.
Of course.
Master!
We can no longer trust Moon Inbang and Kim Hanju.
May you turn back, and devise our next move.
We already are riding on a tiger's back!
We must go through with this to the very end.
Let's move.
Wh...Who are you?
Where is His Majesty?
Unless you confess everything, consider this your burial ground!
I engaged in a secret stratagem with His Excellency Kim Hanju!
I asked you where is His Majesty!
If you spare our lives...
Will you lead the way?
Certainly.
Follow me.
- But, the Assistant?! - You know my question!
Yes...
He is under the western Ammun Gate.
I am to lead the new... genesis...
Do not shoot.
I brought an officer from the rear patrol guard.
He will convey us His Majesty's conditions.
I represent the rear patrol guard.
His Majesty has been abducted by the treacherous horde!
Stop!
And you?
Are you not the criminal who could not even protect the royal carriage?!
Ohh Ohhh! How could this obloquy befall us?!
How could they allow this to happen?
Your Excellency, may you immediately seize control of the military,
and bring an end to this vexatious upheaval.
Herald, heed my words.
Yes!
We shall hereby suspend the combined drill.
Every commander of the five garrisons shall lead his men...
and promptly deploy from the temporary palace.
Leave all cellars for the armament and explosives open.
The Ministry of War shall take direct control over the Royal Guard Garrison!
Both Military Command and the rest of the five garrisons shall enter the fortress,
and ferret out the varmints who abducted His Majesty.
- Five army garrisons, prepare for deployment! - Yes!
What shall we do with the Royal Guard Garrison troops?
The reason this baneful quandary afflicts His Majesty...
is all to blame on the royal guard's negligence.
Until all treasonous individuals are apprehended,
Royal Guard Garrison troops are forbidden to leave this area!
Remain on your posts!
Treasonous varmints attacked the royal carriage in contempt for His Majesty!
His Majesty the King was abducted!
Seeing as we still cannot ascertain his conditions,
I regret to conjecture that he might have been assassinated already.
Rummage the entire fortress, and apprehend those vile traitors!
Furthermore, for their negligence in protecting the royal retinue,
immediately arrest Their Excellencies Lee Myeongshik and Jo Shimtae,
and disarm every and all Royal Guard Garrison officials!
From here on in, all military authority...
rests solely with the Ministry of War!
Your wish is our command!
Apprehend Lee Myeongshik and Jo Shimtae at once!
Yes! Apprehend them!
Yes!
Let me go, you varlets!
Let me go!
What is all this, Your Excellency?!
We still have not verified His Majesty's conditions!
Acting with such disdainful contempt for his legacy is villainous perfidy!
Your Excellency.
Unless you want to be accused of conspiring with the treacherous horde,
I suggest you remain silent.
You vile knave!
What are you waiting for?!
- Apprehend the State Councilor as well! - Yes.
Let me go, you fool!
Halt immediately!
Who dares to proclaim His Majesty's demise in vain?!
I hereby speak as the Queen Mother.
Until we ascertain His Majesty's conditions, everyone must stop!
Your Highness.
Leave this matter to us,
return to the palace, and take good care of yourself.
What are you waiting for? Escort Her Highness!
What is the Royal Guard Garrison doing?
You are His Majesty's personal guards, so protect his mother at once!
Yes!
Let go, you fools!
Master Hong...
I knew he would not be able to live up to his covenant,
and that he would succumb like the ruffian that he is!
We will be able to escape.
I shall pave the way.
Lord Dong.
We must slay him. He will only hamper our escape!
It still is not the time, Lord Dong.
After we escape from here,
before the entire world to witness,
we shall execute their monarch.
Only then they will be alerted of the incoming genesis!
I shall be the one to slay him.
Man Cheon Myeong Wol*!
*Bright Moon Kindling Creation
I am the guiding light kindling Joseon!
You shameful dastards!
Bright moon?!
The moon is but a moon.
Measly kindling the darkness until dawning befalls creation!
Do not trail him!
Sire!
Are you unscathed?
I am just fine.
We must hasten to the western command post.
Everyone must be concerned.
Let's move!
Choi Gichong!
