What kind of trouble will there be?
He is His Majesty's son and my son as well.
He is the blood of the King,
and he is the child of the living Queen.
So what kind of trouble could this cause?
Please tell me, Lord Jo.
What reason prohibits...
Bang Seok from becoming Crown Prince?
Tell me right now.
What do you think, Master Sambong?
Who should become the Crown Prince?
Do you want to make Bang Won become the Crown Prince as well?
Do you want to repay him for saving your life last time?
Now that I know what you both want,
I will do as you wish.
Yes, please do so.
That will be good for you to spread your wings,
Master Sambong.
Princes who are already grown-up...
will not accept your ideas easily.
It will be better to have the young prince as the Crown Prince...
and teach him one by one.
Then your ideal will spread...
all over the country, Master Sambong.
Do you not think so?
You should forget Bang Won.
His Majesty...
has forgotten him as well.
- Go and get a nurse. - Yes, ma'am.
- Hurry, go! - Yes.
- What happened? - Our son has been off for a few days.
He has not been playing, and he just keeps crying.
I am worried, my dear.
Our last child went through the same thing.
You should not worry. He will be fine.
My baby!
Bang Won! Are you in there?
Bang Won!
Yes.
What is going on?
Have you heard the news?
My father told me...
the Crown Prince has already been decided.
What?
The Crown Prince has been decided already?
Yes. Do you know who it is?
It is Bang Seok, the kid.
What? Bang Seok?
Yes.
Let us go to the brothers.
It is already decided that Bang Seok is the Crown Prince.
What are you going to do?
I am going to meet him to see if he has any plans, just in case.
That is not surprising. You did not have to hurry here to tell me.
What?
Since all of us were abandoned,
it is obvious for him to choose...
between Bang Seok and Bang Beon.
Bang Gan.
There is nothing we can do about it.
His Majesty made the decision.
So are you just going to keep drinking?
We have to at least protest the decision.
That is useless.
(Lee Bang Ui, Lee Seong Gye's third son)
He will not listen to us.
Just stop.
Let us have a drink!
Bang Ui!
Then has he met the other brothers?
Yes, he has.
Bang Gwa is the only one left now.
He must do something to help.
(Lady Kim, Lee Bang Gwa's wife)
I wonder.
He is the least ambitious.
I am not sure if he will act up.
Think about it.
Our eldest brother must be Crown Prince.
If not him, you, as the second son.
I am not cut out to be a king.
Bang Gwa, this is not something you can turn down.
This is for our late mother as well.
If she were alive, she would be Queen.
Do you not see that?
Bang Gwa.
Say something!
Bang Gwa!
Here you are.
What is the great Ha Ryun...
doing in a place like this?
You are in-laws with the new King.
What business would you have here?
I am here to discuss something.
It concerns my second daughter's husband.
The man...
you said had the face of one who would become great in the future.
Do you remember?
Of course I do.
How could I forget such a face?
But what is the matter?
I had my hopes up,
but he decided to make his youngest son the Crown Prince.
Do you know of a way to overturn this?
I am not sure.
Is there no way?
Many men in court...
believe my son-in-law should be the next king.
Is there still no way?
What moves the King...
are not the officials who bow on the Palace floor and yell.
It is...
the person who whispers in his ear.
All this is most likely her idea.
She will have carefully planned every detail.
To move the heart of the lonely King.
He works with thousands of men to achieve a great cause,
but once he reaches his goal,
he suddenly becomes an outcast.
The throne has enough space for just one man.
The lonely King...
gave his beloved Queen a present.
The name of the Crown Prince.
Going against this will cause you a great disaster.
Then should we sit and do nothing?
For how long?
Does he stand a chance in the future?
Who am I to say that?
I am no fortune-teller.
Very well, then.
I will visit you again.
I must have you brought back to court.
I need you to be close to me.
I thank you for the offer but I refuse.
I am determined to remain a loyal vassal...
of Goryeo.
A man of noble birth should not serve two kings...
Did he have to leave while I was still talking?
I will wait for your next visit.
Uncle.
Your Highness.
