The gravesite and plains will be shared.
The money chest has been left to you...
...so you should respect your father's wishes.
Stop that!
How dare you laugh at a house of mourning?
My goodness.
Look here.
Grandma!
Grandma.
Grandma?
On the day grandma died...
...it snowed.
On that day, my mom sang.
Mom, you're singing.
You usually cry at graves.
Why not today?
Why aren't you crying?
What I heard...
...was her first and last song.
"The Dirge Singer"
"A slave or a peasant who was..."
"...paid to mourn during a funeral"
You rotten girl!
I said stop!
Stop right there!
You rotten girl!
What will you do to make a living then?
-Be quiet and come with me! -I'm not going!
I said no!
-Make sure it's tied up right. -Yes.
Make the knot tight!
You're 16.
You need to make money now.
Don't be silly and just learn the song.
I don't want to!
You don't want to?
Then should I bring your little sister, Gobdan?
You rotten girl.
Stop this nonsense.
This is your fate. Don't run from it.
Let's get ready.
Get up.
"Kim Yoojung, Seo Junyeong"
"Hwang Misun, Lim Jieun, An Byunkyung"
What are you doing?
Are your lips stuck together?
Let's see how long you can keep this up.
Please enjoy.
Congratulations.
Thank you.
Yunsu.
Come here.
Have a drink with your big brother.
I should go now.
Stay a little longer.
It's no fun without you.
He's right.
Stay a while.
The gisaengs, female entertainers, have just arrived.
Congratulations.
I heard you passed your exam for office.
You didn't need to come here.
This is a family celebration.
We must celebrate with Dohwa's song.
Sing us a song.
-Hwaju. -Yes.
Girls.
Stop!
Dohwa.
Sing it yourself.
I can't pay her.
She never even opened her mouth.
I brought her along so she could learn.
I'm sorry.
You've all had a drink so let's get moving.
-Yes. -Yes.
You know what death is, right?
You shouldn't be stingy with your tears when sending off the dead.
What is it?
You didn't cry.
You were stingy with grandma.
Yet you cry so well when strangers die.
Stop talking nonsense and just cry.
Why should I cry for people I don't know?
Why?
What?
What are you doing? Bring her back!
-Stop! -She can't walk in front of the dead!
Yeonsim!
I'm not as good as I used to be.
I will just soil your ears, madam.
Is that so?
Then why did you come all the way here?
Why come here when you can't even sing?
You rotten girl!
Rotten girl!
-What's that? -Yeonsim!
Yeonsim, you rotten girl!
Stop right there!
I'm sure you have good manners...
...so please step aside.
As you can see, this is a family celebration.
I'm afraid we can't end the celebration.
Pallbearers do not take detours.
Celebrations do not get canceled halfway.
Sing!
The celebration begins now!
I don't think that it's right to sing...
...and block the deceased on their journey.
It looks like the celebration's already over.
Let us pass.
What would you do?
Is it right to let them pass as she says?
Or is it right to continue the celebration?
We shouldn't place any importance...
...on the words of a measly gisaeng.
Sing.
I said sing right now!
You rotten girl!
You rotten...
Let's go! Quickly!
Hurry up and go!
Let's go!
That low-born girl is so rude.
She doesn't cry but at least she's useful.
Gobdan.
Go inside.
Please send someone over tomorrow.
Our family is no better off than yours.
Yeonsim's a lot younger than our son.
Do you think it will be all right?
A dirge singer and a pallbearer.
If they travel to mourner's homes together,
at least they won't starve.
That's good enough.
Esophageal cancer.
You have a month at most.
A dirge singer and a pallbearer.
If they travel to mourner's homes together, at least they won't starve.
That's good enough.
They're picking gisaengs.
-Gisaengs? -Really?
Picking gisaengs?
They are picking gisaengs.
She's a dirge singer.
What does it say?
Move!
They're choosing gisaengs.
Gisaengs?
Girls from 12 to 17 years old.
Preferably neat in appearance and even better if skilled.
They'll provide food and shelter.
Where is this place?