Are you all right?
Yo...ur Maj...esty...
May you... find refuge...
Choi Gichong, endure it just a moment!
We must hasten!
- Let us trail them. - Yes.
You!
May you find refuge.
My gratitude.
What are you doing, Jang Dongji?!
Slay him!
Your Excellency.
I leave So Hyangbi to your care.
All right.
I knew you would not betray your affiliation!
You traitor hampering creation's new genesis!
Our... new...
genesis.
Stop there!
Stop at once!
Shoot!
Understanding Your Majesty's grandiose vision I cannot.
But may you never forget that people like myself...
were sacrificed in its shadows.
Your Majesty.
May you await here a moment.
Sire. They are the five garrison troops.
We shall not easily contend with their might.
This country's ruler shall never run away in cowardice.
Let us go.
Yes.
Who is there?!
Stop!
You varlet!
Can't you even recognize your ruler?!
That is the traitor who slew His Majesty!
Slay him!
You knaves!
You vile knaves!
Drop your weapons!
What are you waiting for? Slay him at once!
You knaves!
You supercilious varmints!
What army could ever dare to harm its own ruler,
you treasonous scalawags!
What are you waiting for?
Slay them all!
Was there any courtier still incognizant of my visage?!
I am your one and only ruler!
Where is the Royal Guard Garrison?
What are you varlets doing?!
Protect His Majesty at once!
- Protect His Majesty! - Protect His Majesty!
Behead the traitor.
Your Majesty!
Your Majesty!!
Your Majesty!
- Your Majesty! - Your Majesty!
Our baneful negligence allowed this treacherous varmint to commit such obloquy!
Your Majesty.
My malfeasance allowed that treasonous throng to subject...
you to such harrowing discomfiture.
May you punish my negligence with demise!
Punish our negligence!
Minister Shim.
Meseems the situation was even more urgent than I suspected.
What brings you here, Mother?
Moved by curiosity regarding the drill, I came to witness it firsthand.
I am glad you joined us.
What are those torches?!
They are the five army garrisons His Excellency Minister Shim summoned.
Yes.
Your Majesty is now here with us in all safety, so I shall send them back.
We shall proceed with the combined drill as planned.
Oust all five army garrison troops outside the fortress walls!
Did you not heed my words?
Order the five army garrisons...
to deploy back to their bases outside the fortress.
Yes!
Your Highness.
A message from Hwaseong.
You may enter.
When will providence ever visit my gates again?!
I waited for over two decades.
Sure...
The day shall surely come.
Indeed.
We must dethrone the Royal Successor.
Did you forget your covenant?
But, that is where the party line veered into.
It is clear that, after witnessing his father's demise,
ascending to the throne would prove harmful for the Royal Successor.
Party line, party line, and always party line!
Are you even asking me to slay my flesh and blood with these very hands?!
But... Your Highness.
Are you not well aware that,
should we go against our party line,
our entire clan risks extinction?!
Never forget that stalwarts of Queen Jeongsun, like Kim Sangno and Kim Hangu,
are always waiting for a propitious chance to eliminate us.
It was because of me that our clan has escaped from idleness and enjoyed riches and fame.
Not to mention who allowed you to be proclaimed State Councilor...
despite not even passing the national examination.
I did every single thing you have been asking me up to this very day.
I even paved the way for my own helpmate's demise.
However,
you shall never do any harm to my son.
Whatever it takes,
I shall protect my son up to the very end.
May you change your mind, Father.
And I suggest you kindle your own path, from here on in.
Otherwise, I will be forced to confess what happened to my helpmate...
to His Majesty and all creation,
after which I shall take my own life.
Mother.
If we are to complete our ceremonial in my father's honor,
it could take a few hours.
I deeply enjoy sitting here in my son's company.
Looks like you do not feel the same, Sire.
How could you even suspect such things?!
They lauded him as a virtuous ruler.
Your father, I mean.
During his procession to Onyang Palace,
people gathered along the way,
and they sang jubilant praises in unison.
Just like what happened to you, last night.
Free the way! His Highness the Crown Prince is passing by!
Let them be!
We all gathered to sincerely welcome Your Highness!