Why are you here?
Uncle. Speak to me freely as before.
I am not yet officially a prince.
I cannot do that.
The moment your father became King,
you have become a prince.
Uncle.
What is the matter?
I am here because I heard you decided on a Crown Prince.
Uncle.
I will get my eldest brother.
It will all change when the eldest son returns.
I will convince Bang Woo to uphold the new dynasty.
Please wait until then.
Your Highness.
It has already been decided.
No. He has not yet handed over a royal edict!
Earn me the time I need.
You are capable of that.
Are you not in control of the court?
Why will you not say anything?
Do you agree with my father as well?
Do you accept young Bang Seok as Crown Prince?
Yes.
I already...
consider the youngest prince...
as the heir.
Uncle.
I apologize.
Goodbye.
Uncle.
Uncle!
Bang Won!
Will you give up now?
I cannot give up. I will not!
(Lee Seong Gye's residence in Gaegyeong)
I must speak with my mother.
Bang Won.
You cannot enter.
- I will enter. - I apologize.
- Please stop! - Then cut me down!
Do as you wish.
I am already as good as dead.
Bang Won.
Why are you all here?
(Bang Seok, Bang Won's half brother)
We are staying here.
Here?
How long have you been here for?
Quite a while now.
Since Father...
I mean...
Since a few days after His Majesty fell from his horse.
I see.
So he accepted you. He took you in.
What are you doing here?
Mother.
How did you get in?
Were you not stopped?
Is that what you want?
Not only Father...
But did you also abandon me as well?
Let us talk inside.
What do you want?
You sound so cold.
Just like Father.
I asked, "What do you want?"
What happened?
Why are my half-siblings here?
How did Bang Seok become Crown Prince?
Mother.
I trusted you.
I trusted that you would advocate for me as I waited.
But did you...
bring my siblings...
to replace me right after I was cast out?
Did you make sure that Father only saw them?
Is that how...
you made Bang Seok the Crown Prince?
Yes. You are right.
How could you do this?
It is because I am a mother.
A mother...
will stop at nothing for the children...
she gave birth to.
No, that is what she must do.
You have children, so you must know.
Opening up a path for a child's future...
is the duty of all mothers.
All I did was fulfill my duty.
If your mother were alive,
she would have done the same thing.
But unfortunately, she has already passed away.
That is why you and your brothers were disowned.
No matter how grown a child is,
this is what happens if he does not have a mother to watch over him.
Especially in the Royal Family where hierarchy is everything.
If you understand, leave.
Why? Do you have more to say?
I...
I truly believed in you.
If so, you were being foolish.
Do not hate me. Blame yourself.
Or you can blame your mother, who passed away early.
What are you doing?
In whose presence do you dare cause a scene?
Who?
It is in the presence of my stepmother who deceived me...
and trampled on my sincerity.
In front of the evil woman who stole...
my mother's position as Queen...
and my brother's position as Crown Prince.
What?
Is there anyone outside?
Yes, Your Highness.
Go and bring the guards.
I will punish him under the law!
The law?
Did you just say "law?"
How could a woman with no conscience...
dare to even mention the law?
Right. Keep going.
Continue insulting the Queen of this nation!
What did you say? What?
Right. Come closer.
Come closer and strangle me.
Suppress me until your anger subsides.
That is right. More.
No!
Step back! You must not do this!
My dear!
Please let him go, My Queen.
Please forgive him. I beg of you in his place.
I beg of you.
Please be merciful, Your Highness.
He is not sane...
due to the shock of being disowned by His Majesty.
He is nothing more...
than a poor, pathetic man.
He cannot do anything.
So please...
Please let him go.
Please remember how...
he protected you and the Crown Prince...
from Choi Yeong's armies as you climbed through the mountains.
Please do not kill him.
I am begging you.
Please do not kill him, My Queen.
Okay.
You are a little better than he is.
You are alive thanks to your wife.
Kick them out immediately!
Yes, Your Highness.
Let go!
Thank you.
Thank you for your boundless generosity.
My dear.
What are you doing here?