Let me see.
-Cheong... -Cheong?
What's that character?
What's that?
An advertisement for choosing gisaengs?
So ridiculous.
Excuse me!
Wait!
I just...
That...
Give it to me.
Why?
Do you want to be a gisaeng?
Yes.
Do you even know what that is?
One day, you're a man's drinking glass.
Another day, you're his trinket.
And another day...
...you're his blanket then you get dumped.
And you want to live such a low life?
So what if I'm a drinking glass or trinket?
What's wrong with that?
It's not stealing and it doesn't hurt anyone.
So what if it's a little low?
Is that so?
You try it then.
If you want it that badly, then try it.
But...
...they won't accept a dirge singer like you.
Low people hate...
...those who are even lower than they are.
You. Come with me.
Why?
Be quiet and just come with me.
Wait! Wait a minute!
It said anyone could be a gisaeng.
Hey, you're not just anyone.
Dirge singers aren't just anyone.
I'll do whatever you tell me to.
Just once. Please let me do this.
Bye.
Wait!
Get lost!
Why did you do that?
She's still Yunsu's mother.
I was just trying to teach him about the position he stands in.
Humiliation is the best way to handle those beneath you.
Mother.
Drink up.
Get out of the way.
You're the ugliest girl I've ever met.
No joy for my eyes or my body.
I just wasted all my money tonight!
What's wrong?
You had a great drink.
Don't smile, rotten girl.
You'll sober me up!
Talk about bad luck.
Take care getting home.
Get lost! You rotten girl!
I said get lost!
I said go!
You've got snot.
Not there.
What are you looking at?
At least you shed tears.
Who doesn't shed tears?
She didn't shed any tears.
My mom didn't cry when grandma died.
That's because she's a dirge singer.
Dirge singers cry through song.
Do you think I'll do that too?
Do you think I won't cry if my mom dies?
I've never seen my mom smile before.
That's why I want to be like you.
I want to live smiling.
I don't think I'll have to cry if I'm a gisaeng.
Not all tears are sincere...
...and not all smiles are sincere.
Pretending you're okay, ignoring things.
That's just the way life is.
Aren't you coming inside?
What do you think?
Will she be okay once she's cleaned up?
Your mother's a dirge singer, isn't she?
There's something you must do to become a gisaeng.
It's more important than beauty or talent.
Strip.
Excuse me?
Dohwa.
She's still young.
Take your clothes off.
Go back.
When is the cold weather going to end?
Goodness.
Hey!
You still haven't left?
What's wrong with you?
Just go!
Excuse me.
Can't you let me be a gisaeng?
Whatever. I never saw you here.
No. Wait.
Look here!
I'll take my clothes off!
Don't you get it?
She said no.
What do I have to do then?
The new girls can't really sing...
♪Fret for what?
♪Get irritated for what?
♪Life is but a dream
Dohwa, let's give her just one chance.
If we teach her to sing or dance...
She's not meant to be a gisaeng.
Send her back.
She said she'll strip.
That young girl said she'd strip.
You are too ill.
Go inside and rest.
Sir.
I think Yunsu should take...
...my place in the family meeting today.
What are you talking about?
There is no one here but you!
Let go!
If you want to drink, go inside.
What are you doing out here?
I said let go!
See?
They said no because you're a dirge singer.
Do you know why?
Low-borns get mad when they see other low-borns.
They don't like it.
They just...
They just don't like it.
Why are you being so mean to me?
I don't know you.
Why are you doing this?
You bother me.
It bothered me when you ran off into the mountains with the pallbearers.
You sitting here wanting to be a gisaeng bothers me too!
Then in the mountains...
Go!
Don't hang around here and just go!
Why don't you go?
Mind your own business.
Come inside.
Come in.
It's cold.
Would you like to come inside too?
Yeonsim!
What do you mean let her meet the guests?
She said she wants to be a gisaeng.
Yeonsim!
Get out of here. You can't come inside.
That's my daughter, Yeonsim.
You rotten girl!
We'd be crazy to accept a dirge singer here!