Let us go!
If a ruler is a boat, then his people are the water he is floating on.
It suggests that water can let the boat sail, or turn it over.
So would not a ruler be forced to treat his people with utmost devotion?
Then, why did my father have to perish?
Because of the Noron party's vengeful reprisal after his betrayal.
It was not something the Noron party would certainly expect.
Was he not the future king, after all?
Then, why wasn't the former king able to stop the Noron's tyranny?
Why would he not have wanted to stop it?!
He merely could not do so.
He could not stop them?!
For the former king himself was nothing more than a party member.
*When the younger brother of a childless king is proclaimed heir
During his Royal Sibling days*,
the Soron Party attempted on his life more than once.
He was aided by the Noron party in overcoming such crises,
and only thanks to their efforts was able to ascend to the throne.
For your father to forsake the Noron and support the rival Soron,
it could only feel like an act of disdain towards the legitimacy of the throne.
Then, are you suggesting that the former king...
had to eliminate his son to protect his throne?!
It was a choice even His Deceased Majesty could not do a thing about.
You must understand his decision.
Are you not a ruler just like he was?
Let us surmise both your helpmate and son were drowning.
If you only had the opportunity to rescue one of them,
whom would you choose?
What are you trying to say?
May you not further inquire, and just answer my question.
Whom would you choose, between helpmate and son?
I would rescue my son.
It is what my spouse would want as well.
It is a relief to hear that.
I suggested the crown prince be apprehended.
You suggested what?!
It was decided upon by our party.
Kim Hangu and Kim Sangno said they would never allow...
a crown prince supporting the Soron party to ascend to the throne.
It cannot happen.
I cannot abandon my own spouse.
Your Highness.
Think not of it as abandoning him,
but merely as sacrificing him for your son's own future.
And without the crown prince, who is going to guarantee...
that the Royal Successor will be safe?!
I was part of the Noron party myself.
And your father was aware of that.
That I was reporting his every move to your grandfather Hong Bonghan,
as a member of the Noron party.
So why did he never stop you, and walked into the flames of demise...
of his own volition?
Because of his love for you, Sire.
To protect and shelter your future.
You are the son of Prince Sado.
And I merely am a mother and nothing more to you.
Mother...
Mother!
Your Highness.
This penitent matron has gotten old,
and only now has come to implore your forgiveness.
May you not resent this olden matron,
and may you forgive her manifold sins...
Ever since the day you entered that chest,
I could not spend a single instant in peace.
May you forgive me,
and enjoy the peaceful respite you deserve, Your Highness.
Your Highness!
On the thirteenth day, His Majesty King Jeongjo crossed the pontoon bridge,
concluding the wondrous procession which lasted eight days,
and returned to Hanyang.
Five years after his return from Hwaseong,
*06/28/1800
on the twenty-eighth day of the sixth month, year of Gimo*,
at the hour of the fowl (5~7 p.m.),
without witnessing the completion of all his reforms,
he passed away in Changgyeong Palace.
Brought to you by WITH S2 Written In The Heavens Subbing Squad
~ EIGHT DAYS ~ The Mystery of Jeongjo's Assassination
~ Produced By ~ PARK Jong Won
~ Written By ~ KIM Won Seok
~ Starring ~
~ King JEONGJO ~ KIM Sang Joong
~ Queen Mother LADY HYEGYEONG ~ JEONG Ae Ri
~ JEONG Yakyong ~ PARK Jung Cheol
~ Minister of War SHIM Hwanji ~ PARK Chan Hwan
~ MOON Inbang ~ LEE Dae Yeon
~ JANG Inhyeong ~ LEE Seon Ho
~ Queen Dowager JEONGSUN ~ KIM Hee Jeong
~ Crown Prince SADO ~ JO Han Joon
~ King YEONGJO ~ KIM Seong Gyeom
Main Translator and Timer: MisterX
Timing QC: julier
Editor/QC: thunderbolt
Coordinators: mily2, ay_link
Please do NOT hardsub and/or stream this episode using our English subtitles.
This is a FREE fansub. NOT for SALE!!! Get it for FREE @ withs2.com