Why are you so enraged? What is wrong with it?
Is it because you believe your position was taken from you?
Do not use the excuse that you are just looking out for your brothers.
I know you.
You are already blinded with anger.
That is why you were able to kill Master Poeun.
Get out of here at once!
I will not forget.
I will remember everything.
(Lady Min, Lee Bang Won's wife)
You should not forget either.
Never.
Mother.
Father. What is going on?
Father!
Father.
My brother has died.
I thought he was sleeping, but he was dead.
This is not the first time.
What is going on?
How could they lose all three sons like this?
My son!
My baby!
As a founding contributor of this nation, Jo Jun will be appointed as...
chancellor of the State Chancellery and henceforth known as Count Pyongyang.
Jeong Do Jeon will be appointed as...
senior second-rank assistant chancellor of the State Chancellery,
commander of the Royal Guard,
and henceforth known as Count Bonghwa.
We will install Lady Kang, the King's wife, as the Queen...
and name her Royal Consort Hyun.
We will grant official ranks...
to her parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.
We will elevate her hometown, Gokju County,
to Goksan-do.
We will install Grand Prince Uian, Lee Bang Seok, as the Crown Prince.
We install the firstborn Lee Bang Woo as Grand Prince Jinan,
the second son Lee Bang Gwa as Grand Prince Youngan,
the third son Lee Bang Ui as Grand Prince Ikan,
the fourth son Lee Bang Gan as Grand Prince Hoian,
and the fifth son Lee Bang Won as Grand Prince Jeongan.
My lovely son.
You must be suffocating.
You must be so cold.
You met a bad mother.
You must be so bitter.
My baby!
Yes.
- Yes, my Lord. - Yes.
My lovely son.
My proud son.
Your Highness.
Yes, tell me.
What if the other brothers get mad at me?
Crown Prince.
Yes, Your Highness.
As long as I am here, you have nothing to worry about.
I will...
protect you until the end.
Do you understand?
Yes, Your Highness.
Your Majesty.
Father.
Welcome, Queen.
Welcome, Crown Prince.
- Welcome, Your Highness. - Welcome. Your Highness.
I cannot express how happy I am to see all the ministers of the Royal Court...
here to welcome us.
You should be taking care of the country.
I feel like I am causing trouble to you.
Please do not say such a thing.
Welcoming Your Highnesses...
is the most important matter.
Seeing Your Majesty welcoming us out here in person...
makes me feel like someone precious.
You are indeed precious.
No one is more precious to me than you, my Queen.
I am honored.
Let us go inside.
Yes, Your Majesty.
It is the Queen's world now.
Even His Majesty waited for her standing outside the palace.
Then who will be able to challenge the power of Her Highness?
You are right.
She had His Majesty walk in front of her...
and walked hand-in-hand with the Crown Prince.
Seeing it makes me think that...
the current King and the next King are all under her control.
She is really great at politics.
You should...
lay low for a while.
Her Highness will keep being wary of Grand Prince Jeongan.
(Grand Prince Jeongan, royal name of Prince Lee Bang Won)
Grand Prince Jeongan was the closest...
to becoming the Crown Prince.
She will keep watching your family,
as it is...
the pillar of hope for Grand Prince Jeongan.
From now on,
we have to lay low...
and only think of staying alive.
We should not rub Her Highness the wrong way.
Otherwise, we might be in big trouble.
Do you understand?
Yes, I understand.
You must keep this in mind as well.
Whoever you meet, never talk about politics.
Especially keep your mouth shut about the Crown Prince installment.
If Her Highness hears anyone complain about it,
you will be charged with high treason.
Do you understand?
- Yes, Father. - Yes, Father.
To add to the pain, they even lost a child.
With what hope is she to go on living?
The poor thing.
Is your sister back from the mountain?
I checked a while ago, and she was not back yet.
She is still up there?
Yes.
She just buried a child.
She will not find it easy to come home.
I think...
she is barely finding the wits to return home.
Are you not tired?
Not at all.
Why are you so light?
You gave your heart and soul to the kids.
Now, you are left with just a shell.