Don't interrupt our business. Get out!
You rotten girl!
What are you doing here?
Don't you know how hard their lives are?
You rotten girl! Yeonsim!
Yeonsim, you fool!
Yeonsim! Yeonsim!
It was a hard day. Have a drink.
Our work never ends.
Nice.
-Very nice. -Come over here.
-No need to bow. Just come here. -This way.
-Come here. -Forget bowing and just come.
Sit down!
You sit down too.
You look so nice and pretty.
Come here.
Hey. Alcohol.
I want to see your flesh.
Come here!
I have a girl on my right too.
What? Why did only three come out?
What is she doing in there?
She should've come out by now.
♪ Fret for what?
♪ Get irritated for what?
♪ Life is but a dream
♪ So I bet...
♪ You can't help but have fun
♪ Light the lantern
♪ My forgotten love is coming back
♪ We come empty, return empty
♪ So I bet you can't help but have fun
You cried a lot on your first night.
We told her to sing and she really did!
I never cried.
You did too.
I thought my eardrums would burst.
Can we have another drink before we go?
Go or I'll spray salt on you!
Okay, forget it. Okay. Call us again next year then.
Call us again next year.
Let's go.
Sir!
Why aren't you crying?
Don't you feel sad?
All the other girls cried on their first night.
You need to be able to cry in order to smile.
I've never met a girl like you before.
Why do you want to be a gisaeng?
So I don't have to cry.
So I can live smiling.
Can you smile now that you're a gisaeng?
You drank so much!
-I'll go get some water... -Hwaju.
Why did you become a gisaeng?
Are you just like that girl?
You don't care about being a lowlife?
Did you just wanted to be one?
I knew it was a lowlife.
And it didn't seem great.
I became a gisaeng so I could earn my living.
So I could feed myself.
So...
...is your life all right now?
Life's not that bad.
It's totally fine that I'm sick of it these days.
That's right.
No one is a gisaeng because they want to be.
We smile so we can live.
Gisaengs sell their smiles.
Even so...
...you don't have to cry.
That's true.
But gisaengs can't cry even if they want to.
That way, men will look for us...
...and we can make money.
You wanted to cry, didn't you?
You wanted to cry but kept it inside, right?
It was the same for me.
I couldn't cry.
I abandoned my son. I wasn't qualified to cry.
That's why I sang.
Go back.
Your mother didn't abandon you.
No.
I would rather that she did abandon me.
If she abandons me...
...at least I won't have to mourn for others.
I wish that she would abandon me.
Don't be so harsh on yourself.
Don't be so stubborn.
Force a smile and you can laugh.
Force a tear and you can cry.
My mother abandoned me.
She sang because she couldn't cry.
She shouldn't have sang.
She shouldn't have smiled.
She should've lived like she was dead!
That's how she should've lived!
She abandoned her own son!
She should've never shown her face.
Sir!
Dohwa.
I think he's going to get himself in trouble.
Can you do me a favor?
Why did you chase after me?
Did she ask you to follow me?
She did.
Why?
Did she ask you to set a bridge for me?
Okay then.
What else did she tell you to do?
Did she tell you to pity me and to treat me like a noble man?
What's wrong with you?
Do you feel sorry for me too...
...because I'm born out of wedlock?
Let go of me.
I said let go!
Did you just laugh?
How dare a low-born dirge singer laugh at me?
You're just a dirge singer.
Did you just laugh at me, the second son of prime minister?
I did!
I laughed at you.
How dare you?
What more can I do then?
If I don't laugh...
...then what am I supposed to do?
Are you that ashamed of being half noble?
Is that why my laugh seem like a mockery?
Shut it.
You don't know a thing!
I don't know!
All I know is this.
People don't point at you like you're an insect.
You aren't reviled for being possessed!
You're not like me.
You're not a low-born dirge singer...
...who can't be a gisaeng...
...even after leaving her own mother.
I know that.
I shouldn't have chased after you.
You don't even know how to light a fire.
I told you I'd do it.
Noble men don't know how to do anything.
Why do you despise crying that much?
Why do you despise laughing then?
Because it reminds you of your mother?
Is it the same for you?
What is it?
I was curious...
...about how you could smile like that.
If I cry,
they'll curse me for being a dirge singer.
You should try smiling too.
Go on.
Like this.
I envy you.
You can smile...
...and you have a dream.
I don't know anymore.
What can I do besides crying?
It's the same for me.
"Don't do anything."
"You must not become someone special."
That's the price for being half noble.
That's why I was so angry at you.
You worked so hard when I couldn't even try.
You'll find your destiny one day.
One day...
...you'll find it.
You will too.
It might take a long time but...
...something you can do,
something you want to do.
You'll find it.
Choi Gyeongpil is dead!
Dead!
This ill child has passed.
Let's conduct a five-day funeral with the best dirge singer.
We need a proper lament so he'll go to heaven.
Yes, sir.
No one is to shed any tears as of today.
And you!
You're the chief mourner of this family now.
Sir!
1000 bags of rice.
2000 bags of rice.
1000 coins.
2000 coins.
Are there any other dirge singers?
She's the only one available.
There are so many funerals at the moment.
What about her daughter then!
Gobdan!
Yeonsim.
Mom's gone to mourn.
Mom's sick.
Mom's sick?
Where?
Sir!
My mom...
Sir!
Aren't you Dangeum's daughter?
I'm not a dirge singer.
Your mother is a dirge singer, you must be too.
Cry!
Mourn! Right now!
What are you doing?
Why aren't you crying?
The second son's the chief mourner.
Where did they find dirge singers like that?
Let's hire some other dirge singers.
They don't know how to mourn properly.
There are three funerals in our neighborhood.
That girls is the only one left.
We need at least one proper dirge singer.
So many people have their eyes on us!
Until the funeral is over,
you're in charge as the chief mourner.
It's the final journey of the eldest son of our 300-year heritage.
You make her cry.
I was like a ghost.
In this place, in this family,
I was nothing.
But now,
they all have...
...their eyes on me.
They need me.
Just once.
Please cry.
Just once.
Then I'll let you go.
I'm the chief mourner.
Have you changed?
Now that you're the chief mourner,
you want to act like a real noble man?
Yeonsim.
Just once. I'll let you go. I'll make sure of it!
No.
I can't do it.
You only need to cry once. Please, Yeonsim!
Everything you told me was a lie.
You wanted to be like your brother from the start.
You wanted to be a noble man.
You were mad because you couldn't be one!
You hated your mother because of that!
You're jealous because I can smile?
Why did you lie to me?
Why did you make me trust you?
You're right.
I was angry because I couldn't be a noble man.
I was jealous of my brother.
I despised and was ashamed of my mother,
who is a gisaeng.
But...
...is that so wrong?
Wanting to become a noble man,
is that really so wrong?
Do you want more drinks?
Didn't they hire dirge singers here?
I don't hear any dirge.
To tell the truth, they found a young girl...
...but she refused to cry.
-A young girl? -Yes.
-You rotten girl! -You fool!
You're a dirge singer! Why don't you mourn?
I'm not a dirge singer!
We have to mourn because of you!
I know!
Just mourn and get lost!
I'm not a dirge singer!
Stop that! What are you doing?
What on earth are you doing?
Goodness. What's going on?
No one is speaking up but everyone is gossiping about the chief mourner.
In any case, even if he's a fool,
he must remain in charge until this is over.
What will you do once the funeral is over?
When it's over,
I'm going to gather the family elders...
...and find an appropriate boy to adopt.
Until then, just worry about sending Gyeongpil off to heaven.
Yes, sir.
Just say, "Here you go! I'll cry for you this once!"
And do it.
Why make your life so difficult?
Your mother said...
...she was scared that if she cried once,
she'd have to do it for life.
Know why your mother became a mourner?
Because my grandmother was a dirge singer.
It's because of you.
It was all because of you.
She refused to be a dirge singer.
She was so stubborn.
She ran away to a gisaeng house.