Do you not resent me?
Why would I?
You did nothing wrong.
Do not even say such a thing.
I resent myself.
I hate myself so much.
My dear.
Dear husband...
How am I to live now?
I miss him so much already.
I miss him so much.
It is driving me insane.
I do not believe it.
I am now Queen.
And my son Bang Seok...
is Crown Prince.
I am so happy I am almost afraid.
Am I allowed to revel in the good news?
Do not be afraid and enjoy it.
This is your share of the glory.
Is it really?
Do I deserve all this?
Of course you do.
You contributed the most to my great cause.
If I had not met you,
I would not have accomplished anything.
I went from a general on the border...
to a politician in the Capital...
solely thanks to you.
Without your help,
I would have...
become prey to my political enemies.
Your Majesty.
We got here together, hand-in-hand.
Half of the new dynasty belongs to you,
so enjoy the perks with pride.
Your Majesty.
Then can you...
grant me just one more wish?
Of course I can. Tell me what it is.
Why do you hesitate? You may speak.
Yes, I will.
I apologize for such a request but...
Now...
Please forgive Bang Won.
By now, he will have realized his place.
So now...
do forgive him.
I am aware that it will not be easy.
But for my sake,
please consider it.
I do not want people to say that...
since the stepmother came to power, the sons of the first wife...
were all pushed aside.
Your Majesty. With your grace,
my son was made Crown Prince.
Like you said, I have nothing to fear now.
So for the sake of your late first wife,
let me take in your older sons.
Your Majesty.
(Lee Seong Gye's residence in Gaegyeong)
You should calm down now.
(Lee Seong Gye's residence in Gaegyeong)
You will soon enter the Palace.
Her Highness, the Queen, said...
you will soon be appointed Crown Princess.
We are married.
How could they appoint the Crown Prince,
but leave me out?
They just had to add a few more words to the royal edict.
Was that so difficult?
Well...
All this...
is because I come from a minor family.
The great Queen...
does not consider me worthy.
Tell me, sister.
(Grand Prince Muan, Lee Bang Beon, Bang Won's half brother)
I am older, but why was Bang Seok made Crown Prince?
Our mother explained that already.
You cannot be Crown Prince because you married a Goryeo royal.
Was that marriage my idea?
I married the woman Mother chose.
So why should I lose out on becoming Crown Prince?
What did I do wrong?
That is enough.
What can you do about what has already been decided?
This is not fair.
I am older, so why should it be Bang Seok?
Why him when he is not at all better than me?
Bang Beon.
Grand Prince Muan!
A family turned nation.
(A family becomes a nation)
A family has become a nation.
The family that was friendly and close...
turns into enemies, one by one.
Darn these mosquitoes.
When will he come and get me?
There are many vacancies...
in the various offices of the Six Ministries.
I apologize to inform you that...
a great number of officials...
resigned from office stating...
they wish to remain loyal to Goryeo.
Your Majesty.
Grant me permission...
to persuade them to return to office.
More than ever before, we need...
experienced officials who know what to do.
Do as you wish.
If any one of them changes their minds,
I will welcome them back.
Please lead the way and convince them to return.
I will do my best, Your Majesty.
Then I will take my leave.
Just a moment.
Yes, Your Majesty.
Grand Prince Jeongan.
How is he doing?
He...
remains at home and does not speak.
Why do you ask?
Do you have a message for him?
No, I do not.
You may go.
Yes, Your Majesty.
My Lady. We are in trouble.
What is the problem?
Her Highness, the Queen, is waiting outside.
What?
Welcome, Your Highness.
What brings you here?
I have something to give you.
May I come inside?
Yes, of course. Come inside.
(The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won)
Your Majesty, you must not alienate the princes.
Do you forgive us?
Grand Prince Jeongan. You have contributed a great deal.
For that, you will be given a House Guard of 500 soldiers.
Will you do whatever I order you to?
How far will you obey me?
This is not the time.
The number of your army is not enough.
Why have you become like this?
Mother said that I must never return to Gaegyeong.
Why did you fall for such an obvious scheme?
Why?