It wasn't much different there.
They just smile and sing for men.
She must have been sick of her life.
That's why she left with your father.
The heavens were so cruel.
After your father passed away,
she found out that she was pregnant.
She began to mourn so she could feed you.
She only did it because she had you.
She told me this once.
If she'd remained in the gisaeng house,
she would've just sold smiles to men.
As a dirge singer,
she can't smile herself...
...but at least she can help the deceased leave this world smiling.
She said it's better that way.
You didn't know that, right?
Daughters never know how their mothers feel.
Gobdan.
Mom!
Are you feeling all right now?
Listen carefully.
Get up!
Hurry up and mourn!
If you don't cry, we'll drag your mother here!
Are you even sad?
You noble folks are so strange.
Crying is nothing.
Why can't you do it yourself?
How dare you?
You rotten girl!
What are you talking about?
I feel sorry for him.
No one sheds real tears for him.
No one...
...is sincerely crying for him.
I'm going to cry for him.
You've lost a son,
your eldest son of the head family...
...but you don't know how to shed real tears.
I pity you so I'm going to cry.
Also...
...I'm crying for that man.
No one recognizes him.
But...
...he said he's finally recognized.
This is for him.
Mom.
It's hard for the dead to leave this world.
Dirge singers light the way for them with tears.
When your eyes smile but your voice cries,
that's a genuine cry.
You must do...
...as I told you.
She has such a strong cry.
She should be good on the way to the grave tomorrow.
Mom!
Mom, I'm here. Get up.
Mom!
Mom, open your eyes.
Mom said not to tell anyone...
...that you mourn.
What?
She said to never to tell.
She said you can't be a dirge singer.
Mom!
Mom, wake up.
Get up.
Open your eyes, Mom.
Mom!
Mom, get up.
Mom, please wake up.
Mom!
Get up, Mom.
Mom!
Mom, open your eyes.
Give this to me.
Give it to me.
I've been using that.
-I'll get a new one for you. -No.
It has to be this one.
Is something the matter?
You always have this in your hand.
Even on that day.
Mom!
Even on the day...
...you left me there.
Mom!
I waited.
You said you'd return after 100 nights.
I hated you for leaving me there alone.
After 100 days had passed,
people said...
...I was born out of wedlock.
I had one wish...
...during those long 100 nights.
It was to smile...
...together with you.
To...
To call you my mother.
Now I remember.
I remember what I've wanted to do.
What I've always wanted.
You didn't abandon me.
It was the only choice you had.
This fan.
It was bought for you...
...at the markets.
For you.
I bought it for you.
Madam!
What's the matter?
Let go.
Don't be like this.
Let go of me.
Everyone's here.
Let's go.
Are you really going to mourn?
Those who are truly sad are meant to mourn.
Let's go.
We're late.
Alright.
Wait!
How dare you?
You crazy fool!
Stop this right now!
You rotten fool!
A noble man cannot mourn!
It's no wonder he's of low birth!
Did you say that someone...
...who is truly sad must mourn?
Yes.
Then do you see anyone here...
...who will mourn sincerely?
You're putting our family to shame!
Get him out of here right now! Right now!
Get him out of here!
Madam!
Will you cry...
...for my brother?
Elders,
will you cry?
You low-born!
You care for the family?
It will put your nobility to shame?
If you can't cry because of that,
then who will shed real tears...
...for my brother?
He's the trusted eldest son of the family!
Then there must be...
...at least one person...
...who will mourn sincerely for him.
Then, do you know how to cry for the deceased?
Do you know how to mourn?
I've lived...
...my entire life born out of wedlock.
I was always jealous of my brother.
I wanted to take his position.
I didn't even...
...feel grief over his death.
But...
...now I...
I will mourn...
...for my brother's death.
I will be...
...the companion on his journey.
Am I not qualified?
♪ Fret for what?
♪ Get irritated for what?
♪ Life is but a dream
♪ So I bet you can't help but have fun
Did Mom cry on the day Grandma passed?
Right now,
I think I'm crying.